JOSH HOZEY

CUBISM | REALISM | ABSTRACTION

JULY 2020

does the guitar player look familiar?

Acrylic

11 in x 12 in

$175

friend or foe: roman, yet, & dead cow

Acrylic

22 in x 28 in

$750

alice, friends should make you wonder not wander

Acrylic

24 in x 36 in

$1300

suspicion & conscience in a sea of paranoia

Acrylic

15 in x 30 in

$400

I have been labeled an outsider artist by most. I appreciate the original outsider artists who, mainly being psychiatric patients, were not restricted by the confines of mainstream art. Looking thru my own history and collection I can’t fully disagree with this assessment, especially since my art is a little different than most and the restructuring of objects and/or the searching of the depths of the psyche are the foundations of my Acrylics.

To me art is a fusion of my analytical thinking & subconscious with shape, color, and design. Color is especially important when telling the story. Often I argue with my brain to get the right color. Much time is spent, with eyes closed, asking my brain, willing or not, to run different color simulations in order to get the right combination.

My main goal in doing this is to stimulate and engage others minds long enough, through detail, technique, or story to fully escape into another dimension, more specifically mine. My paintings often start with a deep thought process or an experience then evolve into compositions centering either on cubism, surrealism,
abstraction or a combination thereof.

I enjoy creating pieces inspired by madness, the intuitive perception we can often derive from such states, and the lessons we can learn from delving into such
thoughts. By combining wild images from our subconscious with real world analysis based on our experiences in life, we can produce stories inside of paintings that provide lessons we can learn from, whether we like what we find or not.

When creating my works, while I infuse my own ideas into the painting, I purposely construct portions to allow for open interpretation as well. This allows others to
bring my world closer to their own.

CATCHING DREAMS

The general idea behind the painting is to comment on how the pursuit of dreams affects our lives. This idea is further defined by the following:
1) The man with the net: Sometimes we work hard to realize and catch a dream only to find out it
is not all that we imagined it would be. This is why man’s catch is a skeleton of a fish. Or perhaps we are disappointed because we held our hopes too high and what we catch is exactly what we need at the time, it may just take some time to realize it. And for some of us maybe the journey with friends and family was more important than the end result. The relationships forged and the memories created were the actual catch.

2) The scuba diver: In the saddest of scenarios we may never catch the dream. The diver is skeleton like and fading away just before he catches the fish. Another point of view is the scuba diver is giving his heart and soul but the dream fish has lost almost all color and is fading away. Will the scuba diver catch it in time? Sometimes yes and sometimes no. But the times we do
catch the dream, the extra effort makes the catch that much better.

3) The man who caught the whale: Sometimes we spend our whole life chasing one dream. At some point we must judge if the sacrifices we make along the way are worth it. Do we continue chasing or do we stop. In this case we can see the man is fishing with just one arm. He caught the dream but was the price too much? Only we can tell by our own experiences in life.

In the end, one of the most powerful motivating forces we have is to chase the dream of something we really want. We just need to make sure we don’t lose something we really need on the way. Nothing is more rewarding than catching a dream but balance is needed to make sure it is a sweet dream.

SUSTAINABILITY OF YOUTH

This is my first painting with a Steampunk theme. What is Steampunk? That answer could take volumes. Quite simply it is the mix of Victorian style with Steam & Gears. Sprinkle in Air ships and robots and you’re on the right track. It is different things to different people thus its wide appeal. DIY (Do-It-Yourself) activism is what draws some. It’s easy to see the appeal in an age
where we can barely do anything for ourselves. This is where DIY people, young and old, can associate themselves with Steampunk. Steampunks are engaged in doing rather than just having a dream or merely speaking of something instead of ever getting around to doing it.

Some of the sub themes actually speak against colonialism or imperialism. Someone is always trying to exercise authority over someone else.

Then there are excesses of invention. Something as far-fetched as mad scientists, to the more real devastating power of inventions. Technology used by governments for suppression. Or the corrupting influence of seemingly innocent technologies. The internet can be used for great good or evil. Dynamite can clear land quickly or be used to kill.

Then there is sustainability. Every generation sees obsolescence in the past but also in our own life times. Ask your 10 year olds or younger what a cassette tape is which was replaced by CD’s in my time. Now with IPods, CD’s will soon be obsolete as well. Then VHS tapes have pretty much been completely replaced by DVDs. The list goes on. Many objects and services each day are rendered non sustainable by the push of technology itself.

