Scarefest re-cap

So, back from Scarefest. Always love being in Lexington. I was born there, lived 1 hour's drive east of there and now reside 1 hour's drive north of there. Scarefest has become a bit of a homecoming for me and it amazes me how many people come to see me. KY folks love KY talent and the success of Scarefest and and some of the other KY shows like W.I.F.E. are going a long way in proving this.

This show was a struggle from the get-go but in the end all was well.

Upside: We were set up beside George Bonilla & company of ZP International, down the aisle from old friends like Jason, T.J, Roni & Avri of Feathered Italian Films, the ever entertaining Eric & Jerry from Goat Boy Films, B-Movie Man Nic Brown and Mark Kidwell & R.D. Hall at the ComicMonsters.com table. The company could have been worse!

We also got to hang out with our old friend Jim O'Rear and chat with some others like Kayla Perkins, Billy Blackwell & his wife, Cherokee Hall, David Rupp from Infernal Dreams, Lance Crank, Lizayne Whitaker & Adam Campbell, Jason from Apex Books, the guys from Horrorhound, author Michael West and some guys I went to high school with not to mention tons of people I had met and chatted with last year...and I know there's more that I'm forgetting...

Some new folks i met everyone should check out: The awesomely gruesome Dick Starr, the classicly awesome Scott Ra, and the ass-kickingly kick ass Juggulator who I'll be doing some art for in the very near future. We finally got to meet Morgan, the director of My Bloody Wedding which you'll be seeing my movie poster for very soon, and we also confirmed a spot at next year's Dark Woods Con in Pikeville KY. Whew! Now on to the top 9 events at the show!

9. Todd's magician like "mis-direction"...thanks Todd!

8. What would Scarefest be without being serenaded by Jerry Williams?

7. If one does not eat regularly one gets cranky...

6. It's OK if small girls covered in blood and carrying large axes are scared of zombies...I guess

5. Urination loves company.

4. Apparently a bird in the tree is worth a bird turd on the arm in Lexington

3. Lot's of folks will be arting this winter...

2. Chattin' with Leatherface

1. Kane Hodder's Official Grab Ass Game

Tomorrow: Horror Realm re-cap

Scarefest and the Halloween event schedule!

Greetin's! Just an update on what's going on for the Halloween schedule. This weekend, Sep. 11-13 we'll be in Lexington KY for the awesomely awesome Scarefest. Tons of horror guests like Pinhead, Leatherface, Jason as well as some of friends such as these names I'm dropping: Jim O'Rear & Horrorhound mag & R.D Hall & Mark Kidwell & George Bonilla &...well, just be there!

Then on the 18th we're headed to Pittsburgh for Horror Realm, formerly known as the Zombie Fest, with Bill Mosely, Tony Todd, Ken Foree and so on and so forth...

In October we'll be attending the Cincinnati premiere of the flick Zombieland (details coming soon), Dark Carnival Film Fest in Bloomington IN, ZombieConX in Milwaukee, Nashville Comics & Horror Show in, well, Nashville, Charcon in Charleston WV, and then there is the just announced Covington KY Zombie Crawl on Halloween Night which I'll be writing about in the near future but you can hit them up on Facebook in the meantime.

Oh, and there's this little show coming to Cincinnati in November called HorrorHound Weekend featuring some wannabes named Elvira and Tom Savini or something. I dunno...check it out...

Billy

Artists as art thieves

Back in June I posted a blog about image thieves (which you can read here). I talked about the fact that most image thieves are non-artists, most are making no money off the theft and that most are ignorant of copyrights and the impact their theft has on the livelihood of artists.

But there is an increasingly alarming trend happening and that is artists stealing the works of others. Those people I will refer to as cannibals from here on out.

Before I continue I just want to say that I'm not judging or trying to call anyone out. I'm trying to educate. It became painfully obvious that education is needed after a recent issue with a Facebook app designer using art without permission or compensation. Some of the comments left on a forum during the debate showed me that most people don't understand copyrights.

On to the cannibals: The theft I'm referring to is the highly unethical practice of taking the work of another, be it a photograph, painting or drawing, and painting over top of it and calling it your own. With the growing popularity of digital painting this technique is becoming a big problem and I think a lot of that comes from ignorance of copyrights or more specifically a widely circulated copyright myth which is if you change X% of the picture it becomes an original. Wrong! This misconception is shared by laymen and amateurs alike and it is 110% FALSE!

Again I don't think most of the guilty cannibals out there are committing this act maliciously. Although there are a few unscrupulous artists running around I'll give the benefit of the doubt and say most mean well.

The "paint over" technique has become a very popular tool with art directors and instructors but has become a crutch for others. Using references, photos or otherwise, is perfectly acceptable. Even painting over your own work or photographs is OK (Tim Bradstreet, best known as a Punisher cover artist, has this technique down to an art...no pun intended!). It's the act of lifting someone elses hard work that makes it cannibalism. It's hard enough as an artist to make eke out a living. That's why it is such a No-No when another artist commits such a grievous act regardless of intent.

And if you are an artist trying to make a name for yourself cannibalizing others works tells potential clients some very important information about you, none of which are good:

1. You are lazy

2. You lack creativity

3. You lack ethics

4. You are a cease & desist letter waiting to happen!

Again, not passing judgement. Just putting things out there the way they are. And please note that I am not referring to collage art, digital or otherwise. That is an entirely different thing and one that I know nothing about.

Think before you art!

Billy

Dragon*Con

Alas, Billy Tackett Studios won't be there this year...but wait! There's still hope! As some of you know we have joined forces with World of Strange to offer more of my images on t-shirts. World of Strange will be at Dragon*Con selling tees with Cannibal Claus, Sgt. Rot, Gone with the Dead, Heartthrob Zombie and Nosferatu! And as a Dragon*Con exclusive they will also be offering Zombie Sam and Fannie the Flesheater!

