Karloff's Ghost

Questions. And Answers.

2011-01-12T22:47:00.000-05:00

Back in 2004 or so, about the time my marriage was falling apart, I would find myself visiting my folks a lot more often. A lot of times, after I'd get back home from visiting with my friends, fairly late on a Saturday night, I'd walk through the door to see my dad, still awake, watching one old movie or another. A lot of times, as I sat on the couch as a prelude to heading to bed, I'd ask my dad what he was watching. An easy hour or more later, Dad and I would finish up a conversation that covered everything from movies to music to his childhood memories to... anything. I'd head to bed, admonishing him to go to his room and not fall asleep in the chair again, and that would be that. Those hours were honestly the best times I ever spent with my Dad.

Come the morning, after church, Dad and Mom and I would sit around eating breakfast, or watching the news, and they would work the crosswords while I read and occasionally shouted out the answers to the clues they said suspiciously aloud. But we didn't talk much. More to the point, Mom and I didn't talk much. See, growing up, I was much closer to my mom than I was my dad. She was around a lot more (by this point, as I recall, Dad was working nights at the shop) and so I just knew her better. It was easy to talk to her, because I knew what to expect when we would talk. Dad was a little scary. Don't get me wrong, it's not that I poured my heart out to my mom, it's just that I could talk to her in a way I couldn't talk to my dad. So cut to all those years later, and I think my mom knew how important it was that I talk to my dad, to try and make that connection we never had when I was young. All of us were focused on my dad in those last years, and so I think none of us minded putting him, and our relationships with him, ahead of our other relationships.

I know my relationship with my folks was never all that close- there was love a'plenty, to be sure, but not always understanding. Make no mistake- they supported me in everything I did, or even thought of doing- but they rarely seemed to understand why I walked the paths I did. They didn't often ask me. And for my part, I rarely, if ever, told them. Those years talking with my dad went a long way to correct those mistakes- maybe not covering all the time we'd lost, but making all the time then and going forward so much richer. But in all those years, I never, or rarely, talked with my mom the way I did with my dad. I had grown up to know my dad in a way I suppose only comes with time and distance and lessons, and so talked to him with that new knowledge. But my mom? She was the rock upon which the family was built, steady and solid and unchanging. There didn't seem to be anything for me discuss with her, to ask her about or share with her. She was the solid, steady rock of the family, while most of my time was spent flitting from idea to wish to wondering, head in the clouds and never standing firm. Then Dad died, and everything seemed to crumble.

I'm not going to go into how my family changed- not now. But one thing that I did start realizing was that I didn't know what to talk to my mom about. I didn't even know exactly how to talk to her either. It had been so long, I'd forgotten the language. She had lost her partner; I had lost my hero. We'd both lost the same man, but it seemed like there was a gap in our lives that we couldn't bridge. Sure- when it came to the things that 'needed' talked about, I could do that. Believe it or not, I'm actually pretty good at handling crises, from the mundane to the profound. But the things that we 'should' talk about, or the things we 'want' to talk about, I was helpless. I would call and ask her the questions I'd always ask, she'd give me the answers she always gave, we'd talk about what my niece was up to, how good a kid she was, how the cats were, and after exchanging 'I love you's', we'd hang up.

But every so often, I would find myself surprised by spending a great deal of time on the phone, talking with my mom. Not always about the most important things, but a lot of times, really important things. And I would stupidly find myself surprised at how much my mom knew and had to say about a subject. I don't mean silly things like politics or science or the world- I mean the important things, like love and family and pride and honor and faith and strength- the things that count. She knew so much, and knew just how to say it so I understood what she meant, and would give me great examples, and she showed me so much I didn't know about both her and my dad, that it often left me crying and smiling at the same time. I don't know why I was surprised; she's a mom after all.

Those moments aside, life got in the way and routine, that hobgoblin of the mundane, led us back to the the quiet lands- we spent less time talking, and more time speaking. We would talk, but we wouldn't talk about things. It was back to those same old phone calls, except we'd be together. I loved being around her, but I just didn't have anything to say. What was there to talk about? Ask her if she played any different lottery numbers? Tell her about how well I counted steel? And so, silence reigned.

Then fate stepped in.

Over the past ten months, I've been given a new way of looking at my mom, new eyes by which to see her. Instead of going home and spending quiet time with the woman who'd raised me, I went home and started talking to the woman who had 38 years of life lived before I showed up, and tried getting to know her. Things I never thought to ask, for all those years, things that made my mom into that woman I mentioned above- the one who knew so much about the important things? This could be my chance to discover how she learned all those important things.

It wasn't always easy. Mom has had a very, very rough few years. It's not always easy for me to ask her the questions, and I feel that it's probably hard for her to give me the answers. She always answers, but sometimes, mostly, it's just the answer. And sometimes, when we talk, it's mostly me telling, and Mom listening. Those can be really hard. But those times I ask her those questions? It's not a conversation, but it's something. It's okay- I know it's hard, and she doesn't always have the strength to discuss things. But she always answers, and each answer is another piece in the mosaic.

But then, there are nights like tonight. I asked her about her 'dream home'- where would she live? (meaning back when she was young; there is no place like home, now). What kind of house would she like? And she answered me, telling me of the place she and my dad first lived in, and describing how she'd like a place that was bigger, but not too big, with some land you could grow things on, and wasn't too crowded by other people. She told me about the places her family lived in, then the apartments her parents lived in, then moving her mother into the house after my grandfather died. It was really great to hear her talk about it, because I didn't really know those things, and it was a good answer.

Then she asked me where I liked living. Did I prefer the apartments, or the house? She didn't just answer- she asked me a question back. And then we were talking, conversing, having a discussion about what the apartments were like, what my house was like, the merits of each (pride of homeownership v. not paying for repairs)... we were talking. My sister came in, and I found out that my grandmother and sister shared a room for years, and that they talked for hours- to the point where my dad would tell my mom to make them 'knock it off'- which surely sounded silly even to him. It felt so... amazing... being able to talk with them, and talk not with those old worn out scripts, but to share in the conversation of our lives, learning and teaching and just experiencing our family, in a profoundly simple way. It was just a short talk about housing... and it was a conversation about the most important things.

I learned so much tonight- not just about my mom, but about my sister, myself, and my family. I learned that no matter how well you think you know someone, they always have more to teach you. I learned everyone has something worth hearing, if you are smart enough to listen.

I learned that sometimes, asking the question is the answer.

2010: a (Retro)Perspective

2011-01-01T23:34:00.002-05:00

Well, here we are again, you and I. It's been a long time, hasn't it? Even just stopping by for a casual visit, it's been too long. I know, I haven't kept in touch like I used to- things just aren't how they used to be, life has a way of doing that. Changes aren't permanent, but change is, right? And not only has it been a while since I stopped by, it's been even longer since I sat down to talk about the Year that Was. But what goes around, comes around. And this year has given me so very much to talk about. So make yourself comfortable; pour yourself a drink. We'll talk, you and I, about 2010. My 2010.

So how to do this? I just finished reading 2008's year in review (sorry 2009- I'm sure you were wonderful, but I was in a difficult place back then- it's not you, it's me.), and I'm not sure how much I'll follow that pattern of "good and bad"- but as I like easy-to-digest lists, I'll try...

First off- I think I can truly understand what it means when Dickens wrote "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times." This year... I'm not sure if I can honestly describe to you what this year has been for me. I've been putting off writing about it for a while now, because in a lot of ways, I'm still trying to figure out what it's meant to me.

(I realize this is a three-paragraph introduction to a list, but as you know by now, I take my time getting to the point)

-I watched some of my closest friends, more family than friend, suffer through some of the worst times of their lives. I've seen bonds I considered unbreakable fracture and strain under pressures I can't imagine, ones that cause me to question so much of my own life, my own ideas of importance and value, even my idea of love. But they are all strong, and they each fight each day to make it better than the one before. Sometimes, I see them struggle so hard to make it through that day, to get by when everything is falling apart around them, but I see them pull themselves through the day, and face the next. They are so very strong.

-I watched my mother struggle still with the unimaginable loss of my father and the very recent loss of her brother, as well as the insidious nature of old age, as it slowly (and sometimes not-so-slowly) takes its toll on her. I watch her stumble, literally and metaphorically, with the ravages of age, its dulling of memory and sensation and so many little things that add up to so much. I sometimes watch her fight to remember recipes she's made dozens of times, or tell me again about something she mentioned earlier... But I've been left speechless from laughter as she places a smart remark with more skill and dexterity than anyone I know, and she reminds me time and again of the most important things in life, the things she never forgets. She tells me repeatedly how her meals aren't as good as those her mother made, yet she doesn't seem to realize what it means when I have several helpings of whatever she makes, or just how damned good her homemade bread is, still. She curses herself for being weak- all the while shouldering such a heavy burden with such simple grace and honesty it leaves me breathless. She always tells me how strong my father was, how smart he was- while I look on at her with amazement for her will and her heart, and realize why they loved each other so much. They were equals in the only ways that mattered.

