Holidays Part 2

So I moved to Bushwick, Brooklyn about 2 weeks ago and it's already been a pretty wild time. I'm living with 4 other random people in the McKibbin Street Lofts and so far they all seem really chill. My one roommate is in fact so chill that he bought me a ticket to the event below. 

Thanks Pat. According to Bushwick Daily it should be a pretty good time. Check their Ultimate New Years Eve guide if your still looking for something to do tonight in the NYC area.  I've never been to something like this before, especially during New Years Eve. Usually I end up at a house party where I get way too blacked out and end up regretting all my decisions the following year. This New Years will hopefully be different and I'll be able to post some great pics and stories. Probably will still black out though...wish me luck. 

Dumbassia New Years Eve Party 2010

Holidays 2012: Part 1

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Last Night at Irving Plaza

Last night, Delta Spirit headlined a show at Irving Plaza with Jeff the Brotherhood and Fidlar. H.C. and I were in attendance, as I've tried to go to a show for the last month and have failed in all my attempts. The reason being my current living/commuting/job situation kind of sucks right now, but that’s a whole other rant. Anyway, I got out of work late and ran to H.C.’s apartment where I immediately changed out of my work clothes while simultaneously taking large swigs of Sailor Jerry Rum. We managed to get the show just in time to grab some pounders from the bar and watch Fidlar’s set. Fidlar, an LA based surf punk band, has been a favorite of mine for a long time now. For me, they we’re by far the most entertaining act of the night. Despite the smaller crowd, their set brought a lot of high energy and fun to the venue. The cool thing about a band like Fidlar, is that no matter what you’re doing with your life they’re the type of group that can still make you feel like you’re at a drunken party in your friend’s basement. They closed with their hit “Wake, Bake, Skate”, which was a perfect way to leave the crowd in a happy/thirsty for cheap beer type of mood. The other bands played well, and my extreme exhaustion probably attributed to me not enjoying them as much as their opener. Delta Spirit really filled up the place and put on a pretty impressive performance. H.C. and I truly enjoyed one of their die hard fan’s lonely dance moves next to the bar. I unfortunately did not take any photos of the actual show, because we found a very comfortable spot to post up in the back…and my hands were occupied with beverages.           

Post Hurricane NYC Shittiness

A lot of people have posted stuff about Hurricane Sandy (a.k.a Frankenbitch) over the last two weeks. The storm itself absolutely sucked for those like myself who lived in the metropolitan area. Considering all things, I actually made out okay and I hope those who suffered worse damage receive relief in the very near future. I really wish I had the chance to share some photos of the storm while it was in action, but unfortunately due to a lack of electricity, internet, and technological resources I couldn't do much. At one point, a friend and I walked outside in the middle of it so that we could get the full experience. It was pretty cool (and fucking terrifying) to see it all go down. We were also drinking. Trees taller than houses were falling everywhere to the point that you could feel the ground shake. There were really bright flashes in the sky that at first were assumed to be lightning, but really massive electrical sources exploding. We lost power for about a week. At first I kind of enjoyed it, since there was no way for me to go to work that week. The lack of heat and internet, however, became a drag real quick. I ended up doing work on my laptop at the local dive bar for most of those days, because for some reason it was the only establishment that had it's shit together. You know you're life is heading in a downward spiral when the day time staff of a bar as well as the local town drunks know you on a first name basis.  

I ,through my own personally issues, believe this last week to be worse than the one prior. Why you ask? Not only did a snow storm come through and fuck more shit up, but the traffic situation is an absolute nightmare. People who live in this area already know how shitty it is to get from place to place without a natural disaster screwing up everything. Every night I went to Port Authority bus terminal, I would experience crowds that rivaled most concert festivals. There was barely anybody directing or managing the situation. Some legitimately feared a riot would break out on the level where I wait for my the bus (which at minimum was an hour wait). Luckily nothing too bad happened, probably because people were so tired from all the shit they endured recently. Today was supposed to be the day that everything got back to normal, but in reality that would be way too optimistic. This morning a bus broke down in the express lane right in front of the Lincoln tunnel, which resulted in the longest amount of time that I never want to endure on a bus into New York City. An average forty five minute ride (which could be on 25 minutes) turned into a four hour ride. I could have gone to the shore and back twice in that time frame. Lets pray shit gets back to normal tomorrow. 

