While the snow falls outside, i close my eyes and think about my homeland.
I see a warm winter day, sun is shining and i am siting among good friends, we are having a really good conversation, while we share a good bottle of wine, "Pôpa Doce".
I am not a wine expert, but this wine is something special, it has been like a month ago since i tasted this "nectar", but i still can recall the amazing taste.This is the first sweet red wine produced in the Douro region, to all of you that are thinking about visiting Portugal, maybe you should start to plan a visit to the magic Douro region and maybe a visit to the place where they created this magic taste. I am going there for sure soon, cause i know that there are other magic nectars to be tasted :)
For now i will keep my eyes closed, and i will dream of sunshine and great wine.
Dear friends,
it has been a while since my last blog post, but unfortunately i have been away for some really bad reasons.
But i don't want to talk about that right now, the thing is, i have been a month in Portugal and while i was there, my good friend Quim asked me to paint a wall on his bar "Bora Bora". It wasn't easy to get some montana, but after a lot of internet searching we ordered some spray-cans and the result was this one, the pics are not the best ones but it is what i have :)
Hope you like it!
1st December, the snow falls slowly outside, the first snow of this winter, marking the start of another christmas,what a fantastic day!
In Portugal is Restoration of Independence's day, so another reason to make this day a special day.
But there is something else... something that makes this 1st of December different from all the others 1st of Decembers that we have know and that we will come to know.
Today KarpeDiem is coming out with their new album "Suspenso no Ar". KarpeDiem is a Portuguese rock band, one of the few rock bands that keep, i will not say the old Rock, but the real Rock alive. Rock melodies and poetic texts, that leave us speakers of the "Camões language" suspended in the air. I had the privilege to be a little part of this adventure, when i was asked by them to illustrate something for the new CD.
I made 4 different sketches, and i know they decided to use the "birds", but i don't know how and where, i am waiting anxious for the exemplar they sended to me.
But the how and where they used my art is not the point, the point is that i would love to be there today, for their "premiere" concert, and i cant. But from here, from the cold north i send you guys a really warm hug, and the wishes of a fantastic night.
Please Keep on Rocking!
Today, the 19th October is the international breast cancer day. People all around the world are supporting the fight against this terrible sickness, and so am I. Unfortunately i know some people that suffered from this disease, some survived some didn't, my thoughts go to all of them. If you can please help against the fight against breast cancer, well not just breast cancer, the fight against cancer is really important. There were an estimated 12.7 million cancer cases worldwide in 2008, the number is expected to rise to 21 million by 2030, we can not let this happen, so go and find out how you can help, and do it!!
"Support breasts, because in a way or
another we all love them."
This is for my fellow Portuguese, i am not going to be writing a all story about corruption and bad politicians, i just want to say to all Portugal that it is time to do something.
Is time to make a exorcism, change is needed, do not only talk about it, do not simply share all kind of messages and pictures on Facebook, it is time to do something for real, we need a revolution and please don't make it with "Cravos" we need a real one this time. The Devil is not a imaginary figure from some religious book, the Devil is right on top of the chain, using and abusing you, but he is not stronger than us, we gave him his strength and we can take it back if we unite.
Fight Portugal!
Fight for a better Future!
And not the less fight for a better Past!!
Tell me my friend, do you remember when you were an artist?
Do you remember when it was so easy to draw? When we were kids we could draw all that it came to our mind, distant planets, aliens, monsters, cars, happy families, there were no boundaries, no limits, and we all loved to draw in walls back then!
Then something happened with our eyes, we stop seeing the world with no boundaries and start watching it like everyone else did. Things had one color and only one, no more the cows would be green nor the sky would be purple, now we would call pink people as "no sense", and we were artists no more. We stop seeing the fun in creating, and are yelling at our kids "DO NOT PAINT ON THE WALL!"
It's a wall for folk's sake, a white wall screaming for some art on it!
When i was a kid i loved to paint on walls... I still do!
When did you stop dreaming??
When did you stop to go to your magic place? When did you stop crossing the bridge to the floating island, with the little white and bended houses? When was the last time that you had a boat trip, in your little floating boat? When did your world stopped to be illuminated by glowing insects trapped in old lamps that hung from the sky? When did you stop flying? When did your magic blanket stopped to protect you? Why are you not invisible any more when you close your eyes? Why does that rock in your hand look like a rock and not a space ship? When did your world get so grey, so grown up and serious? when did you stop asking yourself all that?