They will be in the Artist's Alley at Bob Burden's booth. If you're going stop by and say hi and buy tons of stuff! If you're not going you can always visit them online at www.worldofstrange.com. They offer tees from Michael Whelan, William Stout, Donato Giancola, Fred Hembeck, Steven Gilberts and the legendary Boris Vallejo & Julie Bell!

Remember there are only a few places to get Billy Tackett Studios merchandise:

World of Strange

7th Street Gifts in Newport KY

and us!

Anything else is bootleg!!

Conquering Gen Con

I'm behind schedule and will have to make this a quick one. We've been going to GenCon for 3 years now. The first 2 years we were in the dealer's area but this time we gave the Artist's Alley a whirl. That made me a little nervous because history has shown that we usually do better with a dealer's booth. And I hadn't realized that the artist's tables are very, very small. Most of you may know that I have a pretty good sized display and with all the shirts we have tons of storage bins. Oh, and the banner. We barely had room for the bins. Very frustrating. And once we were settled I sat down to enjoy a bottle of Coke, which happened to be room temperature...and shaken up a bit. It exploded. On my shirts. And me. Not a good start.

We share a room with Abyss Walker author and good friend Shane Moore (whose new website is now up BTW www.abysswalker.com). Those of you that read his blog know about some of the misadventures he encounters during most of his travels. Apparently his luck rubs off because Thursday night as I get ready for bed I discover, to the dismay of myself and others, that I have forgotten to pack my underwear! Really not a good start!

Fortunately the rest of the show went very well. One of the highlights was Saturday night dinner with Shane & Shane from Icon in IL. We had planned on a large gathering but everyone flaked on us after the tables were set up so our server had to tear them down. Then we got word some were coming so she had to set them back up! Our poor, wonderful Dawn. I hope she forgives us! But dinner turned out to be great. We were joined by the Great Luke Ski and his fiancee', John Klement, the Harlan brothers and Gil from I-con in NY. Food, drinks & plenty of beaver for all!

Over the weekend I got to meet several people that I have known online.

One is the incredible fantasy artist Stan Morrison. Others included fellow classic monster aficionado Chris Kuchta and local (to me) fantasy artist Joe Slucher.

I had a couple of interesting on-the-spot commission requests. First there was the couple that brought me a shirt with a speech balloon on the back. It was for some sort of contest. They had a saying and wanted me to write it for them. I obliged. They won first place. All in a days work. Another was the request to draw a pic on someones head. I obliged. He creeped people out. All in a day's work.

Back by popular demand: Top 10 events I refuse to explain any further -

10. Not everyone that should know stuff about art does.

9. The streets of Indianapolis are crawling with unshaven beaver.

8. Football is a lot gayer than I first thought.

7. Yoplait should get into the porn business.

6. For the second year in a row my art is worth committing a misdemeanor for.

5. Men are not pieces of meat and should not be treated as such, unless it's by drunken MILFs.

4. 70 year old, crossed-eyed men cannot make eating ice cream look sexy.

3. Indy does not have enough department stores.

2. The "Who-Shit?" round table guessing game is fun to play with people you have just met.

1. Baking is full of comical analogies for having a bowel movement...*DING* Poop ovens ready!

Thank to everyone @ GenCon for a wonderful show!

Now on to the photos!!

Dog Faced Corpse

Yeah, I haven't been around much of late. Busy gettin' caught up on some work and we've got our niece here for the weekend. So while I recuperate from our day of fun in the sun at the zoo I thought I'd do an update I've been meaning to do for a little while.

This project has been a little on the strange side (in a good way) from before the beginning. Let me explain: A couple months ago we were on our way back from a convention and I mentioned to my wife Heather how sometimes American artists and musician will get a huge following in other countries and get little or no recognition here. A great example is rocker Suzi Quatro. I felt it would be a great stroke of irony if that happened to me, especially since I am known for my Americana zombie series of paintings I have dubbed Dead White & Blue. We had a chuckle and that was that. Or so we thought...

I check my email the next day and there is a message to me with the subject "Dog Faced Corpse!" from an address that looked a lot like a spammer. But reading it revealed otherwise. It was from a guy named Lateef who was the drummer and founding member of the death metal band Dog Faced Corpse based in Baghdad Iraq. Yes, Baghdad. Iraq. They are working on their debut CD and wanted me to do the cover. According to Lateef, thanks to the internet I have a bit of a fan base in Baghdad. As I had unknowingly foreshadowed just a day earlier.

Now these guys are true Iraqis. Born and raised. And they really are part of a growing underground metal scene that exists there.

You can read more here on ABCNews.com and (now here's a website I'll bet you didn't think you'd be reading today!) IslamOnline.net. So these guys are the real deal.

Before I accepted the offer I did a little soul searching. I am not a hardcore political activist but I am a hardcore patriot. I love my country, what it stands for and what it allows me to do for a living. Regardless of what my opinions are of the war in Iraq, which can differ from day to day, I know a few people that have served there. An old friend was injured during one of his tours. Also in my travels I have met a lot of soldiers. I have had the opportunity to speak with them at length. And some of these guys and gals have become fans of Dead White & Blue. (One soldier told me that if he were allowed he would love to have a Zombie Sam painted on the side of his tank!) For one thing I didn't want to do anything to undermine what our guys are doing over there and I also didn't want to do anything that could reflect badly on me later on.

So I read the articles closely. I read Lateef's emails closely. Just to try to get some ulterior motive. My conclusion was that these guys are just guys that want to rock. They don't give a shit about the sectarian differences. They just want to play the music that they want to play. They have said that their music does not touch upon religious themes but deals with reality. That may mean that their lyrics will be blunt and to the point. And I'm sure Americans will be referenced in some of their lyrics, for better or for worse. But by them asking an American artist to do their debut CD cover, which for a band is a very important thing, shows that they don't hate us. They like what they like regardless of where I am, who I am, who I worship, what color I am, etc. Some of us could learn a thing or two from them.