Another Good Video- "Burn"

I've been a real fan of some of these Canadian bands lately, like Nu Sensae and White Lung. Eating Out has members from both of those bands. What I really like about this video is how it has a throwback feel to what music videos were like in the 90s, and yet it still has a contemporary youthful...thing about it. Drummer, Daniel Pitout, say that 90's VH1 videos, " used to feel more like movies or stories [and are] really nostalgic and beautiful, which I never see much of anymore”. I also really like the high school stereotypes that were incorporated into this and party scenes are always good. 

They Come To Get Us

I first heard this song by The Death Set when I watched the most recent addition to anthology/first person horror movies, V/H/S (I highly recommend it). It was the perfect ending note for this movie, because after being exposed to tons of gruesome imagery you actually kinda felt up-beat when it was all over. The video itself is also really cool. It's filled with tons of chaotic pop-culture icons and does a good job of setting the mood for a good "get amped" type of sound. I honestly watch this video whenever I feel like I'm falling asleep at work and then I wake up right away. Enjoy.

      

So I Got A Job

Yep, for almost a week now I have become a productive member of working society. I got a position as a sales planner at a digital advertising firm. It's not exactly what I was looking to get into (seriously who thought I'd be qualified for sales?) but its a job. At least now I'll be making some cash so I can fund some more projects and shenanigans. Maybe I'll save up enough to move the fuck out of my boring ass hometown and get into some real cool shit. Anyway, there should be some good posts to be expected in the near future, but in the mean time check out me and my friends other blog www.dumbassia-wreckage.blogspot.com. Its got some good stuff on it. I promise.  

     

Some Art I Made

These were two paintings I did about a month ago before my graduation. My teacher, who is a bit eccentric, actually made a poster print out of one of them for herself. Kinda creepy. I felt like posting this now, because I'm at that very depressing point in my life where I'm unemployed and am not sure how much longer I'm going to be able to do this kind of stuff.

In happier news, I won tickets to the Orion Music Festival in Atlantic City off a radio giveaway the other day. This means I get to see bands like Metallica, Suicidal Tendencies, Fucked Up, and Modest Mouse...for free. Thanks WSOU. You guys suck mostly, but sometimes you're okay.   

One Day I Will Live Like This

Real World Syndrome

Real World Syndrome or RWS is the dread that is experienced by soon to be college graduates, who have absolutely no idea what they are doing with their lives. I myself am experiencing RWS and I feel like this is a major characteristic of my generation. Most of my friends have no idea what they're doing after school and if they do it's probably some entry level job that they have no intention of staying at anyways. I feel like our parent's generation had this belief that if you went to college you were basically guaranteed a spot in our work force. Fast forward to now and I can't even get a job at McDonald's. I'm not saying that going to school isn't important, but it's definitely lost some value.

Personally, my biggest fear is that I'm going to get a job that I don't enjoy just to get by and end then up staying there until I'm dead. Or even worse...I do the lame job thing until I can finally get the cool job, but I end up being too old to enjoy the cool aspects of it. So here I am, trying to enjoy every second of what I am told are supposed to be the best years of my life. I haven't even made a proper resume yet. My only question is,why do we do this to ourselves?



(If you don't know what movie this is, get off this website.)



Why does our culture tell you that as soon as college is over the fun part of you is dead. As if when graduation comes your life is either doomed to be stuck in a cubicle from 9-5 or your an unproductive member of society. I have to believe that somewhere out there, there is a job that wants my talents and will pay me to have fun as well. This could also be a pipe dream of mine, but an art major can only hope for the best and expect the worst.That being said, if anybody has heard of such a job please contact me as soon as possible. 

Follow my Twitter: @OhNoNeilio

Photos: Vandalizing Francis Hall

Nissan Video

This is a video I made for the AAF Nissan pitch in NYC. Matt Ryan and I worked really hard on this piece and I'm pretty stoked on the result. Literally stayed up for three days straight painting and editing. It was actually a pretty fun experience. Hope you like it. 

