Hey, gang- back again for another “Monster Monday“, and this time it’s local legendary horror host SIVAD..!
Sivad was the monster of ceremonies horror host on Channel 13/WHBQ’s “Fantastic Features” TV show from 1962 to 1972. He was actually Watson Davis who was a Malco movie theater employee from the age of 13 (started off as an usher) who later did amazing monster movie displays and events as the advertising director. The Malco is where the Orpheum Theatre in downtown Memphis is today. “SIVAD” is “DAVIS” spelled backwards.
Davis passed away at age 92 in 2005 and on the 5th anniversary of his death an appreciation society called “The SIVAD Squad” (including artist Tom Foster) organized the “SIVADS OF MARCH” celebration. On March 26, 2010, some of my friends and I took part in “Love & Curses“, a SIVAD tribute art show at Aam B. Shaw‘s studio on Broad Ave. (organized by John Beifuss and Mike McCarthy). Included in the show were comic artists Jim Hall and Dean Zachary, MSCA prez Kevin L. Williams, and Jerry “The King” Lawler– who was a friend of Watson Davis/SIVAD. Memphis Wrestling and SIVAD’s “Fantastic Features” were both on Channel 13 here back then (Lawler and Memphis Championship Wrestling later moved to WMC TV5).
There’s not much video that survived from the show (TV stations would record over and over on the same expensive video tapes), but SIVAD’s 1963 record “SIVAD Buries Rock & Roll” has been reissued on vinyl by Black And Wyatt Records in Memphis, TN. This special new edition is only $1o (+S&H) and features new horrific front cover artwork by JMM, a two-sided insert with essays by Susan Swain and Memphis music critic Ron Hall. The other side is a swinging poster of SIVAD himself, and the back cover features a fangtastic color photo of Watson putting on his iconic vampire make-up! The 7 inch record is on blood red Transylvanian translucent vinyl, and on the B-side is the song “Dicky Drackeller“. I ordered a copy!
You can see a Ch13 interview with Watson Davis here, find out more about SIVAD here, here, and here.
I painted this monsterpiece on a 12″x9″ oval stretched canvas. I started off by enlarging the reference photo on my laptop, taped a piece of 12″x9″ tracing paper on the screen, and did a quick tracing of it with a Micron pen. I then turned the paper over and scribbled on the back of it with a yellow #2 pencil to create some graphite copy paper.
I taped the paper to the canvas and traced the scaled image with a pencil to transfer the scaled image to the canvas. I then finished the drawing and added details. I didn’t go crazy with the details since most would be covered up by the paint markers. Plus I didn’t want a lot of pencil lead on the canvas that would get smeared around.
Once the drawing was completed I started to fill in the background with my acrylic paint markers.
I used a few different shades. I used some Sharpie Creative Markers, IVSUN dual tip acrylic markers, and a variety of other paint markers/pens. You can get them online or at most art stores (Michaels, Casey’s Art Box, The Art Center), or department stores such as Walmart or Ollie’s. They come in water-based or oil-based varieties.
I then started filling in his hair and costume, and added some texture to the background. It’s been hard to find grey paint pens, much less a variety of shades of grey. I did run across some grey markers at The Art Center on Union Avenue in Memphis.
It took at least a couple coats with the markers to fill in well on the textured canvas.
It’s also harder to get the paint pens to blend than it was on the wooden panels I did last month, but I was able to work around it some.
Especially when it came to the background. I wasn’t happy with the effect I was getting with the paint markers so broke out a brush and some acrylic paint. I used an older brush and let the bristles flair out a bit and just worked in layers with a couple different shades of grey I mixed up. That worked a lot better- and quicker!
I used a black Pigma Micron pen for the linework. Inking is my least favorite part, but it helped a lot with the details and cleaning up the painting.
I used a white Gelly Roll pen for the highlights, as well as a white IVSUN and Sharpie paint markers.
I used a white Prismacolor pencil to finish the highlights and help blend/soften them.
Once the painting was finished and completely dry I took it it outside and sprayed it with a few light overlapping coats of Krylon Workable Fixative. It’s best to do multiple lighter coats than a heavy one, and if you’re spraying indoors be sure to be in a well ventilated room and wear a mask.
I’ll have this one and a few other canvas paintings and prints for sale as part of the MSCA/Mid-South Cartoonists Association‘s “Drawn Of The Dead” art show this October/November in the lobby of the Germantown Community Theatre.
The group art show will run alongside the GCT’s presentation of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, performances go from October 24th-November 2nd. Opening reception is 5-7 p.m. on Friday, October 10th in the lobby of GCT. (Click here to see my “Sam/Trick ‘r Treat” painting.)
I’ll also have some other art including some “Scared Silly” zines and prints, plus monsterpiece original art, “BATS” trading cards, and a variety of stickers, sketchcards, sketchcovers, and more for sale at the upcoming Monster Market at The Medicine Factory in downtown Memphis on October 10-16. (CLICK HERE to see my Nosferau marker painting; CLICK HERE to see my Count Von Count marker painting; CLICK HERE to see my Beetlejuice marker painting: CLICK HERE to see my Sandworm painting: CLICK HERE to see my Bela/Dracula painting; and CLICK HERE to see my The Walking Dead sketchcover.)
The Memphis Monster Market is an annual monster/sci-fi pop-up shop and will have lots of great in-store events scheduled for that week including a showing of “Dracula“ (hosted by the Beale Street Monster Club) on Sunday 10/12 6-8 p.m., a Professional Monster Meet-up with local monster makers on Tuesday, 10/14 5:30-7:30 pm., and much more..!
And don’t forget that I’ll be set up at the Comic Con in the Park at Marquette Park this Saturday, October 11th, from 3–7 p.m.
Hope to scare ya there!
Lin