Sunday Simulacra - Version 7.13

Today's simulacra are really leaving their mark....

This paintball splash skull was shot by Riki from Toulouse, France....

...and this perky chap was snagged by Job.

I guess some skulls make their presence a little more known that others. Have you captured your own sneaky skull simulacra? If so then be sure to submit it to us. We be as thankful as we are to Riki and Job. Thank you!

Dia de los Muertos Masks

Amber Allison of Bling Out Your Dead in Los Angeles, CA, creates one of a kind Dia de los Muertos inspired masks. These masks are highly detailed and truly works of art. I love that the 3D elements are incorporated into the mask, vs. just along the top like many Dia de los Muertos masks. With Fall quickly arriving, it's that time of year to start thinking about Halloween and Dia de los Muertos. You can see more of her work on the website, Facebook page, and Etsy shop.

Bat Fastard Skull

No foolin'!  Bat Fastard in London, England is the artist responsible for this painted polyurethane skull that is handmade by himself. "I make these as a hobby but also to sell. They are molded from an original skull carved by myself, and then using a latex mold cast in polyurethane plastic before being painted, again by me." A nifty bit of durable decoration ready for multiple holidays, or every day if you're really "one of us". Thanks for sharing it, Bat!

Airbrush Paint Skull

Neil McIrvine of Melbourne, Australia created this skull from the airbrush paint bottles he used to create this airbrushed skull painting.

Neil also submitted this to a competition for Createx Paints so we'll wish him the best of luck with that. The painting is truly beautiful and I'm sure it will garner a lot of attention. Thanks for sharing it with us as well, Neil!

Skelly Heart

Misty Benson, Creator of the Morbidly Adorables™ told us: "I've been following Skull-A-Day since you started the 365 project. It's one of my favorite sites!  I painted this piece called 'My Skelly Heart.' An 8"x10" acrylic on canvas painting, this is for those with a skelly, or skully, heart! Some hearts
bloom with flowers, others bloom with woe, my heart blooms with skellies."

QT C says:

It is always a pleasure to see work from our long time members.  Thank you for taking the time to submit one of your creations with us to share.  With all of us still riding the wave of celebration from last week's Skull Appreciation Day, it is wonderful to be able to share another heart and skull creation.

Stenciled Skulls

Choncey Langford is here to stylize our Saturday with these 3 stencil skulls: Tres Craneo Plantilla.

Even though they're all stencils this is a nice trio of various styles. I could easily see these working well for other mediums. Plus, green is my second favorite color, behind black. Here's to everyone having a great "green" day! Thanks, Choncey!

Skullboy Art

Skullboy in New Jersey showed us a pair of items that he created. 

Fist Pump C says:

Jersey: that scary area between Philly and New York.  With the large number of Superfund sites in the state it is quite appropriate to cover the state with skulls.  Just teasing you, I know your are from Jersey so you can take it.  Thank you for sharing your work with us.

Poetry Pole Skull

Edith Mirante goes beyond simply displaying her skull painting, she also seeks to enhance your skull.  Read on...

"Here's a picture of the poetry pole my husband & I put up in front of our house in Portland, Oregon. I painted the literary skull with crossed pens and the lettering. The box has featured poems by poets including Matthew Dickman, Robert Lowell, and Theodore Roetke. It has photocopies of the poems for passersby to take. We tend to offer poems with themes of nature and decay, and we change them when we remember to."

This is WON-DER-FUL! Edith and her husband are getting superliminal with their message by taking it to the street.  Increase your skull's power by sharing your favorite knowledge.  I love what you've done here, Edith.  Thanks for sharing it! 

Sunday Simulacra - Version 6.42

Jobot at Evil Robot Music shared this simulacra.

Oozing C says:

Thank you for sharing your find with us.  While the eye quickly goes to the white blob at the top if you look at the middle right and tilt your head there seems to be a second simulacra in this picture.

Keep sending those pictures in, we always love seeing what our skull hunters find. Anyone is welcomed to participate, it's fun and it's easy- if you see a simulacra skull, photograph it and send those pictures in to our submissions address with a little something about what it is really and maybe a little about you.

Skull Makeup Art

Elvis Schmoulianoff is a makeup artist/bodypainter/wigmaker who takes "face skulling" to a whole new level of detail and color.

You are truly a woman of many faces, Elvis.  Even your non skull images are beautiful as well.  You can check out the entire portfolio here.  Thanks for helping us "face our day"!

p.s.- Elvis dropped us a hint that she is designing a space for a festival in England this summer which is going to be a Day of the Dead themed Skeleton Circus .  Who thinks she needs to share that work when it happens?  My vote is a definite "yes!"

Sugar Skull Art

Shayna Butler of  Weaver, AL told us: "I love the Skull-A-Day site I just read your submission page and had no idea you started it in 2007.  It is awesome that you stuck with it, and that now you include art and images from others.  This image is a painting I did for a friend."

