July is an epic month of awesome art exhibitions in L.A. Top on the list is Hero Complex Gallery’s group show themed RED. An amazing cast of contributing artists working with the collective Planet-Pulp are bringing out the best pop cult visual art pieces exploring the general subject matter of RED. For RED I decided to go to my favorite diabolical nemesis from the 1985 Ridley Scott film LEGEND… Darkness.
Diving into my own nostalgia of childhood fantasy for exhibitions never gets old. I was infatuated with the evil Lord of Darkness from the epic tale of love, innocence, and light vs. dark. The concept burgeoned into a mock show poster for the film spotlighting Darkness with other key character elements. The aesthetic is bold, contemporary, and yet hits on a few traditional design fundamentals and symbols.
Creating a dichotomy of good vs. evil the poster is symmetrical in posture but is weighted on both sides with characters of adversary parties. Creating scroll-like corner border treatments with caricaturesque heads allowed for a balance. In the upper left hand corner is the wicked alpha goblin Blix. Below in the lower left corner is a reference to the winged demon cherub statue creature that comes to life in the bowels of The Great Tree dwelling of Darkness.
On the opposing corners sits the good guys who stick out in the team of valiant Jack and Princess Lili fighting for the safeguards of the Power of Light…the Unicorn. Above is the bow & arrow equipped Honeythorn Gump. In the lower right hand corner is the fiery elixir swilling dwarf Brown Tom. On either side of Darkness are silhouettes of the young lovers Princess Lili and Jack.
As the Unicorn and it’s horn are central to the focus of the theme of Light and Darkness’ scheme to destroy them and create an eternal night of cold and darkness it fit the composition to position the Unicorn as a focal point. Symbolized through a crystal ball with stark sunburst affect the Unicorn is foretelling in the symbology of Darkness’ plot. Below the dripping crystal ball is the good fairy Oona.
The lettering riffs off of the original movie poster font design. Other elements are the moon, a smattering of dark and light clouds, and even a hidden quote. Above darkness, barely visible is a direct verbiage from Darkness: “No good without evil. No love without hate. No Innocence without lust. I am Darkness.”
On display at The Hero Complex Gallery will be a large 24×36″ gallery wrap giclée one-off canvas reproduction. Collectors will also have an opportunity to pick up a smaller 12×18″ archival limited edition print version. Only 10 of the smaller print versions have been run. The 12×18″ prints are $40 each. To purchase a print of Beery’s DARKNESS (from the movie LEGEND) simply CONTACT BEERY.
All photos and images ©Nick Beery | Beery Method Studios | All rights reserved.