Valley of One Thousand Hills

“Valley of One Thousand Hills” was commissioned for Jonathan Liebesman in 2017 to mark his birthday, and is inspired by a quote from Nelson Mandela’s autobiography:

“After climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb.”

This papercut is about life as a journey, about finding one’s place and mission, and a way to connect to the world. It’s about the need to be doing good, important work — and that there’s always more to be done. The landscape includes the distinctive quiver tree (indigenous to South Africa) and the rolling patchwork hills of the Valley of One Thousand Hills, from which it takes its name.

Mandela gazing out over the landscape, an excerpt from X-Men #76 (June 1998),
and text from D'varim (Deuteronomy) 11:11

Hills have significance to the Jewish tradition as well. The city of Jerusalem is said to have been built on seven hills; in Devarim (Deuteronomy) 11:11 we read, “The land into which you go is a land of hills and valleys and drinks water of the rain of heaven.”

Loki riding across the hills, with Raphael looking on.

The background elements all come from Jonathan’s journey so far: South Africa and Mandela (from the 2009 Nelson Mandela: The Authorized Comic Book), and also the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Star Wars, Loki and more.

The Sherlock LP

“The Sherlock LP” is a mixed media papercut I was commissioned to create for Steve Sherlock by his wife Dana on the occasion of their tenth wedding anniversary (and Steve’s birthday).

Steve is the drummer for Nerf Herder, one of the best bands of all time and a band that Shawna and I have seen SO MANY times in concert I can't count. Their music is sort of post-punk geek rock, and if you don't know their sound you should check them out now. Go ahead; I'll wait here. To be asked to create a piece for him was an honor and a privilege, and I'm so pleased to share it with you.

The papercut is a representation of all the things that Steve likes and that make him who he is… seen through the lens of the Sherlocks’ “long play” marriage. It takes the form of a record on a turntable (the actual size of the record here is 12 inches square, for authenticity), and it’s made of cut-up comic books and other ephemera to tell the story of Steve and Dana.

There’s a lot in here, including: their names (and Steve’s “Nerf Herder” nickname: the Cougar); their wedding date (February 2007); their shared musical interests (including quite a bit from Tom Waits, such as “Take It With Me,” which includes the lines “Always for you, and forever yours”), as well as some bands Steve likes; Steve’s interest in mid-century modern design; Star Trek (particularly Mr. Spock) and Star Wars (“I love you” — “I know”)... and even a little girl in a Devo shirt to represent their daughter. There’s a lot. The back of the piece includes a (mostly) complete listing of the comics that were cut up to make this piece, which include a comic from February 2007, characters with the name “Steve” (like Captain America) or music-related powers (like Dazzler), the liner notes from Devo’s 1980 “Freedom of Choice” LP, and: Ghostbusters, Star Wars, Star Trek, The Superman Family, The Walking Dead...

I was waiting to share this post, and then got distracted by the twelve tribes show, but the official Instagram post this weekend reminded me that it's time.

May the Fourth be with You!

Happy Star Wars Day – as a treat, I'm uploading a Zip archive of the entire "Living in These Star Wars" album from The Rebel Force Band (recorded in 1977). Download it here. It's a big file, but it's worth it. Track list:

1. Living in these Star Wars
2. Don't Fall in Love with an Android
3. Leia
4. Chewie the Rookie Wookie
5. Respirator for Darth Vader
6. Spaced Out
7. May the Force Be with You
8. The Ballad of Obi Wan (OB-1)
9. You'll Be a Warrior
10. Living in these Star Wars (Disco)

"Sacred Words, Sacred Texts" review in the Jewish Journal

This week's Jewish Journal has a great review of the "Sacred Words, Sacred Texts" group exhibition.

"Brynjegard-Bialik’s beautiful pieces, which weave in images from comic books to create mythic takes on Torah and the Jewish experience, breathe new life into the ... art of paper cutting." 

LINK

Photos from the PJCC gallery tour

My thanks and appreciation go out to everyone who joined me for the gallery tour yesterday at the Peninsula Jewish Community Center.

