Author: johnfansmith

The Last Druid

The inspiration for The Last Druid was the 1774 painting The Bard by Thomas Jones, which is in Amgueddfa Cymru (National Museum of Wales) but which I was fortunate to see while it was on exhibition at the Frick Art and Historical Center in Pittsburgh. The Welsh believed the Bards to be descendants of the Celtic druids. As in The Bard, I have posed a solitary figure at the edge of a jagged cliff. My depiction in The Last Druid is cloaked in a mantle of greenery, tying him to his natural world. Hand built unglazed ceramic, set on gneiss. No adhesive is used.

10” x 6” x 10”

Peer Group: Across the Spectrum

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Peer Group: Across the Spectrum is a hand pulled ink on paper collographic monoprint that is intended to be peered at, and enjoyed, on several different levels. Matted and framed to 20 x 16”.

Please note that a previous edition of this post included the wrong image and pricing information.

But the Gods Did Not Answer

Amidst a scene of destruction and devastation a final desperate plea has been made. “But the Gods Did not Answer” attempts to capture the despair, anger, and sense of betrayal that arise when there is no response. This is a mixed media sculpture utilizing raku-fired hand-built ceramics, found objects and rocks/pebbles. 23” x 11’ x 14”

Still Life in the City

“Still Life in the City” is a silver gelatin photograph that is part of a series of urban images which juxtapose the geometry of buildings with the nature that surrounds them. The title is deliberately ambiguous and hopefully evocative. Matted and framed to 11″ x 14′. $205

Sea Currents #1

Sea Currents #1 is a clay monoprint on canvas which draws on the beauty, if not the mythology, of the Hawaiian Islands. The image is meant to convey and evoke the underwater coastal “forests” and the currents that move them and through them. Matted and framed to 16″ x 20″

Elijah and the Broom Tree

Elijah and the Broom Tree, inspired by 1 Kings 19:4-8 is a polychromatic hand built/found object mixed media sculpture composed of raku fired paper clay with multiple glazes set on Wissahickon schist and with a deadwood pruning of American dogwood. No adhesive is used. (20.5” H x 18” W x12.5” D)

Music of the Gods

The Music of the Gods takes its inspiration from the beauty and mythology of the Hawaiian Islands. If you look closely (and perhaps squint a bit) you can see some of the Hawaiian gods playing in the upper half of the print. It is my adaptation of a clay monoprint on canvas, a technique developed by Mitch Lyons in the 1970’s Matted and framed to 16″ x 20″. $275

The Garden of the Gods

The Garden of The Gods is another in the series of Hawaiian inspired clay monoprints, a printing technique which utilizes moist clay, canvas, ceramic underglazes and a slab roller and which I feel is well-suited to express the lush color of a tropical garden that is intended to be fit for the gods. Matted and framed to “16” x 20″. $275

The Pointillist

The Pointillist is a mixed media collage which uses found object/ recycled materials and paint on canvas to convey…nothing. His expression is blank, he reveals no emotions or inner thoughts, perhaps because he is composed of Financial Security Papers (FSPs), the inside patterns of bank, bill and credit envelopes, whose sole purpose is to prevent you from seeing inside. 22″ x 18″ $350

Political Theory: 101

Political Theory: 101 is a found object/recycled material paper collage which I believe speaks for itself and probably says just about everything you really need to know about political theory regardless of your party affiliation or other views on government. Matted and framed to 20′ x 16″. $175.

John Fansmith

Artist