He has had a difficult life. The Sad Gillman is a sympathetic nod to one of cinema's most recognizable creatures: the Gillman, the mysterious amphibious figure from The Creature from the Black Lagoon. But here, the monster has been reduced to something much simpler. A face. And what a face. Carved as though from a weathered piece of wood, the sculpture is all broad planes, deep cracks, and distressed texture. A smooth domed head rises above enormous gills and a wonderfully oversized mouth. Heavy, furrowed brows gather in concern, while two small, pleading eyes look out at the world with the exhausted expression of someone who has been through quite enough, thank you very much. And then there is the frown. A deep, dramatic, almost theatrical frown. The green face gives way to dark burgundy, red, brown, and purple tones around the lips, adding just enough color to make that expression impossible to ignore. Sad Gillman is not angry. He isn't threatening. He hasn't even given up. He's simply having a really, really hard time. And somehow, that makes him delightful. There is something wonderfully human about the expression. We recognize that particular kind of sadness—the kind that makes you pull your face together, lower your eyes, and silently hope somebody notices. Perhaps the Gillman remembers the Black Lagoon. Perhaps he's remembering something else entirely. Either way, he looks like he could use a hug. Or at least a snack. You may feel sorry for him. You may want to cheer him up. You may even find yourself giggling every time you look at his enormous, pouty face. And that's okay. Sometimes the most sympathetic creatures are the ones who make us laugh. Sad Gillman hasn't given up. He's just very, very sad. This is a piece of magnetic art. It was hand sculpted and cast in durable urethane with a high strength magnet. It is hand painted and may differ slightly from the image above.
