Bento Box Project

I'm excited to announce a new opportunity to branch out. I've reserved an artist table at Sukoshicon, an anime convention that is touring all over Alabama this year. I will be at their Montgomery event Saturday, May 14th. It took me awhile to make this decision because other than my recent "Dogs and Food" acrylic project, my portfolio consists of digital tshirt designs, not tangible, sellable products. I chose to overcome that by expanding what I have to offer. I came up with an idea that fits me and is something I think (and hope) people will enjoy. I have a passion for unique food. When I look at a menu, most likely I'll look for either the weirdest thing, or something I have never tried and base my decision off of that. So I started with that passion, combined it with my acrylic resources, and it evolved into a project called "Build Your Own Bento."

In their real, edible form, bento boxes are extremely artful, so for me it was an easy transition from that concept into a more permanent art form used for decoration rather than eating. I know it's sad that you won't be able to eat these, but at least you'll get to look at them longer, right? :) I found very small canvases (2.75" X 2.75") and thought it would be great to use them for individual components in a bento box, like this octodog and shrimp nigiri.

Then I constructed a frame that mimics the idea of a bento box, but functions as an art frame. With hardware on the back and decorative ribbon, you can either hang it on a wall or simply just let it sit pretty on your desk or coffee table. The individual painting components can be interchangeable and there will be many, many different food characters to choose from. There will also be different color and size options for the frames.

I will be including these paintings and frames in my Flickr portfolio. I'll also be keeping you updated about them on my Facebook page and Twitter feed.

I'm hoping I'll get to feature my other new project, "Dogs and Food" in a local art show and in an Etsy shop soon. I'll definitely let you know. Thanks for stopping by!