Mcmahon
10 members found (show all)
-
Alice McMahon ...
United States
-
David McMahon
Australia
-
Erin McMahon
Australia
93 creative works found
-
David was playing the part of a young gravedigger in director Conor McMahons rural horror film “Dead Meat” where mad cow disease has infected the local population turning them into, well you guessed it flesh eating Zombies. This was Day 1 for David and he was just dressed up in rural garb about to fling himself in front of a car when I took this portrait of him in the fairy woods of Leitrim. / I love this portrait as it is timeless or more to the point it harks back to the Golden age of movie heroes and stars and David is one here.
-
Pastel on Kitty Wallis sanded pastel paper, from “The White Album” series. The tooth of this sanded paper takes many layers of pastel. I prime the surface with rust colored nupastel rubbed in with turpenoid before working. Inspired by the Beatles cover of Carole King’s tune of the same name. “Chains, my baby’s got me locked up in chains and they ain’t the kind that you can see, oh oh these chains of love got a hold on me, yeah!” In April 2007, “Chains” won round 2 of the International Saatchi Showdown Online Competition and was shown at the Saatchi Gallery in London. I received this email January 6th, 2009 from the Saatchi Gallery: Dear Alice I am delighted to inform you that your work is currently being exhibited in the Saatchi Gallery – please find attached a photograph of your work on display. Below is the label that we are using for the work. SAATCHI ONLINE ROUND WINNER ALICE MCMAHON WHITE Chains 2006 / Pastel on paper 55×38 cm This work also has received awards in Chicago Pastel Society’s National Juried Show 2006; Pastels USA, Pastel Society of the West Coast, Auburn, California / 2005; Best Drawing, Plaza Art Competition, Beverly Arts Center, Chicago 2005.
-
Pastel on peach Fabriano paper, self-portrait in my Fine Arts Building Chicago art studio, from life in a mirror reflection, 2005. The view behind my portrait is the actual view of the Venetian Courtyard of this historic studio building, an artist’s haven for over a century. I often frame my work in vintage and antique distressed frames, especially mirror frames.
-
There’s a story to this one. After a long drive down a narrow, wet, dirt road and a trek down a slippery, sloppy track (very overgrown), McMahon’s Lookout revealed … a white-out!!! We’d well and truly descended into the wet white stuff so after all that effort, here’s the view!! / Landscapes Trees Cards EOD Rusty Flowers Architecture Macro CatchAll DM / /
-
BEST VIEWED LARGER This shot was taken from McMahons Point on the north shore of Sydney harbour, as a storm front moved through McMahons point offers great views of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, Opera House and the Sydney skyline. A great place to get that magic shot, easily reached by ferry from the circular quay ferry terminus Equipment: Nikon D300 , Nikon 18-200mm / Technique: 5 bracketted shots, Photomatix, Capture NX
-
BEST VIEWED LARGER* This shot taken using 5 Exposures generating one HDR image, taken at sunset from Mc Mahons Point on the Northern shore of Sydney Harbour. / For those visiting Sydney , Berrys Bay/Balls Head is easily accessable from by tain on the North Shore railway line . This side of the harbour offers panoramic views and the cheapest way to explore Sydney is with an explorer pass . Equipment: Nikon D300, Nikon 18-200 lens, no filters, processed usin Photomatix HDR Software My continuing experience with HDR is a learning one some tries work the way you expect sometimes they are a bit different… but hey it’s fun !
-
Images are from original charcoal drawings by Alice McMahon White, on paper or mylar film.
