The billboard was simple, a beer bottle and a catch phrase, “Every now and then, bite of more than you can chew.” Being almost totally complacent, the ad didn’t strike me at first, but as I let it percolate in my brain, the idea began to resonate with me.

Each week, I attend a life drawing group just to keep the creative wheels greased during those times I’m not able to get into my studio to paint. It’s about 3 hours of drawing and by the end I’m usually pretty worn out. Toward the end, even though the model is posing longer I’m so tired, I usually end up focusing on a small portion rather than the entire figure, usually its the head and bust. In fact, the head and face is what I do the best because its what I do most and I usually end the night on it because I want to end on a high note.

In other words, i’m a pussy.

Why don’t I push myself to do hands and feet, the thing I hate to draw the most because I suck at it. I don’t push it, why? Who knows, but I got to cut that shit out, seriously. How will I become the world’s greatest artist of all time (please note tongue firmly planted in cheek) if I’m not willing to take any chances? Where’s the risk in doing the same thing every time just so I have a pretty picture at the end of the day?

So as goes with this blog, I’m annoucing another personal epiphany. I’m going to be making some changes in the way I do my work. First, I’m going to rework some of my art pieces to take them to what I think will be the next level. I began to wonder if maybe I’m pulling my punches a little with my art, so why not revisit some to see if maybe I can improve on what I’m doing. Maybe it won’t improve the piece. It might just screw the whole thing up, but I won’t know unless I try. The worst that can happen is I paint over the whole thing and start from scratch.

On top of that, instead of sticking with abstracts all the time, I think its about time I branch out a bit, start working some figurative or representational pieces into my collection. I may fail. These paintings may suck and might never see the light of day, but that’s no reason not to try. Choke or chew, either way, I’m opening wide for a bigger bite.

While listening to New Jack Radio, a station I created on Pandora of late 80s rap, it hit me that I should write about some of this music that has made such a big impact on me. I present my hip-hop top 10, not an easy list to compile. I based this list on listening frequency and mental, emotional and visceral impact that each album had on different parts of my life. Some are ubiquitous, others not so much, but all are worth a listen. Enjoy!

10. 3 Years, 5 Months, 2 Days… – Arrested Development
This album is significant to me for 2 reasons. For one, this was the very first Compact Disc I ever purchased. CDs were a relatively new technology at the time and it took me awhile to get on board. Being a young teen without a lot of discretionary income, this album got the luck of the draw.

More importantly, this album was different than most hip-hop being produced at the time and, except for a couple of radio play hits, would be considered alt-rap by most other standards. After being seduced by the Tennessee single, I listened to the rest of the album and it opened my mind to a totally different hip-hop style. I wouldn’t say I became the alt-rap guru after this, but I was definitely more open to different types of music because of this album.
Notable Tracks: Mama’s Always on Stage, Fishing 4 Religion, Down of the Dreads

9. 3 Feet High & Rising – De La Soul
In 1989, I had heard of De La Soul because of radio play, but I wasn’t totally seduced. That summer, a friend and I attended a festival concert featuring a whole slew of influential bands (The Sugarcubes, P.I.L., New Order, among others) and De La Soul was the opener. The set started a little late because one of the DJ’s turntables busted, so he performed with just one. Despite the handicap, he rocked the wheel of steel and De La Soul blew my mind. It was by far one of the best performances I have ever seen (and I’ve seen A LOT). I immediately ran out and bought their cassette tape, which is notable because this is one of the only albums I bought more than once because I wore the tape out.
Notable Tracks: Magic Number, Jenifa Taught Me, Potholes in My Lawn

8. Original Pirate Material - The Streets
Absolutely the most obscure hip-hop album in my collection. These Brits from Birmingham tossed my wig the first time I heard Let’s Push Things Forward, a dub-style mix with the unusual lyrical musings. Whatever you thought about hip-hop will be dashed on the rocks after listening to this album. I find that I can’t listen to this album too often, and I think that has something to do with the heavy British slang. Some of what they say just doesn’t connect, but the music and lyrical match-up is still top notch. Moreover, my acceptance of The Streets directed me to other great artists like Atmosphere, Spooky and DJ Shadow.
Notable tracks: Let’s Push Things Forward, Turn The Page

7. Blackout – Method Man & Redman
The first thing to note here is Da Rockwilder is one of my favorite hip-hop songs of all time. It’s also one of the shortest songs in hip-hop history, at 2:16, it leaves me wanting more of this silky groove every time I hear it. I usually end up playing the song several times in a row because I can’t get enough of it.

