"I'm Wide Awaaa-aake!

I'm not sleeping" - U2, Bad

After a month breaking my ass putting the new studio together, putting together all that Giants art, doing a few commissioned portraits, some side jobs, a few odd jobs, and my 4 nights a week bartending, I spent the last 2 days pretty much doing nothing but sleeping.

However, I wake up to a world where my bills are finally getting paid, the summer has arrived, I've just about locked down a spot for my first public exhibition in October, and I'm chock full of ideas for new pieces to put on the walls up there.

I also wake up to a world where the Yankees seem to be getting back on track and making a run for the division again. I will actually be making my first trek to the new Big Church in the Bronx tonight with my old man to see Joba try and lead the Yanks past the Seattle Mariners. So, check back here all night as I'll be posting pics and comments live from the stadium to both the blog and my twitter feed.

Tomorrow, I'll begin posting some of the new stuff I'll be working on.

Super Sale This Weekend Only!

For those of you who've been looking to get one of these pieces without having to pay a ton of dough, today's your lucky day. I'm in a bit of a tight spot financially right now, and, to get me through it, I'll be taking the best offer for each piece by Sunday. This is a great chance to get some quality artwork and signed memorabilia for a song. So, if there's anything you like or have questions about, drop an e-mail to cm@craigmahoney.com.

"Eli's Escape" autographed by
Super Bowl 42 MVP Eli Manning
36"x24" acrylic on canvas

"Pinstriped Dreams"
17"x14" pencil on paper

"Simm-ply Great" autographed by
Super Bowl XXI MVP Phil Simms
14"x11" colored pencil on paper

"DJ's HR" autographed by
Derek Jeter
36"x24" acrylic on canvas

"Brandon the Battering Ram"
11"x14" colored pencil on paper

"A Bad Break"
11"x14" pencil on paper

So, Here's The Plan...

Now, that I have that Giants Super Show out of the way, and finished these commissions that were due this week, I'm finally moving on to more of the art that I hope will define me from now on. I've got a few more sports art pieces I want to finish, so I can finally go out and start selling that portfolio. Then, I want to do a series of jazz inspired pieces, a series of portraits of women (kind of sexy, but not cheesecake, pin-up stuff), and maybe even just some plein air landscapes.

I'm working on hooking up a public showing in October, and then spending the rest of summer prepping for that.

Starting next week, I'll also be posting videos up here. Some will be video of me in the studio. Some will be comedy bits. But, each week I'll post a video of me performing a different song, and every other week will be a new original song that I've written. I'm sure half of them will be crap, but with kind of output there's bound to be a few gems.

So, please, check the blog often, become a fan of Craig Mahoney Studios on facebook, and tell all your friends. There's gonna be some very interesting shit goin' down.

Back Monday

I'm finishing up a commission piece that's being given as a gift, and, therefore, do not want to post pics and spoil the surprise. I'll be getting back to work on other projects Sunday and will start posting regularly Monday. Enjoy the weekend, kids. My advice is to be sure to have an umbrella and cocktail handy.

Baseball Season

After three straight weeks in the studio doing nothing but football, I'm letting those LT & Osi pieces marinate for a little bit while I move onto some baseball stuff. Below are two pieces I started last winter but let coagulate during that whole "getting a divorce/moving the studio/depressed and broke/why, god, why, won't it ever stop f***ing raining?!?!" period that I went through during the early part of the year.

However.

I am now in a solid groove and CM Studios is just about fully up and running. So, back to work I go on these two lovely pieces which should be up for your viewing and purchasing pleasure within the next 2 or 3 weeks. Ladies and gentlemen, you know 'em, you love 'em: Joltin' Joe Dimaggio and Mariano Rivera!



(Trust me, they're gonna look great.)