The more I "spoke" with Lateef the more I realized that not everyone over there is hell-bent on seeing America go up in flames. Most people over there just want to get on with their lives just like we do. It's the violence driven minority you see on the news everyday. Everyone else just ain't news worthy I guess.

So here I am, one of the most non-activist artists out there deciding that by doing their CD cover I could play some small part in spreading the news that Iraqis are not all that different than us. I mean, how different can we all be? The U.S. military loves my Dead White & Blue as well as these Iraqi metal heads. I know a lot of soldiers that are into metal as well.

The more I worked with Lateef the more I liked him. It was clear that he was a good guy. Just like most of the metal heads I know here. And in our conversations the terrible environment they live in became clear.

The perfect example is their name: At some point during the sectarian violence a guy was kidnapped, tortured and beheaded. The head of a dog was sewn onto the corpse which was then dumped onto a street corner to serve as a message. The kidnappers hid down the block and shot anyone that came near the body. This story is what Lateef wanted to depict on the CD cover which is below.

Another example is the death threats: One sect dislikes them because of their black clothes which is something their enemies wear. Another sect dislikes them because of their goatees which is something their enemies wear. So on these grounds they receive death threats on a regular basis. Y'know, growing up a headbanger in a small rural, conservative Kentucky town was pretty tough. Or so I thought at the time. But I never got one death threat. We have it pretty damned easy here.

So below is the completed CD cover, sans logo.

After we completed the project I really wanted to get the band's views on what we were doing over there. I won't post them here because I don't know if they would want me to but I will say that things aren't as black or white as people here would have you believe. There seems to be a lot of choosing the lesser of two...or more...evils there.

If you want to see just how alike we really are go the the IslamOnline.net article I mentioned above and read the comments below. All you have to do is replace all the references to Islam with references to Christianity and they could be talking about any number of bands anywhere in the world!

I wanted to take a minute to give a little backstory on this project. I've had several questions about it so far and I felt that maybe everything should be put out there by me before rumors began to fly. The war in Iraq is a pretty touchy subject and there are a lot of people on both sides that love to stir the pot. This project has the potential to do just that. But this wasn't about if what we're doing over there is right or wrong. It's about showing that even though we're different in a lot of ways we are alike in a lot of ways as well. And we as a global society need to focus and build bridges from those similarities. We'll be better off when we do.

Below are a couple of videos from Dog Faced Corpse. Enjoy.

Black Devil Doll this weekend!

First off I'd like to thank everyone at the Chattanooga Tattoo Arts Fest for a great show last weekend. We loves us some Chattanooga!

But now I want to plug next weekend's show. The Black Devil Doll Cincinnati premiere! The show will be held at the Know Theatre in Cinci and is sponsored by the kick ass folks at Hell In A Handbasket. The show features artist Rob Meyer from It Came From The Basement, horror masks by Ghastly Productions, bands Season Of The Witch, Pumpkin Sluts & De Los Muertos. This could possibly turn out to be the most...uh...interesting show of the year!

If you're not familiar with the movie Black Devil Doll you owe it to yourself to check out the traliers so that you, too, can be just as offended as the rest of the nation!

Hell yes!

Number of the Beest?

This is just some goofy little thing that I shouldn't have noticed but I did:

I have an art gallery on Epilogue.net, http://billytackett.epilogue.net. They give me my gallery ranking and picture views and crap like that. Guess what I was ranked last time I checked?

Horror Rot & Roll Show

What a weekend! First off we headed down to the Fountain Square T-shirt Fest where I had planned on displaying but wasn't. That is another story and I'll be posting about that incident later in the week.

Afterwards we had our final gallery showing at the Southgate House. And once again it was a successful night. The entire show was awesome and the staff was fantastic. I want to thank everyone for a wonderful event and we can't wait to show there again!

On Saturday we did a little mini-horror con and concert. Tri-state Paranormal, Hell In A Handbasket, Kemper and Impaler all had booths set up. Kemper, Pagan Holiday 13 and Impaler supplied the entertainment.

Hell In A Handbasket were there promoting the Black Devil Doll Cincinnati premiere at which I will be set up along with some other horror themed artists and bands. We watched the trailer and I gotta say I am truly lookin' forward to this flick!

Kemper is a dark and gloomy band with an early Danzig influence. He has some great creepy stuff. I didn't get to chat with him as much as I would have liked to but I'm sure our paths will cross again soon enough.

Pagan Holiday 13 are an 80's glam rock throwback with a heavy dose of monsters, zombie strippers and blood! These are some great guys that really have fun with their horror. And c'mon, they have a song called Dead White and Blue so they can't be that bad!

Here's a little history: Being a teenager in the 80s I admittedly was a metal-head. W.A.S.P., Megadeth, Mercyful Fate, anything that wasn't glam! And the more shocking the better. Impaler, who has been around since '84 or so, was one of those. They got a boost in publicity when Tipper Gore put them on her PMRC "hit-list". And like a lot of bands from that era I kind of lost track of them. But lo-and-behold they're undead and well, putting out albums every couple of years or so. And from watching the show they are as brutal, bloody and disgusting as ever!

When I first met Bill Lindsey, the lead singer, I really didn't recognize him. It had been years since Impaler had last been on my radar. And plus he is such a nice guy that it took me several minutes to make the connection. We discussed how some people in the horror biz are waay to serious and need to lighten up. Horror should be fun. The horror kids from the 60s have it right: Scare the shit outta people and have a blast doin' it!

We had a great time hanging out with these guys. But I'm having this weird Twilight Zone thing going on in my head because of the fact that people that I have been a fan of for 20 years or so are now asking for my autograph! That's a little much to wrap my head around but being accepted by my horror idols and role models is great for a feller's ego!

