Will Ralston

2011-02-08T14:09:00.000-08:00

2011-02-08T13:50:00.000-08:00

I swear im such a slacker when it comes to my blog. A lot has happened since my last post. Ive been tattooing full time in Sarasota since April, and trying to juggle everything else as far as commissioned paintings and Custom paint jobs. When i first started my Apprenticship, a client once told me that "you can only be a slave to one master". He was kinda right, but being an Illustrator makes you a jack of all trades. So its nice to jump from skin to canvas to automobiles. I think it lowers my chances of getting burnt out, but what the hell. Let me know what you guys think of the work.

Way to long

2010-07-22T08:21:00.001-07:00

It has been a long time since my last post. Hope you guys dont think im dead. But I have been staying busy. I have moved to the grand old town of Sarasota, and am still doing tattoos at the Fat ink shop in the Sarasota square mall. Its been interesting to come back to my old stomping ground. Ive been jumping back in forth with more canvas work then actual custom paint work. The joy of painting is definitely coming back. Taking what ive learned from tattooing and seeing different styles has kinda pushed me to focus more on my drawing, and translating that to larger scale paintings has really taught me a lot about making an interesting piece. Theres a book out called Reinventing The Tattoo by: Guy Aitchison, and reading through it I started having Vietnam flash backs of the academy about composition, color, and etc. Saying this, Guy's book is a must have, and i would tell the Illustration crew, if you see this book, don't hesitate to take a glance at. Its almost like a refresher course. Anyways here is some new stuff ive been working on. Ive got prints for sale. And if your in the mall, stop by.

Fire nudes!!!!

2009-11-21T19:26:00.000-08:00

Ill be coming out with new ones here pretty soon. You can order your very own, just shoot me a line. Each piece is a one and only original, this piece is 30x40

The Respray

2009-08-30T10:42:00.000-07:00

Its been a while since I posted, trying to get stuff in order. But if you guys remember the Sumi bike, it had an unfortunate accident. So here is the before and after pictures. I decided to go with a different scheme then previously. Its a hanya, a Japanese demon. Your supposed to get it tattooed on your back. Its supposed to protect you from evil and watch your back, and the uglier it is the better protection it gives. So I thought the back fender of a bike, was a perfect place for it.

2009-05-22T21:45:00.000-07:00

Its been a while, I finished a few projects but here is the biggest project I just finished on my friends 2500 cummins diesel. And Im also posting our new adds/self promo stuff.

Cycle Xcitement Magazine Spread

2009-04-13T21:53:00.000-07:00

So we got the Octo-1 in to cycle xcitement magazine. Galeen Cockdell did a great job with the photography, and it all came out really nice. Lets hope that this continues. And thanks to Pepper, Baron, Galeen, and the lovely Brandyce.

I love H.O.A's

2009-03-18T19:24:00.000-07:00

So I received a letter from my Housing Association saying that we needed to paint our mail box in order to comply with the housing standards of the neighborhood. So I took the initiative and opportunity to "paint our mail box", and surprisingly we haven't gotten another letter yet.

New projects

2009-03-18T19:18:00.000-07:00

Some process

2009-02-01T13:40:00.001-08:00

Here is a little bit of the progression of the bike. I was a little surprised by the amount of work that went into it, but i think the extra time paid off. I really try to stay away from stencils, though i use shields to get crisp edges, I think that free handing gives me more room to play with the piece and not get bored.

The Sumi Bike

2009-02-01T13:30:00.001-08:00

This guy really liked the Japanese style of tattooing. He gave me a couple of books on sumi tattooing, which really helped. He pretty much just let me go with the design. I kept asking him if he wanted to see it before it was finished so he new what he was getting, but he kept saying he wanted to be surprised. All most all of the tins are covered in work. The entire bike is just on giant gray wash tattoo. Hopefully soon, ill get some pictures of it all together.

The newest projects

2009-02-01T13:13:00.000-08:00

This is the first full bike that R.C. Customz and I have done together, This an 08 gsxr 600. The owner had a real tough time coming up with an idea of what he wanted, but he finally settled on something he liked from my buisness card. We took Octo-1 and the green busa to the Biker build off in clear water, and had a great time talking to people and showing people who we are, and what we can do.

