Dark Artz Woodburning

I woodburned this P Bass guitar body with a human heart design some time ago, and while I had included pictures of it on my Gallery page and Facebook page, I never thought to post a blog article about it until I received a picture of the finished guitar. The woodburned body was purchased raw (without finish) by a local bass player, who completed it, selecting the neck, finish, and hardware. The guys at Best Guitar Parts sent me a picture of the finish product.

I’ve mentioned before that it’s always weird to me to see finish on my pieces. In my memory, they are still in their raw state, so to see them completed is surprising, sometimes odd. The guy who purchased this piece chose a simple clear coat, allowing the artwork to show through.

As promised back in April, I completed a guitar neck to go with the ash telecaster guitar body I woodburned a birds design on. I carried the bird theme up the fingerboard and onto the peghead, making them smaller to appear further away. It’s a maple on maple neck, maple being one of my favorite woods to woodburn.

Overall, I think the design worked out well. Now, it’s up to the guys at Best Guitar Parts to get finish and hardware on it. I’m hoping the whole thing will be completed before they head to the NAMM show in Anaheim, CA in a few weeks. The guys are going to have some of my pieces on display at their booth, this one hopefully among them.

As I had mentioned in an earlier post, this guitar body was woodburned with a koi fish design as commissioned by a local guitarist. Well, the body now has finish and the build is complete! I can’t wait to hear it play!

It’s always interesting to see finish on my pieces. They never turn out the way I imagine when I hand them, in their raw state, to the paint shop or to the customer. But this one turned out better than expected. The finish was done by Roxy Guitar Finish and the assembly by Stockwell Guitars.

Recently, a local guitarist commissioned me to add some artwork to his spalted-maple guitar body. He had seen the koi fish piece I’d done (visit the Gallery page for pictures of my original koi fish design) and wanted the same thing on his guitar.

I changed the design a bit, adjusting it to fit the guitar body’s shape and the unique grain of the wood. The spalting in the maple’s grain proved an interesting challenge as I had never woodburned on spalted maple before. I also tried some different woodburning techniques, which gave the fish, particularly the scales, a unique texture. The finished piece turned out better than I had expected. I can’t wait to see it with finish and paired with a neck!

If you have an idea or concept you would like to see woodburned on a guitar or bass body, or even the fingerboard or peghead of a neck, please feel free to send me an email and we can discuss your project.

It’s been a while but I just finished another piece. This ash Telecaster guitar body will eventually be paired with a neck, carrying the bird theme up the fingerboard and onto the peghead.

No plans for what kind of finish to put on it as of yet, though I thought it might be interesting to do a pale blue dye on the wood then a clear coat over that. But that might be going to literal. If you have any thoughts on what kind of finish to put on this piece, please leave me a comment. I’d love to hear about it!

Just finished woodburning and posted pictures for two new pieces. Lately, I’ve been into doing human anatomy themed guitars, hence my human heart design woodburned on a P bass guitar body (visit the Gallery page for pictures of it) and now, this latest one.

My “brain-bass,” a human brain design woodburned on another P bass guitar body, looks incomplete but it isn’t. I left the area that will be covered by the pick guard blank, as it won’t be seen anyway. It kind of looks like intestines to me as well, especially in the pictures. Oh well. Either way, it’s a conversation starter, right?

The other one I just finished is a shattered glass design woodburned on a guitar body. I thought this was an interesting idea, though it didn’t turn out as I had pictured in my head. As much as I wanted to “modify” it and add to it, my opinion was vetoed so I left it as is. Check out the Gallery page for more pictures of both guitars.

My original woodburned guitar and bass bodies are now posted on the Best Guitar Parts website for purchase. Best Guitar Parts In-Stock Bodies

All the guitar bodies available for purchase are my own designs. However, if you have an idea or concept for a design you would like to see woodburned on a guitar or bass body, I also do commission work. Please feel free to send me an email at dark@darkartzwoodburning.com and we can discuss your project.

Why is it that when you want to be inspired, nothing comes to mind? Or you get inspired at the most inopportune moments but forget the idea before you can actually do anything about it?

I feel like I have writer’s block.

I have some ideas for new guitars to woodburn but there always seems to be something wrong. The type of wood or shape of the guitar body isn’t quite right for the design. The design doesn’t come out the way it looks in my head. Or I stress over how the design will be received.

It’s so frustrating. I just want to create.

Is there such a thing as an intervention for artists? Perhaps I just need to lay off the caffeine for a while.

Lately, I’ve gotten inspiration for the designs I woodburn onto guitars from doing Google searches. I think of a word, like say “despair,” type it into Google, then click on Images and see what comes up. There are some amazing images out there on the internet. And I find seeing how another artist interpreted a feeling helps me find a way to express it in my own way. Kind of like how writers reference other writers when they’re blighted by writer’s block.

If I’m lucky, inspiration will just strike while I’m sitting at a red light or doing something mundane, like house chores.

I often wonder how other artists get their inspiration. Do they over think everything like I do? Or do ideas flow ceaselessly, like beer at a frat party?

I’d love to hear about what inspires you.

I’ve been woodburning guitars for a while now, but am just now FINALLY getting my website up and running. I’m kind of new at this, so please bear with me.

As I get new works completed, I will add photos, so be sure to check back frequently. The ones I have photos of already I will be adding to my gallery page in the next few days, but they are already on my Facebook page if you want to have a look in the meantime.

The pieces I will be posting are all original designs that I came up with, things I thought would look good on a guitar or had a personal meaning for me. Like a parent, I’m proud to share them with the world.