Tooled with traditional leather-crafting techniques, woodworking, and acrylic paint.

Sean Connolly, Ken Bicha, Dennis Linn

The region around Mount Saint Helens has been the epicenter of Big Foot lore and its ambiguity enables it to stay relevant which lured these artists to experience the start of a group project.
To create the foreground, mid-ground, and whimsical Bigfoot, Sean cut 4 pieces of leather and using leather tools, he carved, tooled, and dyed a mountain with valleys, trees, bushes and rocks. Sean created a new leather technique to fabricate the background sky which was made from 3/16” punched leather circles in various pastel colors.
Ken made the leather sides stable, by gluing ¼” plywood spacers together and fabricated the Bigfoot mechanism. Next, Ken used a router to make a slot in the bottom of the frame to allow Bigfoot to move from its hiding place across the picture. Finally, Ken sanded, and stained the frame.
The project was brought from Washington State to Missouri where Dennis worked tirelessly with acrylic paints in the “drop-in room” in St Louis. Dennis added depth to the features with each brush stroke making the scene come to life starting with a dusting of snow on the mountain, trees, rocks, and Bigfoot. He worked on the project in his hotel room for several nights to improve on the smallest details.
The lore of this guardian of the wilderness and its mythological gravity will lure you into the significance of the landscape as it pulls you into its holistic environment.