Limited Edition Signed and Numbered Tour Poster

To celebrate the Dazzling Killmen’s long awaited return to the road, I’ve created an 18x24” tour poster for the band. I have signed and numbered an edition of 25 and they are now available at my Etsy shop, PaulNitscheArt. The poster cost is the same as what the band is selling it on tour, plus a little extra for the mailing tube and shipping. For those not able to make a show, this is a good opportunity to still get a poster.

The poster was exquisitely printed by Triple Stamp Press in 3 colors on 100lb paper stock. I couldn’t be happier with how my drawing translated.

A big thank you to the band and those who support their music and my contributions.

Please see my studio blog post for the making of this poster.

Dazzling Killmen Tour Poster and Apparel Illustrations

It’s a real honor to be back again doing artwork for the Dazzling Killmen as they mark their return to touring and possibly making new music. I can now say that I’ve been doing illustration for the band for more than half of my life, and I feel gratitude to the Killmen’s Nick Sakes and Blake Fleming, as well as Mark Fischer and Skin Graft Records for having me along all these years. To mark Dazzling Killmen’s return, I’ve created a tour poster, Dissected Bouquet, that shares some visual language of the illustrations I did for them in the 1990s. The poster is 18x24 inches and printed in 3 colors on grey paper stock by the wonderful Triple Stamp Press in Richmond, VA. The poster will be sold at shows and a limited signed and numbered edition will be available from me at a later date.

Please see my studio blog post for the making of this poster and image.

Image courtesy of Triple Stamp Press

Released with the poster is a line of apparel using the Dissected Bouquet illustration. Printed in light grey, it is available in shirt, long sleeve, and hooded sweatshirt. The apparel will be available at the tour shows and also from Shirt Killer.

Pygmy Lush's TOTEM Shirt and Limited Edition Silkscreen Print

To go with my artwork for Pygmy Lush’s TOTEM release, I’ve also been commissioned to make a shirt design. Drawn in pen and ink, the image was based off of the sculpture and tintype I made that is in the inside booklet of the release. You can see the making of this drawing in my Studio Blog.

The shirt is printed in cream ink on a black shirt and is available in all sizes for $24.00 from Persistent Vision Records.

Persistent Vision Records was also kind enough to produce a limited edition silkscreen print of the drawing. Signed and numbered by me, it is an edition of 60 printed in metallic copper ink on 12x12” black French paper cover stock. The quality of the printing by Triple Stamp Press is impressive, and they were able to capture all of the fine lines of the drawing.

UPDATE 9/9/2025: Persistent Vision has sold out of their prints. I currently have two available on my Etsy store.

Pygmy Lush's TOTEM Album Illustration and Design

I’m excited to share my work for Pygmy Lush’s release, TOTEM. Brothers Mike and Chris Taylor of Pygmy Lush and pageninetynine contacted me in mid December 2024 and asked about my interest in doing artwork for their upcoming album. They said they were fans of Dazzling Killmen and the artwork I did for them, especially the album Face of Collapse. That album was released in 1994, and I was flattered that there was still a regard for that artwork.

Decades ago, I lost interest in doing record illustration and design when packaging fell to digital, but the Taylor brothers were interested about multiple physical formats, including a 12 inch LP, and I became interested. Although my last record work was 20 years ago, I quickly found myself excited and inspired when designing the album. Returning to this kind of work was more fun than I could have predicted, and with the enthusiastic support of Persistent Vision Records, I believe the packaging to be quite special.

The album is in LP, CS, and CD digipack formats. The LP and CD are printed on uncoated matte paper stock, with the LP having the added touch of copper metallic foil over the band logo and album title. The vinyl record is available in three different color varieties.

The back cover of the LP and CD, like the cover of the album, is a tintype image of an original sculpture. I will be creating posts in my studio blog at a later date on how these were made.

The LP has a 12x24 full color insert, and the CD has a similarly designed booklet, both on matte paper. The frame design was drawn in pen and ink and colored with scanned watercolor washes. The strawflower pattern is meant to tie into the cover and is my first pattern design in a very long time. It too is colored with scanned watercolor washes.

The inside of the LP and CD fold out into a large tintype image with hand drawn ornament. Like the cover, this sculpture was created for the album and photographed using my antique equipment: a 1903 Century No. 2 camera with a 1900 Dallmeyer 3A lens. The boarder ornament and moth were drawn in pen and ink.

The side A and B record labels contain elements of both tintypes. For side A, the record player spindle passes through the eye of the raven.

With gratitude, I wish to thank the Taylor brothers, Pygmy Lush, and Paul Hansbarger of Persistent Vision Records for their belief in me. It was a wonderful experience to be a part of.

Now available for order in all formats.

Pulling a Torch From the Sky Book Cover

Through my relationship with author JM White and the William Gay Archive, I was asked to do the book covers and design for his latest project on the life of Radical Dzogchen Buddhism teacher and scholar Keith Dowman. Author of many books on Buddhism himself, Mr. Dowman has lived a unique life.

