The Fast Food Fear Factor

Originally written for Rochester Teen-Set Outsider Zine, October 2011

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    In the wake of Ronald McDonald’s termination from the most popular fast food chain in the industry, it has now been confirmed that ‘The Burger King’ has been removed as mascot of the Burger King fast food franchise as well. Experts say this is no coincidence and the message behind this is quite apparent: Americans insist that clowning around with fast food mascots is the number one cause of child obesity. Whether this speculation is true may be yesterdays news, but tomorrows news may be even more horrific. Brace yourself, because McDonalds has hired an entirely more treacherous mascot to replace the benevolent Ronald, his name is Pennywise the Dancing Clown and bad things may happen down the pike.

   Pennywise is most famous for terrorizing the the imaginations of children in Stephen King’s highly acclaimed novel, titled: ‘IT’. Since McDonalds is trying to re-emerge as a more healthy eatery, psychologists suggest that Pennywise would frighten children into eating a more structured diet. But most kids find healthy food marginally tasty, and fast food and junk food is much more rewarding for children to eat. This may allude to the fact that a new breed of overly hungry and depressed youth is emerging, and Pennywise could not be happier; he feeds off the the torture and misery of terrified children.

   Ironically, Wendy’s food chain is taking an entirely different approach to an ad campaign. Wendy Thomas herself has emerged on Wendy’s commercials, reminding America ‘where the beef is’ and dawning a healthy full figure. She is proud of the ‘hot and juicy burger’ and the public seems to admire that a full figured woman is representing a fast food chain. Many believe that she represents a path to higher self esteem for young American woman who believe that you do not need to starve yourself to look attractive.

   Hopefully, our American collective consciousness may lead us to a more rational approach to consumption of fast food, before Stephen King’s fiction becomes our reality. We, at ‘The Outsider Magazine’, urge our readers to reconsider the removal of our public fast food icons and would like to know your opinion on whether you find fast food delicious or even remotely edible.

Inspired by Courtney Love

Courtney Love and her band ‘Hole’ have been a favorite of mine for over two decades. I admired that she could bang out punk rock music and angrily grind her tonsils in ways that not many female artists do. 

Her music first became important to me during a dark period, when I was a bit unsure what I wanted out of life or which friends I could really trust. Hole’s music was one of the only sure things I could count on everyday, and relate to in certain ways.

Having to make big changes in my life, I turned to music and visual art for comfort, and fortified better relationships with people. While studying design and illustration at the Pittsburgh Art Institute, Courtney Love became my ‘go to’ model when trying to learn the fine craft of portraiture.

The intensity of her eyes and her big wonderful lips became a virtual obsession to me. I would look at hundreds of photos of her and seek hard within myself to find the talent to draw her in a realistic fashion.

Although many female musicians have inspired me over the years, Courtney will always be my number one crush. The range between her soft, confessional style poetry and her furious expressionistic tantrums is what I truly relate to; The agony and the ecstasy.

Visual art has been like a religion to me most my life and I have done countless custom portraits and fine art pieces over the last twenty years, and I will always remember the first realistic portrait of Courtney that got the momentum started. Femininity is what most of my artwork centers on and I thank Courtney for helping me to hone in on my inner talents.

 

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These are a few of the pieces I have recovered from my archives and plan on showing some more in the future. The ‘Broken Dolls’ fan page is the first facebook celebrity fan page I ever posted on and I am proud to be part of this enthusiastic group. Although I don’t spend a lot of time on facebook, its cool to hear what her fans have to say about the legend that is, Courtney Love.

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email: sunznmoonz@yahoo.com, if interested in prints of any work you see here.

subject: courtney

 

The Desolation of the Polar Vortex

By Dennis (Dr.Furious) Furioso

  

No one will ever forget the horror last winter when the notorious ‘Cool Miser’ conjured up the ‘Polar Vortex’. A tremendous public upheaval began when it was too cold to even sit on the toilet comfortably, and now meteorologists are already warning people about the polar vortex of 2015. When weather authorities questioned The Cool Miser about his heinous activities, he expectably blamed it on his rival ‘The Heat Miser’ for his poor maintenance on the ozone layer that led to all the climate chaos in the first place.