-
Model: Bubbler Brett Manning SYMBOLISM: From the Black Butterfly series, charcoal on mylar drafting film, with white backing paper 19×32” From a reference photo self-portrait by Redbubble friend Brett Manning, aka brettisagirl. The piece is inspired by Brett’s artistic “muses” (the butterflies) art, fashion, design, illustration, drawing, her Frankie, coffee, chocolate, her kitties, her puppies, and 60’s music, especially Bob Dylan. The butterflies are “ideas” that flutter around her head. The necklace is a nod to fashion, and to the lyric in Bob Dylan’s tune of the same name. “The World’s Biggest Necklace” is also from Egyptian mythology. There are eleven butterflies, symbolic for myself and my ten siblings. “Isis” lyrics by Bob Dylan: I married Isis on the fifth day of May, / But I could not hold on to her very long. So I cut off my hair and I rode straight away / For the wild unknown country where I could not go wrong. I came to a high place of darkness and light. The dividing line ran through the center of town. I hitched up my pony to a post on the rise, / Went in to a laundry to wash my clothes down. A man in the corner approached me for a match. I knew right away he was not ordinary. He said, “Are you lookin’ for somethin’ easy to catch?” / I said, “I got no money.” He said, “That ain’t necessary. / “ We set out that night for the cold in the North. I gave him my blanket, he gave me his word. I said, “Where are we goin’?” He said we’d be back by the fourth. I said, “That’s the best news that I’ve ever heard. / “ I was thinkin’ about turquoise, I was thinkin’ about gold, / I was thinkin’ about diamonds and the world’s biggest necklace. As we rode through the canyons, through the devilish cold, / I was thinkin’ about Isis, how she thought I was so reckless.
-
This work was featured in the group “Out of the Past.” Charcoal and white pastel on mylar drafting film with moonstone Canson backing paper, 10×8” From the Black Butterfly series. I’m creating a few small works for the series – pieces that are priced to sell. They will be presented in vintage swing frames and displayed at the gallery on pedestals.
-
From the Black Butterfly series. Charcoal on mylar drafting film with white illustration board underlay, 24×30”. I started this 4 years ago, intending it to be an ink and watercolor wash piece. I never got up the nerve to finish it – it is quite large and I wasn’t very comfortable with watercolor. The references I used were photos of myself and my husband in our early 20’s. Symbolism: My husband is a musician, and the butterflies in the series are representative of the artist’s muse. All of the models for this series are artists from various disciplines (actress Marilyn Monroe is Aphrodite in one work). In this piece, the lilies and the intertwining branches are taken from works by Leonardo Da Vinci. The Celtic elements of triple spirals and knot work are symbolic of our three children, my Irish heritage, our intertwined lives and inspirations, and are also appropriate as a reminder of our journey to Ireland this past year.
-
From the Black Butterfly series. Portrait of Shan Zuo Zhou, charcoal and white pastel on mylar drafting film with blue-gray Canson backing paper, 16×16”. From a reference photo by Steven E. Gross. I am a member of the 33 Collective Gallery located in the Zhou Brother’s Art Center, Chicago. The Zhou Brothers have been generous to allow our co-op gallery to use the entire art center for our group show this month. The show opens Friday March 20th, 2009. The Zhou Brothers are always on hand at the center and are very supportive of the members of the gallery and of their artists in residence. I am fascinated with them, their persona, and their work and decided they would be perfect subjects to draw for my series, which always features creatives as models. Brother #2, DaHuang Zhou will be tomorrow’s subject for Daily Drawing. The butterfly is borrowed from a Chinese watercolor design, and the Chinese symbols stand for “inspired-dream-vision-revelation” As noted in my earlier blogs, in this series the butterfly is symbolic of the artist’s muse. The title of this work comes from Chinese literature by Zhuangzi – [Chuang-Tse] “One day about sunset, Zhuangzi dozed off and dreamed that he turned into a butterfly. / He flapped his wings and sure enough he was a butterfly… / What a joyful feeling as he fluttered about, he completely forgot that he was Zhuangzi. / Soon though, he realized that that proud butterfly was really Zhuangzi who dreamed he was a butterfly, or was it a butterfly who dreamed he was Zhuangzi! / Maybe Zhuangzi was the butterfly, and maybe the butterfly was Zhungzi? This is what is meant by the “transformation of things.” – Zhuang Zi (369?