Continuous Cities

On the agenda for today: Theo Ellsworth, an artist based in Portland Oregon. Makes prints, art zines and comics, including a zine called Capacity.

Topics covered: spacemen, contraptions, leaves, twining greenery, astoundingly complex cities, dryads, stars, monsters, little boats, impossible flight, beast people, creatures with frightening aspect but friendly agenda, canals, rooftops and weathervanes, prosaic captions for freaky things, giant heads, scaly lizard things and clouds.


Ellsworth's bio says that "He has a miniature city inside of his head that is overrun with funny monsters, yet he still manages to come across as a semi-normal guy." This seems likely, looking at his art. I also have my own miniature city inside my head, so I am pleased to identify with his work.

His bio also states that: "He is abnormally fond of clouds, and wants to build things out of them. He is prone to fits of whimsy, and tends to have weird dreams." Which is average Portland artsy hipster stuff, really.

I just love Ellsworth's stuff, especially the b&w incredibly complex images of repeating architecture, or the springs, levers and platforms of a nonsensical gadget (these remind me a little of Heath Robinson) I just wish I could draw that kind of multiplicity, but I've found that you have to have a fantastically thorough understanding of what you are repeatedly drawing in order to make it work. I get confused over the angles and in a frustrated mess about how everything connects up.

The coloured-in work is good too, he seems to have a muted autumnal approach to colour which is interesting, occasionally breaking out into a subdued rainbow.

Ellsworth has a stall at the Saturday Market, all those in Portland, although the last couple of times I've been in town he hasn't been there, which is a shame 'cause I wanted to buy a print. Capacity should turn up in all good zine-selling stores (and in the zine rack at the Paradox), and the Art Capacity website is worth a look.

One more thing: This is Theo Ellsworth's desk. I love this guy.