Josean Rivera

Art and such…a collection of past and present work

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Philly Based Artist/Art Educator. I like to draw things about Phish www.phishart.com

  • Summer homework: The Gamehendge Saga

    I’ve just finished (and have available for sale) the first four illustrations in the Gamehendge suite I’m currently working on.  Inspired by a couple songs by the band Phish, Gamehendge was originally guitarist Trey Anastasio’s senior thesis at Goddard College.  Originally called The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday (TMWSIY), it is a collection of songs that tell the story of a retired colonel who is transported to the land of Gamehendge and rescues a document called the Helping Friendly Book from an evil dictator named Wilson.  I have been planning to work on a visual form of it (originally as a graphic novel) for a couple years.  I have illustrated the song Esther as a series of block prints in college, and created 2 stenciled prints last summer.  There are quite a few songs in the saga; 8 in TMTSIY, as well as some additions they released later.  I hope to illustrate these, as well as the narration that accompanied the original thesis in the months to come. I’ll be offering prints for sale, and maybe a book of the complete series, along with visual interpretations of other Phish songs.

    Divided Sky

    Divided Sky- watercolor and acyrlic 8.5×11

    A chant performed by the Lizards, the race of people who inhabit Gamehendge and are dependent on the writings of the Helping Friendly Book for their survival.   They would stand on the edge of a rhombus and shout to the sky, praising Icculus, the Supreme God of the Sky and author of the Helping Friendly Book.

    Rutherford

    Rutherford the Brave- watercolor, ink, and acrylic.  8.5×11

    Rutherford the Brave is the head knight of the Lizards who leads a team of allies to help overthrow Wilson, a traveller who arrives in Gamehendge and eventually captures the Helping Friendly Book from the Lizards and locks it in the top of his castle, thus becoming the sole ruler of Gamehendge.  He appears in the song “Lizards”, telling the retired colonel (Col. Forbin)  tales about Gamehendge and the Helping Friendly Book. At one point, he attempts to lead  Col. Forbin across a river while still wearing his armor, causing him to sink.

    ACDC Bag

    AC/DC Bag- ink, watercolor and acrylic.  8.5×11

    AC/DC Bag is a robotic hangman with a bag on its head used to hang traitors and enemies of Wilson, the dictator of Gamehendge.  The song “AC/DC Bag” tells the story of the execution of Mr. Palmer, Wilson’s accountant. Palmer was using Wilson’s money to secretly fund the revolution, and was therefore hanged in the town square by the AC/DC Bag, a mechanical hangman.

    Famous Mockingbird

    Fly Famous Mockingbird- ink, watercolor, acrylic

    The Famous Mockingbird is a bird who is sent by Icculus to fly to the very top of Wilson’s castle and retrieve the Helping Friendly Book for Colonel Forbin, thus saving the people of Gamehendge.

    I’ll be selling these at the Phish lots at Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC) July 6th and 7th, as well as Merriweather Post Pavillion July 13th and 14th (Fingers crossed for Holmdel, NJ July 10th).  I also have them on sale on Etsy, with a special deal if you buy all 3! Stay tuned for Series II, coming sometime in July!

  • South Street Spring Festival: The Epilogue

    I meant to post these a couple weeks back, but totally forgot!  The Festival was great, I had Froot, R2F!, P Nub, and Dash join me at Tattoed Mom’s tent. We sold a bunch of stuff, and got to meet a lot of people familiar with our work.  I’ll be putting the stuff I didn’t sell on Esty soon, so be sure to check it out!meet a lot of people familiar with our work.  I’ll be putting the stuff I didn’t sell on Esty soon, so be sure to check it out! Also be sure to check out the work of my fellow artists (You won’t be disappointed)

    ImageWe noticed the words “street art” tend to get people’s attention.

    ImageYou’d think we have a sun allergy

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    Doing collabs is a great way to get people to watch over your shoulder.

    ImageOur view for about 8 hours.  We couldn’t help but take refuge inside Tattooed Mom’s from time to time.

    ImageWe couldn’t help ourselves.

    ImageFroot posing with a Pnub piece.  Now hanging over my tv in the living room (the painting, not Froot)

    I really appreciate these guys coming together at the last minute and represent Tmoms and Philly…some great artists in this city.  Find Froot, Pnub, and R2F on instagram, most of their stuff is for sale.  You can also usually find us on First Fridays in Old City Philadelphia!

    (Thanks to the peeps whose pics I used!)

  • South Street Spring Festival

    ImageNext Saturday!  Tattooed Mom’s was gracious enough to let a couple of Philly artists and myself sell artwork at their booth at the South Street Spring festival.  We will have a rotating line up of artists all day including Sloth, Froot, Yerp, R2F!, P Nub and UWP (Possibly more!)  Free stickers for kids and adults, and don’t forget to bring your black book!