What are you afraid of?
Tell me are you afraid of not succeeding with your career?
Are you afraid of not making money enough? Not getting the house you dream of? The car? The society's acknowledgment of you being successful, a good citizen?
You know what i am afraid of?
To end alone!!
Solitude is my biggest fear...
Do you remember that rubber duck that you once loved, but that you forgot on the beach one day and never saw again?? That is what i am afraid of, of becoming the rubber duck! I don't want to focus on the wrong things, i don't want to focus on money, success and all the rest, i want to to focus on being happy with what i got, with myself as i am and not a society wants me to be, but is not easy!
I want to keep the people i love close to me, and in that i am failing already, i've got them all spread around the world, making the objective of being with everyone impossible. But i am doing my best to keep them close, they are the most important, the antidote to my fear, friends and family are all. In the end we all come to this conclusion. In the end we all come to the hard truth that money, car, house, career... they are all empty concepts that we invented, the are not essential, but love is.
I don't want to wake up one day, old and lonely! I want to have people laughing around me all the time, i want to share the little i have with them, and die with no regrets, probably poor and unknown, but happy!!
You are looking at me and my Tattoos, and a lot of things are going through your brain. "Dangerous, Psycho, Criminal, Bad, Ugly, Should be locked away..." Relax mate it's just ink!
Seriously i am getting pretty tired of your "Pointing Finger", why dont you take a look instead to the skinny anoretic bitch, on Prozac since she was 16, cause that's the only way she can keep herself together, she is fucked up in the head!! Or take a look at the guys that you so respectfully call "Sir" and make little bows to. The ones in black suits making millions on children work, animal abuse and modern slavery, they are the real Criminals. Take a look at the man and women that you choose to sit on the power, look at them preaching for peace but calling for war, making enemies so that they have someone to sell their weapons to, they are really Dangerous. Look at the rich lady beside you wearing real fur, in a century where we are able to produce clothing as warm and good looking with no need to kill any animal, she is so Ugly! Look at you, scared and alarmed because the media washed your brain to make you react like that if you see someone that does not fit in their little box, you should be Locked Away!
You see, i dont believe this shit about "Being born this way", no way... people change, and that is a lot of things that make people change for the good and the bad, but Ink ain't one of them!
Ps: Chicks with Tattoos are Hot!!
Once upon a time, a rhino called Bruce that was best friends with a little bird called Boyle. Bruce and Boyle knew each other for ages, Boyle use to eat all the ticks on Bruce's back, and so that way the rhino was free of the little bloodsuckers and the bird had a meal everyday. One day while in the heat of the savanna Bruce said:
(Please imagine a really deep and kind of dumb voice :D )
" Hey Boyle, you are a bird right?"
" Ahhh... Yeah, what kind of question is that?"
"Well you know i was thinking, birds are pretty good at singing, aren't you??"
"Well, almost all of us. There is the crows and ravens with their Heavy Metal bullshit, and the chickens with their hip hop, and the peacocks with their "Pop shit look at me i look good, i don't need to be a good singer"... but in general yes, we are pretty good at singing." - said the little bird.
"Well..."- said the rhino, "I would like to show you something. You see i always had the dream of becoming a singer, and my mother always said that i was an amazing singer, but i would like to hear your opinion."
Not knowing what to say, Boyle just said, "Ok! Go ahead!"
And so the rhino start to sing, if you can call that singing! It sounded like... wel there is no description. All the bird's feathers were up, he felt like his ears were going to explode, but still he faked a little smile, like he was hearing something incredible pleasant. He did not know why he was doing it, why he was lying, Bruce was his best friend, it should be possible for him to be honest and tell him that he sucked at singing! But he didn't, he lied, and when bruce was done the bird just said... "Wow, that was incredible! Man you are amazing!" it was a lie, but it was a lie so not to hurt hes friends feelings.
And then everything happens to fast, the rhino was running towards the t.v. show "Jungle Idols" and before the bird could say something, Bruce was standing there, in front of a thousand animals and the Jury. The Jury was a Lion a Elephant and a Panther...a black one... in this shows there is alway political correct to have a female as jury, and black if possible.
