Carlsbad Art and Culture

Stencils have been used for many years and in all occasions. They have created letters to teach kids the ABCs and slogans to express political beliefs. They have been used on roads to alert drivers and on walls for murals. Paint is either sprayed, rolled or dabbed through hand cut designs in paper or cardboard, resulting in crisp lines and, for the most part, solid colors. Stencil preparation varies depending on complexity and size, but the overall strategy is to think in terms of layers.

1. Decide on the purpose of your piece. Is there a message in your work? Is it purely a visual experience? Your location is just as important as your finished design. Remember that a successful piece not only looks good, but also forms a relationship with its environment. Keep in mind surrounding colors and historical significance.

2. Choose a surface with minimal interference. Abrasions or protrusions will result in gaps between the stencil resulting is bleeding paint and under spray. Identify handles, stickers and knobs and make measurements accordingly. You will have to keep this in mind when designing your stencil. If possible, implement these into your design!

3. At this time you should have already dissected your design into layers. Start with you backgrounds. A roller works well and produces even coats. Apply a series of thin coats to minimize drying time. It is important to let paint dry completely. Stencil material will stick to wet paint and will peel off while releasing stencil.

4. Backgrounds usually don’t require stencils which is desirable when conserving materials. Feel free to divide your design when appropriate. Roll the paint, acrylic latex works fine, and touch up edges with a brush. In this example and in a later stage, orange paint will be brought across the top of the blue to create a smooth edge.

5. Implement your first stencil when necessary. Keep in mind color contrast. This stencil creates the illusion of a curved surface while establishing a perspective. Black spray paint towards a matte finished is used. Gloss spray paint tends to take longer to dry. Undesirable spray can be fixed with acrylic latex during later touch ups.

6. When ready, begin the application of your top image. A nicely rendered image can be produced in three colors. Break an image down to mid tones, shadows and highlights. Begin with your mid tones, which will also be a silhouette of your image. Tape your stencil firmly and always spray –  stencil to cut to – eliminate under spray.

7. Your highlights will come next. Registration is crucial. Clear acetate works well when aligning your stencil on a design, but is more expensive. When using paper/ cardboard, cut quarter size holes in the corners of your stencil. Lightly trace them onto your background. Line up each registration circle to these traced marks. This will ensure successful registration.

8. Black is your last layer and will bring life into even the most subtle design. Again, use your registration circle cuts to align correctly. Spray as you did previously, stencil to cut. Spray lightly to prevent drips. If necessary, spray multiple coats until all shadows are solid. When releasing stencil, remember to prevent stencil from dragging over wet paint.

9. Make sure to think each design out thoroughly. Materials can be saved and costly errors can be avoided when planned properly. All final touch ups are made using background acrylic latex. Cover up “loose” sprays and clean “shaky” lines. Spray painted sections are rarely fixed successfully without redoing layer completely.

Although anyone can apply paint to a surface, a keen eye is necessary during the preparation stage of your design. A rendered shape must first be illustrated. The highlights and shadows must then be extracted and carefully arranged in a way that maintains the image, but also results in a functioning stencil. With a firm understanding of a balanced composition, a design is then ready to be applied.

To schedule a lesson on design preparation for stencils, Email theartist@snyderartdesign.com. Lessons are now being scheduled and take place at Snyder Art in the Carlsbad Village.

Click HERE for the above design’s location!

Carlsbad Sidewalk Surfer by bryan snyder from Bryan Snyder on Vimeo.

A sleepy morning, thick under May’s gray, slowly rubs the gloom from its eyes as the sun punches its card. Village stores flip their window signs and leaf blowers push debris towards the ocean. Rolling waves pound the shore and a light breeze tickles the smooth sea. Ripples agitate mid morning surfers and a chop finds its way through unharvested kelp beds. The sun climbs to its zenith as an unforgiving wind stirs, blowing sand in eyes of children and on the oily bodies of pre summer preparations.

When most nap, eat and count the minutes until the wind calms, one local surfer drives down the face of his favorite wave. Fueled by large gusts of wind and peeling over impenetrable slabs of concrete, a welcoming green room opens its door. A tarp whips in the mid day wind and passers hold up traffic. The green tarp, disconnected along the bottom of the fence, pauses in the gloomy sky and slowly falls to the ground as the wind simmers. Passers continue on their way with a smile and an extra kick to their step. The next swell breaks when the palms blow and the sun is high…

Have you seen Carlsbad’s newest break?

Carlsbad Sidewalk Surfer, a public art piece created by Bryan Snyder, interacts with its environment during mid day wind gusts. Like the waves that tumble upon our shore, the visibility of this art piece depends on the weather. Between the glassy conditions of the morning and the mellow winds at dusk, the Carlsbad Sidewalk Surfer sneaks into another ride.

