Skulls of the Night

Robert Steven Connett is an artist working in Los Angeles, CA. He has "done quite a few 'skull oriented' paintings." More of his work can be found in his Art Store and Flickr.

These remind me of what we fear in the night. Those things that we know are out there, but are unseen without night vision. The nocturnal lurkers of reality and fantasy come out of the darkness to be shown in these three artworks.

[BONUS] 385. Creepy Crawly Skull

I made this piece as a proposal for a client, but as it was nearing completion I realized it was a bit too creepy for their needs. Ah well, it was fun to make regardless...

Now available as prints/t-shirts/pillows/iPhone & laptop skins!

Dia de la Abby #45: Skull of Swirls

This painting was inspired by swirls and whimsy.

Close up of fine crackle with silver antiquing rubbed into cracks.

I have been wanting to use my metallic silver paint pen and new crackle medium on a painting. I used the crackle medium to create a textured background. I used the silver paint to create the swirl design. I like incorporating nature into my art. I created vines, leaves and flowers using the swirls. There is also a butterfly, a caterpillar, a chrysalis, and a snail among the plants. No tutorial for this one, as the way to use crackle medium varies by brand. Using the paint pen should be self explanatory, or at least the simple instructions are printed on them.


Every week in the 4.0 year, I will post my own Dia de la Abby posts as well as a tutorial with instructions on how I made my piece. Hopefully you feel inspired by my posts just as I was by Noah's Skull-A-Day 1.0 daily project. Need more of me than just a weekly dose, follow me on Twitter and/or Facebook.

Skull with Bees

Jon MDC, UK, submitted this piece. Limited edition prints are available on his blog.

I love the elegant beauty of this piece. The theme of death is relevant in both the skull and the bees. As we all know by now, the bees that we rely on for polination of our foods and flowers, have been dying. This has been linked to pesticides. This is a sad fate. The same pesticides that can kill the fragile bees, can harm us. Life is fragile. Though some may parish, as the above phrase states, "You can't kill us all". I'm hoping that natural selection perseveres and the population of resistant bees increases. However, I'm not looking forward to our yearly invasion of ground bees, in our ivy.

[Flashback Friday] #351. Entomology Skull

Welcome to another addition of Flashback Friday.** This year the guest editors, Citizen Agent, Tatman, and myself, Azurafae, are taking turns counting down our personal favorite 17 skulls from the Original 365.25 Year. So please join us as we visit the archives and add our additional commentary on some of the original pieces.

#8 - #351. Entomology Skull

For me, the study of insects and arachnids is something that started the 1st time I saw a pristine butterfly pinned and classified in a shadow box. I've loved butterflies since the 1st time I ever saw them. I love them so much I have a female Eastern Tiger Swallowtail tattooed on me. Noah's careful arrangement of delicate insects includes butterflies, moths and beetles. I can spot 4 male Yellow Eastern Tiger Swallowtails (the yellow ones with black tiger stripes...hence the name). They are the state butterfly of Virginia, where Noah and I live. They are also the state butterfly for Delaware, Georgia and South Carolina. I can definitely attest that there are many of them in the South. The Brookgreen Gardens in Myrtle Beach, SC has many beautiful Swallowtails. The Audubon Nature Institute in New Orleans, LA has even more fly around the zoo. The experience of being surrounded by these delicate creatures is magical.



**Flashback Friday was a weekly countdown of the fan selected top 52 skulls of Skull-A-Day 1.o. Each week during year 3.0 The Skullmaster posted the original skull along with some additional commentary in order from lowest to highest rated, with the #1 skull appearing in the last week of year 3.0, all 52 can be found here.

Ant Skull

Duane Flatmo Wrote:

"Hello, I found your site and love it. I am an artist living in Humboldt County California and have a submission for your site. I painted a skull on paper with ant poison and let the ants do the artwork."And the Submitted Video



C here: As you can tell 3.0 is beginning in a very different way. This is a first and the last item like this I will post this year. I am not a big fan of harming living things and we all know how bad chemicals poisons are for other beneficial insects, however, sometimes you need to leave your comfort zone and do what needs to be done in order to combat infestations and what is done is done.

Now a note to imitators or copycats out there. Please see the submission rules before planning, doing, or submitting similar pieces this year.

351. Entomology Skull

Arranged Insects (approx. 10in x 15in [25cm x 38cm]). Thanks to my friend Laura at Main Art Supply and Framing (the locally owned store where I buy most of the fine art supplies used in this project!) who let me play with her collection of butterflies, moths, and assorted other insects. You can see how she uses them HERE.

P.S. Since a friend of mine asked, these were mostly found by Laura after they had died, or were given to her by friends who found them.