Category Archives: Uncategorized

Caricature Promotional Sign Fail

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Caricature Promotional Sign Fail

This is the sign that the student organization made to advertise that I would be doing caricatures today. I will admit that it’s pretty creative. The time is incorrect unfortunately. Last year’s sign had a caricature that was done of me by another artist that the students had found on the internet when they googled “Adam Pate Images” apparently. I think it’s kinda funny and all. I don’t mind it. It’s just kinda pointless when I have 2000+ printed promotional posters I could have mailed out to them AND several versions of downloadable vector based PDF promotional posters and table tent promotions templates several places online that they could have just printed out (any size they liked) But then I wouldn’t have a funny picture to put on my blog!

Proverbial chocolate and caricatures

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Proverbial chocolate and caricatures

Funny story with this one! When I got to the school there were some SUPER SPUNKY HAPPY kids playing poker and offering some of the other kids hot chocolate. I assumed they were the poker club or something. They were very loud and silly. Singing Taylor Swift songs at the top of their lungs and stuff… and of course they wanted to get caricatures IMMEDIATELY(!!) So when I had finished setting up, several of them wanted to get drawn together. Turns out NONE of them went to school there. They were professional student missionaries there to spread the Jesus lovin’ around. They took off shortly after I started working.

So a little bit later these girls sat down. They had chocolate boxes with bible verses on them. Thinking it was a bit odd, I asked where they got them. They told me that somebody in a gorilla costume was handing them out. (!!) WHAT? Lol!!! We all agreed it was kinda strange but the more I thought about it the weirder it sounded. … So let me get this straight… Somebody (probably NOT a student) is going around campus dressed as a gorilla, silently going up to pretty girls and handing them boxes of chocolate (?- assuming it is edible and razor blade free chocolate at that) with bible verses written on the boxes in sharpie marker. Isn’t that just creepy as all hell?

This is the kinda thing that happens often to me folks! lol!

(copyright, Adam Pate, 2013)

Middle/high school art class

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By the time I hit Jr. High School, I had made up my mind to try to be the class clown, so I spent a lot of time down at the principals office. If I was going to get in trouble for disrupting the class anyways, I figured I might as well disrupt the class!

One of the few classes I was not disruptive in was art class of course. I loved art class. It was nice to have a time each day to do art as opposed to once a week like in elementary school. I learned how to do scale drawings, mix and use different kinds of paint, sculpt with clay, shade and smudge with pencils and a little bit about perspective. The basics… I got along well with the art teacher, was recognized for my talents on occasion and was confident enough to help some of the other students to figure out the lessons when asked. I learned how to draw from photos in magazines and spent much of my free time drawing.

I drew so often in classes that the teachers sometimes would come see what I was drawing and usually complimented me on whatever it was. I found ways to go out of my way to draw. Study hall for instance. I would draw for the entire period. Cartoons, pretty ladies, cowboys, motorcycles, hot rods, space ships, ninjas, super heroes, etc… The fact that middle/high school has more students and different teachers each period didn’t seem like a big deal at the time but thinking back on it, having that opportunity to blend in with the other students and escape a domineering teacher that you have one period for a friendly teacher you had in another period really helps a kid’s development and self confidence a lot. Especially when they have been conditioned to feel like an outsider.

When I went up to the high school I was a much calmer in my classes and still drew a lot. I became interested in being a good student again but sometimes I just couldn’t help myself though and had to cut up a little in class. There was one teacher in particular that the students used to have quite a bit of sport with. We did awful, awful things to this poor teacher, and I feel bad about it now, but I drew some horrible caricatures of her. Terrible!!! The other students liked it though and they would pass the drawing around the class. Of course the teacher found it and sent me to the principal, Mr. Dorr’s office.