Getting to hang out with these local horror fans has shown me that the genre ain't dead here. We're going to do our part to make sure there are more horror themed events in the Northern KY and Greater Cincinnati area. And with folks like Hell In A Handbasket, Pagan Holiday 13 and some other monster enthusiasts that seem to have risen from out of nowhere lately I can assure you that things are going to get a lot creepier here in the mid-west!

Me & Bill from Impaler

Heather is now a groupie!

Impaler

Mike Torok of Impaler sportin' a Dead White & Blue shirt

A fan!

Mykill von Pagan from Pagan Holiday 13

Me, El Rey and Amber Wave of Hell in a Handbasket

Me & Commander Court of Impaler

Impaler makes me look small and less scary than I really am!

Me & Mykill from Pagan Holiday 13

Me & Mike of Impaler

Impaler

And if you get a minute check out this petition I'm sponsoring:

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/cinci_tshirt_fest/

The details are there and I'll be posting more to the story in a few days.

Billy

In case you missed the Southgate House show

After 2 great nights in the Southgate House gallery we've been asked back! As of now we'll be there Wednesday and Friday nights. Saturday we'll be at Shimmers in Ft. Wright KY for the Impaler concert. Unfortunately our show at the Fountain Square T-shirt Festival has been cancelled but I'll write about that later.

Both nights we met some great folks. After traveling so much it's good to meet some local zombie freaks. Maybe you can make it out as well?

Below are some photos from the weekend showings.

Held over by popular demand!!

Last night's show at Southgate House was great...So great that I'll be there tonight as well!! And maybe a few nights throughout the week!! If you plan on coming out tonight be forewarned that there will be a cover charge just to get through the door. Good news though is there will be 13 bands playing.

THE BOMB
Knife The Symphony
Bearclaw
Trophy Wives
Arms Exploding
Caterpillar Tracks
The Read
1,000 Arms
Karl Hendricks Trio
Kyle Sowash
Swear Jar
The Serfs
Mack West

Ass-Kickin', Zombie-Lovin' Local Shows...

Hey kiddies! I want to promote some local shows I'll be doing in the next few weeks. I'm really excited because this year is the biggest for me here in the Northern Kentucky/ Cincinnati area thus far and it all kicked off with the 7th Street Gifts Fearie Fest back in May and was followed by the Northside Rock n Roll Carnival last weekend.

Next up is the Rumble Club CD Release Party at Southgate House in Newport KY on June 10th. If you're into psychobilly you'll love these guys. We'll be upstairs in the gallery with tons of originals on display and prints & shirts will be available to buy and Rumble Club will be downstairs in the Ballroom.

On July 17th we're almost confirmed for the Fountain Square T-shirt Fest. I'll let you know when that's 100%.

The next night, the 18th, we'll be at Shimmers in Ft. Wright KY for the Impalers concert. If you're an old school metal head you may remember that Tipper Gore had a hard-on for these guys back in the day. They're still around spreading their gore-rock tentacles across the globe. Also playing will be my friends 13 Pagan Holiday 13 & Kemper.

On August 1st we'll be displaying at the Hell In A Handbasket sponsored Black Devil Doll premere at the Know Theatre in Cincinnati. If you're into B horror flicks I probably don't have to elaborate much on this one except that fellow lowbrow artist will be present. Rob Meyer of It Came From The Basement. Check his stuff out. You won't be disappointed.

And then we'll be at the Covedale Arts and Crafts Fair in Covedale (Cincinnati) OH on August 22.

Jump ahead a few months and we'll be at the first Horrorhound Weekend in Cincinnati. That's right, Horrorhound in comin' to Cinci on November 20 - 22! Elvira will be there. Need I say more?

Below is an updated calendar with events we'll be attending into May of 2010.

July 10, '09 - Rumble Club CD Release Party @ Southgate House, Newport KY 

July 17, '09 - Fountain Square T-shirt Fest, Cincinnati OH 

July 18, '09 - Impalers Concert @ Shimmers, Ft. Wright KY 

Aug. 1, '09 - Black Devil Doll Premiere, Cincinnati OH 

Aug. 13-16, '09 - GenCon, Indianapolis IN 

Aug. 22, '09 - Covedale Arts Fair, Cincinnati OH 

Sep. 11-13, '09 - Scarefest, Lexington KY (Guest of Honor) 

Sep. 18-20, '09 - Horror Realm, Pittsburgh PA (Guest) 

Oct. 3-4, '09 - Dark Carnival Film Fest, Bloomington IN (Guest) 

Oct. 10-11, '09 - ZombieConX, Milwaukee WI (Guest) 

Oct. 17-18, '09 - Nashville Comics & Horror Show, Nashville TN 

Oct. 23-25, '09 - CharCon, Charleston WV (Guest of Honor) 

Nov. 20-22, '09 - Horrorhound Weekend, Cincinnati, OH (Guest) 

Feb. 19-21, '10 - Con Nooga, Chattanooga TN (Guest) 

Mar. 12-14, '10 - Mid-South Con, Memphis TN (Guest of Honor) 

Mar. 26-28, '10 - Horrorhound Weekend, Indianapolis, IN (Guest) 

May 28-30, '10 - MarCon, Columbus OH (Guest of Honor)

Rock n Roll Carnival & a new show announcement...

...The Good, The Bad & The Wet!

Yep, that's about the long & short of it. Set up for what was our first real outdoor event. Yeah 7th Street's Faerie Fest is outdoor but it's one day, ends before dark and we can rent everything we need from them. The Northside Rock n Roll Carnival was different for us. We had to supply everything.

We bought our tent thingy on Thursday and since the event would last way into the night we had the problem of lighting to be solved so we set up the shelter in the front yard and wait until dark to light it. Not sure what our neighbors thought but our idea of lighting with white Christmas lights worked better than we had imagined!

