Literary Asses: A Prologue (Lucius, Lucian, Lucius)
&
Literary Asses: Lucius from Apulieus' The Golden Ass or the Metamorphoses

Both 2012
UV inkjet print on aluminum /
Gold foil stamp on paper
47 x 35" /
10.25 x 7.8"

Literary Asses is an ongoing series of interlinked works referencing donkeys as found in various texts by Aesop, Lucian, Apuleius, Cervantes, Orwell, Stevenson (and others).
A motif consistent throughout literary history, from classical Greek texts to contemporary fiction, the 'literary ass' could be seen to convey themes not unfamiliar within the sphere of artistic production, such as amateurism, knowledge, ignorance, wisdom, labor, laziness, transformation and mimicry.
To date, Literary Asses consists of paperback-sized drawings copied by the artist from illustrations found in his own library of books and executed in gold foil stamping; a theatrical production of the same name, featuring many of the same characters and a prologue introducing the three main characters in the play, printed on aluminum.