Painting with Light?! Speed Painting that is – in Blacklight..

Last week, we mentioned Jimi Hendrix’s face lighting up on a dark stage – did you catch that? We were hoping to pique your interest, to make you say, “How on earth would Jimi Hendrix’s face light up and not the rest of the stage?” Well, it’s been a trade secret for a decade. But brace yourselves, because I’m about to reveal the secret to you, here, and now: Fairy dust

Had you going there, huh? Actually, it’s painted with special paint that glows iridescently under blacklight (and yes this is when you should have flashbacks to those velvet blacklight posters of the 60’s).
That’s right, after seeing a celebrity icon speed  painted – 7 feet tall – in the time it takes for a normal person to gather their brushes and paints, one would think that would be enough, but not for Speed Painter Michael Ostaski, or The 3 Painters: they get the urge to bring fast painting to the next level, a rotating screen, loud and powerful music, and a canvas that electrifies to neon life under the glow of ultraviolet light; all come together in yet another amazingly unique speed painting experience.

Check out some of the ways they’ve been making it happen with blacklight!

Incredible Blacklight Painting by Speed Painter Michael Ostaski

and The 3 Painters

The Paint Brothers – Speed Painting Duo

Get ready to be inspired!

It’s time to announce the Paint Brothers – an organic and dynamic speed painting duo that will rock your world.

If you look back at some of the blogs on this site, you’ll see something in common with the entries: They bring news of originality and innovation in the speed painting world. You’d see a Mockingjay, painted in less than 6 minutes of real time, go up in flames. You’d see Jimi Hendrix’s face, again painted right before your eyes, light up in neon colors on the dark stage (which is probably how he saw himself most of the time). And you’d see a glue painting come together in seconds as Donna Summers’ face is revealed in an ocean of golden glitter.

Enter the Paint Brothers – bringing the innovation of cooperative fast painting. Some siblings finish each other’s sentences, but how many bros can say that they finish each other’s paintings?  In this new act brought you to by Celebrity Enterprises, the boys sometimes do just that.  Michael and Jeffrey go way back, and they interact with each other and each other’s work.

We think it’s time you checked out the most recent inventive spin on speed painting – The Paint Bothers!

New performance concept… Speed Painting with Glitter!

Hold on to your hats, ladies and gentlemen. What I’m about to tell you is nothing short of a modern artistic innovation.

Glitter. It’s not just for arts and crafts any more.

Let me take a moment to explain. If you’re reading this blog, you know that it’s really the place to come for the latest updates and innovations in the fast painting world. For instance, when Michael Ostaski became the first speed painter to paint with flames, you saw the news right here. Now, it’s time to bring you the next big thing – speed glitter painting.

Behind the scenes, it’s actually quite interesting. There’s a ton of planning involved – buying the right glitter to use is the first, essential step to creating a spectacular sparkling portrait. If the glitter is too big, it doesn’t form the picture correctly. If you don’t get the right color, you are simply asking for trouble (one must think before creating John Lennon in mustard yellow sparkles!).

What else might surprise you is the amount of sheer skill that’s involved. When speed painting with regular, visible paint, you always have what you just painted as a frame of reference. When painting with clear glue, the artist must trust his painter’s hands and fly blind (or, more appropriately, paint blind).  Without the talent, you could be thinking that you’re painting a portrait of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., but when you glitterize it, you’ve actually painted something resembling a play-doh sculpture that got stepped on by accident.

What makes the glitter painting so outstanding is the wow factor it inevitably provides. Imagine a picture taking shape immediately and completely all at once!  It’s the perfect way to end a show in front of thousands or a Saturday night. But don’t take my word for it; take a look at the video!

by Jonahflamingo

Speed Painting Olympically

First of all, BIG congratulations to the USA Women’s field hockey team, both for qualifying for the Olympics, but also for a great finish against Argentina in a four-game series that was even televised on NBC Sports Network.

Speed painter Michael Ostaski (along-side popular corporate act The Pink Flamingos) was invited to perform at an event that the team held, a celebratory gathering of friends, family of the athletes, coaches, sponsors, past, current and future olympians, etc., and what a gathering it was!

London 2012!!

To begin the entertainment, Michael painted a larger than life patriotic portrait, with superb singer Ashley King providing the grand, vocal finale, and then the Pink Flamingos took over.

A little later, Michael wowed with another painting, this time of the London 2012 Olympics logo. After he finished this 2^nd masterpiece, the Olympic march began to play and the band members lined up along the tables of the athletes- coach Lee Bodimeade introduced each Olympian one by one to the crowd and called them to the stage, and confetti followed each one as they ascended.

It rained confetti and splendor.