-286? b.c.) The Zhou brothers short biography: The Zhou Brothers are one of the most accomplished contemporary artists in the world today renowned for their unique collaborative work process. They always work together on their paintings, performances, sculptures, and prints, often communicating without words in a so-called dream dialogue. Their thinking, aesthetic, and creativity are a symbiosis of Eastern and Western philosophy, art, and literature that informed their development since early childhood. Their indomitable spirit allowed them to leave behind their brilliant success in China, where they were hailed as national heroes for their early work, to step onto the world stage. They have since achieved international acclaim while continuing to work in the West. The Zhou Brothers, Shan Zuo and DaHuang Zhou, were born in China 1952 and 1957 respectively. They studied drama and painting at the University of Shanghai from 1978 to 1982 and the National Academy for Arts and Crafts in Beijing from 1983 to 1984 where they received their MFAs. During the beginning of the 1980s they became leaders of the contemporary art movement in China. In 1985 they won the National Prize of the Chinese Avant-Garde of the Ministry of Culture and the Prize for Creativity from the Peace Corps of the United Nations. They were also honored as the first contemporary artists ever to show their work in an exhibition that traveled to the five largest museums in China, including the National Art Museum of China in Beijing and the art museums in Shanghai and Nanjing. Realizing that the political and cultural landscape at that time would not allow them to expand their careers, an invitation to exhibit in Chicago in 1986 presented a timely opportunity to make the transition onto an international stage. The Zhou Brothers have consequently maintained their home and studios in Chicago while actively exhibiting their work nationally and abroad.” Companion piece, portrait of Shan Zuo’s brother DaHuang Zhou:
-
This work was featured in the group “Out Of the Past” Small work: “Le Papillon” charcoal and pastel on Mylar, 9×7” This young French student artist wandered into my studio one evening during our open studio event. I liked her look and thought she would be a good model for my Black Butterfly series, so I asked if she would mind posing for a few photos. We had a fun visit, and she showed me her lovely Moleskine sketch journal and we also exchanged emails. I took quite a few great photos of Melodie, so I most likely will do another small work or two from them. She was a delight. Also, I am happy to realize that “Melodie” is the Muse of Music. These small studies present their own challenges. I like to complete them in one sitting and the scale is difficult for detail, but I feel that I did capture the subject’s hopefulness and creativity in this small work. Presented in a vintage tabletop swing frame.
-
This work has been featured in the group “Out of the Past” Study for a larger work, charcoal on mylar drafting film, with digital underlay of a Walt Whitman poem. Image size: 9 1/2×7”. In vintage tabletop swing frame: 12 1/2×11” overall. Facsimile butterfly. Another small work to be included in my “Black Butterfly: The Muse” solo show, which is scheduled to open on September 18th in Chicago. In the series, the butterfly is a symbol for the artist’s muse, and all of the subjects I’m drawing are in the arts. I’ve been reading poetry recently, and am pleased to include Walt Whitman in the series. “Whitman and the Butterfly / The reference photograph, taken in 1877, was one of Whitman’s favorites. He used the butterfly-on-hand as a recurring motif in his books and intended for this photo to be reproduced as the frontispiece in this sample proof of Leaves of Grass from 1891. To foster the image of himself as one with nature, he claimed that insect was real and one of his “good friends.” But a band visible around Whitman’s finger matches the wire under the butterfly artifact (above). This colorful cardboard prop was tucked into one of the first Whitman notebooks donated to the Library in 1918. The word “Easter” is printed down its spine. Dr. Bucke, one of his literary heirs, said the butterfly was Psyche, the poet’s soul.” source: “Good Gray Poet: Revising Himself”, http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/treasures/whitman-goodgraypoet.html
-
Grace #3 of 3 From the “Black Butterfly: The Muse” series. Charcoal on Mylar film, 20×16” From a reference photo by Rolling Stone magazine photographer Baron Wolman. Groupie “HARLOW”, San Francisco, Nov. 1969. I saw these photos and fell in love with them – Baron was so gracious to allow me to use them. I added the flowers and butterflies, from a pattern on scented drawer liners. Here is a quote from Baron about the groupies: “As concert promoter Bill Graham has given me all access to any of the concerts he produced, I spent quite a bit of time backstage with the bands, their roadies and their women. What fascinated me were the lengths to which the women, the groupies, went to prepare themselves for their backstage appearances. Because I also wanted an excuse to photograph them, I suggested to Jann they might make an interesting story. He agreed and Rolling Stone Magazine No. 27 became known as “the groupie issue.” It was widely promoted, read and commented upon, even turned into a book.” -Baron Wolman While the rest of the models I’ve used in the series are in the arts themselves, I was intrigued with the idea of groupies – and their intrigue with rock & roll artists of the late 1960’s. It seems to me they were using their own bodies and persona as an art form to attract their artistic “muses.” I guess you could consider some of the works in my Black Butterfly series “Cover Tunes.” I believe the borrowed references are vital to the series to relate the idea of inspiration, and its relation to talent and celebrity. These “tunes” well deserve a stylish, honorable replay. Many thanks to the talented people who have loaned their vision of the muse to aid me in illustrating my ideas.
