EXCLUSIVE: Robert Wilson IV's "I Am Not Naturally Evil" Art Print

Hey folks! I'm sure you've already heard about Guzu Gallery's musically inclined "Deep Cuts" show, but on the off chance you haven't, here's the gist of it (taken from guzugallery.com):

"We asked over 20 artists to choose a beloved music icon, cult hero or legend and let his/her creativity spill to paper. There were, however, three conditions: One, the artwork must be a screen print; two, the artwork must be album cover size; and three, the artwork must cost $25. Oh yeah, and four -- the artwork must kick ass, of course. The opening reception will be Thursday, March 7th from 7 to 10pm and the artwork will remain up through April 7th. In the classic Guzu style, we will have live music on opening night to shake the walls and rattle the art."

I bet you're wishing you lived in Austin now, right? Me too. And while my wife (and available credit) has banned me from purchasing plane tickets and hotel reservations for all my wonderful readers, I do have the distinct pleasure of introducing Robert Wilson IV's Morrissey inspired "I Am Not Naturally Evil" print! Go ahead, soak up all that Mozfather cool.

"I Am Not Naturally Evil" Art Print
Robert Wilson IV
12.5" x 12.5" (Screen Print) - Numbered
$25 - Limited to 50

But wait, there's more! I've also included a pic of the "Deep Cuts" gig poster below to further make you salivate with impatience and envy as the show's opening night grows closer. I don't mind saying, that's a pretty impressive list of artists.

"Deep Cuts" Gig Poster

And lest you say I never gave you anything, here are a few more pieces from the show that are sure to excite.

"Viddy Well, Little Brother. Viddy Well." Art Print
N.E. (New Flesh Prints)
12.5" x 12.5" (Screen Print) - Signed and Numbered
$25 - Edition Size TBD

"Remember the Coop" Art Print
Ghoulish Gary Pullin
12.5" x 12.5" (Screen Print) - Signed and Numbered
$25 - Limited to 30

"Wizard of Thunder" Art Print
Billy Perkins
12.5" x 12.5" (Screen Print) - Signed and Numbered
$25 - Limited to 100

"The Metallian" Art Print
Graham Erwin
12.5" x 12.5" (Screen Print) - Signed and Numbered
$25 - Limited to 30

"Heads That Talk" Art Print
Cody Schibi
12.5″ x 12.5″ (Screen Print) - Signed and Numbered
$25 - Limited to 40

For more info on Guzu Gallery's "Deep Cuts" show, be sure to visit guzugallery.com, hit up their Facebook page, and follow @guzugallery on Twitter!

Gallery 1988's "Is This Thing On? 2" Art Show

There's something inherently relaxing about coming home from work or school (depending on your age...and whether you're working and / or going to school), turning on the telly, and imbibing the meta-shenanigans of Community, partaking in the public access-tinged weirdness of Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!, or listening to Bad Hair Day and belting out the words to "Amish Paradise." Comedy is something many, many, many people around the world appreciate, but it's an undeniably personal and subjective pleasure. It's with this perspective in mind that I'd like to share with you my favorite prints from Gallery 1988's second annual "Is This Thing On" show. Note: As of this writing all of the prints below are still available for purchase.

"Eat It" Art Print
Alex Pardee
16" x 20" - Numbered
$35 - Limited to 200

It's a neck-and-neck race between "Eat It" and "Amish Paradise," but I think "Eat It" may be my favorite song in Yankovic's discography and, correspondingly, Alex Pardee's identically titled print was one of my favorite posters in this year's show. As is often the case with Alex's work, the design has been meticulously constructed and is at once incredibly amusing ("Hah! Weird Al's head is a donut!"), while also being incredibly disturbing ("Oh my god! Weird Al's DNA has been spliced with that of a donut!") as he incorporates a little bit of that old Cronenbergian body horror...with hilarious consequences. Sorry, I've always wanted to write that last bit and finally saw my chance. Pardee's "Eat It" art print is currently available through Gallery 1988's online storefront for $35. The print measures 16" x 20" and is limited to an edition of 200. To learn more about Alex Pardee, be sure to visit his Eye Suck Ink website, Zerofriends store, and follow him on Twitter @alexpardee.

