Animals are great. They’re beautiful, interesting, and great design inspiration! Our two new Design Annual 2022 show just how animals can bring out the best of us.
Graphis Master Michael Pantuso is an amazing multi-disciplined graphic designer and artist, having worked with clients such as Allstate, Home Depot, and Walt Disney World Studios, and won multiple awards from Graphis. Some of his best work can be found in his “Mechanical Integration” series, where Michael explores nature and humanity through illustrations that combine natural life forms with mechanical components. The series was celebrated as a solo exhibition which began in Paris, France, then went on then a tour of Europe. Much of the work now remains in galleries and private collections.
One of the series’ best works is “Harlequin Rooster” (above), a digitized oil painting that was purchased by the Acquisitions of Fine Art gallery in Hinsdale, Illinois. The metallic gray rooster stands against a black background. Silver wires and gears make up the rooster’s neck feathers, and blue, red, and green shapes overlap to give a hint of the rooster’s natural coloring. Orange and black striped horns curl out of the rooster’s head, completing its chimeric transformation. Given how chickens are used to produce eggs and meat, it’s easy to see this animal as some type of “machine” and how they and other life forms are so much more.
