KYLE FITZPATRICK

Stories by KYLE FITZPATRICK

Kyle Fitzpatrick is a homosexual former military brat who decided to settle in heaven (a.k.a, Los Angeles). With a love for horror films, champagne, short shorts, and CAPS LOCK, he works as a writer, comedian, and actor.

Colour Club for Kidda: Tour Visuals

Before today, I did not know who either Colour Club or Kidda were. But, judging from the names of both, I knew they must be fun. In any event, I stumbled upon a video of tour visuals made by UK animators/illustrators Colour Club for UK electronic artist, Kidda, which is how I came to learn those names.

What caught me was the bright colors and fun characters that the video was boasting. And, when I pushed play, that is definitely what I got to an equally colorful and fun tune. The video features loads of short snippets of these giant characters in action, many of which are seemingly humping phallic objects, exploding in and out of things, and running amok in happy haywire locations. To put things into further context, the video is something that seems like what would happen if the guys of Friends With You directed Troll Hunter while on a lot of acid. That being said, it is really, really great.

From the looks of Colour Club’s record, it seems that they are pretty young group, only having done four or so projects over a little more than a year. I’m going to keep my eye on their future projects because, if this video of visuals in indication of anything, they definitely have some more fun up their sleeves.

KYLE

Text by

KYLE FITZPATRICK

September 1, 2011 - See more posts by KYLE

A Look Into Mikkel Sommer’s Sketchbook

I stumbled onto the work of Danish artist/illustrator/comic book artist Mikkel Sommer by way of Mike Mitchell’s Tumblr and had been meaning to share it for some time now. I was poking around his website and found his blog, which is a great look into his process and as well as how his pieces come to life.

Above are some of his sketches in varying forms, some complete and some incomplete, which he showcases on his blog. The top is a portrait of writer Fyodor Dostoyevsky from a series of portraits he did, which I thought was such a wonderful departure from the more sketch-like things he’s known for. The three images below that are random sketches and studies he did while in the process of creating comic books: the top one he literally threw into a section of “random images” but I found it to be so beautiful and, even though studies of the same guy, are slightly homoerotic; the second was a commissioned sketch which he felt the need to color (and, obviously, is a pop culture feast); and the third is a study of a man he was going to use for a comic.

I really love Sommer’s work and love the fact that he shares his sketches so openly, giving you an idea of how his pieces come to life. Be sure to catch updates on his projects on his blog and, if his work looks familiar to you, that is because he contributed to A Graphic Cosmogony last year.

KYLE

Text by

KYLE FITZPATRICK

August 31, 2011 - See more posts by KYLE

Peter Blake For Fred Perry By Hint

We live in a very interesting time where art and fashion are colliding to create some really stupid and some really interesting things. Yet, one era of art that is constantly getting beat down by its own nature is Pop Art. Low brow fashion retailers like Forever 21, H&M, and Urban Outfitters are constantly recycling the catalogues and concepts of Warhol and Lichtenstein for new t-shirt material, bringing nothing new to either the clothing nor the art beyond creating a bastardized cheap product.

Thankfully, people have stepped in to rectify what is happening to Pop Art and have even created new collisions with fashion and art. UK based fashion retailer Fred Perry has collaborated with living British Pop Artist legend, Peter Blake. Together they have have created a little collaboration entitled Blank Canvas, which ties Blake’s aesthetic with Perry’s rich polos as the “blank canvas.”

In the above video, Hint sits down with Blake himself to speak about Pop Art and its influence on fashion (particularly, British fashion). Blake has some really remarkable things to say, explaining his intention behind a lot of his imagery (the target being commentary on Jasper Johns’ Target), the Mod movement and its relationship to fashion, his work as an artist (and current work!), and how he has contributed to Pop Art. Blake is a fascinating man and is remarkably sharp and busy for a near octogenarian.

Although I must say the clothing coming out of the collaboration are not mind-blowing, they really are a great representative of Blake and Perry, two creators who have a distinct voice in the visual world. Take a minute and watch this interview with Blake and, by all means, pass it around to anyone who may in fact be bastardizing his visual lexicon for cheap fashion hounds.

KYLE

Text by

KYLE FITZPATRICK

August 25, 2011 - See more posts by KYLE

Terranova’s ‘Take My Hand’

I have a hard time discerning art from marketing hoaxes and, with Terranova‘s Take My Hand, I’m not entirely sure if this is a visual taste of what is coming on their new album or if this is simply a means by which to elicit “WTFs?” from fans of the genre. The German band, repped by techno powerhouse Kompakt, created the video for the B-Side of their current single. A lot happens, but nothing really happens here: a mysterious woman emerges from a hut with a mask on, a few masked dancers with insane wigs dance around rooms and forests, and some monkeys run about, looking like they are awaiting Walter Ford to paint them. The visual result is intriguing, fascinating, and even captivating, as the music beats on darker and deeper into a nearly acid house direction. Enjoy the video and stick around for the ending title card, as it may explain a few things…

KYLE

Text by

KYLE FITZPATRICK

August 18, 2011 - See more posts by KYLE

On Retromania And The Present Obsession With The Past

I was catching up on old issues of New York Magazine that I had piled up on my desk a few weeks ago and stumbled upon a really great book review that really struck me. The review was for Simon Reynolds newly released book, Retromania: Pop Culture’s Addiction To Its Own Past.

While I’ve only read a review of the book, talk of people being obsessed with the past, tied to constant references in art to the past, and an inability to create something new is something that has recently been on my mind. As someone who works as a writer concentrated around entertainment, I contribute to a lot of different sites and networks, all of which are great and super fantastic outlets for Internet conversations. Some of them, however, are seemingly entrenched with the notion of childhood and what was cool “when we were little.” There’s nothing wrong with nostalgia or a shared cultural memory of things we adored growing up. That is fine. That is great. I love talking about how much I loved Sister Act and the Spice Girls! Give me a tiny soapbox and I will preach about those two pop cultural moments at length.

The problem that we are running into though is that we’re sinking in this conversation. What this talk sounds like is, “Oh, wasn’t it great to be young? That was fun.”, when the conversation actually sounds more like, “Oh, wasn’t it great to be young? I wish I was still young.” The difference is somewhat terrifying and that’s what’s been haunting me. While at work, I was working on Twitter and couldn’t help but notice that the only items trending were Keenan and Kel, All That, and Clarissa Explains It All. I was wondering why other things weren’t trending but realized what was going on: the seemingly well-intentioned–and something I supported when the press release was announced–90s Are All That was broadcasting.

Continue reading this post…

Text by

KYLE FITZPATRICK

August 15, 2011 - See more posts by KYLE