The Valkyrie at the dinner party shoot

Photos and staging by Charles Pham of Darkroom Cinema. Hair by Earl Pindar of Natural Fusion Hair Salon in Frederick, MD. Makeup by Ashlynn Freed. Modeled by Katie Doherty

The Basilisk at the dinner party shoot

Photos and staging by Charles Pham of Darkroom Cinema. Hair by Earl Pindar of Natural Fusion Hair Salon in Frederick, MD. Makeup by Ashlynn Freed. Modeled by ErinRose Lawrence

The Animal Imagined by Poe ath the dinner party shoot

Photos and staging by Charles Pham of Darkroom Cinema. Hair by Earl Pindar of Natural Fusion Hair Salon in Frederick, MD. Makeup by Ashlynn Freed. Modeled by Irene Jericho.

The Squonk at the dinner party shoot

Staging and Photography by Charles Pham of Darkroom Cinema. Hair by Earl Pindar of Natural Fusion Salon in Frederick, MD. Makeup by Ashlynn Freed. Modeled by Jayne Paschall

Chapter 4, represented in Charles Pham's dinner party shoot

Photographs and staging by Charles Pham of Darkroom Cinema. Hair by Earl Pindar of Natural Fusion Salon in Frederick, MD. Make up by Ashlynn Freed. Modeled by Laura Maranto

Lillith: chapter 71

Lillith: Copper, Fabric, Steel Chain, Silver Stars

This one really needs a better photo, but for now, at least she is complete. Lillith is a complex character, moreso than many monsters. Originally a Talmudic explanation for why there might be two conflicting creation stories in the old testament, she has, at various time, been a fertility goddess, a childeating monster, and a symbol of the sexual revolution associated with feminism. She's done a lot. Part of Borges take on her follows.

"...thoughout the middle ages the influence of the word Layil, Hebrew for "night" gave a new turn to the myth. Lillith is no longer a serpent; she becomes an apparition of the night... In the popular imagination she is a tall woman with long black hair worn loose"

The Chinese Dragon: Chapter 25

Chinese Dragon: Copper and Fireworks

I know. It's been far too long. Letting that go for the moment, here's the Chinese Dragon.

Borges has a lot to say about the Chinese Dragon. There are so many stories, over so much time- several funny anecdotes, several pretty stories, any number of descriptions. Here's the one I like best.

"About the sixth century, Chang  Seng-yu executed a wall painting that depicted four dragons. Viewers complained that he had left out their eyes. Annoyed, Chang picked up his brushes again and completed two of the twisted figures. Then, 'the air filled with thunder and lightning, the wall cracked and the Dragons ascended to heaven. But the other two eyeless dragons stayed in place.'"

More shots from the Dinner party shoot. Everyone did a fantastic job. Hair by Earl Pindar of Natural Fusions Salon in Frederick, MD, Makeup by Ashlynn Freed. Photography, styling, and staging by Charles Pham of Darkroom Cinema. Thanks to everyone! There will be more photos of this shot, as well as the second day, of which there's a little sneak peak right below, here.

Photoshoot with Charles Pham of Darkroom Cinema

Oh joy! My friend Charles arranged this photoshoot on my recent trip to Maryland. (credit goes toEarl Pindar for hair and to Ashlynn Freed for makeup). There's  lot more shots, and I'll get them up as i get them. This one featured Steve Gallagher as the Crocotta, ErinRose Sincevich as the Basilisk, and Jack Sincevich as The Elephant who Foretold the birth of Buddha

apologies

It happens to the best of us, sometimes. Paying work comes along. As a self supporting artist with a mortgage, I find it almost impossible to turn down paying work- you just never know what next month will look like. The good news is that the last four months have had a whole lot of paying work. The bad news is that the past four months have been very very busy. I am still working on imaginary beings. Lilith is nearly complete, and the Chinese Dragon is progressing nicely. I've got one last big obligation next weekend, and then I hope to be able to devote myself fulltime, or nearly fulltime, to this series.

**Process** The Chinese Dragon

Now I just need to drill 50 gazillion holes in him and load them with firecrackers.

