Gingerbread Boy

More drawings

Computertizing

I will admit that I am a computer-phobe. I grew up with computers since I was 5 or 6, and use them everyday, but when it comes to drawing and painting, I avoid it like the plague.

However, as I am trying to expand my range, particularly focusing on making my color illustrations pop, I have been learning as much as I can about the printing process, color separation, and what makes the translations from final art piece(ie. watercolors) to finished product work. When I look at a Sunday comic, what makes the colors work? How did it go from watercolor to print? I especially look at Patrick McDonnell's work, but I have also been looking at Dr. Seuss's work in it's very simplified color palette (DID he just use markers to indicate where color goes?)

Photoshop in it's amazingly versatile universe makes coloring something 10 times easier. I just finished an example of Larry Bear and Mary drawn by hand, but then colored in the computer. The color palette I started off with is something Mo Willems would use, but then made some brighter, pop colors. I am intrigued with what came out, but it still seems off for me. I wish that it was warmer. Something I hate about computer colors is that they lose the warmth of the color right away. If that makes sense.

Pencil Work

I think a lot of New Yorker cartoonists do this. I don't know how I feel about it.

Lazybones

New Illustration

I've been drawing cats for a good while now. I suppose it's my way of thinking that I own one (which I still want to do). This particular cat with the triangular head interests me a lot though. When I first drew him, he was going to act like an Existential French philosopher cat. Be all deep and serious. Now that idea never panned out, but this moody, disconnected cat had a story. He was a character. Now here he is.

Mitt Romney and Giraffes

So Michelle is all a-twitter now about going to South Africa this March and invited me. I never pictured myself going to Africa, but it would be cool to see a giraffe and ride an elephant. I don't know whether to go or not.

Line up!

I'm always obsessed with how cartoonists and illustrators draw. How'd he make this line? What size are these drawings?! There's part of me that says that I shouldn't care and figure out how to use the tools, but another part of me craves to learn how to draw like that.

It's come to a point now that I've become the most nitpicky about line quality and how should my drawings look? I love splotchy ink, I love fluid brushwork, but I also love fluid lines, and scratchy lines. I've read an interview from Richard Thompson saying that he struggled with the same exact thing. LOOKING FOR THE PERFECT LINE (if it exists). He says that his line would exist between George Herriman and Ronald Searle.

Mine? That's hard. I like lively, action lines. It'd be something between Patrick McDonnell and Bill Watterson. In between there I'd like my line to be.

Above are examples of me drawing and sketching. I like the school bus particularly. Felix looks a bit incomplete maybe. The three sketches of the bumpkin sitting down are done in Hunt 101 Imperial, Hunt 512 ex-fine, and Winsor Newton Series 7 #0 brush respectively. I did all the drawings on copy paper, hence a lot of bleeding. Which is nice sometimes (more often it's not!).

The last sketch I ABSOLUTELY love EXCEPT for that back leg. It's so blobby. Had I nailed that, it would have been the drawing of the year.

New Work

In my ever continuing quest to find the right look, the right line, I've always had to look back on those who came before me.

The first illustration, from a picture I'm working on, is inspired by simple, lively lines like Jules Feiffer. I purposefully used sparse background and simple, but bold color statements. I enjoyed drawing that large man a number of times. It's ridiculous the the size comparison between him and the little girl.

The second illustration reminds me of earlier illustrations I did back when I just started using the pen nib for my illustrations. I was looking at Ronald Searle especially (his work is hard to find online, let alone books in the bookstore!). He went on to inspire following artists like Ralph Steadman and then Richard Thompson.

It's amazing how connected all these artists when looking at their work and comparing. The difference between William Steig's line to Ronald Searle, how Steig influenced Feiffer, how Feiffer influenced Trudeau then Berkeley Breathed but before that Pat Oliphant. I love seeing all the connections everyone had on each other, but then what makes each one unique.

I think most important too is that the drawings are only as good as the subject matter or the story. There's a reason why each artist draws the way they do, and that's because of what they got to say.

New Cartoon

It has been too long since I posted. I will not make excuses, but my blogging rate has dropped by the wayside since I took on a job promotion back in April. Hopefully, now, I can get things on track again and show new stuff and what I am working on!

Below is a new cartoon for Smithtown Matters. This is my generation. Talking about my generation!