I've started a series in my sketchbook...actually, it's a series inside of a series. The series started as an idea I called "The Hidden Octopus". It's an Instagram account where I post quirky little ideas I draw with my Sharpie and the watercolor it to make it pretty. Then I thought I'd start a series inside of that where I do Song Lyrics that I really like. This is one of the first in that series.
Toys used to be so much cooler back in the day. I realize this makes me sound like a very old nerd. I also realize that I AM a very old nerd. So there's that.
This is one of many people that I will be using in my Senior Thesis animation project. My project is to create an interactive piece that is aimed for teaching young underrepresented minorities and girls the design process for a robot. :)
I asked 13 Indian young adults, suffering from a mental health issue, what words do they wish to never hear again with respect to their mental health problem.These responses are words spoken by their colleagues, friends, or family members at some point or the other.
I headed over to the Devonian Square, near the Ryerson Image Centre, to sketch the Devonian Pond, also known as Lake Devo. It turns out that the images are part of a temporary art installation by artist Lori Blondeau regarding Indigenous identity.
I went to Europe in 2012 and visited Germany, Switzerland, Turkey, and Greece. I loved the architecture that I saw in these countries, but I found the architectural style of the houses in Germany and Switzerland particularly charming.
When I read the first book of the "Outlander"-Series by Diana Gabaldon, I was really inspired by the idea of travelling in time through places like Stonhenge. This is what it looks like in my head.
Street Style illustrations from Helsinki Finland. That is what my blog Flash For Zonzon is about. This lady is seen in Lauttasaari, Helsinki. Loved her colors.
Bring out the Sun
Moleskine Doodle - March 2014
It seemed as if the dark that year would never end, and by March we saw a glimmer, it was such a relief. Bit like how we feel now.
(2B pencil on a 195mm x 123mm book title page) The first of five in this project. I chose the Harry Potter book because it tells the usual religious "hero's journey" story, of a boy born for another life that sees outsiders as something different.
This one goes out to crypto bros and stock dudes that jump from buildings after a crash. Song art for "Buy Low, Die Anyway" by Junkyard Sam. Now available on Spotify, Soundcloud, etc.
I've burned through 6 weeks straight of non-stop drawing. I think it means I'm healing up from a painful relationship I needed to end. Sometimes we attract someone due to a perceived chemistry. Then one day we wake up and realize that chemistry is acid and this isn't actually love. This is a distortion. And I don't need to walk through this pain anymore. I've actually grown enough to recognize that being alone, without pain, is a thousand times better than being with someone who refuses to recognize their behavior. Some people have no idea that words can do much more damage than a weapon. Words can kill. If you can't control your tongue, then don't speak. Make this a rule for your life if you care for someone.
Imagine trading your soft bed for a deflating mattress.
Imagine food cooked under ash, a fire that smokes more than it warms.
Imagine waking at dawn with stiff muscles, yet finding yourself strangely alive.
This sketch is not just about tents, cars, and campfires.
It is about the in-between—where inconvenience and beauty wrestle, and something deeper sneaks in.
Camping reminds me: comfort is overrated, but presence is priceless.
Three trunks rising from one root, steady and separate yet belonging. The little bush at their base reminds me that life gathers in layers—quiet companions at the feet of giants. A simple contour line holds it all, the way a moment holds both strength and tenderness.
So much noise presses in—
screens, engines, endless chatter.
But silence is not gone;
it waits in a turned page,
in breath, in light,
in the hush between sounds.
To draw is to notice.
To notice is to pause.
And sometimes, all it takes is a barefoot boy in a camping chair, chasing the drips of a popsicle, to remind us what it means to be here.
This is Popsiclence—a sacred kind of focus.
It’s where observational drawing leads us: out of the swirl, into the now.
And in that now, we heal.
Vine Charcoal and Oil Pastel make for a messy, smudgy experience. A certain amount of messiness can make a process feel more real and human. When things aren’t perfectly polished, it reflects a genuine effort, imperfections, and growth. In personal life, letting go of the need for everything to be tidy can promote a more authentic existence. The hat is a Stormy Chromer. It also evolved out of a mess. More on that later. Peace.
