Art and Creation Notes – “Contortions of Fortune”

You will probably recognize that face. “Contortions of Fortune” was a bit Babylonian / ancient Egyptian inspired. It’s really intended to be translated into colour, but it doesn’t look bad as black and white.

I had a dream once as a child about a group of women outside of a torch-lit temple preparing for some sort of occult ritual, and this drawing reminds me of that dream. For some reason it’s stuck with me a long time. Maybe it’s a remnant of a past life. Or a twisted memory of a film, more likely. Her oddly decrepit hands I thought were a result of magic. Perhaps she is really much older than she looks, and only the hands reveal the truth.

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Art and Creation Notes – “Just Relax”

Incredibly ironic considering the rather ocular focus this piece has, I sustained a mild eye injury while in the stages of completing this drawing. Hence, the sketch was actually finished like, in January, but it didn’t get cleaned up until April. Annoying, but I guess those kind of sneaky inconveniences come with the territory.

This is one of the more interesting ones featuring my signature “ghouls”. Here a few of the face-thieving variety are pictured in one of their natural habitats, the hotel lobby. Don’t be fooled by their exquisite lack of eyelids or matching grin-grimaces – – – they have zero table manners, and tend towards illegal facial feature harvesting as a career path. Of course, even though I invented them (a semi-secret concoction of human DNA, ghost DNA and various fruits and vegetables, but you didn’t hear that), I shouldn’t make such brash generalizations about them as a species. There are sure to be exceptions.

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Brief Update on Art and Art Books

A Jack, or should I say Jane?, of all trades, I have multiple cakes scorching in multiple stoves right now, an important one of which is improving this blog. I don’t think it’s terrible by any means, but anything can be further perfected upon, and this needs a new wardrobe rather desperately. A major point I feel has suffered neglect is all of the art portion of the site – including art books, which like the rest of my reviews are getting a makeover to make them more engaging and just slightly more elaborate. Starting with the next art book review, ones I own will get inside photographs.

As for my own art, rather than just showing the picture in a batch or snippet, I’ve thought of writing a short article to accompany each, also with the goal of making this a far more engaging blog for multiple creative interests. Some of my ruminating lunacy may actually inspire someone, somewhere. Oh, and as a side, as of today (April 16th), I now sell prints on my DeviantArt page, mostly limited to tinted / coloured pieces but if the ink-only ones are popular enough I may add them.

Visit my art gallery on DeviantArt.

March Art Batch – “Had Matter”

“Had Matter” ©SM Shuford 2017-2018
Had matter, will fly
Dead rabbits give forth power
Mad dreams spawn sane fruit

View the rest of my inkworks.

March Art Batch – “Dreampuff Wonderland”

“Dreampuff Wonderland” © S. M. Shuford 2017-2018

Yet more illustration roll-over that is actually from last fall, a psycho-delic Alice interpretation. There seems to be some sort of unspoken rule amongst artists and mangaka that necessitates at least one Alice re-imagining before you can be “official”. :p I kid, but Alice in Wonderland is one of my favourites.

View more of my ink scribbles. Or visit me on DeviantArt.

February Art Batch – “Sub-Cognitive Biome (Line Art)”

“Sub-Cognitive Biome (Line Art) © 2017-2018

Here is a little biotic world of our own. Violently modern yet horribly retro.

February Art Batch – ⌈腐ったロマンス⌋

⌈腐ったロマンス⌋ © 2017-2018

I don’t know the meaning of this. “Kusatta Romansu” early on became a drawing that was completely out of my control.

February Art Batch – “The Peppermint Marquis (Line Art)”

“The Peppermint Marquis (Line Art)” © 2017-2018

I intended to colour this for Valentine’s Day, but that little poetry monster has been a glutton of my time, and anyway I don’t like this holiday enough to rush out a coloured version especially for it. They take hours, and that’s effort I’d rather save for Halloween. 😉 Has a bit of an Alice vibe – though the Queen of Hearts is looking a bit ill these days.

February Art Batch – “False Mercy”

“False Mercy”© 2017-2018

“False Mercy”, or dentistry for intergalactic princes. Inspired by a lot of classic sci-fi I was reading at the time.

February Art Batch – “Me and My Young Soul”

“Me and My Young Soul” ©SM Shuford 2018

I don’t know that this, em… exactly counts as romantic, but Happy Valentine’s nonetheless. ❤

January 2018 Art Batch – “True Conscience”

“True Conscience” © 2018

A bug I designed loosely on the phenomena of toxoplasma gondii changing the brains of mice. A fascinating but scary piece of nature!

January 2018 Art Batch – “Plastic Ogress”

“Plastic Ogress” © 2017-2018

Loosely inspired by a film still I had seen in a book from, I think a psychological horror film. The woman in it had this massive elaborate hairstyle and this strange masklike expression which I tried to recapture.

Artwork Batch #2 – December 2017

The last art post before the end of 2017, and we’ve only just gotten started! Come visit the remodeled gallery. These are the new pieces, also available on my Deviantart page.

• “Halo of Samael”
• “Childish Desires”
• “Plasmata”
• “Dandelion in Bitter Breeze”
• “Midnight Showing – Live Twin Corpses”
• “Gutsplicer Country”
• “Sweet Saccharide”
• “Reap of Goblin Harvest”

Artwork Batch #1 – December 2017

At totally random, unpredictable intervals I will be posting batches of new drawings (or old art that I’ve recovered from the sketchbook graveyard), with titles and links to each. Though there is a gallery if you want to just view them all at once. All of these are also on my Deviantart page. Go to the gallery to see the new drawings listed…

• “Blood Sounds, Dreams Adrift”
• “Kitchenmouth Soup”
• “Neapolitan Delights”
• “Portrait of Homunculus”
• “Euthanasia by Starflower”
• “Strange Gourmet”

If you like my work, please feel free to share or follow. I very much appreciate it.😘