And when Bruce started to sing for them everyone was laughing and buh him, and the judges were like "Dude you suck!" and "You should try the Cirkus!" and he could not take it any more, and he was crying, and running, running like a train trough the jungle, and then he saw a cliff, and then he jumped, and then... and then he was falling.
Falling.
Falling into the dark!
Falling into nothingness!
Falling!
Moral of the story: Rhinos can't fly.
Note: This story is totally fiction, there is no t.v. show like "Jungle Idols" watched by thousands of animals, and of course there is no bad friends as the bird, that would lie to his best friend and let him expose himself like that. This is totally FICTION!
We are almost there!
The day after tomorrow, it is going to happen. We are going to step in a time machine and travel back in time, or at least some of us are. Me and my good friends, Ronni, Jesper and Eduardo are going to Metallica concert, so it is time to take that to small old black grayish t-shirt out of the closet, and play a 20 years old metal fan again. Jeez we are getting old!! But Metallica guys are getting even older, i just saw a picture of Lars in Rock in Rio and i swear he looks like Phil Collins :D The only thing that does not get old is their music, it still's good as it was back in the days, i am sure i am going to see Metallica fans much older than me, and other much younger, that is the beauty of music, or real music at least, never gets old, never dies.
I wonder if in 20 years from now people will still listen to Bieber?... ok back to the topic and the real music, i just wanted to share this anxiety and happiness with you guys. I know that are many out there that do not like metal, i know that are many as well that like metal and think that Metallica is not real metal anymore, well i am going to tell you again, stop labeling everything. When i was a kid i thought that only heavy metal was music, today i listen as much to hip hop, rock, pop, dub, electronic ... and the list goes on and on... there is nothing like the "only music", that is only good and bad music (and Bieber music :/ ), thats it!
And wether you want it or not Metallica is good music.
I hope you all are doing well, i am going to party hard and head-bang so much that probably 2 day after the concert i still will not be able to move my neck, see you around!
And by the way, this illustration was totally inspired in a amazing artist Denis Zilber, i hope one day i got to be as good as he is!!
Peace!!
It is not Friday, not even the 13th, but Jason is coming home anyways!
Ana a friend of mine, suggested to me that i made a "Jason illustration", maybe something like: "The man behind the mask" I found the idea really interesting and started to work on it right away, the problem was that i could not see the man behind the mask.
I don't think that it is a man behind the mask. Jason is the mask. Or the mask is Jason? I think that sometimes the mask is the real you. But then is that a mask?
OMG i better stop with this cheap philosophy and show you the sketch i made.
Jason is coming home, on a Sunday :D
Peace!
Today june 1st, is international children's day, and therefore i decided to sketch something allusive to the date.
When i was a kid this day was a day of joy, we used to play all day, making paintings, games and other funny things to celebrate children rights. When i was just a kid, i didn't know, or didn't understand that while we were there celebrating, other kids were crying, starving, dying around the world. Back then i didn't know, or thought about that maybe one of the kids playing with me, would be beaten later that day by a drunken father, i didn't know or didn't get that there were kids with no houses, kids with no parents, Kids that play soldiers for real, with real guns and real blood, back then i didn't know that there were children that were not children!
Help is still needed!
So last week was carnival in Aalborg!
I had decided that this would be my last one, i kind of start to feel a little old for going around in a costume surrounded by 20 year old kids! But to tell you the truth, i think next year i will be there again, i love the drums, the samba rhythms, the sun (when it comes out), the beer, the way people are happy and respect each other, the peace and love, the creativity in some costumes, and not the least the 20 year old good looking people ;D
Something happens to people when they put a mask or a costume on, there are no differences, no race, no fat, thin or ugly, no smarter, no rich or poor... in the carnival parade we are all the same. People hug strangers, shout cheers to each other, laugh together, say sorry if they bump into you, something that does not happen in a normal city day life, it is like we are all brothers and sisters partying together, and that is what i love most on carnivals day!
We have been many things, Cave Man, Gum under the Chair, Old and Used Superheroes, Dog Shit under the Shoe... but this year, we did not had much time to prepare so we decided for something easier and faster, some coffee bags, straws to make some needles, liquid latex and a lot of face makeup that was all we needed to make our costume, 6 Voodoo Dolls and a Zombie, it came out pretty good actually and we had a amazing day, with sunshine, good music and good company.
This was 2012 Carnival, and if the world has not ended, next year we will be there again!