I spent a lot of time in Mr. Dorr’s office… He as a pretty nice guy as far as principals go. He always asked to see what I was drawing when I came in to his office. He saw the picture of the teacher (giggled) and asked me if I had ever thought about doing caricatures for a job after high school (presumably at Cedar Point) We talked a little bit about that. He asked me to draw him. I did. He liked it and asked the other principal to come in and get drawn. I did. Then the secretary, some girls who worked in the office, etc… By the end of the class I had drawn everyone in his office. He told me that he would get me some work drawing stuff around the school and he did. I drew decorations for Christmas time of the principals with santa hats on and stuff like that. I drew backgrounds for the proms and homecoming dances, etc…

I had loved my art teachers and got along really well with most of the people in my art classes. We were a fun group. We saw each other in a lot of the same classes each year. I took some other ‘liberal arts’ type classes and some of us even went on field trips to the Pittsburgh Art Museums and other out of town shenanigans. Among the new art classes was painting, sculpting, dying, drawing, printmaking, etc… I learned all sorts of cool techniques and the teachers often challenged me to come up with something more creative than whatever it was I was working on or offered an extra credit project if I got done with my project and still wanted something to work on in class. I was a skateboarder and I drew a sweet 3-5′ pastel painting of Tony Hawk grinding a jersey barrier that won me an award in the Ohio Governor’s Youth Art Exhibition. I had participated and gone to the show several times, but as a junior, I was honored to be chosen to attend an award ceremony in Columbus with a few other classmates. Our artwork traveled the state and was hung in the Governor’s mansion for a while. On the last day of my Junior year, me and a couple of the other boys got a little too rowdy with our goofing around and Mrs. Schuman, -one of the art teachers- told me that because I was being a dork, I couldn’t participate in the Advanced Placement art class as a senior, which broke my heart. I kept hoping over the summer that she was just kidding but when I got my classes senior year… no AP ART.

Senior year I actually made the honor roll more often than not. Mom and dad and I had the talk about school after the Art Institute of Pittsburgh people came around and I was thinking seriously about going to college after high school. They were a bit surprised I guess! As for art classes, I think there was only one other art class other than AP I could take, so I did. I think the teacher felt bad she kept me out of AP Art, but what’s done was done. Since I did a lot of extra credit artwork my senior year, I was given a special display space in the hallway for the spring art show as a senior since I couldn’t participate in the AP show (which was very nice) and I was asked to do live caricatures at the show. It was my first time ever, I didn’t want to do it and I was terrified! There was one other student there doing them and he was better at them than I was. He told me that he watched them doing them at Cedar Point before and so I took a few pointers from him the second day.

The first one I ever did, I did in pencil first, then inked it, then had to go back and erase the pencil lines. It took 20 minutes, was terrible and I made a quarter on it! I might have done about 12 more that day. All horrible! Ha ha ha!! People told me they were nice though and paid their quarter. The other boy told me that if I stopped using the pencil it might speed up my drawings and it really wouldn’t be so bad if I made a mistake. I could probably correct it with the marker and he was right. I was a perfectionist when I drew my artwork. Often drawing the same line over and over again till it was just right. Shading something, erasing it and then shading it all over again till it was perfect… All that went out the window the second day I did caricatures at the high school. I had to let go and trust in my ability to not screw it up! I did probably 20 of them that day. All in Sharpie marker. I made money for the art club. …And that’s how I officially started my professional caricature career!

(Copyright Adam Pate, 2013)

A Guy Walks Into a Bar… (Continued…)

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In most cases the local performers will have a regular system worked out for how time is divided between performers on the popular pitches. Of course arguments between performers, local merchants or John Q. Public sometimes happen and when they do it brings undue attention from the local law enforcement agency and in some instances the city steps in to regulate the pitch for the performers if it happens often. The city will try to stop buskers from performing, sometimes force the participants to pay a fee or get a license or even hold try-outs for a particular pitch depending on the popularity of the pitch and how lenient the City chooses to be in the matter. The important thing to remember is that (at least in America) the first amendment protects your right to free speech, (that is, your ability to express yourself, via your performance, whatever that is, wherever you feel like doing so) making all of this regulation by the city, county or state ILLEGAL. Legal or not, sometimes there is a reason for the madness and it is best to just stick with the program that seems to work best. It keeps things friendly at least between the buskers and the local business owners and the cops. BUT SOMETIMES the cops just like to be dicks… and buskers are unfortunately easy targets for dicks…

In the next post I will go over your rights as a busker and some steps you can take to avoid confrontations with other performers, local merchants, cops and other forms of trouble that might pop up.

Copyright Adam Pate, 2013

A Guy Walks Into A Bar, continued…

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(LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION…

One of the most important considerations for most professional buskers is where they will perform their act. So much so that they will travel very far from their homes and families at certain times of the year to work a particular “Pitch” because of that location’s earning potential and popularity during a particular season, holiday or festival. A “Pitch” is the venue or place where the busker performs his talent in the appropriate area of a city.

