Dogpatch Press

Fluff Pieces Every Week

Month: August, 2020

Weird Portland, Pepper Coyote and a Sleestak are a perfect match for the dumpster fire of 2020

by Patch O'Furr

Two stories this week are an antidote to a year full of doom, gloom, fire, fury, and not nearly enough hugs and smiles.

First: Possibly some of the peak publicity furry music has ever gotten! Then, a scaly monster stalks the streets of Portland… here’s hoping he does a Q&A for us.

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“Very surprised and very grateful”: fursuit maker Beauty of the Bass talks about a $14,000 sale.

by Patch O'Furr

Previously: Furries support independent art with $14,000 and $15,600 fursuit auctions at The Dealers Den.

A creepy-cute aesthetic

“I prefer to work on scary, creepy, odd, gory and crazy designs,” said UK-based fursuit maker Beauty of the Bass in her recent Dealers Den auction.

Ghatz, the suit shown here, doesn’t belong to the lucky winner — theirs is waiting to start — but this completed work can show why her talent earns a price as high as $14,000.

The Krampus-like aesthetic stands out in a crowd of technicolor fluff. Imagine basking in the spookiness in person, then being chased by this creature through delightfully twisted nightmares. The maker’s vision is detailed in her FAQ that pairs her with compatible clients.

(BotB) — Things I look for in a design and application:

  • A well written and thought out application form.
  • A clear reference of the character in question with a strong idea of concept and direction the client wishes me to go in.
  • On the other hand, I am looking for artistic liberty suits. These will be done on an ‘offer me a price’ basis.
  • Interesting, scary, gory, unique, tricky and extravagant designs will have more of a chance to go through.
  • I am wanting to do a belly suit, so will be looking for that opportunity!
  • WEREWOLVES. MYTHICAL CREATURES. DEMONS.
  • Silicone drool, skin and gore effects. This does not require lots of mold making, therefore I am more than happy to do this.
  • Willingness to go the extra mile for the extra effects and will be happy to push the boat out with me, as i’m wanting to push myself.
  • Unique species, uncommon species and hybrids.
  • Mutations, extra parts, double jaws, double faces, scars.
  • Long fur accents, manes and mohawks with the NFT fur upgrade.

It’s another example of unique vision seen in a 2017 story: Q&A with Kazul of Kazplay, first place winner for cosplay at Blizzcon. Kazul wanted to create a living illusion for her Hogger suit — to hide the human form and “look like he smelt like a wet, dirty dog” — and be more than a person wearing a rug.

(Kazul) — With all my work I strive to make convincing characters. When I hear people ask “how is it moving like that?” “How is a person inside that?” when I know that I’ve tricked their brain well enough that they can only see what is in front of them as a real creature, that’s when I win.

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Furries support independent art with $14,000 and $15,600 fursuit auctions at The Dealers Den

by Patch O'Furr

Sweet success for MixedCandy and Beauty of the Bass

Beauty of the Bass, a Britain-based fursuit maker and performer, felt the love from fans when a commission auction sold for ÂŁ10,700 this month. That’s $14,025 USD at current exchange rate, and over three times the full fursuit price quoted on her website.

There’s no suit yet. The winner gets to have it created. Her auction lists some conditions — certain tech options aren’t possible and “I prefer to work on scary, creepy, odd, gory and crazy designs” — but there’s one benefit only an auction winner can get. No denial. Direct commissioners may not be accepted depending on the maker’s discretion for what she wants to make; but this winner enters the queue unconditionally after current customers.

An auction like this makes a premium option for artists and customers who really want their work. The price proves the demand. It’s near the highest records for any fursuit auction, which was $17,017 achieved by MixedCandy in July 2018 (beating a $13,500 auction by Made Fur You in January 2018.)

MixedCandy herself received a new $15,600 price just days after this $14,000 price for Beauty of the Bass. These outstanding prices can help to show the state of the Furry Economy and its artists.

