Number 22: The Warning

I want this image to read as an abstraction and representation at almost the same time.

abstraction = a red "X" and a red circle.

Representation = an upside down figure in a pose of some distress.

I feel the finished product sort of behaves like signage, hence "The Warning"

This piece also felt like it had a hint of "alien artifact" feel to it.

Part of where I believe this shape comes from (in the depths of my subconscious) is the scarecrow shape from the original Planet of the apes (screen shot below)

Wood, acrylic, epoxy, spray paint, caulk, spackle, metal.

15"H. 12"W.

Number 17

This is a wall-hanging relief piece titled "number 17"

The content is a skull with a crown looking as if they are made of pressed brass/tin. It is a faux-finish approach to the material as it is in fact, spray paint on wood. The death's head has a rich history in art, and I love it as the archetypal symbol. in this case it's a loaded symbol to hang paint on. I also included my sketchbook thumbnail at the bottom

Wood, acrylic, epoxy, glass, spray paint
15"H. 12"W.

Number 15

This is a wall-hanging relief piece titled "number 15".
The content is an upside down stylized heart in a pool of blood. This is the start of an approach to content where I'm trying to make use of heavily loaded symbols, but present them in a way to communicate something new. The materials are similar to the art in my last blog entry, in that it has a high-gloss finish and acrylic jewels. I like how this piece has both a "modern" and "old-fashioned" look to it. Although the content may be somewhat dark, I don't think the viewer would find it gruesome.

Wood, acrylic, Sculpey, plaster, epoxy
15"H. 12"W.

Number 10

This is another wall-hanging relief piece titled "Number 10".

It's content is the tension between a bird in flight and the static quality of it being frozen in a metal surround. In addition to that, the formal contrast between the bright red and the cool metal finish.

Acrylic, Sculpey, wood.

12"H. 9"W.

Inspired by Terminator 2: Judgment Day

click on above image to enlarge

 

This is a piece from what I could call "the crazy crap series"

This wall-hanging sculpture is inspired by the film. More specifically, the title sequence of the film, (stills are shown below). I assume the connection would not be evident to the viewer, although the concept "Judgment Day" and the iconography of this piece might make sense to the viewer... (dead rising?)

But, since I have the ability to give the backstory here, I will...
I've always thought it was a good title sequence. The film itself was epic. Not high-art, but a heavy hitter of pop-culture none the less. In the 5:32 long title sequence, a playground is engulfed in a firestorm, accompanied by Brad Fiedel's languid Terminator theme. (see images below)

I make no claim to be a sculptor. As an artist though, I do think reaching out to different materials make for a unique set of challenges that one would not otherwise encounter. Does the material itself have meaning? What content lends itself to one medium and not another? The conceptual issues are so different when you decide to execute something in 3D verses 2D.

Acrylic, gold glitter, cell phone bling on wood (...don't make me get the macaroni out)

9.5" H. by 6.5" W.

click on image to enlarge

Cover art for Consumer Reports

Click on image to enlarge

This art is for the cover of the June 2011 issue. I worked with Tim La Palme, Design Director at CR to make this image for the cover. It was probably intended to be half content, half backdrop for the text, as is the way magazine covers go sometimes.

All-in-all... went fast, smoothly, and is a nice visibility job.

This is the unedited artwork I provided to give a more complete picture, uncropped and sans text.

Predator - digital portrait

This was a fairly quick piece to do. It's straight forward environmental portraiture. I don't know if I would call it a study or not. (I may make prints of this to sell) I do have a thing lately for anthropomorphized animals. In this piece I'm less emphatic about weird and witty content.

I'm trying NOT to do work right now that is overly ambitious. This can bog down the discovery process. This piece is all digital. I'm using a Wacom tablet and stylus for the first time here, so it's sort of a new media exercise.

I found myself leaning toward illusionism on this, and when I do that, I always ask myself: Why?

Illusionism has its own sort of "rules," and there are no rules in art, so I'm conflicted. The rules of illusionism, IMO, are to be easy on the eye of the viewer, so they suspend disbelief.

If the reason to go this way is simply to display ones "skills," then I think that is a less interesting reason for making art. If however, it is to convince someone of your vision of reality, then it is serving as infrastructure, and that seems to be a good reason for going down that road.

If I do shoot for convincing illusion going forward, then I hope it is for the latter reason.

These are some detail shots to show the textures of the piece

The Executioner

I'm going back to 2D thinking for the moment.

This is a digital file titled "The Executioner."

It's a long story but,  it's about death being meted out by unlikely individuals.

I have a limited edition of 100 giclee prints on canvas of this available at my Etsy store (right side of blog)

Talisman series #9 -- Bejeweled head

I had this vision of jewels attached to a shaven head as giving a sort of shaman-like appearance.

Each jewel representing an element of the brain's cognition. Each jewel as a protective talisman.
So in a way, this piece is sort of an illustration of that concept.
Title: Talisman series #9 -- Bejeweled Head
11" W, 15" H, acrylic and cell phone bling on wood

Click for a larger view

The side photos show the slight relief depth of the piece

Click for a larger view