Via Upperplayground

UPPER PLAYGROUND released this t-shirt, designed by Alex Pardee. Like it?

I’ve recently developed a love for Alex Pardee’s artwork. I’d seen his work in several places and found it to be interesting and unique, but never made the connections between them all that led to the artist himself. Upon scouring the internetz, I’ve found that the reason I always stumble upon Pardee is because he is indeed EVERYWHERE. He designs The Used’s album artwork and has done designs for Hurley among many other accomplishments. Pardee cites influence for his work from graffiti and 80’s horror films, along with depression and a stint in a mental hospital. Pardee’s work has been described as a ‘circus sideshow cemetery.’ And plus, he hated the remake of Friday the 13th and full out publicly raged against it. And we all can admit that it was probably the biggest disappointment to hit the box office in 2008.

Here’s a sampling:

Want to see more? Visit Alex Pardee at the following links:
EyeSuck Ink (official website)
MySpace

And if I fail to post before the 31st, Happy Halloween,
Dacoda.

Alex’s work needs no introduction; if you’re familiar with this bastard (by bastard I mean, I’m severely jealous of his work and imagination), you will surely understand what I mean about no introduction. As Violent as his work may seem, it could be argued to be equally as cute.

I’m a very large fan of this guy and I will surely be dropping his work throughout the future of this blog, so hold onto your hats!

For more amazing work by the wonderfully talented, Alex Pardee click here.

Last Tuesday was the opening of Alex Pardee’s last solo show for a year. Upon arrival I was overwhelmed by how packed the place was. I had to squeeze my way passed a dense crowd of fans, some dressed up in halloween costumes. I managed to get to the front of the gallery and purchase “Digging Up The Marrow” and got 97/200. Somewhere in the crowd Pardee was signing autographs and taking photos with fans. The artwork was all awesome and definitely suggest everyone go check it out while its up. Gallery 1988 is located on 7020 Melrose ave. and the show is up until October 29th.

Alex Pardee, himself

We are taking a short break from our “Move #19 up close tour”  to bring you news about Upper Playground’s ten year anniversary book.  Simply put: it’s bad ass.

10 years of the best.

Weighing in at 3 pounds and 10″ thick with 612 pages of graphics and artist commentary, this is a better investment than most college text books. Seriously.  A straight up catalog that tracks the evolution of both the company and the work of the artists involved.

Here are some between the sheets shots.

Available at UpperPlayground.com  and for only $40. Congratulations and thanks to Upper playground for bringing us over ten years of  the best artists and graphic tees on the planet.

This is definitely something you do not want to miss. This will be his last solo show of the year.

Artist and good friend Alex Pardee has a show opening tonight at Gallery 1988. If you are looking to see some amazing art, this is the place to stop by. Plus come in costume and you have a chance at winning a special prize. Wonder what it could be? I will also be setting up a photo booth so you can have your picture with Alex or whom ever you like. See you there.

Hiding from the normals x Alex Pardee

Out take from our Juxtapoz shoot. x J.Dragonette

Alex Pardee G1988 Installation Sneak Peak Photo

Here is a sneak peak of some real goodness coming from artist Alex Pardee and Gallery 1988. This should be a juicy show!!!

Los Angeles is proud to announce what will undoubtedly be one of the gallery’s most extensive and elaborate exhibits in its history. Bay Area artist Alex Pardee will display a group of new works that he calls his “largest and most intense body of work to date” in ‘Hiding From The Normals’ which will open with a reception on October 6th, from 7-10 PM. Pardee, who will be in attendance that night, has created a Halloween universe all his own with paintings, prints, t-shirts and an installation that just might scare you. There will even be a Halloween costume contest, where Alex will pick a winner and give out a special treat!

On October 6th, we will also be celebrating the highly anticipated DVD/Blu-Ray Release of ‘Trick R Treat’ a film by Michael Dougherty, which will include a special limited edition ‘Trick R Treat’ T-shirt by Alex Pardee, a screening of the film in our parking lot and the filmmakers signing the movie! We promise this will be one art show you have to see to believe, as Alex has even created his own horror story to tie these new characters together. This show will run until October 29th.

Check it out HERE

So. I have this shirt that Kelsea gave me I think for Christmas that on it had a piece of artwork done by Alex Pardee entitled the Jaundiced Rider. It looks like this:

I only recently noticed that on the inside of the tee, written in upside down cursive and a verrry light yellow paint is a message from the artist describing (I’m assuming) what inspired the piece on the shirt. After a good while of attempting to figure it out, this is what I got.

