Friday, October 28, 2005

Routes/Tracks

The last three posts had to be gotten out of my system.
A weird confessional. A bio-pic of juvenalia. The big 3 of major early influences.
The rest may be revealed more organically over time.

The Lord Of The Rings

Age 15. THIS ruined me.
I collected and dried toadstools. Suede pouches filled with stones and shells and twigs.
Thank Something that it was all tempered by sexndrugsnrocknroll.

Star Wars

Age of nine. Huge Impact. Almost goes without saying.

King Kong

...was a first true love.
As a small child I loved the monsters and animals, of course.
This 1933 flick was the first 'movie' to be catalogued as an influence.
During a Shiatsu session a few years ago alot of emotional pain that I hold in my back was released. In the pre-dream state after the session I saw a huge wet black nose inches away from my face. I choked back the tears. It was Kong! Beloved Kong! His death had sat as pain in my body for 30 years.

Thursday, October 27, 2005

Doodle Field



This field is part of a pamphlet handed out in several metro stations in the heady days of the early 90s by costumed individuals playing at aliens. They passed out 'information' to the Humans in the hope of cleansing the species of its history of racial hatred. Didn't work.
Cream is on the radio right now.

Curveball



Things quickly got around to this thing.
I made a huge painting of it, postcards, posters.
One of the first abused mascots.

The Squashes




The first of these creatures appeared (early 90's) on a poster I drew for a friends folk music concert. Very appropriate, no? It looked like a hot dog going the wrong way into a bun. One of the guest performers was a little ashamed of the critter and covered it up with a magazine cut-out of a womans face. I found that to be quite disturbing.
A series of erotic fruit drawings followed.

OKTOTLC/E

is a formula I used to use quite often.
I still do at times.
It (+ 7/17) emerged out of explorations of ****.

7/17

is my favorite number.

Tuesday, October 25, 2005

****



This name/formula occured to me in grade 10, in Mr.Fehers math class. As I wrote it out in my notebook, all in caps, I was awestruck. still don't know why.
Since then (1984) I have used **** to co-sign some of the art I made. Later I would use it as an alias in participating in the decentralized international mail-art network. For years I was haunted in dreams and in waking about what such a name (not to be pronounced) might mean. I still use it as well as sneak the letters into many of my drawings.

Monday, October 24, 2005

metabuck : face & pile





These infinite currency notes (named 'metabucks' by the unstoppbale Nicki Strum) have been around the world.
I drew the 'face' side in Kalamata in 1991. The other side was drawn in Montreal 6 years later. The edition posted is from the 2nd printing. 1997. ed. of around 500.
A few days ago a very polite gentleman received two from me and plans to share them with colleagues in the neumismatic archival scene.


This is the usual business card for my shop. It's rubber stamped on the transfers you get from the bus driver here in MTL that allows you to ride another bus or get onto the metro. People tend to think that the cards are 'a good idea' or 'clever'. I like how they look. Several people have been great at saving these things for me. They are thanked.

one of my more widely abused mascots - the yesbunny



This l'il guy started life as a rather small linocut. I then enlarged the image into a 2 x3 foot blueprint (ed. of 25, 2001) then had Serigraphie Alphonse Raymonde silkscreen an 18 x 24 version (ed. of 50, 2004).
It has supposedly appeared in some tv show called Naked Josh, been used in ads and flyers for my shop Monastiraki and been thrown around to various zines and whatnots.
It ain't over.

Sunday, October 23, 2005