Guess Who Built The Pyramids?

I'm a little confused as to what the particular symbols are in this work. (Are the pyramids also supposed to be jellyfish? What's that blue circle thing?) However I think I know what the underlying message is here:

Crystal Dolphin Joy Explosion!

This unabashedly dreamy cosmic crystal vision is the work of artist Bruce Harman. His bio states: "Spiritual studies and meditation opened his awareness to reincarnation and karma and became central to his artistic output. Visited by brilliant visions in moments of peace and quiet, his approach to painting is a sacred imperative."

It's interesting that both Hinduism and cosmological theory suggest that our known universe may be part of a cyclical occurrence. That we are tangled in the recurring dream of the supreme Brahman. Our universe is finite but unbounded, expanding and falling in on itself in a continuous cycle of death and rebirth.  All this is perhaps mirrored in our own consciousness through the process of reincarnation.

Perhaps this painting represents three stages of this "existence cycle." The nebula as the unformed matter of life, the unconscious mass, the potential. The crystals symbolize cosmic structures, the body, the Vessel: the perfect harmony of factors which must occur to allow for Life. The Dolphins are the manifestation of the consciousness through that vessel, and achieving finally the most perfect of all states: Joy.

But Is It Art? (With a Capital "A"?)

I'm going to muse on something here..... I think about Fantasy Art quite a bit. I ponder the way it is perceived by the Art World, and why it's usually regarded as low-brow, or even laughable.  It seems that a common and possibly defining quality of  FA is the presence of realistic elements within the work. Perhaps this is because in order for fantasy to be compelling it requires a model off of which to stray. A Rothko or Bauhaus-period Kandinsky wouldn't be categorized as FA. However is this a narrowminded viewpoint? Who's to say that a color field painting couldn't be representative of a fantastical world, where one is immersed in dense fogs of highly saturated color? So when we categorize certain works as "FA" are we are drawing boundaries on the realms of imagination? Seems rather oxymoronic. Perhaps because of the liabilities in the connotations of the term people keep a wide berth. But just what is fantasy? And isn't all art, after all, a window into a fantasy world and subjective reality? 

Narwhals Over The Rainbow

In this work, (Untitled, artist unknown) we have a pastiche of 1980's pop art elements.  The content and color palate is reminiscent of the work of Lisa Frank. Also present is a Modernist reverse integrity of the picture plane, an unabashed flatness of space. Juxtaposed with the high fantasy element of the content, it's a combination completely divested of realism.  Although appealing overall, I think the execution and medium of the work limits its beauty, and relegates it to a low brow or pop-art category. However if this were instead painted on a large canvass, I think I would react differently.

Stonehenge!

In ancient times...hundreds of years before the dawn of history... lived an ancient race of people: The Dolphins.

No one knows...who they were, or... what they were doing. But their legacy remains, hewn into the living rock...of Stonehenge.

You'll Be There When I Die, (whales in space) Tattoo....

Some intrepid art lover out there committed this to posterity on their arm. Does this tattoo signify that WIS has achieved an iconic/cult status?

Postmodern Dolphins

This triumph of WIS defamiliarizes the viewer with their preconceptions of "ocean" and "space." Juxtaposed with the joyousness of the dolphins, the cold void of this "sea-space" is a stark contrast which perhaps brings us to deconstruct the idea of "inward" versus "outward" realities, and the true source of our humanity.

Disney.

Disney's 1940 Fantasia is, in my humble opinion, one of the most beautiful creations of modern man. When the Mickey Mouse big boys announced their "Fantasia 2000" thingamajiggy, I was beyond skeptical of its possibility of being good, millennial Disney being what it is (crappy). A decade has passed without me lowering my snobbish nose to the matter. Until, that is, I realized there's a Whales In Space segment in the film.

The segment is set to the music of Respighi's Pines of Rome, which frankly I find to be an unremarkable piece of music, though that's just a matter of taste. Disney trots out the typical overused devices to play on its audience. There's a cute, peppy little baby whale, playing catch-up with its majestic parents, getting into mischief, etc. It just, like, sooooooo clearly rips off the original Fantasia's Pastoral Symphony sequence. Actually, it is either ripping it off , or it's an attempt at being meta. In either case, I cannot deny that the cgi animation is gorgeous, and the...ahem...concept behind the whole thing is pretty thrilling.

So, does this bring the entire genre into another strata of high-browedness?

Sequence director Hendel Butoy recalls the concept coming up as a result of one of the artists preliminary brainstorm drawings (rock on, whoever you are!). The idea tickled Butoy's fancy. He says, "When you think about it, whales really do have a lighter than air quality to them. They're like big blimps suspended in the sea and moving effortlessly around in the water. The idea of putting them in an environment that you've never seen them in before was appealing."

Amen to that! And without further discussion, here is the video:

Wyland's Watery Wonderlands

"Marine Artist" Wyland is kind of a big deal. As I write this, I am actually hanging my head in shame that I haven't profiled him sooner.

He was called a “Marine Michaelangelo” by USA Today, (I'll give you a moment to absorb that......ok.) His "Whaling Walls" are a series of large-scale outdoor murals which can be found in cities worldwide.
His work is primarily straightforward oceanscapes, eschewing the space/sea mindfuckyness of WIS.
Notice that I said "primarily."
Ol' Wyland has done the dirty, as is evidenced by the above work, entitled "Water Planet." It was presented to the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in 2007 for their bicentennial.

