Every once and awhile we stumble upon (or they post on our Facebook wall) some awesome band using Sharpie to kick start their music career.
In this case, that stumble led us to Reaper in Sicily, a new, unsigned (hint hint record label folks) group from across the pond that put together their entire music video for their new single, “Worlds End” using black Sharpie markers!
Check out more music from the boys on i-Tunes and hit them up on Facebook!
Fellow Sharpie employee and guest blogger, Stephanie Markadonatos, is back to chat with Sharpie artist, James Schaffer. James keeps it all connected through his art and we are excited to continue the link and share him with all of you.
As we all know, Social Media is the new driving force to keep us connected and up to date with our friends, family, and interests. With Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and all the many other social networks and blogs (even this one) floating around in cyberspace, we communicate to millions in seconds. The exposure of our thoughts, feelings, and ideas are put out there for all to see with a simple “Click”. The influence of internet media and how we connect has become a new chapter in the communication world. What if the internet and the social media phenomenon weren’t around? Would we still be able to feel connected to people at the level we are able to now?
Today’s featured artist, James A. Schaffer, feels that we are all connected and the internet is one major media influence that can never fully be deleted. Get ready to learn how James uses both print and digital art to express our connectedness….
FEATURED SHARPIE ARTIST: JAMES A SCHAFFER
Can you give us a little background about yourself? I grew up in Pittsburgh, PA, where I currently reside and work. I am a recent graduate of Edinboro University of Pennsylvania, with a bachelor in Fine Arts with a concentration in painting. I have been interested in art since I was around 5 years old. When I was young I often got sick, so I always had a sketchbook nearby to keep me busy. My mother always took me to art classes as I grew up which kept me interested in the Arts.
What attracts to the fine arts? Other than being exposed early in life, I suppose I like the idea of creating something, and then allowing viewers to experience that thing. Instead of expressing myself in front of a live audience, I do enjoy being “behind the scenes” in a sense.
Can you tell me your thoughts on being an Artist?
I am an artist in every aspect of my life. To me, there is no separation. Therefore, this is the life that I was determined to live. I paint in order to live. It provides a relief and gives a fulfillment that nothing else can.
Where does your inspiration to create come from? A lot of my inspiration comes from abstract expressionist artists such as: Rauschenberg, De Kooning, Kline, Pollock, Motherwell, and Basquiat. My ultimate go to are two documentaries on Jean Michel Basquiat: “The Radiant Child” and “Basquiat”. Any time I see Jeans work ethic and the way he paints, it always forces me up and creating. I also like to travel and visit art museums.
How long does it take you to create your art?
The time it takes to create a painting varies from piece to piece. I generally work on mine for over a span of several weeks, dedicating a few hours each day until I am complete. It typically takes an average of about 25 hours to fully complete a piece of art.
Tell me about your favorite museums you visited and why they stood out from others? Two that I truly enjoy are The Warhol Museum, which is in my hometown and the Whitney Museum in New York. I always had a liking for Andy Warhol and it always has interesting contemporary artists. Whitney Museum is not overwhelming like many of the other institutions in New York. I do hope to make it back to New York soon to visit the Museum of Modern Art for the De Kooning show.
What attracted you to use Sharpie products in your works of art? There are several reasons why Sharpie markers are a favorite tool of mine. Most importantly, I feel quite comfortable and familiar with markers. Secondly, the ink and color of the ink drew me in. The colors are so bold and vivid, making it an easy choice for me as an artist.
What is your top Sharpie product?
I would say my favorite Sharpie product is the traditional blue Sharpie.
Feels good to be number 1
Can you explain how you feel everything is connected? I feel that nowadays, people’s interests and lives are multi faceted. As well as with the mega presence of things like the internet, we are more aware of what is going on with other people’s lives and other topics which before we may have not been exposed to.
What are your thoughts on communication, Internet and art – how are they linked?
We are all culturally closer than we have ever been before. Social interactions have been expanded in a way that would be impossible without the technology that we have at our fingertips. The goal of the internet is communication just like art. The two aren’t so far apart as people might think. Both are used as tools to communicate a message.
