UAC x DOPE Couture

Posted in Artwork, Products, UAC Updates with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , on February 4, 2010 by bendey14

“Les modes passent, le style est eternel.”  For all of you that need a French lesson, the translation into English is essentially, “Fashions fade, style is eternal.”

An in-store collaboration between yours truly and DOPE Couture was set in motion last month.  The DOPE Couture HQ down in Indianapolis needed some installations done and I was given the lead by my partner in creative world domination, T. Hakes.

DOPE, the brand of clothing you’ve seen grace the chests of hip-hop leaders and cats with a solid fashion sense, is a potent taste of… well… complete dopeness.  Check ‘em out, you wont be disappointed.

Pics of the work below:

-Bendey

Coke Happiness Machine

Posted in Commercials + Virals, Products with tags , , , , , , , on February 1, 2010 by bendey14

Coca-cola recently released a viral titled the “Happiness Machine” that shows the iconic drink dispenser being installed in what looks like a college library.  If you were wondering, happiness ensues.  A pretty great idea, especially for a viral, although the human hands coming out of the tray at the bottom might have started off pretty creepy.  They were also able to find some Kid Cudi and John Legend look-a-likes at 1:05 and 1:07, lol.

Parkour Motion Reel

Posted in Artwork, Commercials + Virals, Film + Video, Graphic Design, Print with tags , , , , , , on January 28, 2010 by bendey14

A sweet little video that started out as a class project for Singapore design student, Serene Teh, but has slowly turned into an internet sensation.

Nice spin on traditional flip-books.  Can’t wait to see what she does next.

-Bendey

Artist PRO:FILES: Simon Birch

Posted in Artist PRO.FILES, Artwork with tags , , , , , , , on January 25, 2010 by bendey14

Now I’ve never met Simon personally, but instead stumbled across some of his work a while back.  More specifically; his work for the “This Brutal House” exhibit at the 10 Chancery Lane Gallery.  To say I was stunned would be an understatement, and after researching his story, everything became full-circle.  Homeless, drifter, starving, construction worker, cancer-survivor?  He is or has been all of those things, but when everything is said and done… he’s just an artist with a passion that never quits.  Simon was nice to take some time out of planning for his upcoming exhibitions and ongoing paintings to share some insight with The Vivid Underground.  The interview below.

Simon, tell us a little bit about yourself and how “it all began.”
“I live in Hong Kong, just turned 40, not much family but have Armenian heritage.
I was born in England, moved around a bit, ran away in the early 90’s after DJ-ing and promoting rave parties. Traveled round the world on a shoestring and came to Hong Kong in ‘97 broke and homeless. Got a job in construction and was saving money to try to put myself through art school and somehow started selling work. Managed to quit my day job in 2001 and haven’t looked back.”

How did you first become an artist? Any reason why?
“I was born that way. I drew obsessively from an early age, just never had opportunity or encouragement and was always struggling to pay rent. But I’ve been making art my whole life.”
What do you consider your main source of inspiration?
“Everything. People, film, art, theatre, life, love, fear…… In my more conceptual work I think a lot about science fiction and monomyth, or hero myths, the idealism that gets corrupted by civilisation, about the dreams of individuals and the pushes and pulls of the rhythms of institutions. I think about spectacle and wonder, things like circus that are at once wonderful and dark.”
Now I read that you were diagnosed with a rare form of cancer recently. Can > you tell us about it?
“It sucked. But I’m ok now.”
Does it play any role in your work?
“Only in the sense that being so close to death bought me a clarity and understanding, and awareness that I never had before. About what real fear is, about what death is. It freed me from a lot of insecurity and I’ve yet to fully understand the repurcussions in my work. I certainly work a lot harder and more intensely and am a lot more excited about the work.”

You’ve gained international recognition for your paintings, sculptures, film, and photography. Are there any other mediums you’d like to pursue?

