person

Two older works, the first one is definitely one of my favorites. I'm not a big collage person, but I do enjoy browsing random books with patterns and chopping them up.

No, I can't get it out of my head, now my whole world is gone for dead. This song has been stuck in my head for a while now, kind of interesting. I apologize for the long ramble of reflection this will be, but here I go. It's been an interesting few weeks, ups and downs, odd mindsets, but here I am. I don't know, quarantine has shifted a lot of things for everyone, and I've noticed a lot of changes in myself. I jokingly say I'm becoming soft, but it's a bit true, in a good way. I'm thankful for so many people in my life, and I'm finally letting those people how much they mean to me. I know I've said this before, but gymnastics has really been getting me through, and I'm proud of all the progress I've been making recently. My coaches make my life better, they're just incredible people and I love them so much. Thank you to the person I had a whole long text conversation with tonight (you know who you are) and for always dealing with my chaotic self. And finally, I've started to accept who I am, and that's a nice feeling. There's still the dark parts, the static still consumes me from time to time, but tonight was a good night. Thank you for all the support from everyone (in and outside of this community!). I genuinely appreciate all of it

Most evenings, I watch a couple of news programs streaming on my computer. During that time, I also make it a point to draw a person (usually from an on-line reference photo) with a No.2 yellow pencil (generally Ticonderoga) on whatever paper is handy on my desk. It's good practice and keeps my hands busy. These are some "News Doodles" done this past week.

Personal project to draw 100 pups.

Did you ever have a page in your sketchbook that was so bad and so embarrassing that you tore it out and chucked it? This was one of those pages that made me cringed every time I came to it. So today I said to myself, "ENOUGH!" and ripped it out of my moleskine. But something wouldn't let me throw it in the can. Now, I'm not one of those artists that can't bring himself to throw away any of his stuff because each and every piece, good or bad holds some kind of sentimentality or sense of importance. This particular page was a result of a crappy angst filled day and stuff poured out of me. For some reason, it felt like I was throwing away some piece of my soul. There were parts that were overworked and others that were painfully too personal. So I decided to cut it up and put it back together in no particular order, however it seemed best. As I was pasting the pieces down it occurred to me that this had a comic book feel so I scanned the final and added the black borders in photoshop which I really dug. I like that it is cryptic and jumbled up like my brain can so often be. This reminded me of the awesome @johnhendrix who said something in his book, Drawing Is Magic that stuck with me. He said, "Don't worry about doing anything wrong. If you're hoping your sketchbook turns into a glossy display of only your best drawings, you are not carrying a sketchbook, you are carrying a portfolio." In other words, explore, take chances, loosen up and have fun. Try your best to go at it like an uninhibited child. In so doing, you will stretch as an artist by avoiding repetition and predictability. We all know how to do what we already know. To sum up, I created a bad page, and whether or not I was able to fix it, it expanded me. So, follow your pencil, pen, or whatever and let them take you to places you never imagined when you started. Then, maybe you will end up staring happily at the final and with childlike wonder, say, "man, where did that come from?"

Camden, Maine. Getting back into making personal art after working on a huge commission these past few months.

Some personable corvid sketches that emerged from my pencil.

Portrait of character from personal comic project.

Personal project to draw 100 pups.

Running Late. The personification of the reaper running late for his next appointment. 10” x 15” Original ink and watercolor illustration on Strathmore 500 Series 4-ply Bristol illustration paper. Signed by the artist. Unframed.

Little watercolor horses, they were fun to draw and paint and each seems to have it's own personality. Some look a little too much like a donkey though. lol

While hiking, I saw a crow so I painted the crow's personality

I drew it with "Derwent" a graphite pencil, the drawing is A4 size. Upon request, I drew the bunny based on a photo. I wanted to introduce the bunny personality traits, which I did. The owner was very happy for him. :)

Samuel Beckett (1906–1989) On a late-night walk near Dublin harbor, Beckett found himself standing on the end of a pier in the midst of a winter storm. Amid the howling wind and churning water, he suddenly realized that the “dark he had struggled to keep under” in his life—and in his writing, which had until then failed to find an audience or meet his own aspirations—should, in fact, be the source of his creative inspiration. “I shall always be depressed,” Beckett concluded, “but what comforts me is the realization that I can now accept this dark side as the commanding side of my personality. In accepting it, I will make it work for me.” - From Daily Rituals: How Artists Work by Mason Currey #dailyrituals #inktober #samuelbeckett @masoncurrey

A Civics class arm doodle, a fitting place for a tattoo design. Today was the wrong day to wear a white long sleeve though. This weekend was interesting...good, bad, and very personal. It's currently 8th period though, and here's to the fact that I get to end my day in art.

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.

Trying to capture different cat poses and this is one of my personal favourites (alongside “the loaf” of course) =^.^=

Personal challenge to draw 100 pups.

Personal project to draw 100 pups.

Random personal project, drawing on the same shape different things. www.instagram.com/mjdaluz_illustration

Another doodle realised for my personal 100 Days Project. Inspired by the namesake song by Pearl Jam.

Another doodle realised for my personal 100 Days Project. Doodle inspired by the lyrics of Meat Puppets’ song

Whenever I think of tags and/or labels for people, be it things like ‘gammons’ or ‘snowflakes’ et al, narrowing it down to a single person who represents that group is always running a fool’s errand in my opinion.

Mockup for a personal project close to my heart - tarot cards.

We had our yearly meeting (via Skype this year, rather than in person) with our financial adviser. It was an hour spent drawing this giraffe during the call. She's referenced from an on-line photo.

This is a piece I did for a short film about the life of a victim of sexual abuse, after all the court cases and conviction. The film wanted to show the side that you don't see, the director wanted me to paint a picture capturing that emotion. Although I have never been through it personally so I cant speak on the feeling, I hope this makes you think about someone who has been having a battle in their mind. Give them some love !

Personal project to draw 100 pups.

Another doodle realised for my personal 100 Days Project.

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.

Teaching painting is a great task to ask of a person who doesn't paint. I do not paint. I teach the manipulation of media through experience. "Learn from doing!" I say. Monochromatic pastel exercises help my students to get a handle on the media. We explore value and composition and the handling of media. Sometimes happy accidents occur. This was my example to the teens on composition and value. It is a journey.