  “The Heat Miser is trying to frame me by letting enough radiation through the ozone layer to melt the polar ice caps” claims The Cool Miser, “thereby letting the freezing winds escape into the atmosphere creating a vortex effect. But what the public does not understand is that once the ice caps completely melt, the planet will become an inferno, and The Heat Miser will make this planet his own private hell”

  In a lashback, The Heat Miser insists the public does their homework on the deterioration of our environment.

  “I am being blamed for The Cool Misers mad ways. If the ozone layer has anything to do with this, it is not because of my lack of prevention to its depletion” explains Heat Miser, “Yes, I do like it hot, but I would never risk letting freezing arctic winds loose on the world. If I really wanted to turn the world into an inferno, then I would sooner activate every volcano on Earth before freezing for one minute.”

  A third suspect in questioning is the menacing ‘Jack Skelington’ who was previously convicted of messing with weather patterns while confusing Halloween with Christmas. But after close review, authorities agree he has a convincing alibi:

  “Now before everybody gets their panties tied in a knot, lets review the last several hundred years of  previous winters, some were mild, some severe” professes Jack, “The ridiculous term ‘Polar Vortex’ has only been a household word for a year, did it ever occur to you that this could just be a scare tactic by the media just to sell more newspapers and boost ratings for the six o’ clock news? Now I admit that I messed up a little bit by kidnapping Santa and everything, but I have ruled the Autumn domain long enough to know that meteorologists cannot predict weather patterns accurately more than a few weeks in advance. So you can go and tell these ‘Misers’ to stop exploiting this issue for their own political gain.”

  As ridiculous as  the polar vortex may seem, the truth may lie somewhere between The Heat Misers climate change theory and Jack Skelingtons skepticism of the mainstream media. But judging from the weather lately, there still remains the lingering threat of The Cool Misers diabolic ambition to dominate the weather and turn this planet into a cold, barren, gigantic glacier.

 

(This article is scheduled to be published under my pen-name ‘Dr. Furious’, in Will Carols ‘National Teen-Set’, at news stands soon)

Collection 2014 (part 2)

These are just a few new images and a few of my earlier images that I

may have altered or done some enhancements on:

‘Diaphanous’ / ‘Ride the Sky’

(Gold Version)

‘Baphosphere’

(Solar Version)

‘Initium’

(Dzintars version)

Works on vinyl available with image of your choice.

 ‘Laetitia Noir’

Mugs and Hot Plates with image of your choice available upon request.

‘Cendrillion’

 

The Alchemist’

‘Pool of Reflection’

 

 

Promo by Ken Karnage

 

 

 

 

Collection 2014

Here are a few works that I finalized this year. These works were featured

last month at Triumph Tattoo Studio, I hope those who could not make

it can catch a vignette of what I displayed.  All of the illustrations you

see here are available at virtually any size you would like, including

choice of media to have it printed on (canvass, vinyl, matte paper ect.).

Simply inquire at: sunznmoonz@yahoo.com or call (585) 746-2371

“ETERNITY IS EPHEMERAL”

(tribute to Greek and Roman Mythology featuring Kathy Copenhagen as female satyr)

“INITIUM”

(high contrast negative format, derived from graphite drawing)

“SPHERE OF STARS”

“IN DEFENSE OF LIBERTY”

(tribute to the Great Seal of The United States of America

and the Eye of Providence)

”LUCID HAZE”

”LIBERTY AWAITS”

(tribute to The Statue of Liberty and New York City skyline)

”SOLACE IN AMERICA”

(retro style Lady Liberty salutation to my fellow patriots)

”SHE WHO LIES IN DARKNESS”

(Macabre version of 1940s actress)

”PEARL NECKLACE”

(rendered at Vertex night club)

”CASCADING ANGEL”

(tribute to the zodiac and alchemy and the angels among us)

More to come on facebook and future posts on this blog.

