I had the opportunity to work with one of Seattle’s great acoustical bluegrass/folk band Captain Gravel. Collaborating with guitarist Chad Gibson to give the band a fresh new identity with a classic-psychedelic throw back logo was a lot of fun. Taking reference from some of the old show posters and bills from the 60′s era I was able to nail down a flowing title logo for these great musicians. With a twisty-knotted wood look it gave a nice organic “woodsy” feel which compliments their current tunes.

Captain Gravel

Their sound is expanding beyond the simple form of mostly acoustic music. There are amps on stage, and a drum set which didn’t exist previously. Still occupying the traditional realm; acoustic guitar, mandolin maintain their prominent roles. The change in sound and instrumentation was not calculated in ways one might assume. The band is based on a group of musicians who enjoy making music together regardless of genre preconceptions or traditional dogma. The influences are vast and the sound is diverse but seems to live somewhere between country, jazz, folk and rock.

Be sure to check out Captain Gravel new music here: http://www.captaingravel.com/

It was extremely fun putting together this show for Urban Light Studio. Kevin Law and his wife Julie were an amazing help and the space was the perfect compliment for the semi-grittiness that is inherent in my oil work. The gallery was filled through the night with a great mix of art enthusiasts and urban night-lifers who came out to partake in the social-art environment. The other spaces in the Greenwood Collective were also filled with an eclectic mix of works from various local Seattle artists. It was a “Bad-ass” event to say the least.

Original Artist’s Statement:

AGENTS OF DAWN

This particular series deals with alternate pasts, unforeseen futures, depravity of humanity,
mechanical objects, foreign landscapes, and the sequestration of progressive human intentions.
We live in a world bound by connectivity which is almost always fortified through invention and
technology. Evolution and our process of sensing our surroundings is merely incubated in all
catalysts of technical development. Although our mind-shape is expanding through vibrations of
cause and effect, science, as well as the cosmic, macro and micro we are experiencing our
surroundings numbified by our constant installment of so called technological advancements.
Through time and space we transcend in our intuitive and delicate nature via the hub of
conciousness that is today. Planets, virtual epochs, archaic meditations, and dubious psuedomutations
all align to create tones of irreal but nonetheless naturalistic strands of reality. Our
pragmatic interventions on unrefined countenance brings our blindsighted shortcomings straight
into parallel with the toxic and perforated multi-verse that is expanding all around us at every
moment. Here today, gone tomorrow, but imprinted on the veiny pulp of existence.
There is an end to every beginning. Domiciles of lost tribes protrude through the terrain like
insentient megaliths constructed by a wavering society of unholy and illegitimate union. The sky
turns tepid and cracks to reveal the displacement of our sins. Ageless is the world we live in.
Passive is the response of immortality. Time to let the stained hovels of our currency become
one with post-apocalyptic aeons and return to the sand and dust from which our mineralized
bodies came. Fashion the tourniquet of falsehood and let our prophets vapor.
Octopoid locust sapping life of a quasi-autonomous golem. The android of industrial youth now
a cold, rusting fixture of placid galactic ambiance. We came to seek. They came to assist. The
long hard journey is behind us. The past is repeated. Rescuing our master was no easy task.
Beyond all hope is adrift. The orb like chitonous shell contains the fragments of a fossil that can
only have come from the ethereal borders of time. All is dry and grows dark in a sea of
cantankarous bile. The ship has landed and no one is on it. The odyssey ends.
A product of retro-contemporary passage through the enigmatic, capacious, piousness of man…
N. Beery

Photos of the arrangement and space prior to the opening:

Death Retires / Dredge / Black & Blue / Apocalyptician

Tapping into the nether worlds and parallel dimensions through the culmination of time, ageless
forms, and beguiled minstrals this show of work percolates the tingling sixth sense . Vividly
surreal landscapes, twisted characters, and dripping textures coalesce to create a wild
integration of soul and strange beauty which invites all viewers to consume and envelope a
host of visual suggestions that break through the ego-shell of humanity.
This particular series deals with alternate pasts, unforeseen futures, depravity of humanity,
mechanical objects, foreign landscapes, and the sequestration of progressive human intentions.

Autonomous Ordinance / Maelstrom Harts / Cosmic Orb

Passion.Heart.Deliverance (Triptych) / Smokin Soul / Tentacular Slumber

The rawness of this historic building was the perfect backdrop for the show.

