March 10 - Space Satan

“Christianity may be good and Satanism evil. Under the Constitution, however, both are neutral. This is an important, but difficult, concept for many law enforcement officers to accept. They are paid to uphold the penal code, not the Ten Commandments … The fact is that far more crime and child abuse has been committed by zealots in the name of God, Jesus and Mohammed than has ever been committed in the name of Satan. Many people don’t like that statement, but few can argue with it.”

~ Carl Sagan, The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark

This week during Sketch4Sketch, Alex had an old friend and fellow artist visiting.  Skinner is a self-taught artist living in Oakland who's style I would describe as a intense, bizarre and creepy fiend folio. 100% awesome - but don't just take my word for it, see for yourself on his Instagram @ theartofskinner.

At one point he was talking about how sometimes his art is poorly received.  Other artists will make amazing approachable designs and (sic.) "I'll be all, 'wanna see my Space Satan?'"

He spoke the words, I grabbed my balloons.

Space Satan.

March 9 - Mutter

~ Rammstein Mutter 

The video above is an awesome version of the song Mutter by the band Rammstein but sung by a children's choir.  It was the inspiration for this balloon.


Buckle up though.  This is an enjoyingly disturbing song, only read on if you are prepared.

The song tells the story of a child born in a laboratory, outside of the womb - thus having no 'true' mother or father, under observation as an experiment and not allowed to be a child.

He sets out on a plan to kill both the mother who never birthed him and himself, but in the end only succeeds in maiming himself and realizes that he is no better off and now he has even less than he had.   From the Wiki:

The child begs, possibly prays, for strength, but his dead mother does not answer. The narrative of the song is similar to Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, in that the character takes revenge for his misfortunes on his 'parent', and then ends up no different from before the 'parent' died.

March 8 - Vampire Snail

“The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything.”

~ Albert Einstein

For years vampire snails flourished in the heartland of Romania, but in 1982 at the start of Transylvanian Salt Mine Wars - they were forced to flee their homes.  Many neighboring countries initially reached out to help, but there was public outcry that vampire snails were unwelcome, and that harboring these refugees would bring harm to the established status quo.  "No slug is going to come in to my house and drink my blood!" 

The reality was these snails were completely harmless, only named vampire because of their comical teeth, and people made the dangerous association that because one vampire was evil, that all must be.  So much more harmful were the local residents as they began to violently protest - creating great and powerful memes to influence the minds of simpletons.  The violence and propoganda were relentless and the snail refugees were forced "for their own safety" to live in terrible relocation facilities.  Families were separated, Xenophobia and misinformation ruled the day.  It was a dark time for us all.

We're much better now.

March 6 - The Unconscience

“Grandson, there are two wolves inside of you. One wolf is good and altruistic, generous and kind, and the other wolf is mean and greedy, violent and angry. The two wolves are in a constant fight within you.”
“But which one will win, grandpa?”
“The one which you feed.”

~ Cherokee Story of Two Wolves

Most of my inspiration of late has been coming from outside the balloon world, and today's sculpture is based on one of Alex Pardee's disturbing and amazing drawings.

Almost everyone is aware that they have a conscience, but few are aware of the Unconscience.  The Unconscience is the antithesis of your conscience, it is the voice whispering in your other ear;  indifferent, unethical, amoral, spiteful.

It's the voice that lumps everyone into a group and defines them based on fear and misunderstanding, so if you've ever referred to liberals as "libtards" or conservatives as "racist xenophobes" - if you post pro-gun propaganda in the wake of a school shooting, if you claim news and science are fake for disagreeing with your world view, these are all signs you are listening to your Unconscience.

So which one will you feed?

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Other balloon designs inspired by Alex Pardee:

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March 5 - Horb Trollputee

Sandra’s seen a leprechaun,
Eddie touched a troll,
Laurie danced with witches once,
Charlie found some goblins gold.
Donald heard a mermaid sing,
Susy spied an elf,
But all the magic I have known
I've had to make myself.

~ Shel Silverstein Magic

It's only through the sacrifices of the brave watchmen at Eastgate that the Kingdoms of the Summerlands are kept safe.  The fearsome troll armies regenerative powers are the stuff of legend, but for over a week the watch repelled the invaders, seeing their own forces dwindle as the troll armies continued to swell.  It was on the 10th day that the great wizard Kerelo .... well that's a story for another time.

A troll can easily regrow a limb that was chopped off in battle, and in some rare instances - the limb can regrow the troll that was chopped off in battle. 

This is a Trollputee Horb*, the severed leg of a troll that has begun to reform itself.



* Horbs are horrible balloons for terrible children, inspired by Buster Balloons Dorbs balloon concept, adorable balloons for wonderful children.

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Other Horb/Dorb balloon designs:

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March 2 - Horb Yuck

I stepped in something yucky
As I walked by the crick.
I grabbed a stick to scrape it off,
The yuck stuck to my stick.
I tried to pull it off the stick,
The yuck stuck to my hand.
I tried to wash it off--but it
Stuck to the washin’ pan.
I called my dog to pull me loose,
The yuck stuck to his fur.
He rubbed himself against the cat,
The yuck got stuck to her.
My friends and neighbors came to help--
Now all of us are stuck,
Which goes to show what happens
When one person steps in yuck.

~ Shel Silverstein Yuck

This is a Yuck, one of the Horbs - horrible balloons for terrible children (based on the Dorbs concept by Buster Balloon).

Yucks are the shock troops for the Legion Phlegm.  During the Great Proboscis War of '02 they were instrumental in dismantling and overwhelming the defenses of the "Bob Johnson", claiming his territory as a new launching point for the future expansion of the Phlegm Kingdom.  People have been known to shield their faces in fear when they hear the Yucks terrible battle cry, 'aaaaaaaaaaaaaa ..... CHOOOOOOOOOO!!'.

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Other Dorb balloon designs:

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March 1 - Horb Quadropus

~ Hedwig and the Angry Inch
   The Origin of Love

I love that song.  If you haven't heard it before, do yourself the favor of giving it a listen.  It also might help explain today's Horb (horrible balloons for terrible children) -- this Quadropus.

One of the lesser known abilities of an octopus is to split itself into two smaller equal quadropi.  The longer these halves are apart, the stronger the draw is for them to rejoin - so in the rare instance where either of the two is trapped or killed, a single quadropus remains.

Quadropus are extremely aggressive and territorial and have been known to smother and crush other fish and mammals in an attempt to create a surrogate partner.  It is the oceanic equivalent of face-hugger aliens as it travels the ocean looking for it's lost half.

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Other Dorb balloon designs:

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