The Fox and The Cat

"The Fox and The Cat"

acrylic on birch panel 

11 x 14 inches plus frame

$800.00

archenemyarts@gmail.com for purchase inquiries

Here's my painting for Arch Enemy's upcoming "Wait for the Moon" show opening this Friday, 12/12/14.

Each artist chose a Grimm's fairy tale to interpret, and I chose "The Fox and The Cat".  The tale was simple: a fox boasts that he has many tricks and a cat confesses that he has only one.  The fox is caught by hunters and the cat climbs a tree and escapes them.  The tale is supposed to teach that in times of danger, one option is more effective than having many at one's disposal.

I'm not sure how helpful or true that tale is, but I wanted to paint the fox and cat in my own interpretation, so here, the ghostly fox protects the cat; the foxes' skull is seen at the bottom of the painting.  Also, the fox is shown with several tails, like the Japanese kitsune, with each tail representing more luck.

Cinderella's Doves

"Cinderella's Doves"

acrylic on birch panel

11 x 14 inches

2011

SOLD

Like I said before, in the original story of Cinderella as told by the Brothers Grimm, Cinderella wept upon her mother's grave, and up from the tears grew a tree, and in the tree were these doves. And when Cinderella finally married her prince, the doves took revenge on the two evil stepsisters for their cruelty and gouged their eyes out, leaving them blind.

Also, I added lavender to rest in the sister's eye sockets, which in Victorian flower language represents devotion.  As in, the doves' devotion to Cinderella.  

I'm very excited for this show and am painting furiously, like I've never painted before, to get these pieces finished for the show.

This theme is one I came up with in cooperation with the fantastic owners of the gallery, and it's one that I feel suits my work very well.  These stories are both brutal and beautiful, which is how I like to describe my own style of work.

The title, "Grimm Tales" obviously refers the Brothers Grimm, but I also wanted "grim" to reference the metal phrase "That's grim".  So there's my musical influence again.  

By the way, I've been very inspired by the music of Dimmu Borgir and Amon Amarth for these pieces (they keep me going!)

More to come very soon!