You know, it’s pretty cool being a comic nerd/metal head
sometimes. What’s best may be the fact
that there are so many folks around the world that are just like me…less the
red hair and pasty skin…maybe. It never ceases to amaze me that I have met the
likes of me in just about every corner of the world, completely obliterating
the preconceived barriers that our various cultures have put in place. We are a culture unto our own…Never give up!
Never surrender!
Where was I? Oh
yes…culture! Culture-aka- music, art,
yak shaving, etc…etc…etc. The thing is
we all have a common bond. Like the bond
between metal and comic art. A couple of
notable comic artists that have lent their brush to both comic book covers and
music are Frank Frazetta (RIP) and Simon Bisley. Mr. Frazetta is probably best known, in the
music world, for his contributions to Molly Hatchet cover art. Yeah, I know M.H. ain’t METAL, but you
wouldn’t know it from the bad-ass “Death Dealer” painting on the cover. Sweeeeeeet!
Mr. Bisley, as another example,
has supplied visual aids to several Danzig records. I know, not exactly METAL either, but Freddie
Vidales likes him and that’s METAL enough for me! Besides, Biz is the undisputed master of
painting “Lobo”…and nobody is more METAL than “Lobo”!
Love of these artists’ work is certainly not limited to my two
dimensional understanding of light and shadow.
There are many fans of these artistic titans that have studied their
beloved style and used that inspiration to fuel their own dark visions. A couple of years ago, when I was touring in
Poland, I was able to meet one of those kindred to this particular style. Kamil Pietruczynik has been a friend of mine
and Iced Earth for many years, though I had not had the pleasure of meeting the
evil genius to that point. First, Kamil
is an extremely talented and humble artist.
Secondly, he is a huge METAL fan.
He has provided many killer pieces of work to Iced Earth that features
his undeniably cool skills.
Last month, Kamil let me know that he was sending me
something that he had been working on for my birthday. I finally received it in the mail today…thanks
U.S. Customs! I was completely blown
away. I had no idea that it was going to
be a 3x4 foot oil painting of “The Batman”!
It is the fockin’ coolest thing…ever!
Please enjoy these images while I e-shop for a kick-ass bat-frame!
PS-Check out Kamil’s website at http://www.kamilpietruczynik.art.pl/ and enjoy some more of his
stuff!
