“There are years that ask questions and years that answer.” Zora Neale Hurston spoke volumes with this line. We often forget the part-time plays in helping to solidify ideas, and allowing them to evolve. Skill and progress take time, I think we all can attest to that. For Leo Phoenix it is no exception. Lucy’s Dream was an idea that first came to Leo some 20 years ago and grew over time. It’s evolved from that seed or thought into what is now a diverse body of work. Some of that work make up the book “Lucy’s Dream and the Sun Blockers.” Described as a dream about every creative inspiration within us. An inspirational children’s story about Billy the Bus and his adventure through dreamland. Leo creates a beautiful dreamscape with both imagery and story, but I will leave details about the story for him to tell. Though I think the art work is equally important part of the story as well.
Sitting down in his studio surrounded by his inspirations and his work. We spoke for a few hours about everything. From Dali to Seuss, and how they inspired him to create. As a matter of fact you might appreciate his unique way of paying homage to them in his work. Simplistic but detailed… It’s no wonder he has a background in graphic design. No stranger to computers, Leo chose to create his art in a more organic medium. Paper. Armed with an exactor knife and Canson-Infinity colored paper the dreamland is sculpted by hand, layer by layer. From a distance his work is impressive, but upon closer inspection the texture and detail comes out. The layers make you really appreciate the work and time put into his craft. The use of color makes you appreciate his history in graphic design and eye for detail. If wine gets better with age I’m glad this idea was given time to ferment and become this dreamscape.
Part of what makes what I do cool is to appreciate great work that may not have been seen yet.
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