I dream of Lindsey

2008-12-02T10:49:00.000-08:00

This was a piece that I did for the Tata galla show in sarasota. The show was a great turn out and there were some amazing pieces. And of course it was for a good cause. This is the second show they have had, and I hope digital 3 and Eric Jones keep this thing going. Cause we have to save the Tata's.
This is the third piece I have done, where I am just playing around with the "True fire" thing. Really, I'm just playing with form and experimenting with the candy colors and layering. I'm going to do a few more, and just get it out of my system. I was also inspired by Norman Lindsey's etchings. His gestures, comps, and lighting are pretty cool.

The newest project

2008-11-16T19:59:00.000-08:00

All right, this is one of the biggest projects I have worked on. This is my first full Hayabusa set that I have done. There is probably about 50-60 hrs of work put into this bad boy. My new found friend loves the work on the bike. Though I have a few things to correct, over all I'm happy with it. Work is starting to flow in and thats all that matters. In future projects, I'm going to try and bring something more to the table, not saying this is bad Kenny!!
I have to give thanks to Raleigh at RC Customs, who made my work shine, literally with his awesome clear coat job. Along with Raleigh and RC Customs, the future looks pretty promising.

Some new work

2008-10-08T13:32:00.000-07:00

Here is some new stuff that I did for the Round Up Country Club near Oldsmar. There are a few more big windows to paint, so it should look really cool when the whole place is done. What was really cool, was being able to paint during Saturday nights. I'm sure the smell of the paint was getting to some of the people, but it was it was a cool experienc to paint in front of an audiance. I also added a bowling pin that I finished.

IT IS ALIVE!!

2008-09-07T16:45:00.000-07:00

I finally finished my tailgate after hours of work and weeks of clear coat problems I finally have my tailgate back on my truck. All I need to do now is just get my information on my back window and I'll be mobile business card. Let me know what you guys think. We had so many problems with the clear coat that there are tiny little specs in the clear, but you cant see them until you get really close. But I'm really happy with it, and I think that I'm going to continue the piece on down the sides. I feel like I am tattooing my car, session by session. If anyone is interested in some paint give me a shout.

Other projects

2008-09-04T00:47:00.000-07:00

The bowling pins I did over the academy for Rob at 58th street customs and the skull is on a scooter for john at arty joes. The problem with the scooter is, I am done with the work, but we are having so much trouble clear coating the damn thing, and my tailgate. Oh if I could just get my tail gate done.......

Arty Joes Prt 2

2008-09-04T00:36:00.000-07:00

I know it took me some time to get these pics up, Ive just been noodling on these wall pieces. I think what I really enjoy about working on such a big scale is the practice and the owner pretty much just lets me run with the ball. Just throw some crap up and see what happens. And I know the anatomy is a bit off, so sue me. I know I should have gotten reference. What the hell.

Jack and the bean stock

2008-09-04T00:29:00.000-07:00

Whats up guys? This is something I did over the academy for one of the assignments, which was a two page spread story of either the tortoise and the hair, gift of the magi, or jack and the bean stock. I really just wanted to get some ink work down. The cross hatching style is really almost like therapy. Let me know what you guys think, I have another epic pen and ink on the way. Oh yeah I had to cut the thing in half in order to properly scan it. Took me for ever to puzzle the thing together.

Halloween Lateralus Man

2008-08-17T13:08:00.001-07:00

I just wanted to throw this up real quick, cause Halloween is coming around the corner and maybe I can get another cool paint job to do.

The Bathroom

2008-08-04T13:56:00.000-07:00

This is also a late project that i finished a while ago.

This is the bathroom of 58th street customs over in sarasota.

Rob, the owner just let me do what ever I wanted. I had to fix up some mistakes with some cover up flames, but over all its an interesting bathroom.

Overkill

2008-08-04T13:42:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys, this one I did a while ago. I never really got a chance to post it up, but now I do. I added some effects in photoshop, just some debris. Hope you guys enjoy giant monsters.

Spider man Bike

2008-07-25T15:44:00.001-07:00

I just finished this tank for Cruizin Eagle in St. Pete. I had to fix some mistakes that i had made previously, and then hand it off to Big Daddy John to clear coat it. I think it came out pretty nice.

Im glad its done and cant wait to see what it looks like on the bike. I didnt paint the spider man suit underneath the venom piece. The only thing i did paint was the spider man breaking out of the venom costume along with some of the black symbiote crawling to the front.

Arty Joes Tattoo Shop

2008-07-25T15:34:00.001-07:00

This was a fun job. I got to hang out at a tattoo shop and just airbrush. The owner wanted something based on the ark of the covenent. So frome there he gave me pretty much free reign.

I still have alot more to do, and well see how it comes out.

