Artwork, Creative direction for by Shingozilla

I participated in the annual Small Cures art show again which took place last year in Toronto, and decided to submit 3 pieces. Their format of using only tiny 6 x 6” canvases, made me struggle to figure out what to paint. Here's what I came up with.

Halftime Onigiri: This salaryman I wanted to be the overworking underpaid 50 something year old fellow taking a 5 minute lunch break during the day with his modest lunch-in-hand: an onigiri. He then would be sitting back on one of those kiddie jungle gym springy thingies (what do they call those?), possibly fantasizing about being young again. Or he’s fantasizing about new love? Hmmm? Either way the flat background emphasizes that he’s in a place outside of reality.

Ichigo Milk: The young construction worker wears a ‘safety first’ helmet, typical of a Japanese construction worker. The uniform is called a ‘nikka pokka’ and the boots are ‘tabi boots’ (I made them rollerskates!). He also has his bling rings, aviator glasses, and most important of all: his strawberry milk (ichigo milk). All this retro, gets him in his zone.

Osaka Obachan: She’s the polar opposite to the Salaryman. She’s enjoying every bit of her life, and showing age ain’t nothing but a numbaa. She wears her love of leopard print, Adidas, Asics, red lipstick and shades. Ok I added the mixed sport brands. Oh and the pogo stick. Hey gotta have fun with it right? I like the juxtaposition of the old with young items, and young with the old items. So yep i guess looking at the three: it’s all about age perspective. Also maybe about people dealing with stress?