Celebration of Liberty

These latest  works depict classic American imagery with an element

of modernism. I believe early American designs and icons to be some

of the finest art in history. Today so much of our virtuous and humble

patriotic roots have been outsourced to a more selfish approach to life

but I still believe that virtue will triumph and become the real American dream.

“In Defense of Liberty”

“Only Virtue Unconquered”

“Truth is Born of Justice”

“Currently Untitled”

These works have been slightly altered from the originals for internet

display purposes. Originals and prints are for sale on request.

New Compositions 2013

Here are a few of my latest complete compositions and also a few

photos of my current works in progress. Prints and originals are

for sale by request at: sunznmoonz@yahoo.com (subject:art). I 

plan on having an online store in the weeks to come for your convenience.

‘Lady of the Eight Sabbats’

Tentatively titled ‘Truth is Born of Justice’, this piece

is a dedication to Lady Liberty and Classic America.

‘Nativitas’

(Birth of an Angel)

This piece tentatively titled ‘Sphere of Stars’ is a depiction

of an angel whose wings represent the stripes of the flag 

among the stars emerging from the smoke that cleared the day

our country gained its independence.

‘Diaphanous’

This piece is a depiction of the U.S. Great Seal with some Egyption and

Feminine elements. 

Louise Brooks

Louise Brooks, born November 14 1906 in Cherryvale Kansas, was a

dancer and actress during 20’s and 30’s. She possessed a distinguished

beauty that survives nearly a century after her Vaudeville and Silent

Movie career. Her fans still celebrate her worldwide, and her ‘bob’ or 

‘helmet’ haircut still emerges in fashions of today, I am particularly

fascinated by her intriguing gaze and the uniqueness of  her eyes.

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‘Louise Brooks’

graphite rendering 2013

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Originally, Brooks career began as a dancer for the Denishawn company

(the first American Modern Dance company) in 1924. But Brooks and 

Denishawns founder, Ruth St.Denis, did not see eye to eye on certain

personal matters.  Brooks ended up moving on to be a featured dancer

in the Ziegfeld Follies in 1925.

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‘Louise Brooks’

Charcoal rub 2007

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Brooks career then led to the big screen where she really shined.  She 

acted in many films but perhaps her most  memorable role may have

been ‘Lulu’  in ‘Pandoras Box’ (1929). Although she may have been the

most famous Flapper of her time, her career began to wind down after

the introduction of sound to films. Not caring much for ‘talkies’ her acting

days were through by the end of the thirties.

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‘Louise Brooks’

Graphite on charcoal paper 2009

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Brooks died in 1985 in my home city of Rochester, New York and

was buried in Holy Sepulchre Cemetery.  She led a hard tragic life

after her acting career and the curator for The George Eastman House

film collection led her to Rochester where her documentaries and 

memoirs were documented. Her life is fascinating and heartbreaking

to read about and fans still revere her as the queen of silent films.

I personally look forward to illustrating more of her  portraits in

the future on account that her image alone is very fine art.

Works of 2012

These are a few of the works I finished last year, some are  inspired

by spirituality, goddess archetypes, and the sun, moon and planets

while others portray singers, actresses, and fashions of the early

twentieth century.

 “Angel Nouveau”

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“The Vestal Virgins”
(a tribute to Ruth St. Denis)

“The Eight Sabbats”

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“Our Little Mary”

(Tribute to Alfred Cheyney Johnston)

“Demoness”

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To view more of my 2012 works email me at sunznmoonz@ yahoo.com.

Originals and prints available framed and matted at the buyers request.

I intend on launching an official website in the next month or two, and 

have new works already in progress. My work is currently displayed and

for sale at Zaks Avenue, Vertex Nightclub, Hogans Hideaway, Chateau 

Salon, and of course Ricci’s Family Restaurant where I bartend evenings.

This rendering in the making I call “Conception of an Angel”.  I consider it an

archaic-art nouveau revival.  Also, the piece pictured below (still untitled) is

a concept piece devoted to the the eight dominions of the Earth in its course

around the sun and the feminine forces of nature. I hope to have both pieces

presented within the coming weeks.

Artists Reception November 2