August 11th, 2014. The day it all stopped, but the little spark of madness never actually disappeared. I find it funny how I'm fascinated with trying to look into other's minds when I can't even figure out my own.
Still playing with ballpoint pens. This time, I tried a “scribble” drawing, holding the pen way back on the shaft and making little circles and scribbles….then layering them over and over. It was actually very liberating and fun. I did this on a Canson sketch paper….which didn’t wear through, but did buckle a little towards the end.
Classical lighting setup. Finished piece derived from an initial sketch. Model: Meadhbh (Maeve).
H, 4B pencils and white Prismacolor pencil on 9” x 12” Strathmore Toned Grey sketchbook paper.
Ballpoint pen and Stabilos; this took longer than it should've. I think it turned out pretty nicely, but the coloring isn't the best (my pens started running out of ink). "I reject your reality and substitute my own"- Adam Savage
Beyoncé is an amazing entertainer and such a loud and powerful voice in not just music, but activism. Her new visual album for her album The Gift is called Black is King. I highly recommend it.
Here's something I drew in 10 minutes this morning. I was on call waiting for work to start and my anxiety went through the roof. Not sure why, but it did. My friend asked me if this sketch was a sound, what would it be? I said static. That's what things feel like most of the time: all-consuming, loud, abrasive static.
The jarring moment when you are asked a thoughtless question. The decision to respond appropriately and proportionately that protects yourself versus answering in a manner that protects the status quo.
Fairly recently I was "commissioned" to paint a picture of my cousin and grandmother. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out, but painting this was a bit of a challenge. There were definitely moments where I stopped painting and completely hated how it looked/became frustrated with myself, and I wouldn't work on it for days. I felt an odd pressure attached to making this... or maybe I'm crazy. 16x20, acrylic.
A portrait of my cat Linus, who has the sweetest nature, a lot of love for his brother cat Rex, and a lingering case of kitty gingivitis from his days as a stray. Derwent Drawing Pencils on pastel paper.
Definitely doodling---This is my first mandela and it ranged from great fun to great frustration. It ended up a little "waby swaby," but I suppose that's in keeping. It's 12 inches across with 32 points. Drawn with a micron pen, then colored in markers (in whatever colors I happened to have) and has colored pencil shadows. I scanned it into PhotoShop and played with altering colors. Made a green one for my green-crazy friend and a subdued desaturated one for myself. It's quite printable on my oversized color laser printer---so ill be a fun "social distancing" poster gift for my friends. Each one with a personal color range.
The late great King Quinoa. During the lockdown I'm doing a series of cat portraits for Gatti di Roma in Rome. I've auctioned this and all proceeds went to the charity.
