The original version of this print debuted at Other Avatar as a 5′ x 5′ print-based original made of screen prints and acrylic paint on paper mounted to wood. To see it on display + more photos of the exhibition, check out this photo recap.

Not long ago while in a public place I overheard a stranger tell someone that she had posted something on social media using her “other avatar.” This term has become something so strange and ubiquitous.

It was originally a Hindu term referring to the earthly incarnation of a god into material form in the way that Jesus was an Avatar of the Christian/Jewish god. When it was first being used in the context of computers, I was resistant to this application. It felt like a cheapening of something sacred but I’ve come to appreciate it.

In a universe that is changing so rapidly and with so much force and momentum, we all now walk around as gods with multiple incarnations of ourselves in another abstract dimension. Much of my art is an attempt to bring the symbolism and meaning of old mythologies into the context of our current world. The term “Avatar” in the modern sense is a great example of the universality and lateral connectedness that I am most motivated by.

All photos by Lanee Bird.

These are the people in our lives with complicated dispositions and attitudes who never fail to bring us joy, even when they’re jerks—the overly expressive, stubborn, supportive, unpredictable, confused, self important and so on. This new series of prints is an effort to give them the recognition they deserve.

Printed by hand using a woodblock printing process, the three-color matchbox prints are made with oil-based intaglio ink and come with tiny certificates of authenticity resting in the matchbox tray. Learn more about the printing process in the video below. The posters are also screen-printed by hand in our home studio. 

These new open edition designs (as well as the drunk cat matchboxes and posters) are all available for sale in my store. 

Not long ago while in a public place I overheard a stranger tell someone that she had posted something on social media using her “other avatar.” This term has become something so strange and ubiquitous.

It was originally a Hindu term referring to the earthly incarnation of a god into material form in the way that Jesus was an Avatar of the Christian/Jewish god. When it was first being used in the context of computers, I was resistant to this application. It felt like a cheapening of something sacred but I’ve come to appreciate it.

In a universe that is changing so rapidly and with so much force and momentum, we all now walk around as gods with multiple incarnations of ourselves in another abstract dimension. Much of my art is an attempt to bring the symbolism and meaning of old mythologies into the context of our current world. The term “Avatar” in the modern sense is a great example of the universality and lateral connectedness that I am most motivated by.

Selected works from the show pictured below. Email nyc@hashimotocontemporary.com for advance collector’s preview.