It was 1999, Star Wars episode 1 came out. I could be wrong but I don't care. I enjoyed the first three or is it the last three, I like the ones that came out first. Star Wars purist would be quick to correct me, that is why I choose not to speak publicly about Star Wars. When the last three films were announced my friends who are huge fans quickly dusted of all the Space crap that filled their closets. Posters rehung, figures posed once again. It was a good time to recapture that feeling once again. Although I was slightly excited to see the next three I wouldn't allow myself to buy into the machine. Why does each movie introduce a shit ton of new characters, space machinery and other various collectible items? I am guilty of buying a few things but I never owned them long enough to gather dust.
Anyways, it was that summer that my best friend of many years told me he had just ordered a replica of a light saber. He went on to describe the make and model and the character who uses this highly detailed future dust collector. I understand the need to be a part of something and don't condemn this behavior. I just see it as opportunity. So I guess this replica was ordered from a company that wasn't licensed to manufacture these things but had "experts" who carefully crafted these things. If dressing like your favorite character when it's not Halloween doesn't makes you an expert I don't know what does.
I got a phone call at least once a day or every other day from my friend. He would tell me "I think today is the day". I'm sure he fogged up the glass everyday waiting for the UPS man. I asked him what he was going to do once he got it. He looked at me like I was unaware of the possibilities.
After a few weeks it had not shown up. There must have been a delay in the costumed "experts" factory/parents house.
Unfortunately I couldn't hear about it another day so I decided to manufacture my own. At my work we use these printing cartridges that once disassembled have two black plastic rods with a handle. I loaded some vinyl in a decal cutting machine and cut circles and stripes in various space age colors. I opted to not use a reference in fear of getting too close the the real thing. I placed the circles which looked nothing like the buttons they were supposed to represent, it was perfect. I wrapped it in bubble wrap and printed a shipping label. I even went out of the way to download and print a certificate with the LucasArts logo. Once my finely crafted space turd was done I dropped it of with his mom. I explained the situation to her and she was more than happy to help. She told me she was also tired of hearing about this thing.
A few hours passed and I got a call from my friend. We talked for a while. At least 10 minutes passed without him mentioning his light saber. I decided to bring it up. I asked him hey did you ever get that thing you ordered. Quietly he said yes. I said so is it pretty cool? Yeah it's ok he said. He didn't go into detail and was quick to get off the phone. A few days passed and I completely forgot about the prank. I later heard from his mom he had been arguing with the manufacturer about the shitty quality of his replica. They stood by their product and was not eligible for a return. Had I known the effect my light saber caused I would have told him I made that thing over my lunch break. Fortunately the actual thing arrived within a few days. It was actually kinda bad ass but I liked mine more.
Sunday, November 27, 2011
All souls procession
Piece I did for All Souls Procession 2012 poster contest. On display now at Solar Culture.
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