-
This work was featured in the groups 1 on 1: The Fine Art of Portraiture and Out of the Past. Grace # 2 of 3 , Charcoal on Mylar film, 30×20” from the “Black Butterfly: The Muse” series. The 3 Graces: Aglaia (radiance) Euphrosyne (joy) Thalia (flowering) It was the poet Hesiod who named the Graces in his Theogony: “Then Eurynome, Ocean’s fair daughter, bore to Zeus the three Graces, all fair-cheeked, Aglaia, Euphrosyne, and shapely Thalia; their alluring eyes glance from under their brows, and from their eyelids drips desire that unstrings the limbs.” From a reference photo by Rolling Stone magazine photographer Baron Wolman, groupie Sally Mann, San Francisco, Nov. 1968. (No relation to the photographer of the same name) Sally married Jefferson Airplane’s Spencer Dryden in 1970. Here is a quote from Baron about the groupies: “As concert promoter Bill Graham has given me all access to any of the concerts he produced, I spent quite a bit of time backstage with the bands, their roadies and their women. What fascinated me were the lengths to which the women, the groupies, went to prepare themselves for their backstage appearances. Because I also wanted an excuse to photograph them, I suggested to Jann they might make an interesting story. He agreed and Rolling Stone Magazine No. 27 became known as “the groupie issue.” It was widely promoted, read and commented upon, even turned into a book.” -Baron Wolman I saw these photos in an old book picked up at a resale shop. I fell in love with the groupies, and Baron was so gracious to allow me to use them for the drawings. The feminine effect of the references are enhanced with the flowers and butterflies. In this case, I decided to draw Sally holding the lilies, as she married soon after the photo was taken. It’s also about peace & love & hippie-ness, baby. :) While the rest of the models I’ve used in the series are in the arts themselves, I was intrigued with the idea of groupies – and their intrigue with rock & roll artists of the late 1960’s. It seems to me they were using their own bodies and persona as an art form to attract their artistic “muses.” I guess you could consider some of the works in my Black Butterfly series “Cover Tunes.” I believe the borrowed references are vital to the series to relate the idea of inspiration, and its relation to talent and celebrity. These “tunes” well deserve a stylish, honorable replay. Many thanks to the talented people who have loaned their vision of the muse to aid me in illustrating my ideas.