-I watched people I care about, family, mentors, and friends, fight against one medical problem after another. I watched them do it sometimes with a smile and steamroller-confidence, sometimes with their head down and simply putting one foot in front of the other. Always, though, always with a will to fight, and to persevere. It never ceases to amaze me how much one can accomplish with nothing but will.

By now, you've probably noticed these paragraphs all start with 'I watched'- and you're probably thinking, much like I was earlier, all these bad things that happened, they didn't happen to you- where are your complaints? What bad things happened to you? (for as we all know, modern society seems to thrive on the suffering of others) You know what? That's not why I'm here, not really. When I look back over the year, at those things that most upset me, or worry me the most- none of them involve me. I won't say I have nothing to complain about (everyone knows me too well)- but when I look back, they're not worth mentioning. I can't look back in anger or sadness or pity at whatever 'terrible' things befell me. I'm looking back at this year, and I've got some pretty incredible things to talk about. 2010 has really shown me just how lucky I am. Here's the good stuff, for me- the things I will remember, the things that made this year the best of times, even as it was sometimes the worst of times.

-I read a hell of a lot of books, again.

-I saw more movies, though less than before.

-I found my new favorite movie of all time (yes, even more so than 'The Thing From Another World').

-I cried an awful lot. Which I don't consider a bad thing.

-I got to spend another great week with Family #2

-Another amazing, all-new and all-different, weekend at Chincoteague with my family of engineers.

-New Doctor Who! Brilliant!

-I was introduced to a lot of great music.

-I was reminded that I'm pretty damn smart.

-I got to hang out with my sister and realize that though we're very different people now, things haven't changed all that much since she and I used to be inseparable (and she still calls me hunya).

-I spent more time with my niece- she's really pretty awesome, not just as a mini-me. I've come to realize she's one of my favorite people in the world, and she makes me feel pretty good about tomorrow. I've realized how much I missed of her growing up, and it's made me resolve not to miss any more.

-I've gotten to see more lives welcomed into the world, changing my friends in ways big and small, and making the world (big and small) a much brighter place.

-My Mom told me she was proud of me.

-My sister called and asked me for advice about her car- with the caveat that 'no one knew more about cars than dad'- which is true. But she told me that since Dad wasn't here, I was the next best thing. That's probably one of the highest compliments I could be given.

-My niece gave me a hug, and told me I was doing a great job.

-I've been told I'm a good friend.

-This was the year I realized why I went through all the pain and suffering and loss years ago. It wasn't because I'd done wrong or because I deserved it- it was because, when my friends were hurting and confused and torn apart by so much anguish and torment, I could be there for them, and understand just how they felt- I had already walked that path, and though everyone walks on their own, I could walk beside them. I hurt so I could help them. When they stumbled, or felt lost, I could be there for them, to tell them that it wouldn't always hurt that way, and to help them find their way back. They didn't have to be alone. And between you and me, my pain was worth it, to be there for my friends.

-I discovered that the bonds of friendship I've forged over the past decades are even stronger than I imagined; my friends were there for me when my whole life fell apart- they kept me together, in some ways kept me alive. This year was the year I stood by them when times were hard.

-I realized whenever I was most afraid of doing something, that was when I knew it had to be done.

-I've slowly started to accept that I am the man my Father knew I was. Sometimes in those darkest moments, I can hear him, and I know why he put his faith and trust in me.

-I realized that hate and bitterness and anger just aren't worth it.

-I found that I have more patience than I ever imagined.

-Lots of gray hairs, and I don't mind. Lots of lost hairs, which I kind of do mind.

-I learned that I've changed a lot more than I thought I could, and that I've come out stronger for it.

-I let go.

-I realized this was the year I'd been waiting for, for a very long time.

-I found that the place left of center wasn't as cold and dead as I'd thought- it only needed fire.

-I had two of the most amazing concert experiences of my life.

-I was pushed- and I learned that sometimes it's okay to be pushed.

-Whenever things seemed to fall apart, I picked it up and put it back together.

-I have been called a good man.

-I discovered I am stronger than I ever thought I was.

-Walls came down, or were simply walked around.

-I talked about movies, music, books, comics, loss, laughter, tears, strength, weakness, pride, shame, defeat, victory, death, life, all the big things, and all the small things that make our lives worth living- in one long conversation that's still going on.

-I kept drawing. Not as much, but I kept drawing.

-I wrote- more than I have in a long, long time- and realized how much I still enjoyed it (sure, you haven't seen it, but there's more than just a blog to write)

-I learned to talk, even when I was afraid of speaking.

-I decided to let go of fear, and hold on to hope.

-This was the year I learned, finally, to believe in myself.

-This was the year I learned there are a whole lot of people who have believed in me all along.

-I learned the small things can mean more than the big things.

-This year proved to me that there is such a thing as a second chance, and it's up to each of us to either let it slide past us, and leave us standing still, safe on known territory- or to reach out and take it, grab hold, and let it take you into the unknown, into the endless possibilities... so what do you say to taking chances?

- I said 'yes'.

-This was the year I came back to life, because I found my reasons...

-Dragon, Josh, bacon chocolate, Who, tea time, scones, walking, acronyms, emails, good morning and good night, 3 o'clock, tears, not walking away, stars, beach, Scott and Ramona, Mumford, family, sighing just a little bit, Featherstone, chats, Crazy Heart, scarves, Rockwell, mustaches, hands, mail, fun facts, cards, thoughts, talks, quiet, smiling just a little bit, voicemail, grocery store aisles, candy, buttered popcorn, movable armrests, phones, cheerleaders, psst, lyrics, singing, steampunk, zombies, long drives, sticks and stones, romantic flight, forbidden friendship, first flight, poetry, 'if', comic art, wishes, daydreams, secrets shared, patience, bravery, compassion, Sigh No More, comicon, cappuchino, wine, questions, laughter (oh that first laugh), dittos, scars, always amazing alliteration, a perfect sunday...

-*gestures*

That was, in its way, my 2010. The list is hardly complete, of course. That's the funny thing about memories- there are so many of them. There are so very many good things about this year... but some of them, I'll keep to myself.

Thank you for joining me again, or for the first time. It's been a while, I know, and I feel terrible for having gone so long without stopping by. But it felt good to talk like this- I have missed you, in my way. Perhaps we can do it again sometime? Soon? Sure, we'll see what happens. But I do have more work to share with you, thoughts are always bubbling below the surface, sketches still waiting to be brought out of the pencils, more images to manipulate. I'm certain I've more words to spill out across the internet, and you've been so accomodating in the past, I'm sure we can come to an arrangement. I'l be back, of that I'm sure. You take care of yourself, and I'll do my best to do the same. It's not always easy, I admit- but I can't wait to see what tomorrow brings, and there's no place I'd rather be.

And what of 2011, you ask? Well, let's see what it brings. After all, every day is full of possibilities, of another chance to get it right... So what do you say to taking chances?

The Sign Said 'Headshots'/And That Was All

2010-08-02T22:21:00.000-04:00

Hey there, welcome back. It's been a while, I know. Sorry for being so negligent. It's just... I've been busy, you know? And things come up... but I'll try, honest- it's not that I don't have things to say, it's just... well, you know me. I'm just lazy. I'll do more, really... tomorrow.

Thanks for coming back to visit. This time around, some doodling! Heads, as it were. When I doodle, I do tend to draw heads/faces. I find them the most interesting (and often most difficult) parts of anatomy to draw. So much expression, so much detail- it's the part of the anatomy we see most often of others (not counting fingers while driving). I like goofing around, coming up with different exaggerated looks for people; many times, I'll draw an entire person in the style derived from the way I drew the head (not easy, let me tell you- I've examples of that gone horribly awry, as well).

This started out with ol' Sherlock there- definitely in keeping with the way I normally draw- though perhaps a bit exaggerated (and clearly not Downey, Jr.-inspired). While thinking what to doodle next, the image of the super-angular Batman popped up fully-formed; so it had to go onto the page. Seeing that, I really dug how it turned out. Simple, distinctive- very atypical of my style. After that, I went with Hellboy and Starman, before turning towards Marvel's Thor (who now looks just like the dad from 'Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs', with hair), then tried my hand at what I think is J'onn J'onzz, Martian Manhunter, and some random woman with big goggles. The partially-finished body is from a motion idea I had (didn't go anywhere, I think), and I have no idea what that thing in front of Batman is.

