GREAT OPENING!

Thanks to all who came down for the big opening of A Very Robot Christmas.  If you weren't able to make it the show will be up until Sat Jan 4th. 

 

A nice selection of art and sculpture.

My brother in robots Eric Joyner.

Showing the finer points of scary robot sculpting to my friend Wyatt.

 

Late into the night.

I want to thank Eric Minh Swenson, Frank Schaefer, and Mike Longo for the photographs.

JUST A FEW MORE DAYS!

Hanging the show tomorrow!  Putting the last few pieces of hanging hardware on the backs of paintings, putting a final coat of paint on the platform for the Revenge-Bot.  All in final preparation for a Very Robot Christmas.   Also all of the art will be up and available in the shop section of my new website, check out the store here.  I look forward to seeing you all on Friday.

THE NEW IMPROVED DAVE PRESSLER ART WEBSITE!

The times there are a changing!   So many new devices, so many outdated codes and plug-ins.  I needed a new website.   I went to Square Space an amazing web building site that makes all of the updating chores easy, and constantly keeps your site up to date with all devices.  The new format is very clean and easy to navigate.   I'm adding more new things ever week.  The new site will have more art to check out, but the blog will stay the same.  http://www.davepresslerart.com/

POST IT SHOW 9 AT GR2!

This Saturday at Giant Robot Gallery GR2 is the Post It 9 Show.  All art is done on classic 3x3 Post It Notes. 

 

I have 10 pieces of Post It art in the show and they have so many other artists.  A great warm up for the following Sat the 14th when A Very Robot Christmas opens.  See you at GR2 this Sat!

NEW ART FOR DECEMBER SHOW!

We are just weeks away from the opening of "A Very Robot Christmas" Sat Dec 14th through Jan 4th.  Here's a couple new pieces that will be there.  Flying Jimmy The Politeness Robot, one of two Advertisements for imaginary robots.  A big 2' X 4' panel painted in acrylic.  

"Machines Are Perfect"  Antique paper on wood panel and acrylic paint.  The 100 Robots book will be available, the Artist Statement Robot block prints will be available, along with the remaining 100 Robots original pen and ink drawings. Sat the 14th the gallery will be open from 2pm to 5pm for daytime viewing, then from 7pm to 11pm for the night time crowd.  I will be there all day, I look forward to seeing each and everyone of you!

100 ROBOTS NOW AN E-BOOK!

100 Robots my gallery show from last Dec has been turned into a nifty e-book that you can download and enjoy.  Maybe you purchased one of the drawings? 

If you weren't able to make it to the show last year now you can have the entire gallery experience right there on you very own device.  Avoid the crowds and cheep wine! Get it here through Blurb books.

A VERY ROBOT CHRISTMAS!

The holidays are on there way!  My next big art show pop-up shop extravaganza will be opening Sat December 14th at the Red Pipe Gallery in Chinatown.  Lots of original art, prints and sculptures just in time for the gift giving season.

 

 The show poster above will be available as an open edition UV printed 11"X17" poster on heavy paper.  The process that I used to create the image is pencil and ink on paper scanned in to Photoshop then digitally colored.   The old comic anthologies, or special issues always had a style that I'm still attracted to.  I'll drop some more sneak peeks soon.

GOING TO SPACE!

So my wife Lisa gave me a wonderful gift for my birthday this year.  Several years ago we were talking about the future and technology, I said if in my lifetime any kind of tourist space travel becomes a reality that is the one thing I would love to do.  Lisa said she has no interest in going to space, but would gladly send me if it became a reality.   So last May she gave me a ticket to go on Space Ship II on Virgin Galactic.   A more amazing girt I can't imagine.   The most exciting part to me is not just the ultimate trip in the future, but the historical adventure myself and about 700 other people are taking part in.  I've started a separate blog to journal the story: Dave Pressler Going To Space.   As things happen, exciting, mundane or amazing I'll make entries with plenty of pictures since writing is not my favorite thing.  Maybe I will be the second artist in Space after Allan Bean.

BEWITCHING III SHOW!

Stranger Factory art space is proud to present the 3rd year anniversary of our annual Halloween show. Bewitching III the third of an annual invitational group exhibition of new works in the theme and culture of vintage Halloween. The show will feature over 2 dozen local, national, and internationally recognized visual artists and designers.

For the show I wanted to do a piece that was reminiscent of the classic monster creator relationship, with all of it's unmet expectations and misunderstood intentions.  Also ultimately being killed by your own creation.  This piece titled "Betrayed By My Creation" is 12"X16" Acrylic on  wood block.  Drop by the gallery and check it out this weekend.

