figure sketches

Here are a few figure drawings I did at Amherst today, the top one was 10 min. the rest were 60 second studies.


 

SketchCrawl and random news

It's been forever since I updated, These first few weeks of school have been busy, either that or it is just adjusting to the new environment. It's been intense but wonderful! anyway, I organized a SketchCrawl event for Northampton, (check out: sketchcrawl.com for more information on SketchCrawl) and here are some of my results: Sorry for the bad quality photos, I don't like these well enough to spend any time on them. The day itself was really unexpected, It was pouring when I got up , I realized my bus did not run, so I hitchhiked into town in the rain, only to find I was the only sketchcrawler! What a waste of color posters! anyway, I had a grand time, I got to see the inside of the courthouse, or town hall, a great building, the inside of the unitarian church, where there was a giant tag sale, which was great to draw, then I went to the farmers market, where I sat in the back of my friends truck and ate free organic food, great green beans, then I went back to the tag sale, gave some girls advice on a sewing machine, bought a bike, and went to a coffee shop to sketch, where I saw my friend again and arranged a secret drop off point for all the basil left over after the farmers market! He left it in a black garbage bag in the bushes and gave me a map. I must have looked sketchy! 20lbs of organic basil makes a lot of pesto. I am still eating it! So it was an awesome day, but cut short by needing to take the bike and basil back to my place. Not as much sketching as I would have liked. Hopefully the next one will have more people, more time, and better weather! December 9th, mark your calendars!

links

I have posted some links (in the sidebar), all somewhat inter-related, and all amazing. Drawn! is the most wonderful blog ever, with news, random wonderful things and interesting artists. It brings to your attention things you would never know otherwise. The Reuters of the illustration, animation, and drawing world. Flight is an amazing comics anthology, the driving force of a new wave of comic artists, a whole new comic aesthetic. The drawing board is a great forum to post artwork, see great things, and share and get information, SketchCrawl is a wonderful event, an international drawing marathon. Illustration Friday is another great place, where a topic is put up each Friday and anyone can submit an illustration based on it, created in one week. Mojizu is a cute website where you can submit characters, which then battle for popularity via community vote, and the victor gets a hundred dollars! Really cool things just to look at too. Character Designs is another resource site, that posts costumed model sets to draw from, and also has information about online classes, etc. 24hour comics is exactly what it sounds like. and lastly, the only personal blog I list, is Kazu Kibuishi, editor of flight, and wonderful artist in general. His Making of Copper is worth a link alone. Phew! that was more writing than I thought! Check these links out, you owe it to yourself!

Oz at ECMPBA!

We have two fantastic exhibits up at the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art, where I work, one on illustration of the world of Oz, and one on the process of creating picture books, from rough idea sketches to publication, both are excellent. Oz has some really excellent rare work by John R. Neill, a wonderful and rarely seen illustrator. I am going to use this opportunity to post some of his excellent work outside of oz, that can be found here.




















Really good stuff. There is lots by Denslow of course, the origional illustrator, but also some things by Joyce, VanAllsburgh, and Zwerger, who are all people I am particularly fond of. Zwergers illustrations for Oz are really unique, because she never actually saw the movie or the old illustrations, it is just her own imagination with no preconceptions. The result is really fresh and inspiring. I wish I was allowed to take picturers from the exhibit itself, these are from the web. It's a fantastic set of shows, and anyone in the area should see them at all costs!

new blog!

So, It seems I am starting a blog! It will be a place where I can talk about ideas, post some of my artwork, and where people will always have a way to get in touch with me. For a long time I have been sort of old fashioned in my communication and artwork but I am now seeing the ligtht of the computer screen. I am really excited about the digital painting and character work that is going on now, really spectacular stuff. A lot of this stuff is coming from the film game and animation industries, from concept artists, storyboarders, animators, and the like. Besides doing their money work, these people are creating a bright new world of independent narrative art, web comics, graphic novels etc. This is some really innovative stuff, and through anthologies like flight comics, individuals are able to create stories and worlds as sole creators, not just as cogs in a wheel or members of an animation or design team. The comics these artists are making are nothing short of beautiful. Also inspiring is the wonderful online community from which this is springing up, with great resources like the Drawing Board, Illustration Friday, and the Drawn! blog.