Giant and Yankee Art Sale

Now, that all the craziness of moving the studio and prepping for that Giants show is over, I'm finally getting down to the business of business. The new CM Studios Facebook page is up, I've got the Twitter feed rolling, and, soon, I'll even have the new website up and running as well. You'll also notice the look of this blog changing (if you haven't already). The groundwork is being laid for a long, successful run here @ CMS, but, this being the real world and all, I gots to pay me some bills to keep it rolling. So, the following is a quick inventory of all original artwork still in my possession and up for sale (and, whaddaya know, it's all Yankee and Giant stuff). If interested, e-mail cm@craigmahoney.com.

I'm also going through a lot of my "lesser" drawings, basically anything I did in the sketchbook that only took a few hours, and I'm going to choose the best pieces for a "Sketchbook Sale" at some point in the next month. So, keep coming back, kids.

"Eli's Escape" autographed by
Super Bowl 42 MVP Eli Manning
36"x24" acrylic on canvas

"Pinstriped Dreams"
17"x14" pencil on paper

"Simm-ply Great" autographed by
Super Bowl XXI MVP Phil Simms
14"x11" colored pencil on paper

"DJ's HR" autographed by
Derek Jeter
36"x24" acrylic on canvas

"Brandon the Battering Ram"
11"x14" colored pencil on paper

"A Bad Break"
11"x14" pencil on paper

Yanks' Bullpen Good?

Here's a pretty good blog post from the NY Times' Tyler Kepner making the case that the Bombers' pen might actually be starting to come together. Frankly, with the return of Bruney (and did he lose even more weight since he left?) last night, and with some great young arms in the minors, I think the bullpen will end the season as a strength. We just need more consistency from our starters. Outside of Sabathia, you don't know what you're gonna get from a Yankee starter from one game to the next.

The other 5 look this way to me right now: I expect Joba to bounce back off his last start and be good this year. Pettitte's gonna struggle, but still be a good 5th man. I don't know what I'm gonna get from Burnett day-to-day, but I expect mostly dominant starts sprinkled with a few disasters. I have complete faith that Hughes is going to be a front of the rotation guy down the line, but can he do it this year if Wang falters? And, what about Wang?

No, seriously. WHAT THE F**K ABOUT WANG?!?!

We'll have to wait and see.

Follow Me on Facebook and Twitter

For those of you out there who just can't get enough of what's going on in my life and career (and, really, who can blame you), be sure to become a fan of Craig Mahoney Studios on facebook, currently the single largest repository of my artwork available on the web. You can also sign up to follow me @ twitter.com/CraigMahoney.

This li'l ole blog here will remain the best source to get updates on what I'm working on, facebook will be the spot to see most of my artwork at once in online gallery form and where I'll be throwing up some cool or funny links I find on the web, and twitter will be where I'll be posting all my MST3K-like musings and comments on life as it rolls by.

All in all, things are really starting to heat up here @ CM Studios (like the weather!!! Nyuk nyuk!!! Ugh...). There's going to be shitloads of new content coming your way from all corners of the interwebs. Expect to be seeing some video next week, as well as some news on upcoming events. So, keep clicking back boys and girls...

Autographed "Eli's Escape" For Sale

I'm also selling my "Eli's Escape" painting, with a fresh, new autograph from Super Bowl 42 MVP Eli Manning hisself. Eli was another Giant that I was lucky enough to run into @ the Super Show and he was nice enough to sign this for me. The painting is 36"x24" acrylic on canvas, and the autograph has been certified authentic by In The Game Collectibles. For more info, shoot an e-mail to cm@craigmahoney.com

Autographed Phil Simms Drawing For Sale

I was lucky enough to get former Giants quarterback and Super Bowl XXI MVP Phil Simms to autograph the 14"x11" colored pencil drawing I did of him. Anyone interested in purchasing this can e-mail me at cm@craigmahoney.com.

New LT Painting

Here are some pics of a painting of Lawrence Taylor coming up behind John Elway I began last week, and spent the day working on at the Giants Super Show. I had a great time at the show, and met a lot of Giants and great Giants fans. I didn't sell as much art as I would have liked, but I did make a number of contacts and even managed to get Eli Manning and Phil Simms to autograph my stuff.