How do you portray the media and connectedness in your art? By creating chaotic scenes. Media and our lives are all intertwined creating chaos. Once my art is complete, I will review and decide if any marks need to be deleted or pushed back into the background. I make these decisions based on my reaction to the visual and various aesthetic qualities. The internet comes into effect again on the idea “things are always present even if you try to cover them up”. If a person posts a message, photo, or post, there’s no telling on who will see it and where it will end up. Even if we try to delete something, search engines and other tools still can dig up old information. We are connected through the media in ways in which sometimes we are not even made aware of.
Any advice you would like to pass along? I believe as it was taught to me, that each painting (or whatever art you choose) should be better than the previous one. This supports the idea of growth as an artist.
Thank you to James A. Schaffer. For more on James and samples of his art visit his website at http://jamesaschaffer.com/ or follow him on Twitter at: twitter.com/jschaffer
Grace inking it Pink!
Ready to Ink it Pink this October alongside your favorite celebrities, sports superstars and fellow Sharpie lovers?! This month we are making pink the new black in the autograph world as we kick off our annual “Ink It Pink” campaign to help fight breast cancer.
We are challenging celebrities, our incredible fans and YOU to ink it pink for the cause. For every pink autograph submitted to www.sharpie.com during the month of October, we will donate $1* to City of Hope, one of the nation’s leading cancer research, treatment and education centers.
The movement is already underway as rock star, Grace Potter from Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, has already signed on to the Ink It Pink effort! Potter helped kick-off the campaign Saturday, September 24, during her band’s concert in New York City’s Central Park where she inked pink autographs for fans and encouraged them to do the same and send them over to sharpie.com!
You may remember last year was a HUGE success as hundreds of A-listers, from Hollywood movie legends and hall-of-fame athletes to revered rocks stars and respected media icons, lent their signatures to the effort.(Miley Cyrus’ Ink it Pink video is STILL our highest viewed on the Sharpie YouTube channel!)
Well this year is no different! The pink signatures have already started rolling in, including Shay Mitchell from Pretty Little Liars and 19-time Olympic medalist, Michael Phelps, and you can help, too!
Shay Mitchell from ABC Family's Pretty Little Liars
How YOU can Ink it Pink and support Breast Cancer Research
Want to lend your own Sharpie-fied signature to help out the cause?
Just follow these few simple steps and you’ll have your name alongside your favorite celeb in minutes:
1. Visit www.sharpie.com, (where you can also check out all the celebrity signatures.)
2. Accept the Ink it Pink challenge and submit yours!
You can also support the Ink it Pink mission and City of Hope by picking up your favorite Pink Ribbon Sharpie products, including the NEW Sharpie Pink Ribbon Pen, Sharpie Pink Ribbon marker, the Sharpie Pink Ribbon highlighter! Sharpie has been a City of Hope partner since 2006 and in that time has donated more than $2 million to City of Hope’s lifesaving research and treatment programs by commiting to donate ten cents from the sale of each pink ribbon product.
So, join us this October and Ink it Pink for Breast Cancer Awareness!
It’s new, it’s everywhere, it’s a square of black tech-y looking dots. It’s a QR (Quick Response) code and they are popping up everywhere.
From NY Fashion Week to Sharpie’s own print campaigns, these little data hubs are the gateway into a new world full of opportunities to unlock exclusive content from your favorite brands, including Sharpie! Now, the question is what do you do with them? Well, fear not because we are here to give you a step by step tutorial on how to unlock all the secrets of the QR code!
Lets start with a quick glance at our own beautiful renditions featuring this year’s advocates; Erica Domesek for Stained by Sharpie, Mark Rivard for Sharpie Mini, Cheeming Boey for Sharpie Pen and Sharpie Liquid Pencil. 
To check out the secrets that lay just behind this tiny digital door:
1. Whip out that smarty, smarty, smartphone (iPhone, Windows Mobile, Nokia, BlackBerry, and other app-based phones with a camera built in)
2. Boot up your favorite QR reader, or, in the event your phone didnt come pre-loaded with this handy little app, you can download one, like RedLaser, ScanLife, Barcode Scanner, Shop Savvy or i-Nigma. (Caution: some code readers work better with certain devices. For instance, BlackBerry users may have greater success with i-Nigma and ScanLife.)
3. Point your camera at the code…
Scan ME!!
4. Congratulations! You are one step closer to revealing a whole new world of exclusive content AND look like a digital baller doing it. While you’re at it, scan the Sharpie ads above for a behind the scenes look at all of our advocates (yeah, I had to)!
