Coss

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Shawn Coss

United States

59 creative works found

Blood of a Queen
by Shawn Coss

This painting was created to coincide with the cd release of one of the greatest local bands that I have ever listened to. They also happen to be close friends of mine as well. They go by the name of Amplexus. Why not head over to their spot / myspace.com/amplexusrock / and give a listen while taking in the painting? The details: / 30×24 (?) inch stretched canvas, slathered with 4 layers of acrylic paint (because at that moment I wasn’t sure on what I was making) and finished off with some acrylic markers. Total time beginning to end was 11 hours over a 3 day span. The main idea was inspired directly by their song “Savage Henry” Here are the lyrics (sorry for the long comment) I will strike down with great vengeance and furious anger / Those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers / And you walk free blood on your hands / The night hides you now but a red sun will rise / I knew Id find you, cower and pray / Here is the bargain: my soul for your head And theres no turning back / Dont turn away, you know theres no escape / Now im taking my time with you oh so carefully / Justice fails us all, your sentence is now! / What youve done couldnt go without punishment. / The sun beating down. This will be easier now / Strike down with no regret, tears mix with beading sweat / My footsteps seem distant but sure there is no returning / The innocent they call when no ones listening / The innocent they call me / You poison our existence and my hands are the cure / Im seeking retribution, this violence to you is called for
Breaking Free
by Shawn Coss

After having so much fun with the last piece, I decided to try a series of em. I have an idea, but won’t let it out until I’m sure it will work =D This piece is focused on the ability to open up. Being vulnerable to the outside without fear or worry. My creative juices have been flowing since that week of downtime and in a way my mind has opened a little more for me to see inside and to let you see a little deeper. Only in this state of vulnerability can I truly be free, and without limitation on what I do or how I go about doing it.
What's Left
by Shawn Coss

For the past week or so I have been in a real deep funk. Won’t go as far as saying depressed but overwhelmed by the feeling of unhappiness. I sketched this out last night about midnight and felt that it was worth throwing up here. I wanted to capture how I’ve been feeling and this happened to pop out. No preconceived idea of what I was aiming for and was at the will of my subconscious. As you see in the image, I am gripping onto one of the only things that make me happy, and no matter how hard I squeeze, it still feels like it is slipping away. What IT is, is not important, because it can be anything that brings you any kind of joy. And as you see, without that happiness and that “constant”, I am nothing. Along with my happiness I myself begin to slip away into the darkness, hoping to meet my happiness at the bottom.
Id
by Shawn Coss

As a once psychology major, I was intrigued by Freud’s theory on the id and ego of the human psyche. It has been many years since those classes so my words may be somewhat off. But this piece is a self representation (aren’t they all?) of myself and how the “id” and “ego” play in our life decisions. We all seek pleasure and that constant feeling of euphoria, and our “id”’s only goal is to achieve those feelings without worry or care about the consequences of such actions. It is our “ego” that keeps the “id” in line, allowing us to think before we act, and to be able to foresee what may come of this pleasure seeking. It is a constant battle that wages on beneath our skin and sometimes the “id” overcomes. Some choose to live only by the “id”s bidding and never realize the destruction they leave behind when seeking their pleasures. I have been through that lifestyle once, and as much as I enjoyed such pleasures in bountiful amounts….the aftershock of those actions can still be felt today.
3 Weyes Men
by Shawn Coss

This was a pencil design I did a year back. A lot of my art portrays my feelings towards the social status of this era. How we are consumed by reality tv, game shows, and just plain bad television. Once born of flesh and blood, we are slowly becoming one with technology and absorbed into the useless trash we find flipping through channels. Here, the already converted mother is trying to protect the only remnants that remind her that she too was once human.
Love Slave
by Shawn Coss

This piece is based on how much we base our decisions off of love. Not condemning it, but rather it intrigues me what those will do in the name of love. Many people have died for love, have fought for love, and have sacrificed for love. It’s a powerful feeling that enslaves us, causing us to react in ways we may not deem normal in a clear state of mind, but like they say, Love is intoxicating. 2nd traditional piece I’ve ever attempted with acrylics. It was (key word, was, because it was sold lol)a 18×24 inch stretched canvas with acrylics and india ink. I miss this piece dearly, but at least I have a wonderful jpeg of it’s remains.
Angelic Sin
by Shawn Coss