The entire album is strong, one solid track after another. Is it the best thing Red and Method have done? Maybe not, but when I bought this album, it lead me to look closer at other artists close to them; Rza, Gza, Ghostface, and Ol’ Dirty Bastard (RIP). One album opened up an entire world of music that I really hadn’t paid much attention to prior.
Notable Tracks: Da Rockwilder, Maaad Crew, Fire Ina Hole

6. COLORS Soundtrack - Various Artists
An oddball choice for this list you might think, but if you take a look at the list of tracks, you’ll note some of the strongest names in what is now considered Ol’ School; Ice T, Big Daddy Kane, Eric B. & Rakim and others. Like many other albums on this list, this album expanded my tastes in music, probably more than most because of the time period, but the influence goes far beyond music. This movie actually made me a little scared of South Central Los Angeles. I never wanted to travel north of the 605 freeway because I was afraid of getting randomly shot. The movie did it’s job of creating the fear and every time I hear any of these songs, I think about how I felt back then. Some parts of Los Angeles are still scary and I wouldn’t be caught dead in the neighborhood at night, but I know Hollywood was just doing what they do best, making money on our fears. I still enjoy the music though.
Notable Tracks: Colors, Let the Rhythm Run, R-A-W

5. The Tipping Point - The Roots
Ever since Jimmy Fallon took over The Late Show I’ve exclaimed how much he sucks and the only reason to watch the show is the house band, The Roots. I’ve been a fan of The Roots for awhile, but it wasn’t until I purchased The Tipping Point that I realized the genius behind this band. Truly gifted musicians playing actual instruments instead of clap tracks and bass hits? It’s a revolutionary idea, I know, but it feels oh so good.
Notable tracks: Don’t Say Nuthin, Boom, In Love With The Mic

4. By All Means Necessary - KRS-ONE (Boogie Down Productions)
I don’t know what compelled me to buy this album at the time. I had never heard of KRS-ONE or Boogie Down Productions, but it was a fortunate moment for me. Another album filled with classic gems that most people have probably never heard, but if you want to know anything about where hip-hop came from, you need to listen to KRS. Trust me on this, just do it
Notable Tracks: My Philosophy, I’m Still #1, Jimmy

3. RUN DMC - RUN DMC
Do I even need to explain why this one is on the list?
Notable Tracks: Rock Box, It’s Like That

2. The Marshall Mathers LP - Eminem
Eminem’s first album, The Slim Shady LP, came on strong but was still approachable for people who might not trust the dirty mouth of this whiskey tango from Detroit. If his first album came in swinging, this sophomore effort came in swinging a chainsaw with both middle fingers stuck high in the air. Giving Eminem a second album is like dropping a Mogwai into a pool; you’re asking for trouble, but for the fans of Eminem, we like the trouble. This albums is as raw as it gets. Eminem broke new ground and scared all the people watching him do it. Was he crazy? homicidal? suicidal? Maybe, but whatever his problems, he laid them out for us to gawk at grotesquely and I feel better for it.
Notable Tracks: All of Them!

1. Endtroducing - DJ Shadow
I’ll probably get some flack for this one because, to some, Endtroducing is more of an electronic album, but this album cuts deep into hip-hop from all angles. However, if I had to place this album within the electronic genre, it would still be in my top 10. In fact, this album sits safely in my top 10 albums of all time (another post for another day). This album is a work of genius that Shadow was never quite able to capture in any subsequent recordings, which is a shame, but makes Endtroducing that much more important. I could listen to this album on infinite repeat and be happy for the rest of my life
Notable Tracks: There are no one stand outs here. This entire album requires a good pair of headphones and a couple hours of dedicated listening to truly appreciate.

Thanks for your patience.

===

Yes, you heard it first, I am done. I made a decision this weekend regarding my future and I have decided to stop doing anything that gets in the way of achieving my goal of being a full time professional artist. Honestly, that might be the first official declaration of my goal to the general public, but now it’s out there and it’s time to become accountable to the goal; to myself.

I can’t tell you how many times I have had conversations with my mother about her inability to focus on any one project for enough time to be successful at it, but it turns out I have the same problem. I may not stretch myself out as thin as she does on multiple projects, but I definitely am not being as singularly focused as I need/want to be with my art. Time to step up or step off.

The way I look at it, I’ve spent many hundreds of dollars on all kinds of art supplies in the past 6 months and it’s about time I got a return on that investment. Now I don’t necessarily mean a monetary return, although that would be awesome. I’m not looking for more adoration either. I just want to be able to say that all the money I’m spending results in making me a better artist. The more supplies I have, the more I can do my art, the better artist I become, right? Man, I hope so because this is starting to get expensive and soon my wife is going to want to see receipts.

…but fear not the obstacles in your path

My wife could probably tell you better than I could about all the “ideas” I’ve had over the past 9 years of us being together. I change my mind about “what I really want” more than anyone I know, but I never felt compelled to truly pursue any of those paths.

I read more books on marketing than I would ever care to mention in hopes of taking what I originally studied in school to the next level and maybe being the next Seth Godin.

I’ve taken on countless freelance design projects and no matter how many times I tell myself I want to be a better designer, I truly don’t like designing for other people. The most fun I have in PhotoShop is when I’m working on stuff for myself.