2 JACKS!

As I have mentioned in other posts occasionally I act in movies.  Acting and improv comedy were two things I did before art took over my life.  The theatrical work and study of improvisation helped me in my character design.  One of those films I was happy to be a part of is 2 Jacks an independent film written and directed by Bernard Rose.  2 Jacks is getting a North American release starting  Oct 18th.  It will also be screening at the San Diego Film Festival this Friday Oct 4th.

I will be there for the Q & A afterwards.  A list of the cities and theaters were it will be opening.

CITY                            THEATRE
1. Lancaster                   Zoetropolis
2. Scottsdale                  Harkins
3. New York                  Cinema Village
4. Los Angeles               Downtown Independent
5. San Diego                  Digital Gym
6. Fort Lauderdale         Cinema Paradiso
7. Philadelphia               Tin Angel Screening Room
8. Stroudsburg                Living Room Theater
9. Chicago                      Facets Theater
10. Gloucester, MA        Cape Anne Community Cinema
11. Columbia, MO          Ragtag Cinema
12. Hollywood, CA         Arena

Here is nice review from the Raindance Film Festival Also the trailer and behind the scenes moviette.  Check this out if you get a chance, hope to see you in San Diego!

DECEMBER SOLO SHOW!

Pleased to announce that I'm preparing for a new solo art show this Dec in China Town at the Red Pipe Gallery.  The Revenge - Bot will be there, having not been seen since last years "100 Robots Show". More info and art sneak peeks will be posted in the coming months. 

MUSIC TO MY EARS!

TAG Toy Art Gallery is hosting the art show Music To My Ears, curated by the amazing Super Cooper Berella.  With part of the sales going to 2 charities Book Bridge and Champs. 

The piece I have made for the show "Rocking Out With My Grandmaphone" 9"X12" on board.

 

I have participated in this show for the past 3 years and every time it's a blast.  Hope to see you there!

ECONOMICS OF ART THIS SAT IN CHICAGO!

This Sat is the opening of the Economics Of Art 2013 Group Show at Vertical Gallery in Chicago.

You can go see the painting "Sometimes I Stand And Stare"  in person and probably have a plastic glass of wine!  Also, I have uploaded three new prints to Thumbtack Press including the two new pieces for this show.

NEW PAINTINGS NEW SHOW!

Two new paintings will be debuting at Vertical Gallery in Chicago this Aug 3rd.  The two pieces are titled "Sometimes I Stand And Stare" and "Four Robots Who Just Heard A Joke They Don't Understand".  The larger of the two Stand and Stare is a further exploration of clouds, sunset color pallets and imaginary skies.  

Earlier in the process I was just blocking out the color shapes of the clouds.   Then working around to where the sunlight would be emanating, then placing the robot.

 The concept for the show is interesting:

Vertical Gallery and Thumbtack Press are partnering together to produce an exciting group show at Vertical Gallery (1016 N Western Ave., Chicago). The exhibition, “The Economics of Art 2013” August 3 – 31, comes from the incredible proliferation of mediums that art is available on today. It's truly a unique moment in the history of the economics of art, so the show will not only explore the various forms art can take, but how those forms affect value. It will open the conversation for understanding the value of original work, hand-painted multiples, editioned work, and open edition prints. For the new collector, entering this new art market can be a confusing experience, and for the experienced collector, there are numerous opinions.

This exhibition will feature essays on the topic of art value in 2013 along with 12 artists showing their work in all the mediums. We'll allow the collector to purchase their work as the original, edition, or open edition.  

And of course "Four Robots Who Just Heard A Joke They Don't Understand" another study of robotic stupidity.  These will also be released as high quality prints at the gallery.  Right now I'm not sure if my schedule will permit me to be there, but I'm always looking for a good excuse to go to Chicago.

ANTHONY AUSGANG BOMBCAT!

The new release of the Anthony Ausgang "Bomb Cat" figure by Munky King is very exciting in many ways.   Anthony and I first started working on this way back in 2001.  I was just starting to get into vinyl character sculpting, I really wanted to do it but didn't have any contacts.  Anthony was a good friend and I loved his character work, I thought one of the cats would make a great vinyl figure, at the time I was just talking about producing them in resin that was all we were capable of then.

I found some pictures of the work in progress.  Wow, talk about a time warp.  The mirror was set up for the old-school technique for sculpting two sides and making them relatively symmetrical.  Also the little color TV with the illegal cable hook up.   I can tell it was a while ago I'm not wearing glasses yet.  That was my little studio in my 2 bedroom Apartment on Edinburgh Ave in the Fairfax area.  Many of my early creating happened in that back room, plus I had quite a parade of prestigious artist drop by, Camille Rose Garcia, Luke Chueh, Brendan Monroe, Long Gone John, Fawn Gehweiler, Craig Larotonda, Jack Howe, Pam Roberts, it was quite the Grand Central Station of LA Pop artists

The clay I was using was not sulphur free it took me a while to discover the NSP that I use today.

