Personal projects
Other stuff I do, have done, am doing
Other stuff I do, have done, am doing
People often say how lucky I am to get to do what I love for a living. My pat answer is "Yeah, but it ruined it for me as a hobby." One thing I enjoy doing in my down time, especially since I live a half-mile from the beach, is riding my bike. Another is making something out of nothing in the garage. I usually call it "making sawdust," but likely as not it'll involve hammering, soldering, glueing, wrenching, sewing, swearing, you name it. I ain't picky.
So one day, instead of sticking my lunch, water, laptop, reading matter, towel, sunscreen, frisbee, binocs, etc. in a backpack, I threw an old canvas bag I had over the top horizontal tube of my bike, and jury-rigged a way to hold it on there. It worked great! No more sweaty back, and once I got to the beach I could just as easily detach the bag and carry it down to the water by its shoulder strap.
On my ride home, I thought of a few improvements I could make. Back home I made a few sketches, and showed it to my longtime client and friend, Ron Jones, a manufacturer of golf equipment (CEO of Byron Jones Inc.) for whom I've been designing packaging and whatnot for years. I asked him if he thought my little bike bag idea had any commercial potential.
"Tom," he replied, "get that thing patented and I'll guarantee you manufacturing and worldwide distribution."
Three years, one patent and one trademark later, PCYCH™ (as in CYCLE with a PC) Mid-Frame Bike Bags is on the shelves. So, I can now add an industrial designer and entrepreneur to my resume. Of course, I had to do a ton of graphic design in support of our little endeavor as well. What follows is but a smattering…
PCYCH.COM
An earlier version of the website that I much prefer over the final version. Hey, I'm just the designer/inventor/licensor. Not the licensee/manufacturer/distributor.
PCYCH 4-fold brochure
Merchandising diagram
PCYCH was introduced at Interbike 2010, the big international bicycle industry tradeshow in Las Vegas, September, 2010.
Report from opening day: "Good traffic today. High interest and we are cross merchandising the bags on an electric Police bike around the corner. All good so far… Busiest booth in our aisle or close to it. All in all it's going very well."
What they used to call "Art"
I don't draw as much as I used to. The garage is filled with dusty old boxes full of sketch pads from the pre-digital art school days…
Life drawing class, circa late 70s, early 80s. I had a pretty good wrist. During summers, I used to do courtroom sketching, sold some to ABC News, back in the days when they didn't allow cameras in the courtroom.
Shadow 1985
Ciggie (Cygnus Trueblue) as a young pup 1987
Gotta be quick to draw a puppy. You can see two different poses, by the position of the eyes.
Leaves Sketch" 1997
Shows a quick-sketch technique I developed as a starving art student in the 70s. On my way to class I'd grab a handful of leaves from any tree or bush. I'd start by scrubbing in tones with the crumpled leaves. Then I'd draw into it with crayon to add minimal definition. Used to really stink up the classroom, all that plant juice.
Shows a quick-sketch technique I developed as a starving art student in the 70s. On my way to class I'd grab a handful of leaves from any tree or bush. I'd start by scrubbing in tones with the crumpled leaves. Then I'd draw into it with crayon to add minimal definition. Used to really stink up the classroom, all that plant juice.
"Makie" 1997
In the early Mac days, I was channeling Warhol, doing silkscreen-like portraits in Adobe Illustrator. This one is my wife, Makie.
"Kai" 1997
Our son, one year old. He's now taller than I am.
"Jose Eber" 1997
Hairstylist to the stars. This hung in his Dallas salon. From a pretty old photo of him. When I met him, he had become a chubby old man, but still had the trademark hat and hair.
Hairstylist to the stars. This hung in his Dallas salon. From a pretty old photo of him. When I met him, he had become a chubby old man, but still had the trademark hat and hair.
I was trying to sell my Pop Art portraiture online in the late 90s. One of my other commissions was from a member of the royal family of Kuwait! Can't show it here, but it hung in their palace! I think maybe I was charging too much.
"Once Upon a Time" 2006
28" x 28"
Still channeling Warhol. This is something I made during downtime at work one day. The Beatle boots photo is © Robert Freeman. The unintelligible text is the lyrics to "Like a Rolling Stone" © Bob Dylan. Read the lyrics (we all know 'em) with the thought that it's Dylan's somewhat bitter contemplation of the Beatles. "Once upon a time you dressed so fine, threw the bums a dime in your prime," etc.
Still channeling Warhol. This is something I made during downtime at work one day. The Beatle boots photo is © Robert Freeman. The unintelligible text is the lyrics to "Like a Rolling Stone" © Bob Dylan. Read the lyrics (we all know 'em) with the thought that it's Dylan's somewhat bitter contemplation of the Beatles. "Once upon a time you dressed so fine, threw the bums a dime in your prime," etc.
For Sale
I've made this and a few other works available to print as fine art posters over at my For Sale section. Printing is done by Fotomoto.com, and is available at a range of sizes, and on a range of substrates.
Go check it out by clicking here.
"Worshipping At The Altar Of Science"
photomontage by Tom Prager, 2012
recommended size 36" x 24"
I like letting things happen accidentally-on-purpose, un(or semi)consciously throwing random stuff together and letting associations take place, with only a little bit of control. I set up rules in my head, that you have to go with what you've got without over-manipulating or considering anything precious. Then, visually, I try to charge the entire field of view -- nothing is precious, every square inch is as important as the next. That way, the randomness of the composition forces the eye to swim around in its own unconscious pattern, tricking the mind into thinking that something is going on here, but what? I think Dylan and Lennon and Duchamp and Rauschenburg and many others used the same trick. Pure laziness, really, but in a way, democratic and generous and respectful of the viewer; non-tyrannical. And usually fun, during the process and after.
Detail, upper left corner:
photomontage by Tom Prager, 2012
recommended size 36" x 24"
I like letting things happen accidentally-on-purpose, un(or semi)consciously throwing random stuff together and letting associations take place, with only a little bit of control. I set up rules in my head, that you have to go with what you've got without over-manipulating or considering anything precious. Then, visually, I try to charge the entire field of view -- nothing is precious, every square inch is as important as the next. That way, the randomness of the composition forces the eye to swim around in its own unconscious pattern, tricking the mind into thinking that something is going on here, but what? I think Dylan and Lennon and Duchamp and Rauschenburg and many others used the same trick. Pure laziness, really, but in a way, democratic and generous and respectful of the viewer; non-tyrannical. And usually fun, during the process and after.
Detail, upper left corner:
Miscellany
And other random stuff…
Blueprint for Folding Rocking Chair
Scale 1:6
This is from when I was teaching myself Adobe Illustrator (1.0!). It's an accurate blueprint of an ingenious folding rocker we own, made of maple. One of these days I need to measure up and draw the front view for the seat and back. If you print this out and cut it up like a paper doll, using straight pins at the pivot points, you can test how it folds up. Very strong, light and comfortable.
This is from when I was teaching myself Adobe Illustrator (1.0!). It's an accurate blueprint of an ingenious folding rocker we own, made of maple. One of these days I need to measure up and draw the front view for the seat and back. If you print this out and cut it up like a paper doll, using straight pins at the pivot points, you can test how it folds up. Very strong, light and comfortable.
Something that very few people know about me…
You're No Good, Tom Prager
Artist: Aretha Franklin1967
I don't know why she let me do those things to her. Her friends kept telling her but it didn't do no good. Cuz she ain't never, no never, she ain't neverrrrrrrr no no, loved a man, the way that she, she loved me.
Lifehack
How to mix the oil into your peanut butter.