There’s the gallery owner idea, the coffeehouse, the custom motorcycles, the screen printer, the real estate mogul, and on and on. Most of those ideas sucked from the start, some lasted a bit longer, but none of them made me jump out of my chair, nothing like I feel when I’m in my studio tossing paint onto a canvas (and everything else in sight).

All that other crap stops today. I have a few loose ends to clean up, a couple projects I need to finish without leaving anyone hanging, but once they’re done, it’s all done… well sorta. There might be that one design project I must do for my wife here and there, but I can justify those. They help pay for art supplies.

You can help pay for some too. Check out my stuff at http://daveconrey.etsy.com and buy lots. Tell friends.

One friend on Etsy (mooshoopork) asked me about the stories behind my art. This is a pretty intimidating question for me. I’ve always had a real problem with the esoteric explanations some artists give to describe their work. Perhaps the passion, politics, philosophy and/or spirituality are just too much for some to put into simple, coherent description.

Honestly most of my work to date doesn’t begin from a grand concept. More often than not the direction of the painting comes from the medium, the tools and a graphic artist perspective on color, balance, line and style. Without my background as a graphic designer, my work wouldn’t be nearly as interesting.

As each of my pieces progress, a personality starts to expose itself to me through the layers of paint. Sometimes that comes together quickly and other times I’ve laid down enough acrylic to repaint my home before a piece shows its true face to me. I just never know exactly how it’s going to turn out until its done, and sometimes even then I’m not 100% sure.

So Dave, where do you come up with all those great, funky titles for your art?

Good question without a really strong answer. The only way to explain the titles of my work is I pull from my life experience. If you take the piece above, San Andreas, I had no idea this would end up looking like something off the richter scale printer when I started, but that’s what showed itself to me. However, California earthquakes were a big part of my life growing up, witnessing two major quakes and dozens of smaller ones. If I lived in Colorado, maybe this would be about forest fires or coal mines. In Louisiana, this might be about oil rigs or sinking coastlines, but I live in Los Angeles, so all I see is the good ol’ shake, rattle and roll.

On the other hand, The Apple started with a concept given to me by my mother, Michele Morgan-Solone. We did a private team show titled The Apple has Fallen,  and this piece is actually a collaboration between us. The title was all her, but the big red splash was all me; shows I can take direction… usually. Although I haven’t had much in the way of commissioned pieces, at least I know I can capture an idea when someone gives it to me.

Long story short, I don’t know exactly where this stuff comes from, but I’m glad that I’m able to manifest something from a few broad strokes of a brush or palette knife.

Finally, my new Etsy friend, MicheleP222 (sorry, don’t know the last name), who has been guiding me through my newbdom on that website, helping me get a feel for what works and what doesn’t, not to mention reminding me that I’m not as lame as I think I am. Check out what she wrote me after only knowing me for part of a day or so.

Dear Dave,
lighten up! I just read your blog from start to finish. First let me tell you, I am no genius, but I fly on sheer intuition. I have seen six of your paintings and read what plagues your brain. My 30 second friend…here is what I see. Only read on if you are vaguely interested…

YOU are insanely, and I mean that, talented. Words and color are your domain. Oh, your muse does not elude you, you may not be ready to accept her challenges. Timing is everything and the Universe has no regard for your time frame of when things should pop. (wink wink…trust me on that one) You should really stop beating yourself up for what you have not done and hold your head up for your many achievements, whether great or small. This crazy world will chew you up and spit you out like a bad grape if you let it. There is no time like the present to start a beautiful dialogue about yourself with yourself. Positive words lead to positive actions. I read loving words of your wife…love yourself as well. Love is the very essence of life and the more you let flow from you , the more you are capable of receiving. Let it in ,let it out. Breathe. Art is that too…the Magicians scarf trick: pull one out and it is connected to the next one, etc. Really, pull out the first one…there is so much more.

Artfully,
Michele

No one that’s known me less than several years could more acutely call me out than that. I was in shock, not because I was offended, but because she nailed me so perfectly. I’m impressed and deeply touched by her sentiment. Now I need to get back to work.

It’s official. I am now selling my artwork worldwide through Etsy.com. Ok, so I only have a few pieces up for sale at this point, kind of like a test sample, but I’m going to be experimenting not just with my art, but some other creative pursuits.

Aside from the chance to hawk my wares to the few viewers willing to check out my site, I’m also proclaiming that from here on out, this site is solely focused on all aspects of my creativity, whether that’s my design work, paintings, photography or whatever else burns my right-brain synapses.

Yeah, I’ve said that crap before, but something strange happened on my way to doing absolutely nothing on this site; I got some traffic. Don’t ask me how, but there’s actually been people checking out the site without me doing a damn thing. Just imagine if I actually wrote something once in awhile. It might potentially be worth something someday.

For now, please check out my Etsy shop, tell me what you think of the pieces  I have up, and if you want to be really cool, buy something.