-
BETTER VIEWED LARGER This shot taken from McMahons Point Wharf just before dawn, is one of those magical moments where you are glad you nevergo anywhere without your camera. The lavender colours were true to the name of the bay “Lavendar Bay”. That sunrise was awe inspiring. The wharf is just 5 minutes across the harbour from the ferry terminus Circular Quay Equipment :Nikon D300, Sigma lens 10-20mm / Technique:HDR , Photomatix, 5 Bracketted images
-
From the “Black Butterfly: The Muse” series, installation portrait of John Lennon, charcoal on Mylar drafting film, 15×14” in vintage lighted corner shrine box, overall 20×18 x 10.” The translucent Mylar allows the backlighting to shine through the drawing. There is a small installation on the built-in shelf of the box: a traditional Indian oil lamp and incense burner, and a photo of Lennon with second wife Yoko Ono, from the cover of “The Wedding Album” (1969.) There will eventually be a real decoupage butterfly on the upper portion of the box. In the photo, I have taped a temporary one to show placement. John Winston Ono Lennon, (October 9, 1940 – December 8, 1980) was an English rock musician, singer, songwriter, artist and peace activist and one of the founding members of The Beatles. My installation piece is inspired by the John Lennon 1970 single Instant Karma! (We All Shine On) and incorporates references to the Beatles trip to India in 1968 to study Transcendental Meditation. Lennon’s resemblance to Jesus in the portrait is intentional as an acknowledgement of his March 4, 1966 statement to the press: “(The Beatles are) more popular than Jesus now; I don’t know which will go first-rock ‘n’ roll or Christianity.” / / In February 1968, the flower-power counterculture was alive and well, flourishing in a village called Rishikesh in the Himilayan foothills. There, the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi was offering a three-month course in transcendental meditation. While other swamis were offering traditional spiritual instruction in modest huts along the banks of the Ganges, the Maharishi had constructed an air-conditioned ashram — surrounded by barbed wire — for the comfort and privacy of celebrity acolytes such as actress Mia Farrow, Beach Boy Mike Love, folk singer Donovan and, of course, John, Paul, George and Ringo. Symbolism: / / In Hinduism, the lotus (water lily) primarily represents beauty and non-attachment. The lotus is rooted in the mud but floats on the water without becoming wet or muddy. This symbolizes how one should live in the world in order to gain release from rebirth: without attachment to one’s surroundings. Water has been an object of worship since a very early age among the Hindus, and plays an important role even today in Hindu religious rites. During all purification rites, water is sprinkled on the object to be purified. The butterfly is symbolic to me as Lennon’s muse, or inspiration, and in this case, is also a symbol for transformation in the afterlife. / / I used several different reference photos of John Lennon combined to create this unique image. The clouds across his forehead are taken from the cover of Lennon’s “Imagine” album. The mosaic backdrop is from photos of the John Lennon Imagine memorial mosaic at Strawberry Fields in Central Park in New York City. The Lotus reference was taken by my good friend Lindybird. I listened to John Lennon’s music, and covers of it as well, throughout the drawing process. I was frequently moved to tears by the fact that so many of the lyrics are still relevant today. / / ~ Imagine Peace! ~ Alice (For my September solo exhibition, the installation will be placed in a darkened corner of the gallery, and there will be more items related to John Lennon’s life included on a pedestal.) / / Studio music: “Imagine” John Lennon / “Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur” / “Across the Universe Soundtrack” Instant Karma! (We All Shine On) lyrics Songwriters: Lennon, John Winston / Instant Karma’s gonna get you, / Gonna knock you right on the head, / You better get yourself together, / Pretty soon you’re gonna be dead, / What in the world you thinking of, / Laughing in the face of love, / What on earth you tryin’ to do, / It’s up to you, yeah you. Instant Karma’s gonna get you, / Gonna look you right in the face, / Better get yourself together darlin’, / Join the human race, / How in the world you gonna see, / Laughin’ at fools like me, / Who on earth d’you think you are, / A super star, / Well, right you are. Well we all shine on, / Like the moon and the stars and the sun, / Well we all shine on, / Ev’ryone come on. Instant Karma’s gonna get you, / Gonna knock you off your feet, / Better recognize your brothers, / Ev’ryone you meet, / Why in the world are we here, / Surely not to live in pain and fear, / Why on earth are you there, / When you’re ev’rywhere, / Come and get your share. Well we all shine on, / Like the moon and the stars and the sun, / Yeah we all shine on, / Come on and on and on on on, / Yeah yeah, alright, uh huh, ah-. Well we all shine on, / Like the moon and the stars and the sun, / Yeah we all shine on, / On and on and on on and on. Well we all shine on, / Like the moon and the stars and the sun. / Well we all shine on, / Like the moon and the stars and the sun. / Well we all shine on, / Like the moon and the stars and the sun. / Yeah we all shine on, / Like the moon and the stars and the sun. Video here
