The Art of Jose Mertz

Jose Mertz is someone who doesn't mind breaking out of his comfort zone. The Miami-based visual artist blends the contemporary and the traditional and draws inspiration from science fiction, ancient civilizations and the mystic arts. Whether it's a collaboration with Adidas, a mural for Dr. Smood, or a poster for Pacific Rim: Uprising, Jose seems to approach each project with the same passion.

After graduating from the Maryland Institute College of Art in 2002, Jose decided to live in New York and studied Zen for several years. During that time he also traveled the world and encountered different people that would eventually inspire his work and change his life.

Below are some of my favorites, but you can check out his website and Instagram for more.

Comments

The Joy of Logarithms

Toby 'Tibees' Hendy is an Australia-based educator who uses social media to spark young people's interest in science and math. This year, her YouTube subscribers surpassed 250,000, and her videos have been viewed almost 25 million times. In this clip, Toby gives a lesson about logarithms in the style of legendary artist and TV host Bob Ross.

On knockoff toys, bootleg action figures, and nostalgia

LEGO and Transformers action figures are some of the toys I really wanted as a kid, but never got. Boy or girl, every child wanted a LEGO. My older cousin had a couple of LEGO sets, but didn't really let me play with them. So, I desperately asked my rich Japayuki ninang for one. Instead, she gave me a knockoff—like the ones sold at sari-sari stores near public elementary schools. Every year, I looked forward to birthdays and holidays with great anticipation, but I never got the real thing. During the height of their popularity in the 80s, many people were convinced that their Autobots and Decepticons were actually smart investments, and that the shape-shifting alien robots would one day be worth thousands. More than 30 years after the original Transformers TV series first aired, its toy franchise remains one of the most popular in history. My mother gave me one when I was 7. Unfortunately, what I got was a funny counterfeit Starscream from Divisoria that looked like a malnouris...

Katy Ann Gilmore is my new favorite on Instagram

Katy Ann Gilmore is a Los Angeles-based visual artist who specializes in making extraordinary illustrations on paper and large scale murals using micron and gel pens. Her elaborate line work is painstakingly methodical, layering strokes of the pen in varying directions to create amazing shapes and topography that look like they are covered with intricate mesh netting. I was wondering how many pen strokes does it take to complete just one of these drawings, so I did some research and found out that her small 5 in. by 7 in. illustrations typically take a few hours, while an 11 in. by 14 in. picture can take anywhere from 10-25 hours. "My hand does hurt a bit after marathon sessions, but never anything too crazy," she told Lisa Congdon. "I try to rest my eyes/hands/brain every once in awhile by looking away from the drawing, dropping the pen, and taking a breather." Katy received a BA in Mathematics, Art, and Spanish from Greenville College in Il...

finding cain

Search This Blog