Apocalypse Popsicle

Jawbusters!

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Fri, 31 Aug 2012 07:50:00 +0000

The opposite of stealing: leaving somewhat valuable objects hidden in public places. The local hardware store's garden center got a couple of Melancholy Molly heads distributed amongst the succulent and cactus displays for sale. If you look near where I live, you might be able to find them. Good Luck with that. Enjoy the Slideshow!

I’ve done this a few times before, most notably at Super7 in San Francisco at their old location. In Mexico, a few Apocalypse Parade figures were hidden amongst the ruins of Teotihuacan. I’ve left a lot of little toys in random places that I go. Have you found any? Let me know.

Just for fun, Rusty Mecha-Amputee Melancholy Molly-

Extra Credit:

More methodical madness & infernal machines coming (relatively) soon.
In the meantime, check out the flickr page for more pics of toys and art

UNDERSEA AGENT - A 14 Piece Plastic Canvas Work

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 04:19:00 +0000

Each piece of the Undersea Agent Series is meant to both stand alone as well as fit into a larger narrative. The story created concerns a young sailor, shipwrecked and floating upon the mercy of the waves. As he descends into delerium, he imagines himself as a secret agent on a sub-aquatic mission of intrigue and danger. When viewed in order, these pieces tell that story. A handy slideshow has been added for your narrative enhancement.

Box of Fate Memorial Day Special featuring Bert Gatchalian's Custom Fat Ladies

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Mon, 30 May 2011 15:48:00 +0000

In honor of all our dead, especially those that died for much less important things than war and the pursuit of defense. The totally sincere staging of these photographs features 4 of the 7 custom painted Fat Lady resin figures painted by Bert Gatchalian for the 2011 Box of Fate. I hope you enjoy these pics and the slideshow on your day off. Everyday is a holiday for the dead and they don't spend their time thinking about you. Do what I do- think about your dead people while at work.

Gatchabert Blog Gatchabert Blog Gatchabert Blog Gatchabert Blog Gatchabert Blog Gatchabert Blog Gatchabert Blog
Check out Bert Gatchalian's airbrush skills on a variety of kaiju toys, as well as top-rate illustration and painting at his blog. His continued collaboration with the flavor scientists at Apocalypse Popsicle has proven to be beneficial, despite his diabolical designs on our patented secret recipe for "being nasty" but everybody's looking for that jive nowadays.

EXTRA CREDIT--

This cherub sits on the upper ledge of a 1945 Memorial for "Showfolks of America" -in other words, these graves belong to circus people. The surrounding graves are all dedicated or reserved for the deceased belonging to that diminishing, nomadic menagerie of artists, clairvoyants, and craftsmen. Stars of the Road Show and lowly carneys raising tents, selling tickets, all were now united in equality in the grave. It was beyond the pale and bizarre to think that here at this section of the graveyard, the show still goes on. They aren't buried with their families or in the Jewish section (for surely many were part of the diaspora of Euro-Judeo Gypsy tribes. Showfolk are beyond race. They are beyond equal.

Reserved now for future lion tamers' apprentices and trapeze artists who perform one too many times "without a net", the land was originally reserved in 1918 following a train wreck in Indiana where 86 clowns tragically died in one last skit of comically existential slapstick.
And that's no joke-
Great Circus Train Wreck of 1918

All right, full disclosure on the incident with the cherub at the Showfolks of America Memorial. I was going to end this "extra credit" section with the link to the train wreck site. But as I looked again at the pictures, I was struck by the twisted expression of the cherub's face.

I had already been in this particular graveyard for about 45 minutes as I began to take the first few shot with him in the frame. There had been no ill omens, like that time with the ants and the bat. Late in the afternoon and overcast all day, it had finally started to rain just as I arrived. I wouldn't have minded the rain, but then it cleared up and the sun came out, threatening to kill my sweet ambient light that had been the secret gift of the formerly overcast sky. By the time I got to the Showfolks Memorial, it was once again ideal. Overcast yet bright, the sun that eliminates the shadow.

So back to that disgruntled bastard stooping angrily up there- I'm sure you noticed his unique frilly clown collar. At first thinking this was part of the statue, I approached without hesitation and touched it. Soft and wet, a brighter color red on the inside indicating age and wear from the sun. There are two other flickr photos of this memorial- one from 2008 and the other from January 2009. Neither wear this collar. Also, it was a scrunchie.

I laughed. This is what amuses me- I would have done this same thing had I found a scrunchie on the grounds someplace. There were three types of people who could have done this scrunchie vandalism. It could have been a genuinely bereaved individual who thought this simple addition would bring joy to the circus-folk, whose lives were spent in selling mirth to the masses. Or it could have been a drunk person or listless teenager, which are combined into one possible suspect as they have the same motivations for public vandalism. The third person is someone like me. A moral and fair-minded individual, curious about the way humans view death yet blasphemous about it. A person who enjoys making anonymous public pranks that will be seen later by random people they may not even know. Someone who likes a good idea with a dash of devilish. Let me put it another way: this disrespectful act willfully desecrated the graves of clowns. People like me.

Having finished taking my pictures and depositing the toys back into the car, I re-approached the Showfolks Memorial to take some pictures of the shrine from all four sides. I thought to myself, 'Perhaps I should take that nasty old scrunchie off of that cherub and clean him up a bit.' I occassionally spend an hour or two in the afternoon in a nice graveyard just to reflect on life and jot stuff down in my notebook. However, I am not a goth These sojourns occur about once every two years when not forced into a graveyard for other, less desirable reasons.