Anyway, there you go. Doodling outside my comfort zone. I like the look of these heads a lot, but I'm not entirely sure how to extrapolate whole bodies out of them. Perhaps I'll return to them one day... or perhaps I'll find something completely different. I'm still looking for my 'style', so maybe this is it.

Cheers for now-

On Salvation

2010-06-30T22:51:00.000-04:00

Dictionary.com defines 'Salvation' as the following: Preservation or deliverance from destruction, difficulty, or evil; A source, means, or cause of such preservation or deliverance; Deliverance from the power or penalty of sin; redemption; and The agent or means that brings about such deliverance.

Of late, I've been thinking a lot about salvation. More to the point, the idea of salvation. Ask anyone, and they'll probably tell you salvation is the idea of saving someone from something bad- just a simplified version of any o fthe above statements. I think we all have some idea or concept of what salvation means to us; many are familiar with the religious concept of Salvation- 'Deliver us, Lord, from every evil'. Christ came down to earth with the idea of saving all of humanity. Maybe not a literal saving of our physical existence, but 'saving our souls'- one would imagine the greatest idea of salvation. Another way of looking at salvation, the way I've been thinking most about, is the idea of an individual's personal salvation. Not in a metaphysical, religious sense, but in the sense of 'Someone Saved My Life Today'- a here and now idea, someone figuratively or literally saving someone else's life in the present tense.

When you say 'saving someone's life', pretty much anyone who's watched television or seen a movie will have certain ideas as to what you're speaking about- Let's call it 'The Big Save', for the sake of argument. We've all seen a dramatic rescue of another person, from terrors both natural and man-made, usually in the nick of time, with either a clever quip or heartfelt declaration of some deeper emotional realization. The building's burning down, the damsel is in distress, moments from being burned horribly- only to have our hero, ragged but still unbeaten, burst through the flames, sweep her up in his arms, and dive out just as the building collapses all around. She sees him for the hero she never thought he was, they kiss, and the crowd, both on screen and in the theater, cheer wildly- after all, even fictional characters love a happy ending. There are real-world examples of this 'Big Save'- every day, men and women around the world spend their days saving lives, many times in ways far more dramatic than anything we see on screen. It's not just these day-in-day-out heroes; It's the so-called common man or woman, caught in the wrong place at the wrong time, who step up and do extraordinary things. It's amazing, given so much of what we see of the modern world, that such heroes exist, and walk amongst us every day.

For all that, though, what most concerns me, what I've been thinking on the longest, isn't this 'Big Save'- this epic moment of heroism. Don't get me wrong- I love a last-minute save in the movies more than most, and I think the world can always use more life-saving heroes in it- but that's not what I'm interested in. What interests me is the idea of an everyday salvation. Little acts throughout our lives that add up to making all the difference.

We're surrounded by people, no matter where we go. Co-workers, family, lovers, strangers on the street, we see people come and go all the time, all around us. Our lives all run their courses, intersecting, running together, and peeling away, every day, drawn into each other's orbits for however long it lasts, usually for only a moment, sometimes for longer, and occassionally for a lifetime. The courses we run are never a certain path; our lives are filled with ups and downs, filled with many a triumph, and just as often more tragedy. We all run our course, and so often we stumble. Sometimes that fall is sudden, and profound, and disastrous. Sometimes that fall is so subtle, so sinister, it feels like it's not a fall at all- until the ground is rushing up to meet us, and we look around for something to hold onto, to stop that descent. So often, by that point, we feel there's nothing to stop us- we'll crash and burn. When you physcially fall, you instinctively reach out- whether to stop from smacking into the ground face first, or to catch hold of a steadying object- or to take an outstretched hand. When the stumble is more metaphorical, one of those long slow descents especially, we don't always reach out. Sometimes we're too stunned to react, sometimes we want to crash and burn. Sometimes we don't want to reach out.

Remember this, as you fall-we're still surrounded by those others- strangers, family, friends- and each of them, each of us, has a choice in every moment of our lives- what do you do when you see someone stumble- stand aside, or step up?

Sometimes, we don't have to reach out. Sometimes, those others reach out to us. In ways just as subtle, just as innocuous, those reaching hands take us, hold us, comfort us, and help us back up. It's salvation, just as surely as if they'd pulled us from a car wreck. And it's such a simple thing, this salvation. It's a million little actions that can change the world. Your world, certainly. It's a word spoken in comfort, instead of anger. An attentive ear, not an ignorant one. A smile, not a glare. It's sometimes keeping one's peace, rather than speaking one's mind. It's a different perspective, one who sees without judgment, but with compassion. It's a phone call to see how you're doing when you don't want to talk to anyone, but you really need to talk to someone. It's a funny e-mail when you've forgotten how to laugh, a home-cooked meal when you've forgotten to eat, a time spent hanging out doing nothing- and doing it together, instead of alone. When all you ever hear is 'No', It's the sound of someone saying 'Yes'.

I have fallen, many a time- God knows, I'm no more sure-footed than anyone else. But each time I've fallen- no matter how far, or how hard- someone has always been there. No, they didn't 'fix' me- ultimately, standing up is still up to me. But whether it's been a stranger with a smile, a family member with a hug, or a friend with the right words- someone has always been there to help me stand up on my own again. And so often, they didn't even realize the difference they made. To them, their actions were no more difficult than smiling, or making a phone call, or saying 'yes'. These people are my salvation- they literally saved my life- and they are people who didn't think twice about reaching out to catch me. That's amazing. No- what's amazing is there are people like this everywhere you look. Look at the people around you-

You are surrounded by heroes.

As a fellow traveller, perhaps drifting into your orbit for a moment, or a year, or forever, I walk along, never knowing what our paths will bring- but I do know, if I see you stumble on your path- I will not let you fall. I will catch you, and help you get back on your feet- because you can do the same for me, and maybe, just maybe, we can save each other.

Playin' Your Guitar, Sweatin' Out the Hate

2010-06-10T22:43:00.000-04:00

I just watched 'Crazy Heart' tonight. Good lord, what an amazing movie. I haven't been so moved by a film in... well, a long time. I'm not sure what it is about the movie that speaks to me so strongly, but it really did. Maybe it's the idea that, no matter how many mistakes we've made in our lives, no matter how dark the night can seem, there is always another chance to set things right, another chance to find the light.

There is still hope in the world.

Music: 'The Weary Kind' - Ryan Bingham (or watch the movie to hear Jeff Bridges' and Colin Farrell's renditions)

PS- I did this in Photoshop in about 90 minutes, using the cover art directly. I normally don't like to 'trace' like this, but I really needed to get this drawn and posted- it's not about the 'art' of it, it's about how I feel and how the movie made me feel.

Son of K'un-Lun

2010-06-06T22:56:00.000-04:00

This is totally ripping off David Aja's amazing artwork. Excuse me, 'homaging'... or swiping, if you've read my previous posts. As I don't get paid to do this, I don't mind so much. Plus, it's a great way to learn how to draw better. It's why they have aspiring artists try to copy the Masters' artworks.

Anyway, Iron Fist. Awesome book from a few years ago, written by Ed Brubaker and Matt Fraction, two of my favorite writers. It's a crazy

Kung-Fu/Pulp/Retro/Modern/Exploitation/Kitchen Sink book- completely nuts and exactly why I love it. They took a 70's character and brought him into the modern era, not by jettisoning his past, but by actually giving him more of one than he ever had before. Fantastically fun read- plus featured some outstanding art from legends like Russ Heath and John Severin (who still draws some of the best war scenes ever).

Hope life is making you smile, wherever you are.

Music- I don't know, that music from "Kill Bill" will work...

Lost Found, and Curves Below

2010-05-26T20:40:00.001-04:00

In honor of the finale of 'Lost', I figured I'd post a few doodles I'd done of headshots of Sawyer, Jack, and Hurley (I had the most fun drawing Hurley, as you can probably tell). I was a die-hard Lostie at first, but as time passed and life took me in different directions, I really got away from the show. I made an effort to get back into it this year (always a good idea- jump into one of the most episodic shows ever after a 3 year hiatus) and had some luck at the beginning, but missed most all of the middle episodes. However, thanks to the internet, I was able to catch up on all the plot details I'd missed. I watched the finale, and really enjoyed it. It helps, I think, that I found the characters more interesting than the plot of the story itself- though don't get me wrong, I loved all the twists and turns the show took. But ultimately, I was more interested in seeing what happened to everyone, rather than the mystery itself. What can I say? I'm a romantic. I thought the end result of the show was quite satisfying, even if it didn't always make logical sense.

