“The Scarlet Snake: Death Blast of the Sky Devil” by Phillip Rex Huddleston, 2025, multimedia on art board, 24×36.
ABOUT THE COLLECTION
“‘The Scarlet Snake’ collection is an ode to my father. Decades ago, he created a pulp comic about the Scarlet Snake, slid it into a blue pocket folder and there it sat. When I was approached by artist Robert Bean about a pulp-themed show for Gallery 26, I opened the yellowed pages of the comic and created a world around this figure. The collection imagines the Scarlet Snake as an icon of the WWII era traversing novels, radio, film, animation, the occult and a murder mystery. The past two years have been an ongoing conversation with the literary and artistic joys my father continues to bestow on me.”
ARTIST STATEMENT
“‘The Scarlet Snake’ collection explores the historic media and techniques that popularized the pulp/noir movement. Older depictions in the collection — from pre-Renaissance religious icons to 15th century grimoire-tinged ink works — show these mythologies as part of a continued conversation with characters and narratives.
“The show offers an interactive, multimedia experience that celebrates all things pulp. An entire radio show was recorded to showcase the suspenseful tones of the organ and dramatized voices of characters. Clues of a murder mystery can be examined with QR code links, taking you to detailed police reports. All the while, a fully costumed mannequin of the Scarlet Snake stands nearby for selfies. Each piece invites exploration through a variety of senses to enjoy the world of pulp.”
ARTIST BIO
Phillip Rex Huddleston exhibits works in galleries throughout the region, illustrates for international and state clients and composes film and commercial scores as well as multiple albums. His visual work focuses on portraiture in charcoal, oil and digital media while his commercial illustrations span across institutions such as The Idle Class, Stephens Inc. and Ink Global. With his interest in multimedia as well as game design, Huddleston has written and illustrated two roleplaying games that are currently being play tested.
See Huddleston’s collection “The Scarlet Snake Retrospective” as part of the exhibit “Pulp Fictions” on display at Gallery 26 through Oct. 31.
Find more at philliprexhuddleston.com and on Instagram at @philliprexhuddleston, and listen to “The Scarlet Snake Radio Show” at thescarletsnake.bandcamp.com.