tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-48621901587767604722023-11-16T06:56:45.895-08:00Howard Salmon, artistThe art and ideas of an Arizona artist cartoonist painter.HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.comBlogger71125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-65279924612831382782014-04-15T17:06:00.003-07:002014-04-15T17:16:52.977-07:00Back, with marker pens!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I haven't posted to this blog in about 9 months. I've to decided to use this "Howard Salmon, artist" primarily to as a black white collected of drawings and drawings. Briefly, my cancer diagnosis has improved (in somewhat) so for some of you are primarily interested my health chronicles, please check on those blogs. This stuff is just about drawings. Check this stuff whenever you're interested into what I'm up to with sketchbook stuff (that other thematic issues such as how my life is going) For those are interest in those more personal drawing books please checks those other please collections of those drawings. So, here's a drawing I did earlier did today.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbjwRhXXV0QW0Etkdc9WrnOmRgCXyt7SWjhlxYzvBtbnTs5UsIWvMMmQ6z0eEgqnTOPdhh2sU7ysHMynkoDHwbV14PMDFE_wyTGS4t3uC6_brrnpCksk2-q64hfXqDsfYoLLA_O8E9hbpd/s1600/comixDrawings036.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbjwRhXXV0QW0Etkdc9WrnOmRgCXyt7SWjhlxYzvBtbnTs5UsIWvMMmQ6z0eEgqnTOPdhh2sU7ysHMynkoDHwbV14PMDFE_wyTGS4t3uC6_brrnpCksk2-q64hfXqDsfYoLLA_O8E9hbpd/s1600/comixDrawings036.jpg" height="400" width="280" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hello 2014 so far, I'm still here...(marker on paper) (2014 by Howard Salmon)</td></tr>
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HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-3608660234198874432012-10-01T09:08:00.002-07:002012-10-01T09:10:41.892-07:00The Symbiotic Art Cancer Culture Ball<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So we finally meet!</td></tr>
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Well, I'm blogging about my dire cancer diagnosis, and going all out literary and artistic, to explain to the webworld what's going through my mind. I'll be postings via Facebook, and my various blogs (on Google's "blogger" platform)<br />
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My main blog will be<br />
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http://howiesalmon.blogspot.com/<br />
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...this is where I'll post all of the latest opinions, artwork, journal entries related to my sudden reaquaintance with a creature called "stage 4 brain tumor". I've got a negotiating strategy. I'm going "in" to "bond" with the tumor...wish me luck.</div>
HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-73712010941352520982012-07-09T08:51:00.002-07:002012-10-01T09:00:00.855-07:00Room Service in the Astral Plane, #2<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="http://howardsalmon.com/Astral_Plane/hotelMenu.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://howardsalmon.com/Astral_Plane/hotelMenu.jpg" width="504" /></a></div>
Holy cow, what's going on here?? Some freaky bald dude flips his wig while considering the room service menu in some unknown hotel. A slice of cheesecake manifests instelf into a swirling blur, as the shadow of a tourist looks for something to eat. Crumbs of cake, bread, and chicken wings swirl together as if Food Network did a show on the Cosmos. So what's on the menu? Well, is that "menu" with a small "m" or a big "M"? Will the tourist eat? Will he assert himself and actually order something? At this point, it's still a mystery...</div>
HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-63903940133142181472012-07-09T06:26:00.002-07:002012-07-09T06:26:46.549-07:00Room Service in the Astral Plane<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="http://howardsalmon.com/Astral_Plane/roomService.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://howardsalmon.com/Astral_Plane/roomService.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
Welcome to the start of an online graphic novel/webcomic which starts in the middle (somewhere) and works it's way out, backwards to front (simultaneously) until somehow, a story appears.... The first installment of a story that is out of order... A journey in search of a story, a structure, characters....you get the idea...</div>HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-45678374050969137312012-06-04T00:07:00.001-07:002012-06-04T00:07:04.634-07:00Bedside Bric-A-Brac<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="http://howardsalmon.com/2012JUNE/bedSide.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="291" src="http://howardsalmon.com/2012JUNE/bedSide.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
