Ventura Newness

New home.  New bed.  New roommates.  New studio.  New route to the beach.  New ideas.  New opportunities. 

Words of Wisdom:

"No one realizes how beautiful it is to travel until he comes home and rests his head on his old, familiar pillow."  -Lin Yutang

I'm OPEN for business & plantin' roots... can you help?

Hello family, friends, acquaintances and complete strangers! 

Spring is about to to be sprung, love is in the air... and the strawberries are big and juicy!   I hope 2011 is exceeding your expectations.  It's exceeding mine... not expecting anything definitely helps!

Sooo... I've decided to hang up my vagabonding hat for a while, say farewell to my beloved, care-free, nomadic lifestyle and nestle into a nice condo in downtown Ventura, California for a year.  Gettin' all responsible. (I know, I know... It's hard for me to believe too) But I had a good run over the last 2.5 years.  The world is an amazing place full of some amazing people... there's still way too much to see and experience and a million more great friends to meet.   We'll see how long I last before my feet start itching for the open road again.

In the meantime, ABEL ARTS WOULD LIKE YOUR HELP.  It's time I buckle down and get to work... seriously.  WORK.  Lots of it.  Artsy projects.  Graphic designy projects.  Top Secret projects.  Anywhere in the world.  It's all fair game... and I'm steppin' up my game.  I've currently got some exciting projects in the fire and a few more goodies on the horizon, but I'm always on the market for more.

If you could do me a big favor and keep your ears and eyes peeled, chances are you, your company, your friend or crazy Uncle are in need of rock solid graphic design and/or some funky unique artwork for the house or office ... if so, be a match-maker and send them my way!  Much appreciated!  And networking will continue to live on!

Abel Arts does it all...  Art, Design, Illustration...

Logos, Brochures, Catalogs, Illustration, Company Branding/Identity, Apparel Graphics, Book Covers, Magazine Layout, Murals, Custom Original Art, Public Art, Web Design, Web Graphics, Posters, Album Artwork, Artwork Licensing, Product Package Design, Product Design, Vehicle Wrap Design, Finger Paintings... you name it, I can do it or know somebody who can. 

I get by with a little help from my friends... and on rare occasions... a cape. 

Cheers,

Erik Abel

I'm not flattered...

Click image to make bigger

Imitation is the most sincere form of flattery right? That's BS. Imitation is the most sincere form of someone lacking creativity looking for an easy way out. Copying something for personal use is one thing... but copying artwork for a commercial project from the artwork of another commercial project, that's downright shameful.

A little while back, artist/designer pal Tom Veiga sent me the image he found of the poster on the right asking if I gave permission for the artist to copy the painting I did for International Surfing Day (on the left). Of course I knew nothing about it. There is no way to contact the artist or the person/company who produced this event or poster. I've tried. Google has finally failed me.

There's a reward for whoever can find the rip-off artist and their contact info. What's the reward? A little drawing or print or something... or maybe just a big high five and a solid hug. Cool?