Reaching out to grab the damp cloth, a chain on the flagpole just behind me rattled in the wind noticeably. I looked back up the pole, chasing the sound. There was no flag yet waving; it was Saturday on Memorial Day weekend and I'm sure they wanted to keep the flags nice for Sunday and the holiday. Thinking little more than that, I again took hold of the red material and gave a quick yank, up and towards me as to clear the chin.

As I pulled, a pincher beetle jumped out from beneath the scrunchie. The hair tie did not want to come easily and I'd have to really grip it. How many more pincher bugs might be nesting? While considering what to do with my hands, my attention was drawn to the statue's face. He was scowling at me. I could feel him glaring angrily at me with disgust. I ceased my effort to remove the scrunchie. He could be a real Showfolk "tiniest man alive" type of performer whose train-mangled corpse was used to make a concrete statue of an angel. I don't know, but I have some other theories as well.

All pictures here and many more are available at the Apocalypse Popsicle Flickr page-
http://www.flickr.com/photos/apocalypsepopsicle

BOX OF FATE 2011 PRE-ORDER NOW!

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 22:38:00 +0000

Limit 1 Box per household. Twins that live together are allowed to buy only one box unless they can prove that they both have girlfriends/boyfriends and are planning on getting their own places. And stop dressing like each other, you're 35- it's creepy now.

Aqua Violet Pearl Old Toby

Featuring the new Judgment of the Snailfather Playset with the Snailfather figure being sculpted by the multi-talented Dustin Cantrell!

One Off Hotrod Frankensnail by Paul Kaiju! (as seen from the rear)

Here's the lowdown:

-- All 7 Boxes will contain toys and Plastic Canvas pieces.

-- One box will be a wicked sweet fine art box with mostly custom paints and Plastic Canvas pieces.

-- All 7 Boxes will contain a custom "Mr. Scratch, Soul Broker" figure painted by the incredible Dustin Cantrell

-- All 7 Boxes will contain a custom "Fat Lady" figure painted by that cool commander of color, Bert Gatchalian

-- All 7 Boxes will contain a Kirkland Jue of Toybotstudios Blog Custom.

-- This year roughly fifty percent of the 7 boxes will feature "Old Toby" Figures.

-- The other half will feature "Judgement of the Snailfather Playsets" - a 6 figure set

-- The "Judgement" Playset features the Snailfather demon, the first Apocalypse Popsicle figure carved by the crazy-talented Dustin Cantrell

-- Magnets. I know how they work. I have applied the Plastic Canvas techniques to the smaller scale.

-- One Off Custom Painted Figures by Paul Kaiju, Leecifer, & Super Secret Guests Randomly Distributed
(no guarantees you'll get a PK or Lee custom)

-- New Frankensnail Mori Katatsumuri Hotrod Version

Boxes are $130 plus shipping.

Holler at your ice cream man!
apocalypsepopsicle@gmail.com

Playtime with Dustin Cantrell's Anklyosaurus

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 06:49:00 +0000

Greetings fine specimens of dignity and taste! I was lucky enough to help Dustin Cantrell with the moldmaking for his awesomely detailed Anklyosaurus sculpt. Dustin is already well known as a smooth artist with the airgun. Once he started sculpting, it was obvious that these two talents should merge. The noble steeds of our infernal stable here at Apocalypse Popsicle Farms wish Dustin the greatest of success in what we're sure will prove to become a toy-making addiction for him. In fact, while we were just sitting around watching rubber cure, I tossed him a few choice snail skeletons and he went berserker on some clay on a new figure to be released in the Apocalypse Popsicle Box of Fate 2011 (pre-order this Friday). More of that later.

Here's a few pictures I took in my yard with the two early casts I got to keep. I poured the orange and green bi-color clear figure myself. In these photos, the two dinosaurs defend their nest, which is a real nest which was abandoned by the ground-nesting birds in my yard. The cat spooked them. And though I didn't let her out for another ten days, they did not return.

http://dustinsmonstershop.bigcartel.com/
Dustin has some awesomely painted Anklyosaurus figures painted up professionally on his big cartel page. Go get one!

The Pamphlet of Schnarfenfigelheim & Origin Story of the Fat Lady Crew

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 10:15:00 +0000

The Pamphlet of Schnarfenfigelheim is an apocryphal document drafted in the early 6th Century by an advisor to the line of Clovis, which would eventually become the Merovingian Dynasty of Frankish rule. King Theudebert, the grandson of Clovis who first led the Franks to Christianity, was not content to merely be another notch in the belt of the Roman Christian diaspora. Gathering his priests around him, he demanded prophecy, revelation, and strongly hinted that these wise men might include some mention of the inherent divine right of the Germanic peoples. Of all his sages, Theudebert valued the wisdom of the elder Schnarfenfigelheim most. It is in the Pamphlet of Schnarfenfigelheim that the traditional story of Genesis Book 1, Chapter 1 is re-written with a more in depth look at the denizens of Hell prior to the Fall of Lucifer and his host.
The toys I make in the Fat Lady Crew & The Brothers Tingle are inspired by characters from the Pamphlet.

