Custom Fender Telecaster Design Project - “Homage”

Project

Moving to Sacramento, California 3 years ago from NYC left me with a huge void to fill. I had all this new found time and space here but nothing to fill it with. Sacramento is not open 24/7 like NYC. There are no trains here that whisk you away to the borough of your choice where you could hang out with friends, catch a movie, visit extensive art galleries or just party the night away. I felt like 2 things needed to happen. 1) I felt like I needed to learn a musical instrument and, 2) I needed to find new mediums to express my artistic ability. I wanted to move away from designing strictly on a computer screen and I wanted to work with my hands more. I now wanted to design / paint 3D objects.

I settled on the Fender Telecaster as the instrument that I wanted to learn how to play. At the same time I decided that I didn’t want any plain off the shelf guitar. It had to be completely custom. That way, I would be inspired to play for the rest of my life. 

But what was the theme of the guitar going to be? What did I want it to represent? What did I want it to look like? Those were all great questions at the time. The only answer that I had was that I wanted it to look like New York. I wanted it to be an “homage” to the place that I called home. It had to be equal parts good and bad, shiny and gritty, polished and decayed, hip hop and rock and roll. My extended family growing up were all musicians. As a youngster I remember watching my aunts and uncles jam on guitars in my Grand Father’s living room so this guitar, for me is 100% nostalgic. I wanted to conjure up the funk and soul of the family tree. Kind of like a tribute to them.

The inspiration was a mix of late 70’s and 80s NYC. The seedy, dark history mixed with an eclectic mix of graffiti, the iconic skyline and its inhabitants.—everything I loved about New York City growing up. And don’t forget the Subway. Riding the Subway in New York City is like no other city that I’ve ever experienced. And then on top of that, I wanted to add somewhat of a punk rock flare. I had never seen someone combine these elements on a guitar before. Was it odd that I had never seen someone do a hip-hop take on a guitar? Or a city themed guitar that leans so heavily into environmental decay? The thing that’s most interesting about new York City is its ability to recreate itself on so many different levels.

The intention of the way that the guitar was painted was to replicate the process of urban renewal. Paint schemes overlapping one another through the use of stencil. The metal parts of the guitar were also aged on purpose, using acids bathes that created a level of rust and corrosion. There’s a beauty and a chaos to the guitar that started once the design process had stopped. Once I have the design on the computer. Then it became time to figure out how these things were going to be applied to the guitar. I also had to figure out what steps needed to be taken. So sketches turned to stencils. Very rough paper stencils. And for the more technical spots on the guitar, frisket was used. More so in the same way that stencils are applied to walls in New York City.

So the whole process related back to New York City. The buildup of paint throughout the process, the build up of corrosion on the metal parts, the shining bits, the brilliancy in the top coat and the finish allow for all the different messages of what New York is to me. There isn’t an angle of the guitar that does not capture the essence of New York. I picked the 80s theme because it was the most vibrant yet some of the darkest years of New York City, where the seedy undertones of 42nd street were just as alive as the graffiti soaked trains. Creating a heaven or hell, depending on who you asked and what street you turned down. I wanted to capture that energy and emotion into the guitar.

Because it’s gonna be heaven for me to look at this guitar while I’m learning. But it’s also gonna be hell for me to keep practicing. That’s the story behind the guitar “Homage”.

Creative Team

Creative Director
Appolllo Bey

Art Director
Appolllo Bey

Designer
Appolllo Bey

Thank You.