Busy Busy

I have been crazy busy working on some animation projects. Here is my latest that will be in the Crossfade Student FIlm Festival

Hope you like it.

Series Of Unfortunate Missteps from Vanessa Ramirez on Vimeo.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I love thanksgiving. Strike that. I love the day after Thanksgiving. I love the crazy late night early morning shopping. I love the miserable waiting in line but exciting planning. I enjoy assembling our crackpot strike team for shopping. We have fun, laugh, and ultimately eat a big breakfast. And after everyone gets some sleep, we meet up again and eat my moms turkey tacos. This is my tradition.

This may seem like an odd way to spend the holiday but what I have learned is that life changes very quickly and often without notice. So stop look around and see all you have to be thankful for today, tomorrow do what makes you happy. I know I will be freezing my butt off, standing in long lines, and exhausted. But hot damn I will laugh and life will be good.

Happy Thankgiving!

SWEET + EVIL Art Show Mummy

This custom was made for the SWEET + EVIL Art Show. The blank was a new form called Deego. The show was in honor of the App release for Agimat Inc game E-Ville available in the iTunes App Store. I was one of a few handful of artist that created customs to represent their character but in our own style. I was really trying something different with this custom. Every one I do I try to do something different, and hopefully get better. Hope you like him.

This fella will also be on display at Designer Con.


Pictures are available via my Flickr.

Milk Munny Show to Benefit Breast Cancer

I was fortunate enough to be able to participate in this charity event. All the info and links to photos is below. I really enjoyed making this piece and was for a great cause.


Here is a peek







MILK MUNNY - A CUSTOM VINYL TOY EXHIBIT TO RAISE BREAST CANCER AWARENESS

www.milkmunny.org/

Will be held:

October 1 at 7:00pm - October 3 at 8:00pm

Monorchid Gallery
214 East Roosevelt Street Phoenix
AZ 85004-1951

Insomnia

Been a weird couple of weeks. Not sleeping much and it is screwing with my productivity, tried going to sleep early and i fell asleep and woke up an hour or so later and couldn't go back to sleep. I'm averaging 2-3 hours a night. Not always pleasant.

On the other hand I have been invited to submit a piece for a charity event. This is awesome and for a really great cause. I will post more once the piece is done. This one has been hard to start. I wanted to do a really cool piece but my creativity is a little off right now. Probably lack of sleep.

Also my temporary Squarespace site is up and other than a few frustrating moments, has been pretty cool. It allows you to manage your stats and that is super awesome. if I can find a happy medium I may continue to use it even after I do a rebuild.

In other news, I am working on treatments for story ideas and hope to start some story boarding. I don,t really want to think about character development but it is a necessary evil.

Spanky Stokes Custom Celsius Show

The voting for This custom show is now open. I submitted a custom to this contest and would greatly appreciate all your support. So please head over and vote for my piece. Voting is open until Friday. Vote here.

I've Been Blogged

So the oh so nice Mathias Bax was kind enough to post a blog on the Toy Architects Urban Hamster blog featuring the rat custom I did using their Urban Hamster resin figure. So a big thank you to Mathias. Go get your own Urban Hamsters here they are a great addition to any collection. And you can read the post about yours truly here.

New Custom

Soooo. I decided to enter a contest on SpankyStokes.com I guess voting starts soon. for now here is a quick peek at my entry.





I had some serious issues making this bad boy, but I think it came out pretty good. I will post when voting starts with full images and a link.

Experimental Animation

Experimental Animation
Originally uploaded by Vanessa_Ramirez

Here is a compilation of videos I put together of various projects I did. Realy enjoyed learning this process. Stop motion definitely helped me to think differently about the way objects and people move. Very cool process.

Teaser

I have finished an 8" custom Munny that will be features in a charity event. It will be taking place on October 1st. Here is a high resolution sneak. I call her Succubus. Snap!

WIP Custom 8" Munny

So I have been working on a custom for a charity event I an lucky enough to be involved in. I am loving the hair but I do think it need some finessing. Here is a crappy iPhone pic for now.

A Little Something

Oh and here is a little something I am working on.

Decisions.

Having a hard time making decisions. What seems clear one day is completely impossible the next. Guess I'm a little nutty. I'm working on it though so at least i'm not too stagnant.

I am trying to finish up this custom I'm working on. Unfortunately, the arrival of my Wacom tablet has me distracted. I will continue tomorrow and it is my plan to finish it in the next few days. At least be finishing up this weekend. I do love how it is turning out but it still needs work. In addition I need to work on my animation too. I have a few ideas and I have been trying to focus and develop the idea. I want to have a sketch reel done by next weekend, so I can start the character development. Not sure how far I will get.

in addition to my other aspirations I am trying to develop my digital illustration skills both in vector and rasterized formats. it has been a struggle to balance everything, but that is how it goes. I have also been trying to paint but that is going to have to take a back burner to everything else I am doing right now. Wish me luck. I need it.... actually wish me the ability to focus.

I find music helps me to get out of my funks and focus so thought I should share what is stuck in my head right now.