-
From the Black Butterfly series. Mini portrait of Oscar Wilde – 10×8” Charcoal and white pastel pencil on Mylar film. A copy of an early draft of Roses and Rue, in Wilde’s own hand, shows through the translucent Mylar. Roses and Rue by Oscar Wilde, for actress Lillie Langtry Could we dig up this long-buried treasure, / Were it worth the pleasure, / We never could learn love’s song, / We are parted too long Could the passionate past that is fled / Call back its dead, / Could we live it all over again, / Were it worth the pain! I remember we used to meet / By an ivied seat, / And you warbled each pretty word / With the air of a bird; And your voice had a quaver in it, / Just like a linnet, / And shook, as the blackbird’s throat / With its last big note; And your eyes, they were green and grey / Like an April day, / But lit into amethyst / When I stooped and kissed; And your mouth, it would never smile / For a long, long while, / Then it rippled all over with laughter / Five minutes after. You were always afraid of a shower, / Just like a flower: / I remember you started and ran / When the rain began. I remember I never could catch you, / For no one could match you, / You had wonderful, luminous, fleet, / Little wings to your feet. I remember your hair – did I tie it? / For it always ran riot - / Like a tangled sunbeam of gold: / These things are old. I remember so well the room, / And the lilac bloom / That beat at the dripping pane / In the warm June rain; And the colour of your gown, / It was amber-brown, / And two yellow satin bows / From the shoulders rose. And the handkerchief of French lace / Which you held to your face- / Had a small tear left a stain? / Or was it the rain? On your hand as it waved adieu / There were veins of blue; / In your voice as it said good-bye / Was a petulant cry, “You have only wasted your life.” / (Ah, that was the knife!) / When I rushed through the garden gate / It was all too late. Could we live it over again, / Were it worth the pain, / Could the passionate past that is fled / Call back its dead! Well, if my heart must break, / Dear love, for your sake, / It will break in music, I know, / Poets’ hearts break so. But strange that I was not told / That the brain can hold / In a tiny ivory cell / God’s heaven and hell.
-
SOLD! Charcoal on Stonehenge paper, 16×20” Beara Peninsula, Ireland
-
“I knew that I had come face to face with some one whose mere personality was so fascinating that, if I allowed it to do so, it would absorb my whole nature, my whole soul, my very art itself.” ~ Oscar Wilde ~ The Picture of Dorian Gray My solo show is scheduled to open at 33 Collective Gallery on September 18th. I have just a couple more wall holes to fill before then. “The Picture of Dorian Gray” (36” x 28” charcoal on Mylar drafting film in vintage mirror frame) is another work for Black Butterfly: The Muse, my series inspired by the arts, with my subjects coming from the various artistic disciplines. This is a portrait of artist/musician/model Ryan Dies I met Ryan in an art jewelry shop, 1 ofmykind jewels during a recent trip to the historic town of Galena Illinois. Ryan was friendly and engaging right off. He was wearing a heavy beaded choker of his own design and looked so handsome I couldn’t resist asking him if I could take a few photographs to be used for a drawing. Ryan was happy to pose for the references, and the natural light was beautiful that day. Peacock feathers and ornate gilt mirror frames were part of the décor of the shop, so ideas for the drawing were formed almost immediately during the shoot. We had a nice conversation about the Chicago art scene and I talked with Ryan about a couple of his very good surrealist paintings that were on display. Later as I looked through the photos I decided Ryan would make the perfect model for a contemporary “Dorian Gray.” / The Picture of Dorian Gray is the only published novel by the Irish poet Oscar Wilde. It is a story about a handsome young man who becomes enthralled with the idea of a new hedonism. He begins to indulge in every kind of pleasure, moral and immoral. I used a compilation of several of the reference photos from Ryan’s shoot for the finished drawing. The peacock feathers seemed a natural symbol for Dorian’s pride in his physical appearance, the pride that made him wish to never grow old. I took liberties by changing Ryan’s existing forearm tattoo to one with a butterfly and poppy flowers – symbols for transformation and for “Dorian’s” travels to an opium den as a way to escape his crimes. I decided to add the skull ring on Dorian’s hand – a design by Jodie McGill of 1 ofmykind. I thought the skull was very appropriate as a reference to the plot of Wilde’s novel. The butterflies in this work refer to Dorian’s muse: his own handsome mirror image; saved from corruption by the putrefying portrait that grows more horrifying with each sin committed by his increasingly evil character. I decided that I’d prefer to keep the decaying “picture” implied only, by using the ornate mirror frame to display this work. Outside of physical beauty there is no comparing Ryan’s pleasant personality with the ugly character of Dorian Gray. He has been delightful to work with and I look forward to following this talented young man’s career. Here’s a fun and appropriate related video Enjoy!
