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.

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.

Beneath the Remnant Veil

Figure Nineteen.- Beneath the Remnant Veil.
2009-2016. 4'h x 32”w x 5.5”d.
Bronze, Wood, Resin, Acrylic, Gold leaf, Silk, Hardware.

Now that it's finished, it's hard to believe this sculpture was started nine years ago. From the onset, this work was to be a blend of reliquary and anatomical display, but it went through many changes over the years. Design elements of the frame were referenced from Gothic sources, with everything sculpted and fabricated in my studio. The central figure is bronze, and is to evoke the wax anatomical models of the past. Where those displays were dissected and clean, the human object here is bulbous and nearly unrecognizable, yet it was my intention to make it elegant still. This figure, and the objects tucked within it, are remnants of something once alive and vital: earth, land, and sea.

Beneath the Remnant Veil.

Beneath the Remnant Veil, detail.

The Ephemeral Knot

Figure Seventeen.- The Ephemeral Knot
2015-2016. 7”h x 19.5”w x 10.5”d.
Bronze, Wood, Resin, Acrylic, Gold leaf, Silk, Hardware.

Something akin to a Memento Mori, The Ephemeral Knot is a sculpture depicting the bridge between youth and death. The child's hand grasps a clavicle bone, the first bone to begin the process of ossification. The clavicle can be regarded as ancient in terms of the body, and here represents time's passing as well as the end of life. The red silk bow is tied around three extensor muscles: Extensor Digitorum, Extensor Digiti Minimi, and Extensor Carpi Ulnaris. These muscles, in general, function to extend the fingers and wrist. Their role here is to illustrate release, a letting go of life. The knot, or bow within this piece, represents life. The loosening of a knot could be seen as the unraveling of existence. Interestingly, the silk bow will be the first component of this piece to decay, as the rest of the materials are far more time stable. Lastly, the snail, with its coiled shell, is another reference to journey and purity.

The Ephemeral Knot, front.
 

The Ephemeral Knot, front detail.
 

The Ephemeral Knot, back view.
 

The Ephemeral Knot, back view detail.
 

I wanted to give a special word of thanks to Nova Hansen, who was so willing to participate in the original life casting. Thank you as well to her parents, Leif and Rebekah Hansen. All photographs are by William Lemke.