the concrete jungle of zen

'move and the way will open.'

~ zen proverb

the weather is getting nicer, the kids are getting outside... and that now means trips to the skate park... and when one arrives, they do not want to leave... 

watching the kids, many doing the same moves over and over again, i came to a great appreciation of what was going on here... mind - body balance... overcoming fears and trying new things... pushing themselves forward... 

being... 

the rhythmic sounds of wheels rolling, decks grinding, boards jumping... 

as the hours passed, my mind got to wander... both settled and energized by the young people out there who were making efforts - going home with personal triumphs and lessons learned... i got to coach nick through a new move - understanding the physics of skateboarding, i always lamely think that the kids will just be so interested to know that they are applying science at their play... (they like 'mythbusters', i try)... 

we all have things we are afraid of - things that might be looming... but just remember, it is in the practice of doing that we conquer our fears... i don't tell my kids not to be afraid - that is ludicrous... i suggest that they own it - and overcome it... and then rejoice... 

find something you fear - be it a technique or medium - and go for it... and if it all goes amiss, you learned something from that... if there is a tutorial you might want to see, let us know... in fact, you can do so now... 

skateboards and sweatshirts and pads, metal working tools, your mind, whatever you exercise - here's wishing for you something to look back upon with pride at the end of the day... 


and some days it's ok to be pleased with the fact that you just got through it... 

Commission piece!

Hello! Sorry I haven't got to making the videos just yet. Been trying to just get my more important work outta the way before I start making em. I should have time for them in the next few days though.

So other than that I've been getting back into skateboarding. Trying to spend at least 30 min- hour a day skating around. I spent a good 5-6 years skating before I really got into art and have always loved it. Its weird how I approach it now since art really took over my life/work... When I used to skateboard it was always hit or miss when approaching new tricks, constant trial and error. After hours of repetition day in and day out the moves would become second nature to me. But now that I've started again I have a new way of approaching learning tricks.

Once I became serious about art I started really analyzing what it is about my anatomy/lighting/edges that's really messed up. I started looking at my pieces with a critical eye, focusing on my weaknesses most. I'm still looking at each piece I do very critically so that I can move forward. What I find now that I've taken up skateboardin again is that I'm really looking at what works and what doesn't. I'm focusing on the placement of my feet and the amount of force I use for each trick. Now that I have that discipline from forcing myself to improve at art I'm finding that every trick I try is just a series of steps. Analyzing what works and what doesn't. I've been able to pull off things I had so much trouble with before. When I was younger it was always try really hard until I get either extremely frustrated or just really tired. Now I can really take a step back and figure how I can control the motion of the board.

What I'm trying to say is that its really easy to think lazily about something. Its very easy to just keep painting what you know and just shooting in the dark for answers on how to correct problems you're having. But you can cut time in half if you just sit back and really look at what it is you want to be doing. If you're not painting the way you want to paint then look at what it is about the pros you really admire. What skills do they possess that you don't, what might they have a better grasp of, a broader knowledge of. Its up to you to really look at yourself and take steps to fixing these issues. Its all about the fundamentals in art, skateboarding, or whatever it is you wish you were great at. There are steps along the way you gotta take to grow and you have to have the discipline to realize what the next steps are to reaching those goals. I'm nowhere near my goal as an artist, but I can feel that if I keep going on pushing myself I'll make it no problem. Its just a matter of looking at my work with a critical eye and knowing where I wanna take it. Then the only thing left is to sit down and start making moves in that direction!

Heres a commission I did, a little off topic from what I usually do! But I gotta post something on here :D!



Some Metal Church for you as well :D!