Of course this isn’t a fursuit-selling competition. It’s support that lets makers keep directly serving fans, a rare and special opportunity to go “pro fan” as a career. That’s not get-rich-quick work, and there can be a lot of turnover. (Many makers serve commissioners with smaller wallets). Fursuits aren’t really investments either — they’re functional art that adds photogenic magic to events for all furries. You can have an open fandom and well-supported artists too.

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Take the Furry Fandom 2020 Survey from author Tea Krulos.

by Patch O'Furr

If you’ve ever had to explain to an outsider what furries are, you might be a little weird. Or as I prefer, lovably eccentric. There’s a writer who gets the lovable part, and he wants your help to learn more about furries. You can be part of the research:

Click here to take the Furry Fandom 2020 Survey.

Tea Krulos is a freelance journalist and author who covers subcultures, weird news, and strange personalities. He also writes about local art and entertainment for a bunch of magazines and has his own weekly column. His books are about the Real Life Superhero Movement, monster hunters who chase Bigfoot, ghosts and UFO’s, cryptozoology and more. It makes me want to visit a whole book store just for that stuff — and help him make a new book.

Tea and I did an hour interview and he told me about his research. It was just before he led a weekly walking ghost/history tour. Last time I did one in New Orleans, I was happy to have a trusty guide to lead me on a leash. (It kept me from slipping in ectoplasm or Mardi Gras barf.) I think Tea’s research will make him a trusty guide like that. The survey is sociological and asks about a few debated topics, but I know there’s nothing wrong with writing about them from someone who is just learning and being into the same stuff as me. He says:

Hello furry friends — my name is Tea, I’m a freelance writer and author from Milwaukee, WI. As an eccentric punk rocker, I’ve always had an interest in subcultures, social movements, and fandoms and have written about them several times (including roller derby, paranormal investigators, Real-life Superheroes, music cultures and more) and I always approach the people I’m writing about in a respectful (but truthful) way.

I’m working on a future book that examines a variety of subcultures/ social movements that focuses on the years 2015-2020 under the Trump campaign/ administration. To write it I’m doing a lot of interviews and also surveys directed at different groups of people.

I’ve created a survey for the furry fandom that takes about 5 minutes to complete. Your personal info will not be shared. Surveys like this are helpful in getting some idea of who the group is and if their answers are mostly in agreement or split on issues. I hope you participate (and help share) and the last entry asks for contact info if you wish to talk further.

Thank you and a big thanks to Patch for his insight on the survey questions and for helping me spread the word. Hope you’re all well in this crazy year.

— Tea Krulos
www.teakrulos.com

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The Furry Music Anthology releases “New Horizons: The Anthrology Vol. II”

by Patch O'Furr

The Furry Music Anthology is uniting musicians, just like other furry artists, to share their music and be recognized with one collective platform. A themed series was launched with “Anthrology Vol. 1: A Song of Your Sona“. 13 musicians contributed using the Furry Musicians group on FurAffinity and Twitter. Now there’s a new edition featuring 15 musicians.

Get it here: https://furrymusicanthology.bandcamp.com/album/new-horizons (It’s all still free!)

Here’s what perked up my ears and made the music sound furry for me in this thoughtfully sequenced collection.

  • Wings of a Dream – New Dawn is a percolating rock opener, like coffee for mice before they do a secret mission in Catland.
  • Indy Go Rat – Maybe This Time is loopy HĂĽsker DĂĽ indie rock for questioning existence.
  • Skunk Surfeit – Passion has a minimal beat that flips out with angsty fuzz, for venting about feeling dogpiled.
  • Jayden Raske Productions and Ikodo feat. Rye – Long for Rain is chill aquatic and jazzy, for otter floaty time.
  • Byeonaraye! – Twostep is a nice little nervous instrumental with beats & piano, for sneaking down an alley in Toontown.
  • RobinG – Fuzz is throbbing neon synthpop candy for dancing with your fursuit crush.
  • I.S.T – Your Life Remade is moody post-breakup rock with strings for a long walk in the woods.

There’s more from What Eyleth Thee?, Edward Sebastian, Cordial, Entro-P, TELOS, Out of the Way, âśžFOX, and Tomas Walker.

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