Ayton.net home page redesign

I've just reconfigured my main web site (www.ayton.net) home page to make it more user-friendly and attractive. I think the new version now makes more sense from an end-user perspective & leads the eye around in a more logical way. Here it is in Google's Chrome browser:

I've been working on my web site for around 10 years now, adding more and more to the original code & updating it where possible. It now comprises hundreds of pages, & even I am not sure of all that is on there...

Apostle

A new large-ish ink drawing, that has a few flaws, but is still worth putting up here, I think.

Apostle, 2011, brush & ink on paper, 23.5" x 18".

The Boy Who Created Darkness

Another head drawing:

The Boy Who Created Darkness, 2011, brush & ink wash on paper, 12" x 9".

Sketch of a Man's Head

Another loose-ish brush & ink wash sketch:

Sketch of a Man's Head, 2011, brush & ink wash on paper, 12" x 9".

Sketch of a Woman

I'm currently working on large-ish monochrome paintings (see recent posts below), so it's useful from time to time to do a smallish drawing to keep in practice, as it were.

Sketch of a Woman, 2011, brush & ink wash on paper, 12" x 9".

And the World Gave Birth to War

A new monochrome painting, this one done over a color painting that didn't work out...however, it bleeds through in places, and that works in the context of the piece. For the World series, it also fits in with the War Room anti-war pieces.

And the World Gave Birth to War, 2011, acrylic on plywood, 48" x 48" approx.

Re-Creation of the World

A new color acrylic painting for the World series.

Re-Creation of the World, 2011, acrylic on plywood, 19.75" x 19.25" approx.

Working Sketch

I'm currently working on some quite large monochrome paintings (see postings below). Here is a working sketch for an upcoming one:

Working sketch for a painting, 2011, pencil & ink on paper, 9" x 9". It will probably change significantly.

The World & All Its Souls

This is another quite large new painting, for the World series:

The World & All Its Souls, 2011, acrylic on paper on plywood, 48" x 33".

The Book of Souls in Direct Art magazine

The latest issue of Direct Art magazine (volume 18) has a 2-page spread on The Book of Souls, the drawing/digital art collaboration with Chicago-based artist Tim Lowly, whom I met via Flickr. The spread takes up pages 4 & 5, & features (clockwise from top left): Kiki, Diana, Marshall & James. The magazine should be on sale anytime now (September 2011) & can be found in larger Barnes & Noble & Borders stores, I believe.

Below is a shot of the cover, with artwork by Andrea Kowch:

World Inside a Tree Inside a World

This is a new, large-ish monochrome painting I did for the ongoing World series:

World Inside a Tree Inside a World, 2011, acrylic on plywood, 48" x 48" approx. Another version of Yggdrasil, the World Tree.

Another new ink drawing of a head.

Singer, 2011, brush & ink on paper, 12" x 9".

The Alchemist

One of several pieces with the same (or similar) title. The point being, I suppose, that one wants the alchemy — the magic — to occur, at least a little bit. Otherwise, one just has a good (or otherwise) drawing...

The Alchemist, 2011, brush & ink on paper, 12" x 9".

The Actual Location of the Isle of the Dead

Another contender for the World series, this one containing a version of Böcklin's Isle of the Dead.

The Actual Location of the Isle of the Dead, 2011, brush & ink on paper, 12" x 9".

Shadow Bay cover evolution

Below is what will most probably be the final cover of Shadow Bay...details should be available soon...

Today Earth Died

Another somewhat apocalyptic image for the World series...the title is a reference to a Jim Steranko comic book from the sixties (Strange Tales #168 from 1968, to be precise).

Today Earth Died, 2011, brush & ink on paper, 12" x 9".

I've used this title before on a small drawing.

The Nuclear Powered Boy

This (again) might be a study for something else, or it might stop right here.

The Nuclear Powered Boy, 2011, brush & ink on paper, 12" x 9". The runaway son of a nuclear A-bomb, probably...

Thanatos Awaits

This is a new ink drawing for the World series, which also overlaps with Greek mythology.

Thanatos Awaits, 2011, brush & ink on paper, 12" x 9".