For your consideration, the opening stanza of The Pamphlet of Schnarfenfigelheim:

"In the beginning, God created many curious and irrational things and no one was there to write them all down. In the very beginning, only one irrational thing existed and it was this thing that became the thing known as God. A nest-like vessel of incomprehensible will and creativity from whose bosom sprung the cosmos in all its dust-filled glory, the invention of time achieved in Its infancy, the compulsion to create self-creating creatures was inspired by the loneliness inherent to Its existence.

Carving as if from clay, the elements of perfection…"

The document goes on to describe the inter-connected nature of angels and demons. Angelic perfection was apparently achieved by removing negative personality aspects, while refining qualities deemed appealing. The absence of all negativity turned out to be quite boring, and the solution was to create near-perfect beings with just a tiny bit of morally questionable behavior or personality quirk. For instance, in creating an Angel that embodied rhythmic intensity and musical motion, it would be undesirable to remove all traces of moodiness or depression from the entity. Such a creature might make beautiful music for spring afternoons, but even God has rainy days.

So, some traces of “undesirable” qualities were needed in the angelic content in order to achieve certain other aspects of “pure” intent. The leftover bits and pieces of God’s magic clay were then thrown into Hell, which at this point in time resembled a large, mystical root cellar wherein the almighty kept his old and forgotten stuff. Within this dark and disused realm, these little balls of discontent gestated into what we would now call Demons. Bitter and malcontent, Hell was a place of abuse and ridicule. But at least it was home.

Things all started to change after the Great Rebellion and subsequent Fall of a large section of the Angelic Host. The story now should seem somewhat familiar. Watching the way God doted over those short-lived and foul-tempered humans, Lucifer and his halo-toting brethren grew weary of their roles as God’s servants and tried to take over the Frat House. Failing in their heavenly coup d’etat, God was reminded of his old hidey-hole and shoved those rebellious louts down into Hell. God liked to forget about what he had left down there.

(Melancholy Molly, the Fat Lady, Bad Baby Banana)

Once the Angels moved in, all the typical gentrification effects began to be felt. Suddenly the Natural Born Demons were second-class citizens pushed off of their home turf and on towards the less desirable parts of town. Sequestered in ghettos by the Angels, the NBDs were taxed, manipulated and oppressed. Some found favor as hatchet men and lackeys for the devils with wings. It was, in short, a most brutal colonialism.

The light seemed to grow ever dimmer for the foul and disgusting demons. Would they ever find a champion to rescue them from their oppression? Could a God dark enough in desire to create abominations in order to also create beauty possibly be merciful enough to see Its own responsibility? Indeed.

But it wouldn’t be until several hundred years after the Crucifixion. Having spent a bit of time getting a feel for the place after the Resurrection, Jesus decided heaven was badly in need of some social reform. Convincing the almighty of this proved to be quite a task, but the Prince of Peace was able to subdue the Wrath of the Father and a rehabilitation program for suitable demons was put into place. If a demon was deemed worthy of rehabilitation, he was to then be placed with a mentor being at a position with the inner bureaucracies of creation. The demon would then be put to use serving the larger clockwork of the system and could be monitored for possible further placement or marked as a failure and destined to return to Hell.

(The Brothers Tingle, Wayne Jr, Itchy, Peeper)

Chosen to review the parolees was a peculiar entity known as the Fat Lady. Created after the Fall, the Fat Lady was a demon plucked from Hell and put to God’s surgical knife in order to attach the essence of angelic strength to a fully formed demon’s soul. Intended as an intermediary figure that would run errands down to Hell for God, the Fat Lady held a privileged place in creation able to freely span the planes of existence between Hell, Earth, and Heaven. The Fallen Angels despised her and treated her poorly upon her visits. The NBDs saw her as the shooting star, the hometown kid making it big. Rising up from Hell, being changed by the Creator to become something better, something stronger. Her relationship with the NBD community seemed like a perfect fit for administering the NBD rehab program.

(Mr. Scratch, Soul Broker)

Keep your eyes peeled for two more additions to the toy line coming soon in the Box of Fate 2011.

Google Translate Hip Hop Art Rock

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Fri, 10 Dec 2010 00:52:00 +0000

G-Translate Falafel Rap

Download available here: http://www.divshare.com/download/13456125-4c2

I was inspired by the reddit.com article on how to use Google Translate to create a beatbox like effect.
Using German to German translation and vowel-less syllables, the original poster made a simple beat with a break near the end. Here's that original post:
Reddit Beatbox

One of my side projects is a Hip Hop Art Rock Collective known as P.O.W. or Prisoners of Whiteness.
Using Google Translate to try and hack together hiphop is a very square idea for a hepcat like me, but that's the point nowadays. (Where are my Buddy Holly nerd glasses?) But it fits into the P.O.W. collective's forthcoming E.P. quite well as a non-sequitur.

So without further ado, here's my method:
1 part German to German, edited mildly from the reddit.com post
1 part Chinese to Chinese(Traditional)
1 part Norwegian to Norwegian
1 part Rhyme, straight English to English

Mix well and fade out.
Bake at 350 degrees.

HALLOWEEN SPECIALS AND NEW TOYS

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 00:47:00 +0000

Halloween Exclusives are Here!
All of them are available at the brand spanking new and html-challenged http://www.apocalypsepopsicle.com

We’ve got three different sampler packs for $25 each, the new Brothers Tingle set in its first release, as well as the brand new Mr. Scratch. Mr. Scratch is God’s favorite Soul Broker and the Director of the Bureau of Faith and Fear, one of the institutional pillars of the larger Bureaucracy of Death. The Brothers Tingle are his re-habilitated demonic work crew- Itchy, Peeper, and Wayne, Jr.