That is where my painting picks up. You can see the easily recognizable Steampunk elements- clockwork, dirigibles, and ray guns. However, Peter Pan always wanted to sustain his youth. Yet the more he tried to remain young didn’t he really grow up? “Playing” with pirates- youthful but really
“fighting” pirates is something grown-ups would do. Waging “War” with Indians. War is very grown up. His very “grown up” feelings for Wendy or his on again off again relationship with “Tinkerbell.” The more he “played” young, the older he really got.

To complete this dissertation- Steampunk has somewhat become more of an aesthetic than a movement. While technology creates easily reproducible and cheap products; it also creates lifeless products with no individuality. I would trade a black modern watch any day if you let me see the inner beauty of the gears. Not only their design by the art of their movement. Steampunk art rejects the soulless, featureless designs for individuality. The readiness of prints has somewhat killed the
love and appreciation for original art which is partly why you do not see prints of my work.

No matter what Steampunk means to you, embrace it, be yourself, and sustain your individuality. And if you have time, dress with some Victorian style clothes, strap on a ray gun or some clockwork gears and have fun.

DECISIONS

Life can be very much like a racetrack. We constantly have to make decisions that can have positive or negative effects. Unfortunately, we can’t go in reverse. So when we make poor decisions this can adversely affect us when we face similar situations later. If we let doubt and remorse impale or crush us, this can lead us to make even more mistakes and “wreck”, or even cause us to not make a decision at all, therefore making us “lose” out. So while we want to learn from our mistakes, we need to maintain a balance. Learning from our mistakes without letting them paralyze us. We can’t hesitate or be afraid to make decisions in order to continue moving forward. Life is full of decisions; it’s how we make them and then make course corrections when necessary that defines a winner.

LOVE CONQUERS ALL

The painting portrays the conquering nature of love. Against all odds or many odds true love can prevail. We can see this as the “Pan” like figure takes on an army of beasts. The Hatter could be a bad guy
as well but he can also be viewed as attacking one of the beasts. Obviously as love unites people then the stronger the bonds become. The skull has a broken line thru it because love transcends death with the eventual reuniting of those in love.

When one “fights” for love, the epitome of courage is produced. This is because when the chips are down and we’re losing, many run away from a “battle” depending on the reason they are fighting. However, if love is the reason, like a mother protecting their child, love will never stop fighting and the strongest courage is produced. So while love seems to be outnumbered in the painting, love has the upper hand because it is more powerful.

UNREQUITED LOVE

OLD JESTER

CORRUPTION OF POWER

The general idea behind the painting is to comment on the corruption of power and how it affects social justice. This idea is further defined by the following:

1) The Jester: The Jester in the painting has become king. He hasn’t switched to the rich man’s garb yet because he hasn’t fully conformed to the corrupted ways of the economic and governmental system in which he operates. However, he is starting to take on some of these ways. He is forgetting his roots and is treating his contemporaries like he used to be treated (e.g. the apportioning of the two apples) giving the core to the poor and the whole to those already well off. He is smoking and drinking in excess, indulging in non-necessities, therefore not allowing him to afford the necessities for the poor. Will he become fully corrupted? His mask might
suggest so, if he is trying to hide what he is becoming. However, the jester hasn’t changed his garb and he has a toothpick in his mouth (not the cigarette) perhaps symbolizing that he realizes the error of his ways & is trying to change.

2) The Tongue Tree: The “Yes“ men of the world that proliferate injustice by agreeing with or just not stopping injustice in order to receive more power and wealth for themselves.

3) The flying eyeball: All seeing, it will judge everyone for their actions. It is off to the side because it is not influenced by anything since it is not in the midst. It represents whatever we will eventually answer to for our errors whether this is family, judges, God etc. In the end, until there is a balancing in power and distribution in the economy then justice
and power will continue to be corrupted.

CASEY

Does the Guitar Player Look Familiar?

MAN IN ELECTRIC CHAIR

This painting brings to the fore issues that we don’t think about every day. As we go about our lives people are sentenced to death or their death sentence is carried out. Some view this as inhumane. Some who feel this way have been victimized and feel a higher power should handle these types of sentences. Others who are against the electric chair have never been victimized. Those who have gone thru trauma say that those who don’t advocate it would feel different if they ever had been victimized.
There are so many arguments and stances that a small article could never address them all. This piece is just to get people thinking, talking, and realizing these things go on behind the scenes of our daily lives.