"Mr. Show" Art Print
Darin Shock (State of Shock Studios)
18" x 24" - Signed and Numbered
$40 - Limited to 75

I'm kind of shocked this is still available. I guess Mr. Show has a smaller fan-base than a lot of other comedies or comedians, but still! Darin did an amazing job here recreating so many of the memorable moments from the series, including Taint Magazine (seriously, you need to watch the "It's Insane, This Guy's Taint" sketch right now), Ronnie Dobs, Dickie Crickets, hell, even Gurgles the Bong (of Drugachusetts fame) makes an appearance! Mr. Shock managed to fill every available millimeter of this poster with show references, in-jokes, and sketch premises so strange they never should have worked, but they do, and it's a beautiful thing to behold. And for someone who's been a fan of Darin's work for a while now, I can honestly say this is his best stuff yet. I'm really impressed! Here's Darin on his process and inspiration (taken from the State of Shock Studios blog):

"I got out my DVDs and a sketchbook and spent hours / days / months trying to narrow down what I would depict in this design. There's a balance between what should be on the poster and what works better visually. Some classic characters simply weren't visually interesting (Dream of a Lifetime, Thrilling Miracles, etc.). It took a long time for me to commit to the design and composition. There were many things I had to unfortunately omit which deserved to be there (Cockring Warehouse, Bob the Streaker, Pre-Taped Call In Show, etc.). I knew I wanted (what I consider to be) every main cast member depicted once. I also tried to balance the number of Bobs vs. Daves. I wanted to incorporate some important objects from the show into the design as well. There weren't as many that worked well within the composition as I had hoped, so I had to throw in a few I didn't consider to be as important (Value Monkey, Kiddie Massage Cream, etc). You always want posters like this to be a certain "greatest hits" sort of tribute but sometimes things don't work out, plus sometimes you get selfish. Sarah Silverman wasn't a main cast member and some people may not agree, but one of my favorite lines from the show was Fran in Indomitable Spirit saying "I'm Fran and I'm a woman". Absolutely classic--had to be in there. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I could have easily done a series of these. It was an absolute pleasure to be able to do this one and I could go on all day...but I'll stop. A show of this magnitude deserves a poster of significance...I hope I did it some justice!"

I'd say he certainly did the show justice, wouldn't you? Darin Shock's "Mr. Show" art print is available through Gallery 1988 for $40. The print measures 18" x 24" and is limited to an edition of 75. To learn more about State of Shock Studios, head over to stateofshockstudios.com and be sure to visit the State of Shock Studios Facebook page.

"The Exploding Kind" Art Print
Clinton Reno
17" x 22" - Signed and Numbered
$40 - Limited to 53

I'm sure I've written this before, but for anyone who doesn't already know this, Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb is my all-time favorite film, meaning I'll pretty much buy anything even tangentially related to the movie. And it goes without saying that Peter Seller's performance, or more accurately performances, is one of the main reasons Dr. Strangelove is such a timeless, enjoyable, hilarious, and frightening experience. While that's reason enough for me to purchase this print, I'm sure others may need a bit more convincing, so here I go. What's better than one iconic film character? Why, two of course. Artist Clinton Reno, someone I wasn't really familiar with beyond his single Silver Screen Society contribution, has seen fit to not only render Seller's incomparable Dr. Strangelove, but to also include Seller's bumbling Inspector Clouseau. Yep, two great characters on one beautiful black and white print. What more could you want? Reno has also added a nice nod to both films / characters with a nice bit of wordplay in the background. It's a really fun poster in the classiest of ways. Clinton Reno's "The Exploding Kind" artwork is currently available from Gallery 1988 for $40. The poster is limited to an edition of 53 and measures 17" x 22". To find out more about Clinton Reno, I'd recommend visiting clintonreno.com and following him on Twitter @mr_reno.

"Another One Rides the Bus" Art Print
Joshua Budich
12" x 24" - Numbered
$35 - Limited to 200

I'll post just about anything Joshua Budich does - I love the guy's work. His art tends to be on the more realistic side of things, and his prints are always loaded to the brim with characters. Case in point: Budich's "Another One Rides the Bus" is bursting with detail, while also offering us a nice "best of" look at the many roles (and costumes) Weird Al has donned throughout his career. In that way, "Another One Rides the Bus" is a totally appropriate follow-up to Reno's Peter Sellers-centric "The Exploding Kind," don't you think? There's a lot of history here, but I think my favorite part of Joshua's poster might be the epilepsy-inducing pants Weird Al is wearing while jamming on his accordion, which I believe were modeled after the pants Weird Al wore on Tom Snyder's The Tomorrow Show during his first televised appearance playing, you guessed it, "Another One Rides the Bus." Budich's "Another One Rides the Bus" art print is available through Gallery 1988 for $35. The print measures 12" x 24" and is limited to an edition of 200. For more info on the very talented Joshua Budich, head over to joshuabudich.com and follow him on Twitter at @jbudich.

"Where's My Chippy?" Art Print
Graham Erwin
18" x 24" - Numbered
$40 - Limited to 50

Finally, we come to perhaps the strangest comedic duo in existence, Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim. Graham Erwin's precise portrait captures the awkward, abnormal, homo-erotic undertones that run rampant through Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! Graham's print includes shrimp and white wine, astronomical bodies, hot dogs, cell phones, and of course Chippy! In other words, all the things needed for a fun night with the Beaver Boys. This is one of those prints that really only a small contingent of folks will enjoy, but for fans of Tim and Eric this will be seen and understood as the masterpiece it is (and, well it should be). Graham Erwin's "Where's My Chippy?" art print is currently available through Gallery 1988's website for $40. The poster is limited to an edition of 50 and measures 18" x 24". You can visit grahamerwin.com, his Etsy store and follow him on Twitter @GrahamErwin to learn more about the artist.