Also for your edification is some crazy curvy lady I started sketching. I think I was initially trying to do something different with eyes, but then it all spiralled out of control. Or at least curved out of control. It was a fun experiment, though probably not a style I'd follow very far.

Thanks for stopping back. 'Returning to the island', as it were.

"Amazing Grace" - Willie Nelson

Spring

2010-05-24T21:23:00.000-04:00

Because I was given a new perspective, a new way of looking at things... or perhaps just shown the right direction to look.

Music: "Lantern" - Josh Ritter

Halloween Dreaming- Steampunk Vampire

2010-03-31T21:57:00.000-04:00

Greetings, and welcome back.

I hadn't realized it's been quite so long since I've posted, until someone gently suggested I'd been taking my good old time putting something up. So, as I've got a few different little somethings lying about, I thought I'd post those now and again, to a) put something up and b) give you a chance to see how my scribbling can really differ from what usually gets posted here.

This one is, like the title says, an idea for a 'Steampunk Vampire' for last year's Halloween. It started out simply enough- I needed an idea for a Halloween costume, but none presented itself. I struck on the classic idea of the vampire, one near and dear to my heart, as you probably know by now (family legend has it that, on my mother's side, we are direct descendants of the historical Dracula, Vlad Tepes. Family legends rock.) I hadn't been a vampire for Halloween since... probably 1984 or 85? A long time. However, knowing my inability to leave well enough alone, it was a short trip from 'vampire' to 'steampunk vampire'. Which isn't as easy as it sounds. YOU try to find an idea of what a steampunk vampire looks like. and do it in about 2 weeks' time with no budget.

So this was the rough idea of what I was looking for. I went with monochrome colors, with splashes of red. I was going to color my glasses red, as well. And then put on the top hat with goggles, for good measure. I liked it- simple, but effective. Sadly, reality once again sought to oppose me, and as usual, she had reinforcements. It turned out pretty well, all told, but not terribly Steampunk.

Maybe this year. Or maybe this year it'll be a steampunk Frankenstein's Monster! Or an Art Deco Mummy! or...

Thanks for visiting. You'll most likely see some more sketches up before anything substantial. Much is in motion right now.

Music: "Transylvania 1887" - Alan Silvestri

Connections, of the Subjective Variety

2010-03-12T20:46:00.001-05:00

At the atomic level, the electrons in the outermost shells of the atoms that make up our bodies, when brought near the electrons of another object- say, another person- repel each other. That repelling of like-charged particles is what gives us the illusion of contact. However, in a very real sense, we never touch.

Is that why we spend our lives trying so hard to make an emotional connection to each other?

Progress Report; Or, Slow and Steady Gets You Somewhere, Eventually

2010-03-08T22:18:00.000-05:00

Greetings, all.

Just wanted to let you know I actually am still working on a project to post. I'd like to say it's pretty epic, and in a way I suppose it is, but it's a case of me perhaps biting off more than I can chew (surprising, I know). I've had the idea for this picture for a long time- probably about 4 years or so, ever since I heard this song... or at least the germ of the idea. But what I didn't realize is, though I had the idea, I didn't know exactly what the idea looked like. And that's where I'm getting a bit hung up. I'm also figuring out some new approaches to drawing/PSing that is taking some time, but is an important addition to the toolboxes of both.

As to what I'm trying to draw, well- imagine Hell. As a physical location; 'other people' doesn't count, Joey. This time, at least. Okay, have an image? Now draw it. That's what I'm working with here. (Joey, no fair- it was a rhetorical statement. Just cause you can draw backgrounds really well...) It's a neat idea, and like I said, based on a song. Probably not a song you're expecting, either. We'll see, ultimately, how well this comes out. I'm hoping I can at least get some of the idea across, if not the full effect I'm looking for.

If you've gotten this far in the post, thanks. I know these all-text posts go over like a pager in a crowd of zombies, but sometimes (all the time) it's good for me to go on a bit about whatever's in my head. And this is only part of what's in my head; it's been a pretty crazy week or so, kiddies, in all the ways that make life so much better than the alternative.

So- since I've got you here for this long, I've been thinking (as I've said)- I've been thinking of taking some weekend trips here and there this year. Mostly just the weekend, but maybe and extra day off here and there. Going low-profile, as it were; no Ritz-Carlton for me, thanks. But I'm looking to put some more miles on the car, maybe get into some adventure- or just go somewhere and see something new. Hell, just to be somewhere other than right here for a day or so. So- any suggestions? (no, Hell does not count, thanks peanut gallery). Responses greatly appreciated. Feel free to post here (I do appreciate the attention to the blog) or email me at tinkerd711(at)ay oh ell(dot)com.
Thanks as always, for stopping by and visiting.

Peace-

S.

PS- for those so inclined, I'm on twitter:@karloffsghost though i don't post to it nearly so often as I do facebook, as 140 characters is barely enough to begin scratching the surface of my wit. So until it becomes the focused totality of my wit, it'll be fairly random... you know, just like everything else I write. Wow. If you've gotten this far, you are just the best. Thanks for not knowing when to stop.

Music: For some current favorites of mine, check out Pandora (the other Pandora, not the box, not the planet) over on the right. Been loving new Snow Patrol, The Avett Brothers, Muse, some older Sarah McL, Rodrigo y Isabella's just awesome classic acoustic guitar married to a latin metal sensibility.

"I do not think that word means what you think it means..."

2010-03-06T00:30:00.000-05:00

Okay, a really bad Princess Bride picture, but I was thinking about the movie a lot tonight, so thought I'd just goof around for a couple minutes in PS and do this. Not at all the PB picture I'm planning on doing, but fun to scribble out. Just shows I'm not ready to draw directly into PS.

One of the greatest romantic movies of all time, of course. And funniest. And has one of the greatest songs ever written- there were only 5 songs of true love that were the most passionate, the most pure, and this one leaves them all behind. If you tell me you haven't seen it yet, well, that's just...

inconceivable.

Music: "Storybook Love" - Willy deVille, of course. Check out an amazing acoustic performance of the song Here

man, i'm tired.

a lifetime ago

2010-03-01T21:33:00.001-05:00

Like a moth to the flame, so i am to the past. Particularly when the past comes back.

"and like that, she was gone."

And not to worry. Just externalizing some headspace. I'll have some more artsy stuff posted before long. working on an idea or two, it's just slow-going.

Music: "Love Untold" - Paul Westerberg

Steed and Peel

2010-02-18T21:23:00.004-05:00

[Click on picture to view full-size- no really, half the post doesn't make sense unless you look at it full-size]

Based on a 1960's BBC program, The Avengers was a critical and commercial disaster when it was released back in 1998- doing so poorly, even cable tv is afraid to play it.

I kind of really enjoyed it. It's completely insane, makes about no sense, and some of the criminals are dressed as giant teddy bears. Giant. Teddy. Bears. But I still enjoyed it a lot. One, it has style to spare. It's a pretty slick and stylish production. Two, and probably the real reason I enjoyed it so much, it has Uma Thurman and Ralph Fiennes in it. They have a great chemistry together, and the characters are very much like the original iterations of them (plenty of flirting, almost nothing physical)- I really enjoyed that old-school romantic tension. Don't get me wrong, though- I'm not recommending you watch it. I'm just saying I enjoyed it.

Which leads me to the picture. I originally drew this shortly after watching the movie- about 3 months ago, maybe- and was pretty pleased with how it turned out. No, it doesn't look like the actors, but I was't really looking for that. I just enjoyed how the poses and such came out. And then it sat in my sketchbook, waiting for me to scan it. And then, once scanned, it sat on the hard drive. I haven't been very interested in drawing much recently, so everything was on hold- no motivation makes it tough to get started. A couple days ago, I finally decided I should start on posting something. I figured I could clean up a sketch, then post it. Good enough. Then I came across this- I'd already cleaned it up, and figured I could color it pretty fast and post it. As I was getting ready to start shading it as I usually do (different layer, apply shades, repeat), I realized I should do something with the background, too. A second later, I thought I could do something as an homage to the Warhol/Steranko/Pop Art style of the late 60's- the era The Avengers originally appeared in. So, a few hours later, I came up with the background you see above (the simple stuff in PS is always the hardest to figure out). And then today, I realized the perfect compliment to the background, which went nicely with the fact that I never did shade the pic: zip-a-tone. [For those not in the know (non-art-nerds) zip-a-tone is an adhesive paper composed of a pattern of dots of varying size and spacing material artists (especially comic artists) used to create shades and tones. It's mostly fallen by the wayside with the advent of digital coloring, but still appears from time to time- in American comics, I should say. In manga, where black and white is the norm, zip-a-tone is as popular as ever.] I figured I could just find an easy pattern already in the computer, highlight a bunch of stuff, press a button, and be done.

