Today, November 11, 2019 is Veterans Day of course and I just wanted to take a moment-as countless Americans across our land are doing-and say thanks to men and women who are serving, have served and especially to express gratitude to the vast number who have given the ultimate sacrifice by laying down their lives in the name of Freedom and service to our nation. I am grateful to those who have trained,served and fought in order that many of us-such as myself -can actually have the freedom to do whatever line of work or career we may choose.
My art piece today " My Brother's Keeper" is a pen and ink / water color wash I did in 2018 based on the iconic photograph/miniature work "Rescuing the Major "– the 2004 photo that won the Ultimate Soldier contest© Mark Hogancamp / Artists Rights Society (ARS), NY. It is a true saying that "War is Hell" and because of this fact, it is a sobering thing to know we have The United States Armed Forces ready and willing to plunge into such conflict if and when they are needed. Special thanks to family and friends of mine who have served: My grandfather, John Houston Allison, cousin Michael King, Father in Law Kirk L. Byerly, son in law Blake Neese, as well as friends such as Dave Gates, Charles Sosebee, Arnold Whitaker, Gene Hill, Steve Bramlett, Paul Thomas, Jim Gray and his brother Chuck Gray just to name a few -all of whom mean a great deal to our family. God bless the United States and most of all, thank God for the ultimate Captain of our Salvation who gave his life so we might live-The Lord Jesus Christ. I wish I could say that I am an expert mechanic, but I am not. I wish I knew the ins and outs of what makes a muscle rod a muscle rod...but I don't. The closest I have come to even doing anything mechanical is the few times I have changed my oil in my old truck although I did replace a radiator one time in a Caprice. But, I digress...I simply love vintage cars, how they look, sound and smell. Anyone who has seen Steve McQueen in the vintage classic Cop movie "Bullit" when he takes on that 68 Dodge Charger with his 68 Ford Mustang HAS to come away a FAN OF THE IRON MUSCLE of the combustion engine and all things metal with screeching rubber tires, exhaust smoke spewing and fenders being crunched! SO, since my blog here is my one outlet to promote what I do (which is draw with pen and ink) and since this crazy world we live in is convinced that the sky is falling thanks in part to "The Modern Car and Big trucks which spew their horrid exhaust into the atmosphere " I am taking time today to promote the world of fast cars and gasoline fueled engines with some artistic creations of my own so as to celebrate the ingenuity it took to develop the modern day vehicle and all those cool models that burned the asphalt like the 65 Corvette, the 68 Charger, the 68 Mustang and many more- NONE OF WHICH WERE GREEN Friendly or powered by an Al Gore like "electric pencil sharpener size motor". Again, all I do is draw such things. The prints shown are available by the way in poster and canvas print and are very affordable so contact me at info@artbygvjones.com if interested and if not, just enjoy taking a gander at them. After all, if the "Go-Green folks" have their way, we will all be driving wimp-mobiles. But the good news is this- neither the combustion engine nor mankind himself is going to destroy this planet on which we live! "Why"-you ask? Because this universe, this world and our very lives are all in the hands of the Almighty Lord God himself and He alone will bring all things to an end when He is ready. So until then, I am going to keep drawing and driving my 2000 Dodge Ram Turbo Diesel and spewing dark clouds of burned diesel fuel into the atmosphere...with great joy.
It was back in January of this year that a good friend of mine, Kerry Jackson ( who himself is an excellent artist ) had opened the door for me to display a number of my own personal works at his gallery- a very nice establishment known as "New Creations" art gallery located on Roswell Street in Marietta , Ga. . Kerry and his wife are down home folks and have made it their ministry to help artists and the community in general as it pertains to the production of quality works and forms of art that are not only in good taste but make an uplifting impact as a whole. Both his work and gallery are worth viewing and visiting. That said, my blog today concerns what was my first real encounter with the virus that is devouring -in various size bites-the freedom which we enjoy as a part of our American heritage: The Social Justice Warrior mentality ( also known as the Black Lives Matter, The "Woke" generation or the "Me too", Me movement). I have waited for some time to speak out about this and only recently have decided to write down any thoughts on the matter thanks in part to the ever increasing vitriol coming from people / students / leaders in the workplace, college campuses and political seats. I have posted below this article the original work I had on display for that month in January of an Indian Warrior Chief. The work started out as a pen and ink but I finished it off as a full color print on canvas and presented it as a vintage firearms logo of a fictitious company for which I own the rights called "Red Crow Fire Arms" . Obviously it was meant to be a work which pays homage to the Native American Warrior and what he represented as well as the history of the freedom to bear arms here in the United States of America. I still have the original work and I value it but what made the evening even more memorable was that the print on display which was a one of one-was actually purchased that night by a customer. The customer was happy and I was humbled. The work was to be kept on display until the end of the month which at that time , my customer could pick up the piece he had purchased. All was good in Marietta Ga, right? Well not for everyone. A short time later, I dropped by the gallery