The War Room VR in Barcelona

 

Forgotten Idol of Tomorrow

 I just took this new one up to the Limner Gallery in Hudson NY for the upcoming "Show of Heads". I believe it's currently displayed in the window. It came out well, it kind of has an amber glow about it, which offsets the post-apocalyptic subject matter a little. I took this photo outdoors, on the back deck by the kitchen window, trivia fans.

Forgotten Idol of Tomorrow, 2021, acrylic on panel, 14" x 11"

Occimore / Sette Occhi

Interestingly, I've had two paintings published on book covers recently (in the last year or so, but Covid has slowed things down, so I only recently received them). Both paintings were from the same series, created in 2019 (called the Revelations series). Both authors are young, one is French-Lebanese (Paul Rizk), the other is Italian (Enzo Ciruolo), so, both basically European. Even the names of the books are slightly similar, "Sette Occhi" & "Occimore", though they are in different languages & have different meanings. Life is full of coincidences...

Occimore by Paul Rizk & Sette Occhi by Enzo Ciruolo

Occimore is published by Editions Glyphe in Paris, France.
Sette Occhi is published by 0111 Edizioni in Cocquio-Trevisago, Lombardy, Italy.

The Collapsing Edifice of a Dream

 Another one of my more intricate drawings, done today, using soluble carbon instead of ink. In some ways it's a bit easier to use. 

The Collapsing Edifice of a Dream, 2021, soluble carbon on paper, 17" x 11"

The Non-Human

 This is a little head I sculpted today in Blender. It's quite a simple artwork. However I was experimenting with lighting & textures, which gave the piece a lot more depth & interest than just the bare sculpture. These are various versions of the piece...the red one was more post-processed than the others.

The sculpture without texturing

Digital Medusa

 As part of a series of mythological figures that I've worked on over the years (drawings & paintings mostly), here is a digital sculpture done in Blender. I'll probably be reworking some of my other themes in coming days & weeks...\

Digital Medusa, 2021, sculpted & rendered in Blender

The Dream Wings of Night

 An important thing about the Blender 3D digital sculptures that I make is that they can be almost endlessly recomposed, textured, lit, post-processed and so on. Like a photographer or painter with a favorite subject, there are infinite variations to be discovered and displayed. (See previous posting for another version of this one.)

The Dream Wings of Night, 2021, digital Blender image

The Mists of Time

 A new variation on the "winged head" theme...going back to classical mythology (Hypnos, Morpheus) & Symbolists like Fernand Khnopff...post-processed with noise & reducing of contrast.

The Mists of Time, 2021, digital image

Monochrome Melancholy

The good thing about sculpting in Blender (& sculpting in general), is that with a 3D object you should ideally have a multitude of angles from which to view the piece & appreciate the interplay of forms.

With Blender's texturing, lighting, coloring etc., options, the possibilities are multiplied. Add to that the ability to insert a background image or objects, & then post-process (I set the image levels to "auto" & added noise), & you can almost endlessly recycle the images and find something new to present.

I also like the way the exposed mesh structure of the piece in places can resemble chisel marks, giving the work a handmade quality of sorts, whilst still maintaining its digital origins.

Monochrome Melancholy, digital Blender image

The Pact

This is a 3D rendered image created in Blender of 2 angels (of the somewhat terrifying, Rilkean variety) coming to an agreement of how to share the mundane world, perhaps. That's what seems to be happening here, but I never really know. I prefer to allude to narratives and let the viewer fill in the rest, which makes the piece more interactive, I think.

The Pact, digital Blender image

The Chaos Series

 I've been working on a series of around 20 (currently 18 done as of this writing) drawings that I've entitled The Chaos Series, as the intention was to do something more intense, improvised & chaotic than my usual work (which can often also be described in the foregoing terms to some extent). So, these are taken to some kind of an extreme & with little forethought, which might be a good recipe for disaster, but so far I'm liking the results. Here is one example, the rest are in an album on my Flickr.

A Head for Figures (Chaos Series), 2021, brush & soluble carbon on paper, 17" x 14".

Head for a Pietà

 This is a 3D digital sculpture done in Blender. It seems to have a quite strong emotional resonance.

Head for a Pietà, Blender digital image

Amber Angel

 Another rendering of the Angel Manipulating Spheres piece:

Amber Angel

The Angel's Hand

 Close-up rendering of the Angel's hand (from Angel Manipulating Spheres). Hands are difficult & time-consuming to sculpt, and this one came out quite well.

Angel's hand, digital rendering from Blender

Here is another view of the piece:

Angel Manipulating Spheres, another view

Sun Angel I & II

 This was done in Blender using a winged head I sculpted a short while ago. I added a partial body & gave it a metallic gold texture, then lit it with an HDRI (high dynamic range image) as well as a sun light. By experimenting with the lighting, HDRI placement, composition, etc., I came up with the following images. The only difference between I & II is the rendering engine used (Eevee in the first, Cycles in the second). The results were suitably ethereal & heavenly, I think.

Sun Angel II, Blender digital image (Cycles renderer)

Sun Angel I, Blender digital image (Eevee renderer)