For some unknown reason I contracted Jaundice when I was 24. My body filled up with bile and my eyes turned yellow like that kid in A Christmas Story. Instead of caring how I contracted it, I convinced myself that it was given to me while I was sleeping as a gift from the Jaundiced Rider, a swift and graceful God of the Night.

I found that to be so interesting. I now want to purchase ALL of the Alex Pardee t-shirts just to try and decipher the meaning of the piece.

It’s cloudy out today. I am so thrilled. Also! I saw Inglourious Basterds last night. I guess the critics weren’t impressed, but I left the theater smiling.

Alex Pardee 'The Puppeteer...' Edition of 50 Size: 17 x 22 Inches $60 Each

Here are the two latest releases by artist Alex Pardee. These are both 17 x 22 inch prints with archival inks on acid free velvet cotton rag hand signed and number with an edition size of 50 for $60 each. These were originally created for Alex’s recent art show ‘Frolicking Nightmares’ at Andenken Gallery in Denver. The above print is called ‘The Puppeteer And His Wife’ and the below print is called ‘En Vogue’. Check it out HERE

Alex Pardee 'En Vogue' Edition of 50 Size: 17 x 22 Inches $60 Each

Enlace: Alex Pardee

So one of my favorite artists had a signing this past week at the Upper Playground in Seattle and some weird shit went down….This story that you will see below comes straight from Alex himself..
 

The signing at Upper Playground & 5024SEA in Seattle was going great. From the beginning, There was a steady line of old fans, art collectors, local kids and fresh faces that all waited patiently for me to chat with everyone, draw everyone sketches and let me ramble nervously about why I draw naked dudes with spider arms and happy faces.
About 2 hours into the signing, as I was drawing something (probably a weird worm with wings and a boner or something) for a local husband & wife, I noticed toward the back of the line stood an awkwardly tall man with an even larger presence thanks to his sloppy and spiked mowhawk, resembling a gutter-punk version of Lurch from the Addams Family.

I didn’t think twice.

20 minutes later, as he moves closer in line, I notice he has a large safety pin piercing the bridge of his nose/eyebrow region.
Once again, I didn’t think twice about it.
Another 20 minutes go by, and he is now standing only a few people away. I then notice that the safety pin that is jabbed through his brow is freshly infected. We make eye contact and he grins at me like a wide-eyed car salesman.
While drawing and chatting with a group of 3 Seattle skaters, I now notice that there is an older gentlemen in his early 50’s next to Lurch wearing an old Andy Warhol t-shirt and a hand painted sport coat, looking simultaneously artsy and friendly. And he also appears to actually be there WITH Lurch. After 2 more people come and go, Lurch and Warhol start walking up side by side, but Warhol succumbs, steps aside and lets Lurch approach me first.

Lurch’s demeanor, though he said nothing, was that of a street magician. A shit-eating, soulless grin adorned his face, his eyebrows arched in the spirit of a mime about to show me a fake flower. I glance to my left. And Warhol is standing aside patiently, looking at both Lurch and I with a similar grin, or perhaps that of a proud father.

As with every other person that stood in line, I put my right hand out and said “It’s nice to meet you, thanks for coming out, what’s your name?” Lurch said nothing, but shook my hand limply while his grin, though now weakened, was still twisted across his face like a hand-drawn roadmap. I let go of his hand, and in true street-mime form, he produced a dirty, 3-inch razor blade from his left hand and showed it to me as the lights from the gallery caught the one spot on it that wasn’t filthy. It sparkled for an instant, mimicking every cheesy Photoshop lens flare. I glanced to my left once again and still, Warhol was standing with the same anticipation as I was.
“Ok, I’m game,” I thought to myself, ”you and this Warhol dude are going to show me a trick or something like some lame Criss Angel shit. Ok, cool.”
Unbeknownst to me, however, there was no trick. The exact words escape me because of what followed instantly after, but he said something along these lines in a mixture of both excited yet calming tones:

