muse

I use to take students to museums. COVID has altered much. We adjust now. So much is virtual.

Drawings I made for a commission of the five stages of the Walking Wall installation by Andy Goldsworthy at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City. What an inspiring journey to walk and watch it move.

Fine liner, 8.5" x 11". This one is pretty dark but still amuses me years later.

Drawing of an African ceremonial mask @ IU Art Museum Medium: Pencil on 18" * 24" paper

Drawing of a female figure sculpture @ IU Art Museum Medium: Pencil on 18" * 24" paper

Pencil drawing of a marble sculpture @ IU Art Museum

Pencil drawing of a bronze statue at IU Art Museum

This is the first painting I made for a series on dragons that I hope to exhibit this year at my local art museum. It's a 26x36 cm watercolour painting on cotton paper. I took the concept from a Chinese god who was in charge of the pearl of creation, and turned it into a dragon with that very same pearl.

I came upon this startling image on the grounds of Ringling Art Museum in Sarasota. Amazing to suddenly see an image of a mythical person looking at you from inside a tree.

The Meeting Bell Medium : Pen and Ink On Bristol Board Size : 11" x 15" Year illustration was completed : 1987 This illustration was part of a collection of pen and ink rendering i did for a christian mission, for their pamphlet that was published to inform the community, surrounding churches, and the military post near by, of the services they offered, and about their ranch. Their main ministry is to the military service personnel and their families. They offer a weekly dinner followed by a Bible study. They offer a place where service personnel could spend the weekend at the ranch for free, with meals included. There would also be activities they could partake in , such as going to concerts, going to amusement parks, visiting national park for picnics and hiking. The ranch holds retreat for military personnel who are in training, who want to learn about the Bible , and enjoy good home cooked food, rest, and out door recreation in the country. This ministry also lends it's facilities too near by churches, and to the military chaplaincy, for luncheons. This ministry is a great work of God, share God's word, and love through hospitality. About the bell. I call this illustration the meeting bell, because it sat right out side the activity center, and when ever a retreat was being held, the bell was use to let the guess know when a meal was being served, or a Bible study was about to begin. If you study the bell you can tell that at one time it must have been housed in some kind of church or fire house, by the big wheel attached to it's side, so it can be rung by a rope. Then when it found it's self at the ranch , they must have had a arm clacker manufactured, To strike the bell to sound.

Pen and Ink on construction paper with some colored pencil.

Ink

Observations from an expedition to the Houston Museum of Natural Science, which features an incredible paleontology hall. I brought with me a pad of sticky notes, a couple Micron plastic nib pens, a set of Copic Markers, my fanny pack, and some headphones. Prehistoric life has been an infatuation of mine since childhood, and there is something very humbling about drawing in the shadows of these fallen giants.

For a Dutch science museum I illustrated and later animated this interior of a fictional space ship.

Some of my sketchbooks from a new workshop I'm conducting at the Riverside Art Museum.

Acrylic on wood

Drawing of the oil painting "The Valley of Mexico, 1877" by Jose Maria Velasco @ IU Art Museum. Medium: Pencil on 18" * 24" paper

Pencil drawing of the oil painting "The Hope Family Portrait" by Max Beckmann @ IU Art Museum

Sketching at the Academy (California Academy of Science) with my five year old. This was so fun. There was so much movement that he actually focused on his own sketchbook for long enough for me to get one in. Usually, he's done by the time I put the clips on my book! The Academy and all museums are closed again with SF preemptively joining the rest of the state in the extended stay at home order this past Sunday 12/6/2020. Grateful we got to go several times while it was open.

Graphite on paper.14" x 11" / 2019

8 1/2" x 11" Crayon on cardboard.

This is an old Formula 3 race car built by Joseph Potts ltd, Lanarkshire, in 1952. They have it in the National Museum of Scotland, where I drew this a couple of weeks ago as a part of Urban Sketchers meetup (as it’s too cold to go outside yet). This is pretty mixed media: pencil, watercolour pencil, white gouache and some acrylic markers. Drawn on spot.

Artists from the planet Earth believe that inspiration is an inner energy that gives them ideas, mental power which strengthens the will to create a new work. We Assheads from the World of Fantasy, we know that inspiration is a living being that manages the actions of artists, states them to actions that normal man would not do. We consider the coming of inspiration - to a reasonable extent - good for creativity, but if the inspiration gets us in a firm hug and does not give up, it can have a devastating impact on the individual. In such instances, inspiration shows their other, insidious nature, about which little is spoken. Inspiration will, for example, propel artist - as the devil sinning soul - to constantly create, to eat is not thought, to be many nights sleepless, his sexual life can suffer, etc. Striking inspiration, such as a comet in the head, can, in some cases, result in a straitjacket, even death. We Assheads know that it is not wise to give advice to the artist struck by inspiration, warn him that there are still other joy and values in life. His inspiration closed his ears, he works with him as with a toy, so the artist could retaliate with aggression, considering that his personal freedom was compromised. For these and other reasons, we Assheads, marginal artists from the World of Fantasy, do not give special importance to artistic inspiration. - It's important to paint something, dance some dance, make some melody - says asshead Caci - - no matter what you create, there will always be someone stupid enough to see art in it.

Maximo is HUGE!

The Field Museum in Chicago always welcomes sketchers even in the darkness of the Mummy Exhibit!

Un dibujo realizado en el museo de Frida Khalo en la ciudad de México. Una reunión de las mascaras que se encuentran a lo largo de la casa, ese día me enteré que se les suelen llamar Judas

My newest muse… Oliver Octopus! :-)

And this is my only contribution to mermay. It doesn't look very good, I know. But I'm glad to draw a mermaid for the first time on mermay, I dreamed about it when I could only draw squiggles. I drew it for half a month, and during this time, I even managed to come up with a deep (don't shoot) lore. According to my idea, Eddie needed some sunken cargo (and not only him). Amber offered her help in exchange for some relic of her people, which is stored in the Gotham Museum (even being a mermaid, she is an opportunist). Eddie told her to go to hell and tried to get the cargo with the help of his robots, which Amber successfully sabotaged underwater to pressure him into the deal. In this drawing, Eddie's ran out of luck and got himself roughened up and almost drowned (definitely not Batman this time). Amber saved his skin. No gratitude is expected yet, but this is the least of their problems. Jean advises Amber (they are not at odds in this AU) to leave the polluted waters near Gotham before something happens to her and her health, but she is stupidly stubborn when it comes to the Riddler (and her goals).

Pencil drawing of a sculpture @ IU Art Museum