Gnomenclature

 

So I've always had an obsession for gnomes, elves, and the whole mythical fairy realm in general. I thought maybe I!'d grow out of by the time I was 30, and Im 32 now, so I guess I'm in it for the long haul. I blame movies like Labyrinth, Legend, and the Dark Crystal. Brian Froud is one of my all time favorite artists alive today.

Anyways, I drew this little pipe smoking gnome at work on a post-it note, and then drew a much bigger version on cardboard with a sharpie. Maybe next I'll recreate him in paint, or clay...I don't know, I just really like him!

Mini Canvas Green Man

This 2"x 2" acrylic on canvas green man type character is one of my son's favorites right now. Since I painted it the other day, he has been carrying it around the house and making it talk to his lego guys and mario toys. I showed him how to put varnish on the painting so it will have a layer of protection from scratches, scrapes, and anything else dealt by the hands of an imaginative 8 year old. I plan on showing him everything I know about art, little by little, step by step. I hope he learns to love it as much as I have. There really is so much joy and pleasure in creating art, whether it be an intricate painting that takes over a year to finish (see last post) or a doodle on a post-it note (see next post). I would truly love to be able to pass it on to him.

Sixteen Canvas

 
 

This is sixteen 6"x 6" canvases that all go together to make one big grandiose acrylic painting of some kind of strange and surreal universe where all creatures, big and small, beautiful and hideous, strange and...stranger, can get along and perform random acts of instinct and insanity without any fear of judgement or harassment....or something along those lines haha.

Two golden boys ride and control the mountainous, magma-eyed buffalo who tries to warn the octopus king away from the cephalopod-like san pedro cactus with its mighty, drooling tongue.

A mischievous elf-rat converses with a narwhal who, with its elongated horn, is puncturing one of the pinkish powder clouds blown by the purple sasquatch to dissipate the smokey wrath of the old man in the volcano.

Okay, that pretty much covers it.

Mushroom Satyr

I found a couple of good ones from '10 in a big pile of watercolors collecting dust in my studio (which just happens to be an extra bedroom in my house!). This shroom-savoring satyr was inspired by Brian Froud's Puck, from his book, Faeries. Froud is one of my favorite artists, definitely a huge influence on my style. He designed the creatures in Labyrinth and The Dark Crystal, two of my all time favorites growing up. The baby in Labyrinth was actually played by his son, what do you think of that, eh? Eh?

watercolor
9" x 12"