The Ass with Three Legs: Chapter 9

The Ass with three Legs: Copper, Shell Eyes

Some of these creatures could use an updated name. This guy is a pretty awe-inspiring beast- his name less so. For this chapter, Borges quotes the Bundahish, a rewritten version of the works of Zarathustra's works destroyed by Alexander the Great:
"Of the three-legged ass it is said that it stands in the middle of the ocean and that three is the number of its hooves and six the number of its eyes and nine the number of its mouths and two the number of its ears and one the number of its horn. Its coat is white, its food is spiritual, and its whole being is righteous. And two of its six eyes are in the place where eyes should be and two on the crown of its head and two in its forehead; through the keeness of its six eyes it triumphs and destroys... As to its ears, they overshadow Mazdanderan. Its horn is as of gold and hollow, and from it a thousand branchlets have grown. With its horn it will bring down and scatter all the machinations of the wicked."

Lobison: Chapter 102

Lobison: copper

The Lobison has got to be the thinnest metaphor in the book. Here's Borges:
"Since no wolves inhabit these regions, men are supposed to take on the shapes of swine or dogs. In certain towns of Entre Tios, girls shun young men who live in the vicinity of stockyards because on Saturday nights they are said to turn into the aforementioned animals."
I've known some folks, both men and women, who turn into pigs and/or dogs on Saturday nights.

El Tigre Capiango: Chapter 102

El Tigre Capiango: Copper with Patina

Chapter 102 has three creatures- The Sow Harnessed by Chains, the Lobison, and the Tigre Capiango. Borges describes the last this way: "This beast is not a jaguar but a man who, at will, can take on the jaguar's form. Usually his purpose is to frighten friends in the spirit of rustic jesting, but highwaymen have also availed themselves of this guise. During the civil wars of the last century, General Facundo Quiroga was popularly supposed to have under his command an entire regiment of Capiangos."

I looked up the word Capiango- it took some searching, but translated as "clever thief". Whether this meaning predates or postdates the monster, I do not know, but it seems to point more toward the highwaymen than towards either jesting or warriors.

were-jaguar process

jaguars must have spots. They're getting drawn on by hand. First with a thin sharpie for outlines.

And then everywhere that I want to stay light gets filled in with a thick sharpie. the marker will act as a resist. Erasing is basically impossible, as the acetone ALSO acts as a resist. Any unwanted line must be sanded off.

On a mask with so much detail on one side, some detail must be applied to the other, lest the whole thing look odd on display

And here he is with the patina applied. Next step will be to remove the sharpie.

Supplies for the Chinese Dragon

For his mane and mustache. I'm excited.

The Sow Harnessed with Chains: Chapter 102

Copper sheet, Copper chain

For this beast, Borges quotes from page 106 of Felix Coluccio's Dictionary of Argentine Folklore.
"In the northern part of Cordoba, especially around Quilinos, people spwak of a sow harnessed with chains which commonly makes its presence known in the hours of the night. Those living close to the railroad station maintain that the sow slides on the tracks, and others assured us that it is not unusual for the sow to run along the telegraph wires, producing a deafening racket with its "chains." As yet, nobody has caught a glimpse of the animal, for as soon as you look for it, it vanishes unaccountably."
Borges ads that the Sow harnessed in Chains (Chancha con cadenas) also sometimes goes by Tin Pig (chancho de lata)

An Animal Imagined by C.S. Lewis: Chapter 5

Copper, Pennywhistle, Black Cotton Thread, Bells

The singing beast is one of the tough ones. He is described only as a sound.

Borges ads no comment, only including a passage from C.S. Lewis' Perelandra. Here's a bit of it:
"The noise was very loud now and the thicket very dense so that he could not see a yard ahead, when the music stopped suddenly. There was a sound of rustling and broken twigs and he made hasitly in that direction, but found nothing. He has almost decided to give up the search  when the song began again a little farther away. Once more he made after it; once more the creature stopped singing and evaded him. He must have played thus hide and seek with it for the best part of an hour before his search was rewarded... The head was in profile from where Ransom stood- the mouth wide open as it sang of joy in thick0-coming trills, and the music almost visibly rippled in its glossy throat..."

There is also a referance to "fawn like shyness" and "its evident wish to be forever a sound and only a sound".

That last bit is what stuck with me. It seemed a shame to make such a beast into a static object. At first, i wanted it to hide wholly behind bells, later, the whistle seemed to not need hiding, and, finally, I did not hide him completely, allowing him in his shyness to peak out at us, his audience.

The whistle is fully playable.

C.S Lewis Process

Tying infinite knots takes a long time. Should I say something else? I picked up that pennywhistle from my favorite toystore on main street in Frederick, MD. The bells shipped in from Hong Kong. I do not always pull off shopping local.