Cryptessa was one of those projects that developed a life of it's own. When I first met the model, Amanda Palmer, it was to create an illustration for UK magazine Murky Depths. But, she had talked about how she wanted to be in a zombie piece as well, so I planned out the shoot, and built some props for a possible zombie piece. 'Twilight' was quite popular, so revisiting that theme was something of interest to me.

After the Murky Depths illustration and 100s of photographs later, I found the perfect pose, the perfect expression for my zombie piece. All the color began to work in the piece, the glow of the pumpkins, the purple nighttime sky, and the vivid green of her stockings contrasting the stark whiteness of her undead skin. I was incredibly taken by the piece, which was unnamed for quite some time. Being an horror affeciando, Amanda helped me brainstorm name ideas for the piece - but nothing seemed to fit. Somehow 'Cryptessa' popped into my head, and it instantly stuck. Elvira may be the Mistress of the Dark, but Cryptessa is the Mistress of the Grave. I look forward to taking the character of Cryptessa and exploring it a bit more - in a variety of mediums.

'Cryptessa' is being released as my 2008 Halloween print, which will be limited to 31 copies. For those of you new to my work, about every other year since 1998 I've released Halloween editions, limited to 31 prints to commemorate the holiday. To date, all previous prints, which include 'Fever Dreams', 'Conjuring of Azazel', 'Jekyll and Hyde', 'Christine' and 'Spellbound' have been sold out during the season.

There are two sizes available - the limited edition print measures 14"x20" and is printed on archival photographic paper, with archival inks. The color on this piece is beyond description. It is almost mesmerizing. Each of the 31 prints are signed and numbered, and are shipped rolled.