Kind of feeling the Constantine movie’s idea of demons. Drawn in pencil and then splattered in Photoshop.
Koi
by Shawn Coss

Coming soon!
Balance of Honor
by Shawn Coss

Tattoo design and now cd cover art for local hip hop artist, Sin
Zealots
by Shawn Coss

I was thinking about the status of our existence and what comes with growing older. People tend to lose their common sense when you think that they would become wiser with age. They become more afraid of what is ahead, unsure, and struggle to find something safe to latch onto. What used to be little coincidences and peculiar events now hold stronger meanings and “signs” of a higher existence. These once strong and individual beings become weak and submissive to an unknown…they become zealots, worshipping whatever they feel is in control. It reminds me a lot of zombies =D and how they have this unending desire to devour and consume, as we do with prayer and devotion. We search for signs of God and divine interventions when really, maybe it’s just us willing these events to happen….I do believe in another life, but my maker doesn’t ask me to be a slave, a zombie, or a zealot. He/She asks me to be myself.
Gears of Boredom
by Shawn Coss

Here is the final piece after some tweaking in Photoshop. So I”m not sure if it would be considered mixed media or not but whatever…. Recently as some of you have read, I have been in a funk with my art. Unable to really create anything that truly meant something to me on a higher level. Everything I sketched had no connection, no feeling, and no soul. I started questioning myself and my passion for the arts, when it dawned on me that my boredom and lack of drive WAS my inspiration. I envisioned myself trapped within the inner workings of my subconscious and it trying to suck whatever creative juices I had left in my already empty skull. The mind’s gears cranking out what was left of an artist, even if there were no results. It would continue to crank until it found something, anything, or until it killed the very entity that kept it alive. Luckily for me, there WAS something left.
Black Gold King
by Shawn Coss

This took me much longer than I had hoped. I have final in 2 weeks and instead of studying I’m doing fucking art because I can’t control my addiction >;) Before I indulge with my thoughts on this, note that all of my facts are not straight and that this is merely coming from an emotional outlet. Here in Ohio, gas has dropped well below to the 1.79 price range. Still kind of high from only 5 years ago but compared to where we were at 2 months ago, I’m not complaining. What bothers me is that the “higher ups” in the oil industry would say that they have to raise prices to match the barrel of gas price and still make profit. Yet as some know, their profits are in the billions from the past 3 years. It seems like if the sky looked a little less blue and more cloudy that the gas prices would rise yet we are told that prices aren’t effected at the pumps until 6 weeks later. Seems a bit off to me. So I imagine what these “king’s of oil” look like and how they feed off of the blackness that plagues our existance. Like blood, oil courses through their veins, oozing from every orifice and pore of their body. It allows them the privelige of life, while the rest of us suffer. But what will happen when we drain our planet of it’s oil? Will it wither away as the black gold king’s surely will? and we will be left to clean up the mess. BTW – In case you didn’t know…this shit is copyrighted, and so help me god if I find it stolen, I will rape your eye sockets….legally of course ;)
Encompassing Cold
by Shawn Coss

A reimagined piece from “awakening” and my final painting for the upcoming art show. Not really sure the size of the cabinet door but if you could have only seen how stressed I was trying to come up with a color scheme for this one. Take a step into my mind and see what meaning this conjured up: With everything that has surrounded me in the past couple months, the stress of class, unknown depression, and just the inability to be happy, the one thing that has kept me breathing is my love, but more importantly the love given to me which has kept my body warm. I don’t think I need to spell it out to ya now with my color choices. So…um…enjoy
Business is Good
by Shawn Coss

