"We got all of our troops in Iraq, we've got acid rain, we've got the crazy temperatures back and forth," he said, also mentioning the Virginia Tech massacre and SARS. "Time keeps ticking on. We're not getting better at this game of life.
" Nunnelee, who works at Full Color Tattoo in Annapolis, is one of a few dozen artists who responded to a request for artwork, based on myths or folklore, from tattoo artists across the nation. His submission echoes his dim view of the world. Called "A Plague is Coming," the pastel and watercolor painting depicts a winged half-man, half-beast carrying a scythe.
"It's a sign of the times," he said. "It's Father Time knocking on the door." Most of the pieces in the new exhibition, "A Thousand Words," tend towards the macabre.
Artist Raya, also from Full Color Tattoo, painted a depiction of the story of Little Red Riding Hood. A lecherous wolf drools over a scantily clad girl, dressed in red stockings and a red hood. Lightning bolts extend from the wolf's fingertips as his eyes burn red.
"There's been spins on Little Red Riding Hood that have to do with her bringing it on herself," Raya said. Her painting presents an alternative view, she added. The exhibition will open on Thursday night with a reception at the Cultural Arts Center in Frederick.
Afterwards, the artwork will be on view at Classic Electric Tattoo located at 328 N. Market St. in Frederick.
The pieces will be for sale. "It's a way for tattooists to get to do something that somebody's not commissioning or requesting specifically," said Frederick tattoo artist John Rippey, the show's organizer. "Tattoists are definitely going to still think in the ways that they create tattoo designs when they create a painting," Rippey said.
Tom Kenney, who works at Hub City in Hagerstown, painted a depiction of "Rat King," a mythological monster made up of several rats combined. "I'm glad," he said, "that we're able to show people that aren't quite familiar with tattoo artists that we are actually artists." What: A reception for “A Thousand Words,” an exhibition of tattoo artists interpreting folklore When: Thursday, April 26 from 7 p.
m.
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