Monday, March 17, 2008

Children of the Gods


I am quite the comic book imagery oriented guy so I thought I would add another line drawing in for your enjoyment.
This drawing is based on the television show Stargate SG-1. Though not intended to be reflective of the shows pilot movie/episode under the same title, I always liked the idea of these aliens posing as gods to transplanted humans across the galaxy.
This particular piece is in the coloring and lettering stage.
I have already digitally generated the "event horizon" of the worm hole glowing from the face of the stargate and will add it in when the coloring is complete. The reason being is that depending on how I color the figures and their uniforms and what i do for the background I may adjust the hue of the wormhole so it in not quite as stark in contrast to the rest of the piece.

Saturday, March 15, 2008

"I feel... threatened..."


This piece entitled Do I Frighten You was done in response to my work The Grass is Always Greener. It felt like a natural progression based on how I felt at the time.
In critique the head of the department commented that the work made her feel threatened. Not in a bad way mind you. Just that the tone of the piece, despite the vibrant color housed an underlying aggression.
Up to that pont it had been untitled but soon afterwards I gave it the title it had now.

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Whoever Said it Was About Bloody Distraction?


This piece is a combination silk screen and monotype.
Because of the monotype element there are others that are similar, but with varying color schemes. I'll post one of those soon for comparison/contrast.
Tho a bit pedantic in its presentation I enjoy the effect of this one. A work about ones dream state the stylized figure is a distortion of himself in his color scheme as his unconscious ponders ... whatever.

Friday, March 7, 2008

Seasonal Distortion on 4th and Junipero


This one was originally entitled Seasonal Apathy on 4th and Junipero but i have since changed the title to Seasonal Distortion on 4th and Junipero.
This piece is a simple (but quite large) reduction woodcut.
It started out as one piece (the left image) entitled Summer on 4th.
Soon after I made the second (the right image) as Winter on 4th.
Two separate times of the same year where I was in the exact same spot (same table, same chair, facing the same direction) feeling the exact same way...
As I sat with my sketchbook open I noticed the pattern of shadows cast across the page so I traced them out.
Later in the year I noticed I was sitting in the exact same place in the same orientation I had been in months before. Once again I had my sketchbook open and noticed the arrangement of shadows across the page. I realized the shadows were cast by the same tree / shrub as before.
I began to think of the nature of the shadows, not as accurate representations of the plant they were cast from, but as distortions of the truth of the plant.
And being as that the location, time of day and circumstances of the two separate events were almost identical I was struck by the dissimilarity in the distortion. A dissimilarity that was predominantly attributable to the time of year.
My mind started making connections between this and circumstances in my own life and I found myself wrapped up in an internal dialog about art imitating life / life imitating art.
I combined them into a diptych after the fact...

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

Mixed Media


The print I used as the background for this drawing of the hulk is a stand alone piece in my printmaking portfolio. As I have stated before I have recently discovered the joy of digitally mixing prints and drawings and the monotype print (entitled The Storm) seemed to fit perfectly with the drawing. The figure of the hulk playing his usual "heavy" is contrasted in his graphic nature with the more organic look of the print while the colors tend to reestablish a connection .
I know a number of professionals don't tend to like the mixture of styles but I see it as very visually dynamic.
Mixture of the two styles increases the possibility of where one can go with a drawing. Moreover I enjoy the mixture not for any formalistic reasons but because it looks cool.

Tuesday, March 4, 2008

After Redon


Odilon Redon was an artist (painter and printmaker) from the late 1800's to very early 1900's. He frequently played with disembodied body parts in his work as he was a symbolist.
I have a fairly great appreciation for his work as it seems to appeal to a particular sense of analysis of the world for me. Analysis of ones environment and changing circumstance. And how that change can make people feel.
This Print is entitled After Redon because it is based (all be it somewhat loosely) on a print of his i saw once where the disembodied eye became the balloon.
The piece entitled The Eye, Like a Strange Balloon, Mounts Towards Infinity can be seen here.
This is a collagraph print that I inked up intaglio style. I then added watercolor and stamping elements.

Saturday, March 1, 2008

The Grizzly Truth


Again, I must say I am loving monotype printmaking.
I enjoy the formal structure of this piece as much as I enjoy my intention for it.
This print is (of course) a monotype print in just three layers.
Not bad getting that kind of depth and texture out of just three layers.
The image itself is and abstract expression of disgusting realization.
You were bilked for your lifes savings...
Your spouse is having an affair...
The pain you felt wasn't part of the dream, rather it was indeed a wild animal gnawing on your cranium while you slept...
I was going for a visceral reaction to the visual and I believe I got just that.