and to my surprise as well as to Kerry's, someone had destroyed the canvas print "Red Crow Fire Arms" by spitting or flinging coffee all over the front of the piece. No other pieces were damaged throughout the gallery and the splatter pattern of the coffee was very prominent / in multiple patterns to emphasize someone's distaste of my work. I will say that I by no means fault Kerry or New Creations- I fault the emotionally delusional SJW who felt he was striking a cord for 'The RED MAN!" Never mind the fact that a team mascot , logo or company icon are meant to be SYMBOLS OF HONOR, STRENGTH and TRIBUTE- not insults or degrading denouncements of the very group or cause the image heralds ( OOPS, this may cause some younger "Woke" folks to get teary eyed). The younger / upcoming generations have been perpetually fed an ongoing platter of selective garbage such as "White Man, BAD", or "That Black Man is Conservative?-HIM AN UNCLE TOM!" and "United States SUX so WHO is GONNA TAKE CARE OF ME?" ... Therefore, they truly don't know what real FREEDOM is about! Furthermore, I dare say NONE of us has ever experienced REAL tyranny. Yet, as a whole , our education system and a wide swath of our political leaders have convinced anyone who will listen that tyranny and oppression is what we live in and this doctrine has produced an innumerable count of dolts within our society which is ( as Robert Bork exclaimed ) " Slouching Towards Gomorrah". "My candidate did not win and I am mad as Hell and somebody is gonna pay", "That Washington Redskin logo OFFENDS me", "YOU want to do WHAT- own a Mexican restaurant?! THAT is RACIST!" , "The Constitution NEEDS TO GO!", "I identify as a pronoun other than my gender so you best WATCH HOW YOU COMMUNICATE AROUND ME!"..... each one of these ludicrous statements is a small sample of just some of the ideas which are floating about today and are indeed making life HELL ON WHEELS for anyone who simply wants to enjoy living in the greatest, most blessed nation on earth-not PERFECT...but BLESSED. In closing, it is okay to disagree but why not do so civilly? I may not like what someone thinks, reads, proclaims or wears but I do not have the right to plot their destruction. Freedom means just that, freedom to say , do and live with your own decisions ( and decisions have consequences). America is one of the few places left in this world where freedom is valued - not in China, Turkey, Soviet Union, Pakistan, Cuba and increasingly not so in Canada or the UK. The right to free speech is non existent or rotting away in the above named places but thank God our Constitution born freedom grants someone like myself the opportunity to communicate through artwork-symbols of strength, honor and chivalry just to name a few and if that means I choose a native American Indian as my subject-I'm gonna continue to do just that. Plus, lest we forget where the idea of freedom came from- it originally and forever will be the idea of The Almighty. The living Lord God of Abraham, Issac and Jacob . The same God who gave and gives men free will. The same God who gave His own son to pay the ultimate price so men, women and children of every nationality , walk of life no matter the skin color could have freedom from death and sin. That is where freedom is rooted. Jesus Christ correctly proclaimed..."...if The Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed" found in John 8:36. It is THIS same Lord Jesus who can change the hearts and minds of everyone who turns to Him for re-birth and Salvation. It therefore is no surprise that ideas such as tyranny and Communism despise the Gospels of the Bible and man's freedom overall... the idea is to suppress such great truths. Ironically, it is the same type of suppression which can be found in the actions of someone who will destroy a work of art just because they disagree with the subject matter. Oh, by the way, Mr. or Mrs. SJW coffee spitter, I reprinted the "Red Crow Fire Arms " print and my customer has it on display this very day and as for the destroyed print... (try not to cry, but) I have it on display at my home as a badge of great honor. It has been a while since Workhorse has posted anything but this current post is long overdue. For the second year in a row, I have had the privilege of working with Johnson Ferry Baptist Church Children's Ministries in drawing / designing graphics for their Vacation Bible School. While this post is primarily meant to demonstrate the type of work we can do in the world of custom graphics ( thus appealing to any other groups or individuals in need of such work) it is also meant to honor the importance of teaching the unchanging Truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. During the VBS week which recently ran through this mid July, many of the kids I met knew a great deal about the Bible and the redeeming power of Christ's sacrifice and resurrection . In addition, I have no doubt many other kids made the decision to receive the gift of salvation or at the very least were able to hear about the Hope that is found in Christ alone. I am very thankful to the many people who teamed up to create the theme for this year's VBS as well as their hard work throughout the week - folks such as Sheryl Gates, Christina Wekall, Callie Bogle, Christi Hodges, Lynn Wolford, Kristi Willaims, Marilee Weeks, Angela Rogers and Angela Patterson JUST to name a few, plus the many dedicated interns who gave up their week to minister to so many kids. Thank you JFBC for trusting Workhorse to work in and with your program. In closing, for inquiries about what we do at Workhorse Art concerning custom illustration and graphic work of all kinds, contact us at 404 406 3084 or email at info@artbygvjones.com. Our website is an ongoing portfolio of our work at www.workhorseart.com Thank you for your time in viewing this post! This past Friday, Jan 4, 2019 marked the start to a new year for Workhorse Art and myself,Gerald Jones.