MIRROR MAN

All too often in life, we look in the mirror and mentally, either over look what we see or purposely ignore it. A mirror is there to reflect the blemishes that we need to correct. Physically, we normally take care of these blemishes, on a good day. Other times we may choose not to correct them on a bad day. However, when it comes to mental or personality blemishes this can become more problematic.

The man in the painting has a face that resembles a mask. Sometimes we try to mask who we really are in order to excuse what we’ve become. If we wait too long to change, it may become so ingrained that we begin to point out these same flaws, real or imagined, in others in order to justify
ourselves. In a higher level, we may become unforgiving of such ones in order to justify continuing in our chosen path to make ourselves feel better. At the highest level, we start to become the masked person in the mirror believing the masked version to be true and not what is underneath. As in the painting it becomes difficult to distinguish the true person from the mirrored image. While not impossible to change, it becomes difficult to unmask and then address the root of the problem. Self-examination and constant readjustment is the only cure. Sometimes, our mask is none of these things.

Sometimes, we create the mask to protect ourselves. Perhaps we create one to keep people from getting too close to us because of a traumatic experience in our lives. Perhaps it is created because we are afraid how others might view us if they knew about certain aspects of our lives, past or present, or we become afraid of our own thoughts and how others might view them. In these instances, as well, we must eventually be able to remove this mask and trust.

Whatever scenario fits our situation we eventually have a choice to make. Stay the masked man or listen to the mirror man.

Friend or Foe: Roman, Yeti, & Dead Cow

In ancient times people fought in gladiatorial arenas. Since the match ups were not chosen by the contestants, you might find yourself fighting alongside someone you hated or viewed as your enemy. Unfortunately, if you could not put aside your differences and work together, you might find yourself on the wrong end of a sword. The lesson being, you might want to think about these possible situations
before you go around making enemies.

We find ourselves in similar situations today. Perhaps we have bullied people before. Perhaps we were just mean or rude to someone. These ones might find themselves in a job interview one day with the one they were inconsiderate to. How will they feel then? What if we were on the receiving end? Will we put aside differences and be the bigger man? Now, whether we were the bullied or bully, what if we found the other in a car accident needing help? What will we do then, will we help? If you are the trapped bully how will you feel? There are many instances in life where this thought might apply. One day we might find that we need our foe to be our friend, so we must do our best on a daily basis to not make our
friend our foe.

IT’S NOT RAINING RAIN TO ME

This painting helps us to look at things like rain in a different light. While some may only see rain others may see beyond this. They may see the splendor or the cleansing nature. Others may get caught up in the musical rhythm it makes; while others still may see the fun, like walking in the rain.

Whatever the case, for these individuals it is raining beauty, purity, music, enjoyment, and the list goes on. The “rain”
in this picture does not look like standard drops. What is it that you see? Perhaps you only see rain but it’s not raining rain to me.
Due to the fact that my paintings are designed for some open interpretation, a friend of mine made a very astute observation. He stated the rain almost looked like strings attaching to a puppet. The figure looks like it is trying to get from point A to point B but must struggle against the opposing forces of the “rain” as it tries to deter one from meeting their objective. Who of us have not felt this struggle in our own lives? Excellent explanation, it was not raining rain to him either.

They Took No Note

Alice, Friends Should Make You Wonder Not Wander

The general idea behind the painting is to comment on the nature of friendships, as well as to comment on how the friendships we forge and the associations we have affect our actions and personalities, as further defined by the following elements in the picture:

1) The construction of Alice. As Alice sits at the tea party the right side of her, especially her leg, is beginning to twist much like the Mad Hatter’s twisted body. The left side of Alice is detached. Her arm and head are separating from her body much like the March Hare whose body parts are also detached. No matter what Alice may think, the longer she stays in Wonderland the more she becomes like her companions. Our relationships mimic this fact whether we like to admit it or not, especially if we are running with the wrong crowd and feel that our own example will affect them in a positive way. Normally bad association spoils useful habits.

2) Another possible interpretation is that Alice is the one affecting the Hatter and Hare. She has come to Wonderland not dressed in her usual attire. This could denote that she is actually drawn to people like herself and therefore she is bringing out certain traits within them that are already found within her. Depending on whether she is a negative or a positive influence will dictate if this is good or bad.

3) There is a small slate hanging on one of the tables which states “Stupid Things.” This is an element from the jury trial in the actual book. However, it is a stark reminder that in many cases long standing friendships are broken up over stupid things.