Within 3 seconds, Lurch rolled up his stained black t-shirt, exposing the lower half of his torso, placed his left hand with the razor blade over the right side of his speckled and girlish beer belly, stared through my eyes, pushed in the blade almost the entire 3 inches, and gracefully sliced it horizontally across his stomach almost the entire length of his torso. There was no blood at all. The skin, tissue, and 2 inches of fat, however, separated from itself as if a tiny Moses had been living in this dude’s beer gut and the razor commanded Moses to part his red skin. Still, no blood.
“You see??!” Lurch said, in a tone reminiscent of Francis Dollarhyde’s  
from “Red Dragon”.
I was confused.
“You see how it separates?!” Lurch continued. “You see how beautiful it can be?”
I was still bewildered, but overwhelmed with both curiosity and amazement. “Shit,” I thought, “I always figured Criss Angel was a fucking hack but if this is what it looks like in person than holy shit I retract my statements.” I wanted to see him finish the trick!
“Yah man, that’s pretty crazy”, I said, surprisingly calm, not horrified or scared in the least.
“That’s not all. It works here too.” 
He then practically teleported the razor to his right hand, rolled up his left sleeve and dug even deeper into his wrist, slashing violently twice, carving a lanky number “11″ along a 40 degree slant on his entire forearm. Immediately upon this action, the blood-race was on. Almost to the exact millisecond, his blood began hastily oozing out of all 3 wounds simultaneously, as his stomach incision caught up with his wrist, which was much more immediate. Lurch’s grin was permanent and he looked at me for approval, like an obedient Labrador with a fresh dead mallard in his mouth. 3 things flashed in my head at that moment. #1: The scene in Nightbreed where the crazy bum slices his face off in front of the doctor. #2: Edwin Neal’s hitchhiker character in the original Texas Chainsaw. This guy is a fucking nutbag. And lastly #3: Why was no one around me freaking out? Why was no one tackling him or yelling. Granted, Lurch was facing me and no one else, with the exception of Warhol could have fully experienced it, but clearly everyone else could easily tell what was going on as blood pooled on the floor. And because that #3 thought entered my head, and because of the sheer ridiculousness of what had just occurred, I did something that I kind of hate myself for.

I’m overcritical of clichés in movies. Especially in horror movies. Overused clichés, especially ones that I am convinced NO HUMAN WOULD DO, ruin good horror movies for me. My most hated cliché? Easy. The one where the group gets separated in a crisis situation and then strange noises or lights or voices surround the lone straggler, and their reaction is “C’mon, this isn’t funny. You better stop joking around.” As if ANY actual friend of theirs would be so diabolically evil as to choose a severe time of crisis to pull a practical joke on them in the dark. No, no ones ever joking, you asshole, there’s a fucking killer on the loose and they are going to kill you.
Well, I now officially hate myself for the simple fact that I have to back track on my previous statement regarding that cliché. Because whether it was a defensive reaction, adrenaline, or shock as to what the fuck I just watched occur 12-inches away from me…. I clichéd. I looked at Warhol and said out loud,”Dude this isn’t funny, this joke needs to stop, it’s fucked up.” I continued to treat it as a joke, and pulled out my iPhone and camera and began taking photos, all the while saying, to no one in particular, “C’mon guys, where’s the punchline, what’s the joke? I don’t really get it”. While posing for photos that I made a horrified onlooker take, a bleeding Lurch was muttering things under his breath, and I, still joking, reacted to his mutterings by saying “Are you fucking CURSING me, man? Awesome.”

When I made eye contact again with Warhol, though, I saw he was genuinely horrified. He was stiff with shock and backed up to the wall. I then realized the reason no one was doing anything was because, in all honesty, what the fuck ARE you supposed to do with a possibly Hep-C infected 7-foot monster who just sliced open his midsection and is waiting to die at the feet of whoever is standing there?

I snapped out of my shell-shocked goofy mode and, as calmly as I could, mentioned to Lurch that he should leave. At this point, finally, one of the guys in line that caught on to what was going on, ran to the front of the store to get help, and within an instant, Jay, Lil’ Jen, Jeff, Sam, Watson, and the rest of the Upper Playground staff had somehow managed to not only block off the entire blood soaked floor and table, but escorted Lurch out of the building without getting blood or AIDS on any of the other people still brave enough to hang around. I stood there, alongside Sean from Zerofriends and Warhol, staring out into the crowd of onlookers, with an empty, confused stare and a dopey sarcastic half grin that Punky Brewster would be proud of, and said, “Well, It’s not the WIERDEST date I’ve been on.”
Ten minutes later the room was disinfected, the table was removed, and the area was blocked off and we moved into the store sales-floor and I continued drawing and meeting people and the remainder of the night was a lot more intimate and relaxed, all things considered. I mean, everyone who I met after that was there for the incident, so we all had some kind of bond to chat about as I was drawing and talking to them. Especially Warhol, who turned out to be a really well-respected local Seattle installation artist who just happened to be standing in line next to him. We laughed as I accused him of being Lurch’s “handler” the whole time.

