photo by Jon Wiederhorn

Following a week long hiatus, the Clown is back. Slipknot percussionist and artist Shawn Crahan has dusted off his picture boxes and combed through his gnarled memory to bring us some of his most striking images to date. We begin this week with "After the Show," a shot of a girl with a cigarette that's aglow with color and life. What blows us away isn't her bright blue hair, it's that rough, weatherbeaten hand with chipped black nail polish that makes us wonder if she's been working in a machine shop -- or worse. Click "more" to see the pic and read Clown's comments. Read more...

Following a week-long hiatus, we'll resume our photo guest blog with Slipknot percussionist Shawn Crahan (Clown) tomorrow, and in the months ahead we've we posting some of his most surreal, sexy, funny and disturbing pictures to date. But for now, check out the last installment of Clown photos we've posted over the past six months. Click "more" to see such stuff as screams are made of. Read more...

Here's the second of three batches of photos we've posted over the past six months from Slipknot percussionist Shawn Crahan (a.k.a. Clown) for his weekly "The Eye of a Clown" guest photo blog. Click "more" to see all of the photos and read Clown's revealing commentary. Read more...

Under most circumstances, if you walk up to an artist and tell him that his self-portrait is hideous, you're likely to get a black eye. But tell Slipknot percussionist and photographer Shawn Crahan that his picture "Self" is ugly and he'll smile and thank you from the bottom of his heart.

For Crahan, art doesn't simply exist to mirror beauty. He'd rather evoke sensations of dread and awareness of death through images that are sometimes difficult to look at, but impossible to ignore. With his latest picture for "The Eye of a Clown" he's exhumed the torment from his soul and splashed it across the screen for everyone to marvel at. And in doing so, he has once again transformed something disgusting into something strangely appealing. Click "more" to check out "Self" and read Crahan's comments. Read more...

For this week's "Eye of a Clown" column, Slipknot percussionist and resident artist Shawn Crahan sent us a haunting image simply titled "Baby." Considering the kind of horrific, yet compelling stuff he's submitted in the past, we figured the shot might be of a discarded infant or a closeup of a newborn sobbing. We should have figured it would be something more surreal. While Crahan often roots his art in real life horror and violence, he prefers to conjure sensations of fear and dread with imagery that's off-kilter, psychedelic or just creepy as hell. And so, we present "Baby." Click "more" to see the shot and read Crahan's comments. Read more...

Before we dive into this week's photo entry by Slipknot percussionist Shawn Crahan (a.k.a. Clown), we have a public service announcement for our readers. The debut EP by Crahan's other group, Dirty Little Rabbits, Simon, can be pre-ordered alone for $5.99 or with a band t-shirt for $10.99 by clicking here. The link also contains streaming snippets of all six songs on the EP, which comes out January 27. We now return to our regularly scheduled blog.

Crahan new pic, "All of Life and Death," is abstract and kinda sinister. The image in the center is in the shape of an apple, which may be one reason why the artist refers to the shot as his rendition of "the Garden of Eden." But there's more... Much more. Click "more" to see the pic and read Clown's comments. Read more...

For this lovely Christmas Eve -- which happens to be the fourth night of Chanukkah -- Slipknot percussionist Shawn Crahan (a.k.a. Clown) provides us with a heartwarming holiday image -- a dead deer by the side of the road. Could it be Rudolph got a little too snockered on eggnog and drove Santa's sleigh into the side of a barn? If so, where are Blitzen, Donner, Wagner and all their brothers. And did someone hide Santa's mangled body? Sounds like it's time to call in the "CSI Des Moines" team.

But enough of our hypothesizing at the dead deer's expense. And by no means are we attempting to trivialize Crahan's photo, which captures the ugly death of a beautiful animal with dignity and artistry. Click "more" to see for yourself and read Clown's comments. Read more...

After weeks of photos featuring dead birds, creepy clowns, scary tattooed dudes and a BMX biker who seems destined to meet his maker, we were a bit surprised when Slipknot percussionist Shawn Crahan (a.k.a. Clown) sent us a pretty tame looking shot of something shiny and silver atop a popping pink background. As always, there's more to Clown's pics than meets the eye. Click "more" to see "Pink" and read Crahan's commentary. Read more...

In this week's edition of "The Eye of a Clown," Slipknot percussionist and creative photographer Shawn Crahan discusses a scary portrait he took of a guy named Satone. If you're lacking some company around your Thanksgiving dinner table, why not keep your computer monitor on and have Satone join you for turkey and stuffing. Just remember to turn off the screen after the meal or he'll transmit his energy through your connective wires and possess your mother-lovin' soul. Speakin' of mother, if she's there, remember to give her a big hug -- even if she's that shriveled old corpse in your living room rocking chair. Happy Turkey Day, y'all (click "more" to see Clown's photo). Read more...

Slipknot percussionist Shawn Crahan (a.k.a. Clown) isn’t just good at hitting things, he’s also got the mind of an artist and a keen eye for detail. In addition to expressing himself through videos, Crahan has taken thousands of creative photos over the years, and we’re proud that he’s chosen HeadbangersBlog.com as a platform to exhibit some of the shots in a weekly guest blog filled with candid commentary. Click “more” to see week five of “The Eye of a Clown.” Read more...