Human Nature (Challenge Entry - 2007)

I painted this for CG Society's 2007 challenge "Strange Behaviour"
Here is the text that goes with it; well, at least some of it:

"It's a beautiful day, birds are flying with joy and every creature is enjoying the cool summer breeze. Suddenly, they see this elegant, sharp looking creature coming spinning in the air, twirling and doing all kinds of amazing tricks, almost like music he is (the reins actually looked like the musical clef sign a little, which was unintentional.) Birds decide to tag along for a fly-by next to this supreme leader, until they start choking, and burning from what he leaves behind. He is going full speed, and he is not thinking about slowing down anytime soon..."

This image represents an automobile ride, that had started with horse rides, carriages, thousands of years ago. The flower he is smelling stands for the natural resources we, animals and our machines need to operate, like oil, food, air, and water. His 'car' is a bird, to show that before the engines, we relied on animals for great power. Environmental degradation is taking place related to his ignorant consumption. His mouth is filled with juice, his eyes are closed with joy, and he is blind to anything else when he is at full speed. He is wearing his tool belt, because he would be all naked without his only excuse: Technology. Poor bee is a key element of our eco-system, in particular of our agriculture; lady bug is believed to bring luck in some cultures, so I wanted to save those two from destruction. Distant fires, and droughts are reaching to our water resources in the picture, which is the last standing barrier between inhabitants and effects of global warming. An 'evil eye bead' or 'nazar bead' is attached to the collar of the car-bird, because it is believed to keep the bad spirits/bad luck away in some cultures; people hang them inside their houses, to their precious belongings, and especially inside their cars as a protector. Finally, fart is symbolizing our excessive waste...

The "Strange Behavior" in my illustration is: How come such an able and intelligent creature can destroy the only environment it has, with such indifference, ignorance, greed and elegance at the same time? Like they say: "Don't fart where you eat"