Discussion Time

Matt and I gave a forum discussion today on how globalization and technology are affecting the art world. (Because we both know so much about that) It was supposed to last fifty minutes...It lasted twelve. We asked if anybody had any questions, but of course they didn't. Here is a photo taken by our friend, Deena, of us trying to come up with stuff to talk about.


Thanks Deena.



It Worked for Puff Daddy

So the other day I was asked to come up with an inexpensive advertising idea that would help get students to donate to the senior class gift. I couldn't really think of anything on the spot, so naturally I put off working on this until the day of my deadline. Scrambling for ideas, I searched the internet for other campaigns that encouraged people to participate in stuff. This is what I made.

Admittedly, it was kind of a joke but I liked how simple it was (and how long it took me to make). So this little piece of throwback propaganda was presented to my traffic manager and was not well received. He was actually disgusted that I would even consider presenting him the idea as if I was actually condoning donation based homicide or something. So in retaliation to his response I uploaded it to the internet anyway. Ha.

Some Facts.

(funny)

1. Black paint makes everything look better, but it's the last thing you use.

2. You can only get away with drawing a picture of your girlfriend as her birthday present once.

3. Art teachers are never helpful when it comes to career advice. They will always encourage you to take graduate courses, go to different art programs, and to go spend more money that you don't have. That being said, they are very uselful when it comes to writing fancy sounding letters of recommendation.

4. The messier you are, the more emotional your work appears to be. People like to buy things with emotional invovlement for some reason.

5. Always doodle or sketch something before you buy anything. That way you don't waste cash (that you don't have) on supplies that will be spent on failure.

6. Street art is a crime...which makes it cooler.

7. Art history classes suck.

8. I find that drunk art is good art. My inspiration of choice is whiskey.

9. For whatever reason, people will like the art you made with no effort better than the stuff you spent forever doing.

10. If you don't want to hang your work in your own home, why would anybody else?

Follow me on Twitter @OhNoNeilio.

Event

If you want to see my work, go to this.

Listen To This Band

The Coolest Thing I've Seen Today

I want to do something like this so bad. Working on a new project today. I'll keep you posted. Follow me on Twitter. @OhNoNeilio

Good Job Puma

I don't even wear Puma, but this is some pretty awesome advertising. I got so amped to go out when I first saw this and the tag line is great.

                       

My New Look

Most guys get a new hair cut or buy a new jacket...not me. I go to a bar and find the at least six very drunk men. Then I proceed to hit on one if their girlfriends and walk outside by myself. Thats where my personal transformation happens.

  

Photo

Matt and me working on a street art project.

Found This.

I got pretty stoked yesterday when I found this Gray Matter song. One, because it's an awesome song. Two, It was one of the few songs I sang when I was in a punk band back in high school. I wasn't really a singer or anything, but occasionally our front man's voice would crap out in the middle of a set and I'd have to step in. It's a short song and the lyrics aren't too complicated so it was easy for me to get into it. The crowd always liked when I grabbed the mic, because I had to be extra ridiculous on stage in order to make up for my singing. Anyway, I haven't heard it in forever and I thought I should share it with you. (And by you I mean the four people who actually read this blog)  

Creative Cramming

Procrastination is my greatest foe. No matter what, I always wait until the last minute to start any project. I believe I had a month to start this painting and I didn't even buy the canvas until the night before the deadline. My roommates and I had also just moved into our new apartment (conveniently located above our favorite local bar) so we were a bit distracted from our priorities. 

I have a bit of a ritual when it comes to cramming on creative projects. First I get the supplies together and place them in an area I don't care about messing up. Then I get some drinks that will help kick start my creative process. In this case it was two 40-oz bottles of Magnum. Finally, I grab my stereo an play the loudest, fastest music I own. I was in a classic 80s American hardcore mood, so the bands included Black Flag, MDC, Bad Brains, TSOL, and Minor Threat. The picture above was the result of two hours work. 