Once all of the athletes were on stage, the emcee brought back Michael for one final time, painting a field hockey player, and then spectacularly revealing the names of the 16 qualifying athletes while they watched from their spots on stage.

“We made the Olympic Team!”

Once Michael finished his third and last painting, the Olympians lifted a giant American flag and held it along the stage’s edge – and Ashley sang the National Anthem all by himself, no instruments, no track, just his stirring voice and a couple thousand listening ears.

Even a fiercely loyal Canadian couldn’t help but feel like a Patriot.

The National Anthem a la King

After he finished, the athletes tore off the stage and began to party, as The Pink Flamingos took center stage for a highly interactive dance.

This was a great opportunity for Michael (whom calling a “sports fan” would be the understatement of the century, by the way) to blend two seemingly unrelated mediums together – two mediums he loves. He did it once back in 2008 for Beijing, did it again this year for London, and he’s ready for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics – ready when you are, Olympians!

Baskets, and Touchdowns, and Paintings…Oh MY! Speed Painting at Sports Events

Michael Ostaski LOVES painting for sports fans – they’re one of the most passionate and vocal audiences that any performer could hope for: they cheer, they yell, they jump out of their seats and get into it! Just like Michael.

And athletics’ fans are eager for artistry, the leap to the basket, the blur at the finish line, the sailing drop of sweat, and Michael, one of the most versatile fast painters, strives to capture the drama in a wild 7 minute surge of paint on canvas. Basket after touchdown after home run after photo finishes… major sports fans, from the NBA to NASCAR to the Olympics, love it; it’s a rush, and they hunger for it.

But let’s not forget about the “P” word: pressure. Sporting events are all about it. For performing artists its one of the highest-pressure situations they will ever face. Take, for instance the performance that Michael did for the Chicago Bulls (actually, performances for most basketball games are very similar to this) – when performing for a basketball halftime, you have one of the shortest performance slots in the biz – 6 minutes to be exact. That’s six minutes to tarp the court, bring out the canvas and paint supplies, paint the painting, take off all the supplies and canvas, and then refold the tarp remove it as well (keep in mind that on average, Michael takes between 6 and 7 minutes to paint a portrait; this does not include setup or breakdown times). Oh, did we mention that if we were to get even a drop of paint on the court, it would be a foul for the home team and delay the game, most likely resulting in a fan riot? Ok, probably not, but we’ve never been willing risk it! Stressful? To say the least. But worth it? Absolutely!

We don’t just love performing, we love the opportunity to travel, inspire, and meet some cool people -like the Brain Urlacher (of Chicago Bears fame), Reggie Miller (one of only 5 to have his jersey number retired by the Indiana Pacers), and Yao Ming (Houston’s Chinese super-tall super-star) sort of cool people. And we’ve painted at all sorts of sports, too – golf, football, you name it. We’ve even done paintings for the Olympics!

The point is, sports and fast painting actually have a lot in common; high-energy, excitement, and a great rally for people to come together. What could be better than being a part of, and then watching, a good-natured and spirited sport, whatever it may be?

By jonahflamingo – Jonah also posts at http://thepinksband.wordpress.com/

You’ve Hired a Fast Painter… Now What?

The Pink Flamingos

One of the best ways to boost your brand, deliver your company’s message clearly or even express your organization’s mission is through the use of live art performance painting or fast/speed painting.

One of our amazing acts is called Art Explosion, where the outstanding Michael Ostaski paints huge, elaborate paintings in less than 7 minutes. Now that you’ve hired Michael (or another fast painter) for your next event, the incomparable Lisa DeWolf shares with us her inside tips on how to make yours the most successful event it can be.

Use your fast painter to the best of their abilities.

Lisa says that the first thing to consider is how can you creatively use your newly hired speed painter. Consider the event that the painter is performing at – is it an award ceremony? Instead of simply announcing who the winner of the big sales competition is, have your speed painter…

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Thinking of Hiring a Speed Painter? Check Out These Tips

The Pink Flamingos

Speed painting – what a fantastic performance art. It really is one of the most versatile corporate entertainment acts available today. So, you’ve decided to hire yourself a speed painter for your next corporate event? Good Choice! Before you rush into hiring the first speed painter you find, here’s some advice from our show designer, Lisa DeWolf, to help you pick the best painter to meet your needs.

First and foremost, make sure you like their work!

Reputable speed painters will have a portfolio of work that they’ve done live in the average speed-painter’s time frame (6-10 minutes). And, more often than not, you can easily view their work online. So, view it! Make sure that you like the caliber of their work – what you see is a good indication of what you’ll get in a live performance.

Consider your budget, of course!

Prices for speed painters range very…

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