The weather on Friday was awesome! The crowds were out in full force, the bands were top-notch and the beer was nectar of the gods (Christian Moerline O.T.R. really is the shit!)

Some of the folks from Hell in a Handbasket Zine stooped by and dropped off the fliers for the Black Devil Doll premiere where I'll be displaying. Nathan from HorrorHound also stopped by. The festivities rolled on until around 1 AM!

Below is a pic of the daytime booth. We were going to take one after dark to show all the awesome lights but we forgot. So our plan was to grab a photo on Saturday night. Man what a horrible day Saturday was! We set up in the light rain. Had a few sales after the parade but the rain sent most people home. There were several hardcore revellers they stuck around and braved the rain which wasn't a downpour but just a steady, run of the mill rain all day long. So we decided to pack up around 7. I really hated to leave but Heather was feeling under the weather, traffic was slow and we were all pretty moist. Alas, no nighttime pic. Maybe next time.

All in all it was a great weekend. The people of Northside dug my art, made some new friends and fans and drank good beer. Can't ask for more than that!

Now for the new show: I'll be displaying at the Southgate House in Newport KY during the Rumble Club CD release party on Friday, July 10! If you like you some psychobilly come check it out!

An open letter to those image thieves...

The above image, the original black & white version of Zombie Sam, is all over the freakin' internet now. Unfortunately the version floating around is one that amateur has hacked up and added some crappy text, see below.

Pretty shitty, eh? So when I began finding this image around I started asking for credit. Just a link back to my site. All I'm askin'. Nobody would respond! Nuthin'! So lucky for me image hosting sites like Photobucket, Flickr and MySpace can be held responsible for images on their servers and all it takes is a strongly worded email and the offending image is gone. Poof!

There are times when I still ask for credit. Looking over the site you can usually tell who's got enough class to stand up and give it. One of these sites is Zombies & Toys. Turns out he's actually a great guy and you should check out his site if you like...well, zombies and toys!

I'm seeing the tide is turning. More people are willing to give the credit and that's fine. But I shouldn't have to ask for it. When I approach these thieves the response I get 99% of the time is "I didn't know you did it. I just found it on somebody else's page and decided to use it". There are a couple things wrong with this excuse:

1. You found it on somebody else's page and decided to STEAL it...Yes, steal is the correct term. It's on their page, you thought it would make you look cool and you took it. Maybe it belonged to the owner of the page you stole it from. You didn't credit them either. You gave credit to nobody! Even crediting an image to the wrong person shows that you tried. You stole it!

2. Even if you knew the image didn't belong to the person you stole it from if they didn't credit anyone that means...Class? That's right, they STOLE it too! Because they did it doesn't mean it's OK for you to do it. If everybody walks by and punches your mother in the face does that make it OK for me to do it too? Maybe that's a bad analogy because she did raise a thief afterall but you get my drift. The point is someone drew that picture. And there's a chance that that someone is trying to make a living by drawing those kick-ass images you love to put on your MySpace page. Oh, and those really cool animated and glittery images that say "Happy B-Day" or "Thanks for the add!" someone out there drew those too.

I'm a professional artist. That means art is how I pay my bills. That doesn't mean I'm rich and famous and all that crap. Most professional artists are just like you, living paycheck to paycheck. And it's getting harder to be successful at what we do because of douche bag thieves laying claim to something that took hours of our time. Granted most thieves mean no harm. Most people don't realize what goes on behind the scenes. Thus the reason of this blog.

So just remember, that nifty little piece of art you want to use as your background is there because someone spent many, many years honing their skills and talent and because they took the time to sit down and dream it up and took even more time to make that vision a reality. They didn't do it for you, mind you, but for their families. That image helped keep bread on their tables and when you take it without giving proper credit that artist ceases to exist in the eyes of the public.

Don't be part of that.

Billy

Origins

Just got back from Origins Game Fair. We had a fantastic show but the four day events are exhausting and very slow getting warmed up. Setting up we had the pleasant surprise of discovering that we were neighbors with our old friends Zombie Buddy Productions. Strangely enough we first met them when we were neighbors at my last Origins show a couple years ago. Deja vu?

We also got to meet with a lot of old friends from my last Origins show. I'm flattered that my work was remembered because one can be easily forgotten with all of the "glitz & glamour" there.

We discovered that fellow Abyss Walker artist Katey DeHay was in attendance as well putting her mark on many of the faces there. We had the pleasure of chatting with her a bit. Heather and I also had the opportunity to have dinner with the guys from CharCon, a gaming con in Charleston WV at which I'll be Artist Guest of Honor the October. I dare you to find a better bunch of guys. I'm really, really looking forward to CharCon!

Speaking of guest spots; I also met some of the folks with MarCon which as some of know I will be GoH there next May as well.

Con on the Cob friends Armorcast & Andy Hopp was there as well. Unfortunately when we were in the art room Andy was deep in conversation so we didn't have the chance to say hi. So if you're out there listening Andy...Hi. We also had a brief conversation with Nigel Sade. My one complaint with Origins: The art room is waaay too far from the dealer's area! I feel so left out...

So other than the horrible hotel experience we had a great time. Did an interview with some guys and I can't remember the website they're with but I'll be posting a link once it's up. I also have some teasers of things yet to come...maybe:

1. A new deal with a company to put even MORE of my images on t-shirts.

2. A Zombie Sam model along the lines of the Aurora models of the 60s and 70s

3. Some higher end merchandise like...well, won't really say right now but I am excited about these possibilities!

Off to beddy bye for me but before I go thanks to everyone at Origins for the phenomenal hospitality.

B

Papa's got a brand new bag...

...of body parts that is! And we're bringin' back to Origins Game Fair in Columbus OH this weekend. We attended Origins back in '07 but that was before the Dead White & Blue. This go 'round we have better art, better merchandise and of course better ZOMBIES!!