Munky King did some nice cleaning up of the old sculpt there were some things that were not as tight as I remembered, but I did want to keep the original as true as possible.  Can't wait to see it in person.

TR!CKSTER COMIC-CON NEXT WEEK!

Hey there after a breif absence I'm back.  Next week I will be at Comic Con and participating in a couple of Symposiums at Tr!ckster also in San Diego.  At Comic Con I don't have any scheduled signings but will be taking in all of the sight sounds and smells.  Munkey King will be releasing two new vinyl creations Doktor A's  "Mr Pumfrey and His Astounding Mechanised Perambulator"    Sculpted by myself the the amazing Julie B of Pretty in Plastic.   If that was'nt quite enough cool stuff from MK they are also releasing "Bomb Cat by Anthony Ausgang"  another project I had the pleasure of sculpting.  

The two symposiums I'll be participating in will be "Art In The 3rd Dimension" making creator owned toys, and Creative Endurance: Staying the Course to Project Completion. I'll be tweeting my locations and events next week as they happen, if you don't already follow me on Twitter.  It should all be a blast and I look forward to seeing you there!

GEEK MAGAZINE!

 

Great interview this month in Geek Magazine.  I had a great time talking with Jeff Bond, check it out.

THE ORANGE SERIES TOMORROW!

The final series of the Artist Statement Robots the Orange Series will be here tomorrow Monday the 17th.  There are 10 of the series left and they will all be available at the Dave Pressler Art Etsy Store.

Some of the statements include; "Ice Cream My Paintings I Paint My Screams" My version of the famous Vincent Van Gogh quote "I Dream My Paintings, I Paint My Dreams".  "I Don't Write I Draw Words" and "Even I Could Paint That".  Buy one for your favorite art student graduate!

NO EMMY'S FOR ROBOT AND MONSTER THIS YEAR!

Well Robot And Monster did not bring home the gold last night.  The best part was getting to hug, laugh and hang with the best animation crew ever!  R&M did pretty well for it first season.  Nominated in two categories at the Annie Awards; Kacey Arnold  for outstanding writing “The Blimp” and Chris Hink for outstanding Editorial achievement.  Then the Daytime Emmy’s for “Outstanding Children’s Animated Program, Jim Schumann Monique Beatty Martin Leeper, Jennifer Ventimilia, Joshua Sternin and the entire Production crew.  And Outstanding Original Song;  Jeff Sudakin and David Tobocman for the “Forgiveness Song”.  Also I am always including out hardworking talented R&M crews in India and New Zealand. Really wonderful work congrats to all!  There's a few more un-aired episodes that will hopefully be on this year, that will give us another try for next year.

THE BLUE SERIES IS HERE!

The latest series of Artist Statement Robots are here.  Let's just call them ASR for now.  The blue series was an interesting double strike method.  I was trying to find the right color for the Robot, I had a few experemental pieces with the aqua then tried the magenta right over the top.  I like the faux 3-D appearance.  A few of the statements: "Deadlines Are The Mother Of Creativity"  "I Am The Best Artist I Can Afford" "Cartoons Are Not Art"  And a quote from an ex-girlfriend many years ago as she looked around my apartment at my paintings and said: "Who Buys This Stuff?"  A classic.

As always singed and numbered each a hand pressed little gem.  Next Monday June 17th the final "Orange Series" will be available at the Etsy store DavePresslerArt.

THE DAVE PRESSLER ART ETSY STORE IS NOW OPEN!

The new Dave Pressler Art Etsy store is officially open!  I'm excited to have a new venue for getting my art out there to collectors.

Etsy is a trusted brand, and more and more artists I know are using it as a successful outlet.  The first art series I am making available are the "Artist Statement Robot Block Prints" Three different color ways are being produced, the first one is the magenta series, 12 pieces in all the first one was the "Like This But Better" piece that sold last night at the Get Art Project Angel Food fundraiser.  So now there's 11.  Next Monday the 10th I will be releasing the Blue Series, with a double print robot in Aqua And Hot Magenta that gives it a faux 3-D appearance.  The first of the series "Deadlines Are The Mother Of Creativity" This statement is definitely something I believe in.   Monday the 17th I will release the Orange Series.

My Etsy store will also be the place to go for original art and various one of a kind collectables and special deals.  This is the greeting banner, you can't miss the stupid robot, he works in the back storage room.
Hope to see you there!

THE FIRST TWO PRINTS!

The first two of the hand made block prints will debut at Get Art a Project Angel Food benefit event.
number 1 of 12 of the orange series "Art Is Dumb" and number 1 of 12 of the magenta series "Like This But Better".   The entire series will be available for sale at my new Etsy store, opening Monday June 3rd. 

