This piece was inspired by my grandfather Lonnie James Bates. He and my grandma ran a series of small diners and restaurants in the Detroit area. From the 50's through the 80's they struggled to maintain them through collapsing industries, cycling economies, and eight children. My grandpa suffered from the maladies of many WWII veterans and picked up a few habits. After weeks of labor, it was said "he snapped the leash" and "off the chain"...Lonnie was gone. From the stories I'm told he was quite a character. And so I tried to imagine one of his diners part-conjecture, part-character, and all "Lonzo".
The summer sky was based on astronomy charts detailed from the summer of 1958. It began as a simple road side diner and after days of listening to "Oldies but Goodies" on my portable record player, it snapped the leash and took on a life of it's own.
When I saw this I said, " You gotta be freaking kidding me."
ReplyDeleteYou are SO skilled. This is amazing. Beautiful colors and WONDERFUL designs.
I just want to echo what Karly said, and add my two cents. This is AMAZING!! I love the lighting and color. I'm curious if you would mind if I built it in 3D . . . I'll email you.
ReplyDeleteKarly thank you for the kind words especially coming from such a wonderful designer as yourself! I can't wait to see what you do in the program, you're light years ahead of me already!!! And Stephen I would absolutely love to see what you could do with this in 3d! Shoot me an email I'd love to hear from you :)
ReplyDeleteOh, Renee. You flatter me too muchly. I just don't even know what to say! And I totally want to see Stephen build it in 3D! THAT WOULD MAKE IT OFFICIALLY MY BEST LIFE.
Deletethis is so inspiring, that original sketch especially!
ReplyDeleteThank you Chaitanya I appreciate the kind word! This piece went though MANY MANY steps before the final!
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