Cryptids and Kaiju

I have the pleasure of being surrounded by some very delightful vinyl toys depicting that most compelling of Japanese movie monsters -- Hedorah, or the Smog Monster. Not only is he pretty groovy in "Godzilla vs. The Smog Monster" but these toys take his grooviness and develop it into a psychedelic color palette of infinite possibilities.

Clear, black, white, silver, metallic, glow-in-the-dark, flocked, and multi-colored, you could fill your house just with versions of this drippy fiend and his glowing red eyes.

In fact, some of them look good enough to eat. This guy below sent me looking for a bomb pop, or some kind of lemon-cherry-blue raspberry Italian ice.

Since I don't have an array of paintable figures for my own experimentation, though, I do have the ability to have some two-dimensional representations, so I've been kicking those around lately. This one resembles the tainted rainbow hues of an oil spill.

"Rainbow of Smog" 8 x 10 inch painting on canvas board

And this little guy just tries on some purple for a profile pic. I am quite sure I'll do more of these, as the colors continue to compel me, and it's a lot cheaper to paint my own Hedorahs than it is to buy up some limited run toys!

"Smog Monster in Profile" 5 x 7 inch painting on canvas board

 

But wait, there's more! Another favorite film is "Attack of the Mushroom People," aka "Matango"...

 

 

I had wanted to see this for most of my life, it seems, because nothing sounds more amazing and psychedelic than a Japanese film from the 1960s about people who eat mushrooms, and become mushroom people. What could possibly be better? It's a bit more bleak and psychological than your typical "monsters are coming to kill us" movie, but it nonetheless enjoys considerable cult popularity, decades later. It also lends itself to vinylification (?) quite splendidly. Look how psychedelic...

 I find this a pretty compelling subject as well, so I hope to do some more two-dimensional Matango paintings as I have time...here is the first.

"Beware of the Matango" 5 x 7 inch painting on canvas board

Being caught up in weird monsters and science fiction also means that I have cryptozoology on the brain. The popular image of the Mothman is particularly arresting, to me. You know the story, perhaps. Perhaps you don't. But either way, the big red eyes and wings make for a spooky thing. For some reason I thought he should have an ice cream cone, though. Maybe it's just because it's summer. Maybe I still have that Italian ice flavored Hedorah on the brain.

"In Seach Of...Ice Cream" 5 x 7 inch painting on canvas board 

Finally, for this installment, I really like UFOs, and since I've already painted them beaming up a unicorn, I thought I would dig deep for another creature that, who knows, perhaps aliens have some interest in. It would certainly explain a thing or two. Right?

"The Plot to Abduct Nessie" 5 x 7 inch painting on canvas board

Dark Hollow and Dark Holler

As September draws nearer, things are getting pretty serious with the Halloween stuff popping up. Here are a few more entries in the Dark Hollow art theme by Halloween Artist Bazaar members, as well as a couple of new prints that I have up on Etsy -- which are not Dark Hollow prints, but hey, they are still Halloween.

But another item worth mentioning right now is that over on Dark Holler (see how I did that?) record label, there is a new album available from the band I have been involved with for the past 15 years, Stone Breath. This time around the album is all Timothy and Prydwyn, the pairing that initially drew me to the band when their "A Silver Thread to Weave the Seasons" album was released in the late 1990s. I'm on a bonus track here, but by all means please check out the full album for the most heartfelt, perfect acoustic music you can expect to hear this year. You can also investigate the entire catalog at Bandcamp if digital versions are your thing.

Over in the art department...here once again are my new Halloween works but this time I am talking about the prints that I now have available. You can choose the in 5 x 7 or 8 x 10 inch sizes, and all are in stock as of this writing.

 "Lost in the Dark Hollow" print in 5 x 7 or 8 x 10 by Art by Sarada

 "Cauldron in the Dark Hollow" print in 5 x 7 or 8 x 10 by Art by Sarada

As a side note, I have a few other prints now available of older Halloween art and I will be adding more as the weeks move along their merry way.

"Witch Twins" print by Art by Sarada

"Twilight Tree" print by Art by Sarada

And as promised, here are three more items from other Halloween Artist Bazaar artists. That link right there is to the full HAB shop, but you can also find our stuff on Etsy and other locations...check for the tag HAB, to find a nice assortment!

"Tiny Witch Shrine Box" by Wicked Alterations

"Spooky Tree with Headstone Coffin Box" by Odd Origins

"Will of the Wisp" by Twilight Faerie

Etsy Front Page!

Much to my surprise, one of my paintings showed up in an Etsy front page treasury today. I think this is only the third time this has happened! It's a painting that has been up for a couple of years -- a surreal circus scene, probably suitable for the misty humidity of late summer -- a surreal dreamscape of mixed memories of childhood and wistful nostalgia.

It is always pleasant when this happens. I should add that any of my paintings that I have for sale, which don't already have an option listing for a photographic print, can be made into prints. If the original size is 8 x 10 or larger, I can make a print that is 8 x 10. Otherwise they are all available as 5 x 7 upon request. This particular one can be made as an 8 x 10.

This painting recalls some recurring lifelong dreams I've had of exploring portions of New Jersey that only exist in my dreams. There was a place in Florence NJ for a long time where the Hunt Brothers Circus had their winter quarters. There was still some sort of a structure there when I was a child...my memory suggests something wooden that looked like a tent...but it is very foggy and dim. Perhaps there is a photo somewhere in my family photo boxes, as my dad was a professional photographer.

At any rate, I have a recurring dream of stumbling upon some sort of Weird NJ, out of the way forbidden circus ruin in the woods. Don't we all? 

Dark Hollow art at the Halloween Artist Bazaar

It's August! That means it's as good as autumn (even though it won't feel like it, for awhile) and I can get back to drinking hot tea in earnest. It also means there should be some serious pumpkinage going on in your local craft stores, to take the edge off of the remains of the summer.

The Dark Hollow concept we're exploring this year at the Halloween Artist Bazaar is close to my heart since I am involved with a record label called Dark Holler, and the entire aesthetic of haunted, out-of-the-way places, overgrown nature, and the depths of night, is kind of my thing.

I have two paintings so far up and running as part of this event, and I expect to add a third...storybook illustration-style images of rabbits and toads (and after a while, there will be a fox). Images for a Halloween story that hasn't been written quite yet.

"Cauldron in the Dark Hollow"

"Lost in the Dark Hollow"

Here are some works by other artists in the group!

Dark Hollow charm bracelet by Jynxx

Peste Corvino by twistedpixelstudio

"Light at the end of the Dark Hollow" by Twilight Faerie

Please visit us often though the season for more works of art! And visit the year-round Halloween Artist Bazaar shop!