Korean Dragon Ink Drawing

Even though "use every color" is my website and general motto for art, I still love black and white art, and some of my favorite artist work exclusively in ink. As a color artist, I find ink art a great exercise in contrast, which helps train the eye to put the right colors next to each other to achieve dramatic results with high-color pieces.

This Korean Dragon is my latest ink drawing. Why is it a Korean Dragon versus Chinese or Japanese? It's the four toes. Chinese dragons have five toes, and Japanese have four.

The original work is 5"x10" paper, mounted to 8.5"x11" gray matboard which I painted with black watercolor. The original has been listed on my site as useeverycolor.com

God bless,
Bryan

Jacksonville Tattoo Convention 2020

This weekend is the annual Jacksonville Tattoo Convention taking place at the Renaissance Resort in World Golf Village, Saint Augustine. I'll be there all three days, October 23-25, with originals, prints, apparel, paperbacks of my novel, Sewn Together, and more. If you're tired of being on lockdown and looking for a safe and fun experience, come check us out. It's sure to be an amazing event.

For a complete list of tattoo artists, vendors, events and more, check out setattoo.com

Bryan

Bryan A. Collins Thanks You All

 

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A post shared by Bryan Collins (@useeverycolor) on Dec 31, 2019 at 2:22pm PST

 I wanted to take a few moments to lift you up, and thank you for everything that you've done to carry my creative endeavors through the years so far. In 2005 my wife Rachel and I opened our own tattoo studio in Fort Collins, CO and from day-one, we had overwhelming support from clients. We were getting so many people in our shop, and sending out so many tattoos, an established shop had the windows shot out of my truck, and another shop owner kept hanging around and giving ice cream to people in our waiting room, while flaunting a shirt with the name of his shop on it, but I took that as a compliment. If we weren't a threat, we would have been ignored.

Shortly after opening the tattoo studio, we began exhibiting art there, and I realized that my true love was for drawing and painting, not for tattooing. We sold the shop to the ice cream guy and I dove into making art full-time, while substitute teaching and working with kids part-time. I offered a few of my original drawings on ebay and they sold more quickly than I had anticipated, so I stopped the subbing and focused completely on art. Now, almost fifteen years later, I've traveled coast to coast to show art at galleries and conventions of all kinds, and have connected with thousands of loyal collectors online as well. I've released two books—a short auto biography about my art journey early on, and a fantasy adventure novel called Sewn Together—and have experienced opportunities beyond my imagination.

During the wild and crazy times that 2020 has brought, you've shown an outpouring of support that I never imagined possible. When all of my conventions, local galleries, and art markets were cancelled, my internet sales rose by over 400 percent. That's all you! Then, as soon as the markets allowed me to return, there have been some days where sales are higher than before the shutdown. Without you and your support, your patronage, your sharing and encouragement, I would have been tempted to toss the art career aside and just fall apart. God has blessed me, through you, and I am forever grateful.

Thank you for being the most amazing art fan, collector, reader, and friend a guy could ever hope for.

Bryan

National Tattoo Convention in Orlando Florida

This weekend I will have the pleasure of showing art with people who are covered in it. The National Tattoo Association is having it's 39th annual convention in Orlando, FL. If you're in the area and want to have a great time seeing people get tattooed or even get a tattoo yourself, come check it out. I will be in the vendor area on Saturday and Sunday only. See you there!

http://nationaltattooassociation.com/wp/convention/

Bryan

Tattooing Again

For the past week or so I've been mentioning on Twitter and Facebook that I have an upcoming announcement. I am tattooing again! As some of you know, I starting tattooing in 1994 when I got my first tattoo. The shop owner was looking through my sketchbook and asked if I wanted to apprentice under him. After apprenticing I tattooed on the road for a while, then my wife Rachel and I opened Covenant Tattoo in Colorado. We sold the shop in 2006 and I switched to painting and drawing full time. Now that I have focused completely on traditional art for the past seven or eight years, I am ready to begin tattooing again from a whole new skill set and understanding.

