“Mike O’Brien (aka M.O.B.) owns and operates M.O.B. Air Custom Paint and Graphics out of Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada and has been airbrushing for the past 15 years. He specializes in custom automotive airbrush work as well as motorcycle art and helmets. To see some examples of his work, visit www.freewebs.com/airbrushmafia or call 403/671-3226.
Question:
Hello M.O.B. Scene!
First things first: I love the magazine!! Keep up the great work!
Now for my question. Well, I guess it’s more of a comment. I have seen a bit of a trend lately in some of the custom paintjobs at shows and online—portraits or faces painted on vehicles as part of the mural or graphic work.
What are your thoughts on this style of artwork and have you done anything like this on any of your projects? I want my husband to get our ’07 Tundra airbrushed with this style of art. I just love it! I’m also curious how long these kinds of projects take to complete. Any insight?
Karen Roeland
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| mob Scene Portrait Or Face Paintjobs drawing
Answer:
I agree with you, Karen.
I have seen this trend in the airbrush industry. In addition to all the amazing graphics being done, there is a climb in the amount of realistic-looking portraits and murals being done on a lot of the big projects that are rolling around out there.
And I, for one, am glad for this! I love to paint portraits—especially those done in black and white. I think they look more dramatic.
I think you definitely need to lean hard on hubby to get that Tundra into a shop and let the portraits fly!
One thing to keep in mind, though, is the flow of the paintjob. You don’t just want random faces for no reason whatsoever. There should be some kind of element that ties them all together (as I demonstrate in the pics in this article).
Each artist is different, though, and from what I’ve seen at the shows and on the street, there is plenty of talent out there to go around!
How long do these types of paintjobs take to complete? Well, there are lots of factors involved, but typically, the average full-blown custom airbrushed vehicle mural projects takes anywhere from 60 to more than 200 hours, depending on the complexity of the artwork involved and the size of the vehicle. Although, this number can escalate quickly as more and more details are added to the project. Also, it can depend on the caliber of artist you have hired. More experience doesn’t always mean a faster paintjob, though, as a skilled master painter will often spend more time on the tiniest details that will bring the crowd to its feet at the auto shows—or knock ’em over if that’s your preference!
Either way, airbrushed portraits incorporated into your custom paintjob are just plain cool. So, power to the portraits!
That’s it for this one. In the meantime, keep those questions coming—we love to hear from ya!
Keep on sprayin’!
M.O.B.
