Category Archives: Images

I Have An Elastic Heart

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And thus ends the strangest, most confusing, alchemical three months of my life. Starting August 27th, the day of the Apartment Therapy spread, and ending this past Sunday, I had a life-changing experience. And yes, I live my life transparently, but this story is just for me, for now.

Woke up this morning in such a great mood, and with breathtaking clarity. I am starting a new chapter of my life with a clear head and tabula rosa. No, recovering from this won’t be easy, or quick. As always, will keep y’all posted on the artistic, creative consequences. In the meantime, here is a fan-made video, set to Radiohead’s “Motion Picture Soundtrack” from their Kid A album. It’s directed by Jay Eckensberger. It’s muddy and low-res, but I love it. I’m feelin’ the lyrics, except for “I think you’re crazy”…I don’t think anyone’s crazy for saying what they need.

 

Art profile: “The Enemy Within”

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“The Enemy Within”, acrylic on canvas. Photo by Shaela Cook.

Sometimes it can be an exercise in futility to explain one’s art to people: creativity is so personal and subjective. Lately I’ve fielded a few questions about my art; in particular, the Periodic Table of Elements painting that started it all.

It was back in 2005 that I started my search for a vintage periodic table to fill a space on my wall. I’ve always had a slight obsession with medical and scientific ephemera, as also detailed in this previous, controversial post. I was looking for a very specific size, and wanted it to have some color in it, if possible. After searching flea markets and ebay, I gave up quickly: I was impatient, I was particular, I was determined. I decided to paint one myself. Continue reading →

The Birth Of A Tool, Part 2

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The guys over at John Neeman Tools nailed it again, with the follow-up to their “Birth Of A Tool, Part 1”. Incredibly detailed and beautiful piece of film, with a killer song.

And yeah, it’s time to live up to my name. Currently looking for blacksmiths in the LA area who will take on a pretty green apprentice. And no, I’m not joking. If you know of any, drop me a line at mkschndr@gmail.com.

“Room For Color” Contest

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Sometimes I look at this picture to remember how clean it used to be.

I’m pretty excited: my apartment, featured in a home tour on Apartment Therapy a couple of months ago, was accepted in the Room For Color contest on Apartment Therapy! Please take a moment to click this link and “favorite” my place, I would really appreciate it.

There’s been other exciting news coming out of the original Apartment Therapy shoot (featuring beautiful photography by the talented Shaela Cook), I’m firming up the details and I’ll post more as soon as I can.

“Hello, I Have Seen Your Brain And Made Art From It”

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“What Are Little Girls Made Of?” Frame 9

Ten years ago, I had an itch: I wanted to create a piece of art that incorporated an X-ray or MRI film in it. At the time, it was simply an extension of my lifelong obsession with the aesthetic of scientific equipment and medical ephemera. I had a coworker who also worked at a hospital adjacent to our workplace, and I asked her to obtain some X-ray films for me. At the time, I assumed that she would procure an old film that was going to be discarded. Instead, she gave me a recently taken MRI film, and that started a now 10-year-long obsession with someone whose brain I have seen, whose voice I have heard, but whose face I still do not know. Continue reading →

The Business Card Banned From Planes

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I can’t think of a more boring blog subject than business cards. But when I started thinking about designing my own, I wanted to put my own signature on them. I had a few non-negotiables: I wanted them to be made in the United States, I wanted them to make an unforgettable impression without being cheesy, and I wanted them to say a little bit about BLCKSMTH just from looking at them.

The finished product…well, minus the “@” symbol

Enter St.Paul Stampworks, an engraving and stamping company based in St. Paul, Minnesota. Since its inception in 1870 by its founder, Axel Mellgren, this company started out making “marking equipment” including seals, door numbers, and plates for church pews. Eventually Mr. Mellgren diversified into categories like medals, badges, and printed materials.

Over 130 years later, I found them online and contacted Joyce, a personable salesperson, who understood exactly what I was looking for when I described it. In fact, she didn’t bat an eye when I told her I was going to use their metal tags, traditionally used for identifying pipes and electrical fixtures, as business cards! Continue reading →

Apartment Therapy, Behind The Scenes

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Gratuitous tattoo shot

I was thrilled to have my place on Apartment Therapy this past Monday, featuring the photography of the talented Shaela Cook. I’m not a easy subject to photograph, but Shaela managed to put me at ease and put in some long hours, and even managed to wrangle Ned into a few shots. Do me a solid, if you dug the photography, won’t you please “like” Shaela’s Facebook page?

Click through to see a gallery of the shots that didn’t make the original post on Apartment Therapy. As promised, I included a shot I took of the inside of my medicine cabinet. Continue reading →