Tales of Woe by John Reed - preview

Hey gang! Sneak peak at artwork for a future blog post about my involvement in "Tales of Woe "(MTV Press) by John Reed. It hit bookshelves everywhere on Tuesday. Check out the site www.talesofwoe.com to get a flavor though. INTENSE! Already racking up notoriety and acclaim. It is brutal and unfortunately all true.

PEACE DAY! August 15th, 2010

A couple weeks ago, I was contacted by a mysterious gentleman called Joe Peace. He's organized a movement to take a more active approach in promoting and celebrating peace globally, and specifically on the newly created Peace Day on August 15, 2010, and every year going forward.

His words. "We are aware of the United Nations Peace day on 9/21, and we support Celebration of this day as well. It is a noble cause. However, the United Nations still remains a Political body, that has made some Political decisions that not all individuals may agree with. Secondly the United Nations has a, "Peace Keeping Force" they have tanks, guns, and other weapons. We recognize that these may be needed for defense purposes, however we feel that using Force to establish Peace....is like shouting for silence."


He was interested in my artwork and asked me to design a poster for the day and create a cartoon character. I was totally game. The peace sign has been use in every way imaginable over the decades. I sketched a peace sign as a radiating sun and thought it was perfect. Here's what I came up with.

Check out the site below for more details. It's really quite an ambitious venture, one that I'm positive will grow and evolve over the coming years. I'm very happy to be part of it's beginnings.

www.peaceday8-15.com

Join now! Invite your friends, spread the word!

Below is some information from the page:

"The purpose for this day is simple. It will be a day for the entire population of the world to serve and celebrate Peace.

This Peace Day is for the People by the People. We do not represent Nations, or Political ideologies. We are simply people joining together to spread Kindness and Peace.

The manner in which individuals choose to partake in this service and celebration is entirely up to each individual. The guidelines are simple. The only requirement is that individuals devote a portion of their day spreading kindness and peace through various acts of charitable service. The second portion of the day (and hopefully well into the night) will simply be a time for individuals to gather together for the purpose of celebrating the power of Peace."

"There is no way to peace; peace is the way." - A.J. Muste

http://www.peaceday8-15.com

THE BOWERY RIOTS!

"The spirit, soul, and energy of the Speakeasy are vibrant in New York City’s The Bowery Riots. With a “for the people” passion and strong political interest, the sextet plays an incredibly eclectic mix of punk, soul, and rock and roll. Heavily routed in the turn of the 2oth century and the hustle of the big city, The Bowery Riots are a unique amalgamation of sound and style. Their songs are filled with garage rock influence, mixing in three part female/male harmonies, horns, and harmonicas for a riotous good time." - EXPLODING IN SOUND

Here's an illustration of The Bowery Riots, a band that my friend TJ is in. I promised him an illustration a while back and figured it was time to deliver. TJ's a cool guy, not to mention a kick-ass shortstop and a devastating lefty bat, played minor league ball somewhere. We met back in the day playing softball for the Welcome to the Johnson's (JOHNSONS!) Softball Team, a place I used to tend bar at, in The East Village Softball Association. 2004 was a magical year, we won it all, underdog style. View the trophy on top the The Johnson's refrigerator and get a Pabst. 123 Rivington Street, LES, NYC.

The Riots are really taking off!! See them LIVE. They're great, check 'em out!! Rockin out NYC!

You can listen to The Bowery Riots
here
Take a listen to DRUGS IN NIGHT TIME CLUBS and the smash single, THE RENT
to get a flavor of their skills and energy.
Facebook 'em here . Myspace 'em here

Oh, also check out Shock and Awesome with TJ and the Tux, a weekly radio on East Village Radio. Politics & ROCK-N-ROLL!

Nuts & Bolts @ The Society of Illustrators

On July 9th & 10th I attended the the wonderful Nuts & Bolts Conference at the Society of Illustrators in NYC, sponsored by 3 x 3 Magazine.

N.C. Wyeth

The event was put together and hosted by Charles Hively. Amongst many other things, Charles is the publisher and design director of 3x3 Magazine and Creative Quarterly. He really cares about illustration and artists and for that, he gets a big thumbs up and my respect. Thank you Charles!

The guest speakers were all fantastic artists. They all gave incredible presentations about their personal journey into the illustration field that were very insightful into the business and about their work.

Aaron Meshon

Steve Tabbutt

Left to Right - Aaron Meshon, Marcos Chin, Steve Tabbutt, Charles Hively, Nora Krug, Chris Buzelli, Sean Qualls and Paul Hoppe. Many, many thanks to them for their generous spirit! Special thanks to Andre da Loba and Nora Krug for taking the time to discuss with me the MFA program at SVA, and to Aaron Meshon for his insight into copyrighting and trademarking.

