Published by Matt Gondek May 13th, 2008
in Art, culture, vandalism, books, money and smart.
So yesterday I wrote about my encounter w/ the old dude in the leather cod-piece.
Today, I’ll tell you about something even worse.
As I was mentioning, I went to Mount Pleseant over the weekend to help w/ my GF’s yard sale. At one point in the day, her mom asked me to help her in the garage. When I walked in, I seen a comic book laying on a work bench. It was the Incredible Hulk, issue 181.
If many of you dorks like me out there know, this comic is the first appearence of Wolverine. It’s a classic. It’s old. It’s worth allot of money. About $1,000 to be precise.
There was a major problem though. Someone wrote, in ink, on the cover “Mom don’t throw in trash”. Also, someone cut out a coupon inside the book. Worthless. A classic comic ruined. For you non-nerds out there, this is the equivalent of a hot girl flashing her boobs at a party while you’re in the other room.
The irony in all of this is that her brother must of wrote this when he was younger and asked her not to throw it away because it would be valuable. But by leaving the note on the cover, he basically threw it away himself.
Published by Matt Gondek March 31st, 2008
in Career, zombies, Design, books, advice and money.
Over the weekend I picked up this book shown above. It offers allot of help for designers on how to price their services. Their is also allot of other interesting information and resources like help writing a contract which is mega vital in life.
Some of the prices they suggest seem like they’re geared more towards old dudes who’ve been in the game for years and years, but it’s still nice to see how much one could and should make whoring out your drawing arm.
Check it out.
P.s. a shirt I made for TDWP is on the front page of merchnow.com 
I am wrapping up a project where I will be distributing at least 500 5 page comics for free. These will be given out at my art shows, stores in downtown Pittsburgh, or anywhere I can drop a couple off.I am looking for Clothing Companies, Bands, Blogs, or anyone else that needs promotion to help fund this project.What you will get in return is this:
On the last page of the mini comic (page 5), there will be half a page where I will have a “brought to you by” section. This is where your website address, myspace, or whatever would be listed, as well as a logo if you have one.
I am prepared to pay for 500 of these comics to be made out of my pocket. However, any additional money I recieve will be put into making MORE than the 500 comics.
I am asking for $5.25 per add. This money can be sent through paypal only, as I plan on getting these things made this weekend. The extra quarter is to cover paypal’s stupid fees.
For $5.25 your getting your advertisement on my 500 comics, PLUS the extra comics that your $5 is paying for.
If your interested, please send me comment on here or email me at gondek@mattgondek.com. My paypal account is “gondek@mattgondek.com” Please respond by Friday night, as I’ll be getting these printed on Saturday the 23rd.
As of writing this, I still have 4 spaces available.
keep on truckin’
Gondek
Published by Matt Gondek February 12th, 2008
in Pittsburgh and books.
It’s days like today that make we want to MOVE.
There were cars in ditches all over the roads this morning. Tonight is supposed to be freezing rain. Weather in Pittsburgh sucks ass. As I’m typing, I looked out the window and it’s still coming down. Each snowflake is like a middle finger.
In other news,
I just picked up this book and it’s hilarious. It’s supposedly true life stories about this guy Tucker Max. Most of the stories involve drinking or sex, and it’s pretty funny stuff. I recomend picking it up.
www.tuckermax.com
Published by KP December 14th, 2007
in books and Harry Potter.
Ever since I was in 9th grade, I have been reading the Harry Potter books. I would wait every other summer for the new one to come out, and I just couldn’t wait to get the new one this past summer…Although I missed the opening celebration of the final Harry Potter installment at my local Barnes & Noble, I started reading it the moment I purchased it. However, that same day, I started hearing people talk about details and events from the book that they read on the internet. People were telling me that so-and-so dies on page 20-something, and Harry dies at the end before I was even past the first chapter. This upset me at first because to me, a book is so much more enjoyable to read when you DON’T know what happens at the end. These “Harry Spoils” as I will call them, put a bad taste in my mouth and a bad seed in my head. I stopped reading the book after the part where Harry breaks out of Gringott’s Bank riding some animal. I can’t finish it: partly because I already know what happens at the end and I disagree with it, and partly because I know Harry dies and I don’t want to see that happen because he has been a part of my life since I was a young 9th grader. So my $20.00 bed-side table decoration sits idly beside my bed next to my remote control for my TV that i barely ever watch.
P.S. I’m excited to be a part of the echoflip.com family! I hope ya’ll enjoy my posts! <3
Jeremyville’s work is instantly recognizable. He’s the kind of artist whose work is easily marketable too. Writing about him makes me use words that I’m not sure I’m spelling right. Words like recognizable and marketable. Words w/ “able” at the end always confused me.
His work has been used by pretty much everyone at some point, and he also sells his fair share of toys, books, paintings, bags, pins, hats, and other stuff. He is the KISS of the art world.
You can spend a good deal of time at his site www.jeremyville.com looking at all his comics and blogs and stuff. He has alot of good ideas in his brain that you should check out!
Published by Matt Gondek November 19th, 2007
in lifestyle, Advertising, technology and books.
http://www.worldwithoutus.com/
Over the weekend, I picked up this amazing book by Alan Weisman. The book goes into extreme detail to describe what would happen to the Earth after humans became extint. However, the unique thing is that it is written in such a way that instead of us dying off from some nuclear blast or anything, it pretends we just vanished one day.
The book helps to remind us that with all our technoligic advancements and paving over everything, underneath it all, we’re still living atop a giant living world. It tells how the Earth would pretty much “swallow us up” after we’re gone. Here’s some exerts from the book:
In two days after we’re gone, New York’s subways systems would impassibly flood due to no one running the pumps.
In one week, the emergency fuel supply to deisel generators that circulate cooling water to nuclear reactor cores would run out.
In one year, animals would begin to return to the sites of nuclear reactors. Human head and body lice would die.
In 3 years with no heat, pipes would burst all over town. Cockroaches would die due to the cold.
There is alot more of these on the site to check out. I recommend picking up this book. It’s a real eye opener on how insignificant we really are in the long run.
Published by Matt Gondek November 13th, 2007
in Art, Fun, culture, street art, Advertising, Design, gallery, Underground, Artist, future and books.
My roommate has a computer printer just sitting in the hallway for quite some time so I decided to put it to use. Using Photoshop, I constructed a little 12 page book of artwork and made ten of them. Then using some gold paint I signed and numbered each one.
After all that, I stapled them together, and sent out a bulliten on myspace letting everyone know I have limited edition DIY art books and they’re free. One comes with each piece of artwork or print bought off my myspace or website. I was suprised at how high the demand was for these things. I recieve alot of messages about them, and already sent three off this morning.
I still have 6 left (I kept one for myself), so yea… www.myspace.com/huskydiver or www.mattgondek.com
whoo
http://www.wasteyourself.com
Daniel Lowe and Norman Hayes make up the duo Waste Yourself. A colaborative design company based out of Liverpool.
They work with Illustration, typography, design and mixed media for a variety of clients. Alot of their work is also just for fun, and they have a very unique cartoony style about them. Changes are if you ever read a computer arts magazine, you seen them. They do alot of the tutorials for them…. Ranging from how to make books, zines, and waste bins.
Check out their site, and be sure to hit up the sketch book. Even if their style isn’t your thing, you can at least appreciate the amazing flash work that makes it seem like your actually flipping through the pages. It’s an amazing effect and well worth going and checking out!
