See this event on Facebook

See Flyer below…..

Project Mission Statement:
Create a mural utilizing volunteerism and creativity to bring the community together and create a source of pride and beauty at West Gilgo. Change the underpass area from its current state (wasted space, eye sore, drain on the community) to a source of culture, creativity, & community involvement.

Design statement:
As you enter the tunnel and walk down the right side youll notice the LEFT WALL which is side one of the mural and intended to be viewed first. Winter is breaking and birds are beginning to reappear on the trees. As the scene progresses spring comes into full view with fish swimming towards the ocean.
As they approach summertime they gather in celebration. Swimming fish become tribal in nature flattening out on the wall and becoming grafitti like in
design. As side one ends the fish begin to morph back and swim upward high into the water getting smaller as they approach the sky. By the time they
reach side two theyre swimming low again amidst a coral reef. THE RIGHT wall shows fall emerging into an abstract configuration of mermaid like
forms that meet head to head with the birds fleeing the impending winter heading towards warmer and greener pastures. As fall turns into winter and the
experience of the seasons comes to a close your met with an archway of twisted trees on the ceiling and a lone bird pointing your way back home.

Participating artists:
Peter Bragino
John Bragino
Kevin Corcoran
Lisa Distefano
Christine Kane
Jeff Slack
Jennifer Quinn
Sonia Vera-Leon

This week we ventured to the Great South Bay Music Festival at Shorefront Park in Patchogue, NY. I ran into the brother's Farrell and their 1962 pumper truck, "Old Engine 311". The truck is used for ceremonies and fund raising. The Terry Farrell Fund is a scholarship fund that was started by the brothers Farrell after they lost their brother Terry on 9/11. You can read all about the fund, Engine 311, and Firefighter Terry Farrell (a decorated member of Rescue 4/FDNY and Chief of the Dix Hills Volunteer Fire Department) here > www.terryfarrellfund.org.

I didn't know the meaning behind it or who Terry was when I set out to draw this engine. I picked it because it was so interesting. I especially liked all the helmets that lined the side ladder. I was fortunate enough that both of the Farrell brothers were there feeding me information about the truck, their brother, and the fund as I sketched away. It was a nice moment to be able to draw Engine 311 and hear about their courageous brother. I'd like to thank the Farrell brothers for being so courteous and excited about the drawing that I was doing. The image below will soon be posted on their site as well. The Terry Farrell Scholarship Fund is open to the children of all active, retired, disabled and deceased FDNY Members or Volunteer Department Members residing in the 4 Counties of Long Island. (Nassau, Suffolk, Queens & Brooklyn).

OCEAN: the mural project: Gilgo Beach, LI, NY

If your like me you just said YES… The Beach season opens this weekend in full swing on Long Island and to kick it off Thrust Surfwear is hosting an environmentally aware Surf Competition at Gilgo Beach, NY. To commemorate the event and to help bring awareness to some environmental issues, like ocean pollution, myself and 4 other local NY artists have each been selected to paint individual 10 x 10 foot wall murals relating to the theme of keeping our oceans clean. It's a full day of fun in the sun and painting like mad that you won't want to miss.

DATE OF EVENT: Saturday, June 30th, 2007. Starting at 9am and continuing all day long…. NOTE: Gilgo beach is a town of Babylon beach which means that unless you are a resident of the town of Babylon and have a season pass you'll have to pay $30 to park. So find your favorite town of Babylon resident and their season pass and head on down…..

Kevin Corcoran and I are combining our 10 x 10 squares together to paint a collaborative image spanning 20 feet altogether. Here's the compositional sketch we collaborated on that won us a spot in this wonderful event.

::Clicking on the image below will take you to the "Art From The Heart" Myspace page where you can find detailed information on this wonderful event::

Here's the poster……..

CMT campaign 53' trailer provided by Transit Media Group.

Michael Scafuto of Transit Media group has been working closely with the event organizers as their Transportation and Advertising advisor to bring awareness to these outdoor events . He provided CMT with a 53' trailer fully embellished with the CMT ONE COUNTRY campaign graphics. This truck followed the fundraiser nationwide and was used to collect all the generous donations. In addition Transit Media Group donated a full sized refrigerator to the Boys and Girls club for use in their South East Louisiana location. Michael asked me if I could come up with an image that could be applied to the front of the refrigerator. After much thought and consideration I designed and drew the image you see pictured. I wanted to give them an image that would inspire them to stick together and to reach for any height imaginable. I came up with the tagline, "Through unity may you find the strength that helps your dreams take flight." I am honored and privileged to have been able to donate my time and artistry to this wonderful cause……..

Poster I made for a recent press release.

The full image. The quote that I created is in this image circling the sun.