Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Hear Ye Hear Ye: More Sketches!

These are some recent pages from my observational drawing sketchbook; it is mostly drawings of Lindsey! I also keep a sketchbook that is for working out more complex images in a rough, nuts and bolts way. My next post will be some of those more clunky sketches and the (eventually) more streamlined results that follow from them.


This is Lindsey on the day I proposed (August 19th) and getting her hair cut in proximity to a girl who had raccoon/tiger stripes in her hair.


These are the food carts right across from where I work. The one on the left is everyone else's favorite but I go to the one on the right because they are 98 percent as good and 60 percent faster.

I have been working very steadily on a host of commercial projects lately. Most of them unfortunately, come with an NDA that prevents me from sharing that work here but I have been sketching in my little observational journal when time allows. I thought I might post a few of my doodles until I can get some of the flashier work approved for public consumption.

Friday, September 16, 2011

Tragedy Series Breakdown

I thought it might be fun to do a walk through of how I make my posts for the tumblr I started in recently. Hopefully this won't ruin your enjoyment (if you do enjoy them- I shouldn't assume) of the 'tragedy series.' It would be a shame to ruin it for you like when I found out that Rivendell is a bunch of foam and Christmas lights and now I can't stop seeing that.


If you want to preserve your neutrality on their development and execution you should stop reading now!

Number 222 is a good example of how these little notions I get can become a thing I was proud and surprised that I made. First I try to think of a subject I haven't done yet that falls within the parameters I've set for myself (that I will spell out more clearly in a bit.) As I progress it gets a bit harder but generally it can prompt something unexpected, since I'm trying actively to avoid clear repetition.


In this specific instance I had thought of a news story Lindsey and I saw while we were in Lincoln city, for our anniversary, about a safari park here in Oregon where they have lions that like to play tug of war. That image is enough in and of itself! once I have a self evidently odd or funny situation then I try and compound that comedy if possible. In this case I tried to imagine what sort of opponent would be funny. It occurred to me that a group of kids in a scout troop might do but they had to be capable or else it would be too close to something genuinely sad (the first of the tenents I try to uphold; No genuine tragedy) At that point I write it down to be addressed later.


I generally do a little drawing (like the image of #57 seen above) if I can't fully imagine it but in this case I had it pretty firmly in mind. It is at this point that I will do an image search to find good refrence that coincides with what I have sketched. I lucked out and found these two images:


Even though I had the elements of the final image, the phrasing wasn't quite there yet though and I went through several iterations of what would work best. I often ask Steve Lieber for advice; this questioning runs the gamut from 'should I buy a house?' to 'what sort of pen do you use to ink nostrils?' He is also a super funny guy who gets how to translate humor into drawings because he has studied it extensively for his own development so I go to him first for comedy.


I had written out a bit about 'ragamuffins' challenging a hungry lion to tug o' war but that seemed too plain. It struck me that a 'rematch' would be funny but it didn't quite fit yet. Steve said "Rematch is funnier if there is evidence of the previous encounter...make some of them amputees." I was hesitant to go there but the more I thought of it the more I realized that he was right about the necessity for notes from the first lion vs. kid showdown. I put a few shoes and scraps around the lion and Steve added the cherry on top the sundae by suggesting that I wrap the ragamuffins in bandages and give a few of them ragged clothes. He was so right! Once I did it the whole thing came together and I got this:


There you go. Thanks for sticking with me through that description. Also much gratitude to all of you out there who support my tumblr and read this blog. I am a lucky guy.

Monday, September 5, 2011

Help Fight Humanity's Greatest Foe!

Dear fellow comics fans and artists there is a fellow creator in trouble and we can help!

Dylan Williams has cancer and no insurance (my own worst case scenario) and Periscope studio has organized and ebay auction to help him pay his hospital bills. There is some really nice work available.

I did a Nightcrawler piece for the benefit but it has not received much attention. It would be great to see more bids on it. I think it is a worthwhile cause and a fun drawing. If you want to be a real hero to someone in need, and if you like any of the following: nightcrawler, me, periscope, Dylan or comics, then you won't get a better or more worthy opportunity to share the love than this!


Ebay auction link here

Please spread the word and/or bid if you feel inclined.