The Holy Dragon of the Underpass by Chipka
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No AI - This artwork was created entirely by hand or with traditional digital tools.
Description
Every so often, the devout members of the Chicago urban community come across the Virgin Mary in salt stains under viaducts…or in mold patterns under viaducts, or in rust stains that mark the drool-patterns of downspouts: commonly, under viaducts. The Holy Virgin does not seem to manifest herself in clouds, any more: nor is she prone to reveal her miraculous presence in flowers or anything not involving mineral buildup, mold, and rust: she might reveal herself on grilled cheese sandwiches, though it’s often her son who pulls that stunt. I don’t believe in Virgin Sightings at all, though perhaps I’m missing something. There is a pattern, after all, and so perhaps it’s the other Virgin Mary: the Holy Mother of Seepage
As I left work, today, I felt the urge to walk around and point my camera at things. I wasn’t thinking of the Holy Mother of Seepage, or any of the other Holy Virgins known to occasionally make themselves known in very particular neighborhoods in Chicago. I wasn’t thinking of manifestations of any sort, and so it came as some shock, as I walked along Grand Avenue, under Lake Shore Drive, and saw a dragon. I simply had to document my sighting, and so I snapped photo after photo, hoping that at least one of them came out. The rule is, after all, when photographing Holy Virgins, UFOs, Bigfoot, or the Loch Ness Monster, one must enhance the photo with intentional camera motion, and lots and lots of fuzz. I broke all of the rules here, and so it’s likely that my dragon sighting was little more than a transient hallucination. If you look carefully, and use your imagination, you might just see a dragon in this image, but I’ll say here and now, I don’t vouch for its authenticity, lest I be accused of starting a wave of mass dragon-sighting hysteria.
As always, thank you for viewing, reading, and commenting, and I hope you’re all having a great week. I also hope that I may eventually catch up on viewing and commenting, myself…
Comments (16)
I don't know about the others who will view this posting after me, but I see a beautiful Chinese dragon protecting something! An impressive and rare sighting indeed my friend.
I don't know. I'm just not seeing a dragon in this image. Sincerely, Dominos Pizza Box Grease Stain Jesus, 2003 ;) Excellent find & great read!
Clearly this dragon just ate the troll under that particular bridge...you can see the blood on his tongue! Although it doesn't look like he was a very big troll, since the dragon clearly looks like he's still very hungry. I'd walk very fast if I were you...
it could be a dragon, but it kinda looks like a very weird, very angry dog to me!! lol
Very well captured !
That is a superb dragon, and it's great to see real skilled graffiti instead of scribble and tags.
Wow! VERY cool! The only thing I saw when walking through a tunnel near the lake was a guy playing a violin who had issues about having his picture taken that seemed to stem from his mother having taken too many photos of him when he was a child. It's well done, and I'm always impressed when someone can draw and/or paint something that seems to curve and be coming out at you. Whether it's really there or not, it's terrific! :)
This would have been a great capture of a rust stained wall if that dragon hadn't stuck his big head in the way. Don't you just hate getting photo bombed?
I too can see a dragon, wonderful art. I also see a young girls face underneath the dragon!!
I see a kaleidoscope of mult-colored unicorns dancing in the rain to a Bob Marley tune.
It's a very fantastic picture !!!
Amazing capture my friend. God bless.
stunning work
An attack dragon for sure and excellent capture/colors!
I think it's cool when pictures the streets beautifies..... like in this case. It shows that people live here!
It is no doubt hiding from the wrath of my cat Lilly: The Dragon Slayer. Named of coarse for her visceral contempt for Chinese dragons. But perhaps all dragons - even the Tolkien variety - are wary of her. She is a 'pounce first and let someone clean up later' type. I suspect your dragon has received word of the smashing (literal) fate of one of his cousins. Your dragon looks like a tough character though. He is still vibrant (how I love those greens) and whole in spite of the viaduct rust which has streamed in front of him for (maybe) years. But I doubt the bars would hold him in for long if he decided to strike out for a new realm.