Surreal Artist FACES and BODIES

HEY APATHY! Surreal Artist Ink Drawings

Introducing the HEY APATHY! surreal “Face” pen and ink drawings, a series of disproportionate silhouetted metamorphosis’ depicting the transformation of man to machine and the telepathic ramifications of our artificial millennia. The images illustrate a strange comparison between the human psyche, the running teleplay behind ours eyes, and its detached relationship to our mechanical bodies of flesh and bone. The ballooned portraits reveal a dark omnipotent force meddled with an array of simultaneously emotional and technological features. The astral interpretations manifest themselves as large bleak forms hovering above and beyond the small vessels from which they originated. These separated bodies, though somewhat autonomous, perpetuate routine existence by means of mundane mannerisms and meaningless interactions with miniature electronic devices. “Faces” is an all new attempt to expose the modern man as neurological cyborg, who, though devoid of actual robotic body parts, exists entirely amidst a virtual construct.

NOTES ON MAKING THE INK DRAWINGS

These abnormal drawings of people represent the first body of fine artwork illustrations that I have worked on in over two years. The “Faces” are being produced through a creative process I tend to refer to as a “formula series” in which a restricted set of visual symbols, material, and techniques are repeatedly examined in order to develop a cohesive set of images. This is probably the most traditional approach to creating gallery works and one I used extensively from 2000-2008 prior to my increasing interest in comics and animation. There are several advantages as well as disadvantages to the “formula” approach as it offers an invaluable means of artistic exploration but often results in creative limitations and ultimately the commercial entrapment of the participating artist.

For the better portion of my career, leading up to the end of 2008, I utilized the aforementioned “formula” method to develop a series of large gallery installations. At that time I would decide on a particular theme, format, drawing tool and technique and proceed to experiment with multiple variations in a singular style. A good example of this can be seen in my 2004 works, “HARD RAIN”. In this collection I developed an unusual comic borders made of scratchy shapes, weird buildings, and ominous orifices. Within the strange borders I would then drawing little scenes of solitary chaos. The entire series featured over 300 illustrations all done using the same drawing technique, a large pen for borders and perpetually smaller pens for the comics themselves. By using a single approach I was able to masterfully explore all the possibilities of this particular visual vocabulary and eventually obtain a sort of meditative state while creating the works. Once the formula is achieved the artist no longer needs to struggle with his/her materials but may concentrate more fully on the ideas, messages and symbolic aspects instead. This meditative state of experimentation proves especially valuable when the formula involves minimal technical maneuvers and rapid production.

This manner of artistic processes proved especially useful during my live street art performances as I had little worry about my materials or approach and could give my full attention to interpreting the audience and determining the imagery accordingly. However it was also while working the streets that the formula style started to reveal several limitations. Starting from very simplistic visuals, each year I seemed to add more and more element to my drawings. This ultimately led to single bodies of work exploring multiple themes, characters, and narrations as opposed to one unified symbology. As time passed I started to bore with repetitious drawings and really wanted to produce work that moved through images, processes and concepts quickly rather than extensive studies of a particular theme.

At the end of 2008 I decided to forsake gallery style works and the “formula” method altogether in favor of producing comic books. Here I could weave my way in and out of themes, techniques and parables much faster as a comics page takes far less time to make than a large scale drawing. The comics also offered varied formats allowing for offshoots or impulsive changes in the creation that would not work well in a series of drawings. The comic can flash-black, change scenes or even intrude upon one another permitting, even necessitating the use of different techniques and approaches. In gallery works, the commercial representative tends to request a collection of replicated works at a marketable size and often similar to previously saleable images by the artist. This method of presentation can present infinite restrictions towards the artist’s whim and ability to progress.

Circumstances, mostly financial, put a hold on my intended devotion to comics and graphic novels last year as I was awarded some grant money to work on animations. In many ways this new direction appeared even more hampering than creating formula works as animation is the most repetitive and tedious of all artistic processes. Not only do cartoons require thousands of duplicate drawings but the production can leave ab artist working for weeks at a single scene of concept. Basically this turned out to be the exact opposite from what I’d planned for myself, nevertheless the opportunity to animate is certainly a rewarding one.

So it stood that I was trapped in one of the most extensive “formula” works of my life when all I wanted to do was dance through a barrage of surreal vignettes and strange dreamscapes. Well subconsciously all these creative desires started swelling and without realizing it I found my self, between hours at the animation stand, writing stories, sneaking in a weekly webcomic, and finally working on a new series of ink drawings. All of these little asides occurred naturally, without intent, and likely a result of the undeniable urge permeating throughout my existence.