AHOY MATEY!!! Welcome to International Talk Like a Pirate Day; a day where we can threaten those around us with the plank, list swashbuckling as a favorite pastime and Johnny Depp is a celebrated international hero.
Aka, one of my favorite days of the year. So, whip out your stuffed parrot, brush up on your ”Pirate” vernacular with this handy translator, grab an orange Sharpie for that hit of vitamin C power (possibly a real orange if you’re planning on taking this seriously; scurvy is no laughing matter…) and this handy Sharpie treasure map. 
Want your own?
1. Grab yer’ favorite map makin’ tools; Stained by Sharpie fabric markers and a handy bandana.
2. Scrounge up an image of a map from that new’fangled Google or make up your own.
3. Trace or sketch out your map with Stained by Sharpie or a barnacle.
4.Protect your booty! Keep those good-for-nothin’ mongrels you call friends from stealing all your loot and booby-trap your hiding place!
Feel free to add your own dastardly examples of the ultimate Pirate revenge, buried treasure, ship etiquette or the most effective way to avoid a Kraken in the comments section.
X marks the spot ya’swashbucklin’ fools!
Our wonderful intern, Caitlin Ursini, may have already headed back to school for the fall, but we have kept some of her blog posts under wraps- waiting for the perfect time to share them with all of you, Sharpie enthusiasts.
Read on to hear Caitlin’s take on the duct tape craze that is adding a little something extra to the Sharpie world.
Sharpie Markers are meant to help you express yourself. You’ve always known you can use them to show the world what you can create, but now you can express yourself just by how your Sharpie marker looks!
The new, hot trend of duct tape flowers has made its way to Sharpie Markers. With dozens of colors and designs of duct tape, the flower on top of your Sharpie marker can be anything from Hello Kitty to bright yellow to zebra print.
We’ve found a great blog post to help all you of you get started with your own duct tape flower. So, check out some of the samples we found below and then get going on your own creation.
Like the flowers that you see? You can find the site to buy them by clicking here.
Guest blogger, Stephanie!
It’s time again! Check out our latest Sharpie Featured Artist, Warren Beinart, and hear what he has to say to guest blogger this week, Stephanie Markadonatos, a fellow employee and Sharpie fanatic.
I’m sure we’ve all done a little doodle-ing at some point in our lives and thought nothing more of it; Warren Beinart, the creator of “The Doodle Daily” blog, is the exception.
The doodle Doctor, himself.
He has taken this creative pastime to a new level; it has become his passion, “I started my Daily Doodle Blog as a challenge to myself to see if I could create something new every day for at least a year using social networking as the only means to spread the word.
Since the start of Warren’s challenge 2 years ago he has posted a new doodle every day for the past 750+ days.
Originally from Cape Town, South Africa, Warren now resides in the Washington, DC area working as a Business Analyst by day (with numerous meetings giving him plenty of time to doodle.) Warren chose Sharpie products as his primary implement, “because I loved the diversity of the products, the fine point and “no-bleed through” features of the Sharpie pen, and the markers are perfect for the think lines and preciseness of my work. I have never looked back. As you say, ‘It starts with Sharpie.’”
Warren’s dream is to encourage the doodlers of the world by challenging them to a “World Doodle Challenge.” He hopes to receive 1,000,000 doodles from around the world and connect with other passionate sketch artists and doodlers, therefore “uniting the world 1 doodle at a time.”
Sharpie is proud to be Warren’s product of choice, “[Sharpie] products have been invaluable to me…I cannot tell you how many Sharpie Pens and Permanent markers I have been through during this journey.”
Accept Warren’s challenge and submit your own doodle or scribble to his blog, scroll through some of his master doodle pieces, and check in with his progress by following him on Twitter and Facebook.
Whether it’s the freedom of the open road or the precision and distinctive beauty of the bikes themselves, motorcycle enthusiasts are passionate about the ride.
The bike took NASCAR artist Nick Pastura more than 120 hours and 275 Sharpie markers to complete.
The Koi fish symbolizes energy and motion and is sometimes interpreted to mean non-conformity. Koi also means strength in time of adversity, persistence, and the ability to overcome resistance.
According to the Buddhist tradition, the breathtaking but brief beauty of the cherry blossom symbolizes the transient nature of life.
ARTIST NICK PASTURA SHARES HIS SHARPIE SECRETS
While Nick rarely shares the secrets of his trade, he agreed to give us this interview about his use of Sharpie markers on this classic motorcycle:
After you landed on the overall design concept, what were the next steps for contributing that vision to paper?