Brothers Tingle- Candy Corn Glow-in-the-Dark Edition
Limited to 2 sets

9 Total Sampler Sets are available evenly divided between Sets A,B, & C.

Halloween Sampler A
Limited to 3 sets of Sampler A.

Mr. Scratch GID unpainted
Limited to ten per year, released for Halloween

Mr. Scratch – Pumpkin Patch Fiend
Limited to 3. Two-pour resin-dyeing process.

ENDING RADIO SILENCE

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Sun, 17 Oct 2010 22:54:00 +0000

Greetings fellow post-nuclear vermin! The interruption in our broadcasting this summer has finally ceased following countless hours of litigation. Censored by the government, shackled by the social constraints of family, and temporarily detained by the siren’s song, Apocalypse Popsicle is back online. Rejoice! For the line shall continue to blur and the beasts will not gnash at their fearsome bits now that they smell the meat.

The graceful reader will be encouraged that the staff here have not been idle in their seclusion. Apocalypse Popsicle took part in a couple of group shows this summer. This early summer AP had several pieces in Dragatomi’s Not Vinyl show. Dragatomi is located in Sacramento, CA and the Not Vinyl show focused on the emerging DIY toy scene. Artwork on display was in a variety of mediums: resin, paper, clay, metal, cardboard, etc. There are pics of my stuff from the Not Vinyl show a couple of posts down from this one and on the flickr page.

The ending of the season was capped by the Toxic Catalyst show at Super7 in San Francisco, CA. This was another show focusing on the emerging DIY scene, but it leaned heavily towards the homemade resin and mold making aspect of DIY making toys. The show was put on by the MonstreHero guys, Cliff & Sean. Thanks for putting me in the Toxic Catalyst group! This show was awesome and I really have to thank Super7 and Skullbrain for their continued support and inspiration. Here’s a pic or two from that show:

On a more personal note-
The top picture in the post is of me at my engagement party. My girlfriend and I are finally taking the plunge. Who knew 7 years of dating would lead to marriage?

HALLOWEEN TOYS COMING TOMORROW

Rambo versus the A-Team

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 07:39:00 +0000

Rambo versus the A-Team 12"x7"

Rambo vs the A-Team is one of the main pieces in my World War 2 Plus 2 set of pictures focusing mainly on Nazi/G.I. combat as represented in Silver Age comic books. Other eras are used, but the richest content is from the olden days. This piece is not for sale at this time.

Here's another piece from a series called Undersea Agent. There are ten completed pieces in this set with two more in process. This piece also not for sale yet.

Undersea Agent: Nemesis 12"x"7"

Detail:

Van Gogh's Apprentice 6"x6"

Detail:

The Stalker 6"x6"

Detail:

R.I.P Barry Coleman

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Sat, 29 May 2010 01:22:00 +0000

Our dear friend and ally, Gary Coleman has passed away from a brain hemorrhage at the age of 42. Gary struggled with fame more than most child stars. And unlike most child stars, he really didn't deserve a lot of the abuse the tabloids threw at him regularly.

His forever boy-like features were a public display of our communal inner child, the accumulated wrinkles on his face reflecting even more so the horrors and tragedies of time's passage that so inevitably taint our former innocence.

In honor of Gary and in homage to the RIP Keith Ledger video, I present to you a short montage.

Here's the link to the original RIP Keith Ledger video. The song for this one has since been removed due to copyright. The original song was "Bad Day" by Daniel Powter.
If you play the Powter video from 1:53 and turn off the volume on the RIP Keith video, you've got the original copyright-violating version. It is way more funny with the original song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ZrpiEFXIgc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gH476CxJxfg

Dragatomi Not Vinyl Show Toys For Sale NOW

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Wed, 19 May 2010 22:52:00 +0000

Sacramento-based gallery and toy store Dragatomi had their Not Vinyl show on May 8th. I had a few pieces in this show and I'd like to thank Joanne, Ray, and Lee Gadja for all the support in getting my stuff up in the gallery.

Dragatomi has recently put up all of the pieces from the show. Here's some links to my pieces for sale:

Apocalypse Parade Mixed-Pour Set
http://www.dragatomi.com/servlet/the-1421/Apocalypse-popscicle-Parade/Detail

Neon Lagoon Old Toby
http://www.dragatomi.com/servlet/the-1418/Apocalypse-Popsicle/Detail

Sir Begs-A-Lot, opaque blue
http://www.dragatomi.com/servlet/the-1419/Sir-Begs-Apocalypse-Popsicle/Detail

Sir Begs-A-Lot, pink/aqua clear
http://www.dragatomi.com/servlet/the-1420/Apocalypse-Popscicle-Sir-Begs/Detail

I'll Never Be Like You Dad! sold

Kong, the Untamed sold

Introducing Sir Begs-A-Lot

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 02:47:00 +0000

Sir Begs-A-Lot is an amphibious two-headed dog-pony. Old Toby's little brother, Sir Begs-A-Lot has many of the mannerisms that you would expect from someone like him. He begs for food a lot, though he can't seem to stop his two heads from fighting with each other. Despite the fact that both heads share one stomach, the brain wants what the brain wants.

More on the story of Old Toby and Sir Begs-A-Lot coming soon. For now, here are some pretty pictures:

Ponies in Space!