Unfortunately, in some very popular pitch areas there are a limited number of suitable pitches available to multiple performers. (or one very good one that everybody wants to use) There are usually a few pitches in an area that are more popular because of size. A larger pitch allows the buskers to attract and accommodate a larger crowd and therefore the “hat” AKA the ‘take’, or amount of money that can be made per show, gets bigger.  Because the pitch is on public property, nobody can claim a right to it legally, so the performers must work it out among themselves so that the pitch may be rotated equally between performers, usually determined by seniority or on a first come first serve basis and in 20 minute increments with 10 minutes to collect tips and break down set up.

Please note: Although I have many friends who are performers, my personal experience with THIS type of busking is limited. That said, I think I know enough to communicate the gist of it. I am not as knowledgable about how the stage acts go because I am a roving performer and can perform all day- any place if I want to and do not need to attract a crowd to perform.

Different kinds of pitches suit different kinds of performances. This diversity allows for a friendlier and more successful busking scene overall and can allow certain performers to find a unique specialized pitch, that fits their specific needs with little or no competition (like myself doing caricatures). Having a variety of pitches attracts a variety of performers which makes the area that much more interesting to the people who visit busking friendly areas.

(Copyright, Adam Pate 2013)

So A Guy Walks Into A Bar (continued)

Aside

WHAT IS BUSKING?

Busking (again, performing publicly for a gratuity) is great for those of us that are vagabonds and like to see the world. A traveling busker might spend a couple of days in a resort town and make enough money for a room and some food and a little fun while on vacation or make enough money to get you to the next town if you are just passing through. Many buskers have traveled the world, observing and immersing themselves in the strange and wonderful cultures of the world!

What’s great about busking is that you have an immediate pay off and the freedom to do pretty much anything you like, any time you like, any public place you like with the exception of whatever logistical restrictions your act might require.

What stinks is that throughout history busking has widely been considered a fringe occupation and even though it is legal in most places the world over and people really enjoy doing it and being entertained by it, sometimes buskers are looked upon unfavorably, harassed and sometimes confused with panhandlers or vagrants. (There is a huge difference between somebody begging for money and somebody performing an entertaining service in hopes of getting a gratuity, whether they have a place to call home or not.) This is very unfortunate but expected, as creative people do tend to be characters and sometimes go about things unconventionally. No doubt there are many buskers who are lazy, annoying or have vices and just like any other occupation, it’s very difficult to be successful with these impediments… It is important to remember that most buskers take great pride in their work, are very professional, safe and respectful.

A busker’s livelihood depends directly on their degree of talent, people skills and entrepreneurial success. It is a challenging occupation in many ways. Honing your people skills, responsibility, gaining confidence in yourself and learning how to handle criticism in front of a crowd of random, judgmental people are just a few of the many benefits of being your own boss as a busker. You have the freedom to fail as well as the freedom to succeed. Professional Buskers make an honest living with their talents either as individuals or in groups and take their craft very seriously just like any other professional performer does. It’s no coincidence that many popular and successful professional performers have cut their teeth busking.

For an example of a professional busker (who just may be available to perform at your private party!), check out my friend Aaron Bonk’s facebook page. He currently is busking in Clearwater, Florida.

http://www.facebook.com/aaronbonkshow

Many of the most successful buskers have traveled extensively and are known all over the world. There is a loose community of buskers that push each other to produce better acts, protect each other and share stories and information through various means.

For an example, check out http://www.Performers.net

(copyright, Adam Pate, 2013)

Check back to the blog later for more information on BUSKING!

Nolan Harris iPad/ProCreate tutorial with Ron Kantrowitz

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Nolan Harris, of Over the Line Productions in Seattle, WA (http://www.facebook.com/overthelineart) does a tutorial using Procreate on the iPad. This video is a drawing he did of my friend Ron Kantrowitz of Pittsburgh, whom I have worked with for almost 20 years.

SO A GUY WALKS INTO A BAR…

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(Stop me if you’ve heard this one before…)

Chapter 1: An overview of “busking”.

Busking is a word that describes an entertainer, artist or musician of some kind performing for an individual or a crowd of random people, unbidden, in hopes of collecting tips, rewards or gratuities from the crowd based on the success of their performance. Larger tips are generally given according to popularity, skill level, comfort level and of course how good the performer is at collecting the tips.

