Sunday, January 14, 2007
ALL IN THA FAMILY
Mandy's PREGNANT!! For those who don't know... Needless to say, I am excited--if a wee bit freaked. More to come...
Friday, December 15, 2006
WHAT'VE I BEEN UP TO?
Very simply, I have been working on a few freelance projects here and there--this on top of my "job" job. It's a never ending process and I am starting to get frustrated about projects that I WANT to be working on and those that are putting food on the table. That's another gripe for another post for another day...
Today I want to talk about the joys of daytime television. As a part time stay-at-home-dad, I sometimes have the television on while doing household chores or while playing with Leo. Usually it's something innocuous like "Frasier" or "The Golden Girls" and, yes, I have gotten addicted to "Days of Our Lives." I'm not proud of it. Long gone, though, are the days when Leo was an itty bitty infant and I could watch "Saving Private Ryan" while giving him a bottle... Now he actually watches TV when I have it on so I have tried to drastically limit the time that the TV is on during the day.
When I do have it on--and if Leo is awake and in the room, I will have it on PBS. Well, the other day this show called "It's a Big Big World" came on. It's kind of a "Henson-esque" show with puppets--animals that all live in a big rainforest tree. Chief among the "World Tree's" denizens is Snook.
Snook is a Sloth and he spends much of his time hanging upside down sleeping--that is when he isn't consumed with the goings on in the tree. I actually started watching this show about a month ago, but now I am actually paying attention to it and there are some details that I have become aware of--mainly concerning the main character Snook. First of all, Snook talks like a lot of people I knew in college--people who also spent a lot of time sleeping upside down if you know what I mean. He talks in this sort of Dead-head, surfer drawl like, well, someone who spends a lot of time baked out of their mind. He's real easy-going--a little TOO easy going sometimes, very "Heey there duuude... What's going oooooon?" He is also very chubby--like he's been hitting the Lucky Charms and Mac and Cheese a little too hard, and when he walks it's in this kind of stoner half-step. Ive seen it all too often--like at the local Taco Bell at one in the morning. His hair is unkempt and shaggy and his eyes, well, you can't even make out the white parts. There's just a hint of red around them. There was also one epsiode where he was "drinking" from a long bamboo "cup" with a straw in it. The first thing I thought was, "That big ol' puppet's got a bong." Then I remembered this was a kid's show. That's when the big hairy bastard took a long pull off that straw and there came a bubbling sound out of that bamboo that sounded a little too familiar if you know what I mean (and I think you do).
Besides Snook, the whole show has a sort of "Phish-Widespread-Panic-Are-you-kind?" feel too it. There's lots of pull away shots of the tree that are a little trippy and the supporting characters are all a little out of their minds too. I mean, looking back at some of the stuff I watched as a kid, including Seaseme Street, I HAVE to think that weed was just everywhere back then. I don't know... This show though... I know there are some folks off camera laughing together at what they think is their clever inside joke. As the end credits roll, Snook sings the ending song which sounds a little like something we sang in the stairwells in college--bombed within an inch of unconciousness. At one point in the song, he invites the kids to "Give me five." It's like he sees through the screen!!
I do like the show though...
Today I want to talk about the joys of daytime television. As a part time stay-at-home-dad, I sometimes have the television on while doing household chores or while playing with Leo. Usually it's something innocuous like "Frasier" or "The Golden Girls" and, yes, I have gotten addicted to "Days of Our Lives." I'm not proud of it. Long gone, though, are the days when Leo was an itty bitty infant and I could watch "Saving Private Ryan" while giving him a bottle... Now he actually watches TV when I have it on so I have tried to drastically limit the time that the TV is on during the day.
When I do have it on--and if Leo is awake and in the room, I will have it on PBS. Well, the other day this show called "It's a Big Big World" came on. It's kind of a "Henson-esque" show with puppets--animals that all live in a big rainforest tree. Chief among the "World Tree's" denizens is Snook.
