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The idealistic and iconic imagery of Alberto Vargas was fundamental in my development as a " good girl " artist . There's no telling where my art might have taken me had it not been for my parents' open-mindedness concerning the provocative images of stylized American Beauty that Vargas did on a monthly basis for Playboy Magazine when I was but a small prepubescent child . The flawless perfection in technique and execution of his pinup girls infatuated me and set me on my artistic pursuit to try and achieve that same idealistic image of " the Female Animal " .   By the time I had acheived the necessary skill to actually replicate the work of Alberto Vargas , I had been inundated by a whole plethora of artists whose work I admired : Frank Frazetta , Michael Kaluta , Barry Smith , John William Waterhouse , Lord Frederic Leighton , Hajime Sorayama , Masamune Shirow and had grown enough intellectually to realize I could emulate their work but could never match it , I had found by that time that I had become Gorby , and could never become Vargas, or Frazetta or Waterhouse . That was okay , I had fun creating the definitive " Gorby " look that was to characterize my own renderings of the female form . My artistic fame was a dust mote compared to those careers of the artists I admired , and that was okay too , it is rare for a person to actually achieve a dream in their lifetime and indulge it 24/7 for 20 years .  As an artist , my head was typically always somewhere other than where my physical self was . I was lucky to have grown up during a boom in Toys that gave rise to such classics as GI Joe , Johnny West , Major Matt Mason , and Barbie . The imaginary adventures inspired by my first " action " toy GI Joe definitely enhanced my creative spirit , and the melodramatics that were subconsciously etched into my brain from watching old movies and the juxtaposition of the roles played between men and women were allowed to vent when Fighting Man Joe got a Nurse in the form of Barbie . The fact that Barbie came equipped with " dainty unmentionables " was most likely the catalyst for my rabid fascination with " girls " and drew me to pursue an artistic career focused on portrayals of women and now my continued pursuit of executing their figures in 3D miniature form as action figures . The abundance of blank doll bodies currently available in the modern toy market has been the answer to another of my dreams , making toys . Once a good girl artist , always a good girl artist ; the only thing changed is the canvas . No longer constrained to pencil and paper my " Girly " art is now done on computer and in toy form , and I'm really enjoying the variety offered by the different incarnations of customizeable female action figures . Whether using Shockinis , Stikfas , Micromen or Cool Girls it would seem that " Gorby " look may continue unabated .  I have created and illustrated adventure characters my entire life , and now with my custom toys I find myself continuing my former career as a comic artist only now utilizing the computer as my drawing board and my custom toys as my sketch pad for creating new characters . It puts a whole new spin on things that had become routine and I find myself re-inspired to create .  Customizing action figures has been a cathartic experience for me , taking my art in directions that are atypical simply by playing around with this new avenue for my creative drive . Takara Toys' " Cool Girls " line of super sexy action gals have been a great deal of fun and entertainment as well as inspiration and the various other creative minds that are associated with them that I've encountered through our mutual enthusiasms have given me outlet for ideas that have laid dormant in the recesses of my mind awaiting that spark to fire them back into life . Thus was born Dark Babylon and the heroines Barbra Dark and Malicia .  Being a fan of tales of horror and the supernatural I've always wanted to work on a project of that genre . The closest I ever got was doing spot illustrations for Steve Jackson Games' " Gurps " series with their " horror " RPG ; and the occasional bit that might crop up within the storyline of a comic I was doing : never had the chance to actually work on a " real " supernatural thriller series tho' . As I've gotten deeper into customizing action figures , I 've begun to accumulate a small chop shop of bits and pieces , bodies and other unused knick knacks . While putting together the Western themed " Wild Roses " , I got Yamato 's Bounty Hunter Kelly , a somewhat substandard figure when compared to Takara's " Cool Girls " but with a certain appeal thanks to her sharp features and long crimped blond hair . At that same time I also picked up a black felt fedora just because I've always loved the look of that particular style of hat . Cool Girl Jet had already sacrificed her clothes to my Warrior Maiden custom and Dallas from Wild Roses but having retained her trenchcoat ended up inheriting the fedora since long overcoats and wide brim hats work so beautifully together . Upon the arrival of my latest purchase of a sexy black dress from the Hong Kong based " Figure Monster " , the man behind the website Action Figure 2002 ; THE source for 1/6 scale figure customizers , I began creating the two characters that would materialize into the heroines Barbra Dark and Malicia for my horror storyline " Dark Babylon " .  Something about that tagline from that classic crimefighter The Shadow has always remained firmly entrenched in my psyche , and combined with the imagery conjured up by the writings of that master of unnameable horrors , H. P . Lovecraft and my love of rich melodrama such as that unmatched TV series " Dark Shadows " form the basic premise of " Dark Babylon " . Combining ( or confusing ) timelines for a 1940's retro take on events set in the 21st century is a theme that seems to be cropping up for me very recently and is one of the benefits of pursuing creative fiction . In an alternate reality of one's own device , you have the freedom to incorporate whatever strikes your fancy , regardless of whether or not it makes sense , simply by tripping the light fantastic . Now , with the visualization of paranormal sleuth Barbra Dark , her " odd " waif-like companion Malicia , the stage is set for adventures of a dark and gothic nature within the bounds of a " Dark Babylon " . Click the Pic for a full size pinup . Stay Tuned for Part Two of " Good Girl Art in Miniature " | Frank Sturdy PlanetSmasher | Scales 101 | Good Girl Art | Good Girl Art Part2 | Gothic Elf | Baba Noel | | ReelArts Blue Bulleteer | Shocker Toys | Cool Girls | Triad Toys | KiniKomix | KiniKomix2 | Custom Action Figures | eBay Auctions | AppleseedTribute | Macross Valkyrie | Planet of the Apes | Horse Sense | WeaversUpholsteryToo | ToyBiz_Iron Man | Dirty Pair | On Display | The OTHER Gorby | Obitsu | | Return Home | Updates | The Archive | Gorby Site Map | Geeb-O-Rama's Model Workshop | Geeb's Toy Box | Geeb-O-Rama Goodies | Movie Madness | World Of The Bizarre | Cool Beans | |
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