The organizer of the show tried to get LT to stop and look at my painting on the way out, but he was in a pretty big hurry to leave. He gave it a quick glance, and asked me why Elway's releasing the ball in the pic. "Why can't you do one where I hit him before he releases the ball?" "It's not my fault!" I said, "You should've hit him before he released the ball!" It's still a cool pic, and I really like the way the painting's coming so far. I'll post more updates throughout the next week or two.

NY Giants Art

Here are 3 of the finished pieces for tomorrow's Giants Super Show in Secaucus. I'll have pics of another 2 up later. The photos I took aren't the best, but I think you'll be able to get the general idea behind the visual ass-kickery they possess.

Still Kickin'...

Still plugging away on this Giants stuff. I've gotten some nice stuff done, and I'm hoping to squeeze in another one or two by Saturday morning, sleep and sanity be damned.

It's going to be a bit more of a cram session since I got sidetracked at the karaoke bar last night, but it's not my fault! I mean, I show up after my bar shift just to catch the last inning and a half of the Yankee game (and the less said about that the better), and the karaoke host and bartender put in a song for me to sing w/o my consent. The next thing you know I've got people buying me drinks, requesting more songs, and this beautiful blonde makin' eyes at me... What the hell is a red-blooded American boy supposed to do?

I tell you what he does. He stays out till 3:30 in the morning painting the town black and blue, has the dog drag him out of bed @ 9am, downs a pot of coffee, orders up some Chinese food, and gets RIGHT back to work in the studio.

Less than 48 hours to go to try and get as much more done as possible for this thing. For those of you who follow this blog, and know the type of work I do, that's not nearly enough time. By Saturday morning whatever's left of my marbles should be scattered all over the place.

I'll post pics manana.

Finally!

I've been waiting a long time to put my signature on this. I'll post the full piece next week w/ the rest that I'm working on.

How Tweet It Is...

Yeah, I've finally given into Twitter. Follow me and track my descent into madness @ twitter.com/CraigMahoney.

It's 2:30am.

Do you know where your artist is?

It Ain't Easy...

Rough day in the salt mines today. The highlights: starting the day off with my 5 millionth viewing of Star Wars, then watching a great Yankee comeback win. The lowlights: a day in the studio with little energy and less focus.

For example, below are 2 pics of an Osi Umenyiora drawing I began today. You can see that the first sketch I laid down was not only off on some of the proportions, but also didn't allow enough room to tell exactly who the hell it is Osi's kneeling over. In the new sketch, there's much more balance, a better line of action, correct proportionally, and you'll actually be able to see the name and number on the jersey to let you know he's proudly kneeling over a recently-sacked Tom Brady.

All in all, not a big deal, but a lesson in not trying to rush through something, and in taking a step back from your work every once in awhile to take in the whole thing and see if your details are joining together to form a cohesive whole. Otherwise you'll lose an hour or two of time that you may not have to spare.

Art Fatigue

Studio Updates (From an Updated Studio)

Here's your bearded and bedraggled hero finishing up my epic "Eli's Escape" painting. A quick look at the size of the brush I'm using compared to the size of the canvas and amount of detail therein should tell you exactly why it's taking me so long to finish the damned thing. The past week has seen me put in some ridonkulous hours at my desk, easel, and night job slinging drinks. So far, though, it has only begun to effect my appearance and not my work.

I've started a few other pieces during breaks in this one for the sake of my own sanity, but I'm going to save posting all these pieces until we get closer to June 13th when I'll be displaying them all at the G-Men Super Show in Secaucus.

Below you'll find pics of my li'l studio setup with my new easel. I finally replaced my dinky old p.o.s. folding easel with a real mamma jamma that can accomodate canvases up to 84 inches high. That's right... 84 inches, bitch. Who says size doesn't matter?