Here's a new sketch of stuff by my bedside: an Ott lamp, a bottle of water, a roll of packing tape, some books.... I'm thinking of getting back to straight drawing. Just drawing objects in front of me. Any artist worth his salt has got to have basic drawing skills. Oddball experimental work is all fine and nice, and I love creating it...but some of my favorite work of my are my drawings from life: straight from pen to paper, without any preparatory planning or sketching.</div>HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-68148381260043885392012-05-15T12:54:00.000-07:002012-05-15T13:15:44.392-07:00The Bald Truth<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Nine different views of a bald head floating in a surreal desert landscape. Drawn as a comic strip. With faux gold in the gutters. It just speaks to me... (size: 14" x 17", mixed media on paper)</div>HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-28464379272966618302012-01-18T20:55:00.000-08:002012-01-18T20:55:42.316-08:00Space Farts<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://howardsalmon.com/2012_JAN/spaceFarts.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://howardsalmon.com/2012_JAN/spaceFarts.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">ink on paper, 18" x 24" (c) 2012 by Howard Salmon</td></tr>
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<br /></div>HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-78055795532660892492012-01-17T08:43:00.000-08:002012-01-17T08:43:59.690-08:00Blowin' Smoke<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://howardsalmon.com/2012_JAN/blowinSmoke.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="302" src="http://howardsalmon.com/2012_JAN/blowinSmoke.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">marker on paper. 18" x 24" (c) 2012 by Howard Salmon</td></tr>
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<br /></div>HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-31763346076203049642012-01-02T13:37:00.000-08:002012-01-02T13:37:39.242-08:00Light Bulb on a Plate<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://howardsalmon.com/2012_JAN/lightBulb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="315" src="http://howardsalmon.com/2012_JAN/lightBulb.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">ink, graphite, and acrylic on drawing paper ((c) 2012 by Howard Salmon</td></tr>
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<br /></div>HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-25303860874963681842011-12-19T15:51:00.000-08:002011-12-19T15:51:54.313-08:00Fight Of The Night<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://howardsalmon.com/2011DEC/fightOfTheNight.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://howardsalmon.com/2011DEC/fightOfTheNight.jpg" width="396" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Fight Of The Night" (c) 2011 by Howard Salmon. Acrylic on wood. 4 ft x 4 ft in size</td></tr>
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<br /></div>HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-62479746257384525352011-12-04T05:43:00.001-08:002011-12-04T05:53:05.970-08:00Kitchen Countertop Clutter<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://howardsalmon.com/2011DEC/sketchbook/countertop.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="231" src="http://howardsalmon.com/2011DEC/sketchbook/countertop.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">graphite on paper (c) 2011 Howard Salmon</td></tr>
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It was the middle of the night, and I got an impulse sketch all of the clutter on my kitchen counter. From left to right (more or less): books, paper towels, mail, box of chalk, some mugs, a thermos, a large plastic cup, a bottle of soda water, a canister of sea salt, soy sauce, hand soap, a baggie, a microwave pot, bottle of honey... snapshot of the artist as a consumer.</div>HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-9289045699914125602011-12-03T20:00:00.001-08:002011-12-03T20:03:27.228-08:00Whoa Baldy!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://howardsalmon.com/2011DEC/ComicBookExpressionism/whoaBaldy%21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="http://howardsalmon.com/2011DEC/ComicBookExpressionism/whoaBaldy%21.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">graphite pencil on paper (c) 2011 by Howard Salmon</td></tr>
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At bald sweaty guy gets tough at some unnamed antagonist, while the lettering "Whoa!" takes on a life of its own... instant sketchbook comix...</div>HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-19078899287521283002011-12-02T22:18:00.001-08:002011-12-02T22:21:54.984-08:00Surreal Angst<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://howardsalmon.com/2011DEC/ComicBookExpressionism/cbe2sm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="258" src="http://howardsalmon.com/2011DEC/ComicBookExpressionism/cbe2sm.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(c) 2011 by Howard Salmon</td></tr>
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The latest from my "Comic Book Expressionism" series. They just keep comin'! Stay tuned for more chunky ambiguous drama!</div>HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-33990894456215895562011-12-02T06:11:00.001-08:002011-12-02T06:21:47.318-08:00More Comic Book Sketches...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://howardsalmon.com/2011DEC/readyForBlastoff.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="257" src="http://howardsalmon.com/2011DEC/readyForBlastoff.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Inspired by the Superman story, hopetul parents send their child off to college...on Mars (c)2011 by Howard Salmon</td></tr>
