Myron-Gilbert-Art

This is a sample of what I think of as "grotesques." The idea is to create a feeling, sometimes of dread, sometimes of worry. None of these creatures are "real." The point is not to portray accurate pictures of birds or beasts. I have told people that these creations are analogies of people or events. Is that true? I tend to do them when I am frustrated or angry.

These are derived from smaller pastel, pen and ink, chargoal or crayon drawings. The are all done on heavy watercolor paper that has been prepared with a heavy coat of gesso to prevent the oil paint from coming in direct contact with with paper.

These are from a series that goes back roughly 30 years, all drawn on 5 x 7 inch 90 lb. paper. Mostly are pen and ink, originally using a Rapidograph. The original idea was to create creatures that might inhabit a parallel world. But I was also interested in having fun with the way flora and fauna are categorized. And eventually, I began seeing these creatures as analogies or symbols of some of the people I dealt with from time to time, especially those I met as part of any "day jobs" that I held.

I like drawing birds. They are so varied and colorful. But I do not draw “realistic” birds. The birds I draw are all the product of what some would describe as my overheated imagination. But more important than that, I am more interested in composition and texture than in what passes for reality. I did this series of drawings over a couple of months with the idea of creating 10 or 12 amusing and (hopefully) arresting works that might command a presence on a wall.

This is a new technique for me. And I like it a lot. One reason is that you are never quite sure as to what you are going to get. Once you take a plate on which you have painted ink and run it through a flat bed press, the ink takes on a life of its own, for better or worse. Ir is both exciting and maddening.I do these prints at Zygote Press a local institution here in Cleveland, Ohio. It is in an old industrial building, a place that attests to Cleveland’s off-beat art culture - we ain’t New York but in some ways a lot more fun.

Pen and ink is a very old way to draw. I started with my first schoolboy fountain pen. And really took to it when I got my first Rapidograph and developed what I call my “scribbalist style.. Over time, I went from the Rapidograph to a crow quill pen and then on to some of the wonderful fine point markers that have largely supplanted pens that use liquid ink. But all the while, I have continued with my “scribbalist” style, except for an occasional line drawing.