Oh, what bliss is innocence?

Welcome to the strange and unexpected world of 'Spare Us The Blotter', a generative artwork that took the artist somewhere dark.

Let's rewind a moment, I'd just minted out a celebratory piece 'Internal Monologue' which is a study of how the mind can stray and be calm or chaotic, so you know, light and airy stuff. So For my next piece, I thought I'd do something new and different, how about a study of ink? I'm used to stark, crisp lines, and perfect graphic elements, so this was already out of my comfort zone. Initial versions flowed down the screen quickly in a standard paper/black/red scheme. Then I added yellow and the image suddenly caused me great stress. I was onto something.

I started to play with other inking techniques on top and then slept on it. The next day the idea of the Rorschach Inkblot Test started to fascinate me - so I started creating an effect like that - but I didn't google it, as I wanted to build it from a hazy memory, rather than a reproduction.

Immediately it all made sense, while the original blots are on a plain backdrop, the somewhat terrifying streak of ink seemed to be the blots and mind working together. Self-analysis creates fear, an uncomfortable state.

The streaks can conjure thoughts of dark forests, decay, the inner body and sub-cellular level activities. Things we don't understand.

Once I was happy with the renders, I started to add variety and features (there are 9, I think the most of any project I've done). I also allowed myself a peak at the originals, which are much more angular and there's a texture in the blots, which I've transferred to the backdrop. They also contained colours so I added some random coloured elements.

But something else happened, I started to stare deeply into them, see things, monsters, people, objects, and darkness. Even Pennywise the clown, Woah, I'm getting scared now.

The power of the mind and images is strong, as are our deep-rooted fears and desires. Hopefully, this piece gives the viewer a taste of self-awareness and maybe just a little scare!

Finally a shout out to the discord members that gave feedback and helped make it a better piece. A great call by Elout De Kok on adding a less perfect fold for the blots - which is now a feature.

The title is a play on lyrics from the song 'The Cutter' by 'Echo & the Bunnymen. A song that struck fear in me the first time I heard it, and I learned to love every note.

Oh and there's an easter egg, to help conquer the darkness.

Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoy the work.

Some WIP outputs...