Origins will see the debut of 3 new art prints including the newest Dead White & Blue piece. Our booth will be somewhere in the dealer's area so stop by, say hi and get some zombie lovin'!

How to art - Lesson 1...

Occasionally someone askes me some technical question about how I do what I do. I thought I take an opportunity to put together a FATQ (frequently asked technical question) for everyone. Because as we all know everytime I open my mouth gold falls out of it...at least that's what I've been told. And I really should look up the definiton of this sarcasm I keep hearing about...

1. Do you paint wet-on-wet or wet-on-dry? Yes.

2. How do you choose your pallette? I go through all my tubes of paint, openeing each one up until I have a bunch of colors I like.

3. What brand of paints do you rec- OK, this is pretty lame. And I can assure you all my answers will be lame.

Here's the deal: I really do go through my paint until I have a bunch of colors I like. But there is a method. I know by sight what colors are cool or warm, which ones are opaque or transparent, etc. But I don't know names. Name recollection is a left brained function and mine seems to work less and less as I get older. I know the tools at my disposal, I just don't know what they're called.

I use both wet-on-wet and wet-on-dry. Whatever I need to get the painting done. I approach each piece as a problem that needs to be solved. How I solved the previous problem may not be how I solve the problem before me. And my problem solving is a very fluid process. When I start I have an idea of the path I want to take but that could change as I go along. And I am open to that change. I'm a firm believer in happy accidents. All artists should learn to recognize them.

My inspiration comes from shit I like. And it helps a lot that you guys happen to like the same shit. That's inspiration enough.

So I guess you may be wondering exactly what the purpose of this blog is. I've type a whole bunch of words and haven't really said anything. My point is this: Enjoy art for what it is. Too many people worry way too much about the technical aspects or the purpose behind the piece and they miss the point. Granted it's OK to wonder about this stuff. Artists will dissect the work of others. Art critics & lovers will psycho-analyze it. That's OK. But there's time for that later. When see a piece for the first time clear your mind. Absorb what has been placed in front of you. Let your thoughts jumble together and as you take in the piece that was created just for you (and art was created for you) those thoughts will begin to fall into place and your feelings about the piece will take shape. You may be surprised at what you discover.

As a general rule I dislike abstract art but that rule does not keep me from liking a piece of abstract art. Don't choose the art, let it choose you.

This post may seem a little out of place for me. I'm usually talking in a down to earth manner about the business side of art and crap like that. Thought maybe a step back was in order. Yeah, art is my career but it is also so much more. Art is a journey. It is a destination. It's a struggle and a free ride. Art is everything to everybody whether they realize it or not.

I've said before that if everyone in the world went blind tomorrow except me I would still paint. I am not an artist because I create art, I create art because I am an artist.

So next time you run into your local neighborhood artist give him or her a big ol' non-sexual smack on the ass and tell them "Keep artin'!"

We now return you to your regularly scheduled ego trip...

I just added some new dates to my schedule. As you can see I'm doing a lot more local shows. I'm in the process of confirming two gallery shows, one will feature my fine art and the other will be inconjunction with some art related Halloween festivities!

Jun. 24-28, '09 - Origins Game Fair, Columbus OH

July 3-5, '09 - Northside Rock n Roll Carnival, Cincinnati OH

July 17, '09 - Fountain Square T-shirt Fest, Cincinnati OH

Aug. 13-16, '09 - GenCon, Indianapolis IN

Aug. 22, '09 - Covedale Arts Fair, Cincinnati OH

Sep. 11-13, '09 - Scarefest, Lexington KY (Guest of Honor)

Sep. 18-20, '09 - Horror Realm, Pittsburgh PA (Guest)

Oct. 3-4, '09 - Dark Carnival Film Fest, Bloomington IN (Guest)

Oct. 10-11, '09 - ZombieConX, Milwaukee WI (Guest)

Oct. 17-18, '09 - Nashville Comics & Horror Show, Nashville TN

Oct. 23-25, '09 - CharCon, Charleston WV (Guest of Honor)

Nov. 20-22, '09 - Horrorhound Weekend, Cincinnati, OH

May 28-30, '10 - MarCon, Columbus OH (Guest of Honor)

East Tennesee Tattoo Fest...

Just getting back from infecting Knoxville with my gooey zombie goodness! In some way this had to be one of the more unqiue events we've attended. I'll explain later but first I would like thanks Bryan from Tattoos by Bryan and the entire staff of the festival. East Tennessee Tatto Fest is a top-notch event! I'd also like to thank Lynda & Robbie from Coon Tattoo for helping us. You guys rock!

So we roll into the Hilton and set up with a primo spot just outside the ballroom. With nothing but awesome music and the steady buzzzz of guns as our soundtrack. At one point I said to my wife "If they play another Motorhead song I'm gonna have a big "O" right here!" Needless to say I had to clean myself up within no time!

Things started out well and never slowed. At this event I had the opportunity to chat with a lot of the artists there. Eventually I came to realize that I was in the presence of greatness! Ain't no posers or wanna-bes in this crowd! These were the real deal. True masters of their art.

On Friday an online friend, author Shane Berryhill stops by the booth. it turns out the pop-culture fest AdventureCon is being held across the street, just mere yards from where we're set up! We talked shop for a while, traded secrets and such. He lso lets us in on some of the industry people that are attending AdventureCon and offers to give us a pass! So now Shane has been added to the "You Rock!" list.

Just a side note: I'm sure some of you reading this have been to fandom conventions. If not they are pretty much the same in some aspects: Dorrs open around 10 am and the place shuts down around 6 or so. Occasionally some will be later. But tat fests are a different breed. Doors open at noon and close at midnight! So that doesn't leave much socializing time afterwards for us fuddy duddies.