I just started these new artworks a few days ago but was able to jump right into the meditative state, drawing freely and fluidly. I’m using two nib pens and a brush for flat washes. The works consist of a large tribal portrait and a small modern figure drawing. That pretty much the formula. The work seems far less restrictive after working in animation and the little non-formula-formula, in which one images is repeated and the other open-ended, allows for endless investigations. At any rate I plan to use this technique in small batches, 20 drawings maximum before attempting another new style. Though I’d grown weary of this way of drawing, I have found it useful again primarily because these quick studies can be produced with little set-up or effort and let me play around a bit after long hours of rigid animation work. Everything else I’m doing right now requires so much attention that whipping off a few creepy ink stains at the end of the day is proving rather relaxing and possibly even therapeutic. VISIT HEY APATHY!

Alternative Comics of Dreams and Intuition

HEY APATHY! Alternative Comics

"of DREAMS AND INTUITION"

The following set of observations will be made without reference nor in depth research in regard to the subject at hand. Therefore the article you are hereby presented with will be of little literary or scientific value. However the anecdotal experiences which I am about to share, pertaining to notions beyond the vocabulary of language and of scientific models, may retain some pertinent information. I perceive that by expressing this wholly internalized hypothesis I may incite a dialogue involving like-minded experiences or open those unsatisfied with their own interpretations to new possibilities. The ultimate goal being to improvise my immediate reactions to the topic of dreams opposed to intuition unfettered by academic influence. A second stage of this analysis will to be the eventual research and discuss these notions in order to solidify any probable theories. But I digress, having now wasted an entire paragraph explaining that this post is a fact-less editorial, fit only for the news, I will now divulge my opinion on the matter.

Of dreams one often believes the midnight movies from the back of your mind to be one of three powers. Some of us see these visions as precognitive warnings presenting inescapable scenes from the near future, Others feel that the stories are mixed up puzzles meant to deal with ones inadequacies or confused state of being. While many others still,  think they are nothing but nonsense. In my experience the dreams are none of these things.

As of late, during my sleeping hours, I have been tormented by endlessly black feelings of helplessness and despair . Although I can recall but few details (such as the lizard dream accounted in the blog only days ago) the terrifying sensation of depression lingers long after my deep rest. Not to say that I wallow in my nightmares throughout the day time, rather that a small inkling of the desolation can be recalled at a moments notice when I think of the night. I know there is some terrible fate lurking not far from my conscious mind. Fortunately and in direct contrast to the darkness, nothing has gone wrong in my waking life, and especially nothing in particular has fallen out from the dreams and into reality ( I use the term "reality" freely and loosely).

When I dreamt of a car accident, there was none. Where my pet and friend lizard suffered, she remained healthy. Although my lover had proceeded to chop me into little bits which then churned into cubes of a thick blackened ooze, my body remains intact. The more monstrous the dreams become the less likely they appear to actualize. Of coarse it is more than likely my lover will one day butcher my physique but the hances of the fragments turning into tar blocks in highly unlikely. No these dreams do not reveal the future, nor am I secretly concerned about my ultimate demise nor the obvious bet on how it will occur. In some cases ( once again I refer you to the lizard ream) the grotesque consequences imagined were little more than exageratted reminders of mild anxieties.

I have paid attention to the symbols and attempted to co-relate them to the present and to the future. I have even attempted to dismiss them as utter fiction. But alas I cannot deny it. The visions appear only as indulgent and excessive tortures devoid of meaning aside from there own existence. They simply express the darkest places and derive a fuelling inertia from the pain inflicted by their presence. They mean to hold us down. I say "us" because I know you all have them too. The truth is dreams are pure evil, a truth both derived from and reflective of existence, pure evil.

Of intuition I am familiar with many definitions, interpretations and modes which popular culture has classified but science has dismissed. Generally one either believes in intuitions or one does not. I must disagree with the opposing ideas and say that it is both.

Over the past seven years I have taken a great interest in certain quantifiable intuitions. The first is the sensation or thought of someone you know followed by a surprise surfacing of that exact person. I found the incidents to be in high numbers and above coincidence. I had the notion that it was not some strange intuition rather a heightened animal sense we all share but remain unaware of. Could it be possible that I actually caught the scent of these friends or acquaintances long before I was consciously aware of their presence? To test the theory I plugged my nose from the insides so as to be able to roam the public streets without attracting attention. Although I often thought of particular people at particular moments, the phenomena of "oh my, why I was just thinking of you..." ceased to play a role in my daily routine. In fact I ceased bumping into any people thatI knew at all! Could it be that our social connections are telepathically communicated through an exchange of chemicals secreted from our noses? I dare not take the plugs out, just to be sure.

