Pittsburgh-based tattoo artist Cliff Maynard has an unusual medium that he works with: used joint ends!
“I was studying mosaics in school,” recalled the artist, “I just remember sort of making this connection in my head between the tiles and roach papers.”
Initially reluctant to display his creations—which can take over 200 hours each to create—for obvious reasons, Maynard has turned out elaborate and quite beautiful THC-infused portraits of Jimi Hendrix, Jerry Garcia, John Lennon and Snoop Dogg. He’s even rendered a resin-flecked homage to Michelangelo’s “Creation.” He takes commissions and charges a reasonable $2,000 for an 8-by-10 portrait and more for larger pieces. Not bad, I say, due to the costs of his, er, “materials”!
Maynard is currently working on a portrait of cannabis culture icon Jack Herrer. As Tommy Chong himself once said to the artist: “Creative way to dispose of roaches, man!”