Snook is a Sloth and he spends much of his time hanging upside down sleeping--that is when he isn't consumed with the goings on in the tree. I actually started watching this show about a month ago, but now I am actually paying attention to it and there are some details that I have become aware of--mainly concerning the main character Snook. First of all, Snook talks like a lot of people I knew in college--people who also spent a lot of time sleeping upside down if you know what I mean. He talks in this sort of Dead-head, surfer drawl like, well, someone who spends a lot of time baked out of their mind. He's real easy-going--a little TOO easy going sometimes, very "Heey there duuude... What's going oooooon?" He is also very chubby--like he's been hitting the Lucky Charms and Mac and Cheese a little too hard, and when he walks it's in this kind of stoner half-step. Ive seen it all too often--like at the local Taco Bell at one in the morning. His hair is unkempt and shaggy and his eyes, well, you can't even make out the white parts. There's just a hint of red around them. There was also one epsiode where he was "drinking" from a long bamboo "cup" with a straw in it. The first thing I thought was, "That big ol' puppet's got a bong." Then I remembered this was a kid's show. That's when the big hairy bastard took a long pull off that straw and there came a bubbling sound out of that bamboo that sounded a little too familiar if you know what I mean (and I think you do).Besides Snook, the whole show has a sort of "Phish-Widespread-Panic-Are-you-kind?" feel too it. There's lots of pull away shots of the tree that are a little trippy and the supporting characters are all a little out of their minds too. I mean, looking back at some of the stuff I watched as a kid, including Seaseme Street, I HAVE to think that weed was just everywhere back then. I don't know... This show though... I know there are some folks off camera laughing together at what they think is their clever inside joke. As the end credits roll, Snook sings the ending song which sounds a little like something we sang in the stairwells in college--bombed within an inch of unconciousness. At one point in the song, he invites the kids to "Give me five." It's like he sees through the screen!!
I do like the show though...
Monday, December 04, 2006
THE GRADUATE
This past holiday, we were in Clemson visiting my family and my mom thought it would be fun (which it was) to watch my old high school graduation. She also was kind enough to put it on DVD for me--which is an added bonus since Leo will be able to watch and laugh for many years to come!
Seriously, this video was a real trip dow the ragged old path that some like to call memory lane. As I look at this picture I can think of how badly I would like to be standing next to this child as he prepares to be vomited out into the world. I would tell him which women he should steer clear of in the future. I would also tell him that tequila should never be "swigged" right from the bottle. I might mention also that it would be a good idea to lose the mullet RIGHT AWAY as opposed to keeping it for another year.
Ours was the last graduation ceremony to be held outside in the football stadium--due in no small part to what can only be described as horrobly inapropriate behavior on the part of the hundred and fifty or so graduates present that hot June evening. Stink bombs were set off. Beach balls were blown up and batted around. And, in what was the greatest stunt of all, a huge blow up doll in the shape of a male stripper was also smuggled in, blown up, and tossed back and forth during the valedictorian's speech. The many administrators, teachers, coaches and sheriff's deputies in attendence seemed either unable or unwilling to intervene--even when the huge doll was vaulted over the front row of graduates and landed right in front of the speakers podium, its large plastic ass sticking straight up in the air. Oh wel...
While the good times were certainly rolling onscreen, I couldn't help but be saddened to see the faces of some friends and classmates who have since either died or been beset by a tragedy of one kind or another. Still, they were smiling on that day. The sun was shining bright and everyone was happy and hopeful about what lay ahead. People cheered and shouted encouragement when your name was called and it felt good to be in the moment--to be happy in the moment. Everyone was a friend--whether you liked them or not.
I still wish that I had done something about that fucking mullet! The sad thing is, I got my hair cut that very day!!!
Seriously, this video was a real trip dow the ragged old path that some like to call memory lane. As I look at this picture I can think of how badly I would like to be standing next to this child as he prepares to be vomited out into the world. I would tell him which women he should steer clear of in the future. I would also tell him that tequila should never be "swigged" right from the bottle. I might mention also that it would be a good idea to lose the mullet RIGHT AWAY as opposed to keeping it for another year.
Ours was the last graduation ceremony to be held outside in the football stadium--due in no small part to what can only be described as horrobly inapropriate behavior on the part of the hundred and fifty or so graduates present that hot June evening. Stink bombs were set off. Beach balls were blown up and batted around. And, in what was the greatest stunt of all, a huge blow up doll in the shape of a male stripper was also smuggled in, blown up, and tossed back and forth during the valedictorian's speech. The many administrators, teachers, coaches and sheriff's deputies in attendence seemed either unable or unwilling to intervene--even when the huge doll was vaulted over the front row of graduates and landed right in front of the speakers podium, its large plastic ass sticking straight up in the air. Oh wel...
