I've had a lot of people ask me recently what my fascination with skulls and skull type imagery is all about. Yes, it's a little dark, but there is a dark side in all of us I believe. Keep in mind, have a little dark side doesn't necessarily mean it's evil. It just means that it's not always sunshines and rainbows. With that, why would someone like me, a generally positive and inspired person want to look at, draw or collect this dark image. In fact, all around my house I have various "skeletal" objects either hanging from my walls, or bottles shaped like them, candle holders...you get it...I like skulls. It's actually an interesting thing. For the longest time, I've always looked at our cranium as both a vault and a tomb. Behind millimeters of bone is our greatest asset...our mind. It's in there where we can live out and fulfill our dreams or choose not to try and let the dream die. The skull protects all of our memories. Everything we've loved or hated, every moment we've laughed at, every kiss, every heart break..every birth and every death is housed in that shell of sorts. And sure...there's the whole rock n' roll of it right? It's bad-ass if only in our minds. I just think that as dark of an image it conveys, it is equally beautiful. Look at the Mexican holiday Dia de los Muertos or Day of the Dead. They celebrate those who they've lost in such a beautiful way... They dress up and make their faces up to look like skulls...aka sugar skulls are super vibrant typically. But it also is a day of support on the spiritual journey for those they've lost. I believe we are all on a spiritual journey of sorts...figuring things out along the way. We get so lost sometimes that we forget to stop and smell the roses and appreciate all the people that mean the most to us. We all know that one day they will be gone...a natural, sad part of life. But if we choose to celebrate the moments we had with them, then it's not so bad. We can conjure up the memory over and over again and remember why they were in our lives. So, I guess, I embrace the darker side because I'm not scared. I'm ready to give a big old hug to all those around me and know that whatever memory is created...it will live in the vault...behind a few millimeters of bone.