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I'm feeling a strong urge to make a hastily drawn superhero comic book... there's no time to waste! I can't draw this stuff fast enough!!</div>HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-85986287872400822702011-12-01T20:20:00.001-08:002011-12-01T20:30:10.463-08:00Comic Book Expressionism<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://howardsalmon.com/2011DEC/comicBookExpr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://howardsalmon.com/2011DEC/comicBookExpr.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> (c) 2011 by Howard Salmon</td></tr>
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Thought I'd do a litte sketch tonight. Feeling rough and chunky, artistically speaking...<br />
<br /></div>HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-45029347653670528982011-11-14T06:05:00.000-08:002011-11-14T06:11:43.275-08:00Where's My Band? ( A World Rocked)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://tiny.cc/ibvfj" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://tiny.cc/ibvfj" width="388" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Where's My Band?"; approx 30" x 30", Sharpie on synthetic paper. c) 2011 by Howard Salmon</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Just drawing, intuitively and spontaneously, seeing where it takes me. I like to work this way, because it keeps the process of artmaking (and art thinking) very "live" and in the moment. Since I'm drawing directly with ink (without a pencil sketch), the stakes are much higher (that I could totally botch it). One thing I did do to tie everything together was that after I made the drawing, I went back into it, closing as many open shapes as I could. This is just one of the things I like to do when I draw: I work towards converting my drawings into a series of interlocking puzzle piece. I often use this puzzle piece method to help my drawings "gel"...</div>HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-30121541760268095872011-11-06T09:39:00.000-08:002011-11-06T09:51:08.939-08:00Man, Machine, Woman<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://howardsalmon.com/2011NOV/manMachineWoman.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="341" src="http://howardsalmon.com/2011NOV/manMachineWoman.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Man, Machine, Woman": acrylic, ink, Sharpie, graphite, and crayon. Size: approx 30" x 35" (c) 2011 by Howard Salmon</td></tr>
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</div>HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-24863191208195074262011-10-27T20:12:00.000-07:002011-10-27T20:28:14.146-07:00End Of The Day<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://howardsalmon.com/2011OCT/endOfTheDay.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="375" src="http://howardsalmon.com/2011OCT/endOfTheDay.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Acrylic, ink, Sharpie, & graphite on synthetic paper. (Approx. 30" x 30") (c) 2011 by Howard Salmon</td></tr>
</tbody></table>This painting is a still life of some random objects, clustered together: a pair of shoes, a bike helmet, and a wine glass. Somehow, this piece evokes an apocalyptic feeling. It's that intense background... Is this the end of the day? Or is it the End Of The Day? Hard to tell...<br />
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In the background, some new "mask" icons: a "kilroy" character (who is supposed to look like someone clicking a computer mouse, or reading email on an iPhone). The other character is my "Alan Ginzberg 'Howl'" character. He's basically a shaggy looking dude howling ("ooo"), with an abstracted cityscape in the background. I've included a close up of my two new characters below:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://howardsalmon.com/2011OCT/clickroyAndHowler.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://howardsalmon.com/2011OCT/clickroyAndHowler.jpg" width="289" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">ClickRoy and The Howler: my new cartoons!</td></tr>
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</div>HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-15581523136540497712011-10-13T07:29:00.000-07:002011-10-13T07:31:43.784-07:00Cuppa Wawa (Mug of Water)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://howardsalmon.com/2011OCT/cuppaWawa.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="284" src="http://howardsalmon.com/2011OCT/cuppaWawa.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">30" x 34", acrylic & Sharpie on synthetic paper. (c)2011 by Howard Salmon</td></tr>