4) The Cheshire Cat is purposely located under the Mushroom where the painting is least congested. The cat could always appear anywhere and everywhere therefore giving himself a unique perspective. He represents the friends that we have that we normally get mad at. They are the ones that warn us that an
action we are about to take will lead to no good, but since we don’t see it or don’t want to see it we get mad at them. However, they are normally right because they are seeing it from the Cheshire Cat’s
perspective. They are normally the true friends that will still be there for us once we come to our senses.

5) The Executioner Card can be understood in two different ways. He is cutting off the door mouse’s tail while he is sleeping. Perhaps he represents the completely negative “friend” who will only ever serve to put us in harms way. They are the friendships we need to sever if we can see this. However, since the door mouse is sleeping he seems not to notice the act of the tail being cut. Sometimes we have friends who actually act in our behalf, behind the scenes so to speak, to keep us from a greater danger that could affect us even worse. Sometimes if we get wind of the situation only partly it may hurt us until we know the whole story and understand fully the saving act that the true friend performed.

6) The back grounds on the left and right side of the painting are “mirrored opposites”. Sometimes as friends we can look at the same item or situation but see something completely different. This can be
detrimental if it only leads to fights. However, this can be extremely helpful if we are able to help one another see things from a different point of view.

There are other elements in the picture straight from the movies or books. These include the “killing of time”, the “caucus race”, and the “flamingo with hedgehog”. These items are more open to interpretation but are easy to assign meaning to when thinking of how these can represent elements of friendship. (e.g.
friendships that are a waste of time, the sharing of silly/embarrassing experiences can help forge friendships; some friendships are very symbiotic etc.).

WILL YOU PAY ME – PIPER

The general idea behind the painting is to comment on how we all must “Pay the
Piper” eventually for the mistakes we make. Whether the piper is God, the Justice
System, or whomever we will eventually answer to… no one can escape. This idea is further defined by the following:

1) The Skull & Rat. The Skull is representative of the fate of those who refuse to pay the piper early on when they had the chance. The highest cost to pay the piper is with our very lives. The Rat is there as a tribute to the original story and shows a contrast between it and the Piper. The Piper while violent is not nearly as evil in comparison.

2) The Piper & Teddy Bear Head. As with most problems we create in life, most of the
consequences we face normally don’t hit us without some type of warning. Whether the
warning comes from a judge, parent, or our natural inborn law, usually we have a chance to pay the Piper a smaller fee before it becomes more costly. The Teddy Bears head was removed by the Piper, as he jumped down from the ceiling, as a warning to the person coming after the girl to stay away and make recompense before it is to late.

3) The girl. The girl has been affected by some tragedy in her life (e.g. abuse, etc). We can tell the negative effect by her blackened eyes; she has been left feeling empty. The needles in her dress symbolize the torture she has been going thru trying to cope. She can not yet speak of it as denoted by the band aid. The Piper has tied her up to get her out of harms way. Needles are also used in acupuncture for healing. Perhaps the Piper (in this
instance a friend) is helping her to begin the healing process.

4) The caged person. Unfortunately, sometimes the victim as well must pay the piper. A tragedy we may have faced (e.g. divorce, abuse, tragic death of family by drunk drivers or violence, etc) may have affected us hard. However, we must eventually cope with the incident. It is like a straight jacket, keeping us from fully experiencing life. The brown sack on the persons head is starting to grow into their flesh showing sometimes we lose our identity and just become “The Victim” if we refuse to deal with our problem. If the person deals with the tragedy they will be let loose from their own straight jacket. The
Piper put them in the cage as a protection until this is done. Once accomplished the
person has the key to the cage on their belt to allow them to break free from the cage
once and for all.

In the end, we all “Pay the Piper.” Pay him early and pay him less or pay him late and
pay dearly.

YOU’RE LATE FOR TEA!

The idea behind this painting is not complex. Sometimes the simple things in life are the most enjoyable. However, many times we are too busy to stop and enjoy these things. We seem to always be rushed. We seem to always be…late for tea.

Welcome to My World

This painting was created for a twofold purpose. Often, when people view my paintings, they comment on how they would like to just get inside my head for a little bit to see what goes on. I decided
to paint one of the many “rooms” one might see. In addition to the desire to portray this, I have weaved in some experiences we all probably go thru in life as further defined by the following:

1) The figure with a light bulb head and the one hanging from the figure. Sometimes in life we look up to people for guidance and ideas. Other times, we are the one people look to for guidance and ideas, yet sometimes we ourselves are only hanging on by a thread. A good leader doesn’t let on to this.