 Flashy C says:

What I love most about this piece are the sparrows.  They remind me of of an ancient crown in the way that they sparrows seem to supporting the sunlight disk on the head.  Thank you for your kind words about the site, we are glad that you found us and that you jumped right in submitting a piece of your work.

X-Mas Skull Ornament

Past contributor Ronn Campbell in Kennewick, WA told us: "Here is a present I made for myself- Have a skully, skully Christmas."

Unorthodox C says:

As the weather around here may keep me inside for a limited time maybe this is a good weekend to pack away some Yuletide. This piece however should be considered for a "nevergreen tree"- you know those artificial ones that just too big to store so you keep it up all year and just remove the specific Christmas theme ornaments so it doesn't look so weird. Thank you for sharing your lasted work with us we always appreciate seeing what our old friends are creating new.

Custom "Upcycled" Skulls

Sonja Richey is a custom skull maker for all occasions. Her passion is creating unique pieces of art, custom personalized signs, and useful decor from reclaimed unwanted items.

Truly upcycled materials create some of the best works. The melding of the individual pieces come together to become a new entity of art. Sonja has a lot of other skulls, and other stuff, for sale over at her etsy shop. Thanks for the sweet submissions, Sonja!

Super Embellished Skull Saturday

After visiting South America, joining a street art project mosaicing the streets of Brazil, and spending time with shamans in Peru, Lauren Baker had an epiphany of becoming an artist. She started using ethically sourced animal skulls, paint, tiles, and other embellishments to pay homage to the living creatures.

Each piece is unique and breathes it's own life back into the skull with amazing color and vibrancy.  You can see that Lauren uses quite a few methods and techniques which is an awesome way of keeping things fresh and creative.  Thanks for sharing the excellent works, Lauren!

Painted Skulls

Returning** Artist Natalie VonRaven AKA "Magisterian", from Alberta, Canada showed off a pair of paintings she created.  She wrote: "I am a full time painter and artisan. My primary focus is on gothic/fantasy/surreal themes, portraits and...SKULLS!"

Title: "Joker"  

Medium: Acrylic   Size: 5"x 7" 

 Title: "A Gentlemans Madness"

 Medium: Acrylic  Size: 9"x 12"

Milliner C says:

At this time of the years it is always nice to catch up with old friends. we don't always get sizes that go along with submitted work.  It was nice to get of feeling of perspective on your pieces. Thank You once again for sharing your work with us.

** You can visit another of her posted submissions HERE.

Acrylic Skulls

Adrian Edger, the artist who began 400 Skulls in September 2011 showed off a pair of his paintings to us.

Rolling C says:

Congratulations on such a grand undertaking.  I would have never imagined being able to commit to a project that will take 33 years to complete.  Thank you for sharing your work with us and make sure you check in with us each year so we can watch your progress.

Sunday Simulacra - Version 6.27

This week's simulacrum come from unordinary places.

Minta Thomson of Phoenix, AZ was cleaning out her Degu enclosure and discovered this dusty skull stuck to the plexiglass door...

...and Heather Reizner of Rolling Meadows, IL was being spied upon at the Manteno State Hospital for the Insane, in Manteno IL. It was abandoned in 1985, and this is in the ceiling of one of the underground tunnels.



Once again we see that the hidden skulls around us can be ANYWHERE! Be sure to submit your finds to add to our collection. Thanks, Minta and Heather!

Calavera de Mariposas

Today's colorful skull is titled "Calavera de Mariposas", and it comes from Emily Austin of Rockvale, TN. Starting with just an idea of a butterfly for a nose she created this piece with pens, pencils, and paint.

The butterflies and sunflowers are full of cheerfulness that make you want to smile just like this skull is.  A fitting tribute to remember, with liveliness, those who have passed before us in the most positive of lights on Dia de los Muertos.  Thanks for adding this to our weekend, Emily! 

Faux Decayed Skull

Eben C. O'Connor from Seattle, WA created this skull. He explained, "Here is a photo (actually scanned face down on a flatbed scanner with black cloth over) of a sculpture I did a few years back. Cast in plaster with epoxy, liquid latex, egg-tempera paints, and a sterling filigree heart found within the walls of an old house renovation."

This skull reminds me of horror tales. It looks partially decayed and haunting. Since the filigree heart is from a home renovation, this skull makes me think of all those stories of ghosts and supernatural occurrences at homes when they are renovated or built on burial grounds. The spirits are disturbed and skeletons start coming out of the ground... ok, enough of the terrifying stories. I hope this creepy beauty doesn't give you any bad dreams.

Smile Skull Stickers

Lisa Vollrath created a set of sticker for a swap. There are made with "gesso, collage, paint and markers over Priority Mail stickers."

Recycling through art, is a great way to turn something normal into something unexpected. These cheerful skulls are made on USPS Priority Mail stickers, which are free. They invite you to smile, maybe not as they do, but still to smile. The Dia de los Muertos sugar skull style decorations are beautifully done. Each skull is different, though they carry the same happy theme. Perhaps passing these out would bring instant joy to the receiver, as much as the giver.


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