We decide that on Saturday Heather will pop over to AdventureCon, give out some cards and do some basic promoting. Figured with us being so close it almost like being at 2 cons at the same time! While she's there she discovers that Kane Hodder is there as well so she pops in at his table to say hi and let him know we're just across the street. During the conversation he introduces her to a person who may help us take Billy Tackett Studios and Dead White & Blue to a higher level. Stay tuned for info on that!

Sittiing at my booth I usually have a drawing of some sort going on. This time I decided to do a car. A '58 Caddy to be exact. That got a lot of attention. Some of that attention came from Ian Jones and his wife (whose name escapes me at the moment...Sorry!) . If you're curious I highly recommend you check out his site, Hot Rod Pencil. Black and white hot rod art at its finest! And he's a swell guy to boot!

I had the opportunity to talk with Kelly from Kelly's Tattoos in Tyler TX. He let me watch while he created a tattoo using a bamboo stick. THAT'S something you don't see everyday.

I got to chat with Angel of Queen of Hearts Tattoos which is Nashville's oldest tattoo shop and the folks from Studio Ink in Lexington & Danville KY and Blackheart Tattoo in Youngstown OH. I know I'm leaving people out but those are the cards I happen to have in front of me at the moment.

Along with hanging out with Robbie & Lynda and Kane we met up with some folks we had met at the Nashville show like Megan Zass among others. Oh, and I got to sign Robbie's penis. I wasn't the first! Don't ask but you can read this article on Robbie.

Hanging out with tattoo artists is humbling and inspiring. It amazes me. These guys and gals goof around and joke but once they sit down with gun in hand it's all business. They are the best of the best for a reason and I'm glad they let me hang out with them this weekend.

B

Cashin' in vs. Sellin' out

So lately I've been thinking about the differences between selling out and cashing in. I won't bother you with the details of why but I figured that since I had a few minutes while waiting for a canvas to dry I would pose the question, my conclusions and maybe get some feedback.

I have heard a lot of creative folk called Sell-outs. Movie makers, musicians, artists and authors. But what makes a sell-out? Being an artist that makes an actual living doing what I love, making art, could put me in the Sell-out category in the eyes of some. But am I really?

I think selling out is determined by the intentions of the creator. Here's an example:

I have a picture of a vampire getting ready to do battle with a werewolf.

It's an old piece that was done for a book cover that was never published. It was on the verge of fading off into obscurity when lo-and-behold Twilight became bigger than Jesus and I was told by more then one person that this reminded them of the book. So I began to feature the prints a little more prominently. Because the picture was done before Twilight I consider this cashing in. 

But what if I had painted because Twilight had become so popular? I think the line gets fuzzy here but this is my take: For one thing vampires and werewolves would be something that I would do regardless. So taking that and the fact that it's not a particular character into consideration I think this would probably fall into the "Cashing-in" category. Maybe if I didn't do this type and/or it was a specific character I would have probably been a Sell-Out.

It's the same with my Dead White & Blue zombie paintings. Initially hadn't planned on doing any more other than Zombie Sam but because he was such a huge hit the others came along. Am I selling out because I've found something commercially viable? I would still be doing zombies whether people were into them or not. The types of zombies are inconsequential. Unless I painted a Twilight zombie...  There's that damned gray area again!

Here's some thought provocation: I used to consider Metallica Sell-outs because once they became commercially successful with And Justice For All everything after that seemed geared towards the general record buying public. But hold the phone! They were in it for the money. Music is more than fun it's a career. Very much like my art. So they're doing something they love and trying to make money at it and in order to make money they had to...that's right, sell records. So, even though I'm personally not fond of new Metallica I now respect them more.

Flip side of that? Megadeth released some music that was "radio-friendly". To me it looked as though they were trying to follow in Metallica's commercial footsteps. In my eyes that was selling out. I don't know what was goin' on in Dave's head but that's the way it looks to me on the outside. 

So with zombies being all the rage it's hard to tell the Sell-outs from the Cash-ins. But I think you can get some idea by the quality. Cash-ins are doing it not only for the money but also because they like it so the quality is higher. Sell-outs are doing it for the money and it will show in the quality. A perfect example is the remakes of the classic George Romero flicks Dawn of the Dead and Day of the Dead. Dawn was a good flick. Some purists will argue this point but I don't think anyone will argue the point that Day was a real stink hole! Somebody somewhere said "Hey, Dawn made a ton of money. Let's throw some shit together and call it Day. It'll make money on name recognition alone!" Dawn: Cash-in. Day: Sell-out.

The book Pride & Prejudice & Zombies? By reading the Wikipedia entry my money's on Cash-in but you can bet your sweet zombie ass the market will be flooded with many Sell-outs and a few Cash-ins very very soon. It happens with any successful venture. Look at all the freakin' pirate crap that was out there when Pirates of the Caribbean was hot!

During the elections several people told me I should do zombie versions of the candidates. But I felt that would be selling out. My criteria for Dead White & Blue is that the images I zombify need to be iconic. Now I knew that regardless of who won there would be an icon there, either Obama or Palin. But I feel there needs to be time. After an as-of-yet-to-be-determined amount of time I will be cashing in. Any sooner and I will be selling out. Make sense?

Some Sell-outs are obvious. Others are not. I suppose the difference between Cash-in vs. Sell-out is debatable. Like me everyone will have their own criteria and opinions. I'd like to here them. Maybe you can change my opinion...

Gallery Hop and a quick pro artist lesson

Pop quiz: You've gotten your art degree and one of your first gallery showings. One of the attendees at your show is someone who has been in the business for 20 years. Do you:

A. Chat this professional up to see what morsels of advice may be spewed  forth that could be relatable to you and your career path of choice

B. Chat this professional up because you never know who has connections...or may have connections in the future.

C. Dismiss this professional as soon as you discover their professional status and go drink cheap, warm beer with your buds.

