NIAD Windows Exhibition: The Ultimate NIAD Hard-Core Horror Metal Art Show

A ceramic piece with a slimy glaze of a gruesome figure with a reptilian head, a slug-like body, a lidless eye, and a jaw full of jagged teeth. One tooth has an eyeball growing from it.

About the exhibition 

“Bonfires burning bright
Pumpkin faces in the night
I remember Halloween …

Halloween, Halloween, Halloween, Halloween
Candy apples and razor blades
Little dead are soon in graves
I remember Halloween”

-The Misfits

About the organizer

Alan Perez is an artist who is interested in the dark side. His work may not always be the nicest or the friendliest, but to be honest with you, he’s more interested in the darkness and mysteries of life. 

From bands like Misfits to filmmakers like Tim Burton to writers like Edgar Allan Poe, Alan is very interested in popular culture’s ideas of the dark side, too. Alan is an enthusiastic horror film fan and often reinterprets classic horror film icons in clay like Michael Myers from the Halloween film serial.

Additionally, Alan is frequently inspired by graphic novels, including Watchmen and Batman. In contrast to his interests in contemporary metal music and comics, he admires the craftsmanship of master painters such as Vincent Van Gogh and Leonardo Da Vinci.  Alan is a multidisciplinary artist who works in charcoal, paint, fiber, mixed media and ceramics. While he enjoys many materials, he identifies as a sculptor first, noting that sculpture is much more real and much more appealing to him.

Artist statement created with the support of NIAD Studio Facilitator Em Kettner.

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a pencil drawing on white paper, photographed against a stack of other drawings. The image shows a figure holding a skull-and-bones shaped guitar standing in the center of the picture, surrounded by skeletons and ghosts and bats. There are several gravestones with "RIP" written across their surfaces scattered around the ground. The characters all seem to be smiling and cackling with evil grins, and posed like members of a metal band.

[alt text for image 1: a pencil drawing on white paper, photographed against a stack of other drawings. The image shows a group of figures staring out toward the viewer. The central figure stands confidently holding a skull-and-bones shaped guitar. They’re surrounded by skeletons and ghosts and bats. There are several gravestones with “RIP” written across their surfaces scattered around the ground. The characters cackle with evil grins, as they pose like members of a metal band. ]

a photograph of a colorful air dry clay sculpture standing on a table. The sculpture depicts a playful and scary red creature: a cyclops with a huge white eyeball with a blue sliver iris, and below a gaping mouth full of sharp white teeth and a curled white tongue. The proportions of the creature appear to be mostly a large head with 2 little red feet sprouting from the bottom jaw, and stuck to the table to support the sculpture.
a photograph of a small blue sculpture standing on a wood table. The sculpture is made with air dry clay, and depicts a monster creature shaped like a starfish with spindly radiating arms. The creature has one big white eyeball in the center of its body with a vertical red bar for an iris. Below the eye, sharp white teeth and a long red tongue protrude toward the table. Three of the creature's limbs stretch out and up around its head, and two are bent and planted on the table, keeping the character standing upright.

[alt text for image 2: a photograph of a small red sculpture balanced on a table. The sculpture is made with air dry clay, and depicts a playful and menacing creature: a blue-eyed cyclops with a gaping mouth full of sharp white teeth and a curled white tongue. The proportions of the creature appear to be mostly a large head with 2 little red feet sprouting from beneath the bottom jaw, and stuck to the table to support the sculpture.
alt text for image 3: a photograph of a small blue sculpture standing on a wood table. The sculpture is made with air dry clay, and depicts a creature shaped like a starfish with spindly radiating arms. The creature has one big white eyeball in the center of its body with a vertical red bar for an iris. Below the eye, sharp white teeth and a long red tongue protrude toward the table. Three of the creature’s limbs stretch out and up around its head, and two are bent and planted on the table, keeping the character standing upright.]

a row of painted mixed-media sculptures lined up on a wooden shelf at the artist's home. Each sculpture depicts a different movie villain or metal band. On the far left is a sculpture of a figure with a long neck and a head that seems to be splitting in two. Text written on the base reads "The Thing." To the right are sculptures of the head and neck of movie villain "Freddie" from Nightmare on Elm street, with his yellow teeth and red and black striped shirt. In the center of the image is a sculpture of movie villain Jason from Friday the 13th: a person wearing a white hockey mask stained with blood, striding forward wielding a machete. To the right of Jason is a sculpture of what appears to be a group of figures on a rocky surface, labeled "Iron Maiden." And finally, to the far right sits a larger bust of Jason, with a black shirt, pink skin, and the same blood stained hockey mask. The shelf is spotted with white paint.

[alt text for image 4: a row of painted mixed-media sculptures lined up on a wooden shelf at the artist’s home. Each sculpture depicts a different movie villain or metal band. On the far left is a sculpture of a figure with a long neck and a screaming head that seems to be splitting in two. Text written along its base reads “The Thing.” To the right is a sculpture of the head and neck of famed movie villain “Freddie” from Nightmare on Elm street, with his yellow teeth and red and black striped shirt. In the center of the image is a sculpture of movie villain “Jason” from Friday the 13th: a person wearing a white hockey mask stained with blood, striding forward wielding a machete. To the right of Jason is a sculpture of what appears to be a group of figures on a rocky surface, labeled “Iron Maiden.” And finally, to the far right sits a larger bust of Jason, with a black shirt, pink skin, and the same blood-stained hockey mask. The shelf is spotted with white paint.]