 At the store will also be the blue series.   36 pieces in all hand pressed and lettered each with it's own statement.  I will also have some original art available at the store.  More news and links this Monday, hope to see you at the Get Art show!

DEVIL ON THE CANVAS!

My new piece for the "Over The Line!" Coen Brothers Tribute show at LTD Gallery.  There are so many Coen Brothers movies to love how do I choose which one to create a robotic tribute.  Barton Fink was always a big favorite, especially when the force him to watch wrestling pictures!
The scene always killed me. 

Also it must translate into some kind of robot thing for me.  Now the complete "Devil On The Canvas" 9"X12" Acrylic on MDF board.

I won't be able to be in Seattle for this one but if you get a chance to go take some pictures I'd love to see the show.  I've been playing with the Vine App.  It's fun, a very creative challenge to see what can be done I believe in a 11 second loop.  This is the "How To Make A Super Sculpey Robot"



I'm interested in getting more people on Vine Love to see more creative loops.  In other exciting news I will be opening my first Etsy store in June!  I'll devote an entire post to the new store and what will be available next week.  The Artist Statement Robot block print set will be available as well as some posters, and original art.  More next week.

NEW PIECE!

 Working on a new piece for the "Over The Line!" Coen Brothers Tribute show at LTD Gallery
Titled "Devil On The Canvas" do you know the movie reference.

PROGRESS ROBOT ART STATEMENT BLOCK PRINTS!

 

The robot art statement block prints are coming along.  Two of the color schemes are done I'm working on the third.  Three color combos, 12 Prints in each series signed and numbered.  The first two of the Magenta and Orange series will be going to "Get Art - A Project Angel Food Event" a cool art happening I am proud to be a part of in support of Project Angel Food and it's mission. The shows theme is Andy Warhol's Silver Factory, which gave me the inspiration to do something in the silk screen block print style.  I'll have more progress pics in the next couple of days, as well as a preview of the two first prints that will be available at the auction.

EMMY NOMINATED ROBOT AND MONSTER!!

 I have been sick the last couple of days and slept late today.  I awoke to my phone blowing up with the news that Robot And Monster was nominated for a Daytime Emmy in the category of Outstanding Children's Animated Program!  I was pleasantly surprised and I feel like it sped up my recuperation a bit.  My show creating partners Josh Sternin and Jen Ventimilia were also nominated for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles!   The crew of R&M was a dream team of creative, fun loving hardworking folks that really a pleasure to come to work everyday.  Also I'm including the overseas teams from India and New Zealand all around the world we were connected by one fun mission.
So congrats to all of you!   Now hopefully we will soon get to see the season finale for the show.

FINISHED PIECE GALLERY 1988!

 This is the finished piece for the Bad Robot Art Experience opening Friday April 26th.  Titled "Number Four Please Step Forward" 24"X7" on wood block.

BAD ROBOT SHOW PAINTING SNEAK PEEK 2!

Pretty much done.  Robot criminal line-up.  7" X 22" on board, actually the board is MDF (Medium Density Fiberboard) in a custom made frame.  Usually I have specific ideas about how big the frame should be so I'll make them myself.   Although I'm not opposed to buying the prefab boxes.

BAD ROBOT SHOW GALLERY 1988!

Gallery 1988 is having a Bad Robot Art Experience Show opening Friday April 26th.  I'll be contributing a painting for the show.

Here is a sneak peek of one third of the painting, big shocker it has robots in it!

I'll show more as it is finished, and hopefully see you at the show.

NEW LIMITED EDITION BLOCK PRINT!

The last block print I made for my "100 Robots Show at Gallery 1988" was such a satisfying hands on experience I'm designing a new block print poster.  Etchpop Labs really helps make it easy, they turn my black and white original art into a wood block ready to print.  Artists statements always make me a bit nuts when I'm asked to come up with one for myself.   In my opinion there's not a lot of deep thought behind my work, I just want to make funny ideas and do my best to translate them into some medium. 

As I was working on one of these I was writing down random thoughts, quotes and sentences.  It would be nice to just make bullet points instead of an entire cohesive paragraph.  Based on that dilemma  we have the statement robot print.  (Hopefully I will have a better title soon.)

 I'll be making around 30 or 40 hand made 8"X10" prints depending on how the print block quality holds up.  Then I'll write a statement on each T-shirt to make them all one of a kind.  As I roll along in the process more sneak peeks will be posted.

HB SHOW OPENING THIS SATURDAY!

Van Eaton Galleries is having a Hanna Barbera tribute show opening this Sat.  I'll be there on the early side so I hope to see you all there.  My piece is title: "The Future Is Not What I Expected"   (Rosie IRL)   9"X12"  Acrylic on wood block.   This would be the reality of a robot maid in my estimation, a bit rusty and not so clever.  

Here's the presale link.