Chiaki Kuriyama Double Feature

As I mentioned in my previous post, Gallery 1988's annual Crazy 4 Cult show is taking place at a pop-up gallery in New York this year. The opening is August 9th, from 6-9pm, at 64 Gansevoort St. New York, NY 10014; the show runs till September 1st. The show is all about cult films, so I thought I'd pay tribute to two of my favorites, both of which feature actress Chiaki Kuriyama as a badass schoolgirl: Battle Royale and Kill Bill (one of my favorite movies period):

"Too Cool for School"
Acrylic, gouache, and ink on paper mounted on cradled panel
9" x 12" x 2"

I thought it would be fun to show her characters (Takako Chigusa of Battle Royale and Gogo Yubari of Kill Bill) existing in the same world, ditching school and loitering like shady teenagers. It was also fun to revisit Battle Royale for Crazy 4 Cult 6 (I did a Battle Royale-inspired piece for the first ever Cult show I was in, Crazy 4 Cult 2).
Here are a couple detail shots:

And here are the sketches. I started off with just the two figures and the wall, then I made up some posters and graffiti that referenced their respective movies, all of which I combined in photoshop to create the final sketch. The poster for The 5.6.7.8's was especially fun to design:

If you live in NYC or are visiting in August, please check out the show, especially if you've never experienced a Gallery 1988 event before! It's sure to be crazy and crazy good.