Cue three hours later.

Not a long three hours- figuring out new ways of doing things in Photoshop is one of the things I find most creative about art. It's such a deep program- there are always several ways to achieve the same result- that it's always fun to discover something new to me. It also makes me want to do more with it. So, after learning how to make the zip-a-tone, it was a matter of painting it in. Using the zip was really fun for me- even though I had trouble figuring out if I wanted the zip on their faces. Not sure how often it'll be appropriate to use in a picture, but it's another tool in the toolbox.

Hope you liked it.

In other news, I've added some widgets to the site, over to your right. I found this great website, Goodreads.com, that lets you see what I'm reading, and what I think about it. Essentially, it's my review site, but much easier to maintain. It lets me do a starred review, as well as post more in-depth (but still rambling) reviews when I can get my thoughts together enough to write. It's a great way to see not only what I'm reading, but what others are into as well- I'm hoping it'll maybe lead to some online book clubs, perhaps (anyone, anyone?). Also, I've added Pandora.com over there. Think of it as my virtual playlist. A lot of the music I mention in my posts has some kind of meaning to me, or is just something I really love, and this is a great way to share that. The more I work with it, the better it will get. Click on 'Karloff's Muse' for my station.

Okay, that's it for now. I'll be back soonish, okay?

Music: "Maybe" -Ingrid Michaelson

(edit- reposted with slightly tweaked picture 2/21/10)

Different Devils I Have Drawn

2010-01-26T18:27:00.001-05:00

Well. I've completely abandoned my original intent of posting 'retro' pictures, for now at least. I've enough newer items that it might be worth looking at them rather than putting up stuff that, at best, is a throwback to the days when I drew almost every day.

I did this... oh, about a week ago. The original pencil work, at least. I know, it's another Daredevil drawing, how original. But, there's a reasonably good reason for it. I was sitting at the drawing table, and I was completely without ideas. Like normal. I wanted to draw, but no ideas were coming to me. So, I thought about what Joey has repeatedly told me: look back at the old drawings and draw them again, using what I've learned (assuming I've learned) since then. Since I'd posted so many DD drawings in the recent past, I thought maybe I'd take a look at those and try my hand at them.

I was originally looking at the one I posted with him doing a handstand on the corner of a building- I would redo that, with some hopefully better results. It only took a minute for me to realize that wouldn't work. I couldn't figure out how or why he would be in such a position if he were leaping off a building (yeah really- realism in a blind guy jumping off a building to fight crime. Don't judge me too harshly), so I took another thought at the idea of him leaping off a building, and arrived at Parkour, of course. Parkour, to sum up (no wait, there is too much) is basically a method of moving from one place to another in the coolest means possible. Check out the opening sequence of Casino Royale or the entirety of District B-13.

Scouring the internet for some good inspiration, I found this nice one of a guy backflipping off a building. Seemed like something DD would do, so I took a stab at it. I was going for that more loosey-goosey style I came up with last time, but just couldn't do it- DD decided to stay a traditional-looking hero. I kind of dug the picture, but realized it was just too close, physically, to the real-world inspiration (for clarity's sake, please note that the DD picture was drawn completely freehand; I used photo reference the same way most artists do- for inspiration). And so it sat on the desk.

Until today. I scanned in a few things and decided I was going to go to town in Photoshop on one of them, or draw something completely from scratch in PS. I came across this one and realized I could do some of both in this one. Two hours later, and it was all done. It's basically all layers above and below the original pencil drawing, with some effects thrown in. And then, once I was done, I realized I forgot to turn DD a bit for a more dynamic pose. So, a bit more thinking and tinkering, and here you go.

Speaking of layers, I realized partway through that I'd shaded/colored enough of the picture that it looked pretty okay without the pencils (I did this to a lesser extent on the Christmas picture as well), so I've posted the 'original' picture without the pencils (check out the tilt of DD's body).

Okay. There you go. Time for me to go eat dinner. Plus, it's so cold in here I can't feel my fingers. Thanks for visit, and please stop back again.

Music: "I and Love and You"- the Avett Brothers

Sketchbook Am

2010-01-19T21:38:00.001-05:00

What the hell- something new(ish). When it comes to drawing, I really don't have a 'style' per se (some might argue I have no style, let alone 'a' style). I find that I tend to draw according to what the idea or drawing dictates. If I have a very firm idea of what the picture or character should look like, I tend to draw in a somewhat cartoony fashion- or at least pretty stylized. A lot of that comes from me visualizing characters as shapes rather than as people- which is why I can sometimes draw a pretty good rendition of a person, but other times, not so much. I can see the figure as a whole, as shapes, but not how the anatomy actually works together. If I don't have a good idea, or I'm trying to find the image I want to draw, I tend to draw very loose, sketchy forms- far too many lines for a cartoon. A lot of that leads to me 'finding' the drawing in those lines- I will see the finished form somewhere in all those lines. And often, I don't try to bring that out in the final picture; I kind of like the looseness of the figures.

As an indicator of why I draw like this, two of my favorite artists are Sean Phillips and Mike Wieringo. Pretty much at opposite ends of the spectrum, Phillips uses a loose, naturalistic style with liberal inks- and no worries if every line matches up just so. Wieringo, on the other hand, drew in a very cartoony, animated style- lots of clean lines, suggesting rather than actively rendering a lot of detail. However, I love both their styles.

So I wondered, can I draw in a cartoony, yet sketchy/scratchy/realistic(ish) style? I've pondered this for quite some time, and in the interim, a number of artists have come along who do just that- chief among them Skottie Young. To me, he's the very definition of the style I'm trying for. For a long time, his art was so clean it could've been animated- now he's taken that exaggerated style and bent and stretched it into this loose, scratchy, yet still cartoony style. It's just amazing to see. Well here- go look for yourself.

Anyway, one night this popped into my head, pretty much as you see it. It's more along the lines of what I've been thinking of- a bit cartoony, a bit sketchy. It'll never be mistaken for Young's or Phillips' art, but I kind of like it. I like the exaggerated, cartoony faces and heads, but I'll always tend towards drawing a more 'realistic' body- so trying to drag the two together is something I struggle with a lot. This wasn't much more than an exercise to see how the picture in my head would turn out, and I'm pretty pleased with the result. Just for kicks, I gave it a bit of color, also in a mostly 'sketchy' fashion. If I were to take a more serious stab at drawing a picture in this fashion, I would approach the colors in a very different fashion- much more like my holidays post (here) than this.

So, hope you liked this bit of newness and look into what I'm trying to achieve when I draw.

Music: "Brick by Boring Brick" - Paramore

Are you SURE you want a new post?

2010-01-12T21:47:00.000-05:00

Seriously, I had NO intention of making a Twilight post. Really. But, my good buddy Joey has been politely suggesting I post new art instead of the decade old junk I have been posting (my words, not his). And believe it or not, I actually do have a few new things to post- but they're not really at any stage at which I'd like to present them. So, I'm left with this. God help me.

These actually came first. As you can see by the dates, they were done on New Year's Eve/Day- so if I were a smart man, I'd chalk it up to the alcohol. Except I wasn't drinking. Nope, my usual NYE tradition is to sit down with a bunch of movies and watch them till I fall asleep, then wake up and keep watching. This year, for a number of reasons, I wasn't really feeling the desire to watch movies- the ones I picked weren't catching my attention, my mind was distracted, I was just pissed at something, take your pick. But weirdly enough, though I was all over the place and in a not-good mood, I did feel like drawing. Except for the fact that I had no idea what to draw. As usual. What to draw, what to draw...

I borrowed Twilight from my niece because I figured if I was going to keep hating on it, I should at least try to watch it first. Then go on with hating, but informed hating. Hating out of ignorance is so gauche. 'Hate out of knowledge', that's my motto (well, that and 'not in the face!' but that's another story). I didn't watch it then- what are you, crazy? the night was already sucking- but it was lying there in my line of sight. I saw the cover of the dvd case and thought to myself- 'dude, his face would be SO EASY to caricature.' So, struck by the urge to draw ANYTHING, I took a stab at it. And, honestly, I kind of like it. Silly, not terribly accurate (I'll leave that to many other more talented people), but I thought it worked. So, drunk on my 'success', I decided to try to draw poor Bella. That one didn't turn out quite so successful as Edward- her face is just too boring to really sink my artistic teeth into (though she's certainly a pretty girl in real life, just not a very striking face to parody). She did have those nice gothy eyes, so I tried to give them a little life. Overall, I did get a kick out of it, and was surprised by how well it worked, even as an exercise in drawing something I had no interest in- except to HATE!