While the good times were certainly rolling onscreen, I couldn't help but be saddened to see the faces of some friends and classmates who have since either died or been beset by a tragedy of one kind or another. Still, they were smiling on that day. The sun was shining bright and everyone was happy and hopeful about what lay ahead. People cheered and shouted encouragement when your name was called and it felt good to be in the moment--to be happy in the moment. Everyone was a friend--whether you liked them or not.
I still wish that I had done something about that fucking mullet! The sad thing is, I got my hair cut that very day!!!
SOLD!!
This painting, one of the first large canvases I attempted, sold this week at Gathering Grounds. This canvas probably held the most sentimental value for me--mainly because I think that it reflects more of the "child" in my personality, the child that loves old airplanes. I knew that I ran the risk of losing this piece when I put it up for sale but I felt like I would be okay with it as long as it went to someone who could appreciate it. Well, someone DID buy it and not only did they bbuy this one, they bought another of the pieces that had a lot of sentimental value--and, as it turns out, he's a good bloke with a little girl about Leo's age! So, anyway, that makes it a little easier to part with.
Sunday, November 12, 2006
HERE I GO AGAIN...
Came across this little beauty on good ol' YouTube today. Figure I better enjoy the good stuff before they start cracking down on copyrighted material. Before long, all you'll be able to see is videos of people doing that stupid mentos-diet coke trick.
Anyway, Whitesnake--what a band. Sort of like a sleazier, whiter, Zepplin--but with THREE, count em, THREE keyboard players!! Also, they have that Tawny Katain (or whatever her name is) dry-humping two Rolls Royce's at ONCE!! I mean, that's just GOLD!!
Yes, I did listen to a little Whitesnake. My musical tastes in high school were a veritable potpurri of depressive angst and unbridled, car-humping sexuality. I remember this video in particular because supposedly, there is a part where one of Tawny's nipples peeks out ever so slightly. You know, back in the day (before the internet that is) we teenagers had to take our nipple-sightings where we could find them. Seriously though, my tape collection went from the truly somber (The Smiths, The Cure, New Order) to the "alternative" (REM, The Femmes, Camper Van Beethoven) to redneck, hair metal (Metallica, Ozzy, Whitesnake, Crue, Def Leppard) to classic metal (ACDC, Zepplin) to Southern Rock (Skynyrd) to Rush (I don't really know how to categorize them--geek rock?). I listened to it all--that is when I wasn't listening to U2--which I was most of the time. Sometimes I think that if they were to re-make The Big Chill with people from my generation (who the hell would want to see that?? Anyway...) the soundtrack would include this kind of stuff... God I feel OOOOOOOLLLLLLDDDD...
Anyhoo... Please take a minute to view this awesome blast from the past--and maybe you coould spot the nipple!!
Came across this little beauty on good ol' YouTube today. Figure I better enjoy the good stuff before they start cracking down on copyrighted material. Before long, all you'll be able to see is videos of people doing that stupid mentos-diet coke trick.
Anyway, Whitesnake--what a band. Sort of like a sleazier, whiter, Zepplin--but with THREE, count em, THREE keyboard players!! Also, they have that Tawny Katain (or whatever her name is) dry-humping two Rolls Royce's at ONCE!! I mean, that's just GOLD!!
Yes, I did listen to a little Whitesnake. My musical tastes in high school were a veritable potpurri of depressive angst and unbridled, car-humping sexuality. I remember this video in particular because supposedly, there is a part where one of Tawny's nipples peeks out ever so slightly. You know, back in the day (before the internet that is) we teenagers had to take our nipple-sightings where we could find them. Seriously though, my tape collection went from the truly somber (The Smiths, The Cure, New Order) to the "alternative" (REM, The Femmes, Camper Van Beethoven) to redneck, hair metal (Metallica, Ozzy, Whitesnake, Crue, Def Leppard) to classic metal (ACDC, Zepplin) to Southern Rock (Skynyrd) to Rush (I don't really know how to categorize them--geek rock?). I listened to it all--that is when I wasn't listening to U2--which I was most of the time. Sometimes I think that if they were to re-make The Big Chill with people from my generation (who the hell would want to see that?? Anyway...) the soundtrack would include this kind of stuff... God I feel OOOOOOOLLLLLLDDDD...