Gallery 1988's "Adult Swim" Art Show

If any of you are like me, you love the animated non sequitur that is the Adult Swim programming block. And if, like me, you possess an unbridled passion for all things Gallery 1988 and have complete trust in their ability to come up with great shows and find incredibly talented artists, you knew it was only a matter of time before Gallery 1988 got in bed with Meatwad, Brock Sampson, Space Ghost, and the rest of the freaky deaky Adult Swim lineup. As you've probably already guessed, I'll be using this post to talk about some of my favorite pieces from the show along with some brief reviews. The only limitation I placed on myself, was that all of the artwork mentioned below needed to be available at the time of this writing - that means no Iron Jaiden, Olly Moss or Kevin Tong, among others. Let's do this, shall we?

"Brock, By Odin!" Art Print
Anne Benjamin
20" x 28" - Signed and Numbered
$40 - Limited to 85
Inspired By: The Venture Bros.

I have absolutely no problem saying this: I have a huge man crush on Brock Sampson. He's the type of guy I wish I could be, and by that I mean tall, muscular, animated and voiced by Patrick Warburton. Anne Benjamin's print celebrates all those qualities and presents Brock by way of Thor in a fittingly badass pose. I love the retro vibe this print exudes and the worn textures she used on some of the shadows and background that only strengthen the poster's antiquated aesthetic. Here's what Anne had to say about her print (taken from her blog):

"I've been wanting to draw Brock Samson as Thor for a long time and Gallery 1988's Adult Swim show was the perfect opportunity. At 20" x 28", this extra large screen print is bursting with muscles, mullets, rainbows and white hot pants."

The "Brock By Odin" art print is currently available through Gallery 1988's website for $40. The poster measures 20" x 28" and is limited to an edition of 85. You can learn more about Anne Benjamin by visiting her website annebenjamin.com or her Etsy storefront.

"Space Ghost" Art Print
Graham Erwin
18" x 24" - Signed and Numbered
$40 - Limited to 50
Inspired By: Space Ghost Coast to Coast

I'm not sure what it is about Graham Erwin's artwork, but I just love his designs. His prints are very calculated and they feature an almost hallucinogenic symmetry, but most importantly, they just work. I didn't pick this piece up, since I was never really a big fan of Space Ghost Coast to Coast (cue the hate mail), but art-wise, I really dig what Graham has done here. I especially love Space Ghost's massive chiseled chin and the retro looking ray gun in the lower left hand corner. The "Space Ghost" print is available through Gallery 1988 for $40. The art print measures 18" x 24" and is limited to an edition of 50. Visit grahamerwin.com to learn more about the artist, and also be sure to checkout his Etsy store and follow him on Twitter @GrahamErwin.

"Doctor Orpheus" Art Print
Delicious Design League
18" x 24" - Signed and Numbered
$30 - Limited to 104
Inspired By: The Venture Bros.

I love this poster! Delicious Design League created an awesome ode to The Venture Brother's Doctor Orpheus. For those not familiar with the series, Doctor Orpheus is a necromancer (a magician who can communicate with or raise the dead) that rents some property behind the Venture Compound. The artist(s) brilliantly chose to capitalize on the supernatural qualities of the good Doctor and have placed a bold red pentagram over Orpheus' visage. It's a wonderful touch and really does a great job conveying the mysticism the character is constantly spouting (much to the chagrin of those around him). I'm also a huge fan of the muted color palette and the funky typography used to spell out Orpheus' name. Delicious Design League's "Doctor Orpheus" print is currently available through Gallery 1988 for $30. The poster measures 18" x 24" and is limited to an edition of 104. Head over to deliciousdesignleague.com and follow them @deliciousdl to learn more about the design and illustration boutique.

"Brutal Masters" Art Print
James Flames
18" x 18" - Signed and Numbered
$30 - Limited to 75
Inspired By: Metalocalypse

There were a handful of Metalocalypse inspired prints at the Adult Swim art show, but I think James Flames' piece most accurately conveys the tone of this darkly comic animated series. This print is seriously dripping with some heavy metal rage and destruction, and I think it's safe to say that nobody does skeletons like James does. I have no idea if this was his intention, I'm guessing it was, but would this not make for the most kick ass Metalocalypse album cover ever? Great concept, perfect execution! The "Brutal Flames" print is currently available through Gallery 1988 for $30 and measures 18" x 18". The screen print is also signed and numbered, and is limited to an edition of 75. To learn more about James Flames, checkout jamesflames.com and follow him on Twitter @thejamesflames.