Cut to This past Sunday. Bored. Boredboredbored. What to watch? No fresh netflix, and not ready to dive in to the last season of The Sandbaggers just yet. Hmm... LotR? Too long, too late... Hitchhiker's Guide? Nah, not feeling the humor. Well not that kind of humor. Hmm... Jeez- There's friggin' Twilight. I should probably get this over with. So, I sat down and watched it.

And you know what? It was actually pretty go---- HAH! ARE YOU KIDDING ME? LIKE I'D ACTUALLY SAY IT WAS PRETTY GOOD! Please.

It didn't suck as badly as I thought. Make no mistake, it wasn't all that great- the acting was... uneven, the effects very low-grade (when I heard ILM worked on this I nearly spit out my beverage), and the story... well, I know it's not written for me, but neither was Harry Potter but I can still get something meaningful out of that. What meaning I get out of this was, 'I'll never be able to predict what's popular.' But for all that, it wasn't terrible. There were some amusing moments in there (like the random synaptic firings of someone remembering they'd once been told a story of a trip to a theater where they showed a really bad copy of a John Hughes teen movie) and I really did get a kick out of VAMPIRE BASEBALL. I also liked Alice- she strikes me as batsh!t crazy.

As I've described it, It's a SciFi Saturday movie as produced by the Lifetime Network.

And all things being equal, from what I've heard, I'd rather watch this a dozen times than read the book once.

And that, my friends, is why you've got this as your new art.

Oh, and one last Twilight observation. The soundtracks for both of the movies are actually really good. The music is easily superior to the films, and the lead tracks ('Decode' by Paramore for Twilight and 'Meet Me on the Equinox' by Death Cab for Cutie for New Moon) are both do a fantastic job of conveying the emotions I think the films are trying (and failing) to get across. If you want a good summary of the movies, watch the videos. Shorter, and better.

Okay, one more thing. Sorry for any inadvertent puns in the above- it was how my mind processed this stuff.

Cheers!

Music: 'Meet Me on the Equinox'- Death Cab for Cutie (It's a really good, dark song- honest!)

From the Crypt v.2, Item 13: Daring Devil

2010-01-05T21:27:00.000-05:00

9/27/93

Yet another DD picture. Don't know what to say- he was one of my favorite characters at the time. This is just him in his 'new' suit (the 90's were all about recostuming heroes- I think every major superhero went through at least one costume change back then), balancing on a building corner. This was a fun draw- you can tell I wasn't too concerned with every last detail, which is a lot how I sketch nowadays- and I enjoyed putting him in a different pose from normal. That's all I have to say about that.

And for you long-time readers (all two or three of you), you'll notice no 'year-in-review' this time around. I was kicking around a couple ideas for something to post, but figured honestly, it doesn't matter. Suffice to say that this year was better than some, worse than others, and I expect 2010 to be more of the same. Take that how you will. Hopefully I'll continue to post art on here throughout the year, maybe even some new stuff. I accuse myself of living in the past too much as it is; all of this old art probably isn't helping. I'm feeling pretty directionless with the blog right now, so I'm not terribly motivated to do one thing or another. Anyway- if there's something you'd like to see on here- more writing, more new art, more retro art, whatever- please let me know. Feedback is always welcome.

Next: probably more old art ;)

Thanks as always to you two or three long-time readers for sticking around. I don't hear from you, but I know you're out there.

Music: "The First Noel/Mary Mary" - Sarah McLachlan (sure, x-mas is over, but this was SUCH a great song)

...on this winter's night with you

2009-12-22T22:10:00.001-05:00

She and I never knew what we were supposed to be to one another. We were friends from the first- meeting through a common friend, finding each other in a common class, finding ourselves spending more and more time together. We were easy friends- easy to talk with one another, easy to be quiet with one another. But it always felt like there was something else between us- deeper currents, maybe. I never knew how I felt- when I finally did ask her out, she told me no- she didn't want to jeopardize our friendship. Later, when she told me she felt something for me, she was half a world away. Our relationship ebbed and flowed, sometimes one thing, sometimes another. When she told me she was leaving, I found myself torn even more- I was by then in love with someone who loved me back- but she still held hold of part of me. I said goodbye, for once with no other words to give her. I remember listening to a tape she'd give to me, over and over. We kept in touch through the mail, off and on, and I remember thinking, as I listened to that tape, that I knew how she truly felt. I wrote her this long letter explaining how I felt, and how I knew how she felt. Well, I was wrong. I haven't heard from her since that last letter. I think about her every so often- I wonder where she is, if she's happy, if she ever thinks of me... but I always think about her when I hear one particular song...

It was the middle of winter in State College. We had made plans to go out that night, for dinner or something, and we found ourselves walking across campus. It was later in the evening, and the snow was coming down- big fat flakes, drifting lazily down onto the walkways and grounds. There was no wind, just the falling snow. The whole campus was hushed, as though everyone had decided it was better to stay indoors.

We walked across campus, just the two of us, and we talked. We stopped to make snow angels- it was cold then, but we laughed so much it still felt warm. We walked through campus, onto the streets of the homes near the university. We walked under the streetlamps,the lights making halos of the falling snow. Sometimes we walked arm in arm, sometimes we roamed back and forth across the streets, drifting in and out of each other's orbit. We talked about things we'd never discussed before- some of it, I don't know if we'd ever talked about with anyone else. I don't know if I'd ever felt closer to anyone before than I did that night.

I walked her back to her apartment. We stood outside the door and kissed in the falling snow. It wasn't a kiss of passion, or a kiss of love, or even just a kiss goodnight. It felt like an unspoken acknowledgement that come what may, just this once, we both knew who we were to each other. For a few short hours, we could be two people who had the whole world to themselves, and could just be with each other, on that winter's night.

The lamp is burnin' low upon my table top
The snow is softly fallin'
The air is still within the silence of my room
I hear your voice softly callin'

If I could only have you near
To breathe a sigh or two
I would be happy just to hold the hands I love
On this winter night with you

The smoke is rising in the shadows overhead
My glass is almost empty
I read again between the lines upon the page
The words of love you sent me

If I could know within my heart
That you were lonely too
I would be happy just to hold the hands I love
On this winter night with you

The fire is dying now, my lamp is growing dim
The shades of night are liftin'
The mornin' light steals across my windowpane
Where webs of snow are driftin'

If I could only have you near
To breathe a sigh or two
I would be happy just to hold the hands I love
And to be once again with with you

To be once again with with you

--"Song for a Winter's Night", Sarah McLachlan

From the Crypt v.2, Item 12: Somebody Called About the Cable?

2009-12-15T19:55:00.001-05:00

8/21/93.

Nothing terribly clever to say this time around. Too tired. More of the typical work of the time, though it looks as though I was moving away from the super-detailed muscles and towards less overrendering... which I guess would just be rendering. Biggest thing I notice about this pic is that I had the patience and creativity to make up all the crap on Cable's body- none of that's really original to the character, I just thought it would make for a fun picture. Might've been some kind of backstory to it, but I can't remember anything.

Later.

...oh. Before I go, I direct you to Library Card of the Damned, my new blog. It's hopefully going to be me reviewing books, movies, and god knows what else. Check it out if you want to know what I think about what I read, watch, listen to, and otherwise occupy my days with when I'm not thinking about how to get out of posting anything new here ;)

Music- "Powerpuff Girls Theme" (cause it's STUCK in my head...)

My New T-Shirt Idea

2009-12-04T17:29:00.002-05:00

I thought this would make for a fun T-Shirt, or a Christmas Card. Clever? Or just silly? YOU DECIDE!

2009-12-03T20:22:00.000-05:00

Undated; probably around November 1993.

Well, it's The Crow again. This is hardly unfamiliar territory for the blog, right? This time (or that time, when I drew it), I decided to approach the character slightly differently from past attempts. This time around, I decided I'd focus on what was really the heart of the story, Eric and Shelly. As you may or may not know, Eric comes back (or is brought back) from the dead to avenge his and Shelly's murders. The effectiveness of the comic book comes from the numerous flashbacks to their relationship interspersed throughout the book. So, while it's an all kinds of crazy revenge story, the book does a pretty fantastic job of highlighting just what they both lost.

Also, when you're 19 years old, this kind of story just kills.

Anyway, the picture is something I'm actually quite pleased with. Something a little different for me back then, I think the set up and layout of it works at least reasonably well. I'd probably approach it differently now, but I like how it works. Who knew?

Music: "I Am Stretched On Your Grave" - Dead Can Dance

From the Crypt v.2, Item 10: The Hell(raiser) You Say

2009-12-01T19:10:00.003-05:00

11/7/93.

Let me get this out of the way now: I didn't draw this on black paper- I drew it just like every other drawing I did back then, and I just now reversed it. If black-and-white photos look better than color, white-on-black drawings look much cooler than black-on-white. At least, drawings of Cenobites do.

