Buzzfish #1. 24" x 48" Acrylic, gunpowder, fire, and water on hard board panel. I did this painting of my new Stick Vega fish series using acrylic, high speed fuses, gunpowder, and fire. It is burned black and gray on a cool blue background with a lot of texture. Primitive and modern - a Stick Vega original (2012). 

American gunpowder artist, Vega places powder and fuses on the surface of the board, which he positions horizontally on the floor. When ignited, first the fuses burn instantly along the cord lines, igniting the gunpowder and creating loud bangs and flashes of fire, which then vanish in clouds of smoke. The result is a textured surface that looks and feels like an explosion—the acrylic paint on panel is blackened, charred, and erupted, arrested in a state of being created in a flash.

When the fuse is lit, there is a moment of uncertainty. What will happen? It is at that moment that true art exists.