Dan & Jill

Lady Jill Switchblade of Portlandia commissioned me to paint an oil masterpiece of legendary grandeur in celebration of her epic adventure into wedlock with Sir Daniel of Reno. Dan and Jill hast since been married and layeth San Francisco to rubble as they ventured East in search of warmer climates to yon Oakland. There they doth dwell in the not so far away land with cat wizard Knuckles and cat warrior Kulo.

I had a great time throwing back some mead with Jill and brainstorming on all the symbolism within our metal album cover, bodice ripper romance, fantasy, Frazetta-esce hybrid culmination as a surprise to her hubby to be. Twas fun working on a commission that made me laugh every time I sat down to work. 

Congrats on your first anniversary lovebirds! Enter best man speech here.

Quentin VS Coen Round III

San Francisco's Spoke Art is taking their "Quentin vs. Coen" show to Los Angeles for the Beyond Eden Art Fair with all new work.

Obviously I chose to go the Coen route with my "Quartet of Screaming Goodmans" here. Goodman's jailbreak scene from Raising Arizona is one of my all time movie favorites and my introduction to the Coen experience. It's about 5 minutes of constant yelling as he births himself from the mud, after which he pulls out his partner upside down by his foot with one arm. Shown here are all of Goodman's appearances in the Coen Brothers' films (so far) in their finest yelling moments: Gale Snoats from Raising Arizona; Charlie Meadows or Madman Karl Mundt from Barton Fink; Walter Sobchak from The Big Lebowski; and Big Dan Teague from O Brother, Where Art Thou. Goodman also appeared in another amazing Coen film, The Hudsucker Proxy, in voiceover form as the Newsreel Announcer. He is credited as the alias Karl Mundt, ha!

To be honest, I've always been a bit apprehensive towards themed or project shows and usually tend to shy away. Perhaps it's because it can feel like an assignment, or perhaps it's that I'm not that interested in introducing pop culture into my work. Maybe it's that the Coen Brothers have a legion of fans and I tend to feel uncomfortable when I do a piece that may have mass appeal as my audience usually have somewhat niche interests. Maybe it's that I can never completely make the work my own as I'm referencing someone else's art. in this case, the filmmakers themselves, cinematographers, set designers, lighting directors, music score creators and the whole crew that encompasses the entire Coen aesthetic and feel.

However, I AM a huge fan of their films, so why the hell not. It's also nice to break up the plight of my current work for a bit and do something that's pure fun and a tribute to something I love and respect.

Wow, how's that for a ramble? Fuck it dude, let's go bowling.

Beyond Eden Art Fair

LA Municipal Art Gallery at Barnsdall Park

4800 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90027

Schedule of events / viewing hours:

Saturday, October 1st 6PM-11PM

Opening Reception with live painting, a sponsored bar, & tunes from DJ Mr. NumberOnederful

8PM – special presentation celebrating the art and accomplishments of Anthony Ausgang

Admission is Free / Open to the Public

Sunday, October 2nd Noon-5PM

Art viewing / Last chance to see the exhibition

Admission is Free / Open to the Public

Prints now available: http://society6.com/Peirce/Quartet-of-Screaming-Goodmans_Print

First Animation

I just ran across the first animation I did in my first semester of art school way back in 1997. It's pretty bad, but still makes me smile a bit.

Song used is "Segue 1 / Until Your Heart Stops" by Cave In from the album Until Your Heart Stops on Hydrahead records.