Many thanks to Kerry Jackson and his wife Twyla for opening their gallery, New Creation Arts ( a part of Drawing to the Rock Ministries) located at 595 Roswell Street, Suite E, Marietta Ga 30060. I was and still am very grateful to my family and friends who attended the gallery show which premiered many personal art pieces of my own ranging from pen and ink works to some custom prints. My subject matter range centers around a great deal of Biblical scenes honoring The Lord Jesus Christ but also branches out to what I call "Man Cave" art: The Dark Knight, Rifle Ammunition, Hot rods, Dirty Harry and more. I think everyone had a great time and I was glad to see many of the folks who have played a major part of my life and are important to me...especially my wife Kim! My exhibit will be on display until the 26th of Jan and almost all the art can be purchased as giclee prints or canvas prints. If interested, please contact me through Facebook, my web site at www.workhorseart.com or my email of info@artbygvjones.com . In addition, Kerry Jackson and New Creation Arts can be reached at 678 223 4979. Thanks again for all who attended! A few years back I was asked by a friend of mine , Doug O'dell, to take a shot at designing a logo for a new company he had ventured out to establish called "Metro North Landscapes". The logo design I came up ( pictured above) was very simple and it took only a few rough drafts to secure the "look" Doug sought. I am pleased to say that this same logo can be seen today on his apparel and fleet as he services the greater Atlanta Metro and North Ga. area. I truly am thankful he gave me the chance to take on the design task as I am sure he could have went anywhere to have the logo designed.
I had known Doug and his family for many years as we attended the same church and grew up in the Cobb County, Sprayberry High School area. Doug was and still is a person of integrity who went out of his way to treat people with respect and this behavior has carried over well with Metro North Landscapes in particular. It is rewarding to highlight people and their work amidst the daily grind especially when those same people make it a point to place others first. I can say this of Doug O'dell and his company Metro North because I have seen his landscape / hardscape work at the homes of both family and friends. Stone work, landscape development, water works, quality plant selection / layout and overall yard / campus design is where Metro North Landscape thrives and I highly recommend Doug and his company if you or someone you know needs such work. So, my blog here at Workhorse is two fold: if you are in need of a design , logo or graphic brand to highlight your business , team or project, please feel free to give me a call at 404 406 3084 or contact me through my website. In addition, if you are looking for a company you can trust to improve and enhance your acreage, yard or campus (industrial or private) then give Doug O'dell and Metro North Landscape at 770 592 2562. His website link is http://www.metronorthlandscapes.info/services.html. As always, thank you for taking time to read this blog and for considering Workhorse Art! This week I have decided to do more than just highlight a facet of the graphic arts world in which I work and instead I thought it might be refreshing to highlight a recent logo design of my own along with the company it represents; Moore Fencing of North Ga.
The logo on display was a design the owner and I mulled over until the right look could be found that portrayed what his company is about day in and day out. I had not thought about the patriotic angle until Mr. Moore ( the obvious owner / operator) requested the image. That said, I feel the logo matches up with Moore Fencing just right. Despite our human failings, our Nation does stand for a certain uprightness and honesty which acts as our foundation. Hence, when a company or person bears the colors of the Red, White and Blue, one does expect a little more from the work and product. As for Mr. Moore and Moore Fencing, I have seen his work and have seen his character on display and both measure a great deal higher than the typical business standard of the day. In today's world, money ( which is a necessary component with which we must survive) seems to have taken precedence over honesty, loyalty, and overall quality ( although we all know this has been a problem forever). Still, it is nice to see a company come in and give an accurate quote,( not too low and not too high) and then see that company fulfill what they promised and maybe even go a little bit above and beyond . When I was a teenager and in my college years, I had my share of working for construction contractors (one or two in particular that I will hold back from naming) who turned out to be liars and whose work was questionable . I am glad to say that for as long as I have known Greg Moore, he has always striven to treat friends, family and customers right. I saw this through teen, college and now later years. So, when he needed a logo design, it was my pleasure to work with his company and hopefully produce something to compliment their work. I can honestly say that if you or anyone you know is in need of quality fence work, of any kind, Moore Fencing is the company you need to call. He can be reached at 678 493 9038. I am not alone in my verdict on his work since my dogs seem to enjoy chilling out in their fenced back yard provide by Moore Fencing. Thanks for taking time to read this note and God bless. Today's blog is just a quick presentation of an item which some football fans might find as a perfect gift or an office icon of their own: customized logo and helmet designs of a favorite team ( college or pro).
