It is preparation crunchtime here for the forthcoming “Cryptozoology: Out of Time Space Scale” exhibition, at Bates College’s Museum of Art, showing from June 24 to October 7, 2006. The exhibition travels to the H&R Block Artspace at the Kansas City Art Institute, from late October to December 2006.

For insights into how this exhibition’s symposium somewhat symbolized the “kick off” to the last six month’s incredible interest in cryptozoology and cryptids, see David Pescovitz’s Boing Boing posting on October 3, 2005, and Wired News reporter Mark Baard’s oft-quoted “America Goes Cryptozoology Crazy” of November 1, 2005.

At Bates, I will be creating an art installation mainly from my collection of the International Cryptozoology Museum. As part of that installation, wall space exists for original eyewitness drawings, and support has come from Bates to get these images newly framed. Needless to say, it would be great to get such items as the original classic William Roe Sasquatch drawing (seen at the extreme bottom here) or other items which are historically significant on display (like the first Momo sketch below). There will be some of those within the exhibition and some surprises, but I am also interested in new drawings of cryptids, from never-before-seen old and new eyewitness sketches of your encounters.

What I would like to do is gather as many original cz sketches, as possible, no matter what the level of artistic ability, to have framed and displayed in the space available. If you have or can quickly draw an original image – please do not worry about your skill level – of a cryptid you saw, and if you would like to donate it to this effort, please send it along in the next week or so (by April 15th) to:

Loren Coleman
International Cryptozoology Museum
PO Box 360
Portland, ME 04112

What are needed are the raw, drawn originals only – no computer generated illos, no email images sent, no photocopies. And while Bigfoot is a common theme, I am including all cryptids, of course.

Please pack any pen-and-ink, pencil, chalk, paint depiction, doodle, portrayal, representation, or sketch in a rigid envelope or package, and mark on it “Do Not Bend.” Include brief details on your sighting(s) or a reference to where it has previously been written about online, in a news article, or in a book.

If you wish to donate three-dimensional art for the exhibit or the museum, such objects would be greatly appreciated too, by the end of April, but I need time to get the flat art framed, right now.

Thank you.