People have been busking since Roman times. Recountours, Jongleurs, storytellers, bards, jesters, street artists, no matter what you want to call them, they’ve always been the counter-cultural stuntmen of society. Trying out unique tricks, artwork, music, stunts, poetry, dance, acrobatics, comedy, tragedy and everything in between (yes, even caricatures) for everybody from the unwashed masses to noblemen, politicians and clerics. Some of pop culture’s most famous performing icons started out busking: Simon and Garfunkel, Santana, Billy Joel, Bob Dylan, Jimmy Buffett, Louis Armstrong, Penn and Teller, Bob Hope, Cirque Du Soliel and The Blue Man Group, just to name a few…

As an entertainer, any time you can perform your particular brand of entertainment in public and get an immediate response it’s a great opportunity to learn, practice and get that much closer to becoming a master. If what you do has merit, you will do well. If the pay off is not to your liking you can try new things and discover what works best for you. Yes, that’s right- you can get paid to practice doing something fun! The money you make while busking is some of the hardest and most rewarding money you will ever make, because it is an immediate reward for your successful effort and the amount of the compensation for your effort is based directly on how worthy of reward random people have judged that effort to be. Busking can be a full time job, a useful skill, a way to meet girls, or just something fun to do with your friends in your spare time. In any case you will never go hungry once you’ve got the hang of it!

(Interesting note: It is widely regarded that a female will earn 3 ½ times more than a male doing the same exact performance.)

(An excerpt from the first chapter of “Successful Caricature Busking”, by Adam Pate, copyright, 2013)

Cedar Point. Sandusky, OH (1970’s)

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When I was a kid we used to go to a place called Cedar Point, in Sandusky, OH once a summer or so. Usually it was on a field trip with the day care center I attended and we would have about $25 for the entire day. This was enough money for a few soft drinks, a few arcade games, some french fries or a hot dog and some small trinket to take home. Never did I have enough money to even think about getting a caricature from one of the many artists that would do them there. In fact I think I was afraid to even watch for too long for fear that I might have to pay to watch. It seemed to me that you should have to pay to watch anyways, it was pretty entertaining and it seemed like only paying customers were watching, mostly adults who looked like they could afford it, bored kids beside them. It was kinda expensive then just like it is now. I was too poor to get one, so were my parents and guardians who took me to the park so I never did get one. If I went with my parents I didn’t even get to watch unless I could sneak off.

Being a kid, everything seems pretty impressive if a grown up does it and you can’t figure out how they do it. I used to love to watch Bob Ross paint on PBS on Sunday afternoons. I learned a lot from that dude. There were other programs I’d watch about painting or drawing that added to my interest and skill level (I was always doodling, sketching something from life or trying to draw some idea from my imagination and put it on paper). I was a perfectionist. Always drawing lightly till I was happy with the shape of the line, sometimes drawing an entire drawing over again on another sheet of paper if it wasn’t just right, smudging tones with my finger or a tissue, erasing lines and drawing them again till I got it perfect. I couldn’t ever imagine drawing so confidently with a marker! It seemed pretty courageous to me to be doing that in front of a crowd one right after another like that- and making it look just like the person!  Not to mention the quality of the lines was so interesting and seemed completely effortless how they went from thin to thick then thin again in just the right way to create the illusion of depth (even though I didn’t understand what that was at such a young age). It was mesmerizing. One of my favorite things to watch was when I’d see an artist doing a close up video of their hand while drawing a comic book character or a cartoon on TV for a news program or a documentary. It amazed me how they would create one line out of the blank space on the paper, then the next, and the next, seemingly wholly disconnected and abstract, then somehow those lines suddenly became a recognizable subject and it seemed to come to life before my eyes. It was like magic! It was like that watching the caricature artist’s work at Cedar Point.

I completely understand why people are amazed at what I do for a living now and can’t blame them, even though it comes as second nature to me now. I totally am guilty of taking it for granted… I do like to make it a point to be entertaining and make sure people can see what I am doing close up. Especially kids! It’s very important to me because I know how wonderful it is to be inspired by it, even if it seems like something so simple to me now. I feel rewarded to be able to communicate visually to somebody something that they don’t understand but recognize about themselves instantly. I am happy to see the joy and interest on a child’s face as they watch me draw and answer their questions enthusiastically and encouragingly. I am sincerely humbled by it.

(Part 1. First chapter of my autobiography. Copyright: Adam Pate, 2013)