Babylopedia #2

Name: Lotto Bot (Itcouldus beyouus)

Notes: One of many poorly produced mobile lottery units created by the 'Company.' Balls often fall out before they are chosen by the vendor. Countless other tickets are sold on the outcome of these fallen balls.

Name: AV Wyrms (Slugus visualis)

Notes: They begin broadcasting upon reaching adulthood, when their aerials are big enough to attract a signal. They mostly transmit low-brow programming but are valued for their ability to broadcast Babylon's 8th favourite sitcom, "Wife on Mars."

Name: Slurtle (Stickus shellus)

Notes: Their painfully slow movement results in a trail of sticky goo which acts as a vital lubricant in many of Babylon's robots and slot machines. Slurtle herders make a very boring living from this goo.

Name: Babylon Slot Machine DCXVI (Slotus diablus)

Notes: They lurk in dark alleys awaiting drunken victims. They rarely pay out, and have been known to throttle anybody foolish enough to try collecting their winnings.

  

Name: Garbage Glutton (Gobblus trashus)

Notes: They clean the streets of Babylon thanks to their unhealthy appetite for refuse waste. Their favourite food however is Babylon sponge, a delicacy that grows in the deep sewers.

           
 

Name: Hot Wax Bot (Lavus lampus)

Notes: Available in a multitude of colours, how wax bots are highly prized by Babylon club owners for their chill-inducing properties.

Name: Kaka Bird (Poopus predictus)

Notes: It is believed these mystic birds stare into the future and then deposit faeces onto those they have seen to win huge fortunes. Although this theory has never proven, there are always Babylonians jostling for prime position under a Kaka bird roost. 

(Fabulous Babylon can be seen here)

Time Out! + Babylopedia

This month my image Fabulous Babylon was featured in the Tel-Aviv edition of Time Out magazine. I still don't know why (alas I can't read hebrew) but this sits kind of well with me, as the whole picture is about chance and the random nature of existence...

A bigger version of Fabulous Babylon can be found on my site and in honour of the image making it into an Israeli magazine, here are some of Babylon's inhabitants all coloured-up, with vital facts about each.

Name: Creeper (Greenus Faceus)

Notes: Endlessly wanders around Babylon gazing at the sights. Extremely docile and thought to be highly intelligent. They can only survive in a poisonous gas they generate within the confines of their protective head tank.

Name: Bubble Cluck (Eggus Roboticus)

Notes: Seemingly useless and brainless robotic chicken that likes to blow bubbles rather than lay eggs. Thought by some to be real chickens in protective suits. Nobody cares enough to investigate further, however.

Name: Light Spiders (Bulbus Legus)

Notes: A walking light source, these creatures can grow up to 18 feet tall. They are the main cause of power outages in Babylon, as they have a fondness for gnawing through electric wiring. They are also the main cause of bath-related deaths.

Name: Guardian of Beth (Pinkus Blinkus)

Notes: A doorman to the temple of Beth, the Snake God. They make great guards as they never sleep and can turn their heads 360 degrees. However, it takes them 10 seconds just to blink and this is when most people sneak past.

Name: Lotto Frog (Croakus Pilotus)

Notes: It is well known that frogs make great pilots, and in Babylon they fly choppers advertising casinos and lotteries. A frog pilot will always go down with his ship, which is pretty stupid really as they come equipped with state-of-the-art ejector seats.

Name: Grumble Grub (Furious Larvus)

Notes: Very angry bug. Compulsive gamblers, they flail their arms wildly and screech loudly when they lose, causing others to flee. They then make off with the unguarded loot.

Babylon Concept Drawing

Before I'd settled on a format for Fabulous Babylon I experimented

with having a more 'street level' viewpoint with a view to perhaps

creating a street scene. I later returned to this idea for my second
Babylon related piece, which also featured better spelling.

Giga Foot

One of the few concept character designs I did for

Fabulous Babylon; most were done on the fly and

drawn straight into the image

Advertising Giant

An experimental concept piece for Fabulous Babylon. Always quite liked this one

96 Stories from Babylon

This should be the last of them. Haven't posted all 304 but well, some were a tad crap. All of the Babylon thumbs were done straight onto newsprint with ink pen, a really free and fun way to work. Click for big :)

64 Stories from Babylon #2

64 Stories from Babylon #1

To coincide with Fabulous Babylon, I produced a series of thumb nail-drawings depicting what I like to call snap-shots or 'stories' from the city. I made over 300 of these thumbnail drawings in total. They act as a means of providing a closer look at city life, showing details too small for the bigger picture. One set consisted of sixteen thumbnail drawings, some of which followed a story or theme, with most not relating at all.

Fabulous Babylon

This image is featured in the upcoming Images 34 annual and should be exhibited at the accompanying exhibition in London, September '10. The image is based on a short story by the Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges, The Lottery in Babylon, which metaphorically deals with how chance can shape our lives. Click for a bigger version...