Killer

A darker image from back in 1992:

Killer, 1992, brush & ink on paper, 25.5" x 19.75" approx.

Small World in Equilibrium

Another one for the World Series.

Small World in Equilibrium, 2011, brush & ink on paper, 12" x 9".

The Whisperer

Another loose-ish ink drawing / sketch of a head & a hand that could be a study for something more finished...

The Whisperer, 2011, brush & ink on paper, 12" x 9".

The Nihilist

A new ink drawing entitled "The Nihilist", which is probably a misnomer, as nihilism is a philosophy based on the rejection of moral values, etc., rather than the belief that violence is a viable means of effecting change (though that is sometimes implied)...I was attracted to the word itself more than anything...

The Nihilist, 2011, brush & ink on paper, 12" x 9".

Colossus Trapped Inside the World

A new ink drawing, possibly for the World Series...

Colossus Trapped Inside the World, 2011, brush & ink on paper, 12" x 9".

Works from the Holocaust series of 2005

Below is a selection of preparatory studies and also more finished studies from a series of works on the Holocaust that I created in 2005. The original intention of the series was that it form a collaboration with a composer who was preparing musical works to somehow go along with the paintings. He created a number of musical "sketches" for the collaboration, but came to a point where he felt somehow blocked and could not continue. For my part, I created what became a series of 4 triptychs which formed a sort of chronological and imaginative retelling of the Holocaust events. Below, I have posted a selection of the images; some of the rough preparatory paintings, and some larger, more finished pieces. In many cases, I find that the earlier works are more immediate and powerful. The ultimate aim was to produce the triptychs on a much larger and probably more detailed scale, but due to the usual budget and space constraints, this has up to now failed to materialize.

I should add the usual disclaimer that, of course, this series of artworks is against fascism and genocide, and in no way seeks to encourage such atrocities to ever occur again.

Note: an overview of the Holocaust series can be seen on my web site here.

The Final Solution, 2005, acrylic on board, 24" x 24" approx.

The Liberation, 2005, acrylic on board, 24" x 24" approx.

City of Broken Windows (study), 2005, acrlyic on board, 12" x 9".

The Final Solution (study), 2005, acrylic on board, 12" x 9".

The Ghetto (study), 2005, acrylic on board, 10" x 8".

The Train (study), 2005, acrylic on board, 10" x 8".

The Liberation (study), 2005, acrylic on board, 10" x 8".

It's a Lonely World

Over the years, I've made a goodly number of artworks depicting the world in some way, whether apocalyptic or not. Today I decided to put a selection of them into a Flickr set called The World Series. Below is the latest in the series of such images.

It's a Lonely World, 2011, brush & ink on paper, 12" x 9".

World Caught in the Branches of a Tree

Another variation on Yggdrasil, the World Tree from Norse mythology...

World Caught in the Branches of a Tree, 2011, brush & ink on paper, 12" x 9".

They Hatch

This was a drawing started in the early 2000s (2003, I think, but not sure on that), which I abandoned at the time, as it seemed rather complex. However, anything complex can usually be broken down into fairly simple components... In any case, it's another variation on the "figures inside a head" theme.

They Hatch, 2003(?)-2011, brush & ink on paper, 25.5" x 19.75".

Monument to Humanity

This was a drawing from 2009 that was never completely finished, until today.

Monument to Humanity, 2009-2011, brush & ink on paper, 23.5" x 18".

Dream of a New Empire

This is a new ink sketch that might become a larger drawing or painting:

Dream of a New Empire, 2011, brush & ink on paper, 12" x 9".

The Lunatic

Another disturbing/disturbed drawing of a head:

The Lunatic, 2011, brush & ink on paper, 11" x 8.5".

The Idiot

An ink drawing of a head.

The Idiot, 2011, brush & ink on paper, 11" x 8.5".

Turning the World

A new smallish figurative ink drawing:

Turning the World, 2011, brush & ink on paper, 11" x 8.5".

Menagerie

This is the third trilogy of ink drawings (see recent posts).

Menagerie, 2011, brush & ink on paper, each image 11" x 8.5" (combined size 11" x 25.5")