Urban Decay in HD
via Urban Decay in HD | Yeeeeee | Painting, Art, Photography, Graphic Design.
So I just spent 6 days attempting to install a computer game that was originally released in the year 2000 on my laptop which is now running windows 7, the new thoroughbred of operating systems. As I spent quality time perusing old old forums and blog posts trying to figure out ways to sidestep and circumvent old installers and windows 98 configuration files i realized that I can actually define my life by the games I have played that are near and dear to me. So here goes.
In 1977 Atari Pong was released with much hoopla and mass market appeal. I remember clearly going to another child’s birthday party and having the old stand alone PONG console as the main party fun. Hours and hours we spent blipping that ball back and forth, utterly mesmerized by the tiny glowing orb as it bounced from one side of the screen to the other. I can recall NOT wanting to leave his house.
I wasn’t fortunate enough to get my hands on a home video game console until the early 80’s. It was then that the joy of ATARI came into my life. I have only the fondest of memories and still play these games today. Combat, Space Invaders, Missile Command, Yar’s Revenge, Berserk, Demon Attack, Pac- man and Pitfall were all my favorite pastime from 1980- 1986
In 1987 I spent the night at a buddies house for a guys sleepover. He had Nintendo Entertainment System. After 15 minutes of Glorious, full color, in your face Super Mario Brothers I was hooked. I wanted one of these so bad that I begged my mother for months to get me one. Here is the greatest thing I remember about this system, besides the plethora of AWSOME titles for it. My mother, the greatest mom ever, spent her income tax return getting me this game system. I played the hell out of Dragon Warrior, Punch Out, Metroid, Double Dribble, Castlevania and many, many more from about 87 till the early 90’s.
Santa Claus has long been a cult idol of mine. I think we can all really agree that the image of Santa Claus, perhaps even his entire existence, has been a long lurid story that ultimately simplifies down to mass manipulation.
Let me get one thing perfectly clear before I go on. I love the image of Santa. being an artist I love to draw him in all his various incarnations. Also as an artist It has always intrigued me why he looks like he does. This leads me to the topic of today which is the origins of Santa Claus.
The “Jolly One” can really be traced back to the christian icon Nicholas of Myraa Turkish Bishop, who was given sainthood by the Roman Catholic Church in part because of his tireless efforts on behalf of the poor and his well known habit of bestowing gifts to children and encouraging others to give as well. St. Nicholas is often portrayed wearing bishops robes which are many times black or red with white or gold fur trim. He was also well known for his long flowing white beard.
Father Christmas dates back at least as far as the 17th century in Britain, and pictures of him survive from that era, portraying him as a jolly well-nourished bearded man dressed in a long, green, fur-lined robe. He typified the spirit of good cheer at Christmas, and was reflected as the “Ghost of Christmas Present”, in Charles Dickens Festive classic A Christmas Carol, a great genial man in a green coat lined with fur who takes Scrooge through the bustling streets of London on the current Christmas morning, sprinkling the essence of Christmas onto the happy populace. Pre-modern representations of the gift-giver from church history and, this British character Father Christmas from pure folklore merged at some point to create the character known to Britons and Americans as Santa Claus.
In fact, we in the west, owe more to our interpretation of Santa Claus to a trio of painters than even these old myths and legends.
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