Anyhoo... Please take a minute to view this awesome blast from the past--and maybe you coould spot the nipple!!
Friday, November 10, 2006
ART SHOW
My Paintings are actually hanging and they look great... They seem to compliment the surroundings and color palette of Gathering Ground's decor perfectly. We had a small but lively reception last Sunday with the little ones providing quite the floor show. My good mate Raj from Clemson and his handsome family showed up to share in the festivities as well. It was great... And, actually, I have had a few people express a little interest in buying a couple of pieces. We'll see what happens.
This has been sort of a strange experience for me actually--mainly because I don't paint on canvas usually. I am used to my work looking back at me from the computer screen. It's funny how I invest so much energy in trying to make digital images look like wet media--when I could just use the paints and canvas and all that mess and go for the real thing. Why don't I? Well, firstly because paints and materials can be expensive and messy and especially costly if you are prone to making mistakes as I am. Also, since most of what I do is for print and the web, it's WAAAAY easier to manipulate digital media and images as opposed to taking a large canvas, photographing it and then having to color correct it.
Still, I do enjoy painting on canvas when I can. It's hard work but well worth it! I hope y'all will toddle on down to the Kirkwood community to visit the kind folks at Gathering Grounds and check out the art as you sip a Latte...
This has been sort of a strange experience for me actually--mainly because I don't paint on canvas usually. I am used to my work looking back at me from the computer screen. It's funny how I invest so much energy in trying to make digital images look like wet media--when I could just use the paints and canvas and all that mess and go for the real thing. Why don't I? Well, firstly because paints and materials can be expensive and messy and especially costly if you are prone to making mistakes as I am. Also, since most of what I do is for print and the web, it's WAAAAY easier to manipulate digital media and images as opposed to taking a large canvas, photographing it and then having to color correct it.
Still, I do enjoy painting on canvas when I can. It's hard work but well worth it! I hope y'all will toddle on down to the Kirkwood community to visit the kind folks at Gathering Grounds and check out the art as you sip a Latte...
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
ART SHOW COMING UP
I know, I know... I have been long absent from the blogospehere. I have actually been working like a demon--full time job, part time stay-at-home dad. It's just crazy man.
Here's what's what. I am prepping an art show at a local coffee shop called Gathering Grounds. I have a ton of paintings in various stages of undress. I need to get them finished and looking spiffy and ready for hanging. This is my first show ever and I don't really know how to price my paintings or even really what to include. It's strange--but exciting too. I am not really expecting to make, like, a ton of money or anything. It's just so nice to have a place to show my work for w couple of months and if somebody likes it, GREAT!!
The paintings are really an interesting lot. They aren't really a series per se, but they do all seem to have a certain quality in common--that is, I guess they have a nostalgic feel. For some reason, I seem to have an affinity for things from the early twentieth century. I don't know why... Anyway, painting is something that I don't do enough, something that is amazingly comforting and solitary--yes, sometimes lonely. And I really do feel like there's a little piece of me in all of these pieces. They are have a certain sentimental value. I am going to have a hard time parting with some of them. Anyway, I am excited.
In other news, I am exploring a new way of creating illustrations. I'll post more on that I promise!!
Here's what's what. I am prepping an art show at a local coffee shop called Gathering Grounds. I have a ton of paintings in various stages of undress. I need to get them finished and looking spiffy and ready for hanging. This is my first show ever and I don't really know how to price my paintings or even really what to include. It's strange--but exciting too. I am not really expecting to make, like, a ton of money or anything. It's just so nice to have a place to show my work for w couple of months and if somebody likes it, GREAT!!
The paintings are really an interesting lot. They aren't really a series per se, but they do all seem to have a certain quality in common--that is, I guess they have a nostalgic feel. For some reason, I seem to have an affinity for things from the early twentieth century. I don't know why... Anyway, painting is something that I don't do enough, something that is amazingly comforting and solitary--yes, sometimes lonely. And I really do feel like there's a little piece of me in all of these pieces. They are have a certain sentimental value. I am going to have a hard time parting with some of them. Anyway, I am excited.
In other news, I am exploring a new way of creating illustrations. I'll post more on that I promise!!
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
MORE THINKING...