"Monarch" Art Print

Becky Dreistadt
11" x 14" - Signed and Numbered
$50 - Limited to 10
Inspired By: The Venture Bros.

Here's another Venture Bros inspired print, this time taking aim at the Venture family's self-appointed arch nemesis, The Monarch. Becky Dreistadt's print shows the softer side of The Monarch as he engages in one of his favorite activities as a lepidopterist (someone who collects or studies butterflies). This piece is a bit more traditional than a lot of the other prints mentioned here, but that's exactly why I like it so much - not to mention it's jaw-droppingly beautiful. Becky's poster seems to depict an almost Disney-like portrayal of the character, that is, if Disney created an insanely vain, whiny, and murderous, but inept super villain with a penchant for Monarch butterflies. The "Monarch" print is still available through Gallery 1988 for $50. The giclée measures 11" x 14" and is limited to an extremely small edition of 10. If you'd like to see more of Becky's work, be sure to visit her website tinykittenteeth.com, follow her on Twitter @beckyandfrank and buy things in her store!

"The Brak Show" Art Print
Joshua Budich
12" x 24" - Signed and Numbered
$40 - Limited to 75
Inspired By: The Brak Show

This is another case of, "I wasn't a huge fan of the show, but I love, love, love the artwork!" It probably goes without saying that I'm a huge fan of Joshua Budich's art. I think I've written about (at least) four or five of his posters since starting the site, and the guy just continues to amaze me. What really surprises me, is that his Brak Show artwork doesn't look or necessarily feel like a Budich print in many ways. I'm struggling to fully explain what I mean, but ultimately I'm super impressed at how successfully he translated the cartoon's visuals to the printed page. This poster looks like it would make for a great comic book cover, doesn't it? Joshua Budich's "The Brak Show" print is available through Gallery 1988 for $40. The print measures 12" x 24" and is limited to an edition of 75. To see more of Joshua's art, visit joshuabudich.com and follow him @jbudich.

"Where's My Chippy" Art Print
Miranda Dressler
8" x 18" - Signed and Numbered
$40 - Limited to 20
Inspired By: Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!

There's no denying that Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! is an acquired taste, but I happen to eat it up (like shrimp and white wine). This rogues' gallery of strange characters played by the titular Tim and Eric perfectly captures the ridiculousness of the show, while also posing the question: where's my Chippy? Alright, alright, it's getting late and my brain is obviously turning to mush, bottom line: this is a must own for any fans of the show. It's bright, it's colorful, it's weird, it's completely Tim and Eric! Miranda Dressler's "Where's My Chippy" art print is currently available for purchase through Gallery 1988. The giclée costs $40, measures 8" x 18" and is limited to an edition of 20. Head over to mirandadressler.blogspot.com and checkout Miranda's Etsy store if you'd like to learn more about the artist. Spaghett!

”Xenomorphis Mooninitus”
Darin Shock (State of Shock Studios)
18" x 24" - Signed and Numbered
$40 - Limited to 50
Inspired By: Aqua Teen Hunger Force

I love this concept! Combining the Alien chest-burster with Aqua Teen Hunger Force's Mooninites is simply genius. Darin Shock has crafted a disgustingly hilarious tribute to the Mooninites, and just about every aspect of this print is perfect. I especially appreciate how Darin was able to make the lunar hell spawn look completely different from the style of artwork around him, thereby bringing even more attention to the otherworldliness of Ignignokt (that's the name of the green Mooninite pictured above). My hat really goes off to Mr. Shock. This print is amazing and very, very funny! State of Shock Studios' ”Xenomorphis Mooninitus” print is available through Gallery 1988 for $40. The print is limited to an edition of 50 and measures 18" x 24". To find out more about the artist and buy his work, be sure to visit stateofshockstudios.com.

"Darkplace: The Movie" Art Print
Doe Eyed Design
18" x 24" - Numbered
$25 - Limited to 50
Inspired By: Garth Marenghi's Darkplace

This is the last one, so I'll keep it short, but if you've ever seen Garth Marenghi's Darkplace, then you know how absolutely perfect this poster is! And at only $25, the cheapest print mentioned here, it's a total steal. Doe Eyed Design's beautiful artwork imagines a world I want to live in - a world where a Darkplace movie actually exists. I love the greenish color used for the title and characters' faces, because it evokes the garish and jarringly unrealistic look of the show. This was also the first poster I saw at Gallery 1988's Adult Swim exhibition that I knew I had to own. Doe Eyed Design's "Darkplace: The Movie" print is available through Gallery 1988 for $25. The poster measures 18" x 24" and is limited to an edition of 50. To learn more about Doe Eyed Design, visit doe-eyed.com and follow them on Twitter @doe_eyed.

And that's it. What were some of your favorite prints?