Zero at the Bone Release Party

If you live near my neck of the woods, here's an event to add to your calendar: Jane Seville's book release party for her novel "Zero at the Bone." You can check out all the details on Columbus Underground.

I was thrilled to get to illustrate the cover for this fantastic novel, and I'm excited to be involved in the reception too - which will include food and drinks, readings and an author signing, plus a raffle drawing for fantastic prizes including art prints (courtesy of yours truly) and Short North gift certificates with proceeds to benefit Stonewall Columbus. Books will be available for sale onsite.

You can find out more scoop from the author herself at www.janesevillebooks.com, and be sure to order a copy of "Zero at the Bone" when it becomes available on April 6th at Dreamspinner Press.

Heading for the Hills

We're back from our Hocking Hills vacation, where I enjoyed some amazing quality time with with my boy and the pups, made one too many dishes from the Trisha Yearwood down-home cookbook, lost horribly at the game of Life (the board game, that is), marinated for hours on end in the hot tub, and stayed up all night watching the last season of "Six Feet Under." How do you return to civilization after almost a whole week of lounging in a backwoods paradise?

Being Gay Review

Excerpt from
The District Weekly:

RELATIONS AND RELATIONSHIPS
By Theo Douglas

How to begin with “Being Gay,” up now at 2nd City Council Gallery? Just give in to it (leave the kiddies at home)–and march yourself over to Paul Richmond’s gloriously Technicolor The Dollypop Guild. It’s not that everything you need to know about being gay is in this one painting–it’s just really fun to look at.

If you’re unaware of Dolly Parton’s status as a gay icon, this painting will put you very much in the know. Richmond makes that point abundantly clear in his canvas of a small boy in shorts, striped T-shirt, and oversized ruby slippers (one of your several nods to Judy Garland and The Wizard of Oz).

He stands at the beginning of a yellow brick road stretching all the way to a “Dollywood” sign, fantastically shimmery off in the distance–watched over by Ms. Parton, in the guise of the Good Witch; by her head on a butterfly; and by her lips on a flower. Dolly’s everywhere!

More is More

I wanted to let you know I'm offering a couple of giclee print sets for a reduced price in my Etsy store. The Diva Inspiration Set includes "The Dollypop Guild" and "The Cher Within" for 15% off their individual list prices, and the Cheesecake Boy Set gives you six times the clothes-dropping fun with "Decent Exposure," "Room with a View," "A Fitting Surprise," "Rear View," "The Elevator Incident," and "Dog Days" also for a combined 15% discount.

Ramping up the Crazy

Is it just me, or do my contributions to things always sound a little crazier than everyone else’s? Case in point – two mini-reviews I found online of the “Being Gay” exhibit currently on display at 2nd City Gallery in Long Beach:

“The art includes collage, sculpture, photography, installation, oil & graphite and addresses such topics as homosexuality and evolution, gay icons, religion, AIDS, relationships, literature and the magic and fascination found in Dolly Parton for a Midwestern boy.”

Or, more to the point:

"This gallery features 20 artists of mixed mediums addressing homosexuality, religion, AIDS, gay rights, & Dolly Parton."

I suppose I wouldn’t have it any other way! :-)

New haircut

Pauly vs. Kewpie

New prints

I have some new limited-edition giclee prints available in my Etsy store, including the one shown above, "The Greatest is Love." Also available are: "born That way," "Contemplating His Dharma," "Mother Nurture," "Forgive Me Father For I Know Not," and more!

Mister Sister

I’ve donated some giclee prints to the Mister Sister Art Auction organized by the fabulous drag members of the Los Angeles Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence. The event benefits The Unusual Suspects Theater Company, a group that works with at-risk youth in juvenile detention centers, foster homes, and high-risk public schools teaching them through intensive theater arts and violence prevention workshops. My contributions include “The Dollypop Guild,” “The Cher Within,” and “Noah’s Gay Wedding Cruise.” If you're in the LA area and are interested in attending the March 7 event, you can find out more details here: www.lasisters.org.

