Paintings for the Laika Fund

Our friends Chris & Jen have a sweet little dog named Laika, who, like so many other dogs (and too many other acquaintances for me to be comfortable with), has a propensity for swallowing foreign objects. Well, this last time, said propensity has led to a mountain of vet bills that many of us are trying to alleviate in any way we can. I did these three paintings to sell in an effort to raise money to help foot some of those bills. They're small little paintings that I sent back to San Francisco before I measured them, but I think they're about 13,5 x 19cm.


Cookies & Milk

The Carrot or the Stick

Brace Face
Anyhow, if you're interested in one of these paintings and would like to buy some art to contribute to the Laika Fund, let me know.

Odin

So I've saved my favorite for last - this is Odin of Norse mythology, riding his trusty (8-legged) steed, Sleipnir. This one is my fave for various reasons - painting that i was pleased with, lots of little elements coming together including a color palette that seemed to be not such a struggle for a change (although I repainted that horse too many times to count trying to get it close to what I envisioned in my mind), and really, the lightbullb and the head on a chain is just too cool - i want one for myself. Supposed to be a font of wisdom for Odin.... still makes me smile.

So that's the end of "Little Gods and Monsters" (a working title of this series that just stuck...)

This one is acrylic paint on a piece of thick pressboard I found on the street...
60 x 60 cm

Once again, all these photos were taken by the lovely Kyla Hancock

Maman Brigitte (round two)

Alright, so this is my second take on Maman Brigitte and her black rooster - I liked the last painting alot, but with this one really wanted to convey a sense of movement, of action, a little less portraiture.... And I love the lil' chili peppers....
this one is on a found frame -- i have no idea what it was used for before this, but the painting itself is acrylic on a thin piece of wood - so light, and easily hung....

60 x 60 cm

The Morrigan

The Morrigan is an old Irish deity, all about war and bloodshed and of course; fertility. It's interesting that so many old deities were similar blends of bloodshed and fecundity. All these new photos have been taken by a friend of mine, Kyla Hancock, who was kind enough to bring not only her mo'fessional-style camera but also her amazing self and photographic skills and take photos of the works for me. Thanks, Kyla!

So this one is acrylic on found wood,
59.5 x 45.5cm

Quetzalcoatl and Coatlicue

Alright, this is another one with a bit of that artist's interpretational prerogative... Mexican dieties Quetzalcoatl and his (sometimes) mother Coatlicue... of course in most representations Quetzalcoatl IS the feathered serpent, but in keeping with the spirit of this series of paintings I depicted them separately....
69x82cm (she's a big'un!) acrylic on repurposed pressboard

(Thanks for taking photos, Kyla!)

Heqet -- bigger, better, stronger, faster. NOT a Kanye reference.

According to Egyptian mythology, she's much more likely to have a frog's head, but that just didn't fit in with my theme this time around, so Heqet gets to have a giant frog instead. I think a little artistic license never hurt anyone... almost never.

acrylic on canvas
60 x 80cm

Susanoo-o-Mikoto & Yamata-no-Orochi

Susanoo o Mikoto & Yamata no Orochi
I love the whole idea of magic swords and 8-headed dragons, so this was a no-brainer. Admittedly influenced by Luke Skywalker and Samurai Jack, which is one of the best cartoons ever made - repeatedly gorgeous and often hilarious, as eye candy I can't think of anything else that holds a candle.... at the moment, anyway.

acrylic on found wood (some sort of thick pressboard)
52.5 x 45cm

Anansi

Anansi, the Trickster -- a Little God

acrylic on found wood
49 x 27 cm

Andromeda & Cetus

Well, I finally finished the entirety of Little Gods and Monsters -- no, that's not the title... yet. But here's the first - it's Andromeda and Cetus....

31 x 54 cm
Acrylic on found wood

Heget

Alright - this was a hard one. I worked and reworked and reworked this, but all through the process just couldn't get it right. I think the sky was the most challenging for me, and it wasn't helped by the composition. This was a real learning piece for me - and forced me to come to terms with not being happy with everything that I've done. That sometimes, a piece just won't live up to its potential, and you just have to wash your hands of it, and start over if the idea still appeals to you. So this painting is the one I had to wash my hands of. I'll post the newer (much larger) version later.

Anyway, Heget is an Egyptian deity, associated with frogs and fertility.

Tyr & Fenrir

Tyr and Fenrir - another small painting that I really like as a drawing, but once it was painted I felt it was a little static. I like how the boy's face and hair turned out alot. This legend is of course nordic, and is about how they were attempting to chain the wolf Fenrir. Odin, Tyr and others told Fenrir they were only testing to see if he had the strength to break from his bonds - and promised that if he was unable to break them, they would remove them. Fenrir - rightfully - didn't trust them, so as insurance, Tyr volunteered to put his hand in Fenrir's fearsome jaws. Well, they didn't let the wolf out of his bonds, and Tyr gave up that hand.

So it's acrylic on more found wood - another small one 42,5x27 cm

Maman Brigitte

yeah, I know - been forever. Well, been working on a big set of images with varying levels of success. Mostly they're legendary beings and animals they're associated with. This is one of the images that I did first, and while liking it, I think it ended up a little flat compositions-wise. Anyway, Brigitte is big in Voodoo, she's all about graveyards and drinking rum that has been so spiced with hot peppers that no human could drink it (and is known to rub it on her privates, as well, but I thought that might not be such a good picture since I'm painting her as a minor). She's symbolized by the black rooster..... this one's acrylic on found wood. 26x43cm

Yet Another RE work - "Comin' Thru!"

I think I called this "helium icarus" before - I had been experimenting with a rougher painting style - and ended up not being too satisfied with it - obviously since I reworked it. I felt that my perspective needed a little more forcing, and also something about the composition wasn't working for me - I felt the piece was lacking focus, and the roughness I almost felt detracted from the humor that I wanted to be part and parcel. Did I go over the top with the speech bubble? Maybe. I dunno - I'm just really liking the thought of them in paintings these days.