Shots From The Studio #25
“Twas the night before Christmas and up in their beds ill behaved children trembled with dread.
While good children dreamed of gifts and good cheer the naughty ones knew that Krampus was near.”
Die Krampus Nacht by Justin White
The legend of the Krampus has morphed and shifted from it’s original origins in Germanic pre-Christian Paganism, to being the prodigy of Hel, the Norse goddess of the of the underworld, to it most recent incarnation of the hooved and horned Yin to Santa Claus’ Yang.
While jolly ol’ Saint Nick flies through the sky held aloft by magic reindeer Krampus stalks the streets before Christmas finding the naughty children, flogging them with bundle of birch tree branches, scooping them up into his basket and, according to some tales, eating the most poorly behaved of them.
Krampus, whose name comes from the German word “krampen” which means claw, has gone from an obscure European folktale to a bonafide mainstream, neo-pagan holiday mascot. Despite attempts to ban the cloven hooved creature by the Catholic Church in the 12th century and again in 1934 by a conservative Austrian social party. Both citing his resemblance to Christian depictions of the devil. Krampus has prevailed.
Not only prevailed but flourished. The tall traveler of the winter solstice is arguably more popular than ever. There are movies, novels and comic books all celebrating this snarling visage of seasonal corporal punishment. Krampus is great for those of us not quite ready to leave spooky season behind as we eaze into the Yuletide Season.
If you’d like to see some inspiring depictions of Krampus art join Forbidden Panel on Saturday December 14th for our “Take a Krampus” live art stream. It’s sure to be a howling good time.
About The Author
Justin White
Art Director, Chief Creative Officer, Artist. Justin White is an artist/writer, born and raised in Southern California. In the early 2000’s he started his own illustration and graphic design company, Necro-Sapien Press. His first published work was a comic strip called “The Graves” that he co-created. Justin has traveled throughout California and Nevada working conventions while selling prints and merchandise based on his artwork. Justin has been the primary artist on the ZKS comics, as well as providing the artwork for posters, prints, t-shirts and other merchandise. Justin also wrote, penciled, and inked a story called “The Mask of Devouring” for the Forbidden Panel horror anthology, Forbidden Tales.
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