31 MAR 2021

Keep Me in Your Heart (Spectre Edition)

Share

facebooktwitter

This week, we welcome a phantasmal new colorway for Keep Me in Your Heart by Matt Bailey – the Spectre Edition! Combining witty tag-lines and drawings in black ink, Matt Bailey has made a name for himself with dark, humorous, and sometimes controversial illustration style. Let's take a look at some of Matt Bailey's artworks that explore a diverse range of themes featuring his signature female forms and skeletal figure, how we interpret them and why we love them so much!

Body positivity

we're all skinny when we die by matt bailey

"We're All Skinny When We Die"
Courtesy of Matt Bailey (@baileyillustration)

Thicc or skinny or whatever your body type is, it really doesn't matter because we are all skinny when we die. As long as we're alive, let's appreciate what we have, live and indulge, because that really is all that ever matters. Simply put, poignant, and humorous, Matt Bailey sure had fun working on this private commission piece as much as we did looking at it! 

Sacrifice

lifegiver by matt bailey

"Lifegiver"
Courtesy of Matt Bailey (@baileyillustration)

This one is a little gruesome, although being black and white makes it easier to stomach. A curvy lady has her back split open, and branches springing out of the gashes in her skin. Possibly a shoutout to mothers, the life-giver that comes to mind immediately, this visual metaphor applies to every other kind of sacrifices that we have to make in order to create something bigger than ourselves. But guess what, at the end of the day, even when you're bent and broken, you're still beautiful because you made that sacrifice.

All's Well

"All's Well"
Courtesy of Matt Bailey (@baileyillustration)

The lady had it hard, the skeleton man didn't have it easy either. In "All's Well", the charming skeleton is impaled by a dozen swords and arrows, with a golden halo lighting up his skull, paying homage to paintings of martyrdom in Baroque art. Sarcasm or not, everyone has that moment when they're in a grim situation but had to just power through and say "All's Well". Very relatable. 

Lust

"Thirsty?"
Courtesy of Matt Bailey (@baileyillustration)

The most common theme in Matt Bailey's massive portfolio of artworks is probably lust. Sensual, sexual, and often pretty explicit, Matt Bailey is not one who would shy away from representing the most innate and carnal human desires in his art, but he also does so in fresh and clever ways. Similar to Keep Me In Your Heart, a lady and her lover skeleton is engaged in an intimate moment, with her hand in a particularly suggestive posture. The use of the word "thirsty" is on point in this illustration, and it's definitely not just talking about the need to sip some wine!

Love

"She's a Handful"
Courtesy of Matt Bailey (@baileyillustration)

A clever visual wordplay on the saying that someone is a handful, we feel that this illustration is very much about love and understanding. Nobody is perfect, but in the eyes of a lover, any imperfections becomes no big deal. The hand of a skeleton (which we infer to be a lover based on all Matt Bailey's artworks) lovingly cups the female figure, as if admiring or protecting, subverting the meaning of being a handful with a simple illustration. 

 keep me in your heart illustration by matt bailey

"Keep Me In Your Heart"
Courtesy of Matt Bailey (@baileyillustration)

Of course, finally, there's Keep Me In Your Heart. There's a light that never goes out, and that's the love (and a cigarette) that these two share. The skeletal form hovers over a lady, lighting her cigarette, while her being reside within his ribcage. She is his heart.

So which of these artworks by Matt Bailey is your favorite? Remember to tell us and participate in the giveaway on the Mighty Jaxx Instagram, where our favorite answer gets to wins a free Keep Me In Your Heart (Spectre Edition) by Matt Bailey!

Upcoming Release

Staying true to the monochromatic art style of Matt Bailey, a little hint of red makes the burning flame pop. Subtle accents of gloss on the matte female figure, and transparent black polystone of the skeleton creates contrast while maintaining a classy all-black aesthetic.

Here's a "group shot" of the original Keep Me In Your Heart by Matt Bailey, and the upcoming Spectre Edition. If you missed the first one which we released in 2019, then don't miss your chance to preorder this timeless piece for your shelves this weekend!

 keep me in your heart by mighty jaxx and matt bailey

Keep Me In Your Heart (Spectre Edition) is an 8" tall Polystone art collectible releasing Saturday, 3rd April, at 9am ET on www.mightyjaxx.com. Be sure to subscribe and follow us on our Facebook and Instagram for first dibs and release updates! 

Success