Lazy Summer Days

*insert lame excuse for no updates here*
This might be a pretty long post...

Summer has been pretty darn good since the last update. Recently, the Durham Arts Council opened their annual exhibit featuring the work of members of the Durham Art Guild. As a junior member, I had this piece on display:
The Death of Tomorrow

I think this is the first time any work of mine has actually been in a public exhibit place, so I feel honored to be a part of it. Apparently, the drawing was awesome enough to win 2nd place and score me some munnies!



Pictured above is what is currently on my makeshift workbench. Production has been slow because of a lack of space.


I got tired of using black, so here are some experiments...


Another PenZilla for my karate master.



And a friend wanted a ZombiePen, so here is a new version. As you can see, there are exposed rib bones and a number of new wounds.

I move to New York City on the 15th of August. From the 6th of August to the 13th of August, I'm going to be in California for a few weddings. Time is running short, so I'm trying to tie up some loose ends here. A lot of that is finishing some games and work that I can't take with me. GanPen production will probably be put on hiatus for a few months, at least until I figure out if I can work on them un the city.

On to some other news! On July 12th, I officially earned my black belt in Ishhin-Ryu Karate!
It was a very exhausting test, especially since I was testing alone; this meant there was little time to catch my breath and little energy from the outside to feed off of. As per tradition, I walked away with a few injuries. Both my feet had bruised heels from attempts at breaking bricks. The big toe on my right foot was black and blue underneath the nail because of a brick falling on it after a break. We had to take a drill bit and drill a few holes in the nail to release the blood and pressure. And my right wrist is bruised because of another break attempt.

All my injuries were pretty much self-inflicted...
Weird.

Other notables include having to fend off 5 really big guys (and promptly being thrown around like a rag doll), showing off my hand speed, and having a board broken over my head.

Here's a parting pic of me and my master, Shaw-sensei



Until next time!

Long time no update, eh?

After a nice two week period of (relative) relaxation, it's time for me to be productive again!

Now, now, I'm sure you're thinking, "Wait a sec, Jordan! It's been almost a month since you last updated! You've been relaxing for a really, really long time!"

And I'd like to respond: "Incorrect, Dear Reader! My last few weeks of high school were rather hectic! I hardly had time to update my blog in between the final projects and sessions of Team Fortress 2!"

In short, yes, I have been quite lazy. But since summer is here (has been here for a few weeks), I can finally update on a semi-regular basis. Here's a look at the latest GanPen variation:

(The following images may be considered graphic by some, so TURN BACK NOW if the thought of zombie penguins makes you squeamish!)

ZombiePen!
Commissioned by B.Dean



Check out the brains on this guy!









Forgive the low quality of the shots, but I only had my cell phone camera on me. The "zombification" was done using a handy Dremel Stylus to cut away material and Fixit Sculpt to add in some fleshiness, mainly with the brain. Painting was very simple, just a base coat of white, a grey blend, and lots of drybrushed red/pink. The feet and beak were painted with this funky old yellow I got on accident recently. It actually comes out of the bottle looking like it's been sitting around for a few decades.

I have another ZombiePen I'm trying to finish up. Pics of that one coming shortly. I also have a UniPen (UNICORNS!), another PenZilla, and maybe a few other variations, as well as a few standard-issue GanPens coming along.

If you're interested in commissioning a particular GanPen, e-mail me at
jordan.liv@gmail.com
and we can try to work something out. I'm not sure how many more GanPen variations I'd be able to do, but remember! Regular GanPens with a tie color of your choice are still only $20 (plus shipping if you live far away!).

Whew! Time to do something productive!

Ganpen Director's Commentary and Making Of!

Here are the proper ones!
Watch The Rise of GanPen below first!

The Rise of GanPen

Finally, here it is!
If you're interested in owning this on DVD, along with over 20 other excellent student-made films, e-mail me!
jordan.liv@gmail.com

BUSINESS CARDS!

My business cards came in today!
Silly PhotoBooth, taking pictures backwards...

Pirates of the Silver Screen

Riverside High School
3218 Rose of Sharon Rd.
Durham, NC 27712

If you're in town, come and see Riverside High's second film festival!
See GanPen's silver screen premiere!

Technology!

Check it out!
I got a snazzy new 17-inch MacBook Pro!
Here's the work space in my room! Mom picked up this nifty folding table today from someone on Craigslist for $10! It's perfect for my room as my desk is full of books and more stuff I don't have room anywhere else for.



Overview!

The spinny chair is a lot quieter than the chair that goes with the desk.

BRUCE LEE!

The wallpaper is of NYC. And that glowing orange thing is a 750 GB portable hard drive. I had a bad experience with data loss recently, so I got one for Time Machine.

If only I had a printer and scanner....And a bigger room.

Photos of completed GanPens

Today, I took some portfolio photos of the four completed GanPen figurines I've done, not including the two I made for my brother and sister. I'll probably end up re-taking them because the lighting is iffy. Production is EXTREMELY slow, but I'm looking to speed that up with the purchase of an airbrush someday, once I get enough money from selling GanPens. So anyway, here are the photos! GanPen, GanPen with green tie, DevilPen and PenZilla!
















Interested in a GanPen of your own?
Prices are as follows:
Regular GanPen with tie color of your choice..................$20
Custom paint job (see Digital Camo GanPen)...................$25
Custom modded GanPen (see DevilPen, PenZilla)..............$30+
Blank GanPen, ready-to-paint.....................................$15

Leave a comment or e-mail me at jordan.liv@gmail.com!
Expect these guys to be ready to be shipped in April! I need to make the certificates of authenticawseomness and maybe a cool box for them.

The Rise of GanPen!

Time for something not involving the toys!

Well, sort of.

GanPen is starring in his very own feature-length short film!
Feature length! SHORT FILM!

It's for an art assignment, but I decided to incorporate some shameless plugging.

It's an animated mockumentary about GanPen's rise to power in the mob world!



GanPen's mysterious fortress in the North?


The detective charged with the task of hunting GanPen down! He must be cold, eh?

It's not really completely animated. It's like...well, it's got some moving parts. Like the Metal Gear Solid Digital Graphic Novel or the cutscenes from MGS: Portable Ops.

Like this!


I've got a tight deadline! 1 week and 1 day to finish!

NewPen!

Progress on my GanPen production line is slow, but steady. I've stopped making positives for a while so I can paint the 6 or so that I have already made.

If you are interested in a GanPen, here are prices:
Standard GanPen, tie color of your choice: $20
Custom painted GanPen (digital camo, something artsy): $25-30
Custom modded GanPen (PenZilla, DevilPen): $35+

Think of how much they'll be worth in the future! ONLY 50 of these shall ever be made! Each comes signed and numbered! Here are pics of DevilPen and PenZilla, as well as two standard GanPen