Jack Johnson "All At Once"

All at once
The world
Can overwhelm me
Theres almost nothin'
That you could tell me
That could ease my mind

Which way will you run
When it's always
All around you
And the feelin' lost
And found you again
A feelin'
That we have no control
Around a song
Some say
There's gonna be
The new hell
Some say
It's still
Too early to tell
Some say
It really
Ain't no myth at all

I love my Toys

After I bought bossy bear and started posting pictures of him looking at me, I decided to look for some of the other Uglydoll toys. I got a small Wage and Ox and finally got a large Babo, and I love him. Unfortunately his previous owner was a smoker so he smells to all hell. So I have aired him out and he smells less gross. And in turn I have been dressing him and taking pictures. The funny thing is these Uglydoll action figures are so full of life that I can't help it. It was with my cell phone so the pics aren't the greatest, but they crack me up. So here are a few of the pictures I have taken recently and might have to post here occasionally for the whole zero readers I have.



Babo stole the t-shirt off of my coworkers Teddy bear. Oops.

Babo got into my snack drawer at work. Eww. (as aforementioned he smells and he has been wearing that robe for a week)

Babo woke up around 2pm and decided it was coffee time...and helped himself to my coffeemaker.

Sad Day....

Today my cousin Victor Ortega Jr would have been 28 years old. He unfortunately passed away very young at the age of 19. Even after almost nine years he has been gone, it still gets me sometimes and this year was no different. I miss him and I just wanted to acknowledge him. I made a small film for him in 2004, before I really knew what I was doing, but it is a nice nod to him. Love you Vic. Miss you.

Rockers!

Was watching old videos and listening to old Atreyu CDs today so thought I'd do a quick sketch of a rocker.

NEW TOY!

Ok I have gotten a couple of rad toys but this is in reference to my new Wacom tablet. Intuos 4 wireless and sexy as hell. it is so awesome. So I have been trying out the features and trying my hand at digital sketching. I am still working on painting and customizing toys because I am a damn nerd that way. I do have to finish a piece I am doing for a charity show. Great opportunity and great cause. I will post more info once I have it.

So here are the better sketches. Hey I never said I knew what I was doing. I suck at color. I tend to be monochromatic but I figure I should change it up.

And Time Marches on... and so does Mr T

So I decided to submit a custom munny for the Munny Month Contest so if you get a chance please vote for my custom which is a Mr T. More images of Mr T can be found my Flickr Feed. Not too much goin on here. Just got back from a mini vacation in Hawaii, realized I suck at vacationing. And now I am just trying to keep drawing painting and working.

Long live MR T!!!

Delicious Drips!!!

Check it out! I had a Munny up on DeliciousDrips.com and they did a quick shout out to a few artist doing Munnys and mine is included. Check it out. It is the one called Roboto!

www.deliciousdrips.com/

And it is over.

So the show went well. I sold my first piece of art and t felt great. The family was there and it was a nice time. Need to keep working ant try to get into another show. Also need to keep working on my portfolio. Have to stay focused and keep my eye on the future.

Flickr

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

What is The What

So i have been preparing for a group art show I was accepted to. I sent some art and they asked me to show. I have been busy getting my pieces together so haven't had a chance to blog about it.

I am really excited about the opportunity and I hope more opportunities arise from this. And if not it has been worth the experience.

Here is a sneak peek of the art I will be exhibiting.

Illustrations and Custom Munnys.

Gallery Godo

6749 San Fernando Rd. #C

Glendale, CA 91201

I love Yetis

So I have been working on a honing a style and a series of illustrations. Not that that excuses my gross insensitivity to my blog. So today I have an appointment that could possibly be very cool for me. I took a chance and answered a random email and I have refrained from talking, tweeting or status updating about it so I won't look like an ass if it doesn't work out. But I am excited at the prospect and I think a little positive thinking and putting it out there a bit may be a good thing. Here is an illustration I have been working on and it has spawned an entire series of illustrations.

And in other news my cousin got married a couple of weeks back and I was asked to make the cake topppers. The wedding was beautiful and Thanks To Aunika and Jon for asking me to add something to their wedding.

Inspired...

One of the last projects I did for one of my classes has really stayed with me. and even though I am not doing exactly what I did in that and I am not using a digital medium, it is still an ode to that. I have been using pen and marker, monochromatic, on heavy watercolor paper and I definitely think the results are kind of cool. I am working on a pretty big piece, for me that is, at the moment. It started as post it notes then a fully composed sketch in my notebook and through that process has really morphed into a whole other entity. But it isn't easy. My left hand is numb every morning. haha. I am reallly digging it though. So here is a little of what led to the current larger work, and a peek at the larger piece that is currently taking over my life.

First Drawing (Sketch Book)

Second Drawing (Sketch Book)

Large Drawing (Heavy Watercolor paper Pen & Marker)

Happy New Year!

Here we are again. New year and a new decade. I would have to say I have a level of optimisim I did not have last year. This year feels fresh and new and filled with possiblities. The only limits are what I put on myself. I am ready to try to be more. I am prepared to fail. But I can only hope to suceed. This is my only resolution.

I will try to do better and not put limitations on my life or on myself.

Well that and lose weight...