“I just want to paint better and I’d like to do more film but it’s restricted by budget quite often. I’m tying to produce a hologram installation right now but it’s crazy money.”
Your painting technique is very distinct.  All though very detailed, your paintings exhibit a sense of “messiness”, what can you tell us about your unique style?
“Painting for me is very spontaneous and intuitive. I photograph the models and work from that, but the final result is nothing like the initial drawing or composition. I really kinda get lost in the process, sometimes they come out clean and other times blurred, sometimes more representational and other times completely abstract. I guess the thing that’s important for me is that I progress and change and experiment constantly. I love that painting is so direct, that it is what it is on the surface.”
Is there anything you’re trying to communicate to your audience?
“I’d never try to lead the audience. It’s my voice, that’s all I have. People have their own perspective and I kinda enjoy the varied interpretations.”
Any particular messages involved in your work?
“Passion and hard work.”
What’s next for Simon Birch? Are there any future projects you can share with us?
“I’m building an enourmous installation right now. It opens in April 2010. It’s a 20,000 square foot space in Hong Kong. It could be described as a conceptual circus. There’s about 10 films, a dozen huge sculptures, performance and installation. It’s vast and expensive and I’m funding it as we don’t have any supports for this kind of thing in HK. I got the venue for free from a big property firm called Swire. Louis Vuitton is lending some support too, as well as Diesel. Nothing like this has ever been done in HK, we don’t even have a contemporary art museum. So I’m building my own temporary one. It’s called Hope and Glory. I am working around the clock with architects, film crews, production people, it’s pretty insane, but a lot of fun.”

If you could change one thing about the world, what would you change and why?
“Reduce the population  to 1 billion. We ‘progressed’ too fast in the last 100 years, we should all slow down and be way more cautious and thoughtful about the way civilisation develops. The western industrialised model is just so flawed but you gotta have hope that we clever little monkeys will work it out. We haven’t blown ourselves up yet after all…..

A big thanks to Simon Birch for his time and insight.

Be sure to check out more of his work @

Simon Birch website

Monkey Modified (SB blog)

10 Chancery Lane Gallery

-Bendey

AXE – Dirty Balls

Posted in Commercials + Virals, Products with tags , , , , , on January 15, 2010 by bendey14

Just watch it.  Funny viral for the AXE Detailer.  My favorite part is the blonde guy suddenly becoming very uncomfortable at the :48 second mark.

Helping guys clean the dirtiest of balls.

Green Screening Your Favorite Shows

Posted in Film + Video with tags , , , , , on January 14, 2010 by bendey14

Check this video out from Stargate Studios.  It shows some behind the scenes footage of some of our favorite TV shows before they hit the editing room.  Pretty crazy stuff.  It’s interesting to see how a simple scene is actually 10 times more complicated than we think it really is–in a sense that it goes through so much computer image/video splicing.  I guess shooting a scene in downtown NYC is more complicated than we thought it might be.

Sigh…imagine all the fun you could have with your own personal green screen…

-Bendey

UAC Does Lebron James + Nike

Posted in Artwork, Creative Campaigns, Graphic Design, Print, Typography, UAC Updates with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on January 12, 2010 by bendey14

What can you say about Lebron James?  I’m assuming quite a bit…and if there’s any point you didn’t cover, Skip Bayless could probably fill in the cracks.

Too young, too selfish, too lazy, too 23??  Lebron’s out to prove you wrong in 2010.

A little somethin’ I cooked up between my other projects.  I’ve got love for Cleveland all day… up until they face Detroit in late April.

[Note: Image by Sports Illustrated, logo by Nike.  This is NOT a real advertisement, nor is it endorsed by Nike, Lebron James, or S.I.]

UPDATE: You know Fernando Torres needs some love.  All my soccer/futbol fans out there, get at me for the full wallpaper.  (This isn’t endorsed by Nike, Torres, or the country of Spain either… )

-Bendey

Oh yeah, it’s my 1ooth post, show some love.

Carousel: Philips: Awesome

Posted in Commercials + Virals, Film + Video, Products with tags , , , , , , , , on January 9, 2010 by bendey14

This one is tad old, but freaking awesome…naturally.  Philips teamed up with Tribal DDB and Stink Digital to bring a financial-freeze-frame-fiasco-film to life to promote their new entrance to the TV market (directed by Adam Berg).  Their new 21:9 frame caters to Hollywood’s favorite ratio and makes us drool with such compatibility.