Which really isn't all that good for me I guess. I am turning 35 in a a week and I am feeling a little anxious about it all. I am having one of those "EVERYBODY HATES ME" days. I don't know what my problem is. I guess it could have somehting to do with how hard I've been working lately--OR that I have not been getting enough sleep these days because Leo is cutting teeth and making our lives difficult in the sleep dept.. Just feeling a little paranoid.
I am feeling the burn of my thirty-something years. I look back on things I've accomplished and things left un done or abandoned. I still believe that my most productive years lay ahead--but the trick is finding time to realize those ideas and dreams that I have whirling inside my noggin. I have this grand idea for a story that I keep pushing off to the WAAAAAY back burner--in the midst of all the other stories I have. It's a story I want to do for Leo, one that we can add onto together when he gets older. I won't give away any details but I will be posting some of the sketches soon...
I don't know... Maybe I should head off to bed.
I am feeling the burn of my thirty-something years. I look back on things I've accomplished and things left un done or abandoned. I still believe that my most productive years lay ahead--but the trick is finding time to realize those ideas and dreams that I have whirling inside my noggin. I have this grand idea for a story that I keep pushing off to the WAAAAAY back burner--in the midst of all the other stories I have. It's a story I want to do for Leo, one that we can add onto together when he gets older. I won't give away any details but I will be posting some of the sketches soon...
I don't know... Maybe I should head off to bed.
Saturday, September 09, 2006
JUST THINKING
I am sitting here, just sitting--listening to the house settle, listening to my neighbor's party break up. Car doors are slamming and people are heading home, their radios thumping into the night as the rest of the 'hood seems to slip away under the full moon... Things are feeling strange, almost hyper-real--close to the bone. It's 11:30 and Mandy has gone to bed. Leo will no doubt be up soon for a midnight feeding.
I was hoping to get some work done. I have a deadline to meet and I am worried I may have overextended myself a little with work these days. So as I write this, I know I should be working. I just can't. There is so much stuff swirling around upstairs that I can't be bothered with something as silly as work. And yet I can't go to sleep. It's not that I am anxious, it's almost like I am just aware, calmly aware.
I was hoping to get some work done. I have a deadline to meet and I am worried I may have overextended myself a little with work these days. So as I write this, I know I should be working. I just can't. There is so much stuff swirling around upstairs that I can't be bothered with something as silly as work. And yet I can't go to sleep. It's not that I am anxious, it's almost like I am just aware, calmly aware.
Monday, September 04, 2006
MY LABOR DAY SUCKED--AT LEAST SOME OF IT...
Oh sure, we spent some great quality time with my family in Clemson--which is always great. We all got to sit and visit and of course everyone got to have some great QT with Leo. Mandy and I went for a walk with my dad (who happens to have a PhD in Agronomy from Clemson) in the woods where we were introduced to the lethal pokeweed. So that part was great...
The shitty and really suck-ass part of it is that Steve Irwin died this morning in a freak encounter with a stingray. Steve Irwin, the "Crocodile Hunter" was a true freak of nature, a wild-eyed man-child who would hurl himslef at all manner of dangerous animals and then, as he is holding said animal in front of the camera, deliver a hurried monologue as to the animal's lethality and why it deserves our respect and protection. He was like some bastard cross between Marlon Perkins and my crazy uncle Bill who once grabbed a massive rattlesnake by the throat and killed it because he heard they "were supposed to be pretty good eating."
We used to watch Irwin every Saturday morning in bed... He attacked the world like some mutant three year old--full of wonder and excitement. I will miss him...
The shitty and really suck-ass part of it is that Steve Irwin died this morning in a freak encounter with a stingray. Steve Irwin, the "Crocodile Hunter" was a true freak of nature, a wild-eyed man-child who would hurl himslef at all manner of dangerous animals and then, as he is holding said animal in front of the camera, deliver a hurried monologue as to the animal's lethality and why it deserves our respect and protection. He was like some bastard cross between Marlon Perkins and my crazy uncle Bill who once grabbed a massive rattlesnake by the throat and killed it because he heard they "were supposed to be pretty good eating."
We used to watch Irwin every Saturday morning in bed... He attacked the world like some mutant three year old--full of wonder and excitement. I will miss him...
