Hip Hop Box










So I'm pretty much done with this series! I did these for a project called Mail Me Art ( http://www.mailmeart.com/ ). You're supposed create art on mail-able packages (boxes, envelopes, tubes, etc) and mail it to an address in the United Kingdom. They post the exceptional ones on the website and in a year or so from now they will have a gallery show where they will put the best submissions up for sale. Dope stuff I say. So I thought this would be a good opportunity to experiment and make some pieces with the knowledge I learned from my summer sketchbook. All the pieces are very mixed media on cardboard...I used acrylic, ink, colored pencil, watercolor, pencil, and anything else that could make a mark. Anyways, it was alot of fun. Some of these have some modifications in Photoshop, others very minor adjustments. I think I have to learn how to stop with the digital stuff though, because sometimes I get too carried away with the shiny effects... o well.

I knew I wanted to do pieces that meant something to me so each piece represents a huge hip-hop influence over the years. If you know me, you'll know that if at all possible, when I'm working I'm jamming out to some good hip-hop...so in no particular order the artists represented are: Nas, Black Star, Big Pun, Binary Star, the Roots, and a bunch of squares that were a place holder because this was taking too long...haaha. I put the individual Nas pic by itself just because it looked sort of funky with the other one (even though that's how I did it), and I was happy with how that turned out. And if your feeling exceptionally bored, I included the official F. Vallejo hip-hop box cut out extravanganza...instructions not included..haha. Take care, F.

16 comments:

Andre Barnwell said...

id say just make its bolder in terms of contrast. up its brigthness a bit for more clairty. or you bold in the middle so you got this cool frame a round it with a uts bold font in the middle. Otherwise its lookin sick

Tim Bye said...

I love the paintwork and texture! Great

Unknown said...

the looseness in this pic (and pretty much all yer work) is badassical.

this is gonna be a killer series. i'll make sure to bother yer blog again when the next pieces are up.

&rew.

Rich Pellegrino said...

Sweet! Did you go to the Illustration Academy? The piece is solid. Can't wait to see the rest. Blackstar is good shit too.

Rich

Thanks for stopping by my blog.

Mike said...

Your stuff is amazing, blog to be linked surely ;)

lindsey olivares said...

hey Francis, just wanted to tell you that your work is fantastic and I'm linking your blog

Sergio Lopez said...

wow thats really cool... and you even got binary star on there, that makes it 10x better in my opinion, lol..

hey thanks for checking out my blog, how did you find it by the way? im curious to know

Unknown said...

AWESOME set!! These are totally ROCK!

Andre Barnwell said...

sick sick. Real nice series. Keep grindin

Andrew R. Wright said...

Hey man this is some sweet stuff. I'm really liking the surface quality and texture your getting from that box. Something about cardboard always makes a piece have another level/quality to it that I get excited about.

As individual pieces they hold together really well. Compostion, value and color are strong in all of them. As a whole it holds together alrite but the side with the star and two figures doesn't relate to the other sides as well. There seems to be to much cool color where as on all the other sides there is a majority of warmth. Even the side opposite could have a little more warmth in it but the darks have enough warmth where you could probably get away with it. Hopefully some of that made sense.

All in all though this is a killer piece...mailer...box thing. Props to you and the folks who thought of this idea.

Francis Vallejo said...

Thanks for the kind words everybody!! This project was a great learning experience. I have an exciting article I'm writing/doing the art for so I'll post that in the next couple of days.
Best Regards,
-francis

Brent Gordon said...

Beautiful work!

alberto mielgo said...

It's so great to meet your art.
This last post it's so violent and graphic.
Fantastic work.

Andy P said...

Whoa, sick work man, this box really looks great! Very cool shapes and textures. Hot all around!
And that Dr Sketchy jam looked like a lot of fun, you got some sweet stuff out of it. I'd heard tell of that thing goin on, in Atlanta I think. I'd love to get to one.

Great stuff man, I'll be back here fo sho!

Jared Fiorino said...

Sick box amigo! I enjoy your line work on this!

Marcelo Vignali said...

Great looking stuff. It looks like you're really having fun in your sketchbook.