This 16" x 20" Acrylic Painting was created to show case the detail that was put on Miikka Kiprusoffs mask.

 The one thing that intrigued me the most about Miikka's masks is the
art work that is painted on them. The designs, concepts, and airbrush work is a delightful treat to
view. I hope that one of these days I get the honor to meet the artist who painted this mask.
In this painting I challenged myself to reproduce the same airbrush work using paint brushes. To
put every flame in the right place with the same swirl F/X...Waoh! It was a lot of fun. The
background as you can see doesn't represent my style of having the bleachers full of crazy
people. I tried to create my own idea of flames in hell. Just to go with the theme of the mask. I
also put a little bit of steam around and above the top of Miikka's mask. This just brings out the
dark top of his mask. ...This guy is on FIRE !!! Looks pretty cool if I say so myself.
Unfortunately I wasn't able to watch Miikka sign my painting or take any pictures of him doing so.
It was game day and no one but the media was to have any contact with the players. The night I
went to deliver the painting was when the Flames played the Detroit Red Wings. I had previously
received an email from the Vice-President of Communications Calgary Flames (we will call him
P.H.) stating that I should drop off the painting with a lady by the name of Liz. She was a
receptionist at the Concierge Desk.

I traveled to the game via my company's limo, a jet black 2005 Honda Accord, with 2 friends that I
had picked up on the way to the game, David Polson and Greg Fairhurst . Upon arriving at the
parking lot of the Stampede grounds we were directed into a parking stall by one of parking lot
attendants. All three of us jumped out of the vehicle at which time I decided to show case my
painting to Dave and Greg and now my new friend the parking lot attendant. After showing them
and telling them what my intention were, my new friend the attendant suggest that next to get in
contact with him and that he would take anything I had to get signed by the players. It seems that
he knows the Flames general manager and that they golf together a lot. It would be no problem
for him to get this done for me….. RI-GH-T!?!

Now I made my way down to the Saddledome Concierge Desk and dropped off my painting to
Liz. The kind lady took the painting and said she'll give it to P.H.…As I went out to meet up with
Dave and Greg, the discussion turned towards this kind lady by the name of Liz. David said
jokingly " What are you going to do if P.H. called you to ask you why you didn't bring in the
painting?" We all laughed but then we continued on that subject and my friend acted out this
scene. The conversation would go something like this.

" Hi Joe this is P.H. I thought you were bringing the painting down to get it signed?" I would reply
by saying " I dropped it off with Liz like you said.!?! " PH would say hesitate and then say " LIZ?"
" We don't have a Liz that works here." Yeah that would be funny…
As we sat there in the Dutton’s Canadian Lounge, my heart dropped to the thought that, well what
if? What if P.H. said Lisa and there really wasn’t a Liz….Not a good thin!…. But then again what
if the painting was in deed stolen and the media got a hold of this story?
It would make for an interesting chapter in my young art career … Wouldn’t you say?..lol

This painting was signed by Miikka Kiprusoff on November 2, 2009 and then donated to
the Medicine Hat Hockey Hounds AAA Bantam hockey club for an auction on Nov 20th,
2009.