I was a big fan of Hellraiser back in the day. Mostly because of the stylized look of them- if Freddy and Jason were cool icons, here was a whole Manson family of characters to choose from. It was gory, it was sexy, it was clever- all the things guaranteed to appeal to young people of a certain age. And of course, if it appeals to a girl the young person likes, then so much the better excuse to draw. Not that I ever gave her the drawing- somehow a little far afield from the gift of flowers, right? But, you had to know her to appreciate that she was as likely to enjoy the drawing as she was the flowers. Ah, the good old days. (I didn't realize until sometime later that Hellraiser was essentially a treatise on sadomasochism. But really, is that the kind of thing you want a 19-year-old to know much about?)

Nothing fancy about the drawing itself- mostly adapted from pics I most likely found in Fango (Fangoria magazine to you not in the know), with what I believe are some adapted lines from the movie.

Music: "Christian Woman" - Type O Negative

P.S. Ask Joey sometime about the true Leviathan (the 'big bad' of Hellraiser II)

Tryptophan Overdose

2009-11-29T20:11:00.002-05:00

Sorry folks- due to an unexpected assault of tryptophan over the past few days, I won't be posting anything just yet.

Well, other than this.

Hope everyone had a good holiday weekend with whatever you got into. I have a couple ideas for various projects- like always, we'll see how far any of them get along.

Cheers!

PS- it is now acceptable to listen to Christmas music.

From the Crypt v.2, Item 9: The Devils I Know

2009-11-24T21:15:00.002-05:00

7/1/93 (Happy Belated Birthday, Mark!)

Well, unintentionally, I'm continuing the theme of Hell and the Devil with this retro post from '93. It takes two of my then-favorite characters, Daredevil and Grendel, and puts them in a dynamic, but dangerous, confrontation.

As you can see, still going with the super-musculature here. Lots of blacks (Grendel's outfit is meant to be black, but it's pretty hard to show detail like that). For me, a pretty decent dynamic to the figures. I remember enjoying drawing this a lot- like I said, a lot more dynamic than most of the things I drew (then and now), and they were two of my favorite characters.

Most of you probably know who Daredevil is, from the mediocre (at best) Ben Affleck movie if nothing else. But to sum up: Blind Lawyer by day, Blind Vigilante by night. Grendel, however, is a bit more complex. The character of Grendel (in comics) first appeared in the guise of Hunter Rose, a millionaire playboy who dressed up in a stylish costume and went out into the night (sounds like Batman, right?). But in this instance, Grendel was the villain of the piece. In fact, he only lasted for one story; he was killed at the end of it. The story's title, Devil by the Deed, began to make 'Grendel' and 'Devil' synonymous. The character became a cult hit, and was revisited repeatedly, even showing a meeting with Batman, and eventually, Hunter Rose/Grendel became the driving force for the entire planet. Gone was the thief/murderer Hunter Rose; in his place was Grendel, the spirit of aggression. A large number of stories were told in this future world, and how the spirit of Grendel (more metaphorical than literal) affected every single part of the world. I've not revisted the Grendel universe in many a year; perhaps it would be worth another trip. I remember quite enjoying it back in the day.

Anyway, the picture: mostly, I just thought it was a nice opportunity to take two 'devil' characters and put them together. Plus, with Daredevil being a pretty close analogue to Batman, I thought it would work well. No story beyond that.

Happy Thanksgiving to all; I'll be back sometime next week.

Hell and The Necromancer; my book report by Karloff's Ghost

2009-11-22T11:15:00.005-05:00

I read two books in a row. One was called Hell by Robert Olen Butler and one was called Johannes Cabal, The Necromancer by Jonathan L. Howard. They were both about Hell, though I didn't plan to read them both in a row. I guess I should worry that I subconsciously chose two books in a row about Hell, but I won't. They were very different from each other, but were both very good.

Hell took place, unsurprisingly, in Hell. The main character is Hatcher McCord, the newscaster for Hell's evening news. Hell is not like most ideas of Hell we've seen in the past. There's fire and brimstone and acid storms, but it's a big city (Hell enough for some people) that runs just like a terrestrial big city. Hell is a lot more devious than lakes of fire. Hell is pretty subtle- doing things you know will not work, or will only disappoint you, but being compelled to try anyway in the hopes that, maybe this time, things will be different. Hope springs eternal in Hell, as does disappointment. Hell is populated with quite the array of guest stars: Humphrey Bogart, the Clintons, G.W. Bush, Hitler, even (though implied rather than stated) the author himself. And not just them- a number of surprising folks turn up. Some of the most interesting and thought-provoking parts of the novel are the descriptions of the sufferings of the famous. But, this isn't simply a 'Who's Who' of the damned. When Hatcher learns there may be a way out of Hell, he begins a journey that takes him from one end of Hell to another, and a journey through the ideas of personal pain and suffering, human connections, free will, and the possibility of redemption.

It's not light reading, by any means- though the language is hardly florid, the directions Butler takes with his characters, often veering off into stream-of-consciousness internal monologues on the suffering of the damned, can take you out of the 'plot'. However, these side trips into their suffering are really an integral part of the meaning of the book. Some of these moments, especially when revisiting the damned, make for some of the most emotional moments of the book. By the time the novel ends, you have traveled nearly as far as Hatcher has, and the ending hits the reader profoundly, all the moreso for its understated nature. Its impact is only reinforced as you look back across the events of the novel. I found myself repeatedly thinking about the novel after I'd finished it, wondering at the deeper meanings of some of the events. It has been said that Hell is other people, but after reading this novel, I believe that the author, at least, thinks that Redemption might be other people, as well.

Johannes Cabal The Necromancer does not take place in Hell. Or at least, not entirely. Most of the story takes place in a carnival. Which could be like Hell for some folks. Especially those not liking clowns. I'm not really sure how best to describe the story- though the plot is pretty straightforward: Man sells soul to the devil in order to discover the secrets of life after death, decides that wasn't the best way to learn, then renegotiates his contract, trading one hundred freely-given souls in one year's time for his own back. And he has to collect them using a carnival. It takes places in an unspecific time and place- I was convinced it took place in Victorian England, until they started referring to things like radio and genetics. it's somewhat reminiscent of the mysterious European country that so many of the Universal monster movies took place in- filled with superstitious villagers alongside modern technology.

I found myself often rooting for Cabal, then realizing he was still collecting the signatures of people to send them to Hell. Hardly a typical good guy. In fact, there's very little immediately likable about him- he's not only soulless, but pretty much amoral as well. However, he's very good at what he does, and his determination and unflappability in the face of Satan himself, help to make him a more sympathetic lead. The whole book is written in a quirky, slightly off-center way that's become very popular in recent years. I found it very reminiscent of Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett's Good Omens, or the movie version of Big Fish, though with a bit drier sense of humor. The novel is populated with an interesting array of characters, not least among them Cabal's business partner. The novel itself, once it gets rolling (so to speak; it's a carnival that travels by train), unfolds in a series of vignettes at each stop along the rail. Each stop brings some new challenge to Cabal's plan, or to Cabal himself. It's not meant to be as philosophically engaging as Hell, but is quite enjoyable as an above-average supernatural humor/adventure story- one that also deals with ideas like suffering, human connections, and the possibility of redemption.

Those were the books I read. I would recommend them to anyone who likes to read and isn't afraid of the Devil or Hell or laughing or thinking or all of the above. I do not recommend reading them both in a row, or letting people know you are reading books about Hell- they might wonder what's going on in your mind. Or not, if they know you well. Thank you.

The Burgh n'@

2009-11-17T21:33:00.002-05:00

Not misspelled, spelled the way a Pittsburgher says it. I love my hometown.

And, I just really liked this. It was about 70 that day.

More later. Probably about Hell, but maybe something artsy. We'll see. Cheers!

Music: "My Hometown" - Bruce Springsteen

From the Crypt v.2, Item 8: Devil May Care

2009-11-12T21:19:00.003-05:00

6/29/93.

Back to the past, as it were. This one was still in that super-muscled phase I went through back then, but at this point I was starting to come into my own by making it a little more stylized. Daredevil was a long-standing favorite character of mine, and it was a nice change to do something slightly more action-oriented (for me), while still giving a somewhat iconic pose. Of course, there're tons wrong with the picture (anatomy, still not a strong suit), but I was pleased enough with it. I liked using the other inks to make 'highlights' of the picture, and this was more shading (fake though it was) than I normally used. It was a bit of a different picture than I was used to, but I still like it.

Probably nothing to post next Monday. It's been quite the week thus far, and with friends coming in from out of town this weekend, I'll most likely not get a chance to prep anything Sunday. So, see you Wednesday.

