Standing outside the gallery, I was as excited as a kid on Christmas morning who had just come down the stairs to see a pile of gifts waiting for him. Mikey came out to greet us and give us our wristbands. I was glad to see he didn't appear the slightest bit stressed out or overwhelmed. In fact, he looked just as excited as I felt that the big night was finally here. I wondered if I looked that excited, but the thought was fleeting as I was now able to go inside.
Mikey didn't charge for the photo-op.
The first thing that struck me was a huge video screen playing clips of old home movies and video taken at Distortions Unlimited back in the 1980s. It was also impossible to miss the Halloween-themed music pumping throughout the entire gallery. Over the course of the evening I noticed that the DJ's playlist contained a lot of obscure, yet fun, songs that I have on my own. I was also pleasantly surprised that the volume was perfect. It was loud enough you could always hear and enjoy it, yet I never found myself having to try and talk over it.
On the right hand side, immediately as you enter, you have four photographs by Caitlin Novak featuring masks sculpted by Ed Edmunds, Justin Mabry, and Pete Infelise. All great masks and Caitlin's photography did them justice. In front of them was a day-glo witch by John Pinkerton.
Beyond those was the Distortions Unlimited exhibit. The exhibit consisted of two rows of masks. The top row were all golden age classic Distortions masks from the late 1970s through the mid 1980s. The bottom row consisted of the Resurrection Classics line which were updated versions of all the top masks. Jordu Schell was responsible for this display, not only loaning his vintage masks but also being the sculptor of the Resurrection Series.
Beyond those was a pair of extremely rare and valuable masks to come out of Distortions. The first was the HR Giger designed Alien on loan from my friend Dirk Smith, which is the most valuable Distortions mask available if you can find a copy. The second is the mask of Jack Nicholson from The Shining, on loan from yours truly, which was a private commission limited to only three copies.
There were a number of fantastic high end masks on their own pedastals in the front section of the gallery by artists such as Wayne Anderson, Jordu Schell, and Kristin Philips.
On the left hand wall was a collection of vintage Be Something Studios masks on loan from Mikey's personal collection, along with a few needlepoint renditions of BSS masks by BSS sculptor Bill Ystrom's daughter, Amy. It was especially neat when Bill Ystrom showed up.
In front of the BSS display, was Justin Mabry's 7' version of the Jack Davis Frankenstein
Underneath the video screen was a set of 6 glass cases. The two innermost cases contained the masks of the Halloween films. The left case contained the factory finished Captain Kirk and modified Michael Myers version that were finished by Rob Tharp for Don Con in November of 2015 and ended up in my personal collection. There was a current Myers mask produced by Justin Mabry also in the cabinet. The right case contained an original set of Don Post Studios Halloween III masks.
The two cabinets flanking the Halloween movie masks were dedicated to the 1966 Calendar Masks. In addition to original calendars with both variant covers, the cabinets also had Mummy and Creature masks finished as replicas of the calendar photos. I had loaned these to the exhibit as well along with the December 1964 issue of Genii magazine which contained the advertisement that was the world's first look at the calendar masks. Unfortunately, space constraints prevented it from being included in the exhibit.
The cabinets on the far left and right contained original copies of all eight Don Post Studios 800 line masks sculpted by Pat Newman and released in 1967.
Speaking of Pat Newman, one of the highlights of the exhibit was a painting of Pat Newman by Mark Tavares. He called it "The Queen of Plastiline", which was how Verne Langdon referred to her.
In the second section of the gallery, I saw something that completely blew me away. Amongst all these fantastic pieces of art by so many talented artists was a two tier display case. In the bottom was the Don Post Glenn Strange calendar mask that was used as the cover model for the Don Post book, and in the top case was my book. I know you're going to read this Mikey, and I want you to know you really made my day by including my work as a display piece.
There were two pieces by Norm Cabrera in the exhibit that I have to mention. The first was his Demonwulf 1981 mask. I think it could have easily been another of the Nazi Demons in An American Werewolf in London. The name of his other mask escapes me as I'm writing this, however it has the distinction of being one of two masks that have ever given me the creeps (Tom Spina's Chaney Mummy is the other in case you're wondering). Just looking at that mask you really felt it looking back at you.
There were a few cabinets of 1970s Don Post masks on loan from Bob Parigi and also from Mikey's collection. Joining them was an updated version of Bob Short's Coridian Alien that he did in the '70s, calling it the Coridian Elder. I've said it before and I'll say it again. Of all the brilliant masks on display, that's the one I would have most liked to bring home.
Then again, it would have been hard to say no to the trio supplied by David Smith. The Lab Chimp is a new addition, but the Bat and Frankenstein are two designs I've come to think of as iconic in the indie artist mask world. These were both originally produced in the mid '80s under David's Stroke of Midnight Studios label. They were again released by Death Studios, as Nightmare and Creature, in the mid '90s. The finishing on these copies was just astounding. David had been posting progress photos showing the finishing step-by-step on Instagram leading up to the show. I'm still in awe when I look at these.
On the wall above the David Smith masks were two paintings by Louie Becker, one of the classic Shock Monster and another collage of vintage and modern classics from Be Something Studios, Don Post Studios, Distortions Unlimited, and Death Studios.
Going back to the wall above the '70s Don Post masks, there was a quartet of masterpieces hanging amongst some beautiful mask related art. There were three pieces by the uber-talented Casey Love, namely Alien Dead, People Eater, and Parasite. Topping off the quartet was an absolutely stunning witch by Mike Fontaine. If you're starting to get seasick with all the bouncing from one wall to the other, that's exactly how it was. Every time you turned around there was something amazing ahead of you that you just had to go see.
I can't forget to mention Jon Fuller had a pair of amazing creations on display as well.
On both walls of the gallery as you entered the second section of the gallery were Caleb Oglesby's Monster Girls portraits. Those of you who have been clamoring for a Monster Girls book will be glad to know I grilled Caleb on the very question of whether there would be a book on the horizon. I'm extremely pleased to let you all know that the answer is a definite maybe.
Speaking of upcoming books, Steve Wang was there with five of the paint masters for his Biomorphs line from the early 2000s. Steve's such a talented artist and a wonderful person. I'm really looking forward to writing the book about him and his career.
Before I get to Steve's book, I have to finish the book on the life and career of Eric Pigors who also had a really clever art piece at the show. He had the ideal spot for display, right next to the bar! Speaking of the bar, I have to acknowledge our bartender for the evening, Eric's friend Justine Goregeous. She was on her own and did an amazing job considering the vast crowds that came through and, believe me, everybody was thirsty!
My photo was too far away, so I had to steal this from Eric. Shhhh...
Overall, the evening was a great time. I got to spend some time with old friends as well as some new ones. I got to meet some artists I look up to. I even got to finally sign a book for Mikey! There were some folks there I would have loved to meet, but our paths just didn't cross.
I can't wrap up without recognizing Danny Fuentes, the owner of Lethal Amounts, and thanking him for his assistance and letting my publisher sell copies of the Don Post book at the gallery during the exhibition.
I'm allowed a shameless plug...or two.
There could not be any shadow of a doubt in the minds of anyone that was there that the event was a resounding success. Mikey, along with Fatima, deserve thanks from the entire mask community. This show was far more than a mere gallery opening. It was a new high water mark in the industry as the work of so many talented artists was finally being recognized as fine art. Pop culture history was made that night, and I'm grateful to have been a small part of it.
Have to include this one of Mikey with his awesome Ice Monkey
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