Cody Goodin - The artistic and spiritual journey of Cody Goodin

My second Saint Icon piece in my elemental series is now finished.  I thought I'd put the humble beginning photo back up to remind you how it started.  Here is the finished piece.  She is "Saint Celestia Sky Elemental #1"  She is the divine being who has an inside scoop into your astrological nature.  Her planetary goings on are quite legendary.You can appeal to her star signs for help in navigating the universe of energies that guide us. This is another mixed media 3D collage piece.  I am having such fun with them.  I find a bit of tongue and cheek as well as seriousness in their creation. In addition to making art, I am working on an updated version of my healing doll class I had taught in the early part of the 2000's.  I am merging it with my Alchemy of Doll making class to offer a more comprehensive experience.  It has been very rewarding to revisit some of the techniques and ideas I presented back then.  But, I have learned so ...

OK, so I decided since I was gong in a slightly different direction on some art this summer, I'd get a few things out of my system.  Now, I don't consider myself a dark artist usually.  But, I know we all have that part of us inside somewhere.  Normally for me that part doesn't usually surface all that often.  But, lately whilst facing some unpleasant medical issues, I have decided to just go for it.  You know, expose those demons or fears whatever might be lurking just under the surface of our conscience. That being said, you remember the skull headed piece I showed a few weeks back.  He is finally finished.  This piece is based on a nightmare I had as a small kid.  I am not sure what age.  It is one of those things that happened when I was really sick.  So you have those kind of dream or nightmare experiences that kind of sticks with you.  This was one of those.  I dreamnt of these creatures called shado...

OK, I know you have seen this image before.  I wanted to refresh your memory a bit.  Remember this was the icon piece I had started a few weeks back?  Well, I have working on it on and off in addition to one other.  I finally have a master plan I think.  I am going to create a series of elemental saints.  These saints will fall into one of the five elements which include earth, water, air fire and sky.  These are heavily inspired by a bit of Hindu spirituality.  So the first, very first in the series is "Mother Board, Fire Elemental  Saint Number 1".   I know the title needs a bit of work.  But, hopefully you get the idea. Here she is finished I think.  Not quite sure yet.  But, she feels right.  Why fire you ask?  Well I consider electricity and electrons part of the fire element.  She rules over all electronic and electrical communication energy.  Need to make sure your computer is running we...

I am not sure how other artists deal with the past.  But, for me, I like to revisit previous themes or types of constructions.  In this case, oh about six years ago I started making these figurative pieces I called house spirits.  Another name I used was House Mojos.  They were typically mixed media figures.  Simple in design and construction.  Less is more I guess you could say.  To me they were like artistic talismans that were created to infuse certain energies into ones home.  But, they didn't seem to make any connection with other people.  Yes, a few would comment on them.  I even sold a few.  But, I loved them and only made around ten of them.  Where is this story going?  Well, after teaching at Artiscape this year, one of the pieces I did for an auction to raise money this year was one of these talismans.  It seemed to be a big hit.  Ah ha, finally an audience that really appreciated them. ...

So, I was thinking about how I could maintain my blog update on a timely schedule the other day.  Then I thought, perhaps you all might like to see some of the other art I do and how I start off.  One of the kinds of things I really enjoy is a mixed media kind of piece.  Ones that allow me to sculpt and put found or constructed parts and pieces together.  Icons have always been a favorite format.  So, to kind of explore a new type of approach for a really big project I am planning.  I decided to create a small series of Icons or in that vain. The above picture is the very beginnings of one.  I am still working on the hands and feet.  It will most likely be a saint of some sort that I find humorous.  Not that saints are necessarily humorous.  But, I am a kind of twisted sort of guy, so I put my spin on things.  Anyway, I started with a flat art panel that is six by twelve inches.  Glued...