2) The Hatter and Friends playing cards. We are all in the same “game” together. All the cards look blank as a reminder about how we all handle situations differently even when presented with the same opportunity or problem. Yet there is much to learn from each other in the styles in which we play.

3) The two figures tossing a stream of cards between them. In life we must all play with the cards we have no matter how they are dealt. There is always a way to play them.

4) The basketball player and fire eater. Some times in life we are the star in the spotlight. Sometimes we are the one who supports someone else and makes them look good while they take all the credit.

5) The figure holding pieces of itself. Sometimes people may look to us to help them pick up the pieces of their lives but we may feel we are the one falling to pieces.

6) The figure with the straw and figure at the machine. Sometimes in life we feel we control the “game” or an “addiction” but sometimes it is really controlling us.

7) The two figures melting. Sometimes in life we will find that special person that completes us and that we become one with.

8) The second table with the Queen. Life is usually unfair when we find people who get to play by different rules.

Suspicion & Conscience in a Sea of Paranoia

The general idea behind the painting is to comment on how our life and experiences affect our friendships, trust, and conscience:

1) Suspicion- The female subject. To a trusting individual this girl may be here to help you out of a sticky situation. Her gaze may be one of confidence as she has found the bell to control the monsters rising from
the sea. You feel safe… However, is that what she is really doing? As you drift along and stare deep at her expression it begins to look a little suspicious… a little menacing. Perhaps she is actually controlling the monsters to rise from the deep to send them towards you. If not, why is she riding on one then? What is she holding behind her back? Something to finish the job?… No, maybe she just standing like that to look inviting instead of arms crossed which is a sign to keep away. She’s only riding one to show you she’s in control and not to be afraid. She brought someone to help after all. She doesn’t need help finishing you off, she has all these monsters if that was the case… But why is he holding a lantern? If they already knew where they were going, why doesn’t he use the bulb on his head? The lantern contains
his eye, all the better to get to you quicker? Why are they looking so hard for you in particular? He’s going to use the spoon to pull you out right??? Not cup it over your head and push you under? Wait why is he riding a doll head that looks strangely like the girl? Is she really in charge of these monsters and is coming for you?

2) The sea of paranoia. You were just in it.

3) Conscience – The spoon man. He is originally light colored and pure. Experiences over time cause
scarring to appear. The bandages could be good or bad. Perhaps parts of the conscience are healing. The conscience can help us to drive change when it comes to how we deal with others and how we would want to be dealt with in conjunction with Suspicion and Paranoia.

When someone does something to cause you not to trust them, they work hard to regain your trust. You must work hard as well. Why? If you forever allow suspicion and paranoia to control you, you may never allow them to regain your trust. This is why your conscience must guide you in your dealings with others. However, depending on how bad the scar, it may seem unrecoverable and you may get stuck and drown in the sea of paranoia. Only your experiences can decide the outcome of this painting.

Did you swim away and get away? Perhaps rightfully so, if the mistake was large enough. It may mean the end of a relationship and it is time to move on.

Did you wait and hope? The girl and the spoon man really did help you. You were able to get past the error caused.

Did you drown in the sea of paranoia? Were you so caught up with the feelings of being wronged that you ignored your conscience in how to deal with the figure? They got you in the end. Perhaps you regret it. It may not be too late to mend. Maybe you will get resuscitated. Perhaps you don’t; as life is too short to deal with such trouble. You’re fine with the way this ends?…..

JOSH HOZEY

CATCHING DREAMS

SUSTAINABILITY OF YOUTH

DECISIONS

LOVE CONQUERS ALL

UNREQUITED LOVE

OLD JESTER

CORRUPTION OF POWER

CASEY

Does the Guitar Player Look Familiar?

MAN IN ELECTRIC CHAIR

MIRROR MAN

Friend or Foe: Roman, Yeti, & Dead Cow

IT’S NOT RAINING RAIN TO ME

They Took No Note

Alice, Friends Should Make You Wonder Not Wander

WILL YOU PAY ME – PIPER

YOU’RE LATE FOR TEA!

Welcome to My World

Suspicion & Conscience in a Sea of Paranoia

Under Pressure

Into the Void

Important, Unimportant