</tbody></table>I found myself getting in a rut with my "masks" concept; it was starting to feel like a shtick. So, to shake things up a bit, I decided to just start drawing from life. In this case, I sketched directly onto my drawing surface with a Sharpie. The subject matter: my hand holding a bottle of water (and one of my Andy Iventosch mugs, on the far right). Then I went in and added color with several layers of acrylic, and reinforced some of those lines with more Sharpie. I worked in a very "automatic" way, not really thinking too much about the imagery I was laying down. My only concern was to draw from life,and have it all overlap and congeal together into a cluster. The result: a bunch of frozen moments that together describe the act of pouring water into a mug.</div>HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-3335759132912192092011-10-12T00:55:00.000-07:002011-10-12T00:55:20.356-07:00The Card Holder<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://howardsalmon.com/2011OCT/cardHolder.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="301" src="http://howardsalmon.com/2011OCT/cardHolder.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"The Card Holder", 30"x 40", Acrylic & Sharpie on synthetic paper (c)2011 by Howard Salmon</td></tr>
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</div>HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-9412360539094192992011-10-07T11:08:00.000-07:002011-10-08T05:34:42.590-07:00Self Affliction<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://howardsalmon.com/2011OCT/selfAffliction.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="312" src="http://howardsalmon.com/2011OCT/selfAffliction.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Self Affliction"; 30" x 36"(approx.); ink, Sharpie, & acrylic on synthetic paper. (c) 2011 by Howard Salmon</td></tr>
</tbody></table>This is the season of Yom Kippur: the day of Atonement for Jews. This is where Jews ask each other (and God) for forgiveness, if they've offended anyone, or each other during the past year. It's a time of critical self-reflection, where you evaluate who you are as a person. Did you live your past year in an ethical manner?<br />
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But as an artist, this has given me a slight challenge: if my artwork doesn't offend anybody, does that mean that I don't really count (as an artist)? How is art and culture going to advance, if some artist doesn't stick their neck out? (little voice in my head: "define 'advance'!") Basically, I feel that any artist worth his salt should do the best to express his vision without self-censorship. But, this carefree attitude may result in some offensive imagery.<br />
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Should I care?<br />
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Well, my intention isn't to offend...it's to be honest with myself. So here it is, Yom Kippur is just around the corner, and I'm wondering, should I be apologizing for any of my paintings? The answer is...no! To do so would to be to commit self-censorship; The ethical paradoxes of being an artist wrestling with Jewish tradition.<br />
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About the imagery in the painting: the text in the word balloon says "If my artwork has NOT offended you this past year, please forgive me!". There are ten rabbis (a minyan), each blowing a shofar. The shofar is blown as an alarm, as if to say, "WAKE UP! Snap out of your daydreams and illusions!"<br />
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Out of each shofar comes a whiffle-ball of spirituality, which is supposed to be a "sephirot" in the kabbalistic diagram that represents the "Mind of God" (if you're interested in this subject, check out the Zohar, which is a masterpiece of erotic Jewish surrealistic writing) The nodes all link up, forming a conceptual structure of invisible intuited Reality--the Reality being the Mind of God, which I've suggested with that lattice-like structure all around the painting (which reminds me of a sukkah). (As an aside, this is an interesting philosophical issue: since concept precede creation, it's plausible to suggest that the Universe had to exist in the "mind of God" as an IDEA before it actually became a reality. Heavy.....)<br />
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The bowl of fire is an allusion to the "unholy fire" that the son's of Aaron brought into the Temple. The figure in the center represents the artist (me, and in a suit, no less!), wearing tefillin (which is Orthodox prayer paraphernalia), with a pallette and paintbrush in one hand. In the upper right of the picture are two of my "muse" characters, (and dressed respectfully in their Danskins). Those three floating heads hovering over my left shoulder are from my "Scholar, Prophet, Bum" painting. The entire background is painting with gold acrylic, to mimic the "illuminated paintings" of the Medieval era, where the backgrounds of religious paintings were inlaid with gold leaf.<br />
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</div>HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-33411126298124255522011-10-04T15:32:00.000-07:002011-10-04T19:48:33.976-07:00Bus Ridin' Folk<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://howardsalmon.com/2011OCT/busRidinFolk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="352" src="http://howardsalmon.com/2011OCT/busRidinFolk.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Bus Ridin' Folk", 30" x 34"; ink, graphite, acrylic, & crayon on synthetic paper. (c) 2011 by Howard Salmon</td></tr>
