Pathetic Pixels

Yeezus

Tai Jun — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 12:50:03 +0000

Please add graffiti. Inspired by the Mondo Poster from the film ’28 Days Later’, this artwork finds Kanye West, the messiah no one wants. Zombies huddled around him, equipped with press passes and iPhones serve as paparazzi all wanting their pound of flesh. Criticism here surrounds Kanye but he stands unaffected by his own demise, retaining the throne. He stands in this piece, more than a man, not our Jesus, the assumed devil yet far too radiant. He is instead the genius child, kill him - and let his soul run wild.

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BLK SKN HEAD

Tai Jun — Sat, 01 Jun 2013 20:33:14 +0000

This artwork is inspired by American History X and the flashing advertisements at the SNL performance that served as a backdrop to the song. Here Edward Norton’s character gets a taste of his own medicine as the scene is reimagined with a little more ultraviolence. This piece plays a bit with negative space, not so much outright shadow but using darkness to drop out the less necessary details and bring out the fullness of what remains. We are…Not For Sale.

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Kendrick Lamar’s good kid, m.A.A.d city (Version 2)

Tai Jun — Wed, 01 May 2013 21:39:48 +0000

I just completed this commission for a Kendrick fan that wanted me to fully expand on my previous poster and realize each ‘scene’ depicted on the album as an individual visual. Each of the scenes is laid out start to finish in a comic book style. The first scene was initially the group of friends in a circle around the old religious female character but I felt there would be too much embellishing for it to be a stand alone frame. I instead chose to have us open with Sherane which I thought was a much more powerful image although we do lose some continuity. The inclusion of the Louis Burgers event helps to highlight the parallels this story has with Menace II Society and Boyz N’ The Hood, the latter of which is actually referenced on the album. Although it’s not canonical it was important never the less. Although you cannot preview this at full size here if you right click and open the image in it’s own frame you can see it in it’s entirety.

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Wolf

Tai Jun — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 15:44:39 +0000

Inspired by the artwork of Mark Ryden and Salvador Dali this one is just batshit. The iconography belongs to the style of those artists while blending the themes of older Odd Future/Tyler, The Creator artwork and themes present in their videos. Taking one of the final fines from the track ‘Domo23′ a rabbit turned wolf refuses lettuce in the foreground of a bright vintage home. Upon further investigation nothing seems right, from the large mushroom in the garden staring back at you with it’s single eye to the dog who’s head serves as a light lightbulb – waiting to be fed nonetheless. Odd indeed. Wolf.

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Serbia

Tai Jun — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 16:41:24 +0000

This is one of my favourites. Here I played with the concept of the original Black Hand organization essentially responsible for WWI and teasing it out as a comic book story line. The imagery hopes to call back the old propaganda posters from that era as well as blend some of the pulp line style with modern comic book flair. I was asked to bury Illuminati and occult imagery throughout so there are some symbols and graphics dropped back to echo that as well. The back cover utilizes just the outline of the country as it was before 1900 with the motto of the terrorist group above. Serbia.

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Empathy

Tai Jun — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 18:42:44 +0000

I was looking at the cover for Broken Bells earlier and was thinking a similar feel might work here. The idea comes from a short film by Spike Jonze entitled “I’m Here” in which a robot finds love, giving away parts of himself to fix the damage his new found girlfriend accidently does to herself. Here, a polygonal android considers the last part left to give to complete the heart he himself is supported by. In the background, a diagram of emotions, the light shining on what is fulfilled by that being whole.

Empathy.

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Neo-Griot

Tai Jun — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 19:59:27 +0000

Africa. This one was a challenge. How to incorporate the old themes of African tradition with the new styles of hip-hop today. I reinterpreted the logo in the style I’ve been using and put a scene of the old storyteller against the modern day DJ with his MPC atop a tree trunk, clothing bringing together both the modern and the African. The Neo-Griot.

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Keystone State of Mind II

Tai Jun — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 20:43:44 +0000

For or reasons beyond my control it was rejected but is shown here for sampling and portfolio purposes. I was given the explicit guidelines of redrawing in street in Keystone, instead of going with the usual gradients or aping Nas I chose to draw inspiration from Total Recall / Tron in terms of the colour scheme while hinting at something a little darker, more Boyz In The Hood with the font styles while maintaining this aura of futurism.

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Dark Generation

Tai Jun — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 19:52:39 +0000

My brother from a different coloured mother, Brandon Pence (@ihateartists) put it to me that the family sharing some quality time together in front of the television is this country’s continued good intention with terrible consequences.

In this one, the All-American family unit bathed in the light for the set are eaten away, their soul, flesh and minds rotted from the inside as the images wash over them. In the background against the wall, exiting the scene Mickey tears away at his mask, showing the darkness lurking underneath the wholesome smiling facade.

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Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album

Tai Jun — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 18:58:43 +0000

Kara Walker meets Ralph Steadman in this depiction of the the rap industry. Front and center are my bastard version of 2Chainz and Nicki Minaj who serve as archetypes for the mainstream rap landscape. Above their strings pulled by my Uncle Sam character. This was draw while re-watching Sam Kieth’s “The Maxx” so some of the inking and line style echoes that. I really became entrenched in the idea that evil lacks any facial features outside of large grizzly teeth; something I want to play with again soon.

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