Ponies on Earth fleeing the invaders!

ponies on my desk

Here's a sneak peek of the first official Sir Begs-A-Lot release. Sure, I had a few at Wondercon but only two sold that I know of and a third was for sale at Dragatomi's booth. I don't know if it sold, but the other two are in the illustrious hands of Connell, the plastichunter, and Skinner the frikkin' man-beast. You too can join these ranks! We march on Pennsylvania Dutch country upon the first amber rays of the dawn!

From the upcoming Unpainted Ponies release. Ten different, figures all unpainted, this release focuses on the application of color to the plastic while still liquid and the ability to manipulate that process. Here's a few:

More info coming soon!

Superman vs. Muhammad Ali & KONG, The Untamed

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 06:39:00 +0000

WTF #1: Superman versus Muhammad Ali
6" x 6" x .5"

KONG, THE UNTAMED
large square 6"x6", smaller panel 6"x3" These panels are fused together with the liquid plastic into one solid object.

The Blitzkrieg
6"x3", 4" diameter

FEAR: Approved by the Comic Codes Authority
6" x 6" x .5"
Note: I grew the java moss myself in my fishtank

If you are interested in purchasing any of the pieces here, please send me an email for a quote at apocalypsepopsicle@gmail.com

For even more of these plastic canvases, check out the flickr set here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/apocalypsepopsicle/sets/72157623524408917/

Conan at the Koi Pond, also Comic Book Misogyny

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 00:17:00 +0000

Conan at the Koi Pond 8" x 5.5", 1"depth

Detail:

And now...
Comic Book Misogyny: an examination of violence against women on vintage comic book cover art

In Death's Dark Waters 6"x6", .75" depth

The first in a series depicting extreme scenes of brute force attacks on women played out on comic book covers. While comics are filled with depictions of violence against women (whom are already sexually objectified), some cover art scenes are so aggressive that I find it compelling to catalog them and re-contextualize them outside of the story contained in the comic. The comic as product (regardless of the story's content) is being sold with this image of violence against women as its main purchase point. An empowered female character is still being dominated by a more powerful male. The frequency of these covers in both past and present is alarming. So don't hit the snooze button, I've got more coming your way.

Repercussions 8" x 5.5", .75" depth, director's slate is .25" above canvas surface

Am I also using their misogynistic tactics as a selling point of my work? Of course I am. The images are compelling for so many reasons and while my new formatting may further glorify the original image, my intent is to please the eye for what the mind darkly enjoys while also hoping to spurn some personal introspection into the prevalence and meaning of misogyny in art and popular culture. I am vehemently opposed to violence against women. I am fascinated by its consistent portrayal in popular media. These are questionable images that should make us ask ourselves some questions.

If anyone is interested in purchasing any of these three pieces, please shoot me an email over to apocalypsepopsicle@gmail.com Put the piece you are interested in the title of your message so I don't lose it if it gets sent to the old spam folder.

Check out some more of these canvases here:
Plastic Canvas Flickr

Custom Sets from the BOX of FATE revealed!

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 00:46:00 +0000

All of the custom sets from the Box Of Fate release can be seen at the flickr page:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/apocalypsepopsicle/sets/72157623311481929/

Here are a few samples of them:

Unpainted Apocalypse Parade

Pumpkin Patch Mixed Custom Set

Fat Lady Crew: Organically Inclined Set

Fat Lady Crew: Dirty Dirt Road Do-Gooder Demons Club Set

Fat Lady Crew: The Nursery Set

Unpainted Pearl Blue/Green Uni-Chan with Navy Dr. Mori Katatsumuri

More pics at the flickr page http://www.flickr.com/photos/apocalypsepopsicle/

thanks to all who helped out and contributed to the Boxes of Fate: toybotstudios, MutantVinylHardcore, Bert Gatchalian and Lil Japan-- all of you are too cool for school and so smooth you're sharp. the response to this release has made me happy and eager to make more
~sfo

Chunks of Plastic Canvas Art from the Box of Fate Release

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 05:26:00 +0000

Epic (part 1)
approx. 6" x 3"

The High Cost of Fashion
6" x 3"

The Juice Says #1 (3 and 4 of 4 parts)
approx 4" diameter per circular tile

Epic (part 2 of 2)
6" x 3"

The rest of the plastic canvas pieces from the Boxes of Fate can be seen on flickr over here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/apocalypsepopsicle/sets/72157623524408917/

BOX OF FATE

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 02:37:00 +0000

Five boxes and five boxes only.

The final emergence of the backwater farmbeast known as Old Toby has arrived. Here in the mysterious (and dangerous) BOX OF FATE, Old Toby makes his debut in the Apocalypse Popsicle lineup with 5 Hand Painted versions. The BOX OF FATE also marks the first official release of that Biblical trio, the Fat Lady Crew. Coming your way in five unique sets, the Fat Lady and her two minions, Melancholy Molly and Bad Baby Banana are included in every BOX.

Apocalypse Popsicle is overwhelmingly overjoyed to have three great toy artists take part in this BOX OF FATE release. Toybotstudios has painted five unique Fat Lady figures and Mutant Vinyl Hardcore has painted five unique versions of Mori Katatsumuri (aka the frankensnail). Every BOX OF FATE will come with one of each of these custom figures from these awesome artists. If you’re really lucky you will get the BOX with one of Bert Gatchalian’s custom painted Apocalypse Popsicle toys. These will be randomly placed in the bags, but there are not enough for everyone so maybe you get lucky on this auspicious dual holiday of destiny. Chinese New Year and Valentine’s Day all on the same day? The import of such a convergence, I am sure is lost on none of our enlightened readers.