Click on the post title to visit his website.

Jim Warren is Rad

Jim Warren is a self-taught artist. He specifically states on his website that he never uses an airbrush, only traditional oils. He has a background in the wonderful WIS-y worlds of sci-fi book cover illustration and album art. He has also collaborated with WIS helmsman Wyland. His philosophy on Art is this:

"To hell with the rules...paint what you like."

In this... extraordinary painting, we see Whales In Space portrayed as a world which exists inside the mind. The dolphin, rainbow and ocean are literally spilling out of the shattering veneer of the beach babe's face. The work seems to be pulling at the restraints on our inner universe of imagination, like a call to battle to bring our most lovely dreams into reality.

psychotropical emanations

Amsterdam artist Kamiel Proost likes Whales In Space. And, apparently, Magic Mushrooms. Coincidence? I think not.

My heart swells and I feel excited butterflies in my stomach when looking at his work---a true psychedelic artist, with a beautiful vision. In his artist/process statement, he claims that DMT helped reveal to him other dimensions populated with elves.... hmmm. You know what? Just keep on taking them drugs brother, because these paintings ROCK!!

Click the post title to visit his website!

Jovian Floaters Fantasy Video

Not to turn this into the Carl Sagan Fanclub Blog or anything, but the man was undeniably formulating some very Whales In Space-y ideas during his career.

Sagan and his Cornell colleague Edwin Salpeter published a paper in 1975 entitled “Particles, Environments, and Possible Ecologies in the Jovian Atmosphere.” The paper theorized about the varieties of organisms which may evolve and flourish in a volatile, gaseous atmosphere such as Jupiter's.

Basically, they look like big ol jellyfish and mantarays. Needless to say, this has far reaching implications for WIS.

Click on the post title to see a segment of Sagan's WONDERFUL AMAZING BEAUTIFUL show "Cosmos" in which he most elegantly explains the theory. The video contains, a bliss-fest of ANIMATED WIS concept fantasy art.

Mister PicassoHead and His Bucket of Art Parts!

Get your french-fried cubism on with Mr. PicassoHead! Click the post title to access the website, and or click here for my own personal "masterpiece."

The Mister Rogers of Astrophysics

I Still Love the Old World

In my eternal quest for WIS images available on the interwebs, I bear witness to what I believe to be the evolutionary progress of the art form. The golden age of WIS has clearly passed. This was an age of airbrushes, an age when evidence of the warm touch of the human hand was still felt, no matter how polished and realistic the pieces may have been. These days---though I must emphasize that it gives me infinite pleasure to see people still pursuing the genre---these days I see more photoshop job WIS than not.

Now, I majored in fine art. I mean, I am a purist. I built my own silkscreens and gleefully inhaled the aroma of linseed oil and turpentine. I wore my charcoal smudge warpaint with pride. It never crossed my mind to pursue digital photoshop whatnot, because...well, I'm a purist snob! And recently, I've reconsidered my thinking. It sure is a hellofalot easier to get what's in your head out and into existence with photoshop than struggling with the many varieties of technical difficulties involved in the old ways. Photoshop is cool, fine, yes. And worth pursuing...But...I still just like the old stuff better.

I heart Carl Sagan

"Imagination will often carry us to worlds that never were. But without it we go nowhere."


"The fact that some geniuses were laughed at does not imply that all who are laughed at are geniuses. They laughed at Columbus, they laughed at Fulton, they laughed at the Wright Brothers. But they also laughed at Bozo the Clown."

-Carl Sagan

Green Moon Orcas and Roger Dean

Here we have a uniquely lovely WIS. When I first beheld this piece I was immediately reminded of the work of one of my favorite artists, the super-fantastic visionary Roger Dean. Though I'm nearly positive Dean has never ventured into the realm of WIS art, he is undeniably an influence for countless fantasy artists, likely including the perpetrators of WIS. A defining feature of Dean's works are his deliciously rich techniques of manipulating various inks, watercolors, and enamels. Though his work is highly detailed, it still retains a soft, speckly quality.








There are recurring themes of space, flying creatures (but not whales), and floating objects or land masses in Dean's work.

Nature's Majesty!

BEHOLD!!! The majestic Bald Eagle! The stealthy Mountain Lion! And the wise and noble Wolf! Imperial Nature! This post brings us to a popular genre somewhat related to WIS - Redneck T-Shirt Art.

Also a fantasy art sub-genre, Redneck T-Shirt Art often encompasses the themes of Wolves, Eagles, and Native Americans, and is usually set within the context of woods, mountains, tundra or sky. I believe the style developed as a result of the oxymoronic combination of patriotic sentiments with a reverence for Native American culture and mysticism. Also, redneck guys just love them some wolves.

More examples of Redneck T-Shirt Art:

Photoshop Ahoy!

The first Photoshop attempt at a WIS piece that I have seen. It lacks the usual atmosphere of most other works, but the content is not to be denied.

Some Sort of Whale Nymph

A stylistic potpourri of Fantasy, Anime and WIS. This work makes use of airbrushing's capacity for rendering things so as to appear translucent.