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
WKRP - Thanksgiving Turkey Drop
Quite possibly the funniest episode of any television comedy ever. EVER!! This was always one of my favorite shows growing up and this episode... It still makes me laugh hysterically. This clip is from the last six minutes. Watch it until the end for the final line. Priceless...
Oh yeah, I am supposed to be working now. This is more fun.
Quite possibly the funniest episode of any television comedy ever. EVER!! This was always one of my favorite shows growing up and this episode... It still makes me laugh hysterically. This clip is from the last six minutes. Watch it until the end for the final line. Priceless...
Oh yeah, I am supposed to be working now. This is more fun.
Saturday, August 26, 2006
ANOTHER SKETCH
This is another sketch from a screen capture of the film BLADE RUNNER. I actually prefer this sketch to the last one because I think I have a better handle on the lighting in this sketch. The face is also rendered better in this sketch than the last. It really goes to show you how lighting can really make the scene.
Another important lesson to learn from this process is how different skin tones look in different lighting conditions. There are so many subtle differences in shading and value that come together to make the face pop out.
I have to give some mad props to Ridley Scott. This movie... Every scene is like a work of art. It is breathtaking and it still holds up after all these years.
Anyway,... I hope to do a sketch a day. These are great workouts! Like power-lifting or windsprints for artists! Ha!
Another important lesson to learn from this process is how different skin tones look in different lighting conditions. There are so many subtle differences in shading and value that come together to make the face pop out.
I have to give some mad props to Ridley Scott. This movie... Every scene is like a work of art. It is breathtaking and it still holds up after all these years.
Anyway,... I hope to do a sketch a day. These are great workouts! Like power-lifting or windsprints for artists! Ha!
Friday, August 25, 2006
QUICK SKETCH PART DEUX
I created this sketch in photoshop today from a screen capture from THE PATRIOT. I am working on some illustrations for the portfolio that are much more dramatic and use different lighting techniques.
I am not particularly happy with the boy's face. I think it looks flat--primarily because there is no light shining directly on the face to provide differences in value--light and dark. It's all about learning though. Stay tuned! I'll be posting some cool stuff soon!
I am not particularly happy with the boy's face. I think it looks flat--primarily because there is no light shining directly on the face to provide differences in value--light and dark. It's all about learning though. Stay tuned! I'll be posting some cool stuff soon!
Monday, August 14, 2006
U2-GLORIA
I found this little nugget of nostalgia on YouTube.com tonight and wanted to share it with all the faithful 'smear readers--few of you as there are.
This Band defined my high school life pretty much. I listened to War driving back and forth to school every morning. I watched the Under A Blood Red Sky concert on MTV when it came out. I made pitiful, "high schoolish" attempts at romance to Unforgettable Fire... I wore out the Joshua Tree LP until it skipped and fuzzed through my favorite songs.
I still find that my love of U2 holds up after all these years. Not the new music so much--mainly the EARLY stuff. Boy, October, War and of course Unforgettable Fire. I love Joshua Tree too, but that's the last album I fell in love with.
Anyway, if you're a fan of old music videos, they probably have them on YouTube. Check it out,,,
I found this little nugget of nostalgia on YouTube.com tonight and wanted to share it with all the faithful 'smear readers--few of you as there are.
This Band defined my high school life pretty much. I listened to War driving back and forth to school every morning. I watched the Under A Blood Red Sky concert on MTV when it came out. I made pitiful, "high schoolish" attempts at romance to Unforgettable Fire... I wore out the Joshua Tree LP until it skipped and fuzzed through my favorite songs.
I still find that my love of U2 holds up after all these years. Not the new music so much--mainly the EARLY stuff. Boy, October, War and of course Unforgettable Fire. I love Joshua Tree too, but that's the last album I fell in love with.
Anyway, if you're a fan of old music videos, they probably have them on YouTube. Check it out,,,
Monday, August 07, 2006
JOHN THE BAPTIST
This is a very quick Photoshop sketch depicting the baptism of Jesus by John. I am working on a few biblical themed illustrations here and there to market to Churches for use in worship multimedia presentations...
Obviously, this is a pretty rough, unpolished sketch... The reason I stuck with this image is because I had been noodling over the idea that John the Baptist was possibly black. I don't know why, but I started to really put it together in my head that this was possible. I know that, according to scripture John was related to Jesus and was, in fact from the same town of Nazareth. Still, suppose, his father Zacharias had married a Jew from Northern Africa... That could explain it... Maybe??