Toybotstudios x Fat Lady -- 3 of 5 total

The Mutant Vinyl Hardcore Header Art

The toys that go with the header- Mori Katatsumuri by MVH

Also included in the Box of Fate will be one additional set of resin toys from my older releases, the Apocalypse Parade miniatures and the Uni-Chan/Mori Katatsumuri. Small mixed sets of three mini-figures will be tossed in a random frenzy. Original artwork will also be in every box and maybe even a t-shirt or two.

$110 + $15 shipping in the US. International shipping via EMS, $35.
email apocalypsepopsicle@gmail.com to place your order.
BOX OF FATE to be delivered on or before the Ides of March 2010 (the 15th).

FIVE BOXES ONLY FOR THIS YEAR. THE VALUE IS ABSOLUTELY INTENSE.

Here's some More Pics
Old Toby -- 4 of 5 total, one mystery beast

Unpainted, two-pour blue and clear-turquoise.

Bullmark King Ghidorah Tribute

With light from below the figure--

Forest Fire Lizard

Poseidon

FAT LADY CREW- Mixed Pour Set

Purple Rain and Piss Bananas

THE BOX OF FATE WILLS ITSELF INTO YOUR POSSESSION.
apocalypsepopsicle@gmail.com to place your order and receive payment instructions.

Many thanks to Mutant Vinyl Hardcore, Toybotstudios, and Bert Gatchalian whose support in this project is immeasurable without looking over the receipts for at least a day.

http://mutantvinylhardcore.blogspot.com/
http://gatchabert.blogspot.com/
http://toybotstudios.blogspot.com/

Nostalgic Punchlines Episode 2: Tuba Snake

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 05:45:00 +0000

Consisting of bad jokes, classic film footage, and immature soundscapes, the Nostalgic Punchlines series aims to re-contextualize these elements and transform them into a cohesive vision that accents, derides, and celebrates the communal media memory banks of our bastardized culture.

Nostalgic Punchlines Episode 2: Tuba Snake from Apocalypse Popsicle on Vimeo.

youtube link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaAJJJNLuGc

Audio samples culled from the following freesound.org contributors: Texas Radio Theatre Company, Connum, junggle, nicStage, Robinhood76, bigjoedrummer, sandyrb, J.Zavurek, and payattention.

Coming next for the Nostalgic Punchlines Films Strip Series: Imperialism! Hilarious!
But before our next installment of that illuminated serial, an SF Oliver Audiobooks original story of creative non-fiction. "The Distressing Contents of Last Season" part 1 to be released soon.

Nostalgic Punchlines Episode One

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 11:38:00 +0000

Nostalgic Punchlines, Episode 1: "My Mom" from Apocalypse Popsicle on Vimeo.

Audio samples culled from the following freesound.org contributors: Texas Radio Theatre Company, harri, Syna-Max, dataset, KorgMS2000B, Benboncan, jrssandoval, and digitopia. The music that bookends the short is by Texas Radio Theatre Company and is a re-recording of some of the actual music that originally accompanied the films of the silent era. This score is called “Sailor” and comes from the Sam Fox Silent Movie Book. The grainy orchestral section was recorded as an answering machine message via cell phone microphone. KorgMS2000B missed the call, but he now owns two minutes of mystery music; I have used it here to help spread its fame and mystery. It's so badly recorded, you'll be convinced it's an artifact from the annals of audio reproduction.

Nostalgic Punchlines
Episode 1, “My Mom”

It Came From Skullbrain 2: Group Show, this Saturday, January 16 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 11:53:00 +0000

This Saturday, January 16, is the second annual "It Came From Skullbrain" group custom toy show hosted by the generous folks at Super7 at the Super7 Store and Gallery. The show starts at 7 p.m. and the gallery is located at 1628 Post St, San Francisco, CA.
http://super7store.com/

This is my second year submitting to this show which focuses on the artistic output of the Skullbrain community, an online forum for Japanese toys, art, and culture. Skullbrain is a tight-knit international community of collectors and artists. While the majority of artists and culture discussed is decidedly focused on vintage and current Japanese toys, many other international artists are both fans and participants in this growing niche subculture of art collecting.

This year I am submitting two pieces.

First is an airbrushed M1 Woo featured in the "photo essay" at the top of the post. He is meant to be in the early process of moulting as winter shifts subtly to spring. This Woo is an evolution from a winter coat version that I painted about a year ago. You can see the original as compared to my show submission below.

Winter Wakes to Spring

My second piece for the show has a lot more resin elements included in it. The toy was originally a Secret Base Bagman. I modified it, giving it the head of my mutant Sea-Urchin creature Uni-chan. Sporting a couple of heads on his left hand and a leaky probe on his right hand, he became the Secret Base Muppet Seijin. He has two small buddies which each wear a mask and perform as part of the puppet show. One is a small Doom Penguin with original skeleton glove mask. The other figure is one of my Melancholy Molly figures from the Fat Lady Crew. She sports the original interior vinyl head of the Secret Base Bagman figure.