Having to jump back into “drawing” and social mode so hastily was a little weird, but it at least distracted me from freaking out over everything that COULD have happened, and how I SHOULD have reacted to the situation. I have never seen anything like that happen in that sort of setting, and it was surreal to say the least. In turn, I acted surreally. 

I don’t think the dude was a fan of mine, and I doubt he even knew who or what I was there for. I simply think he was just some mentally fucked guy who saw a line of people and wanted some attention. The 2 additionally weird things about this was that A.) he waited in line for AN HOUR. He didn’t barge right up and do it. And B.) He didn’t have any other visible scars on his stomach or arms. He wasn’t a “cutter”. After all was said and done, like at the end of that movie 3’ O Clock High, everyone started talking about him in a fantastical way. “I heard him say he was on his way to prison.” “He had a whole POCKET full of razors, he was showing them to me.” “I’ve seen him around here before, I saw him eat a pigeon, I swear.”

Sean (from Zerofriends) helped the rest of the U.P. staff escort him out when the incident happened. As the police and ambulance showed up and dressed Lurch in a Hazmat suit and handcuffs, Sean managed to ask Lurch why he did that. And regardless of what rumors were true or not, he replied simply,
“I wanted to show him something unpredictable.”

Thanks for listening, and thank you to anyone who helped with the situation and was brave enough to hang around afterward and keep the love in the air.
Word.

If you want to see how the rest of the show went make sure to check out Alex’s BLOG and also make sure to check out his CLOTHING, BOOKS, PRINTS, ETC…

ALEX IS DOING BIG THINGS!!

Dunnyfest 2009 Party Details

Head to DUNNYFEST at Dragon*Con for the pre-release of the highly anticipated Dunny Series 2009. Celebrate with many of today’s favorite vinyl artists, such as Huck Gee, Sket One, Tara McPherson, Kathie Olivas, Alex Pardee, Brandt Peters, Doktor A, Attaboy, Carlos East and The Baroness!

The artists will be on hand to sign the awesome new series and posters, plus there will be rad giveaways and door prizes. This special signing event is FREE to Dragon*Con badge holders and there will be very limited quantities, so make sure to arrive early! The Vissell BEE is SICK and the Supakitch raccoon is AWESOME!

Friday, September 4th 2009 from 8:30-10pm in Regency 5 Ballroom, at the Hyatt Regency 265 Peachtree St, Atlanta, GA

Check it out HERE

Alex Pardee’s work is amazing.  Check him out over here.  It’s just so far out there.  The colors are bright, distinct, and the details are amazing.  What’s even better is that he’s helping Warner Brothers with the visionary work of Chadam.  Check out the trailer below.  It’s got that Tim Burton feel to it.

Source: EyeSuckInk

Everyone scrambled to get up this cool logo from Zack Snyder’s Sucker Punch, which was printed on t-shirts given away at SDCC. I tried to wait, because I know how anal the concept artist, Alex Pardee, is about his finished product — I mean, the guy sleeps four hours a day. Well he didn’t let me down. Today, he unveiled an official version of the image seen on the tee. Check it out below.

Pardee has been working on an animated feature for two years now called Chadam, which is in development at Warner Brothers where Snyder released Watchmen so I’m sure that’s how their partnership started. Described as Alice In Wonderland with machine guns, the story follows a young girl institutionalized by her wicked stepfather. Retreating to an alternative reality as a coping strategy, she envisions a plan which will help her escape from the facility. Sucker Punch stars Jena Malone, Vanessa Hudgens, Emily Browning, Abbie Cornish, and Jamie Chung.

Snyder is currently working on the animated feature, Guardians Of Ga’Hoole to be released in 2010.

I reveived an email this morning giving me the heads up on this AWESOME trailer by artist Alex Pardee. It appears he has been working for two years developing this full length feature film. It is called ‘Chadam’ and it is with the Warner Brother Studios. Check it out yourself!!