Monday, June 20, 2011

What Mario might see if he ate the wrong kind of mushroom

There's something enticingly Michael John Kricfalusi-esque about the Mario-focused illustration below, which likely is why I was so drawn to it while combing through Flickr earlier today. (I've long been a fan of The Ren & Stimpy Show, which Kricfalusi created back in 1991.)

What in the hell is going on in this piece (click on it to get a better look at it, or click on this link), you ask? I have no idea. Thankfully, Huddersfield, England-based artist/designer/illustrator James Burlinson--the man responsible for this creepy/wacky image--seems just as clueless.

"I'm not really sure what's going on in this piece," he admits on Flickr. "Maybe it has some hidden meaning? Something to do with the fact that Mario kills for coins, which in turn help Mario to kill for even more coins? Endless cycle of death by plumber? Either that or this is just what Mario would see if he ate the wrong mushrooms."

Check out Burlinson's Flickr photostream to see more of his bizarre-yet-captivating creations, by the way. (I'm especially fond of this piece of Alex Kidd fan art, which seems to be titled, "Predictable!")

4 comments:

  1. There's so much to see here!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Isn't there? I really love it. It's so kooky and odd :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Not too sure what to make of that pic, but just thinking about Ren and Stimpy for a minute kind of cheered me up so thanks for that:)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Well, I'm happy as long as some part of the post cheered you up, Sean :)

    ReplyDelete