- you like fine drawrings, "highbrow" stuff like paintings, photography, and sculpture
- you like "low-brow" stuff like comics, animanga, graffiti culture, sexy art and nudes, Japanese superflat, designer vinyl, tees, Strongbad or other coolcute stuff
And you're...
- wanting to start an art collection
- (same as above and) aware that there's more to art than still lifes and flower paintings
- a former college dude ready to put up something other than the promotional beer posters you swiped from the frat house
- a former college chick who paid $50 for a pleasant framed print from Target and then saw the same thing at 3 other friends' apartments
- interested in expressing your taste more now that you're an adult
- keen to support some very talented and deserving artists
- an artist yourself wrestling with the business side of things
- looking for gifts that are extra ordinary and not something off the shelf of a megachain
- if you’d like to gift meaningful things and say "No" to McMediocrity
But find it difficult to do because...
- you don't know where to start
- you think Art's too expensive
- you're scared to express your taste, or worse yet, afraid you have no taste
- hate the gallery scene
Then read on!
Who
I'm a guy who loves Art –in particular good drawings– and the amazing variety of creative expression and articulation of the human condition. People use Art to entertain, to inspire, and to communicate and because of Art's utility I honestly believe it can heal (cue music) –in big ways and small.
But I’m no guru. My undergraduate degree's in Art + Art History, but I wouldn't say I went to art school. More like a rural land-grant institution with a vestigial art department. I actually dropped out "not once, not twice, but thrice."
I like what I like and I draw what I draw. There's no agenda, though there are themes I gravitate towards. In the time between I try to make like Joseph Campbell on my journey, pointing out where there are rocks ahead, where I’ve found a refreshing oasis or two, and fantastic lands I've heard of but not yet visited.
Follow me on Twitter...or Join me on Facebook.
Where
I live in Southside Virginia now, in a town affectionately known as SoBo, a place I'd never heard of before moving here to take on a dream job. I grew up in the New River Valley but went to private school in Roanoke, and then on to Virginia Tech for college.
Though my trips have been less frequent lately, I love travel (being there, not getting there) and regularly visit friends and family in NYC, Chicago, and Richmond. I traveled overseas to Italy and Greece in highschool and long to return and spend days in cafes sketching beautiful people.
What's This Site About?
I collect art and think you should too. To articulate your taste. To give unique gifts. To support entrepreneurs. To add value and quality to your life and the lives of others. And while I believe art is for everyone, not everyone's interested in art. And that's okay!
BCVA is for folks who like art –tending towards mostly low-brow, West Coast Pop Surrealism, good design, or work intended as consumer culture commentary. If you're of a certain age and persuasion and actively looking to buy art or to begin, this is a good place to start.
Here you'll find links to my work that's available, and also links to cool stuff you should see and buy for yourself or others produced by other artists.
If you're an artist yourself, you'll see things here to inspire you, tips for the business side of being creative, and interviews to inform you.
What Can I Do for You?
I can show you cool, affordable art you may want to own for yourself or gift to another. It may be art you didn't even know exists; art that is uncommon and original and produced by someone with something to say and that speaks to you. At the least I can point you in some interesting directions.
I can show you my work including tees, postcards, posters, originals, and commissioned pieces. If you like zombies, Michelangelo, and caricature, you are definitely in the right place.
I can give advice to artists, share lessons learned, technology and business tips, and tell decent stories about being an artist, making work, and promoting your talents.
Why Now?
I tell my students this every semester and any other artist who'll listen:
I say this for two reasons:
I'm a guy who loves Art –in particular good drawings– and the amazing variety of creative expression and articulation of the human condition. People use Art to entertain, to inspire, and to communicate and because of Art's utility I honestly believe it can heal (cue music) –in big ways and small.
But I’m no guru. My undergraduate degree's in Art + Art History, but I wouldn't say I went to art school. More like a rural land-grant institution with a vestigial art department. I actually dropped out "not once, not twice, but thrice."I like what I like and I draw what I draw. There's no agenda, though there are themes I gravitate towards. In the time between I try to make like Joseph Campbell on my journey, pointing out where there are rocks ahead, where I’ve found a refreshing oasis or two, and fantastic lands I've heard of but not yet visited.
Follow me on Twitter...or Join me on Facebook.
Where
I live in Southside Virginia now, in a town affectionately known as SoBo, a place I'd never heard of before moving here to take on a dream job. I grew up in the New River Valley but went to private school in Roanoke, and then on to Virginia Tech for college.
Though my trips have been less frequent lately, I love travel (being there, not getting there) and regularly visit friends and family in NYC, Chicago, and Richmond. I traveled overseas to Italy and Greece in highschool and long to return and spend days in cafes sketching beautiful people.
What's This Site About?
I collect art and think you should too. To articulate your taste. To give unique gifts. To support entrepreneurs. To add value and quality to your life and the lives of others. And while I believe art is for everyone, not everyone's interested in art. And that's okay!
BCVA is for folks who like art –tending towards mostly low-brow, West Coast Pop Surrealism, good design, or work intended as consumer culture commentary. If you're of a certain age and persuasion and actively looking to buy art or to begin, this is a good place to start.
Here you'll find links to my work that's available, and also links to cool stuff you should see and buy for yourself or others produced by other artists.
If you're an artist yourself, you'll see things here to inspire you, tips for the business side of being creative, and interviews to inform you.
What Can I Do for You?
I can show you cool, affordable art you may want to own for yourself or gift to another. It may be art you didn't even know exists; art that is uncommon and original and produced by someone with something to say and that speaks to you. At the least I can point you in some interesting directions.
I can show you my work including tees, postcards, posters, originals, and commissioned pieces. If you like zombies, Michelangelo, and caricature, you are definitely in the right place.
I can give advice to artists, share lessons learned, technology and business tips, and tell decent stories about being an artist, making work, and promoting your talents.
I tell my students this every semester and any other artist who'll listen:
It has never been a better time to be an artist or an art lover.
I say this for two reasons:
- The internet makes all things possible for creative folks (artists and art lovers) –from finding your niche to reaching millions; skirting the gallery system, or breaking into it; low-cost reproductions and mass market solutions. It’s an amazing time for creative ideas and energy!
- Material abundance has made stuff that used to be rare, hard to find, and unaffordable now exceedingly common, quite findable, and most definitely NOT a luxury item.
I live with my incredibly artistic girlfriend and we're resolved to keep art from falling to the margins of our lives. Sharing here is one way to do that.
Nota Bene
I don't do this full time (I have an awesome day job that pays the bills and keeps me plenty busy), but there are too many art students who grow up only to become former artists and that's not going to be me. That relies on support from art-friendly cool people like you interested in owning art and talented professionals like you interested in making it.
If you like what you see here and want to give back, you can buy my work, purchase books through my recommendations links (Amazon), or just tell others about the site and why you like it. I don't receive any sort of commission or payment in kind for art or artists I promote; I just share what interests me.
You cannot buy your way onto the site or into a post, but you can definitely show me something amazing that I can't wait to share!