Zero at the Bone

I just finished the cover illustration/design for my talented friend Jane Seville's new novel called "Zero at the Bone," which is being published by Dreamspinner Press. With their permission, here's a sneak peek. It's arguably the most macho painting I've ever made -- ironic that it's for a gay erotic thriller.

"Being Gay" Exhibit Invite

My painting "The Dollypop Guild" was selected to be in this exhibit, which opens in Long Beach, CA on March 7. Visit www.2ndcitycouncil.org for more details.

Opening the Flood Gates

This is a great article I came across today on Outinamerica.com. I especially LOVE the title! :)


ARTIST PAUL RICHMOND OPENS THE FLOOD GATES ON KEN STARR

Most of Paul Richmond's artwork is pretty gay. However, his new painting "Noah's Gay Wedding Cruise" was recently dubbed "The Gayest Painting of Our Time" by towleroad.com.

In it, Richmond interprets the biblical flood story in a new way - one where the pool of drowning sinners includes the likes of Ken Starr, Sally Kern, and Fred Phelps, while the ark/cruise ship takes same-sex couples to safety. View the painting here: www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=21465325.

"Noah's Gay Wedding Cruise" is on display at Gallery Arcane in San Francisco in the exhibit "Sweet & Low: Optimism in a Pessimistic Age" which opens March 5 (the same day Ken Starr will address the Supreme Court about nullifying the unions of gay and lesbian couples in California). The theme of the exhibit combined with the nationwide pro-marriage movement led Richmond to develop the concept for the piece. "The recent passage of Proposition 8 and the subsequent efforts of Ken Starr to break apart marriages in the name of family values certainly inspire pessimism," he explains. "However, I've been so incredibly moved by demonstrations across the country in support of marriage equality, and I believe we're on the cusp of great progress."

That sense of optimism certainly comes through in "Noah's Gay Wedding Cruise." Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi are on-board, as are Jack and Ennis from Brokeback Mountain, Elton John and David Furnish, and Rosie O'Donnell and Kelli Carpenter, not to mention giraffes and flamingos in top hats, and some love-struck elephants. The unlikely group drifts toward an opening in the clouds where a bright rainbow emerges, one that, according to the artist, reminds "hopeful voyagers that full legal recognition and acknowledgement of same-sex love are just over the horizon."

Of course, not everyone in the gay community sees the painting or the issue in this light. Some of the buzz generated by the piece online accuses it of going too far, with accusations that it is "distasteful," or representative of the LGBT community's "great strategic mistake" of alienating moderate opponents. Richmond sees it differently. "I can't stand behind accepting a lesser version of marriage. It would be like going back in time and telling women who were fighting for the right to vote, 'Oh, sorry. There are just too many people who would be upset by this. Besides, men should be in charge. It says so in the Bible. How about you express your political ideas in another way - maybe make some pretty banners for your favorite politician?'"

Despite its critics, others have responded more favorably to Richmond's contribution to the marriage debate, including one commenter who went so far as to suggest that it is "the single most important piece of gay art produced in the last sixty years."

"I'm just thrilled to see it has sparked some interesting discussion," Richmond notes. "What more could an artist hope for?"

Paul Richmond's paintings have been displayed at venues including the World of Wonder Gallery, A Bitchin' Space, 2nd City Gallery, BoMA: The Bar of Modern Art, and the Columbus Museum of Art. Utilizing a multitude of artistic methodologies, his work explores themes of personal narrative and social commentary, sometimes addressing unique experiences of the GLBTQ community or self-realization and empowerment at large. See more of his work online at www.paulrichmondstudio.com, and order giclee prints and other merchandise from his online shop at www.paulypants.etsy.com.

"Sweet & Low: Optimism in a Pessimistic Age" opens on Thursday, March 5 from 6-9 pm at Gallery Arcane, located at 575 Sutter Street in San Francisco. Visit www.galleryarcane.com for more details.