Meet Wonder Pug. This cute lil’ pup is here to stop you in your tracks and ask you, “What are you doing human?”
This print is part of a series inspired by the Mexican Loteria game. You know the game, but probably didn’t know it was a game. It’s kind of like bingo. Some of the more famous images from the game are the hand that say El Mano, or the devil that says El Diablo. There are many more images to come, but for now let Wonder Pug bring you hours of joy and giggles.
This is 11"x17" digital gicleé print comes on Epson Velvet Fine art paper and is available on my Etsy store here: https://etsy.me/2HZ6RFF
A patron contacted me recently asking if I had any items like my “Teh Cat” piece. I said no, but if they had any ideas to let me know and maybe I could whip something up. They suggested doing a pug. So here is a pug. Gazing in wonder at we humans. #puglife #patrons #commissionsopen
It’s Women’s History Month. Today Maxine Waters is reclaiming her time.
Born August 15, 1938 in St. Louis Missouri, she was elected to the U. S. House of Representatives for California’s 29th district in 1990. She soon defined herself as a firebrand when she interrupted a Republican speech in retaliation for what she considered overly harsh questioning of Hilary Clinton’s Chief of Staff. During a House Financial Committee meeting she repeatedly used the phrase, “reclaiming my time” when United States Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin attempted to waste time by not addressing her questions properly. Despite controversy and amid allegations of corruption she has been an outspoken critic of Donald Trump, George H. W. Bush and even Barack Obama. Her intolerance for bullshit is perhaps her greatest gift, she is Maxine Waters.
“Geimei’s Tumblr features a photo of Tomichie in a stunning black obi with a gorgeous motif with patterns in circles… could you please explain that pattern for us? Thank you!”
The motif itself is fairly straightforward and known as Marumon (丸紋), which translates directly to “Circle Motifs”; it simply means any motif that is rendered within a circle. This obi in particular has four major motifs within the circles that are repeated throughout with gorgeous embroidery (the price must have been a fortune!). To understand its meaning better let’s take a closer look at the four, starting with the butterflies in the top left of the obi (which repeats again towards the bottom left):
Chō/Butterflies (蝶): I’ve spoken about the symbolism of butterflies before, but what makes these special is that the two butterflies facing each other also manage to create a circle in their own right, which adds a feeling of wholeness.
Kiku/Chrysanthemums (菊): This motif also manages to make its own circle with the middle flower, so it’s also emulating the marumon feeling again. However, it also adds to this aesthetic by adding three chrysanthemums on side view and two sets of three leaves. It’s pretty obvious to see the use of the number three here, and this isn’t an accident, especially when looking at the next motif…
Kikkō/Tortoiseshell (亀甲): I’ve also spoken about the symbolism surrounding kikkō in the past, but this part is where we really begin to see the hidden message in the obi. There were two butterflies, three chrysanthemums, and now four kikkō! There’s four whole sections and three partial sections, which links it back to the chrysanthemums. The two leaf sets that the chrysanthemums showed link it directly back to the two butterflies as well!
Kiri/Paulownia (桐): You may be wondering why I chose to feature this last, even though it’s technically above the kikkō in the pattern; if you start with the butterflies, then move to the chrysanthemums, kikkō, and finally paulownia, you’ve gone around in a circle pattern, which is artfully hidden in this piece! Also, it’s important to note that Japanese writing is read from right to left, so following a circle in Japanese art leads us to go from right to left as well. As you may have guessed by now, the paulownia represents the number five, as it has three leaves and two main flowers. What’s even better is the final hidden meaning: There’s 14 paulownia buds, which is the number you get when you add 2 + 3 + 4 + 5.
You may have also noticed that six colors are used throughout the obi as well: red, white, blue, purple, green, and gold. The paulownia leaves use two different shades of red though, so you could technically call it seven; this was likely added to give the paulownia an extra bit of dimension. So, each flower represents a number in sequence with the colors used to render them becoming the final number in the sequence overall ^^
Her kimono motifs can also be considered marumon as they are also motifs within circles (albeit without a border) so the combination is quite stunning and was clearly meant to be paired together.
Just two days left to pick up one of these good fortune cats @1xrun They’re limited edition prints , 16”x20”, signed and numbered. Stickers and pins are available too! Click the link in my bio to purchase! #limitededition #detroit #print #manekineko #japanese #moneypowerrespect #cat #innerstategallery #art🎨 #catpeople #sarmel #popcultureart
Women’s Wednesday and the day after elections! Had some big wins last night, but this woman was a special one.
Born September 30, 1984 in Prince William County, Virginia . She grew up in Prince William and is a seven-time Virginia Press Association winner, lead reporter for the Gainesville Times and Prince Williams Times. Consistently active in the LGBTQ community she has fought against gender and gay inequality. For over 10 years she has led the Heavy Metal band Cab Ride Home. In 2013 she came out to friends, family and fans and was greeted with love and support. In 2017 she ran for election for the 13th District of the Virgina House of Representatives. Her opponent refused to debate her or acknowledge her declared gender. She is a stepmother, a metalhead and the first openly transgender woman to serve in a state legislature. She is Danica Roem.
Downloadable pdf of this week and all previous NSP here:
