I often hear music in my dreams. In this case, it was ‘Babylon’ by Oneohtrix Point Never (a.k.a. Daniel Lopatin, for those unaware). I had to respond in the best way possible of course!
⚡Flash Back Friday⚡ Going back to a blackbook doodle from a few years ago. Why am I showing you this? Because graffiti art is, and has been, one of my greatest influences (aside from M.C. Escher). It is an art form I love, and I gain much inspiration from the graffiti scene (legal and illegal). I don’t really show this side of my art to the world, but it is fun for me to create, and it definitely informs my other pieces of work.
Emotionally speaking, this is definitely the hardest pieces I've made so far. On July 18th, 2019, an arson attack on Kyoto Animation's Studio 1 left 36 dead and 34 injured, one of the deadliest mass casualty incidents in Japan since the end of WWII. KyoAni has some of the best working conditions in the industry and have made some of the most iconic anime to date, including Clannad, A Silent Voice, and the show that got me started on anime, Violet Evergarden (as seen in this drawing). I sent this drawing to them through their website, and there's a good chance it was displayed along with thousands of other fan submissions in Kyoto this past November as part of a public memorial service. While this was a tragic blow to the company and community, they're healing and getting back to their feet, and I can't wait to see what they create next.
Even if it is (in my case at the least) just doodling away to the point of allsorts in the hopes it’ll make at least one person a) happy b) perked or c) amused, do good and be good in wake of the current shitstorms in the making.
More for another day...
Ink on sketchbook paper
subject: illustration for the national paper
Size :11" x 14"
Date: 10/20/2017
Artist: Stephen J. Vattimo
This ink illustration was created for a pumpkin design for a carving contest.
The hands grasped tightly in prayer. The national flag in tatters, representing all the trials and tribulation the nation is going through,
The compass represents seeking direction.
The who illustration making the statement,
The need for a nation to look to God for direction, and healing of our land.
God made a promise to the nation Of Israel, which I believe is offered to any nation.
2 Chronicles 7:14
and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
Written by Stephen J. Vattimo
This one was definitely fun to make! It was created during the chilly nights that November brought. I'd like to say I learned a lesson from this painting, actually. I learned that sometimes it's okay to doubt yourself. The background in this painting was originally pure black with out lettering. It sat in my room for days, but in the pit of my stomach I felt that it just wasn't right. Eventually, I surrendered to the daunting sensation and started incorporating other colors into the mixture. Slowly, but surely, life was brought to what was originally just a plain idea.