A lot of people like this piece, because of the energy it shows or whatever... It actually got chosen as one of my better works to be exhibited in my student show in March. I don't know why I posted this. I guess the reason is that I don't feel the amount of time you put into something makes it better. Some stuff just comes out good.

     

Being an Art Major at a Non-Art School

People often ask me, "Why didn't I attend an art school for college?", and the answer isn't really too complicated. For those who know me, I'm not exactly the most "artsy" person they've met (in some cases I am). I never really felt that I would have fit in well with the unusual crowd that is the stereotypical art school collective. It would have probably been pretty funny had I decided to take that route. Another reason is that my parents are conservative Irish Catholics, who believed a Catholic education was the only option. The final reason being, I wanted to have the typical American college kid dream that I was exposed to with movies like Animal House, Van Wilder, and Old School. The university I attend just so happens to do a very good job of providing me with that lifestyle.

(Mike and Patrick with the robot they made from stolen post office boxes)

It's still kind weird being an art major at a small school, especially since I'm one of the fourteen that go here. I decided to make a list of all the positives and negatives of being an art major at a non-art school. So yeah...

Positives
1. Hands down, you have the easiest class schedule of all time.
2. You never have midterms or finals.
3. Most of your homework consists of doodling.
4. Most of you in-class work consists of talking about your doodling.
5. You actually get to do work that you want to do.
6. Girls think your deep.
7. It is completely acceptable to be intoxicated any night of the week as long as you do it for the sake of artistic inspiration.
8. You and your fellow art majors will create the perfect method of getting away with anything, because the most important lesson you learn as an art major is how to bullshit.
9. Your art professors will have a very good relationship with you. This is due to there being only four of them and they teach all of your classes.
10. You have so much free time that you can participate in any club, sport, or activity that you want.

Negatives
1. People are going to ask you "What do you want to do after college?" and you will respond with complete sincerity "I don't know".
2. Everybody thinks your going to be one of those caricature drawers they see in the park...or homeless.
3. Your parents will call once a week to provide advice on alternative career goals.
4. You probably won't need a text book for most of your classes, but when you do it will be almost as unbelievably expensive as it is unbelievably useless.
5. Even more expensive than the text book is the endless list of highly priced art supplies that conveniently run out of when you need them most.
6. If you haven't caught on by now... you're broke.
7. Everybody assumes for some reason that you do lots of drugs and will constantly ask you for them.
8. Your non-art major guy friends think your "artsy" and will judge you. This will lead to you being ashamed and hiding your art supplies as you walk through campus.
9. Everybody expects you to have every single kind of arts and crafts material on you at all times whenever they need it. The truth being, you occasionally forget to bring writing utensils to class.
10. Because of your weird class schedule, your nights become your days.
11. The nude models that you get to sketch are never attractive.
12. With all the free time you have, you will start to question if it was really the smartest decision to become an art major.
13. You and your fellow art majors will ask each other at least once a month "What are we going to do with our lives?"
14. You are soooooo broke. (That needed to be repeated)

Well hopefully this gave you some insight into my lifestyle. Follow me on twitter at @OhNoNeilio.

Sick Skate Video

I saw this video that Booooooom posted and immediately got stoked to go skateboarding. Unfortunately I currently live in western New York and it is snowing outside. Despite these factors I'm still really amped up after watching this. The video was made by these guys in Vancouver called the Zenga Bros. Check it out.

Leeside Skateboard Mayhem from Zenga Bros on Vimeo.

Black & Whites

These are some of my black and white photos I did for an assignment a while ago. They're pretty cool and I might put them in my upcoming zine project. I'll post more about that soon.  

Young Dillon's backyard in Jersey.

Shaving Patrick's head.

The Gang hanging at Mike's shore house.

Patrick and Hoyos in the morning.

Garret practicing for our first show.

Typical Lioy. 

Art Stuff.

Some of my paintings that I'll be featuring in the student show in March. I made all these while studying at St. Bonaventure. My teacher encouraged me to be very abstract. 

New Blog.

So I made a new blog to promote my art and other stuff going on. I also got a new twitter. Follow me at @OhNoNeilio.

(Sad me leaving the the Dominican Republic.)