Here are some of the newest pieces I have made. Hope you have a safe and wonderful New Year!
Type Face Wall 2
I recently decided to take my ongoing Type Face portrait series to the walls. Here is the second. These are part of my ongoing body of work involving mixed identity portraits. This time the emphasis is on juxtaposing different languages and typography. Enjoy!
Type Face Wall 1
I recently decided to take my ongoing Type Face portrait series to the walls. Here is the first. These are part of my ongoing body of work involving mixed identity portraits. This time the emphasis is on juxtaposing different languages and typography. Enjoy!
Triplets
Here is another set in my Phase Value series. Enjoy and stay posted for more!
Complex: Honorary Degree
Here is a recent project I did with Complex Online Mag for an article they wrote that looks 10 years back at Kanye West's career since his 'College Dropout' album release. The images were created for an animated digital cover. I love technology for this type of stuff! Here is the raw animation by Robert Hribernick. Big thanks to Art Director Brent Rollins! Also I have attached all the sketches worked on including the ones that didn't make the cut. Enjoy!
The Process...
Wood Works 2
Yesterday I completed the first piece in many to come using 3D objects with paint marks to render a composition. It left me with more "what ifs" and a new list of possibilities. So far I am seeing this new work as a prototype for a monumental structure. I need to explore more wood and material options. The work is inspired by portraiture, typography, graffiti, design, and especially topography. The process as shown in the photos posted have helped me to become less attached to images I make. There is an important transformation that happens and each stage offers a problem. Solving it involves re-arranging a reference point at every single stage in the process. Starting from a sketch of a randomly selected internet search image, to a larger scale painting, and the final image, the image is constantly changing and unexpected. I intentionally use internet searches. We live in a digital age and something tells me I need to be exploring that, especially during the reference process. Stay tuned as more thoughts and process develop about this series. Thanks.
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Source: http://samrodriguezart.com
Work In Progress.
It's been a pretty busy fall and end of summer. Luckily though I have been able to manage between family and work really well thanks to the new studio space. I still have yet to do a full post about the recent installation over at Oakland Museum of CA because I need to get proper photos.
The good news is I have had to jump right into new projects. The first is a show I'm working on for December of this year at Cukui. The pieces will be what I call a visual playlist. Basically it's a series of portraits dedicated to international and local musicians. Public Meridian, a San Francisco based brand that makes custom bracelets will be creating pieces that coincide with each painting. It should be interesting to see how they translate the music and my art into bracelets. I am most inspired by music when it comes to art, and various types at that. Of course it's really challenging to distill so many great musicians into a small handful to be painted so we voted on some of our favorites based on their international, and local impact, while being conscious of Cukui brand and their following. Since this series can be expanded on, we will most likely continue afterwards.
Meanwhile, I am also working on releasing more prints with 1xrun as our first release was a success. I am also going to be doing a Japanese pop series with Yamamoto Industries that will be produced as iphone cases and limited edition prints.
Lastly, when this is all said and done, my goal is to begin a new series of pieces. They will still involve bits of typography, hybrid identity, and topography but rather than painting the dissection as I have done in the past I would like to actually cut through the surface using power tools and other building materials. I think this will open up many more possibilities on how to think about the topic.
Here are some in progress pics.
Enjoy!
Recent Experiments
I recently completed this painting based on a sketch style that I've been wanting to develop. The portrait is still based on my original intent of experimentation using the face as a platform to combine different visual cues in identity. For me this piece was a breakthrough because I have finally come full circle in my artistic process since I included my experience acquired both in graffiti and at the academy. This was done through the use of material such as spray paint, streaks, markers, and abstract lettering which I incorporated through the face and head piece. For me, the fusion shown in this portrait is less about ethnicity, or culture but more about a combination of artistic time periods, expressions and techniques. The process itself involved so many different ingredients. I think I've finally found something that shows a true sync between my hand and mind.