From Amazon: Keith Dowman's life has been totally unconventional, and his role as an unorthodox master of Tibetan dharma has been recognized by traditional lamas and their adepts. He began as a pilgrim, became a translator, then a peripatetic teacher and finally a lineage holder. The Tibetans acknowledge Keith's role in the lineage of Drukpa Kunley in which the teacher appears as a traveler on the road, independent from institutions or ceremonial conventions. These are not the tulkus or the geshes; these are the wisdom holders, the divine madmen, the itinerant yogis, perpetually traveling, teaching, and writing.
Keith's teachings draw on his many translations and his extensive reading of Tibetan Dzogchen philosophy. He is strikingly unadorned and one hundred percent himself. He is sharp, deep, humble, transparent and unwaveringly confident in his view of Radical Dzogchen. He has no institutional links, so there cannot be any institutional lineage or formal certification. There will be no transfer of a "title" in a formal ceremony. As Keith has stated, "It will be a matter of simply pulling the torch out of the sky".

Watercolor was used for the landscape and sky, as well as the Tibetan styled clouds. The blue skinned being, Samantabhadra, was painted using acrylic. The circular torch design was sculpted and made into resin, then gilded in gold leaf. All the elements were photographed by William Lemke and separated digitally, which allowed me to collage them together in a precise way with any typography.

Thank you to JM White and Anomolaic Press for the opportunity.

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Illustration for Awildan Pub Ale

For the collaborative Spring beer release from Awildan Distilling and Karben4 Brewing, I did a Celtic/Irish variation of the Awildan Distilling animal crest. It’s opportunities like this that allow me to research and draw different images than what I usually would do. It’s been so enjoyable to look at historical Celtic art and see how I can translate it.

For the Awildan Pub Ale, I drew the circular knotted crest, as well as the corner knot ornaments and little beast heads. Label design by Aislinn Bartholomay. This was a limited release to pair with Awildan’s Poitin, an Irish-style Single Pot Still Whiskey.

Illustration for Skryptor's Luminous Volumes

It was a pleasure to return to black and white pen and ink illustration for my contribution to the band Skryptor’s Luminous Volumes record and book set. I did a two page spread for author Maria Gabriele Baker’s short story Slaughterhouse Vision. For a while now, Aqua Lamb Records have been releasing illustrated books that accompany the music releases, and I love the idea.

Skryptor is a NYC trio featuring members of craw, Dazzling Killmen, and STATS. Luminous Volumes is the band’s debut album in a joint venture between renowned record labels Skin Graft, Sleeping Giant Glossolalia, and Aqualamb.

The record is available in vinyl, CD, and digital formats, along with a deluxe, illustrated, 100-page book featuring original horror stories curated by Skryptor bassist David McClelland. I got my advance copy of the book and it is a wonderful addition to the brilliant music.

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"Crow Head", Dazzling Killmen T-Shirt Design

As part of Skin Graft Records UNFIT Apparel, pre-orders are now being taken for the new Dazzling Killmen T-Shirt, Crow Head, shipping January 15th. I designed and illustrated the shirt back in 2013, and am excited to finally see it go to print. The mighty Skin Graft Records logo is on the back. The shirt may be ordered through Skin Graft Records or through the Dark Slide. Thanks to Mark Fischer and Skin Graft Records.

Crow Head. Pen and ink, Scratchboard. 2013.

Crow Head T-shirt mock-up. 2017.

Working drawing for Crow Head. Graphite. 2013.

Special Edition of Dazzling Killmen's "Face of Collapse"

I am excited to announce a special edition of Dazzling Killmen's "Face of Collapse". As some of you may know, I did the illustration and design for this release in 1994. The special edition features a new illustration by myself that is silk screened on side four of the double record set. This special edition has been in the works for some time, and I want to thank Skin Graft, Mark Fischer, and the Dazzling Killmen for making it happen.

The Skin Graft Records 25th Anniversary Release announcement:

DAZZLING KILLMEN "Face of Collapse" Special Edition
Gatefold Double LP and Book / CD / Ultimate Edition
- out November 11th, 2016

Order: http://www.skingraftrecords.com/shop.html
Read about: http://www.skingraftrecords.com/news_desk.html
Bandcamp: http://skingraftrecords.bandcamp.com

Gatefold Double Vinyl Special Edition Contents:
* Brand new restoration from the original analog tapes
by Blake Fleming and Jason McEntire of Sawhorse Studios (Recording & Mixing Facility). Recorded and engineered by Steve Albini.

* Second LP includes bonus tracks on Side Three:
“Medicine Me”, “Poptones” (Public Image Ltd. cover) and “My Lacerations” (alternate version). Collects every studio track recorded by the quartet version of the band.

* Side Four features new artwork from cover artist Paul Nitsche silk-screened directly onto the vinyl.

* Large 16-page book, measuring 12” x 12”, with liner notes from Aaron Burgess (former editorial director of Alternative Press), a new oral history of the album from Hank Shteamer (senior editor, music, RollingStone.com) and artwork and comics from Mark Buckheit, Mark Fischer, Paul Nitsche, Miles Rutlin and Rob Syers.

* Full color Gatefold Sleeve includes removable obi with color mini-poster printed on the reverse side. Entire contents come packaged in a crystal-clear resealable overbag.

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"Ultimate Edition" includes all of the above, PLUS:
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* DAZZLING KILLMEN "Face Of Collapse Compact Disc
(catalog # GR12CD)

* Full Color DAZZLING KILLMEN / SKiN GRAFT Records
25th Anniversary Poster (11" x 17")

TRACK LISTING:
Staring Contest / Bone Fragments / My Lacerations Blown (Face Down) / Windshear / Painless One / In The Face Of Collapse / Agitator

VINYL ONLY BONUS TRACKS:
Medicine Me / Poptones / My Lacerations (alternate)

DAZZLING KILLMEN were:
Nick Sakes, Darin Gray, Blake Fleming, Tim Garrigan