Both pieces will be for sale on the night of the show and online thereafter should they not sell at the show. M1 Woo- $44 Secret Base Muppet Seijin Set- $70

Here's a pic of my two pieces from the last show. These are both M1 toys from Japanese monster shows that I painted with the airbrush.
These two are dressed to kill.

Christmas Ornament Sets Now Available!!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 03:21:00 +0000

Each set is $15 plus $5 shipping in the US. $10 shipping to the rest of the world.
I will make sure you get these before December 25th. If interested, please email me at apocalypsepopsicle@gmail.com for availability.
I will mark sets as sold as people order. Thanks.

Set A, 3 Fat Ladies
-Pearl white
-Pearl Red
-Clear Green

Set B, Mixed Pour Pearl Set
-Pearl White Wing'd Rhino, yellow wings
-Pearl Green Wing'd Rhino, pearl white wings
-Pearl White Fat Lady, partial gray wing

Set C, Mixed
-Pearl white, Fat Lady
-Clear Wing'd Rhino
-Clear green Mori Katatsumuri

The Fat Lady Crew: Maintenance Division, Bureaucracy of Death

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 07:28:00 +0000

New Toys from Apocalypse Popsicle: The Fat Lady Crew

Working for the Bureaucracy of Death, under the official auspices of the Almighty, the Fat Lady comes to sing reluctantly aging celebrities and has-been stage performers into the great beyond by taking their place in the limelight for one final lullaby. Appearing as a hallucination in front of an ailing former starlet, the Fat Lady's underlings will perform a mocking satire wherein the mortal's life is ridiculed. At the proper moment, the Fat Lady will indeed begin to sing, ushering the doomed on to the afterlife.

Many Fat Ladies

In the performance of her duties, The Fat Lady is assisted by two (natural born) demons that are enrolled in a heaven-sponsored rehabilitation program. I say "natural born demons" as to differentiate from those former cherubs in Satan's fallen host. "Natural born demons" were always monsters and represent the flip side of the angel coin; when creating the angels to be hyper-beautiful, He essentially had to dissect all the nasty bits of hubris and ill-intent and toss them aside into the wastebin, Hell. Living in varying levels of filth, violence and depravity the demons were quite at peace with the internal instability of that dark realm. Hell was a miserable cesspool of perverted mutants, yet the inhabitants were content to live in their homeland and act out those nasty attributes that were central to their Godly creation. The brimstone and damnation era didn't come about until Lucifer's revolt, subsequent Fall and the creation of mankind and original sin. For several hundred millenia,it was their home. Until much like the Native Americans, Lucifer and his boys put them out to pasture on a reservation or else conscripted them into labor camps for decades at a time.

Old Testament God was tough on crime. But New Testament Yahweh has grown soft now that He's become a Father. Kids will change a man, it's true. A newborn baby's tiny fingers and little, adorable toes can quickly force the mean streak out of a once lone wolf.

God's new policy is Nurture over Nature (though he can't find a loophole to reverse that original sin clause). So naturally, His generous nature has led Him to fund several metaphysical non-profit groups in an effort to make reparations to those "natural born demons" who have been so oppressed for all those generations that came after the dawn of man. That's when Hell really started getting crowded and rent started skyrocketing. Naturally, the hellbound reservations for NBDs seemed like a good option to many demons in those early centuries.

Melancholy Mollies

Melancholy Molly and Bad Baby Banana are two ill-tempered demons whose naturally performative personalities made them a likely fit as understudies for The Fat Lady. Molly's propensity for self-obsessed depressive ranting and compulsive lying were traits that The Fat Lady could hone for the pre-Afterlife chorus line. A slug-like lemonhead of a beast, she is an amalgam of angelic personality flaws. As is His Divine Right, He just mushed together these essences of disfunction, stuffed them in the equivalent of an airtight jar, and tossed it down into Hell to incubate. Certainly an annonying demon, but hardly evil. Ill-willed, yes. Completely blood thirsty and demented? No. Stamped approved for rehab and paroled from Hell in the late 1800s.

More Mollies

Bad Baby Banana, on the other hand, is a natural slapstick comic. With a big shoe made for kicking ass, he loves to give unsuspecting butts the big banana boot. Unfortunately, following every successful wallop, Bad Baby Banana falls on his own ass. He's only got the one leg, after all. Unlike Molly, God molded Bad Baby around only one unfortunate behavior that was deemed unfit for Angelic composition. Bad Baby Banana likes to laugh when people die. Like farting is funny to children, dying is funny to Bad Baby Banana. But not him dying, you. Anyone, really. "So much left undone," he'd say, choking back a tear, while he visited the newly deceased that were awaiting pre-processing outside the North gate to Hell. Then he'd kick some poor dead sap in the ass, fall down, and just laugh, laugh, laugh. But again, not really evil, just cruel. He is quite aware of his phallic nature and will often wear a hat that makes his head appear quite nipple-like. He enjoys the attention this brings. It amuses him. But still at its root his perversion is of a non-murderous and primarily non-sexual nature, so the Board said he was up for rehabilitation. Released from Hell on Halloween, 1929.

Bad Baby Bananas

The Fat Lady found Bad Baby Banana's talent for debasing others with a "smile" to be helpful in getting through her case files quickly. While BBB can unsettle the most stoic of aging idols reluctant to let loose that mortal coil, Melancholy Molly helps by being overwhelmingly and blatantly more self-absorbed that even the most selfish, delusional former child stars were left speechless. (Shirley Temple Black, the sands are rapidly accumulating at the bottom of the glass. Just some notice, wear something nice. When? Everyday this week sound good? Between 8am and 8pm. That's right. Like Comcast).

