Dark Meat: the Aftermath

The opening for my show Dark Meat at O’Barone was last night. It was quite enjoyable, to me at least, and below are some images from the event.

I am also embedding an interview the Dreamy Dreamer Alessandro Spreafico of Contaminate NYC conducted with me preceding the show.

Photos courtesy of the sharp eyed Melanie McLean. Thanks Melanie.

Man-about-town Mr Jackson was ready to greet the visitors, play, and/or explain any of the works. Or bounce people, if need be.

Rob and Carol used to live next door to each other in Chicago and met here for the first time since! So great.

Andrew studies and evaluates.

Thank you so much to all of you that were able to make it out!

Sickness becomes art

How does sickness turn into art shows? A perennial question ever since Nietzsche.

Well, in this case, the owner (we’ll call him Alfredo) of O’Barone, a North Italian style restaurant in Red Hook, discovered himself to have a deadly sickness, which required his immediate return to Italy for treatment. The good people at Contaminate NYC, who are friends with Alfredo, stepped in to manage the restaurant in his absence. They, being the unrepentant schemers they are, got to scheming. Let’s contaminate Red Hook they thought. And so they contacted the Mysterious Hanna Mandelbaum about helping out with a series of shows at O’Barone. The Mysterious Hanna contacted me.

Et voila!

On Tuesday 04May10, my show Dark Meat will open at O’Barone.

Who knew an art show at a local restaurant would have such a convoluted back story?

If you are in the area come check it out. The work will be on display until 18May10.

The man o’ might

Tha mon o’ micht, he rade o’ nicht
Wi’ neider swerd ne ferd ne licht.
He socht the Mare, he fond tha mare,
He bond tha Mare wi’ her ain hare,
Ond gared her swar by midder-micht
She wolde nae mair rid o’ nicht
Whar aince he rade, thot mon o’ micht.

Charm Against the Night Mare, 14th century North Country poem.

A 21st century sketch:

Iceland Saga pt.2: Green Glacier Stomp

Here is one of the early videos from super group Green Glacier. The group formed under mysterious and mythic circumstances, allegedly while on a road trip in Iceland. Their leaving is even said to have caused a volcanic eruption, which triggered another volcanic eruption, which shut down Europe’s air travel for over a week! So, of course, you need to know about this super group.

Here is their video Green Glacier Stomp, set to Led Zeppelin. The setting is the largest glacier in Europe the famed and dreaded Vatnajökull. There are some supplementary photos of life on the glacier below.

Of course it is green just below the ice. It is said that the green and the white are in an eternal struggle for supremacy. If one wins the world ends.

This is where we went snowmobiling. On the glacier. This may be where the super group Green Glacier formed. We are still trying to learn of their origins, ever veiled in mystery and controversy.

It may be that Thor and the Aesir battled the Frost Giants here. It just may be.

Static Fish: The MoCCA Experience

The first box of Static Fish arrived in time for the MoCCA Festival this weekend. The festival went really well. Unfortunately I could only make it for the second day, but from what I saw people seemed really keen on the book. We sold a little over a dozen copies, which for a $15 book, at a show where people are mainly shelling out only $2-5 bucks a pop, is quite good.

It was already picked as one of the best books of the festival by the NY Daily news. Check it out.

Here are some pics of the physical item.

The end papers were drawn beautifully by Hunter Heckroth.

One fish was drawn by each contributor to go with their introductory page. And here you can see them all swimming together in harmony. Awwwwwww…

AUX Postcard

Well the AUX festival was this weekend, and by all accounts it went well.

I have been informed that my posters have received “the highest honor” by being stolen “left and right”! So, that gives the old ego a massage. Though, in general, I am working to override and undermine my ego. So perhaps the massage is not helpful?

Below you will find the postcard I also designed for the festival. I forgot to post it when I completed it.

As of now, I will also be designing the packaging (in collaboration with the event coordinator Mark Callahan) for the CD you see advertised above in the postcard. I will post images when it is done.

The MonstrAUXity has arrived! First wave.

You may (or may not) remember. I recently designed a poster for the AUX Experimental Arts Festival in Athens GA. Well, we have just received images of the posters hanging all over the place, thanks to festival coordinator and Southern gentleman-in-training Mark Callahan.

Take a gander:

Wuxtry and just above it, off screen, Bizarro Wuxtry. One of my favorite corners on the planet.

Thanks to Hannah Batsel for the screen printing.

Iceland Sagas pt.1

Why is the sea salty?

Why are rocks so hard?

But why are some rocks soft?

Craters form like zits.
The earth’s epidermis begins to bubble with liquids.
The liquids seep out.
They leave behind a hole,
to mark their passing.

Or sometimes something just smashes into the outside.

Static Fish

With deadlines and a journey to Iceland looming it required several near sleepless nights to get it done. The next issue of Static Fish is going to be beautiful, if all goes well at the printer. Full color, hardback bound, hand lettered divider pages, and a dreamy collection of stories all go in to making what should be something special.

Here you see the cover illustrated by Kris Mukai, lettered and designed by me. The black lines indicate the edges of the spine.

Below is the intro page with text from C.G. Jung and the outro page with text from Kafka.

Iceland

I am in Iceland right now. It is not icy in Reykjavik, but it is cold and moist.
On our way to glaciers and horses and snowmobiles and volcanoes.

My internet access is such that Thursday City and I are not on good terms at the moment,
so no images right now.

Coming soon.

Until then,
we search for the Northern Lights tonight.
We drink Viking beer with vikings.
We sit in hot tubs on horses with pints of Ale.
We spend too much money on fancy things.
We eat good bread.
We talk politics.
We do our part to inject Iceland’s economy with Liquidity.
We laugh at the fact that the Prime Minister of Iceland
works in a building that looks like a small hunting lodge.
We get not enough sleep.

MonstrAUXity

This is a poster I have been working on for the AUX festival in Athens, Ga. It is an alternative music, film/video, and arts fest. This will be the fourth one, hence the 4 on the billboard. The poster is not exactly complete as there will need to be additional info added at the bottom, which I will hand letter. I am also working on some periphery material for the festival. A potential postcard, banner, newspaper ad, etc.

I don’t even know for sure that any of it will be used, but this is the most interesting thing I have done this week, so I am posting it.

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you… the MonstrAUXity!

Reflections

What if the birth of our consciousness is the death of our soul?

What does it mean to be human, if being human is inhumane?

Static Fish is an anthology produced periodically by the energetic, ambitious, and aspiring cartoonists at Pratt. The upcoming issue is going to be full color. The editor-in-chief is the charming Jane Wu, who happens to be taking my Sequential Art course this semester. I am helping them produce this issue, and I hope to continue helping out in an advisory role.

Here then is my submission for Static Fish Spring 2010, in full color!

Reflections, starring the indomitable Brothers Sunrays:

Blizzard

Last Wednesday we had a blizzard in New York City. I took some photos of my friends Thorsten and Nikolas Nicodemus Sunrays playing on my roof. It snowed for around twenty four hours non-stop. These photos were about twelve hours into it. Enjoy.

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It should be large enough to read the text, but I have noticed in Safari it opens up fitted to the screen size.