Who knows. I do think it's safe to assume that Jesus and his contemporaries didn't look like Def Lappard...
In any case, I abandoned this sketch because it really is lousy and I can do much better. I see promise in this piece, though, in that it is forcing me to look at my faith in a different way--through different eyes. I truly feel like it's important for me to challnge, through art, the commonly-accepted view of scripture as completely WASP-ish and Euro-centric. That is, I want to try and visualize scripture in a more appropriate historical context... We'll see what happens.
Obviously, this is a pretty rough, unpolished sketch... The reason I stuck with this image is because I had been noodling over the idea that John the Baptist was possibly black. I don't know why, but I started to really put it together in my head that this was possible. I know that, according to scripture John was related to Jesus and was, in fact from the same town of Nazareth. Still, suppose, his father Zacharias had married a Jew from Northern Africa... That could explain it... Maybe??
Who knows. I do think it's safe to assume that Jesus and his contemporaries didn't look like Def Lappard...
In any case, I abandoned this sketch because it really is lousy and I can do much better. I see promise in this piece, though, in that it is forcing me to look at my faith in a different way--through different eyes. I truly feel like it's important for me to challnge, through art, the commonly-accepted view of scripture as completely WASP-ish and Euro-centric. That is, I want to try and visualize scripture in a more appropriate historical context... We'll see what happens.
Friday, August 04, 2006
IN PRAISE OF OPPOSABLE THUMBS
I just replaiced the hard drive in my Mac Powerbook... No small feat, considering the teeny tiny parts and screws. So far so good!!
Monday, July 24, 2006
SKETCHING
One thing I try to do as often as possible is to sketch. Sketching from life, from television, from my imagination...
A particularly fun thing I enjoy is taking favorite scenes from films and attempting to recreate them as quickly as possible in color using Photoshop. This keeps me sharp--sort of the drawing equivalent of doing windsprints. I also cannot rely just on draftsmanship, I have to be thinking in terms of color, mood, light...
This scene is from The Mission starring Robert DeNiro. I wasn't after a likeness, rather, I was trying to quickly capture the overall palette and feel of the scene as it appeared in the film.
A particularly fun thing I enjoy is taking favorite scenes from films and attempting to recreate them as quickly as possible in color using Photoshop. This keeps me sharp--sort of the drawing equivalent of doing windsprints. I also cannot rely just on draftsmanship, I have to be thinking in terms of color, mood, light...
This scene is from The Mission starring Robert DeNiro. I wasn't after a likeness, rather, I was trying to quickly capture the overall palette and feel of the scene as it appeared in the film.
Friday, July 21, 2006
HOWARD PYLE
I came across this book today while doing some online research on Howard Pyle. Pyle was, and is, considered to be one of the greatest American Illustrators that ever lived. N.C. Wyeth was a protoge' of his, as were several other illustrators who lived and worked during the early twentieth century.
I love Pyle's work for its simplicity, its technique. I also admire his ability to place the viewer right in the middle of the action. It has to be said that nobody paints pirates like Pyle.
Tonight I was back at it, painting on canvases again. It's a different animal from digital art. You have to work--execise, almost. Some days it's easier than others...
I love Pyle's work for its simplicity, its technique. I also admire his ability to place the viewer right in the middle of the action. It has to be said that nobody paints pirates like Pyle.
Tonight I was back at it, painting on canvases again. It's a different animal from digital art. You have to work--execise, almost. Some days it's easier than others...
Saturday, July 15, 2006
THANKS KRISTI
I AM BLESSED-with a beatiful, funny, quirky wife and a movie-start cute kid! I also have the best dog in the world. To have a job doing what I love.
I WANT-to be liked.
I WISH-I could take a year off and do nothing but sculpt. I were a better painter.
I HATE-That I am so sensitive--that I read too much into people's interactions with me. That I need to be liked. That I sometimes talk to much. Bill O'Reilly.
I MISS-South CArolina. Camp Cherokee. Playing soccer. Doing theatre.
I FEAR-Cancer. Losing my wife, my son.
I HEAR-The air-conditioner in my office. MVY radio online out of Martha's Vinyard.
