Forever Hank...

It's always a real treat when I'm able to commission other artists for work to be included in my own art collection. A nice perk about being an artist is the possibility to trade work with other artists, but sometimes it just seems so much more satisfying when you can pay an artist for the work you love.

I recently came across the work artist Stephanie Buscema, a freelance illustrator and cartoonist based in New York, who coincidentally is the grand daughter of the late comic artist icon, John Buscema, an artist who is has been high on my list of most influential artists for years. After a few Twitter and email exchanges, I commissioned Stephanie to paint a Hank Williams piece, something slightly out of the norm from her usual comic book themed commissions.

I wasn't exactly sure what I wanted the piece to look like, as I typically leave it up to the artist to 'do their thing'. At left is the sketch Stephanie had sent me, which alone blew me away. I didn't need to see any other preliminary sketches. I was left drooling, only beginning to wonder what the full color version might look like. I mentioned that I liked something in a monochromatic color scheme, maybe some yellows, grays, blacks and whites. When I was sent the image of the final piece, damn...

Words cannot truly describe how bad ass this painting is, not only in execution, but it goes far beyond what I had imagined, which is really special for any work of art that is commissioned for your own private collection. I love Hank Williams and his music with a fire and brimstone passion, and to have this painting adorning the walls of my home studio is truly an amazing feeling. It was also a pleasure to know just how excited Stephanie was to do this piece, as she herself is also a hardcore Hank fan.

Stephanie's whimsical Mid-century pop culture illustration style lends itself perfectly to the subject matter, which I might add was her first-ever music themed commission. I'm so unbelievably excited about this piece that I'm already planning a follow-up commission from her really soon, perhaps an accompanying Johnny Cash???

I'm now forever a collector of Stephanie's work, which only makes me even more excited to work and sell my own paintings, just so I can acquire more work of the artists I love and admire. She has been extremely wonderful to work with, and in case you are wondering, her work is quite affordable!

Everyone needs to do themselves a favor and swing on by Stephanie's website, to learn about and see more of her brilliant illustrations and cartoons. This gal is going places!

Stephanie, I cannot thank you enough for the fantastic job you did. This will be a cherished piece of art in my home for decades to come, not to mention all of the other art of yours I will have!