This show was a smattering of past and new works. The oil paintings and illustrations chosen worked beautifully together. We had a great time hanging these pieces. The illustration walls focus was enhanced through the 45 degree angle at which the pieces were hung and cast a nice drop shadow from the direct overhead lights. It really made the work “pop”!

Here is my statement regarding the process involved for the illustration works:

The Illustrious Illustration

A moment to reflect on the martyrs, the blind beings, the bastards, and the omnifarious intellect…
Portraits of passion and reverence come into light particularly when the passing of a trend, a
jet-setter, a conscientious objector, or a so-called role model is eliminated from the mainstream.
Documenting the indelible qualities of such idiosyncratic individuals is necessary to properly file
and tuck away cherished memories, mysteries, and legends. Time is the essential factor on all
sides of any one life. Whether the spark burns fast and hot or whether the flame resides eternal
is only a matter of the muted dust settling after the ash has blown over.
The illustrations you see before you are originals from the holy-banded library of Nick Beery. To
better serve the question of “how was that achieved?” here is a breakdown of the process and
media which is so required of the artist to produce an aged aesthetic and visual mystique :
It all begins with the board. A cold press illustration board is the “blank canvas” which becomes
the richly colorful image before you. Once a board is selected and the subject matter is identified
Nick moves on to picking up the cornerstone of all artist’s repertoir, a pencil.
Graphite takes it’s place and an under-drawing is rendered to the board. After a few coats of a
spray fixative to hold down the graphite a base color is selected. A typical base hue selection
Nick uses is a natural burnt sienna tone. A layer of oil paint with the said pigment is rubbed into
the precious graphite drawing and board leaving an even mid-tone coating which resides just
on top of the original rendering.
Upon rubbing in and wiping excess oil from the surface the next step is to define the highlights
that give form to an otherwise two-dimensional sketch. A strategic blending and lifting of the oils
then ensues with the use of a kneaded eraser. The face now begins to show volume and life.
After pulling out all the highlights and allowing the paint to dry the final measure is to redefine the
drawing and form by reinforcing the contrast and adding color. Shadows are burned with dark,
organic hues while crisp highlights are redeemed and softened through the touch of a pencil.
Full color palettes reinvigorate the image giving vitality to anatomy and focusing in on intricate
details. Finishing touches may include the use of acrylics , gouche, or watercolors to add smoky
effects or smooth finish. The end result is a grainy texture that gives a vintage look to the work.

Dolomite / Triclops / Tears I / Tears II / Busta / Roach Beauty

Dolomite / Triclops

Tears I / Tears II

Busta / Roach Beauty

The grand view will suck you in!

Kevin Law (studio owner) and Nick Beery (BeeryMethod)

Gearing up for my first solo show with UrbanLightStudios has been a blast. It is a review and collection of some of my past illustration works, design, as well as some new paintings just for this opening. Illustrations include “dead musician” portraits and fantasy imagery. The selected paintings are a cohesive blend of my surreal dreamscape pieces as well as some of my mechanical animal works. I will be at the opening on Friday to talk to all the art enthusiasts, explain process, drink wine, and chat about the culture.

The event corresponds with the Greenwood Phinney monthly Art Walk and is housed in The Greenwood Collective, which is an outstanding building of artist studios and galleries. The opening takes place from 6pm-9pm on Friday, September 11. Just walk in and follow the steps down to UrbanLightStudios Gallery where you will find my treasured paintings, original illustrations, and limited edition prints. I will be posting more after the opening including photos and a rambling of the event.

Agents of Dawn

“The dark winged scavenger sits atop the gnarled tree overlooking the remains of a carrion meal.” Teextile picked up this design to be printed for a limited run. The sharp contrast of black on silver really compliments the  shadowy tones of this semi-morbid creature drawing. Fact: (Did you know?) Vulture stomach acid is exceptionally corrosive, allowing them to safely digest putrid carcasses infected with Botulinum toxin, hog cholera, and anthrax bacteria that would be lethal to other scavengers. This also enables them to use their reeking, corrosive vomit as a defensive projectile when threatened. A group of vultures is called a venue when they are on the ground, but they are called a kettle when they are in the air. Imagine a kettle of vultures vomiting corrosive stomach acid over a mass paper-mâché parade!

Scavenger Tee

Scavenger Silver AA Tee