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This painting is about some of the people I see on the bus, as it drives through South Tucson. The title is written at the top of the picture in Olde English, to reference all of the tattoos I see on the bus. At the top, is a big angry-looking guy in a Carl's Junior outfit, who has a big tattoo on his neck, written in Olde English script. In the second row is a raggedy-looking man who's holding a Big Gulp cup. In the third row are two characters: on the left is a student listening to her iPod. On the right side of that same row, is a well-groomed ex-convict. On the bottom row is a morbidly obese woman sitting in a motorized wheel chair. On the lower right side of the picture is a gold-plated Sun Tran bus emerging from a tunnel, which has a decorative border around it that resembles a sun burst or a spiritual aura.<br />
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<span id="goog_189725894"></span><span id="goog_189725895"></span></div>HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-21444893834062435812011-10-03T04:29:00.000-07:002011-10-03T04:29:32.525-07:00Happy<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://howardsalmon.com/2011OCT/happy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="373" src="http://howardsalmon.com/2011OCT/happy.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Happy", 30" x 32", ink & acrylic on synthetic paper. (c)2011 by Howard Salmon</td></tr>
</tbody></table>This painting is based on a birthday card that my wife gave me recently. The word "happy" was on the cover (as in "Happy Birthday") I thought, "is it possible to make a painting about happiness, without appearing childlike or ridiculous?" My aim here: to make a happy painting that actually feels happy.<br />
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I'm still working with the repetition of very simple repeated cartoon-like shapes (based on the idea of "masks"); in this case, the palm trees, the butterflies, and the glasses of red drink at the base of each tree. Everything else (the clouds, the trees...) are also all made from very simple repeated shapes and movements of the hand. The layers of color are what I really spent most of my time on here. Multiple layers of different colored washes created this feeling of atmosphere, which I really like. The letters at the top ("Happy") are painted in shimmering gold acrylic.<br />
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</div>HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-6466375948368442882011-09-26T22:30:00.000-07:002011-09-27T05:57:50.738-07:00Canine Soul Mate<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://howardsalmon.com/2011SEPT/canineSoulmate.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="307" src="http://howardsalmon.com/2011SEPT/canineSoulmate.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Canine Soul Mate", 30" x 39", ink, acrylic, & graphite on synthetic paper. (c)2011 by Howard Salmon</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</tbody></table>This painting is about the strong bond that people have with their dogs. The dog pictured in the painting above is MY dog; he lay at my feet as I was tacking the drawing surface to the wall, in preparation for this painting. This piece reminds of a combination of Marc Chagall and Walt Disney: those diffuse areas of primary color, as well as the way the dog appears to float...and also, the zany line up of cartoon characters that reminds me of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. <br />
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I'd initially chosen a rainbow as a device to organize this picture, so I could have a rainbow land in a bowl of dog food. (The working title initally was "At the end of hte Rainbow...is your dog"). The dog's body position mimics the rainbow arc of the dog shape. I painted the dog in Antique Gold paint, as did I the dog bones in each of the four corners, just to emphasize how precious dogs are to people: might as well get 'em gold plated!<br />
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At the bottom of the picture is Charles Darwin, talking to one of his finches, and contemplating inter-species friendships between humans and animals. The top half of the picture shows double portrait of a dog and his owner (the bald bearded man), arranged in a heart formation. At the center is a fat laughing Buddha character, to reinforce the happy spiritual quality I was going for. Two of my Muses are hanging out in the right side of the picture. <br />
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</div>HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4862190158776760472.post-27413100531680957622011-09-25T22:24:00.000-07:002012-05-17T14:11:35.822-07:00Drum Circle<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://howardsalmon.com/2011SEPT/maleFriendship.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://howardsalmon.com/2011SEPT/maleFriendship.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Drum Circle", 30" x 41", acrylic, ink, graphite on synthetic paper, (c) 2011 by Howard Salmon.</td></tr>
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</div>HoSahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06240411342815807471noreply@blogger.com0