Though it’s new here, it’s actually been sitting in my basement half finished for over 3 months. Finally got around to finishing it up. This piece was inspired by a conversation myself and Michael (Esum) had while hanging out one day. We talked about how we as a society seem to create things that only do harm and ultimately destroy everything in a certain radius (depending on the blast size). We have a multi-billion dollar industry in war alone and we see with war comes casualties, and casualties are just part of business…..and business is good.
Sledge Head
by Shawn Coss

Was able to find time to flesh out the Sledge Head concept. Completed this on a piece of cabinet door. Ink and acrylic (my favorites) This is part of the Drop to Zero merchandise but here’s what made me create such a piece. I feel sometimes like what is going on in my head never has the chance to see the light of our reality. Thoughts, emotions, fears and dreams stay locked away due to the fear that what comes out may be rejected by oneself or by the masses. So instead of risking such humiliation, we tuck it farther back into our pysche, and surround it in concrete. Well I have grown tired of holding back my feelings and ideas, and I am prepared to smash every brick and chip away at every stone until every creepy, useless, pointless, and ugly thought or idea pours out from the darkness.
Blood Of Angels
by Shawn Coss

Some artwork for the upcoming Drop To Zero cd coming this summer http://www.myspace.com/droptozero Can you feel them calling? Like a heart that’s built on loss, / Their prison keeps them hostage, / Star e out the car window and watch the mills that pass me by, / The pillars standing tall are lined with ghosts that speak from their dark eyes, / Can we call them wrong? Can we see through canine orbits? / Can we dance the devil’s dance and walk two steps in their shoes? / Desperate killers will hunt, / Fight now, try to keep up, / This town, souls that tried to hide from rain in paper towers, / Sunk down, treading in mud, / This town, lost are raising generations of the losing, / This west of Eden Yahweh had in mind, a city paved in blood of angels, / Can you hear them scatter? Like a roach caught in the light, / They burrow in the shadows, / I look to children’s eyes; they breed an emptiness in stare, / They grow to feed like dogs that eat the blood, breeding anger from despair, / Fallen down, hope that is gone, / Somehow, try to move on, / This town, valley where the damned are who find resolution, / The city burned down but the ghosts survived, smoldering rage on the inside
Within The Skin
by Shawn Coss

Sometimes our third eye will find it’s way through, whether we’re ready or not for that unforeseen new knowledge.
Coming Through
by Shawn Coss

The song “beautiful” by 10 years really says a lot to me about how we view ourselves and in comparison to those on television. We spend hundreds of dollars on products that make us look younger, erase wrinkles, enhancing our breasts and even bleach our assholes. Anything to stay beautiful because we don’t want to be overlooked, we want that feeling of importance…that feeling that someone will remember you because of how you look. After awhile, we change ourselves so much that we forget what we used to look like, or how we behaved, because we were so used to feeling the same way we looked, and that’s fake. And what remains is the beautiful being we truly were, only now it has withered and died, and what’s left is something uglier. Photoshop Fun and slight referenced used. Tried out the famous Andrew Jones style of “shape sifting”
Blood Of Angels...now in shirt form
by Shawn Coss

Due to popular request. Here’s a shirt =) And if you are looking for an oversized print of this you can vote for it over at designbyhumans.com….once it is approved. My profile there is SubConArt
Aneurysm
by Shawn Coss

Been a bit I know. Had a very brief moment to get an idea out of my head. A quick rundown of materials and then you can here the bullshit lies…er story behind it ;) Materials: Joint compound, ink, acrylics, pen, brush I’m not even sure on where to begin so let’s just roll with it all shall we? Things haven’t been going as planned in life and as I sit and dwell on them I only drag myself back into a hole of depression and continue to bury myself within the hole with more worry and more bullshit. The saying is true, “shit adds up at the bottom”, also a great line by Tool. Anyway, everytime I get ahead and feel that things might start to look up, something else happens and more shit is added to my surround quicksand like pile that I seem to enjoy so much that I won’t try and remove myself from it. It’s enough to give someone a headache, or moreso an aneurysm. At least with the aneurysm I can no longer have to worry about the depression, the fear, or the sense of hopelessness that I’ve been feeling as of late. Am I the only one who feels this way? I doubt it, nor do I feel my situation is any worse than the next person, but I just feel the need to vent it in a less harmless way…..
Love Is Suicide
by Shawn Coss