Never a fallen angel, the Fat Lady more physically resembles the form of a natural born demon, but with the requisite 33% angelic soul content needed to hold rank in the Bureaucracy of Death. Since her Creation occurred after the Fall, she is not technically a hellion and takes orders from the Big Jew Upstairs.

Toys will be available for purchase soon. Some sooner than others, look for the Fat Lady and Friends Xmas Ornament sampler coming later this week.

Unpainted Blue Fat Lady Crew

White Teacher in a Black School

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 21:41:00 +0000

White Teacher in a Black School is a book by Robert Kendall, a former teacher in the Los Angeles School District. Published in 1964, the book rose to popularity following the Watts Riots and aimed to show the inequality present in schools primarily enrolled with black students. In fact, the book is credited with helping create standards for high school students in California. However, reading this book in 2009 will give you a different impression. Largely written in the dialect of mid-sixties black students, the text can be seen as a dark (and racist) anthropological vision of race relations in the 60s. Robert Kendall was also an actor in several television series and movies. One notable role is an uncredited turn as "Slave Boy with Pigeons" in the 1956 Charlton Heston classic, the Ten Commandments.

Completely coincidental fact: Robert Kendall died this month on November 12, 2009 at age 82.

This collage re-organizes some of the potent speech in the book while also incorporating images that attempt to tell a new narrative through juxtaposition and correlation. The artwork is on five separate wood panels and is not available for purchase. The other main source for the collage comes from an early sixties issue of the comic book Sad Sack. The rest of the images come from an assortment of print media advertisements and the (now-defunct) Weekly World News. Photo prints available on request.

Also, the cover art is pretty sweet.

Panel 1, Text A:
“Real sudden some big thing zipped across the whole place. Like a red piece of lightin it was. Scared the shit out a me and scared my chick too cause she grabbed me and I grabbed her back.
Panel 1, Text B:
And lookin down at that audience I think them all was as scared as us were. Some kind of funny spooky smoke came from somewhere. Then some kind of real giant spooky thing that looks sort of like the lines of a man’s hed comes fuzzy like thru the smoke.”

Panel 2, Text A:
“He said the blacks should do everything they could to take the whites power away. Hit the whites in the pocketbook he says. Give bizness to black man and not to jew.
Panel 2, Text B:
“Cept when it came to pushin the white man out. Save money and buy houses where white man lives. Go to places where white man eats. March in lines demandin the rights that white man has. All kind of crap like that.”

Panel 3, Text A:
“It was like his face was movin, like when you get mad, and there was two big eyes all red and spittin fire. Scaryer then any monster I ever saw in any movie. Then it started out talking!!!!!!!!”
Panel 3, Text B:
“It had a voice like come from the ded. It said how he had been a slave in Dixie and had been all beat up all the time but when he had given up the terble life he lived and gone to meet Jesus, Jesus had told him that the white man had to pay.”

Panel 4, Text A:
“He said the more blacks in the world, the more there would be to take the power from the whites.”
Panel 4, Text B:
“He had told him that the white man was inferior and the black man was superior. He said the devil owned the white man’s soul and it was right for the black man to hate the white man cause evil nasty blood was in his vanes."
Panel 4 Text C:
“Then there was a sound like thunder and that old spook shouted to KILL THE WHITE DEVILS. The spazzes started shoutin it and kept it up like some crazy chant. My chick starts cryin and I dont blame her. I wants to cry too. Its all so dam nutty.”

Panel 5, Text A:
“The orchestra comes up out of the floor agin playin that battle him agin and everbody was stompin and hollerin and carryin on like they was mad. The spook goes back to where he come from and the old curtin falls down on the stage. The spazzes start movin out, still all whipped up. I sort of just stood there, feelin funny, while my chick went on cryin, till that hell hole was empty. The lights went out finely. But I still waited a piece cause I didnt want no crazy nigger killin my chick cause she is white.”
Panel 5, Text B:
“At last we sneaked out a that old rat hole and I nevah want to go consortin with the devil agin!!!!!!!!!!!!”

EXTRA CREDIT
History of Sad Sack:
Sad Sack Wiki
Robert Kendall's hometown obituary:
Battle Creek Enquirer, Robert Kendall RIP

Apocalypse Popsicle Printable Postcards

noreply@blogger.com (Stephen F Oliver) — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 05:56:00 +0000

How to print these postcards in Microsoft Word:

First save the back of the postcard image (located below this text) and print it out on the back of the paper you will be using. This is only if you want to give me credit for making these images. Please do this by placing the image into a blank Word document. Place the image into the document twice, one above the other separated by one line. By printing the reverse side of the document first, you avoid the ink smearing you might experience by doing the Front side first.

Save the front Postcard images to your computer and import them into a normal blank document. You will need to re-size the images using the Picture Toolbar. Maximum dimensions for US Postage postcard rate stamps (currently 28 cents) are 6" x 4". Minimum dimensions are 5" x 3.5". For the Revolutionary Rabbit image, you will have to use the Picture Toolbar to rotate the image in order to fit both images on one 8.5" x 11" piece of paper. Using card stock and a picture printer will work best. Orienting both images onto the same page

What would work even better would be a printer that could make these poster size. If you have one, print me out some and I'll pay for shipping and ink (up to $50 worth of ink).