Man oh man, it's been a week. The chaos is strong with this one. It was really fun to draw this, there's something so calming about shading with graphite; it felt like the only time I was present this week. But hey, I suppose that's why art is here. As a side note, thank you so much for 70 followers! It's truly incredible to part of an amazing community of artists, and I genuinely appreciate everyone's support and feedback. Here's to creating more art!
Ball point pen over wash. Being a mild-mannered Aries (married to a mild-mannered Aries), I didn't want the usual warlike ram, rather a friendly guy with nice "shofar" horns!
Pasha was a beloved German Shorthaired Pointer rescue dog. He came to us a bedraggled youngster and lived to become a "grand old man." This pencil drawing was done as a tribute after he "crossed the rainbow bridge."
A colour pencil drawing using Derwent Artists pencils on thick cartridge paper. I wanted to show the car speeding down the highway, and so tried to make the tress appear as though they are a blur - Many thanks for looking !
Not a ‘robot’ per se, but an android/replicant. From the classic movie Blade Runner about an alternative future 2019-2049 and beyond. Replicants were used as slaves for humans. Red Bic4 Ballpoint Pen on Archival 9” x 12” paper.
Monthly theme was "GOLD", so I thought about gold as a hedonistic symbol and meaning.
Almost religious. I imagined a society praising hedonism as their religion.
Maia, one of two current German Shepherds was born here at our house ten years ago. She is a grand old lady with a big ears, a big ruff and a sweet personality. This drawing was done from a photo reference AND her sleeping at my feet. I used Pigma Micron Pens in black and brown with a little graphite smudging to add a bit of shadow.
Whew! Baby yoda was fun to draw and gave me an excuse to get familiar with some of these brushes. The original sketch had a special guest, so you might see this one pop up again in the future. Hope you like him! .
An article/rant/annotation to an illustration. A #Hackney bar and its flies.
This picture is not as sad and blue as it might at first seem, I promise.
It is early in the week and the pub becomes the territory of the most outspoken drinkers. Raised somewhere between Churchill and Harold MacMillan, a night such as this is time for them to spin out a yarn of nostalgic fantasy. Encouraged by the lack of a crowd and with space to fill, statements start to fly.
In the opening rounds the barman athletically hits back with factual blocks and reality-check haymakers; statistics and personal experiences are given. Two histories cross examined, one where 1982 means Thatcher and the Falklands, the other renders Reagan and the AIDS crisis. Stoicism and national pride vs mental health and realism.
In the latter rounds the barman is fatigued, swaying on the backbar, glasses begin to stack up as form begins to drop. The older men seem stronger than ever.
The barflies come in close now, they scrutinise his generations work ethic and make wild political comments on poverty, immigrants and the minimum wage.
The barman is close to sheer bloody despair, he maintains his defence and focuses on breathing while maintaining his professional stance.
But at the end of the night the barman knows HE will ring that bell, they will politely leave and they will return again in a week and maybe, just maybe there will be a change, common ground or maybe at least polite silence.
But what these interactions have given despite the salt in the eye is community and an exchange between generations, culture and class of those participating. No home is ever straight forward, no relative without their good and bad traits and in a world where we often slide into echo chambers online or in our physical environments, the pub is still a place where society is family, face to face, pint to pint. Or maybe it's just a room with alcohol on tap?
This one is made up of leftover sketches from the Inktober sessions last year. I liked some of the characters, so I thought it was a shame not to give them their own scene.
I used a Sakura fine brush pen which was great fun to draw with and adds a new depth to the line work.
This follows on from an earlier drawing. The guy with the parachute has now landed in this crazy manic restaurant.
URASHIMA THE FISHERMAN
From Favorite Folktales from Around the World by Jane Yolen.
Then a last song burst from him as he struggled with his loss: “My love, when after a night of longing day dawns and I stand at my open door, I hear far off waves breaking on the shores of your Paradise!”
If only he hadn’t opened that jeweled box, people have said since, he could have been with her again. But the clouds hid her Paradise from him and left him nothing but his grief.
#dailydrawing #folktales #kidlitart #watercolor #janeyolen #sofreakingsad #tonighticanwritethesaddestlines
It's crazy to think that we've been in a pandemic for a year or to think we could ever get used to this new way of life. March 13th, 2020 was the day everything stopped for me: it was the last day I went to school and the last day I went to gymnastics for 5 months. The promise of two weeks' time, something I somewhat desperately held onto. Going into this, no one knew what to expect, it was the first time many of us saw life as we know it stop. Quarantine has definitely taught me a lot emotionally, mentally, and how to reach out and work through (and what bad panic attacks feel like :) ). I think it also goes without saying that I got through most of this because of the people around me, and I can't say enough how grateful I am to be surrounded by such amazing people. So, here I am. Life is still pretty rocky, but it's a process. Thank you to everyone who's been along for the ride so far ❤
Often times my work is more about a conversation with my anxieties. I have a deep, conflicting relationship with concepts of existentialism. The following works reflect abstract ideas that I simply don’t have words for.
More ballpoint pen experiments. This is with a Bic Round Stic (12 for $1.49 at Staples!) on just a bond paper. Making progress with this medium, methinks!
I have a lot of cats living in my neighborhood now. I want to hug them all.
Doodle made with iPad Pro, Apple Pencil, and Procreate. Tracked time: 3 hours & 55 minutes.
From my series Bikes of Amsterdam. Normally it's cyclists I have spotted around town but this is a little day dreaming. Who knows what's lurking in all the canals.
