Wating

 We are still waiting for cooler weather. I hate this triple digit heat.

Halloween Shopping II

I love this Medusa, I don't have space for more though. 

These kids are so creepy, I want all three!

 

Gunther

 Have you ever watched the horror film The Funhouse (1981) by Tobe Hooper? It scared me to death as a kid. The monster, Gunther, has always seemed both pathetic and terrifying. His deformity is too predatory to just me an unfortunate birth defect, but he also seems emotional and to have human desires. The movie isn't perfect, but I would put it in my top ten picks for late summer viewing. Perfect for the fair season.

The Red Moon

 This is a speed paining I created during a small painting class the other night right after the lunar eclipse. I only had about an hour and a half, so it is pretty basic. I think for the time invested that it turned out well. 

The Incomplete Works of Ethan Black

 I have not finished this painting and it bothers me. There is just not enough hours in a day. Mainly because the man steals them for his own profit. 

State Fair

 I work the state fair every year. My IT company helps with software and internet issues every year. This year there were a few great Halloween elements I want to share with you. This cup came home with me. 

I loved this Cerberus woodburning. 

Always happy to see pumpkins and there were a lot, but I did not get photos of all of it.

There was a table decorating contest, this one gets my vote. lol

There was a Jack o Lantern themed ride for kids. I did not have time to get closer. 

Painting Classes

 I have taught painting classes at Robin's Gallery for fifteen years. Our paintings are rarely of a nature to share here, but this one for September fits the vibe here. I have to keep the subjects simple, as the students are often new to painting and I do not want a lot of tears. (It has happened) Here are some others we have done around this time of year. 

I have always used a lot of blue, and I am trying to stop or at least reduce it. lol

The October Born

 I have always had this vison of a witch walking out to a fog covered pumpkin patch just as a big yellow moon rises over the hills on Halloween night. There are only a few gourds remaining, and they are all the twisted and rotten remnants of the harvest. She raises her hands and casts a spell. The pumpkins start to move and crack open, spilling green mist and an eerie glow. From each a different type of monster rises. A skeleton, a ghost, a vampire, a werewolf, a giant spider, and a mummy. The newly formed army of the night follow her into town to fashion a Halloween nobody will ever forget. 

(If a movie producer wants to make this, I can provide storyboards and concept designs.)

Nightmare Spider

 This time we are getting really creepy. Most of what I draw and paint is pretty tame and not very frightening. I am always trying to improve on that. This creature is pretty frightening. It used the mummified skin and bones of its prey for a kind of shell and place to hide in wait of prey. When prey gets near, it leaps up and attacks. For some reason I imagine that the webbing of the creature is a dull black and hard to see in dark caverns, as well as powerful enough to ensnare a grown man. 

The Gay Blade of Frito Lay

 The last, for now, of our Frito Lay figure inspired illustrations.

The Gay Blade. 

Who seems to be an executioner. This type of subject was a common theme in this era of horror.

Harry Scary

 

Harry Scary is our next Frito Lay figure. I guess he is a werewolf with real big ears.... I don't know. Drawing him was fun. I hope you like it. Only one more to go. I do not own any of the other three yet, so I do not have them to use for reference. Stay tuned for The Gay Blade...Is that really what he is called? 

Yep. 

Mad Mummy

 

The Mad Mummy from the Frito Lay toys of the 1960s. The third in my series of drawings based on these tiny toys. I was not into this guy when I started. I thought he was pretty boring, but he turned out pretty well, I think. What do you think about him? Mummies are a favorite of mine, but the toy is pretty simple and he is not very detailed. I added a lot more texture than the toy has, and some visible teeth in his mouth slit.

Batty Bertha

 

I have learned more about the figures I am basing these drawings on. They were a Frito Lay give away found in bags of chips. Wow, they should bring that back. How fun is that? 

As near as I have found, this is the full set. I only own five of them. 

More to come!

Cool Ghoul (Reaper)

 

I drew this Sunday. I was in my storage and found the figure pictured. I only have a few of these, but I plan to draw each one. The reaper was always my favorite as a kid, so I started with him. These figures were produced by Multi Products in the 1960s. I was not alive then, but boy do I love the monster figures from then and all the way into the 90s.   

Do you want to partyyyyy! (or Punk, but slow about it)

I have been "working" on this painting for a while now. I am hell bent on getting it done before August.

(I did not get it done before August) 

Gustov and the New Jar

 I have a brain in a jar named Gustov. (Who doesn't?) During an adventure, this, his once home had a little accident  while we were at Transworld. The jar was broken. Since then, I have tried and tried to find a jar like this one. No luck. So, I have moved him into a more squat jar and now the apparatus at the top doesn't work for it. I am now building a new apparatus and will post my progress soon. I just need a few more parts and a good electrical storm. 

Pumpkin Plague

When Jack first started the CRISPR lab in his garage, he planned to make the most prolific and fast growing pumpkin plant the world had ever seen. In that he was successful, but when he accidently injected himself with the plant DNA, he doomed himself to slowly mutate into the very plant he desired and now he mindlessly seeks others to infect with parasitic pumpkin plants. This Halloween will be the greenest the world has ever seen, and the most horrific.

(Story and concept by Ethan Black)

 

Return of the Spider Witch

 I have redrawn the spider witch. Which was inspired by my childhood horror sounds CD. A Night in the Graveyard.  I like this version a bit more. She is more creature like and menacing than the old woman crawling with spiders I created previously. Which do you like more? Why? 

Thank you, and stay spooky!

Ethan

Spider Witch

 The Spider Witch was drawn with inspiration from a childhood horror sound effects CD that I listened to far more than any normal person would. The Cd is a tour of a haunted house and graveyard. In the graveyard you encounter a coven of witches who cast curses on your group. One of the witches says "Web of spider, evil eye! Cloak of darkness! YOU WILL DIE!" and three or four people start screaming. The CD is called A Night in a Haunted House / A Night in a Graveyard. (Thank you to my pal John Davis for helping me find the title.) Even as I post this, I consider that I can do something ore interesting with this concept. The Spider Witch may return soon with a brand new look. 

Stay spooky, freaks. 

~Ethan

Jason

 July, August, September, October, November

To me, Jason is the official Mascot of Summerween. 

I am not sure how I feel about summerween, but he has a strong connection to it in my mind. Camping and the outdoors seem to be summer time activities for a lot of people. Not me. I like the cold, I like autumn time outside. What about you?