Till Death Do Us Part!

After an incredibly long hiatus, I am back to blogging. After moving across the country, again, and reentering an old life back here in the 612, well, reentry is a nasty bitch.

I will soon post a much more comprehensive viewing of the illustration work/news that has happened over the long silence. However, right now I am here to tell you all about a gallery show of new works by the amazing Karen O and myself that opens this Friday, Feb. 5th, at the Rogue Buddah Gallery here in Murderapolis, Minnesnowta.

Opens @ 7pm, tons of cheap beer and wine, kickass art, and even better company. So, below are our artist statements, and then you will find some photos of a few of my pieces in the show.

So come on out in the snow and cold and get down with us at the Rogue Buddah.

So qhoth the Buddha:

Karen O'Bryan and RM Hanson share something other than being a couple, they share a creative spirit. Hanson's monsters and grotesque images compliment O'Bryan's subtle and delicate imagery in this, their first exhibit together. "Till Death Do Us Part", which takes place during the month of love, celebrates the many facets of relationships, the good, the bad, the beautiful and the ugly, but most importantly, the creative.

Karen O’Bryan Artist Statement:
Inspiration comes from everywhere. The town you grew up in, an expedition abroad, from friends and loved ones, even the subconscious. I have always been very interested in dreams, dream analysis and remembering bizarre events from adventures had inside the mind.

Not only am I interested in the scenes my own mind creates each night, I love hearing other people's dreams as well. Recently, a friend of mine told me he dreamt we were at a costume party together. He was dressed as a lion, but he couldn't remember what I went as.

From his short story, I imagined what this costume party could've looked like, and my work quickly evolved into depicting images of people in masks. I have been using the underlining plot in his dream as my canvas to expand upon, embellishing it with experiences and dreams of my own.

R. M. Hanson Artist Statement:
Imagine you are watching two beautiful, love-struck twenty-somethings run hand in hand along the seaside at sunset. Their giggles drift over the soft breeze while they gaze adoringly into each other’s eyes, knowing there is no one else in this world they are supposed to be with. They are in perfect love. All of a sudden, they are overtaken by an enormous, mucus-covered, multi-eyed, snarling beast and torn, violently, limb from limb in a hideous cyclone of fangs and tentacles. The shore is stained crimson. Entrails, brain matter and eyeballs litter the spattered, gore encrusted sand. This scenario is the inspiration for my work.