Bill Carman’s Whimsical Illustrations with a Dark Edge

Creepy creatures, spindly figures and quirky narratives compose the illustrations of Bill Carman. Pigs in suits and yin-and-yang armored headgear stare at one another – snouts pressed together – with eyes wrinkled with age of wisdom. An angry bronze-faced rabbit sits in the foreground holding a screwdriver, gazing at the viewer and threatening to unscrew the boars’ masks. Though Conunganger has an Animal Farm aesthetic, They have My Eyes evokes a Tim Burton sentiment.

Combining animals and human figures, images like Zip reveal the dynamic, often dark, nature of personhood. With sleek black hair split down the middle and a powder-pale complexion, the head of Vampirella emerges from a mysterious pool. Floating around the bleak figure, sea creatures like piranhas and octopus complicate her disposition. Like much of Carman’s work, the piece balances a fairytale sense of lightness with a darker aesthetic.