Our first release...limited edition...BASSIN' x FASHION. Get it while it is still available.
Peep the commercial.
www.CAST312.com
www.cast312.bigcartel.com
LOGO DESIGN & MEDIA: C.A.S.T. Crew
So, I've been a little busy sharpening up my angling skills these days. I try to go on as many excursions as I can with some buddies of mine to find creatures lurking in Midwest bodies of water. We call ourselves the C.A.S.T. Crew (Chicago Angler Supreme Team). We have made it a goal to create a Wu-Tang clan of anglers and show our generation that fishing isn't just for hillbillies. Yee Haw!
We started by creating a logo that incorporated our love of angling and music (hip hop specifically). Here is the one we agreed upon. Simple and to the point!
Next on the agenda was to start a blog and document our catches
I also put together a video intro to keep the videos consistent. All of the members have been doing a good job putting out videos independently. We have a lot of plans for the new year, but we wanted to start it off with a limited tee shirt that we released on Black Friday. It can still be purchased at the C.A.S.T. STORE
here is what it looks like...
I also did a commercial for my buddies at Equilibrium bags showing how I converted their product into the ultimate urban angler bag.
Aside from catching fish, the C.A.S.T. crew allows me to catch wreck utilizing all of my media skills. After we began this quest, we did some research and found a whole underground culture of like-minded fisherman all over the world!
This might be the beginning of something BIG!
This might be the beginning of something BIG!
TIGHT LINES! BANG!
LOGO DESIGN: Natural Balance 101
A company interested in putting out their own line of negative ion bands asked me to design a logo and packaging for their brand Natural Balance 101. I really didn't know too much about the technology, but when it was demonstrated to me, I was freaked out! I will be wearing a sample that they gave me for a couple of weeks and see if it makes a difference. I will keep you informed. Shown below is the logo, packaging and a couple of product shots that I took for their online store.
CUSTOM KICKS: PINOY PRIDE
The base shoe for this project was a pair of all white Air Max 90s. The customer wanted the pair to reflect her Filipino heritage. I took elements of the Filipino flag and flipped them up a bit. Here is what they looked like...
MUSIC: OPUS mixtape cover
Producers Fanum and Isle of Weight, collectively known as the OPUS, needed a cover for their new compilation "The Opus of the Opus vol. 2." I originally created the volume one cover a while back and used multiple instruments to spell out their name. This time I thought that it would be more cohesive to make one instrument and treat it like a graffiti piece. You have to stare at it a little, but you can see their name spelled out in the brass instrument. A new favorite...
If you are interested in downloading this mixtape you can click here.
LOGO DESIGN: Pipiohpi
Fantasy football has always had a big draw especially when money is involved. One team reached out to me to create a logo and some jerseys to represent themselves. Their team name is "Pipiohpi" taken from a reference from the movie "Forgetting Sarah Marshall". They wanted a Tiki Warrior incorporated into the design and after a few font choices, this is the design that made the cut:
Here's how the jerseys turned out! They wanted to go with a Teal and White color combo over a Dark Blue jersey. They came out pretty swanky...
stay tuned...
LOGO DESIGN: Kustom Karats
Ryan Howard, owner and fabricator of Kustom Karats linked up with me to create a media push for his custom jewelry business. We started with the logo...
We then proceeded to create a splash page for his site which looked a little something like this...
Two business card designs followed.
Once the smoke cleared, I asked him if he could create a 3 finger ring for me. I have always wanted one, but never had the opportunity to actually have one custom made. I gave him a sketch of what I wanted to see and without hesitation, he was down to do it! It is my name with my logo acting as the "T". Here is a sneak peek at the final and the oxidizing process to make the letters pop.
I am SUPER happy with the outcome. Ryan is a very talented individual on the road to achieve great things. We have more things to design, but in the meantime, you can checkout his Kustom Karats Facebook Profile to keep up to date with his creations.
Now any unruly customers can get the ST!ZO stamp of approval if they get out of hand...haha!
LOGO DESIGN: TOP CHEF TALDE
Chicago native and Top Chef All-Star Dale Talde is making big moves in 2011. He will be opening up a restaurant in New York named TALDE in the near future. I really don't know all of the details, but based on his culinary track record, it should definitely be a place to check out if you are in the area.
When he approached me to create his logo, he wanted it to have a classic/vintage feel while incorporating his filipino heritage. Once we figured out what kind of vintage style he was looking for, the graphic sun element naturally fit into the design. Much success to you Dale! Thanks for the opportunity...
MUSIC: ST!ZO x SONY VAIO EXPO 2011
I was asked to deejay an event at the W Hotel Lakeshore about a month ago. I really didn't know what to expect when I was asked to do it, but I took the gig anyway. I rented some speakers, cleared the schedule and downloaded some radio friendly selections to get ready for what turned out to be the Chicago SONY VAIO Expo 2011. This was a personal milestone for me! I spun for 12 hours straight without repeating one song! Usually I deejay clubs with about 3 hours of material..just in case, but this was like a marathon! Sony was introducing the VAIO Z series amongst other new Sony offerings. The Sony staff was very accommodating and the W hotel was very helpful with the load-in/load-out. At the end of the day, they sent me home with a swag bag and a some mortgage money. Good times!
LOGO DESIGN: DYK Editorial, Inc.
This logo was created for a new media company based in Chicago's South Side. DYK Editorial, Inc.. Headed by Nick Kofski, DYK takes your media projects to the next level with up to date video technology and years of experience to back it up. I have done some freelance for Nick a few years ago when he was with another company, but since then his clientele has grown which led him to branch out on his own.
