So, this basically is just another graffiti coloring book. But it’s never that simple. The idea for this book came when I started working with “Who Made Who” coloring book and exhibition back in 2020. The actual drawing of the sketches was done between 2022-2024, layout and “production” took place in January 2024. But whereas “Who Made Who” was a compilation of drawings by different artists, this one is done solely by myself. Except the cover art, which was created by Soved, an extremely talented illustrator and a friend of mine.
The idea to list various names of the Devil comes from The Infernal Names which were listed by Anton Szandor LaVey in “The Satanic Bible“.
The title, “Somehow, Satan Got Behind Me“, on the other hand is an episode of the American tv-series “Millennium” created by Chris Carter. In the episode, a group of demons convene in a doughnut shop to share their stories of tempting and damning humans.
Overall Satan – and his many names – have been popular in western entertainment since day one. Many of them are used as the names of bands or their songs, movies, books and so forth. And that’s what the idea of Satan more or less means to me as well: entertainment in its purest form. I always was fascinated by the concept of Satan. Not so much as the biblical adversary of god but exactly for what it truly is: a powerful fictional character challenging other fictional characters. I always enjoyed good, entertaining stories – be it a movie, book or even better, a song by my favorite band. And for some reason the character of Satan happens to be presented in many of these!
I’ve always felt that Heavy Metal pretty much equals Satan. The rebellion, which first appeared in rock, later on in punk and was finally perfected in Death and Black Metal is the very essence of the phenomena. You get the picture. To me all these represent the “real” Satan! And if you’re even a little familiar with my artistic history, you should know that Heavy Metal has always been the fuel for my fire. I’ve written quotes from my favorite songs to my paintings hundreds of times, and even painted the names of the bands I’m a fan of in various places. And I don’t see an end to this in the very near future!
Availability
At this point only a few physical copies are on sale at Unckan Store, Helsinki (FI). But a small batch for larger distribution is coming later in the spring of 2024. I’ll keep you posted!