Society of Illustrators, Tick Tock

2008-06-15T18:57:00.000-07:00

I some how managed to get this piece in to the show. There was a lot of good work, and I am thankful just to get the inside cover of the student scholarship book. When i first came up with this i had no idea what the hell it was going to be called. All i knew was that i wanted to draw a giant crocodile eating a ship, which in itself sounds cool. So i didn't even mean to base it off Peter Pan, but it makes sense and fits with the piece. Funny how things work out.

Invisible man, The Godzilla's

2008-06-15T18:30:00.000-07:00

This is the rest of my thesis that were all digital works. I really enjoyed working on the Godzilla pieces, cause it was just great to be doing something that I love since I was a kid. It took me a while to come up with something for the invisible man. I had no idea how the hell i was going to go about him. So i had to try and find a way to describe him, but also show who he is.

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Frankestein, Dracula

2008-06-15T18:15:00.000-07:00

These were some of the biggest pieces I had in my thesis. I think that Dracula took me the longest. I was trying so hard to make this great montage of sex and blood, when i should have just been focusing on the simple aspects of his character. Frankenstein took the longest
to complete through the painting process. There is probably 25hrs of work on just painting him, because i messed up a few times and could not decide on what media to stick with. I also used Dorlands wax to build of texture in the shoulder and other parts. The Jekyll and Hyde piece took a little time just for the fact that it was 48x48, but the bigger i work the better i can get in there with the airbrush and get some organic looking shapes, and whats also good about working big is that I can airbrush come back in with some light acrylic brush work and slowly bring back form. I usually lay down a color and then spray its compliment and then i get some nice natural value changes that doesn't look airbrushy, and then i add some brush texture and work back into it with the brush and airbrush.

A Taste of Thesis

2008-04-22T10:01:00.000-07:00

These are a mix of airbrush on illustration board and digital. These are about 30x40.

part 2 creature

2008-04-01T16:09:00.000-07:00

creature of the black lagoon

2008-04-01T16:05:00.000-07:00

The Lost World and Casualties of the NFL

2008-03-26T15:08:00.001-07:00

These were illustrations done for Advanced Illustration class. One was the casualties of the NFL, and the other is a cover illustration for the Lost World by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. All were done in airbrush and were pretty large pieces.

Illest of Illustration Bike Tank

2007-10-29T19:13:00.001-07:00

Denis Leary

2007-09-24T19:03:00.000-07:00

portrait of H. R. Giger

2007-07-10T09:11:00.000-07:00

58th street skulls

2007-07-10T09:06:00.000-07:00

jesse johnson

2007-07-10T09:02:00.000-07:00

still a work in progress

The Finished Product

2007-05-14T18:10:00.000-07:00

MOTE aquarium

2007-05-14T18:04:00.000-07:00

This was for the container where the Giant Squid was on dispaly.

2007-05-07T22:01:00.000-07:00

A knee to the face

2007-05-07T21:42:00.000-07:00

Welding Mask

2007-05-07T21:38:00.000-07:00

Front fairings of gixxer 600

2007-03-07T17:39:00.000-08:00

More stuff for 58th street customs

2007-03-07T17:35:00.000-08:00

Master Copy

2006-12-26T10:17:00.000-08:00

2006-12-26T10:11:00.000-08:00

2006-12-26T09:32:00.000-08:00

Little Practice

2006-12-03T21:43:00.000-08:00

My room mate let me practice some work on his wall, and let me try out my new projector. We use the cover from heat, and i drew out out the faces in pencil and then went in with an airbrush. It was fun. Yeah the other picture is jack nicholsen from china town, and deniro on the left. I still need to finish it.

the Finish

2006-12-03T21:37:00.000-08:00

After prats demo

2006-11-30T14:23:00.000-08:00

Summer Projects

2006-11-30T14:16:00.000-08:00

2006-11-30T14:09:00.000-08:00

This is some new stuff that rob wanted for his shop. The 58th street customs.

2006-11-30T14:04:00.000-08:00

This was for a friend of mine. I cant wait to get to the other side, even though it was hard to work with the mustangs side lines.

Digital

2006-11-30T10:29:00.000-08:00

This is about the extent of what i have done digitally.

flamin harley

2006-11-30T10:19:00.000-08:00

This was my first bike that i did. The guy still hasnt put it back on his bike.

58th street skull

2006-11-30T10:03:00.000-08:00

This is some of my work that i do for a custom chopper shop on 13th street. This skull is about 9ft tall. Still have some work that i need to add.