Silkscreening: G.O.A.T. Tee
This was a production run for a label called Ducking Pigs out of Chicago. The two shirts featured 2 and 3 color logo flips of classic Chicago Cubs logos with the same graphic on the back in one color. They will be available in select streetwear stores and online in a limited run of 36 for each style. Be on the lookout!
LOGO DESIGN: Symplify Event Designs
This logo was created for the Symplify Event Design team. They have been planning quite a few Indian events, but wanted a simple logo that would eventually help them branch out into other markets. Part of their mission statement mentions that they will "bring together all the elements of your event to create a harmonious symphony." With that in mind, I immediately thought of musical symbols. Reversing the treble clef into an "S" seemed to fit perfectly. Glad they liked the direction.
Here are the business cards
CUSTOM KICKS: BLACK FLAG "Police Story" AF1
This pair of shoes was made for the owner of Beau Monde Shoe Gallery. He wanted to have the infamous "Police Story" album artwork (by Chuck Higby) incorporated into the design as well as the Black Flag logo. Black Flag was considered to be one of the first hardcore punk bands and innovators in the punk scene. This particular album has a special story attached to it. You can read more about it here. Teaser and video below...
MUSIC: RUBBEROOM Promo Designs
Chicago based progressive hip hop group RUBBEROOM contacted me to create a press pic, album cover and other promotional materials for the upcoming launch of their new mixtape "REBOOTED." I hauled my lighting setup out to Oak Park and shot a few group pics. This is the one they chose before and after the digital magic.
I then proceeded to create the album cover, a t-shirt design and a web banner that was later translated into a large version for them to take on tour. They wanted the graphics to stray away from the typical rap stereotypes. Their music is far from typical.
This is what I came up with...
LOGO DESIGN: Optimal Design
I had the opportunity to design a logo for a Chicago based industrial design organization called Optimal Design. They asked me to put together a logo for their trademarked 4Di process. After a couple weeks of concepts and tweaking, we agreed upon this final design.
The creation of this logo was accompanied by a launch party for potential and current clients to unveil the science behind the process itself. Here are some pics of their facility that evening...
CD Design: BILLA CAMP
A lot of my design work can be found in the Chicago music scene. I have been designing covers, flyers and various promotional materials for numerous Chicago acts since the late 90s. This one was for Billa Camp an artist from the live hip hop band Treologic. The front and back cover were set up to look like an old record sleeve and the actual CD has the look and feel of a 45 record. The title of his solo project is called "Weird Science" and this was the final product...
Video Shoot: Scott Ian
I jumped into the pit at the House of Blues to shoot video of Randall artist Scott Ian (Anthrax) in the super group the Damned Things. We did a little Q & A before the show talking about his signature model amp that I designed the modules on. Here's the final product hot off the press...
American Songwriter Ad
This is the first ad in a campaign to showcase the heritage of the Washburn Guitar brand. I took a press picture of Madonna Nash (Washburn Artist) and placed our logo, tagline and an acoustic from our line in the blank space. I distressed the images to give them an old weathered advertisement feel.
..here's a closer look..
CUSTOM GEAR: ALL NATURAL x UPRISE x ST!ZO collab tee
It's been a while and I have been crazy busy...time to catch up! This project was a t-shirt design for Chicago-based label All Natural, Inc. and Uprise Skateshop. They basically wanted to do a shirt that celebrated their longevity in the game. I sent them a few designs, but they settled on the record and skateboard combo separated by the Chicago stars. It took a couple back and forth emails to get the vintaging on the record and deck correct, but in the end, we were all happy with the outcome.
CUSTOM GEAR: STAR WARS x ST!ZO x EQ BAGS
When I get some free time, I like to create things that I can use. I had this Stormtrooper helmet chillin' on my shelf and thought that it might be cooler as a speaker. I drilled out some earholes and installed some Sennheiser headphones to fill the space. It came out pretty nice, but my brain was still in fresh mode, so I figured out a way to install green LED lights in the eyes. I also had to swap out the eye lenses with mesh 'cuz it gets pretty hot in there...even without the lights. I actually used this helmet to deejay a club last Halloween and it worked perfectly. It was funny to see people bug out when I flipped the lights on.
I looked like an intergalactic pumpkin!
I looked like an intergalactic pumpkin!
Equilibrium Urban Survival Gear is a company that designs and manufactures modular accessories. Each year, they give artists a chance to have their creations become part of their line by hosting an invite only contest. I have been fortunate to have been selected to participate 3 years in a row and this design is one of my favorites. I took inspiration from a pair of shoes in my collection (Eric Haze Ltd. Edition New Balance M574) and started sketching out some ideas. The end result was a piece that I dubbed GRAFSPINE.
Here are some closer shots of the artwork.
Video Shoot: Solo RM
The latest addition to the FreshMen video series on Rubyhornet.com. I sit down with graffiti artist/ illustrator Solo RM as he tells me about some of his influences and explains the concept behind the comic strip that we work on called "On The Daily". Look out for more from Solo and On The Daily in the near future.
Silkscreening: Turn It UP HIYA!
It has come to my attention that a certain shirt that I created a couple of years ago has made an appearance on Disney's "Shake It Up" program worn by Chicago native, Duncan Tran. The front sports Bruce Lee toting a boombox yelling "Turn It Up HIYA!" On the back is my word logo in a stencil style. I printed only 93 of these shirts in a limited run and destroyed the screen. One of my favorite designs.
.the design.
.the appearance..first scene.
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