Dale Earnhardt Chopper...

This is a gas tank I painted for a friends chopper that was all race themed. I really like the way it turned out, especially the illusion of the raised #3 on top. I wish I had some photos of the entire bike together, but I don't.

Praying Reaper...

Here is a close up photo of an airbrushed panel I did for my friend at Heavy Metal Designz. 

http://www.thedailyshow.com/full-episodes/index.jhtml?episodeId=225122

In April 22nd's episode of the Daily Show with Jon Stewart, they have an obviously edit an image of Karl Rove's body with tattoos. Approximately 7' 30" into the show, Jon points out one tattoo, "the Chinese symbol for tenacity", but it is in fact the traditional character for love - 愛.



This is not the first time TDS made fun of members of the GOP. Previous butt of their joke was Condi Rice.


PS. The Daily Show with Jon Stewart is a parody show made by Comedy Central. I don't want to have more humorless dimwits like this one and this one email in to tell me Karl Rove or Condi Rice does not have any tattoos.

Pinstriped Flames Added to Truck...

A friend came to me with his truck that he recently had someone paint a magenta stripe down the side. He thought the stripe looked plain, and wanted to know if I could add anything to it that would "spice it up." I suggested painting pinstriped flames inside the stripe in a compatible color, and putting some on the hood also. He liked the way it turned out, and thought his truck finally looked complete.

Pinstripe Peacock...

I pinstriped this peacock on the sail panel of a friends lowrider the other day. I striped other locations on the car also, but the photos didn't turn out well. We were both happy the way it turned out. He wanted me to use blue to match the interior, and silver to match the chrome. I really don't like to paint on a white base, because white and yellow are the worst colors to paint on and still make the graphics look good. Dark colors always make the graphics on top of them look better.

http://www.wickedink.com.au/gallery:48:Oriental:image:132

Alan and I are confused by this tattoo. We are not sure if it is correct or not, simply because we have never seen this idiom.

From the last three characters, we can sort of guessing this person wanted "death before dishonor". However, Chinese idiom for it would be:

寧死不屈

凌辱 is used in both Chinese & Japanese to mean an insult, indignity, disgrace or violation, even to assault a woman. So we can sort of see how 凌 might imply "dishonor" and 不屈 does mean "fortitude" or "indomitable".

But we simply do not understand the grammar or syntax of 凌死不屈, since 凌 could also mean "pure; virtuous; insult; maltreat, encroach; soar; thick ice".

It simply sounds like the words "dishonor" "death" and "indomitable" run together.

Vans of the Past...

I found some old photos of my first two cars. The one on top was a Dodge Caravan cargo version I bought for $700. Before I got it, it sat in a farm field for almost 3 years and was home to many small animals and insects. I shot it flat black and laid out flames all with rattle cans. I drove that thing like it was a rally car. The second van was a Chrysler Voyager, and leaked transmission fluid so bad that I had to buy it by the case, and keep at least a dozen gallons in the back. No joke. I sprayed it Rusto metallic purple, and painted the green flames on with a roller and 1 Shot...

'35 Ford'

I painted this on my friends new toolbox using brushes and lettering enamel. He just completed building this car that he's been working on for a few years.

Another winner from Checkoutmyink.com with caption stating the three characters are his girlfriend's initials.



Apparently this man did not receive the memo about there is no such thing as "Chinese initials for English names".



Beyond that, we have no clue what exactly the initials are supposedly to be.

Update: Reader Becki and others have noticed the initials may be "LBP" (somehow it reminds me of O. P. P. aka. Other People's Pussy by Naughty By Nature) written in a font that mimics pseudo-Chinese, i.e. The Choy Suey Font.

By the way, chop suey is not an authentic Chinese dish, rather according to legend it is from table scraps.


Mental Floss magazine, May-June 2009 issue, page 19.

Custom Paint Featured in "Hot Bike Baggers"

A bike built by Heavy Metal Designz and custom painted by me is featured in "Hot Bike Bagger" magazine this month...

See, Hear, and Speak No Evil...

I put this tattoo on a friends forearm yesterday

Fire Skull...

What's scarier than a laughing skull? A laughing skull made of fire....so scary.

T.T.T. Tank...

This bare sheet metal gas tank belongs on a ratted-out chopper built by the guys at Fastlane. The 3 T's are done in varigated leaf and outlined with rusty brown. I'm told that they stand for 'T Town Thugs' of Tucson. I wish I had a photo of the entire bike together to show.

Lowrider Tape Fades and Pinstriping...

I painted this display panel to show some lowrider tape fade techniques. There is also gold leaf and pinstriping along with metal flake and candies

True Beauty...

I think of the sky as God's canvass, and as a beautiful painting he creates every day. I'm fortunate to currently live in a place thats known for it's amazing sunrises and sunsets. Here are some photos I've taken with my mobile phone...

Flames...

This is a display panel I painted for potential customers to check out my flame skills. I also did a faux granite border around it. Flames are timeless, always a reliable stand-by when someone doesn't know what to paint on their ride, and appeals to everybody. I always said that flames/fire, skulls, and pinup girls are the cornerstones of custom paint. Those three elements will never go out of style, and can be added to almost anything to make it look better. Many people that come to me for trick paint don't want flames because they say that flames are played out, but well done flames will never get old!

Black Widow Customs...

My friends at Black Widow Customs wanted me give their plain walls some graffiti and mural treatment a while ago, so this is what I did...
...the piece above was created using a combination spray can and airbrush, and the lettering below is all spray paint...

...now that is what I call loyalty! 

Alan and I spotted this "naughty" tattoo in Checkoutmyink.com,


http://checkoutmyink.com/tattoos/lucretia/naughty-1

However, the middle character 皮 is completely wrong.



Actually 顽皮 would be sufficient to be used as adjective, where 顽皮的 is an adverb. Addition to that, the tattooed "naughty" does not have same innuendo in English. It is usually used to describe bratty children, as I would call them,

crotch sneeze fuck trophies.

Street Tales Chopper...

I painted this bike a few years ago for my friends at Infamous Choppers. The murals depicted inside the tribal designs tell the tales from the streets, about ruthless greed, and beauty lost.

Skull & Roses Tatty...

I recently inked this skull and roses on a friend. This was my first attempt at a tattoo done almost entirely with a shader, and no liner work. This style has been made popular by tattoo masters such as Nikko Hurtado and Mike DeVries. I really like this method of tattooing because it shares many technical concepts as airbrushing. Hopefully, there will be a demand for this style of tattooing, and I will be able to continue to develop my skill...

And Even More of the Lulubell Opening...

...more photos of some of the art featured at the show...

...at the end of the night, we struck a pose and took a pic.

More From the Lulubell Show...

Here's some more photos from the show's opening. Above is one of the DJs from AZ Sessions Crew, and below are some more pieces that were featured...

Atomik at Lulubell Gallery Photos...

For the next few days I am posting photos of my art from the Lulubell show. These are close-up pics of some of the pieces hanging in the gallery. I also was notified that the remaining art is now on sale at www.lulubelltoys.com for those interested. Thanks to Lexi for taking photos of the event, and thanks to everyone else who attended and bought art!



...the following pics are of the Flying Fortress Teddy Trooper blank that I was given to customize. I'm still very new to the custom toy scene, but I had fun hot-rodding this Trooper out!