R i c h a r d J . B a i l e y

My Latest Commission: Congratulations, V&N!

2013-01-20T17:43:00.002-08:00

I was asked recently to compose an image for a couple who live in Oslo. They are getting married and then celebrating in Iceland this March. It's sure to be a fantastic affair, one I wish I could attend. Congrats, guys! :)

The Persistence of Memes.

2013-01-10T21:41:00.001-08:00

One of These Memes

2013-01-03T22:02:00.001-08:00

Among the multitudes of memes, every anomaly is coming into being.

PMA Biennial Submission PIeces ... I think...?

2012-12-13T19:03:00.000-08:00

I have til tomorrow to decide... Any thoughts?

La Maison Bleue (The Blue House)

2012-12-10T15:24:00.000-08:00

I have been searching for this place for most of my life, perhaps even longer.

I could not tell you the particulars of how I found this house, only that I had wandered deep into the forest to lose myself, to forget I existed, and it was while walking in the dark, alone, that the pathway appeared to me. From the path I saw the light, and by the light I was led to the door. It was not until much later I would learn that everyone finds their way here in the same way.

No one knows the host who lights the lamp that shines down upon the path. There are rooms in this house that were never built at all, at least not with human hands . The house is alive, you see. It lives alone, somewhere deep inside of itself.

ART WALK December 7th

2012-12-02T17:49:00.003-08:00

I will be setting up a table on Congress Street (near museum - location TBA on twitter/facebook)

I'll be selling these small portrait paintings (acrylic on wood) and other creative gifts.

Come down and support local Maine artists!

Halloween 3

2012-10-16T10:00:00.001-07:00

Happy Halloween! Thanks!

Halloween 2

2012-10-16T10:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween! Thanks!

Halloween 1

2012-10-16T08:00:00.000-07:00

BLUE ELEPHANT.

2012-09-29T21:29:00.001-07:00

The Mountains of Terra Magica.

2012-09-29T19:27:00.000-07:00

Night Mountains.

Green Mountains.

Mystical Mountain.

Lately I've been branching out from my usual tight pen and ink style, and using a more painterly approach to capturing what I see in my mind's eye. And this past week, it's been mountains.

After visiting the top of Mount Washington last week, I was reminded of the awesome beauty and strange power of mountains. They are potent symbols of the connection between heaven and earth, almost like permanent cathedrals built by nature itself. As one encounters these magical spaces, it is impossible not to be humbled and amazed by their beauty and size. At the same time, mountains are cold, windy, brutal and dangerous, warning us always of our human limitations.

Mystical Mountain.

2012-09-29T17:39:00.002-07:00

AXIS MUNDI.

2012-09-29T16:42:00.000-07:00

The term Axis Mundi refers to a mythological center that connects the earthy or mundane realm with the heavenly, or celestial, realm. This archetype occurs in many world religions, manifesting as a tree, tower, or mountain.

In Taoist literature it is referred to as the "mountain at the middle of the world". Besides acting as a pole around which all material things revolve, this mountain also serves as a conduit between the worlds, making it possible for humans and divine beings to travel between their respected domains.

In this image, I combined the symbols of the tree and the mountain. Below the earthly realm is a dark underworld and the complex root systems that make the physical plane possible. The peak of the mystical mountain rises towards some sort of opening in the clouded sky above, suggesting the passageway between the worlds.

The center-point of the world as a mountain has great sacred significance. In Christianity, the Transfiguration of Christ on the mountain is a pivotal moment when human nature meets God. This is the meeting place for the temporal and the eternal, with Jesus himself as the connecting point, acting as the bridge between heaven and earth.

In almost all cultures, the mountain represents spiritual quest, overcoming obstacles, and the wisdom that comes from applied effort.

Ganymede and Zeus.

2012-07-05T21:38:00.001-07:00

High atop Mount Ida, the boy reclines amid the flowers and grasses, unaware of the imminent danger, and the moment that is passing. Below lies the shining city of Troy. In a few days it will be reduced to nothing more than smoldering ruins.

This morning the sun's rays shine brightly on the boy, catching the eye of Zeus himself. Looking down on the shimmering child, he is overcome with lust for the young Ganymede and his pastoral, prepubescent bliss.

This morning is the last time Ganymede will feel the earth below his body. Zeus has transformed himself into an eagle, wheeling above, hunting the shepard boy with patient cunning. In a moment he will capture the innocent in his razor sharp talons.

Taking the boy into the dizzying darkness of the sky above, Zeus will ravage and rape him. From now on, the beautiful boy will be a servant of pleasure in a palace far above his own planet.

