ONE OF THE MYSTERIES OF SCIENCE is why an insect as common as Cocinella psychoanalytica, (order Coleoptera, family Coccinellidae, commonly called the rorschach ladybug,) does not occur in the entomological literature until recently. This attractive beetle seems to have appeared out of nowhere on the evolutionary tree of life. At first considered an isolated mutation, C. psychoanalytica has recently been designated a distinct species, amid much scholarly speculation and intense disputes among evolutionary biologists between proponents of punctuated equilibrium, quantum evolution, saltationism, and pre-Lyellian catastrophism.
First described in the early 1970s by entomology graduate student Stanley Wojciechowski, C. psychoanalytica soon became the single-minded focus of his research. Working day and night, he collected and cataloged over 145,000 specimens. Each one had to be carefully scrutinized, because the pattern on the elytra of each individual beetle is different.
After months of work alone in his lab, Wojciechowski began to notice effects in his personal life that, at first, he attributed to simple overwork. As he explained later, after staring at those beetles all day, he began to recall his dreams in great detail. He also began to spend hours of waking time ruminating on his life, starting from is earliest memories, apparently unaware of his surroundings.
Ultimately his colleagues found him in the insect collection having what they described as "some kind of break with reality." "No one really knew him very well. He was a polite, quiet guy, usually kept to himself, sleeping a lot during the day," they reported.
After his release from the hospital, Wojciechowski never returned to academic research. "I realized that it would be impossible to know whether the material world has any objective existence in itself, or if it is simply a reflection of consciousness, like a dream, a rainbow, or an infinitely detailed mirage. So I could not continue in science." he said in an interview soon afterward.
After his return from India, Stanley took a job as a gardener, let his hair and beard grow, wore a wreath of flowers, and eventually became quite popular as a yoga teacher. People from all over the world sought him out for advice and answers to questions about life. Stanley Wojciechowski is now the well-known author of 43 self-help books, among them the international best-seller, co-authored with the Dalia Lama, Make Me One With Everything.
Illustrator Paul Mirocha tried to capture the complex human and scientific story of the Rorschach Ladybug in this illustration, which was chosen for inclusion in the Society of Illustrators of Los Angeles Illustration West 47 show.
And if you believe in the Rorschach ladybug, well, then it exists for you too.
(link for the SILA show: http://si-la.org/47/unpublished.html)
Thursday, June 11, 2009
The Grand Ladybug by Paul Mirocha
Monday, June 8, 2009
The Black Mamo by Paul Mirocha
Many species have suffered at the hands of humans, but perhaps few so ignominiously as we did. For thousands of years, life was good. Black mamos lived like everything else on Hawaii, taking it easy, hanging loose. We did what we had evolved to do: sip sweet nectar from curved, tubular and very abundant Lobelia flowers with our sickle-shaped bills. We weren't pretty, but that was fine with us. When the Polynesians arrived and started trapping our cousins, the Hawaiian mamos, for their bright yellow feathers to make capes for their kings, they left us alone. We stayed out of it.
Until we were "discovered" by science in 1893, in the form of a particular biologist named Robert Perkins.
Professor Perkins named our "new" species Drepanis funerea because our colors reminded him of a funeral suit—and also because, for some reason, he thought we wouldn’t be much longer in this world. And sure enough, the last verifiable black mamo sighting was made by another biologist only 14 years later in 1907—just before the biologist shot the bird. I quote from his field notes: "To my joy I found the mangled remains hanging in the tree in a thick bunch of leaves, six feet or more beyond where it had been sitting. It was, as I feared, very badly mutilated. However, it was made into a very fair cabinet skin." How's that for adding insult to injury?
Artist Paul Mirocha painted these black mamos to illustrate the word "extinct" for first-grade kids. Extinct: A living thing becomes extinct when no members of its group are alive on Earth. I like it. That's a flattering profile, and he also got it right about how things were back in the day. And when you next go to Hawaii to hang loose, take it easy, and sip a Mai Tai, remember the black mamo. Aloha.
Leigh Steinberg's Super Bowl XLIII Party!
Paul Mirocha painted this logo in January 2009 for Leigh Steinberg's 23rd Annual Superbowl Party. Held at Tampa's Lowry Park Zoo, this year's theme was eco-friendly—well, except maybe for the pirate ship the client requested halfway through the final painting. The schedule was crunching, and they kept adding more animals, but Paul and art director Michael Kavish made everything work.
That was appreciated, as his client wrote afterwards, "Words cannot begin to express our appreciation for your insights into our needs and your professionalism at every turn." And Paul was happy with the product, including the pirate ship—after all, pirates can turn green, and they definately like green."
Relationships in Business
A rewarding part of Art Buying is how relationships between Agency and Artists unfold.
From finding the right artist, the introductions, the brainstorming, sketches, revisions…and in the end the Agency’s happy client.
Sadly, gone are the days when we worked with a painter and could wait for the paint to dry before scanning it…most of that process is now handled digitally. I find myself missing the days when we didn’t have so much technology!
But nevertheless, it’s so rewarding to find the perfect artist for the job…sending it the Creative Director and hearing a “BINGO” once they’ve seen the work. And having a client who feels we’ve successfully executed their concept with the perfect combination of art direction and using the right artist.
By Jodi Miller, Director of Art Buying
Abelson Taylor, Chicago, IL
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
What could be more all-American than the hot dog?
The Sonoran hot dog? This recent import from south of the border may have improved upon that icon of American cuisine. There's even a new Spanish word for a street-vendor of the Mexican hot dog: hotdoguero. Hot dog historians argue, local chefs dispute how to make one, and the City of Los Angeles has made them illegal. But the tourists only ask, "Where can I get one?"
When illustrator Paul Mirocha was asked to paint this Sonoran hot dog for a conference on borderlands food traditions, he researched the most popular hot dog stands in Tucson, Arizona for the secret recipe. Start with a steamed bun, then add pinto beans, a hot dog wrapped in mesquite-smoked bacon, fresh-chopped tomato and onion, mustard, mayonnaise, and finally jalapeño sauce—and don't forget a live jalapeño on the side.
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