David Hale (AR7)

     Since the birth of internet, online news articles, and social media, artists have been able to show their artwork to people from all around the world. While searching for a tattoo artist that could fulfill the dream tattoo someone has always wanted, the internet has become the best way to promote and discover the artist that would do the job. Without the help of this, finding David Hale and his artwork in Georgia while living anywhere else in the world would have been very unlikely. Although it is hard to find many articles online that dive deep into his artwork, the few that exist (as well as many small articles and comments) all praise his creations and admire his "mindfulness and wisdom far beyond his chronological age" [literacyhead.com]. 

     In Hale's drawing 'Song of the White Deer' (collaboration with Kris Davidson, 2012), a variety of animals all connect with one another while surrounding a head of deer. A male human head is split in half, both sides of the face surround the animals in a way that seems as if the head had encapsulated them but are now free. Deer, birds, turtle, snakes, butterflies, a flower, and a human; all the organisms within this piece are entwined within triangular designs and geometric patterns that form mandalas. This forms a sense interdependence... a reminder of the web of life. Hale states on one of his websites that he dedicates his work
"to Father Sky and Mother Earth in hopes of a generation that will heal our relationships with that which brings us Life"[davidhale.org]. 'Song of the White Deer' is a piece of art that more than adequately portrays his love for nature and his understanding that all things are connected, one organism cannot exist without the other.

     A horned skull that greatly resembles one of a bull is the main subject of a tattoo Hale did in 2011. The top of the skull and horns are decorated with a 'tribal' star mandala design made from heavy and light contour lines, as well as small dots and circles. The base of the skull's horns are wrapped in beaded twine with feathers hanging from them. Only black ink was used to tattoo the skull, but the flowers surrounding it are vividly colored with orange to red petals with aqua-green leafs. The skull looks as if it could be an object of spiritual significance. Perhaps a shaman's sacred tool, a decorated skull of an animal totem who's spirit would rise from the ground and the flowers that grow from it to dance along with it's human relatives in ritual.

     Tattoo body modification has existed for thousands of years, it is one form of art that has had true spiritual importance in rituals; whether it's a part of a youth's wright of passage into adulthood or a way of showing respect for spirits that watch over an individual. Skin is not just a canvas to hold a design, tattooing is about connecting to something deeper than skin, or something far outside from it. Back in 2006 David Hale had an interview with Hybrid Sessions, an online artist blog, to talk about his art, tattooing, skateboarding, and music. In a question regarding his unique tattoo work he mentions opening his first tattoo studio and said, "I feel tattooing is all too often thought of as a commercial art form, and this sacrifices its nature as a sacred art form. By working on my own terms, I am able to focus on the aspects of tattooing I feel are significant to our growth as a collective" [hybridsessions.com].

   
   

       

David Hale (AR6)

     David Hale is a illustrator, designer, muralist, and tattoo artist who lives and works in Athens, GA. Back in 2006 he received his BFA in Painting from University of Georgia in Athens. He is currently the owner and lead tattooist of LoveHawk Studios in Athens. He has a deep love and spiritual connection for the world and nature which is incorporated into his artwork. Much of his paintings have animals as his subject, many of which are birds of prey like hawks, owls, and eagles. His artworks have organic, natural tones of colors and mandala geometric patterns in others. Over the past few years his tattoo work has become increasingly well known in the world of body modification, people will travel from all over the country (even outside the country) to get a tattoo of his artwork. Each tattoo is unique to all others that he has done.

     His painting, 'You Will Die', a human skull is in the foreground of an orange-red circle resembling the sun. There is a heavy use of contour lines, and a variety of gray and tan tones of color to create depth and detail to the skull. The lines form sharp crystal-like shapes and edges that are forming on the surface and inside the skull cavity. Mushrooms are growing from the orifices and cracks in the skull. Although the title of this piece seems to sound ominous, the content in the painting is brighter. The human skull is an aspect of death but the mushrooms growing from it signify birth. The circle behind the skull displays the fact that life and death is a cycle of nature. One organism dies, but another is born and grows.

     Many of his tattoos and illustrations have a heavy influence of North Western native american animal totem designs while still maintaining his own distinctive style. It comes to no true surprise that Hale's art incorporates their designs, native american spiritual beliefs and myths are deeply tied into connecting and respecting 'mother earth' and all the beings that manifest from her.


   

   

Martin Wittfooth: Empires & Animals (AR5)

The Baptism, Oil on canvas, 2011

The Sacrifice, Oil on canvas, 2011

       


















    Martin Wittfooth is an artist who works and lives in Brooklyn, New York. When living within a city, every person is surrounded by industrial empires. They dominate and bombard our senses. The consequences of global industrialization be easily forgotten and hidden away when living inside something that is itself a product of industrialization. Wittfooth's oil paintings delve deep into the distressing truth of industrialization's impact on on nature. Industry's modern 'empires' are fueled by greed without guilt and domination without disquiet. His painted landscapes are visually and mentally intense. The main subjects of his paintings are animals that we all know and love in harmful and toxic locations or circumstances. His work can catch the eye of any animal lover.

The Spoils, Oil on canvas, 2011

     In Wittfooth's oil paining called 'The Spoils', a white pelican stands at the edge of a rocky shore. Pearl, gold, and jeweled necklaces are worn around her neck and are draping from the inside of her pouched bill. When looking closer you can see dark oil dripping from her bill. Behind her is a dark, rough ocean and a sky filled with smoke from a fire off in the distance. It can be quite easy to see that this is a painting of a coastal oil spill. It is a unfortunate environmental catastrophe that has happened many times since the beginning of ocean floor drilling for fossil fuels; one of the most recent and devastating was the BP oil spill off the Gulf of Mexico. Spills devastate marine ecosystems, including animals that thrive off of them like sea birds. It takes years for ecosystems to get back to a healthy level.

     The pearl and gold jewelry hanging from the pelican's neck symbolize human greed. What must be mentioned about the painting is that there is an absence of humans, no boats or helicopters heading towards the fire to extinguish it. The absence of human activity represents that humans, specifically industrial empires, are disconnected from the environments that they use and abuse for economic gain. This is an aspect that repeats in many of his paintings. Wittfooth's landscapes of human induced environmental catastrophes, occupied by animals that try to survive it, implore his viewers to rethink our way of life and question the social structures that control it.