Nuts & Bolts - Class of 2010! I met a lot of very cool people over the course of the conference that I hope to keep in touch with, but many more I didn't meet that I hope to connect with online. Give a shout out if you stumble upon this!

Me, Charles and my wife Daria at the event's conclusion at Cocktail Hour.

This event was a real kick in the ass, eye-opening in so many ways. Provided me with much hope and inspiration. Thank you all - Onward and upward!

Ladies-N-Gents, Johnny Bennett!

I met Johnny Bennett in L.A. in 2001, back when I was rabble-rousing as lead singer of the infamous Spicy Rizzaks. Hazy & strange days for sure, but even then I could tell he was one cool and talented dude. During your time on the musical circuit, you meet a lot of people, some brilliant, some not so much. The thing is, with Bennett, he's the real deal, got chops. And every time he releases a new album, he proves me right.

His most recent is Gone Missing, a follow up to The Violet Hush. Gone Missing is darker, deeper than anything he's done before. With a bit of luck, it'll be his breakthrough album, and just remember you heard about him here first. The story of how it got made - replete with madness and redemption in the English countryside - is almost as good as the album. Bennett's got a serious ear for melody, a skilled voice and killer lyrics. Bottom line, it's fucking good, harkening back to when musicians actually wrote songs and played instruments. When 12 year girls didn't rule the marketplace, when albums, not singles by reality tv show contestants, got the headlines. God bless Johnny Bennett. Rock on brother!

For more about Mr. Bennett, his music and up-coming tour dates, check out his website at www.johnny-bennett.com

Rooney Fruits - Animated!

Whelp, we didn't make it to Round 2 of the Sydney Opera House Graphic Animation Competition - D'oh! Damn Aussie politics for sure, BUT, to be honest, I think our submission was lacking in "plot development" or whatever (dancing isn't "plot development? haha) and it could have a couple more edits and cuts to other action. That said, it had a top rating and was top 20 in voting but judges chose 10 from that, and we got cut. Bummed! However, all in all, I think it was a rousing success, and quite a fun little piece. It was my first foray into the realm of animation and I am hooked! Looking forward to future collaboration with my bro-in-law Adam Kelley, a very talented animator. We have really some cool things in the docket, so stay tuned!

The guidelines of the contest were that it had to be 20 second long, involve the theme of 'recovery", incorporate a yawn, and something in it had to be 7 years old.
Without further ado, here's the animation -

"Ever Danced with An Angel?" Starring Rooney Fruits the Angel Dancer! from McQuade on Vimeo.

U dig? It's nothing major, obviously, but with it's conception and execution, a door to another world has been opened, and we are off & running.

Created by Patrick McQuade & Adam Kelley

Artwork by Patrick McQuade
Animated by Adam Kelley
Music by GalaxyKidGamma
Rooney Fruits' Name Bestowed by Steve Sallese

Voice Work:
Maren Kelley as Rooney Fruits
Daria Sellon McQuade as The Red Handed Witch

Rooney Fruits the Angel Dancer copyright © 2010, Patrick McQuade & Steve Sallese.
Sneak Peak at forthcoming SHAPES website
www.shapesbrethren.com

"Ever Danced with An Angel?" Starring Rooney Fruits the Angel Dancer!

My bro-in-law Adam Kelley and I just finished our first animated short called "Ever Danced with an Angel? Starring Rooney Fruits the Angel Dancer! The above pictures are the stills from it. It's only a 20 sec. clip, pretty brief but hope you dig! Rooney's had a long day. Perhaps a special potion will PEP him up?

We entered it into a animation competition and need your vote(s) - a 5 star rating if you could! We have to advance to Round 2. Winners that advance to R2 will be announced on Tues night. Voting closes soon so please do so quickly if you are game. There are 3 Rounds in all. Final selections go to an awards ceremony in August at the Sydney Opera House in Australia!! Winner gets funding for future projects, plus state of the art computer programs! This is a big deal for us - Help!
Here is the link:

http://play.sydneyoperahouse.com/index.php/graphic/744.html

Would really appreciated FB shares and twitter shout-outs. Spread the word! Vote early, vote often - You can do so multiple times!!

And now for your viewing pleasure, here is the original watercolor rendition of Rooney Fruits the Angel Dancer, created by me and the NAMER Steve Sallese. Steve does the original abstraction, I create the visual character, then Steve bestows a name. Started back in 10th grade HS Chemistry class. The entire collection of SHAPES from 1992 to 2010 will be released as book this fall, along with a slew of other fun stuff. Stay tuned!

Sketchbook 6/25-26