Lizard Men and Zombies

 Invasion of the Lizard Men 16 x 20, 2012, Acrylic on Museum Board on Panel

Zombies in the Park 16 x 20, 2013, Acryic on Museum Board on Panel

Going back about ten years I have produced, off and on, some narrative work inspired by pulp literature and "B" movies and including text, titles, captions, even a story synopses.  This is work I have always enjoyed creating, and so I decided to indulge an urge to revisit this genre.   Examining the response to this work, I've discovered that sales have, over the years. been exceptionally good. In fact, the only pictures that failed to sale were either large (over 20 x 24), featured multiple images, or were of subject matter other than sc-fi/ horror.  Thus, I am presented with a clear guideline for future work, one which fits in well with what I want to do.  I plan to do a series of 16 x 20 to 20 x 24 narrative tableaux suggesting stories that might have been made into wonderfully schlocky "B" movies in the 50's and 60's.  I plan to insert elements of humor and social satire and also to make the images generally pleasant and beautiful with sinister or horrific aspects underplayed.  I decided that plot summaries, which I have used in past paintings, are unnecessary and a title at the bottom is sufficient -- let the viewer create his own story from the image!

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Foxy Rose

Foxy Rose and the White Slavery Ring, 20 x 16, Acrylic, 2004

Foxy Rose and the Steam Yacht Adventure, 20 x 16, Acrylic, 2004

A few years ago I began a series of paintings inspired by the covers of pulp fiction magazines that were popular in the early 20th Century.  (The artwork in these magazines has only recently been appreciated.)  I started by creating a character and a  premise of a story, then composing a painting to illustrate it, incorporating the titles in picture.  One of the characters I called Foxy Rose, the Edwardian Crime Fighter.  The leading character was a spunky young English lady, the Honorable Rosemary Fox, the daughter of a Viscount.  When her beloved brother is killed by a criminal gang, she decides to devote herself rooting out organized crime in 1900 London.  There were two paintings in the projected series, Foxy Rose and the White Slavery Ring and Foxy Rose and the Steam Yacht Mystery.  I had other ideas, such as Foxy Rose and the Strangler of Limehouse, Foxy Rose and the Cornish Smugglers, Foxy Rose and the Music Hall Murders, but I never quite got to them.  It occurred to me several times to actually write the stories suggested by the picture titles.  The idea attracts me more and more, even though I am already engaged in writing two books.  Perhaps someday I'll get around to it.  I would publish them as novelettes with the paintings for book covers.  (You can do this sort of self publishing almost without cost at lulu.com.)

Check out more of my artwork on my website www.stephenwardeanderson,com

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