-
Charcoal on Mylar drafting film, 12×24”. A surrealistic impression of John Lennon’s murder. For the drawing, I’ve used a reference photo of the Charter Arms .38 revolver the police confiscated at the scene of the crime, tagged as shown in the photo. The butterflies, white lily, and stormy backdrop are from my own references I took on recent vacations. The flower placed inside the gun barrel is reminiscent of 1967’s “Flower Power,” photo by Bernard Norman, showing a long-haired antiwar protester shoving carnations into the gun barrels of MPs during an anti-Vietnam protest at the Pentagon. The caterpillar and butterflies are symbols of the earthly life, spirit, and transformation in the afterlife, and were often used by artist Salvador Dalí. Lennon was murdered on December 10, 1980, shot four times in the back. In 1979, Lennon’s assassin (nameless, as Yoko requested) began drinking heavily and developed an obsession for contemporary art. He bought numerous items of art, including a Salvador Dali, amassing a debt that was becoming way out of control. He began reading with an insatiable appetite, especially “The Catcher in The Rye.” He often interpreted lyrics as if they had been written especially for him. #9 Dream from Lennon’s “Walls & Bridges” album was a special song for John – some say the strange and haunting lyrics of #9 Dream are John’s premonition of his own death. According to John, the foreign-sounding phrase “Ah! böwakawa poussé, poussé.” doesn’t mean anything…it is just a phrase that came to him in a dream and he decided to base a song around it. As I was drawing from the storm landscape reference photo, I noticed a vague dark spout along the horizon. There was a tornado touchdown this past July during the storm I had photographed while we were driving, skirting the eye of the storm near Galena, Illinois. I’m not sure if I had captured the funnel’s beginning, but I emphasized the funnel effect in my drawing. The sense of impending doom was strong that afternoon and it matches my unease in the current climate in the states. My motivation for drawing this piece is the surge in gun sales since U.S. President Obama was elected, just one of the many issues in the current American landscape. “It’s simply paranoia,” said Thomas Mannard of the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence. “And it’s irresponsible, from my point of view, to be touting how wonderful this is. More guns definitely equal more death.” Mr. Lennon still inspires. I have a dream… #9 Dream (video) / / So long ago / Was it in a dream, was it just a dream? / I know, yes I know / Seemed so very real, it seemed so real to me Took a walk down the street / Thru the heat whispered trees / I thought I could hear (hear, hear, hear) / Somebody call out my name, as it started to rain Two spirits dancing so strange Ah! böwakawa poussé, poussé / Ah! böwakawa poussé, poussé / Ah! böwakawa poussé, poussé Dream, dream away / Magic in the air, was magic in the air? / I believe, yes I believe / More I cannot say, what more can I say? On a river of sound / Thru the mirror go round, round / I thought I could feel (feel, feel, feel) / Music touching my soul, something warm, sudden cold / The spirit dance was unfolding Ah! böwakawa poussé, poussé / Ah! böwakawa poussé, poussé / Ah! böwakawa poussé, poussé Lyrics, by John Lennon The butterfly wings along the flower stem are after this painting by Salvador Dalí:
-
Commission: “Swan Nebula” Soft pastel on sanded paper, 26×36” Private collection, Las Vegas NV. Another piece that’s hard to photograph. The patron says this must be what heaven looks like. The finished piece has a softer more vibrant look.
RedBubble is a great place to find art, design, photos and writing from over 80,000 talented people.
You can buy their stuff
On stunning greeting cards, awesome t-shirts or beautiful prints to hang on your walls.
Risk Free Returns
It’s really simple. If you’re not happy with your purchase for any reason, we’ll fix it.
About RedBubble
Since February 2007 we’ve shipped over 325,200 items to more than 70 countries around the world.
Join In
Sign up for your free account, upload your work, join some groups and share your creative genius with the world.