(Krampus art courtesy of Bill Rude and ©2013, 7hells.com. Used with permission)
Ah, good old Saint Nicholas. A completely-benevolent figure, right?
Wrong.
In some European countries’ Christmas folklore, Saint Nicholas has a devil-like assistant: “Krampus”. And Krampus’ job description is punishing misbehaving children with switches–or even carting them away if they’ve been really naughty.
Artist Bill Rude is an expert at bringing Krampus to life. On paper, he creates him in his retro horror art Christmas cards. (He also draws Christmas spider cards–and in this interview, he’ll tell you why!)
But Bill’s artistry doesn’t stop there. He also portrays Krampus, as a member of Los Angeles’ first Krampus Performance Troupe! As Bill exhibits his work this Saturday, at Bergamot Station’s Copro Gallery in a show entitled “Naughty or Nice”, he’s also scheduled to portray Krampus in a performance that evening!
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