2013

Dog Dreams and Whatnot at Paxton Gate Kids

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Friendlies,

the kind folks at Paxton Gate Curiosities for Kids asked me to show the original letterpress prints for Dog Dreams, so I've installed those prints plus a few extra in their front room. The show will be up through January 2014, so visit the Mission, grab some gifties, and check the shop out. It's a goody-goody. The framed prints (yes, the framed Dog Dreams prints are for sale) are priced to move! Paxton Gate Curiosities for Kids is located at 766 Valencia Street in lovely San Francisco, California.

Thank yous due to Carolee Wheeler for framing and Jim Winters for helping me hang the show.

Campout 9 Poster Design

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Hello Friendlies, Campout 9 is upon us. Here's the poster I just finished. Stay tuned for the printed version. This was a meditation on an upcoming birthday, on the death of the glaciers, on the old traditions and religions. Remember when rock and roll used to be dangerous? Apparently a 9 enneagram is "the peacemaker". That sounds good to me.

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xxm

winters & wertz at the dolores park cafe

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Dear Friendlies, Jim Winters and myself are having a show of screenprints at the Dolores Park Cafe, and we’d love it if you could come down for the opening. The opening party is Friday, August 2, from 6-8 pm, at the ever-lovely Dolores Park Cafe (501 Dolores St x 18th St) in ever-lovin' San Francisco.

There will be prints for sale, a set of music by the Argyll Adventure Tree, and snacks. Snacks.

You will see: vanitas, op art, cityscapes, bulls, dogs, our limited edition collaborative book entitled ‘Queen For Two Weeks’, and a few portraits.

See you there? The show runs through August.

xm

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michael wertz at oakland's first friday

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dear friendlies, i'm thrilled to announce my first show of artwork in a long while. nat swope at bloom press and i have been producing prints together for a few years, and this will be a showing of a few of the work we've produced together (among other things). the show will be at bloom press, 2310 telegraph avenue, in oakland, on may 3, from 6pm - 9pm sharp. i hope to see your shining faces there. the image below is a preview of one of the prints that will be available.

xm

wertz illustration spring 2013 : what is the what

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Hey you all, greetings from the Land of Oaks! There's lots of things afoot here (I can't tell you about them quite yet - but soon), and I'm taking advantage of my Spring Break time to catch up and say hello.

First of all, I helped to produce a groovy set of snakey stamps for the Elsewhere Philatelic Society's Chinese New Year event..

.. and here's the gocco-printed postcard that went with the stamp.

Check this poster design I did for this sweet couple gettin' hitched this year.

A good deal of my time lately has been spent at my alma-mater, CCA. I've been teaching a Digital Tools class for the Illustration Department. I was asked to produce a Thank You card for visiting lecturers. I've had lots of great visitors to my class : Jim Winters, Beth Dean, John Mattos, and Gordon Studer have all dropped some wisdom in the student's heads. Here's what I came up with for the card:

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I drove up to Mendocino College to teach a screenprinting workshop for my dear friend Susan Gross' printmaking class: and the results were fantastic!

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And, finally, a cover illustration I did for Bay Woof magazine:

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Ok, my Peeps. Enjoy your Springtimes!

xxm

La Costa Perdida

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Friendlies, the new Camper Van Beethoven record is out today, and it is, indeed, a goody goody. The package design and illustrations were done by yours truly. You can stream the whole thing here, and you can buy yourself a copy here. I recommend getting a "hard copy" of the CD, since that will give you the full sensory experience of owning the record (as opposed to having these little pop gems lost in the "shuffle" of your playlists).

Go ahead, treat yourself. Buy the CD from your local music purveyor, wait for it to arrive, pour yourself a frosty beverage, put the CD on, find a comfortable place to sit and listen, and relax. Listen to each track carefully, noting your physical reaction to each song. You might get distracted. That's ok. Sit back down, and listen to the next track. And so on. See? Feels good, right?

Do you know Camper's older musics? You might start with Popular Songs of Great Enduring Strength and Beauty. This is a good collection. If you like that one, you're ready for Cigarettes and Carrot Juice, a box set of their early records. Key Lime Pie is another favorite. Listen, it's all great. Trust me.

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You'll find me at The Rickshaw Stop on February 16.

xm