Saturday Is For Art

The top mask was done on a piece of paper board with color markers in 2006 while working at the Contemporary Arts Center in downtown Cincinnati. The Contemporary Arts Center is in a beautiful building located on the corner of Sixth & Walnut Streets. Whenever I was on the sixth floor I had the opportunity to use some of the art making materials available to anyone who visits the center. When no visitors were on the sixth floor, I would take the opportunity to draw or paint a little project. Later, I scanned the mask done in color marker onto my computer. In the second image, the mask is changed into a monochrome. After making copies of the full color image on top, I used acrylic paint to create the mask with the stars and stripes on the right in the composite of the three masks. Now I can make copies of each of the three masks and assemble them in a single frame, or, print them as The Three Masks as they appear above. The bottom drawing was done on the back of an envelope with a ball point pen some time shortly after June 1998. I have no recollection why I included the cigar and ash tray with the African mask. I know it was my habit to save envelopes from work and take them back to my apartment and either draw or paint on them. I still save envelopes as I like to use them to write on.