GUTS!

This is a big painting (acrylic and enamel on board, 32" x 48") I did for a show that opens this Saturday / Valentine's Day at the FUBAR (3108 Locust) in downtown St. Louis. The show, called CONGESTIVE ART FAILURE, is being put on by Evermore Gallery and is billed as a show of "medical illustration". It should be really cool:Here was my sketch. I wanted to focus on the gross anatomy of things found under the my recliner:
1) Loose change
2) Bottlecaps
3) Fritos (whole & partially smashed by the mechanical guts of the chair)
4) Pink (skim) milk-cap rings hidden by my cats
5) DustI've been painting on heavy-weight masonite for a while and the two major archival challenges are long-term warping and how to hang the thing. Here's how I decided to combat them this time around:It makes for a nice sturdy thing that hangs in a 'floating' fashion a couple of inches off the wall. Anyway, maybe I'll see you at the show! Bring your sweetheart! What is more romantic than a flourescent hot-pink portrayal of my insides?

HOLD ON!

Here are some drawings from the forthcoming HOLD ON zine, the hottest new art/recipe/word-puzzle magazine on the streets. Be on the lookout for biweekly issues on the newstands soon. Staying in on a Saturday night, listening to punk rock records, drinking Big Red soda, doing weird/gross drawings, makes me feel 15 again. Why does life ever have to be more complicated than this??While I'm being nostalgic it seems like a good time to post this recent painting I made for an art show commemorating the local comics shoppe Star Clipper's 20th anniversary. My idea was to recreate the cover to a comic I made 20 years ago. (My pals The Hurtt Locker and Ron DMC did a similar deal.) Here was the original cover to "The Origin of the Society of Super Robot Forces" (© 1988).And here's the new version, ©2008:

For Sale! Bob Gibson Painting

I recently did this big painting of St. Louis Cardinal Bob Gibson, the most dominating and fearsome pitcher of all time. This is a man who, following his 1968 season's ERA of 1.12 (!) and 17 strikeouts in Game 1 of the World Series (both records which stand to this day), forced major league baseball to lower the height of the pitcher's mound !
This is a man who, at the age of 57, brushed back Reggie Jackson in an old-timers' game! Here's the preparatory sketch I did :My painting (24" x 36" acrylic on canvas) is gonna be up for auction this Friday night at a trivia night/silent auction fundraiser for The Center for Autism Education in O' Fallon, Missouri. It's a great cause and I'd love to give this painting to a good home. I know there are some art-loving El Birdos fans out there, and would love to give them to chance to get in on the action too. If you want to submit a proxy bid, e-mail me at: danzettwoch (at) gmail (dot) com.

Huddle Up!

Bibliography:
The 1984 San Francisco 49ers: "We are the Niners!" • The 1985 Chicago Bears: "Super Bowl Shuffle" • The 1986 L.A. Raiders: "The Silver and Black Attack" • The 1986 L.A. Rams: "Let's Ram It" • The 1987 Missouri Tigers: "The Cats from Ol' Mizzou" • The 1988 Liverpool F.C.: "Anfield Rap" • The Southern Food Brokerage: "Super Broker Shuffle" • The Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling: "Intro Rap"

Leon says this is the last strip that'll be printed in the paper, but don't worry, he'll continue providing you FUN FACTS FOREVER.

New Print: REDD FOXX!

I just finished printing up the latest installment in my series of prints commemorating local St. Louis "folk icons" -- legendary comedian and TV star Redd Foxx! I had done this painting of Redd a while back and was gonna try and capture the same moment, Fred G. Sanford's famous heart-attack pantomime, as well as draw that sweet junk-truck again. But the more I read up on Redd's life and past, the more I became interested in his early stand-up work, specifically the raunchy image he created through his under-ground "party records."I decided to focus on this under-appreciated aspect of his career in my early sketches...... and went so far as to do a final inked drawing:Ultimately though I decided that I was losing the power and recognizability of Redd Foxx as an icon with this approach, and just couldn't quite get the composition & colors to work anyway. I went back to the drawing board......and did some research via YouTube to really try and nail Fred Sanford's phony seizure / ascent to see his wife Elizabeth above:Here's how that ink drawing turned out:And the finished digital art (white, red & blue ink on chipboard):These will be available to purchase from me directly (write me if interested) and hopefully at some shoppes & shows around town. I'm gonna take a break from this series - at least until I get some inspiration for new St. Louisians - so it's a good time to complete your set!

Self-Portrait in Flannel Shirt

I saw a Van Gogh Omnimax documentary last night, listened to BRAINWORMS all day, put on a flannel shirt, and out came this drawing. ALL HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

History of Heavy Metal Logos

Leon explains it all here!

Beasts! at Giant Robot in San Francisco

There's an awesome art show happening at the Giant Robot store in San Francisco, opening this weekend. More info and preview pixx here! There will be copies of my Giant Squid print there ready to drag you down into Davy Jones' Locker.It's a four-color screenprint, and I'm officially out of them, but if you're in the Bay Area you can still grab one for 50 tentacles.

Gross for One! Gross for All!

I've written before about how much I love Madballs™ and here's a little painting I did of 'Wolf Breath.' Special thanks to James McShane for sending this gnarled foam dude to me.
Also here are some new custom Madballs I brainstormed in my sketchbook. Hey -- 'Brain Storm' - that'd be a good one too!

Lots of Prints & Beyond

Just printed up 400 more of these bad boys (and boy are my arms TIRED!). Get a hot copy here if you haven't already.love,
Leon Beyond

Lava Wave

Our pal Anchovy went to Hawaii and we are all jealous. This is a white-out and colored pencil drawing of what I imagine he's up to RIGHT NOW.

Naked Dudes: Figures Drawn 01.06.09

Here are some drawings I made last night at the St. Louis Artists' Guild. Colored Pencil & Sumi Ink on big sheets of construction paper. I'm posting these to (hopefully) force myself back in the habit of going to figure drawing night and maybe to track my progress. *Note: That first gesture drawing was made on top of on old scrap drawing I had. I now realize it looks weird.

The Perfect Amount of Raisins