As a rule, I do not copy or illustrate from someone else's original art and copyright. That said, the images seen above are designs I have drawn, inked and produced as a "Hat-tip" to a favorite team. I am offering such items for sale and can produce whatever custom design a fan might be interested to have on display in their "Sports Cave". Over the years, I have looked at various logos and thought what I might have done differently if given the chance to take on such a task. In addition, for presentation purposes, each helmet shown above was an old/used helmet which I purchased, sanded and finished with a new coat of paint plus refurbished accents. SO, if you know of a football fan who might want their team honored with a look that is loyal to the mascot , history and colors of a specific organization, give me a call. I am working at the moment on a UGA reproduction and should have it ready for view by late October. I stay away from corporate names and imagery but concentrate on customization. You won't find a reproduced "Dallas Cowboy" design but you will find a "Cowboy" design which is true to the NFL original. It takes roughly around 4 weeks to complete a team, logo, helmet and specs but my goal is to not only help with existing organizations and clubs to develop a brand of their own but to offer such items as unique , one of a kind gifts. Please feel free to check out my website www.workhorseart.com I can always be reached at my email info@artbygvjones.com or phone 404 406 3084 As always, thanks for taking time to view. There was a a time when a client needed a mural, be it for a school , church or business, the workload and down time involved for vendor and client could take a considerable amount of time. The last hand painted mural I worked with some years ago took well up to two weeks for two hallways , (eight foot in height and some sixty and sixty five feet in length) . Then, the change came that we needed which would expand our creativity exponentially ; at the suggestion of a family member, we began to look into the use of vinyl wrap materials which would not only eliminate lengthy prep and application time but allow us to utilize ever more powerful / impactful images from our own vector artwork.
That same mural which took us two solid weeks of painting by hand would now take us around one to two days. Now, as of today, Workhorse Art can custom design and illustrate any image needed for a customer and expand that image for print and maintain a vital color and impact that the old time hand painted murals cannot measure up against; the durability and maintenance of the vinyl mural is un-surpassed . While the hand painted mural can trap dirt, hand prints and suffer chip or damage, any abrasions or tears the vinyl mural suffers can be easily repaired by simply printing out the one area in question ( the value of vector art soars!) and heat applied with little to no difference what so ever! We use 3M’s premium cast vinyl IJ180Cv3 coupled with their recommended cast laminate for protection against abrasion and UV which results in years of bright colors. The result for your school, business or vehicle is unforgettable imagery as well as a powerful marketing tool. Illustrations, paintings, photographs or a combination of any mediums, we can produce it for your mural "wrap". Call us today at 404 406 3084 or email at info@artbygvjones.com. Our website is also easy to navigate : www.workhorseart.com When I graduated from the once small Kennesaw State College in 1988, airbrushed graphics were still a go tool medium, computer graphics were just entering the scene ( at least on our art hall) and many offices still used paste up imagery and white out to prepare flyers and bulletins. It was common practice for the average office to prep their print specs and get them to the local printer to meet the weekly or bi-weekly deadline. The next ten to twenty years became a blur to me as before I knew it, some of my local printer contacts were beginning to utilize pre-drawn "clip art imagery" for a quick turn around and while some still called on me for my own original pen and ink drawings, I found myself competing with catalogs and various artist' programs slam full of "clip art".
Let us fast forward to our technical savvy world of today where advertising , marketing and business has changed ever so greater and continues to modify business visibility on an exponential level. Obviously, digital print and a multiple of variables within that very "word" have made some things much easier for the personal and business world. From folks creating their own logos, writing and promoting their own books to developing their own films , the world of business/creativity has changed almost too fast. Now, to my point... Obviously, since I am in the business of graphic art and illustration , one of my goals in working with my customer base is to demonstrate that original, unique visual imagery can be the mainstay for any given assignment: story boards, power point display , large scale graphics or imagery for T shirts-no project is off limits. Why not attain graphics that are truly one of a kind and solely for your business instead of imagery that anyone can find, buy or steal off the internet? Take a look at my working example at the top of this blog of a "Gospel Map" which I re-drew for a local church . They wanted to improve on the imagery originally on file( the clip art map to our left) and replace it with something more unified across the page ( i.e., all art from the same artist). The client DID NOT want nor need something of the "Sistine Chapel" quality but they DID need something creative and fun , especially since the piece was to be used in sharing with children. Clip art can still be the go to tool for many offices and projects but it does NOT have to be the only option. If you have a project which requires some manner of visual story telling , instruction or advertising, consider giving me a call at Workhorse Art; I can work within most required budgets and produce imagery to your office expectations in a quick and quality oriented manner. Thanks for reading! Jerry Jones, Workhorse Art, 404 406 3084 / info@artbygvjones.com |
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