I know I know it’s been awhile but things have been going on so damn…. Seriously though, this is the piece that spawned the whole idea of my future series “Halos & Tragedies”. With shit never working out the way you want it, your boss shits on everything you do,and you aren’t quite sure if the next day will be the last of having some financial support. It’s enough to want to drive a bullet through the brain and forget all the worries of the fellow man. And on top of all of that mess, you and your loved ones become nothing more than savages looking out for themselves. The ones you “love” become your enemy, become the thorn that you refuse to withdraw, you realize the misery, you realize the suffering you both are going through, and maybe, just maybe the bullet won’t hurt so bad. Maybe it will make it all better, maybe if that bullet enters the cranial cavity we won’t be thinking too much more about maybes and we’ll have only absolution to deal with. Equipment : canvas, ink, pencil, acrylic, suffering, and some ps magic along with a great title by The Smashing Pumpkins Plenty more coming in the series, stay tuned!
Blinded By My Purity
by Shawn Coss

Finally able to finish the 2nd piece in my “Halos & Tragedies” set. Total time of 3 days, 4 hours each, on a shit piece of cabinet door. All acrylic, no ink surprisingly. Where to begin on the backstory of this one…. Growing up I, like many was raised on christian values, and forced into church every sunday and sometimes wednesday evenings. It caused a lot of anger in me because I was forced into a belief system that I didn’t really understand, and I think that had to do alot with my behavior in my high school days. Of course today I have my beliefs and I hold onto them strongly, whether I’m wrong or not I’ll find out once I die. But it seems a lot of those who become zealots to an organized religion tend to lose sight of humanity and how special it is. They try to suppress feelings, and desires because they believe it is against their God’s bidding. They are willing to sacrifice so much for something that may not exist, in fear that if they do not, that they will not be welcomed when the time comes. They try so hard to wear their halo’s perfect, and pure, not realizing that it is blinding them from seeing life for what it is, at this moment….beautiful
Purify
by Shawn Coss

Another brick in the wall of my Halos and Tragedies work. This is heavily inspired by Derek Hess as this is also being used as Drop To Zero’s cd release flyer. And that man was phenomenal at making flyers. The story behind this has a lot to do with my disgust with our closest city, Cleveland Ohio. I’m completely repulsed by that city and the behavior of those that inhabit it. So much that I wish floods of blood would come and cleanse the streets of all the negativity, violence, and poor excuses of flesh that reside there. Noted, that it is a generalization but it seems that every person I have come across has either tried to rob me, deceive me, or find some way to benefit from me. A city full of leeches that demands more blood and more sacrifice. I think a tidal wave of HgB would do the trick don’t you? Kind of brings to mind the song “Aenima” in a way.
This will be over soon...
by Shawn Coss

Finally had a moment to get out another piece. Again, I’m sorry I haven’t been updating as much lately but I don’t want to throw up half ass designs just to keep up appearances ya know? Anyway, got done watching the movie “Paranormal Activity” and was pretty caught off guard with it. I haven’t had a good true fright in a long time and it kind of inspired this piece, even though it’s a cherub girl instead of some punk ass demon. I like the thought of not being able to see spirits for the most part and with our desires to contact the dead we don’t always know what we’ll get. Kind of like when you’re talking to someone on the internet and they say they’re a hot model or something along that lines when really they’re some fat slob who can’t keep his hands off his wanker ha. Anyway (started a rant there) being unable to see the spirits we assume only what they tell us as truth and we begin to open up more and more to this “beautiful” being that speaks like an elegant child that holds no more threat than said child. Yet what we are looking for in the afterlife – peacefulness, happiness, and overall safety – we are led on to believe until it is too late. And we are at our most vulnerable moment, allowing these feelings to overwhelm us. Possess us. And this spirit that we thought we were speaking to all along was really only the voice inside our head that makes us take that last step into oblivion…. How’s that for a twist?