The second intuition that has never failed me in my ability to guess exactly how much money I was entitled to acquire on any given day. Almost always around 11 am, the beginning or the retail hours, a number  pops into my head, $300, $600, $5000, or whatever and sure enough when I count the till at seven the amount always matches. Unfortunately the number isn't always an optimistic one but it is correct. Again I hypothesized the notion of extra-ordinary senses and decided that through these senses and experience that I was actually able to predict the figures based on the weather, the news, the local events, and a little unconscious algebra calculating all these factors which obviously affect consumer traffic. To test this theory I had myself blind folded, beaten dizzy, and dropped off at work with out any of the hypothesized information necessary for the equation. On repeated attempts I failed to guess any sensible numbers and in fact broke into a brief fit of amnesia in which I even failed to guess my name!

So in conclusion to my experiments and experimental opinions I believe that dreams are nothing but nightmares and that intuition is in fact a provable entity borne of faculties of the senses which popular theories and the human consciousness utilizes often but is currently unable to identify. Regardless of this drivel I can promise you that no numbers regarding he lottery have ever appeared in my mind's sight but I do have a sinking intuitive feeling that there will be dark dreams again tonight.

 

 

visit http://www.heyapathy-comics-art.com/

ALTERNATIVE COMICS A Lizard Dream...

HEY APATHY! Alternative Comics dream hiatus

It has been said by the Buddhists "that the minute you speak of something, it is lost". In contrast, it is common knowledge amongst sorcerers and black magicians that quite often it is the verbalization of an action which ignites the consequence. For both of these reasons, (understanding and fear) I had decided it in the best interest of all parties involved not to share the following experience unless the matters at hand were first clearly resolved. Early this afternoon such actions were taken in order to reach a reasonable conclusion so as to permit me to tell you the tale of my recent Lizard dreams.

In my brief hibernation, taken to recover from this past weekends comic book convention, I endured the most terrifying of sensations. During my sleep I happened to notice that a small dragon creature had suffered a severe and almost certainly fatal injury. The lizard was nearly split in two at the gut and was writhing and projecting telepathic screams in a desperate fit attempt to relieve itself from pain. I could see no means of saving the monster despite all of my books and training ( I have performed numerous amateur yet necessary and successful surgeries on my own reptilian in the past) and so with a broken heart I decided to end the life of the dream lizard in the namesake of mercy.

You can probably get an inkling of the black feeling overtaking me if you remember your own pet's end, however it is more than likely that an emergency did not force the euthanization out of your own hands. But what was worse was my attempt to save the beast from it's suffering continued to fail. Neither the ringing of her neck, nor the injected poisoning, nor the attempted affixation I inflicted would take.

Instead of passing freely the tiny life perpetually agonized increasing from each attack. She shrank and withered, lost most of her skin, lost all of her colour and her eyeballs fell inside of her skull. But no ,the creature would not die, I could not release her from the pain, and my constant attempts had certainly pushed her past any hope of being saved.

I awoke in terror and immediately went to the tank to inspect my miniature dragon. She seemed happy and healthy and without a care in the world. I placed her in the sunny window and pondered the message dredged up from my unconscious. It did not take me long to analyse my guilty subconscious as I was full well aware that my lizard, named Goose, had not been fed since at least a week. I was also aware that my avoidance of feeding was correlated to my concern for another little dragon sitting in the pet store.

The lizard entrapped at the store was withering away, malnourished, discoloured and undersized in comparison to it's dominant sibling. I had been avoiding the store, and the purchase of Goose's food, for fear of seeing the other little one suffer. On my previous trips the proprietor of the shop had sensed my solicitude towards the situation and treated me with disregard shuffling me out of the shop quickly to avoid reparations.

Realizing my empathetic fears could potentially ignite disaster, I resigned to visit the store, purchase the food, and was determined to avoid checking on the small dragon. Upon arrival, the owner's greeted me with a more than usual enthusiasm (they'd always been friendly prior to their own dragon's illness). I ordered some crickets and unconsciously strolled over to the lizard aquariums. Much to my surprise and delight the dragon was looking proud and strong. Her colours were growing as was her tale. She had almost caught up to her brother, a magnificent specimen once three times her size.

 I returned home and watched the little Goose monster hunt and gobble the heard of insects like a giant Japanese monster awakening from a thousand year slumber. Having faced my fear of the pet store and alleviated my guilt, I  resolved the black terror which engulfed my being persistantly through out the night and early morning to such an extent that I am unashamed to share the occurrence and freed from the worry that talking about the problem might cause an imaginary horror to manifest.  more stories at  http://www.heyapathy-comics-art.com/

A picture of  my good friend Goose a happy, healthy lady lizard chilling out in the park.

p.s. I can't get the Wizard World Convention picks out of the camera due to minor technical difficulties but I promise to review the event tomorrow!!