Helmets painted to protect our military members:
The most recent helmet painted, number 13. (find more helmets by scrolling down) This helmet was a bit of an experimental process of layering using white charcoal, dry erase blue marker, some Prisma markers (all blue except one which was green) permanent markers (the shimmering red floating in the water around the shark), acrylic paint pen and a mate glaze finish to protect it. Most of the time I use 1Shot paint which is the same paint that is used to pinstripe cars. It is the most durable and will last forever but it is extremely toxic and some colors are lead based. This helmet was the first attempt to move away from more toxic materials to less toxic.
Every time I paint a helmet, I obtain an awareness of protective energy and attempt to relay that energy into the images I choose to paint. Since the soldier of this helmet asked for something ominous and forlorn, “ something that represents a bad feeling”, my protective intentions were challenged.
The images I chose to use for this helmet all relate to bad feelings I get when I read the news and hear of historical events. On this helmet a shark gasps for air while she is choked by oil floating in her home. Above, the pterodactyl ghost released from the spill of a fossil fuel screams a warning to the shark. The smoky clouds from an atomic bomb explosion are green with storm as lightning licks the cap of a wave.
I guided the ominous energy of this painting into the sacred event of a cataclysmic phenomenon and here I harnessed a source of power and protection. This cataclysmic event is an indication of a revelation, a disclosure of something hidden in an era dominated by falsehood and misconception.
Painted during the oil spill catastrophe in the Gulf of Mexico, 2010.
Checking in once again to update you all on the rescue helicopter helmets I just sent to Afghanistan. I think these are numbers 10, 11, and 12. Two are for women and one for a man. They were all commissioned by military members and will directly boost their moral. This is the only part I would want in this war. It is quite emotionally draining to paint these since my vivid imagination explains in explicit detail what these paintings might experience. Since I am so in tune with the universe, I consciously drain my protective energy into each paint stroke. Some soldiers have sworn in their faith to the idea of my conscious application of protective energy. I have to believe it works after hearing some of their stories.
These three were great imaginative feats since I was instructed by the soldiers what they envisioned for their paintings and had to interpret it creatively. Cass, a helicopter mechanic, wanted a happy rainbow on one side of a helicopter flying and raining death on the other. Asking a military member at war to define raining death while communicating over a satellite telephone call was by far one of my favorite experiences. I think I might have achieved a portion of what she requested.
The other two were more open to interpretation. A female pilot wanted some sort of flower, something girlie, to balance the testosterone levels she was submerged in. My first request of a rose was quickly shot down so I then suggested a venus fly trap and she was into it. It is a dark helmet with bats flying all around. The helicopter is gold and determined and a skull secretly fades into it's silouette. It is flying away from the traps, one streaches forward for a final capturing attempt. This helmet is one of my favorites.
The Bat Trap was made as a smiling comment of the experience this squadron went through when they had to make an emergency landng after hitting a bat that had a 16in wingspan. After some research I think it was one of Afghanistan's carnivorous vampire bats, YIKES!
The should be arriving any day now.
The two above are the first helmets I painted for the military. Below is a letter to my brother explaining my process a bit. They were painted on the rooftop of Million Fishes Art Collective in 2006.
The first piece is a woman's lips painted red, blowing smoke out of her mouth... it is evident that there is no wind present and the pressure that she releases the smoke at is very low because you can see it curl in front of her nose and bubble forward from her lips.
the center of the helmet is the connecting line to the other side.
the other side you will see a representation of one of the most magnificent shapes that smoke can create. For this, I studied the shape of an atomic bomb explosion for a while and painted it.
The Second piece is this:
It is much more self-explanatory. there are five skulls with wings which tip into hands. It is one continual flight from right to left. one stroke of a wing, an arm, which brings this thing flying faster than the bullet that is in front of it.
i love you... these were made to keep you safe.
kt
Above are the second round of helmets I painted for my brother's squadron. The wolves look mean and act together and the other helmet depicts the impossible task of splitting the sun in half.