I started out doing a lot of research on traditional Japanese imagery and colors. I wanted to stick with the classic Sharpie colors as my main stay…after that, it was just a matter of what tip shapes and sizes would work well together on each motorcycle part.
How did you transfer the design onto the bike? Transfer paper.
What type of Sharpie marker did you use to:
Were there any special techniques you used to ensure the marker ink lay down properly or covered the area properly? I used small, tight, circular motions.
Did you blend any of the marker colors to create custom colors, and if so, how? Again using three similar colors to add to the main base color to complement it and blend.
Were there any other techniques or tips in the early stages to note? Yes. When blending colors, make sure the ink is still wet in order to blend easily. You have to work quickly.
Once you completed the finished design, what did you do to seal it? What type of sealant did you use? First, I applied three light mist coats of Dupont 622 Intercoat Adhesion Promotor. Then I let it sit for four hours to dry thoroughly. The final clear coat was Dupont g2 4500S Fast Activator.
Did you encounter any special challenges with the ink application and if so, how do you suggest managing them? Make sure the colors are dry before moving on to the next color or they will bleed.
Do you recommend lay artists give this a try on their own bikes? Any tips for a practice run? Yes, but try to practice on an old gas tank or fender if possible.
What do you like best about Sharpie markers for creating your designs? What makes them unique? What do they bring to the design that other art tools, i.e. spray finishing, don’t? Sharpie markers give you the ability to blend three similar colors together. In automotive painting, it is just not the norm to blend colors like that. Using Sharpie markers was both exciting and intimidating at first but I got the hang of it quickly after a few test runs. It was great to have the markers right at your reach…the color reference is so visual that way.
Ben's sons, Helmut, 13, and Julius, 10, at the Fox River Harley-Davidson dealership in St. Charles, Illinois, just after the new Sharpie-drawn tins were installed.
This weekend, the bike will make its debut at the Irwin Tools Night Race in Bristol, Tenn., where Ben will take it for a lap around the track during pre-race ceremonies tonight. Sharpie is a partial sponsor of the NASCAR race. Irwin Tools and Sharpie are sister brands, both part of the Newell Rubbermaid family. Here’s a sneak peak of Ben’s trial run Thursday night:
Start With Sharpie
The Sharpie Harley couldn’t have come at a better time as Sharpie launches its new Start with Sharpie campaign.
The campaign focuses on the legions of Sharpie fans (almost 2 million on Facebook alone) using Sharpie products in inspiring and creative ways, challenging them to start something with Sharpie. To find out how you can submit your Sharpie creation to the Sharpie gallery and be part of Sharpie’s You Tube Takeover, visit www.sharpie.com.
If the president of Sharpie can start something this cool, what are you gonna start?
Last week we shared some of the amazing things one of our own is starting with Sharpie, and this week we have a whole team of stellar Newell employees who are adding their own flavor to the showcase.
Left to Right: Amy, Lea, Ruth, Jennifer (in the back), Kim, and Betsey
The team from Calphalon Kitchen Outlet in Houston, TX added some spice to a lonely lid and a slow night with some Sharpie sketches; associate store manager, Jennifer Chavez, and her team, submitted their own Sharpie doodle and are our newest Employee(s) of the Week.
Scroll on to see what this star-studded Texas team is starting with Sharpie…
Now, what are you gonna start!?
Get ready to wage war with the green-eyed-monster (using a green Sharpie, of course). It’s the Sharpie TEEN VOGUE “It Girls Night In” event!
Our favorite teen fashion-centric magazine chose 10 fashion savvy young women from it’s online “It Girl” panel to host the ultimate girls-night-in for themselves and five of their closest friends.
Sharpie provided the goodies, including a Sharpie product lineup some could only dream of — all so they could show the world what they were starting with Sharpie.
HUGE Thanks to all of our TEEN VOGUE “It Girls” for sharing what they have started with Sharpie… Lia Girdano, Stephanie Maldonado, Maddi Doering, Takiara Bullock, Sarah Hass, Amanda Provost, Cassy Stone, Brigitte Dale, Octavia Childs and Alexis Martin!
For more pictures and more on the “It Girls” and the Night In event, check out the October issue of TEEN VOGUE, on sale September 13th!