Here is the sketch of what we looked like, i hope you guys are doing well, and that the ones that were on this years Carnival had as much fun as i did, PEACE!!
Some days ago i read in a Danish newspaper that they are looking for a date to stop the act of smoking in Denmark, as they already did in other countries like Finland if i remember right. They simply want to make it a crime, so get ready smokers you are going to get to be on the top of "Most Wanted" just after Hells Angels!
How can this be possible?? I am a non smoker, but i was a smoker for not long time ago, i stopped cause i choose to, not because someone told me to. The smoke policy implanted for some year ago, i can understand, and never was against it, but go as far a make it illegal?? When i moved to Denmark i remember i saw this land as a land of freedom. Denmark was known where people had rights, the land where people choose what to be, how to be it, and when! I know that rules are necessary, and is not that that we are discussing here, the thing is that in the past few years more and more laws appear to tell me what to do, what to eat, what to drink, etc... What is coming next??
We cant be fat anymore, we cant be thin either, are they soon going to decide how tall we can be too? The color of my eyes and hair? Wait a moment, i have seen this somewhere, Oh! i know where, it was not this kind of idea, that that little psycho that they called Adolf, had in mind like not that long ago? No? Sorry, i might be getting confused here!
Well i hope i die before the day that we all look the same, walk the same way, and have to ask permission to go and have a shit!
Peace!
I was going to call this blog entry "A sketch on a Boy", but it would be wrong cause i am actually not a tattoo artist so i don't sketch on people, at least for now :)
Mathias Lost his mother at a young age, and he his been thinking about showing his love and how much he misses her, through art, art on his body. Some people would call this a cliché, but it is not. Some people, just like me love tattoos just for what the are, art on the skin, but some need that art to be special and have a bigger meaning, i think it is cool to show your feelings on a tattoo, something that is permanent, unless that it is the name of your boyfriend or girlfriend, that i would advise you not to. Remember Tattoos last forever, Love don't!
But back to the sketch, well Mathias is now old enough and save some "dollars" to get his first ink, and he asked me if i wanted to draw it for him. Of course i said yes, not just for the fun of it, but to make such a meaningful sketch and know that someone is actually ready to wear it everyday for the rest of hid life, it is a big deal. So we met over a coffee and a portion "Nachos" and he explain what he was thinking for the tattoo design, and so i went home and started sketching it, i am done now, and sent it to him, i really hope he likes it!
I am going to post here some stages of the process, the final one is the one in black and white, but i could not let it go and colored it just for fun.
I really hope that you enjoy it as much i do, Peace!!
Kira was Lara's marionette doll.
They used to play together all day, they even slept together at night, they were like best friends, like sisters. The problem is that girls they grow up but dolls they don't, so with time Lara grew into a young woman, and the doll was forgotten, she became a simple piece of furniture, a nonliving being, a ornament, and after some years not even that.
She is now a forgotten toy living in the darkness of a box, waiting, whispering...
Hey There!!
So the week starts with a new sketch on a canvas, it is called "All About Attitude" and is made with montana spray, size is 1m x 1m. I think it came out pretty good, i hope you guys like it.
Peace!!
Sunday afternoon, everyone left to see Giro d'Italia!
I am alone bored and have a blank cap and a bunch of Posca markers. What to Do? What to Do?
Have a nice Sunday my Friends!!
I was watching some kid channel, and some new cartoons, and nostalgia came over me. I do not want to sound like a old man, saying that everything in the old days was better, i promised that i wouldn't when i was a kid and i am not going to go that way.
So the cartoons today are different than the ones when i was a kid, but not necessarily better or worst,(How did that came out?) but anyways i miss some of the old cartoon characters and series, one of them was "He-Man and The Masters of the Universe", who remembers that??
He-Man was a barbarian (with a really strange hair cut ) that had a coward green tiger as a pet, and a sword that gave him incredible powers when he said "For the powers of grayskull"or something like that, and it would transform his coward tiger in a wild battle cat. Together they fight against their life enemy "Skeletor". And so i decided i should sketch He-Man, to be honest he doesn't look the hero he used to when i was a kid, i think is the hair cut, if HeMan came back he would need a new haircut that didn't make him look like a page.
The ones who are old enough to remember He-Man will for sure agree to me that: "He-Man is the cartoons Chuck Norris!
Peace!