I had a wonderful time talking with you about art and Judaism, and I'm especially pleased I got to meet those of you who have been purchasing work from the show. I signed some prints and waved my hands around, talked with old friends and made some new ones.

There are still works available for purchase; check out the catalog here to see everything in the show, alongside descriptions of each piece and listings of the comics I cut up to make them – and contact me if you're interested in acquiring a piece.

"Good and Evil"

This is a piece from my recent show at the Osher Marin JCC: "Good and Evil." It's the tree of knowledge of good and evil, from the Garden of Eden, backed entirely with cut-up Star Wars comics — with elements of good and evil as represented by the Force and the Dark Side.

The rabbis tell us that in an effort not to embarrass the tree (for it was the cause of Adam and Eve's expulsion from the Garden), we should not attempt to discover nor reveal what kind of tree it was — and so I've blurred the identity of the tree by filling it with abstracted fruit of various sizes and colors.

Now that the show is over, I'm packing up all of the purchased works and sending them off to their new homes – this one included. But there are some works that haven't sold yet, and they (along with many new works) will be showing at the Peninsula Jewish Community Center in Foster City, California, next month – details will be posted here, so check back soon.

"Return of the Jedi" activity book fun!

Yeah, I've still got this. Here's what's inside:

Want all of the good stuff? The Yoda crossword, the color-by-numbers, the Darth Vader papercraft bank instructions, and more? It's all in this Zip archive. You're welcome.

Rebel Spies

"Rebel Spies" — one of the new papercuts I'll be featuring in my upcoming show, which opens this Sunday (click the image to see it larger).

"Rebel Spies" is based on Shelach Lecha in the Torah (Numbers 13:1–15:41). Moses sends spies to scout out the Land of Canaan, and they return with stories of giants who live there and clusters of grapes so large it takes two men to carry them. The story is a contrast between those who fear going into the land, and those who have faith that with God they will succeed. The papercut includes cut-up Star Wars comics, with characters and speech bubbles that complement the biblical story. So yeah, that is Princess Leia in one of the grapes.*

The opening reception for my next show — where you can see this new papercut in the flesh, as it were — is Sunday, September 9, at the Osher Marin JCC; details here. The show will be open through the end of November, but I'll be posting a catalog on my blog later this week, in case you can't make it in person.

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*Are you curious about the comics that get cut up when I make my papercuts? Here's what's included in "Rebel Spies":

• Star Wars #3, #68, #70 (Marvel) – Sep 1977, Feb & Apr 1983
• Star Wars #17, #18, #30 (Dark Horse) – Apr & May 2000, May 2001
• Star Wars: Jedi Council #3 of 4 (DH) – Aug 2000
• Star Wars Crimson Empire II #3 of 6 (DH) – Jan 1999)
• Star Wars Empire #34 (DH) – Jul 2005
• Star Wars Jedi: The Dark Side #3 (DH) – Jul 2011
• Star Wars Legacy #15 (DH) – Aug 2007
• Star Wars Rebellion #5 & #15 (DH) – Aug 2006 & Jul 2008
• “The Grand Canyon” (National Geographic) – Jul 1978

Good and Evil

Detail from a new papercut that will be in my upcoming show.

Big, juicy grapes

Detail from my "Rebel Spies" papercut, featuring a large cluster of grapes and a bit of Princess Leia.

You'll be able to see the whole thing (and lots more all-new work) in my upcoming show at the Osher Marin JCC. Please join me at the opening reception on September 9, from 4 to 5:30 p.m. at the JCC. There will be free food, and local comics shop Blue Moon Comics will be bringing Jewish-created comics and graphic novels for your perusal and pleasure.

A New Hope

Just completed this piece as a surprise housewarming gift for very good friends of mine.

It should be fairly obvious from a distance that this is my version of "Our Lady of Guadalupe," with a twist. It's called "A New Hope" because... well, that should be pretty obvious from the detail shots below. As always, this looks SO MUCH BETTER in person than in photographs.