I WONDER-If illustration is what I was meant to do... If I'll get any better as an artist. If Leo will be an artist or will he rebel against all things creative.
I REGRET-Not going to art school. Some past job interviews.
I AM NOT-Untalented. Skinny. A redneck. Black.
I DANCE-better than my wife.
I SING-in church every Sunday at 8:45.
I CRY-more than I am comfrotable even admitting...
I AM NOT ALWAYS-a good Christian. Happy. Sad.
I MAKE WITH MY HAND-art. Lots and lots of art.
I WRITE-like a child with a crippled hand.
I CONFUSE-Chipotle and cilantro...
I NEED-Friends close by. Something to draw. My family. My wife. My son. To be appreciated as an artist.
I SHOULD-be inside with Mandy. Get a new hard drive for my mac. Get my iPod fixed.
I START-illustrating a book on Monday.
I FINISH-very few ambitious projects I start on my own..
I WANT-to be liked.
I WISH-I could take a year off and do nothing but sculpt. I were a better painter.
I HATE-That I am so sensitive--that I read too much into people's interactions with me. That I need to be liked. That I sometimes talk to much. Bill O'Reilly.
I MISS-South CArolina. Camp Cherokee. Playing soccer. Doing theatre.
I FEAR-Cancer. Losing my wife, my son.
I HEAR-The air-conditioner in my office. MVY radio online out of Martha's Vinyard.
I WONDER-If illustration is what I was meant to do... If I'll get any better as an artist. If Leo will be an artist or will he rebel against all things creative.
I REGRET-Not going to art school. Some past job interviews.
I AM NOT-Untalented. Skinny. A redneck. Black.
I DANCE-better than my wife.
I SING-in church every Sunday at 8:45.
I CRY-more than I am comfrotable even admitting...
I AM NOT ALWAYS-a good Christian. Happy. Sad.
I MAKE WITH MY HAND-art. Lots and lots of art.
I WRITE-like a child with a crippled hand.
I CONFUSE-Chipotle and cilantro...
I NEED-Friends close by. Something to draw. My family. My wife. My son. To be appreciated as an artist.
I SHOULD-be inside with Mandy. Get a new hard drive for my mac. Get my iPod fixed.
I START-illustrating a book on Monday.
I FINISH-very few ambitious projects I start on my own..
Tuesday, July 11, 2006
MEN WITH HATS
Yes, I know I have been way absent from the "blogospehere" but I have been consumed with work/fatherhood/general malaise. I have been grappling these past months with a wee bit of the old depression--otherwise known on the street as, "the pity party." I apologize to any and all faithful readers of the 'smear who have been missing me. I am back, for now...
Yes, I have been a-wallowing in the pit of semi-despair (more like semi-sadness--or whiny-ness) of late. However, art continues to be an area of comfort for me and I am happy to have some time to try something different--painting on canvas. This is something that I enjoy doing--though time doesn't always permit it.
This is an as yet unfinished large canvas in a series of canvases entitled "Men with Hats" since I somehow always end up painting men in the 1930's style with those fedora hats on. I don't know why, it's just something that I have always done. Subconsciously, I guess it's all about what I grew up with. My Grandfather was always wearing one of those hats (never indoors!!). In all the pictures I saw of him over the years, he had the same stern--yet placid expression on his face and a-top his head was always one of those hats. Later in life, it was a Tom Landry/Bear Bryant-style hat--the kind with the little feather in the side of the brim. Anyway, y'all let me know what you think...
Yes, I have been a-wallowing in the pit of semi-despair (more like semi-sadness--or whiny-ness) of late. However, art continues to be an area of comfort for me and I am happy to have some time to try something different--painting on canvas. This is something that I enjoy doing--though time doesn't always permit it.
This is an as yet unfinished large canvas in a series of canvases entitled "Men with Hats" since I somehow always end up painting men in the 1930's style with those fedora hats on. I don't know why, it's just something that I have always done. Subconsciously, I guess it's all about what I grew up with. My Grandfather was always wearing one of those hats (never indoors!!). In all the pictures I saw of him over the years, he had the same stern--yet placid expression on his face and a-top his head was always one of those hats. Later in life, it was a Tom Landry/Bear Bryant-style hat--the kind with the little feather in the side of the brim. Anyway, y'all let me know what you think...
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