Making the Spectrum Awards
I am very proud to finally share this video with you. Since 2017, we have made these Spectrum Awards thus far for Spectrum 24, 25, and 26: The Best in Contemporary Fantastic Art, and we have filmed the process along the way. My artists at Kosart Studios worked tirelessly to make 17 awards each year: 8 Gold Awards cast in cold-cast bronze, 8 Silver awards cast in cold-cast aluminum, and 1 Grand Master Award made from a combination of cold-cast bronze and aluminum. They are completely and individually made and assembled by hand. Take a look behind-the-scenes of Kosart Studios and see the in-depth process of making the Spectrum Awards that I have designed and sculpted, on bases designed and created by my father Joseph Kosar, with production and assembly done by Kosart Studios. The video can be viewed in YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dx_dGuIG7qE Please like, comment, and share this video, and make sure you subscribe to my YouTube channel KOSARTeffects!! Thank you to Specrturm, and everyone who worked on these awards and helped make this video possible.
The following is my statement on the awards as it has been published in Spectrum 24:
"Growing up through my creative career, I have always looked to Spectrum as a source for inspiration. The art inside was something I strived to reach for. Through the years I have been lucky to get juried into the book several times, and was honored to be one of judges for Spectrum 21. Up until recently, that was one of the highest points of my fine art career. Then, I was asked to redesign, and create the new Spectrum Awards for Spectrum 24. Being selected to design an award to represent Spectrum, and to create the awards that will be given to my favorite artists that I have looked up to, feels like an award in itself, and has become a momentous achievement in my art career that to date, I am most proud of.
"When I was asked by John to redesign the awards based off one of my fine art mask sculptures, Aurelian, I knew I could not create one character to represent the spectrum of what Spectrum is. Instead, I selected four characters to make up the one, each to personify the different themes of Fantasy Art. The four characters and themes I selected are: a Human for Mystical, a Dragon for Magical, a Faun for Mythical, and a Cyborg for Mechanical. The themes are each embossed in the back of the mask quadrant, and each quadrant is exploded from each other, floating, yet still connected.
"Each quadrant was designed to be somewhat symmetrical in overall shape, yet with different characteristics and an exploration of many different textures, from skin to scales, fur to metal, and two different textured horns. Also, I wanted the award to be feminine, strong and beautiful, almost as a multi-faced goddess. The mask sculpture represents not only the diversity in themes of Fantasy Art, but also the diversity within the community of fantasy artists. Every artist within this community inspires me.
"With my background in special make-up effects, I am obsessed with creatures and characters, and focus primarily on their faces, and naturally, I have an affinity towards masks and everything they represent. Masks, like visual art, is one of the first forms of creative communication from the earliest days of primitive humanity, long before the written word, and is something that has lasted through the centuries. Early cultures used masks to represent spirits and gods, used in rituals and performances, and even for strength in battle. As fantasy artists, we wear many disguises though the stories we paint on canvas or sculpt in clay. Our emotions add character to the subjects of our work, yet just like a mask, many people who view our work will first see our art, before ever seeing or knowing us. We pour ourselves and our vulnerability into our art, yet for many of us, it is the way we communicate with the world. When someone wears a mask, their inhibitions fade and suddenly they can do things they weren't able to do with out it. We become fearless with our art, and can speak to the world better through this form of visual communication than we ever could directly as ourselves. When someone wears a mask, they can become not just anyone, but anything. Through our art, we become the heroes and legends, the creatures, the villains, the gods and goddesses, the warriors, and any other character that suddenly is on an adventure beyond anything that this reality can allow. Through art, anything is possible.
"What this meant to me to create this award, knowing that it will be going to the Spectrum elite, friends and colleagues, all of whom I look up to and admire, I put as much of myself into the sculpture as possible, and spent the time to make every aspect of the sculpture a work of art in itself. To me, this project was personal, not just another job. Each segment of the mask was cast in cold-cast metal, to give the look, feel, and weight of real metal, yet the flexibility for replication and finishing. The bases were created by my father, Joseph Kosar, who works along side me in my studio and who makes the bases of my personal sculptures. After I sculpted the mask and my dad created the base, all award production and assembly was done by my talented team at Kosart Studios.
"I want to sincerely thank John, Arnie, and Cathy for the tremendous opportunity to create a piece of art to represent the community I love the most, for the artists I admire the most. And thank you Spectrum for letting my artwork represent you." ~ J. Anthony Kosar in Spectrum 24.
For more information on SPECTRUM: The Best in Contemporary Fantastic Art, please visit: http://www.spectrumfantasticart.com
