Silhouette

This is a pastel I did for the Art Showcase I had in May.

It's called "Silhouette". The original painting has completely different colors...Bad camera, I guess.

Enjoy!

Origins

Sometimes I wonder.

Back in time, our ancestors walked the endless fields of great Africa.

Looking at the neverending sky, scared beyond measure by storm and lightning and fire.

Was it when Men began? Was it when God began?

I started with this watercolor sketch:

then heavily worked it with Photoshop.

The Last Tune

Everybody remember how the Pied Piper saved Hamelin from the rat invasion, but somehow the second part of the tale is seldom reminded.

After he removal of the rats, the piper asked the townsmen for his reward, which was arranged before. However, the people of Hamelin refused to pay the piper, who promised revenge.

Some time later, when the people of the village were in church, the piper went back, and played a new tune, casting a spell on the children of the village. Boys and girls were hypnotized, and followed the pied piper out of the town, where they were lured into a cave and never seen again.

Quite a terrifying tale. I guess that the moral of the story is easily understandable: always pay the piper, especially when he's dressed like a stupe.

Graduate Basterd

My buddy graduated in philosophy a couple of days ago.

But that is of little concern. The point is: he's a Basterd.

Some details:

By the way, long time no see.

Artèmoda

Artèmoda exhibition was a success!

I really enjoyed the night, with all the guests and compliments, and wine!

I'll post some pictures of the event anytime soon.

For now, there's another detail of a pastel piece I did for the show: It's called "Relax - Libera la mente" (Relax - Free your mind).

O Evangelho segundo José Saramago

Some weeks ago, I've read the last page of "O Evangelho segundo Jesus Cristo", by José Saramago.

Sometime is good to be naive and ignorant: I'm 28, and this is my first Saramago book. I knew his fame, but I never red one of his book. So, here come the pure, unexpected joy of being dragged into this narration, complex until the utmost simplicity, as hard as a stony path in Galilee.

And above all a man, his flesh, his blood, his fear, his doubt, his feeling of being a man and at the same time being what other people (and God) want him to be.

José Saramago is funny, harsh, is many things.

He's a great writer for sure.

The first - no, I'm not quoting Barry White

This is my very first illustration completely done in Photoshop.

It's a mess, yeah. I didn't quite know how to control composition, lights, shapes on a digital canvas, so to speak.

By the way, the picture was inspired by a lore of my land.

Once upon a time, sheperds and farmer of Sardinia were facing a terrible menace: the "Scultone", a dreadful huge lizard, which had the power to turn people into stone with a glance.

People were dying, flocks were disappearing, until one day lo! Saint Peter came, to save the day. Riding toward the menace, he defeated the evil creature with just a small mirror, used to watch the monster reflection without meeting its eyes.

Yep, it's the old story, "guy meets the petrifying creature", "guy uses the mirror", "guy kills the petrifying creature". I guess every culture has a story like that.

U R what U eat

You are what you eat. As simple as that.

Sleepin' Alice in Wanderland

From one of my favourite books.

Say Hello to Lily!

Actually the little girl is more dangerous than her new pet.

Swine flu!

Swine flu has come! Beware!

Straight after that, which came after the "birds flu", there will be the frightful "bull disease", then the "rhino sickness", the "hippo illness" and finally the "baboon syndrome".

Should we call a doctor or a vet? Good question.

P.s.: the sketch is a quick pencil drawing I did some time ago to test Corel Painter X. I definitely fell in love with that software!

Wood Witch

Some time ago I had this frightening dream. Today it's quite blurry, I'll try to get some sense out of it.

I am in this poor house, with many strangers, and children too. All of a sudden, somebody burst into the house. They are some kind of baby gang, 13 years old kids with guns. They start shooting around, and two children of the house got hit by the flying bullets. I call the police and tell what's happening, asking for help, but they say "We can't take care of it, it's not our field". I'm like "What the heck are you talking about, they're shooting the hell out of us!". Somebody starts running out of the house, to call for help. I suddenly find myself with them, driving an old car in the grey, sad contry around the house. The place seems empty, not a soul.

After a long trip we find ourselves at the threshold of a scary wood. Once inside, it gets darker and darker, the trees start casting misterious shadows around us, and one says: "Guys, beware of the Witch living in the wood. She kidnap you, dismember and eat you!". If you knew it, why did we come into the wood in the first place, then?!? No time for such questions, we keep walking.

At some point I hear somebody crying. It gets so dark, we have to follow the sound of the moans without even realize we're approaching a cliff: once we reached the edge, we see one of the wounded children from the house, wailing at the bottom of the cliff. Somebody suddenly says: "The Witch took the baby down there! It's a bait! Watch out!".

The moment I turn my back, there she is: cloacked in black, the arms and hair made of dead wood, and a white, lifeless mask as a face!

Scary, huh?

Well, that was my terrifying dream, which explains my quick sketch.

Bye!

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Ok, after that moment, dunno why, I found myself in one Hell's Kitchen's episode, cooking near Gordon Ramsay! Bloody Hell, what a dream!