2006 08 17 - Mario with Russian Hammer and Sickle

2006 11 22 - Maori Mario with New Zealand Flag

The juxtaposition of Mario, and these national symbols give the viewer a lot of room for narrative.

They make me think about national identity, and how people are shaped by the environment they grow up in. How would a Soviet Mario be different from a Japanese, American, or New Zealand Mario?

I like the energy and punk aesthetic of the New Zealand painting. It was drawn using q-tips and fingers, and has more texture than the Soviet painting.

I prefer the placement of Mario in the Soviet painting, where he has almost the entire painting in front of him. How will he interact with the hammer and sickle? Are they a new form of power-up, able to imbibe him with super communistic powers? Maybe they will force him to share his mushrooms, fire flowers and 1-ups with Luigi?

NZ Mario has already traveled past the flag, did he stop to look at it? Maybe he is stopping underneath getting ready to jump up, and smash the flag like a wall of bricks, hoping that some prize is locked within?

I gave both these paintings to friends. The New Zealand one is currently in England, and the Soviet one has been honoured by being put in a room with a seat (or throne really) for people to sit and contemplate its meaning.