D. A & B

Wanna guess what happened to me during the gallery hop last night?

So we head up to the monthly First Friday Gallery Hop in Covington KY last night. You know the drill; free wine and snacks, mostly good art, great company, fabulous networking opportunities, blah, blah, blah. *note* If you haven't done so I recommend reading my guest blog on Apex Books site regarding my experiences with artists and galleries here.

We start out at the Artisans Enterprise Center which is the hub of the Covington arts scene to say hi to the Arts District MAnager Natalie. The theme for the night was Re-cycled art which was nice. We were also happy to see a larger turn-out. While there Natalie told us about their Halloween themed shows. She has told us that she wants my work in one of the galleries for the October shows (details coming soon) and had mentioned a haunted house but last night she informed us of an art themed Zombie Walk! As long as our schedule allows we'll be volunteering.

From there we're onto Encore for a quick visit with Karen and displaying artist Holland Davidson. Rumor has it Encore is interested in displaying some of my fine art (meaning non-horror art) sometime this year. Details coming soon as well.

Before proceeding I think I must make clear my stand on art. Art is in the eye of the beholder. I don't like all art. Well, actually, if I don't like it I don't consider it art in most cases. Like Warhol for example. Or Dada. But it's my opinion and I would never consider arguing what is good art and what is bad art because all art is all a matter of opinion. And I would never slam someone else's talents or percieved lack of in public. But one's lack of professionalism is fair game...

And now to the MarX Gallery. We walk in and look around. The art is wall-to-wall and floor-to-ceiling. There are ripped up inflatable riding toys shoved into wooden crates. An old phone. A beer keg. A large Star Wars action figure glued to a board. A Pee Wee Herman doll nailed to the wall. A fairly nice city scape hung sideways.  And one pretty cool painting of a Lego version of Abraham Lincoln. Not my cup o' tea but hey, who gives a shit about what I think but me (see previous paragraph), right?

A young guy approaches and we begin to chat. He is one of four artists displaying that night. He tells us he's graduating with his MFA and this is one of their first shows. So I give him a card telling him I'm a professional artist. We notice his interest begin to fade, especially after he sees the pic of Zombie Sam on the card. We tell him how great things are for the arts scene in the area now compared to how they were when we first moved there. How I couldn't get the time of day from a gallery because I didn't go to school (see the Apex blog) but now I have two, possibly 4 gallery shows. BANG! Right there's when we totally lost him. He began looking over our shoulders. His side of the conversation stops. And all it took was me mentioning I never went to school. 

He may have missed an opportunity to further his profession. He didn't know who I was. He doesn't know who I will be. But I was dismissed. Possibly deemed unworthy. Here's the lesson to be learned: When you dismiss people, slam them, talk about or treat them badly you are burning a bridge. You never know if that artist you consider lacking in talent will someday become the curator of that hot, new gallery you want in or art director for that top-notch, top-paying book company.  At least be courteous to everyone. You never know...

Case in point: Later we end up at a small military museum on the gallery route who has local author Ellen Everman peddling copies of her book Pink Dice. During the conversation we tell her about my book and graphic novel that's coming out and we begin to pick up some advice from her on interviewing and such. But soon we're giving her advice on marketing. It's that give and take. Always be open and always be forthcoming. 

From there it's next door to Covington Clay. Owner Rick Hoffman is working on an installation piece called First Amendment Friday. Gallery hoppers stop by and make two ceramic tiles. The gallery keeps one and you get one. After the gallery has collected over 800 tiles they will be used for an art piece in the city. We made ours last hop and stopped by to pick them up. 

That's my contribution in the top right corner. My very first clay sculpture!

From there what is possibly the highlight of our gallery hops: A visit to our little gold mine of a restaurant AmerAsia. If you're ever in the area check this little gem out. Not much to look at but the food is spectacular! And the service is outstanding. So if anyone ever wants to meet me for dinner this is where I'll be taking you!

So kids always be kind to strangers. You never know when they'll be the hand that's feeding you in the future!

Showin' some love...

Recently I have been asked to do several interviews. I would like to take the opprotuntiy to list a few and give links back to those who have supported me!

BelkisNYC - If you're a creative type she can tell you how to market yourself. I wish I had run across her site a long time ago!

Interview

ZombieCommand - A cool site for zombie news!

Interview

Florence Recorder - My local paper.

Interview (PDF)

ImagineFX -  Digital art magazine. Whether you're a traditional or digital artist I highly recommend this magazine. I was a featured traditional artist in issue 43. Below is a scan of the page but if you want to read it buy it!

Night of the Living Podcast - A freakin' hilarious horror review podcast. Theu interviewed me at Rockin' Rooster Comics' Free Comic Book Day. My part is in the first 15 minutes or so. If you're a horror buff looking for some laughs I recommend listening to the entire podcast. 

Interview

Here's some places you can see some stuff from me in the future:

Infernal Dreams - A great horror review site that did a video interview from the World Independent Film Expo. Will be posted in the future.

Sketch Magazine - A magazine for comic creators. I'm working on a tutorial for a future issue.

HorrorHound Magazine -  Obviously a horror magazine but what might not be so obvious from the name is that HorrorHound is one of the best. Check 'em out. I'm doing some art to be featured in the near future.

ArtLibs - An interesting art based blog. The cool thing is that when she interviews she does a little mad libs game with you. 

Lastly but not leastly - A Prisoners Welcome - I'm doing art and book covers on a regular basis for Shane Moore's Abyss Walker series. If you're looking for a great read check it out. It has zombie deer!

Here's links to some events that have been very gracious hosts to me and my wife:

Con Nooga 

Imagicon

Rockin' Rooster Comics

Seventh Street Gifts

W.I.F.E.

Marc @ Comic City

Thanks everyone!

Billy