At first, this reminded me of The Joker’s heist at the beginning of The Dark Knight:

At the end of the day, this one packs some pretty serious beauty.  Great spot, seamless editing, and hell… makes me want to see how it all ends.  Watch the goods just a bit south…

-Bendey

UAC Update: First 2 of “AIR” Series

Posted in Artwork, UAC Updates with tags , , , , , , , on January 4, 2010 by bendey14

As promised, here are the first 2 paintings in an ongoing series titled, “Air.”  They’ve been done for the past week, but I’m just now getting around to posting them.  I plan on having 3 more pieces by Valentine’s Day, but I’m guessing that date will be pushed back.

Enjoy.

-Bendey

Artist PRO.FILES: Florian Nicolle

Posted in Artist PRO.FILES, Artwork, Graphic Design with tags , , , , , , , on December 29, 2009 by bendey14

Some of you may remember my post earlier this month about French artist/illustrator/graphic designer, Florian Nicolle, a.k.a “NEO.” Well, he’s back again and was nice enough to share some of his thoughts, creative vision, and what it’s like to be a 23-year-old graphic genius.  When I attempt to describe Neo’s work, it’s very difficult to do so with just words.  Beautifully raw?  Detailed destruction?  Spontaneous perfection?  I just can’t decide…but it’s safe to say, he’s making big things happen.

NOTE: For Neo, English is not his first language, therefore conducting an interview had it’s obstacles.  But instead of editing his responses, I’m choosing to let him speak to you how he would naturally… very similar to his artwork.  I’m not being lazy either, there’s just something beautiful I found from two creatives at different ends of the world sharing unrefined ideas.  No boundaries, spellcheck, or Americanization on this one folks.  This is Neo:

Why don’t you tell us a little bit about yourself.
“Hello, my name is Florian Nicolle, aka Neo, French 23 year-old illustrator. I already have a diploma in Graphic Design, and infact, at a very tender age, at about 15 years old, I wanted to be in Graphic Design, that is why I have decided to move towards the field “arts appliqués” where I began to search my own style thanks to my teacher, specialised in sketch, who has greatly helped me on this, and some of my friends from whom I got inspired.”
What led you to become an artist / illustrator ?
“I am skilled in graphic design. There was a little section devoted to the illustration that I have worked a lot. Which finally took a big place in my work, including graphic design work. And now i do more illustration than graphic design work.
Of course I practice a lot sketching, more seriously since about 8 years.”
Are there any major differences or advantages that come with living in France compared to other parts of the world ?
“Hehe, I dunno, I have never lived in an other country…”
What inspires you and your artwork ?
“I am very grateful to my first art teacher who as been my greatest source of inspiration, which really helped me to move on with my work. In this way, I have been able to attain my own working, my own style. Of course I continue to watch a lot of work of famous or anonymous illustrators, with different styles.”
What do you hope your artwork does for people ?  Any particular message you’re trying to send to your audience ?
“I search to communicate through portraits the impression to be really watched by the drawn person and imagine his thoughts and his/her feeling. That’s why I work more the look.”
What can you tell us about your unique style ? Do your choices in mediums and colors play a specific role in your work ?
“I try to create an image that retains its freshness of the first paint stroke, the expressions of the line have to be very free and spontaneous. While keeping a rigorous drawing. So I use “fast techniques” like a big, large brush, watercolor and chines ink then I add texture on Ps [Photoshop].
I use much texture of text, because it add a presence of hand. I draw a picture as if I wrote a text, with the same tool, the same freedom, with erasures, lines, scribbles etc…What is written does not matter.”
What’s your favorite piece of your own art and why ?
“I think it is “eve” because it is the first piece where I added texts and some details very worked (eyes) in a sketch / illustration.”
Can you tell us about any upcoming projects or future plans ?
“You will see hehe.”
If you could only eat one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be ?
“Hehe, i dunno… fruits maybe.”
Thanks Neo!  If you’d like to check out more work by Florian Nicolle (Neo), you can find more at