Right before the loss of every innocence is this moment, when the sun shines on the world for the last time.

The Magician and the Audience.

2012-07-05T06:16:00.001-07:00

I finally got around to finishing the background of this piece, called Hat Trick. I originally meant it to be a companion piece to The Audience, representing the same surprising moment from oposite vantage points.

They end up working better as independent works now, I think, but with a little photoshop magic, you can get an idea of what I was trying to achieve below.

Faust Conjures Mephistopheles.

2012-06-24T22:10:00.000-07:00

The truth may set you free, but knowledge is gonna cost ya.

Meet Mistress Ripper.

2012-06-06T21:11:00.001-07:00

MISTRESS RIPPER

Mistress Ripper

Stripping the sweet

Neatly sewn stitches

With razor sharp feet.

Cast down, teeth clicking

She's a vision of peril

Leaving shredded the thread

And the sampler sterile.

I won't lie. This one terrifies me. I actually did it quite a while ago, as part of the "Strangelets" series. You can see more innocuous incarnations of the strangelets HERE.

Beware of Memes.

2012-06-06T20:30:00.000-07:00

Nantucket.

2012-06-06T13:42:00.000-07:00

For Rachael Jane Blumenberg. You know who, you know how and you know why. I love you. -RJB

BEWARE the Meme.

2012-05-29T19:35:00.000-07:00

Memessiah.

2012-05-29T11:34:00.001-07:00

"Replicate or Die" is the motto of memes everywhere. In order to survive in the mind, an individual meme must join a larger collection of memes. A group of like-minded memes is called a memeplex.

Here, a memeplex of monotheistic memes gather around their chosen one, who rises into the lightning-laden sky on a hydraulic platform.

Performance of this group activity triggers energy releases from the psychosphere. This energy is transferred back to the the memes, causing them to excite and spontaneously replicate.

Memes are self-replicating, so there's no sex. But a small, aggressive group of memes in the wild can eventually swell to an armada capable of invading and securing even a human mind.

Today, memes control millions of minds through this process, virtually undetected. The rich resources and self-conscious capabilities of our human minds make us a uniquely ideal environment for these powerful legions of replicators.

THE NEEDFUL HEAD back as a book!

2012-05-24T16:14:00.002-07:00

For those of you who have been waiting for your copy of the Needful Head since Artomatic 2009, I am truly sorry. I am really making a concerted effort to make deadlines and tie up loose ends lately.

So, the Needful Head will soon be available as a downloadable e-book for laptop, desktop and ipad. I am also developing the files for a print-on-demand version that will be available as signed copies in time for the holidays.

The e-book will also have a unique option to hear me narrating the absurd tale as you read it. Fun!

The art has been slightly updated and I have made this version KID-FRIENDLY, with no swear words! Hell-- I mean, HECK-- I can't afford to alienate any of my audience, especially those most captive.

The story of the Needful begins with a social mistep at a party, and after mulling over his mistake in self-loathing our hero decides to remove his head entirely, and at last achieves some peace.

My dog and I,
We slept just fine
Without that loud-mouthed
Head of mine.

But not for long. Soon, Head decides he's staying. And released on its own, Head becomes a high-strung house-guesyt of the most unwanted kind!

Sure enough, to my horror,
Head, he was back.
Downstairs making breakfast
And wearing my hat.

Poor body is forced into increasingly more desperate escapades to get free once and for all. But how far will he go to get rid of Head? And what will the neighbors say?

This book was made into a short film in 2007 by the very talented and dilligent Zeth Willie over at Catbuks Productions in NYC. It won some pretty awesome awards internationally, and even competed for an Oscar that year. The movie is available on DVD or for download on itunes or amazon.

HAT TRICK.

2012-05-09T10:01:00.000-07:00

Oops...

Tricks are not magic
for the rabbit, in fact:
How'd you like to be pulled
by your ears from a hat?

Somehow this rabbit has managed to emerge... Surprise! Not from the hat, but the magician's own head. Confusion all around. I wonder what will happen next? 

This is one of those pieces that came like a rod of lightenning into my brain just as I was almost asleep last week. I flew out of bed and stumbled into the studio, grabbed my drawing pad, and began to draw it quickly before the image faded. 

He is almost an exact copy of the version in my mind, which has since faded back into my subconscious.. Luckily I recorded the evidence!

The Audience.

2012-05-06T10:30:00.003-07:00

Night Out.

2012-04-29T16:54:00.002-07:00