singing in the dead of night

I know, I know. I've made a million black bird stamps. I do have a legitimate reason for making more. I'm (finally) working on a new art*o*mat series - see below for some from the first batch.

hope

I've had an Obama sticker on my bumper for 4 years. That's right, 4 years. Immediately after hearing Obama's keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention (click here and here), I went onto cafepress.com and bought a bunch of Obama bumper stickers and buttons. This was of course when he was running for the Illinois Senate. I live in New York - very few people around here knew who he was so I got some interesting comments about it. One dude even asked me why I had an Osama sticker on my car - to which I replied "OBama, not OSama, you idiot." So I explained for a couple years that some day he would run for president and I was showing my support. Eventually, once he announced his candidacy, people caught up with me. Then I started to get respectful comments from people - "how did you know?" kind of comments. When he won Iowa, people started calling me - to congratulate me (including one relative stranger, who called me to say "your man is gonna do it"). Whatever happens in today's vote, I'm proud to be a Barack Obama supporter. I'm proud of what he represents and hopeful that he can bring our country back from the last miserable 8 years.

peace

cranium + mandible

whew. Here's the original drawing and all the parts put together. The print skelly looks like he might need a chiropractor. He doesn't have a spine though. Hmmmmm.

what the left hand is doing

the right hand doesn't know

shuffle me

Yes, I'm an ipod. Who didn't see that coming??? Boo.

radius + ulna (left)

radius + ulna (right)

humerus (left)

humerus (right)

ribs

pelvis

big day - 300th block, only 66 to go

femur (left)

femur (right)

tib + fib (left)

tib + fib (right)

the big one nine

Today is my son Lex's 19th birthday (and it would have been my mother's 76th) so a special shout out to my beautiful boy and my much missed mama.

[a drawing Lex did of himself with my father]


[starting his cinematic studies young]


[tall, dark and handsome]


[my mama]

and the left

plantigrade (right)

I know this doesn't look like much just yet, but I'm building something again. It will make sense soon.

where we come from

...the birds sing a pretty song

the owls are not what they seem

in the belfry

spooky

jack's angry brother

fraidy-cat

I'm finding these little, pointy teeth exceedingly difficult.

jack (-)

jack (+)

batty

a skull a day

My brilliant friend Noah Scalin made an appearance today on the Martha Stewart Show, where he (and Ms. Stewart) carved potato skull stamps. I didn't have any potatoes, so I carved an apple instead.

Now that I've made another skull, I'm going to spend the rest of the month (or try anyway) doing Halloween and dia de los Muertos imagery. And I'd like to take this opportunity to ask for suggestions for what I can be for Halloween, as I have a "costume mandatory" event and not a thing to wear.

the joker ain't the only fool

...who'll do anything for you. My joker originally had a waving hand, but he lost a finger so I removed the whole hand. That sounds really gruesome. I might carve another block so he can have his hand back.

hit the road

jack

q as in queen

I bet y'all thought I was gonna carve Jack. I will. Tomorrow.

she's so swishy in her satin and tat

She looks mad. And the flower in her hand looks more like a starfish on a stick.

you make me feel like I'm the king of all of the world

My very clever friend Joseph mentioned that the face I made looked like a face card. So I went with that idea...

she'll turn up her nose, and say what a fool you are

I know this doesn't look like much by itself, but if I put the last four blocks together I get this...

when you walk in they open wide

lids are gone, no place to hide

cavitas oris

stylish disguise

I was planning to keep going with the tree/leaves/nature theme, but then my son Lex sent me his animation homework (see below). So I made a mustache.