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Video Walkthrough of the (Framed) Original

Inspiration for Sasquatch! abstract artwork

When the San Diego County Fair announced their 2023 theme to be ‘Get Out There’, I instantly knew I wanted to produce an art piece having something to do with Big Foot.

My Superhero Monopoly game board artwork made the ‘Heroes Unite’ theme fine art show in 2022 and my Escape the Witch Parcheesi game board artwork made the ‘Wizard of Oz’ theme show in 2019.

Get Out There 2023 San Diego County Fair theme

Which game board would work well for a Big Foot/camping theme?

Brainstorming…………then it hit me. The Sorry! game board and naming the piece Sasquatch!

Unfortunately the piece did not get accepted into the show, which was a bit of a surprise. I’m proud of it though – it’s actually one of my personal favorite pieces.

Anyone for a game of Sasquatch!?

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Sasquatch-Original-Artwork-by-Chris-Freyer-

Color-corrected digital

Shop Prints

Framed Original

Shop Original

Development of Sasquatch!

Sasquatch early pencil outline — Initial sketch

Sasquatch early outline — Early penciling

Sasquatch working on color — Working through color; decided to simplify the piece and scrap the intricate square designs

Supplies

Golden high flow acrylic paint

Posca acrylic paint pens

Molotow acrylic paint pens

Montana acrylic paint pens

Westcott ruler and shape templates

Video Walkthrough of the (Framed) Original

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Inspiration for Radio Raheem abstract artwork

I grew up in the 80s. Boom boxes, cassettes, walkmans – anything analog – is nostalgia to me. When I was brainstorming ideas for my next art piece, I knew I wanted to capture this. I stumbled across a picture of the ‘Super Jumbo’ boombox. It was instant – I had to incorporate it into a piece! Finding the picture also lead me to discover the movie ‘Do the Right Thing’ in which one of the characters carries around the boombox.

Radio Raheem and Super Jumbo Boombox from the Film Do The Right Thing — *Radio Raheem played by Bill Nunn*

‘Do the Right Thing’ (1989) is a comedy-drama film produced, written, and directed by Spike Lee. Wikipedia puts it as “a Brooklyn neighborhood’s simmering racial tension between its African-American residents and the Italian-American owners of a local pizzeria, culminating in tragedy and violence on a hot summer day.” I highly recommend seeing the movie so I won’t give any spoilers here. But I will say that the character, Radio Raheem, is significant.

do-the-right-thing-us-poster-1989-universal-pictures-spike-lee-danny-aiello-file-reference-32509-129tha-PMADF7

In the movie, his boombox blasts “Fight the Power” by Public Enemy. What other songs might play from Raheem’s boombox – then and now? For fun, I put together a 32-song playlist. One song for each cassette tape in the border of the piece.

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Radio-Raheem-by-Chris-Freyer-Color-Corrected

Color-corrected digital

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Radio-Raheem-Framed-Original-Artwork-by-Chris-Freyer

Picture of the framed original

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Development of Radio Raheem

Radio Raheem early outline — Initial sketch

Radio Raheem outline before coloring — Early outline

Radio Raheem laying down color — Early coloring

Radio Raheem considering color placement with tiles — Considering color with color tiles

Radio Raheem artwork by Chris Freyer — Final piece

Acrylic paint pens and colors used in Radio Raheem artwork by Chris Freyer — Acrylic paint pens used

Supplies

Posca acrylic paint pens

Molotow acrylic paint pens

Montana acrylic paint pens

Westcott ruler and shape templates

Roaring Shoots and Ladders (2022)

by Chris Freyer

Updated: August 25, 2023

Video Walkthrough of the (Framed) Original

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Inspiration for Roaring Shoots and Ladders abstract artwork

Snakes and Ladders is a worldwide classic board game originating in ancient India as Moksha Patam.

Moksha Patam Snakes and Ladders game board design

It was brought to the UK in 1890s as Kismet. The game is played by rolling a die and making your way from the bottom left of the board to the upper left, being helped by climbing ladders and hindered by falling down snakes.

Kismet Snakes and Ladders gameboard 1890s

The historic versions of the game had roots in morality lessons for children – a player’s progression represents a life’s journey which is complicated by virtues (ladders) and vices (snakes). A more modern version, Chutes and Ladders was published in the United States by Milton Bradley in 1943.

The ancient Indian version of Moksha Patam was associated with traditional Hindu philosophy, where karma (destiny) and kama (desire) are contrasted. Moksha Patam emphasized destiny, where other popular games such as Pachisi (known in English as Parcheesi) focused on life as a mixture of skill (free will) and luck. This ancient version – and the ones introduced to Victoria England in the late 19th century were all covered in symbolic images. Ladders represented virtues such as generosity, faith, and humility. Snakes represented vices such as lust, anger, murder, and theft.

Interestingly, the ancient Indian version of the game had less ladders than snakes as a reminder that a path of good is more difficult than a path of sins. The English counterpart had equal numbers of each.

The widely known edition by Milton Bradley replaced snakes with chutes and was rebranded as Chutes and Ladders. This edition replaced a die with a spinner. The artwork shows children doing good deeds at the bottom of ladders and receiving a reward at the top of a ladder. Conversely, the artwork shows children doing mischievous behavior at the top of a chute and receiving consequences at the bottom of a chute.

So here we are in the 2020s. 100 years since the ‘Roaring 20s’. Will this decade see a similar epic rise and tragic fall scenario? That was my inspiration for this art piece. Adapting the Chutes and Ladders board game to current day. Further inspiration includes watching some 1920’s documentaries and The Great Gatsby movie.