Ink drawing by Californian artist Michael Dormer

Dormer constructs a scene where two hybrid figures meet halfway between the organic and the mechanical. A threadlike, almost insectoid form on the left unfolds in a complex tangle of lines and splotches. Slender antennae emerge from what might be its head. Its fragmented body suggests an awkward motion suspended between momentum and imbalance. Facing it, a more compact creature resembling an anthropomorphic bird appears to extend a hand—perhaps offering a check or a high-five—a surreal yet tangible connection imbued with humor. The absence of color heightens the interplay of contrasts: deep blacks, likely achieved through ink washes, stand against the untouched areas of the paper, creating volumes without closed contours. The paper’s space remains open and unanchored, lending the composition a floating, almost dreamlike dimension. As always with Dormer - synonymous with the California surf counterculture of the 1960s and 1970s - the drawing challenges our perception of life and mutable