The goal of this project is to showcase the relationship between a piece of art and its environment when placed in the streets.

Would this art piece be as successful inside a gallery?

project highlighted on woostercollective.com

Art connects minds; it brings people together and provokes new friendships. Long chats ramble into the early hours of tomorrow and ideas intertwine like vines on a thick forest floor. A thought is stimulated by an art piece, followed by the analysis of its many components. At this point, your mind becomes linked to the creator’s. A chain has begun. You share your idea to a friend, adding another link. In time, what started as a single idea, becomes a long chain of connected minds.

Like art, the process of creating art connects minds. It has the potential to create interest in those usually uninterested in the arts. It showcases a series of steps. A procedure must be performed in the correct order and with enough skill to complete a job. All can relate… a mechanic follows a set of steps when fixing an aged head gasket and a carpenter builds according to his plans. A universal understanding and appreciation is felt when observing a set of steps in route to a finished product. When one creates in public view, the process can intrigue even the most aloof.

Most importantly… art connects new and old friends…

Would you like to be connected?

Snyder Art is now accepting mural ideas. Send your idea and location to theartist@snyderartdesign.com!

Click HERE for the location of the above piece! Don’t forget to honk!!!

Before Carlsbad was known as a village by the sea, and well before Carlsbad Village Drive and the incorporation of the city, John Frazier dug a well and began distributing water to guests at the local train station. A test was done on the water resulting in chemical similarities to one of Europe’s most famous spas Karlovy Vary (Karlsbad), Czech Republic. An aggressive marketing campaign soon followed to attract visitors.

First it was the natural water found by John Frazier in the 1880s. After the Carlsbad incorporated in 1952, emphasis was shifted towards the beach and weather, luring thousands of visitors each summer. Carlsbad may be shifting towards another attraction.. local art.

For the past year and a half, carlsbadcrawl has aggressively set out to develop a more creative culture, based on personal expression and fueled by the arts. Interest in what we do has grown exponentially, April being carlsbadcrawl.com’s most visited month by far. The recent interest in local publications and recent success with the Carlsbad Village Art Surf is proof that things are shifting. We are extremely excited about the future of our community and welcome, whether for the natural water, the beach or the local art scene, all visitors.

Martha Ercegovic, a visitor to Carlsbad and temporary resident of North County, drags her brush across her canvas under scattered clouds. She captures a street, lined with cars and a church, but is initially drawn by the organic twists of the bordering trees. Her brushstrokes smudge thickness like the impasto of Van Gogh and she animates each branch with earthy values. A hill is introduced to a flat street like the awkwardly magnificent multiple perspectives of Cezanne and a bold distortion of form and non local color is reminiscent of the fauvists.

Artist: Marsha Ercegovic
website: marshaercegovic.biz

Local art is on the rise? What examples have you seen?

Stickers NOW AVAILABLE

Who is Carl Crawl? (VIDEO)

Each day begins with a wander so wide.
A nod at the sun, I follow the tide.

My hat reaches skyward with a buckle askew.
My hair is in tangles, a sight for a rue.

My clothes are simple, faded and old.
My eyes are full of sincerity, my ambition is bold.

I meander in alleys and under low trees.
Ramble on railroads, I’ve never had keys.

I speak in confidence through pictures so grand.
Thoughts tumble onto paper, they drip from my hand.

Introverted by choice and damned from the start,
Fueled by my passions, my mind, my art.

I keep it simple and have yet to fall.
I live in the shadows, I am Carl Crawl.

Where is Carl Crawl?

Carl Crawl stickers now available. Where is Carl Crawl? Get your stickers and place him where you think he would frequent. Brand a spot as a Carl Crawl observation! Localize your spots with a Carlsbad crawler of your own.

Carl Crawl STICKERS can be sent via mail. Send your address to theartist@carlsbadcrawl.com to receive a stack of stickers and a letter written straight from the gloved hands of Carl. Stickers can also be picked up at SNYDER ART!

Once Carl is placed, send us his location!

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: Mr. No Name exposed… coming very soon!

I am framed like a painting and assembled like an installation. I consist of many oddly shaped pieces of wood, all fitted together like a clunky puzzle. I am old and unpolished. You might see me as dull, but a weathered personality hints at a colorful background. Dust fills my deep crevices and I am a model exhibiting the creations of many bugs and insects. My texture is coarse like the face of an adolescence and I have been burned, waterlogged and painted. I am old; I am dirty; I am weathered. I am a Carlsbad village treasure…

Have you seen me?

do you know of a village treasure? email theartist@carlsbadcrawl.com with details!