Tattoo I did in 2006 of a Derek Hess design.

I will be freelancing at Ecstatic Tattoo in St Augustine, FL. It's a new shop owned by Jullienne Ferrer and I am excited to help get it going. I will be working by appointment on a limited basis so I can keep up with fine art commissions and gallery shows, so please email bryancollinsart@gmail.com if you would like to discuss getting a unique piece of art for your body. Let's do this!

Check out available original art and prints at www.bryancollins.etsy.com

Bryan

White Knuckle Willie

White Knuckle Willie is living life in the fast lane. This piece was made for the Hot Rod group exhibit at SlushBox Gallery. If he's still available, you can purchase the piece HERE.

Other originals and prints are available at www.bryancollins.etsy.com

Bryan

Nesting Doll Lighthouse Ink Drawing

I heard a sermon at church where the pastor mentioned Nesting Dolls. The church meets under the Saint Augustine Lighthouse. I decided to put the two images together in this drawing. It's ink and white pencil on 5"x7" gray paper. Email bryancollinsart@gmail.com to purchase ~ $50 shipped in the USA.

Prints and originals always available at www.bryancollins.etsy.com

Bryan

Glory Ink Drawing

No matter how long I've been out of tattooing, the influences of tattoo-styled art have marked themselves in my blood. I have permanent memories of my apprenticeship in a parlor surrounded by countless flash drawings of anchors, dragons, skulls, lightening bolts, and women with 50's style hair. I'm very fond of these memories, because it was during this period in my life that I began to connect with other artists and found a kinship with those who made art with no "formal" training, and just taught themselves to draw because they loved it.

This drawing, simply called Glory, features some of this imagery. I did it with archival ink and white pencil on gray paper. The original has been listed in my shop HERE.

Bryan

Anchored Heart Sketch

 

A new shirt design is in the works. This design is exclusive to the limited edition tees, and you can win the original sketch by pre-ordering the shirt now in my SHOP. There are only 100 of the shirts being made, so only about 20-25 of each size is available. The shirts are light heather grey with navy blue print, similar to the sketch. Make sure you don't miss this one! Pre-order price is just $15 for a limited time.

Daily Drawing 60

Daily Drawing 60, a photo by BryanACollins on Flickr.

"Gypsy" (daily drawing 60) - 5"x7" watercolor, ink, and pencil on watercolor paper.

You can purchase daily drawings at http://www.bryancollins.etsy.com

God bless,
Bryan

LAST PRINT of Journey Lost

We are down to the very last print in a limited edition of "Journey Lost". There were only five of these prints made, so 5/5 is waiting for the last savvy collector to give it a place to hang. These prints are 5"x7" overall, with a 4"x6" print area to match the exact size of the original illustration. More information is at the listing in my Etsy shop.

Just $10 plus shipping. Purchase HERE

Please let me know if you have any questions.


God bless,
Bryan A. Collins

www.bacstudio.com
Twitter - @useeverycolor
Facebook - www.facebook.com/bryancollinsart
Shop for art at www.bryancollins.etsy.com

Journey Lost

I have released a limited edition run of just FIVE prints of the illustration "Journey Lost". The original piece is colored pencil on illustration board and measures 4"x6". The prints are 5"x7" and the printed area measures the same size as the original in 4"x6".

These prints are bold, vibrant, and colorful and I am very pleased with how they represent the original. Each one is printed on acid-free, bright white 110lb card stock, each is signed and numbered in the white area below the printed area, and each comes with a signed certificate of authenticity.

If you would like to add one to your collection, use this direct link to view the listing on Etsy. http://www.etsy.com/listing/60530439/journey-lost-limited-edition-prints

God bless,
Bryan

www.bryanallencollins.com
Twitter - @useeverycolor
Facebook - www.facebook.com/bryancollinsart