  • Skulls be Springin’

    It’s been a bit since I’ve last posted, but for good reason.  Time constraints have pushed the printmaking back, but I’d been sketching a lot which eventually turned into some paintings.

    Zombie Hand

     

    Holy Zombie Hand

     

    Punk Rock Foot

     

    I’ve also been working on some stuff for a couple shows this summer. I’ll be showing with a couple great artists so stay tuned for more info on that soon.

    Winged Skull I

    Winged Skull II

    Hearts for Brains

    Will of God

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    I was also lucky enough to be able to put up some installs at Tattooed Mom‘s on South Street in Philadelphia.  I’ve gotten to know the owner and he’s a big promoter of the arts, especially street art.  If you ever been upstairs, you’d totally understand.  I put up a couple masks up, which I’ve had laying in a back room for a couple years.  I also put up some tiny canvases, about 2×2 each.  We’ll see how the glue holds, since people love their souvenirs (although I say if you can get if off the wall, you deserve it).

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    I’ll be posting updates regarding new work and the summer shows, but you can keep up with up to the minute tomfoolery on twitter, facebook, and now on instagram! Don’t forget to check out my esty shop for original art and prints (new work coming soon!)

  • Block and Roll

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    2013 started off on a roll (pardon the pun).  I had been previously making some simple block prints (mainly examples that I’d use in class) which I’d make stickers out of, but I hadn’t really worked seriously with lino blocks since college.

    Older blocks from 2012
    Older blocks from 2012
    Stickers
    Stickers

    Getting some new blades motivated me to work detailed again.  My first couple prints were more studies than anything, making block print versions of several drawings/paintings I had done previously.

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    Dino Saint

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    Madonna and Child

    The Prophet

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    More blocks are upcoming, And these are all currently available through Etsy!
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  • Shop Til You Drop

    etsydecemberI’ve updated my Etsy shop with a ton of new prints, etchings, drawings, and paintings!  I’ll be adding more in the coming weeks, as well as offering some special sales these coming weekends, so stay tuned!

     

  • All Saint’s Day

    Friday, November 2nd was the opening for the All Saint’s Day show at 161 West.  I shared the space with the work of Mike Ellyson, which couldn’t have been a better match.  Our work, heavily influenced by religious symbolism and imagery, nicely complimented a day that celebrates All Saint’s Day as well as Day of the Dead.  161 West, a gallery in the Fishtown area of Philadelphia, once housed a die cut factory, giving it a large space with high walls. This space worked well to create a church-like atmosphere, which worked perfectly with our work.

     

     

     

    Many thanks to Jessica Murphy for setting these up!  These little altars she made definitely made my calavera stickers a lot more eye catching!

    Once it got late, we turned out the lights for a more appropriate ambiance

    Mike Ellyson’s altar to college football.  This epic installation features an altar surrounded by 245 paintings, each one representing an individual college football team.  An undertaking that took 3 years, this was the first time all of them were shown together.

     

     

     

    The show will be up a couple weeks, so be sure to check it out if you are in the Fishtown area.  You can contact the gallery for times, or set up an appointment.

    Check out more of Mike Ellyson’s work at www.mikeellyson.com

     

     

     

     

     

  • Miscellaneous Debris on Wood Panels

    Here are a couple of panels I’ve done within the last week.  I’ve been obsessed with painting on wood panels lately, and with the last good First Friday in Philadelphia coming up, I tried to get as much done as possible (Always waiting til the last-minute.)  I’ve tried to make them in a way in allows me to sell them at a decent price without breaking the wallet.  Most of these were inspired by stickers I have done in the past, as well as current series that I’m working on.  Whatever doesn’t get sold on Friday will be up on my Etsy shop this weekend, so stay tuned!

     

  • Fall sale! 25% off everything

    I’ve been neglecting my Etsy site lately, but I finally got around to it! I’ve got over 40 paintings/prints and I want it out of my house.  Use promo code 25OFF to get 25% off anything in my shop!Image

  • Iconography

    Various Icons on wood panels.  I started buying wood plaques for Free Art Fridays, since they tend to fare better in the outdoors (There was a tendency to rain after I put art out).  I started out with small 3 inch panels, and slowly moved up.  Some were done with a wood burning tools and paint markers, while the larger ones are acrylic and ink.

    8.5×11 Icons- Ink and Acrylic

    Currently available through esty

    3×5 Icons- Paint markers

    5×7 Icon -wood burning tool and paint markers