February 4 - SNIZNA

“Painting is poetry that is seen rather than felt, and poetry is painting that is felt rather than seen.”

~ Leonardo da Vinci

Snizhana (link) is an artist from Ukraine, goes by the name SNIZNA. I found while browsing the commissions section on DeviantArt and was immediately drawn (forgive the pun) in by her sketches.  They are a fantastically stylized study of form, so talented!

Whereas Fiverr is more of a "come here and sell whatever services you want" marketplace, DeviantArt is a celebration of art and artists that has a commissions section added on.

I simply love the expression that she captured, it's like he's posing for a school picture, or caught you watching him dress - shy but also perhaps a little bit flirtatious.

I like it so much I ended up buying this as a print on canvas to frame - check out her shop!

February 3 - Spookito

“You want to know how I think art should be taught to children? Take them to a museum and say, 'This is art, and you can't do it.”

~ Steve Martin, An Object of Beauty

Here is another artist that would be great to hire for a unique gift for your significant other.  There is still time before Valentine's Day - don't wait for the last minute and buy overpriced flowers from the store like a chump!

Spookito is a Fiverr artist (link) from Russia who offers a number of services, including some logo design and both Simpsons and South Park character design work.

She did a great job matching the style, I could easily see this used on the show.  The big saucer eyes with a chunky chubby face, the shape of the body in the profile shot, it's just perfect.  Thanks Spooki-to!

February 2 - Simonad

It's good as an artist to always remember to see things in a new, weird way.

~ Tim Burton

Want a good idea for a unique Valentine's Day gift?  Check out Simonad:  (Fiverr link)

Simonad is a professional artist and engineering student from Macedonia that specializes in Tim Burton-style images.  In fact, she was the first who introduced it as a style to Fiverr that others have since imitated.

This was a very easy decision/purchase to make.  It's perfectly stylized and she was a pleasure to work with.  I couldn't be happier with the results.  You will be pleased!

I am the were-pig that comes in the night,
You scream despair while I squeal delight!

February 1 - Sutrisnodraw

“If we, citizens, do not support our artists, then we sacrifice our imagination on the altar of crude reality and we end up believing in nothing and having worthless dreams.”

~ Yann Martel, Life of Pi

I signed up for Fiverr a couple years ago, but was too ... intimidated(?) to hire anyone.  I didn't have a plan or a need, I was just interested in the marketplace and what service people were offering.

Recently I looked around again with a different perspective.  If these are artists looking for gigs, I want to support their efforts.  So I contacted a few of them and asked for their interpretation of the purple pig.  I think this will be an ongoing thing, because I am loving the first responses.

Let me introduce you to Sutrisnodraw (Fiverr, Instagram).  Sutrisnodraw is a cartoonist/artist from Indonesia who specializes in vector based drawing.  He has this really cool melty-style in the service offerings and did an amazing job adapting the pig.  This was my first Fiverr purchase and he made the process a breeze; inexpensive, very responsive, attentive to detail and I was frankly shocked at the quick turnaround for this quality of work.  Highly recommended.

January 23 - Gummy

"Flattery is like chewing gum. Enjoy it but don't swallow it."

~ Hank Ketcham
(Cartoonist - Dennis the Menace)

Gummy was a piece of gum
Who came to life one day,
He thought that he would have some fun
And join in all the play.

But children laughed and jeered at him,
Those rotten little drips.
They picked up gummy where he stood
and bit off Gummy's lips.

He wanted just to make new friends,
But something broke inside him.
Gummy barred his teeth and screamed
Then grabbed the kids to bite 'em.

Now children all have disappeared,
And Gummy's craving meat.
So hide your kids and don't chew gum,
They say, "Revenge is sweet!"

January 22 - One-Punch Man

“Who decides limits? And based on what? You said you worked hard? Well, maybe you need to work a little harder. Is that really the limit of your strength? Could the you of tomorrow beat you today? Instead of giving in, move forward.”

~ Saitama One-Punch Man

On an alternate earth, Saitama has trained himself to be a superhero by doing 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, 100 squats and a 10km run every day.  It took over three years but he effectively broke the limits of strength and now he can effortlessly defeat any creature with one punch.

So he's bored -- it's one of the more fantastic anime out there in my opinion.

Saitama is the kind of "pure" hero that you can admire, with a firm grasp of right and wrong, but boredom is his arch nemesis - he says in one episode, “In exchange for gaining strength, have I lost something more important as a human being? Emotions used to swirl within me when I fought. Fear, impatience, anger… But now… Day after day, after one punch I go home unharmed and wash my gloves.”

I was inspired to make this balloon after I saw Namco Bandai was coming out with a One-Punch Man fighting game.  The very idea is hilarious and when I looked -- indeed there was a graphic of Saitama standing as champion, his combo score: 1.     Bwwahahahhahahhahahaaaaaa!  Love it!

I had to redo his face, a bored expression is very similar to a worried expression, it's in the shape of the eyes. 

January 21 - The Mask of the Horned God

Inside the night there's a firelight
Between the worlds, at the edge of dark.

Inside the fire there's a blinding light,
The flame that burns between the worlds.
At the edge of the dark.

When a shadow is forced into the light
It rips through your chest and burns like a fire.

~ Swallow The Sun
   When a Shadow is Forced Into the Light

The Mask of the Horned God bestows upon its wearer both virility and fertility, but is cursed and once worn can never be removed.  In the days approaching Yule, the bearer will grow weak as his life force is withdrawn and used to rekindle the Horned God, leaving the mask to where it fell.  Yet even with this sacrifice there are those who willingly seek it out.  Children born of those who wear the Mask of the Horned God are exclusively female and likely to be powerful witches.

The Horned God in traditional Wicca is the "Divine Male Principle", considered opposite and equal to the Goddess.  He is born in winter, impregnates Her in spring and then dies in early winter to be reborn by the Goddess at Yule and start the cycle anew.

The inspiration for this balloon is the band Swallow the Sun and their emotional album When a Shadow is Forced Into the Light.  I have already talked about them in an earlier post, so I will leave it to you if you want to read more about the band - the cover of the album has a grim figure wearing a deer antler mask.

I do like the way the robe works .. but I am not satisfied with how the arms attach to this style of body and won't do anything but *sproing!* up without tying them down.