Music: "Devil Inside" - INXS

The Remembrance Table

2009-11-10T21:14:00.004-05:00

This Table set for one is small -- Symbolizing the frailty of one prisoner alone against his oppressors. Remember!

The Tablecloth is white -- Symbolizing the purity of their intentions to respond to their country's call to arms. Remember!

The single Red Rose displayed in a vase reminds us of the families and loved ones of our comrades-in-arms who keep the faith awaiting their return. Remember!

The Red Ribbon tied so prominently on the vase is reminiscent of the red ribbon worn upon the lapel and breasts of thousands who bear witness to their unyielding determination to demand a proper accounting of our missing. Remember!

The Candle, the candle is lit -- Symbolizing the upward reach of their unconquerable spirit. Remember!

A Slice of Lemon is on the bread plate to remind us of their bitter fate. Remember!

There is Salt upon the bread plate -- Symbolic of the families' tears as they wait. Remember!

The Glass is inverted -- They cannot toast with us this night. Remember!

The Chair -- The chair is empty. They are not here. Remember!

Remember! -- All of you who served with them and called them comrades, who depended upon their might and aid, and relied upon them, for surely, they have not forsaken you. Remember!

Remember! -- Until the day they come home, Remember!

--Larry H. Tassone, USAF (Ret)

Today is a day to honor all veterans, but I thought it would be an especially appropriate time to post this picture, taken this past Memorial Day at the Plum Legion. I'd never seen this tableau before- I've been to more than one Memorial Day tribute, but this was new to me. The solemnity and reverence with which the men of the Post attended to this table, and to the reading of the above, truly touched me- all the more remarkable given I was there for a ceremony honoring my father, as well as all those members who passed on over the past year.

So often, when I think about all those men and women who have served America, I think about all the ones who died, fighting for their Country, or their Family, or just the Soldier next to him. Or I think about those who lived, and came back to their Country, and to their Family, and to their fellow Soldiers.

Not often enough do I think of those soldiers lost to us- those Missing in Action, unable to come home to their Country, to their Family, to their fellow Soldier; and the Prisoners of War, who sometimes do come home, but are always haunted and marked by their time kept away from their Country, their Family, their fellow Soldiers.

So please, think about them all- think of the veterans living, deceased, and lost...

Think.

And Remember.

From The Crypt Halloween, 5: Finis

2009-10-29T23:40:00.000-04:00

Happy Halloween!

From The Crypt Halloween, 4: The Other Monster Squad

2009-10-28T22:35:00.003-04:00

10/6/89. At least this one was started around Halloween time.

Not much to say about this one- my favorite monsters, in color! My sister had gotten me colored pencils for Christmas past, so I was trying to put them to use. Not much to say about this one, other than I don't know why the Mummy appears to be floating, and for whatever reason I always remember drawing Dracula like that- Bela's outfit, but completely different face. There's a reason I drew that face, but I can't remember what it is. So there you go.

I'm tired.

See you tomorrow.

Music: "Monster Mash" - Bobby 'Boris' Pickett

From The Crypt Halloween, 3: Horror's Hero

2009-10-27T22:22:00.003-04:00

7/24/90.

Not quite a horror monster, Darkman was nonetheless a horror fan's dream. Imagine a superhero movie done by Evil Dead's Sam Raimi... oh wait, that was Spider-Man. Well, go back twelve years or so and you'll see Raimi's first superhero movie. Coming out a year after Tim Burton took the 'comic' out of 'comic books' and redefined the superhero movie, Darkman was an early successor to that grim and gritty, super-stylized movie, channeled through the mind of Sam Raimi. Starring a pre-Qui-Gon Liam Neeson, it failed to make much of an impact at the box office- but made quite the impact on little film and movie geeks everywhere. I remember loving the bombast and insanity of it all- one of the bad guys had a machine gun built into his prosthetic leg!- as well as the drama and pathos of the poor, disfigured scientist who can no longer feel anything but rage... plus he's got a face that melts every 99 minutes! I haven't seen it since the early 90's, so I have no idea how it holds up. I would hope it's another good example of Prime Sam. I found a few pictures of Darkman- I might post another one for your viewing amusement later this week.

Oh- although it didn't do well at the box office, the filmmakers knew just how to hit up the geek market: They made two follow up films that were direct-to-video, starring Arnold Vosloo (that guy from The Mummy)- probably because he was cheap and bald, which makes for less money on bald caps. I never saw them, so I can't speak for their filmic value. Might be worth watching, yes?

Music: "Theme from Darkman" - Danny Elfman

From The Crypt Halloween, 2: First Cuts

2009-10-26T21:28:00.003-04:00

12/20/89. Cause, you know, nothing says 'Christmas' like Freddy Krueger. Nightmare Before Christmas, indeed.

Looking back at these old pictures, I've come across a number of Freddy Krueger drawings. Now, before you decide I need medical attention (or reaffirm your initial opinion), let's take a look at another thought in play here. Essentially, Freddy Krueger, star of some hard-R movies, had by this time become a superhero. Okay, supervillain, to be precise, but hardly a horror movie monster. Sure, he killed kids in their sleep and terrorized a generation of teens, but let's take a closer look. Horribly damaged as a young man? Check. Virtually impossible to kill? Check. Long metal claws? Check.

He's not a monster.

He's Wolverine.

Alright, a bit of a stretch there. But, hopefully you take my meaning. By this point, the late 80's, the horror of Freddy (not even sleep is safe) had been replaced by a joking, nearly cartoon image of the original- the later episodes were practically action movies with more blood and makeup effects. Where had all the horror icons gone?

Looking at this pic, evidently Freddy took them out. I forget where I'd first heard the mention of a team-up between Freddy and Jason (one of those fanboy dreams that never, EVER live up to the hype), but this was a little idea that I put down on paper. I never did see the movie. I'm betting whatever I was thinking here was probably better than what made it to film.

Music: "One, Two Freddy's Coming For You"

From The Crypt Halloween, 1: We Still Belong Dead

2009-10-25T21:57:00.002-04:00

8/20/90.

At my Mom's this past weekend, I came across a huge collection of my old drawings. Instead of shuffling them to the bottom of whatever box they came out of like usual, I decided to bring them with me and look through them again, just to see if I've made any progress since then. I thought if nothing else, I could maybe find some choice ones and post them, just to show how bad I used to be way back in the day. Funnily enough, I ended up coming across a bunch of Halloween-themed (or genre-related, at least) pics and thought, since I didn't have anything new to post for Halloween, and I've been running old pics already, I could combine those two and post these REALLY old pics. Not even from the crypt so much as the old burial mound... But, there will be, with luck, a post for each night this week. Rejoice!

So this first one, I hope you can see, is Frankenstein's Monster and his Bride. This pic looks like it was influenced by an old photo or scene from the movie (the poses feel familiar) but I don't think it was a direct drawing of a photo. As you can see, I was a fan of the Universal Monsters going back quite a ways. Not much to say about this picture, though looking at the green ink, it reminds me of the time I spent drawing, then using the different color ink pens to ink the drawings instead of just plain coloring them. And, if you look at the Bride and squint really hard, she kind of looks like Madeline Kahn.

More tomorrow.

Music: "Tubular Bells" - Halloween Soundtrack

From the Crypt v.2, Item 7: Hell's Highway

2009-10-20T21:55:00.002-04:00

June 7, 2009.

This one is pretty easy to describe. Much like my long-ago posting of 'breed', this one is directly inspired by a song. In this case, Ministry's "Hero". I was a huge fan of Ministry and Nine Inch Nails back in the day- nothing like some industrial music to get the outrage flowing. I'm not as much into it now- I guess my tastes have just changed a lot (go ahead, say it- I've gotten old :)- but my tastes have always changed. It's still fun to listen to every now and again, or better yet, catch on the radio.

But, this is just what came to my head when I would listen to the song. Also, it's inspired in large part by a story from 'Heavy Metal' called... "Friday", I think? About a clone trooper who doesn't think just like all his fellow clones. Wish I could remember the exact name.

And there you go.

Probably not going to post anything for this Friday, but you never know.

Music: "Hero" - Ministry (what, did you expect something else?)

From the Crypt v.2, Item 6: Snickity Swipe

2009-10-18T20:53:00.002-04:00

May 1, 1993.

Well, we're back to the old stuff. Which is good, as I don't have any new stuff to post yet. Things have been quite... tiring here. Life is busy. But it'll do that.

This is Wolverine, obviously. Or I hope obviously. Couldn't get enough of the little runt back in the day. Now... eh. Don't get me wrong- I like the character well enough, but it's hard to buy into the character anymore when he's probably as ubiquitous as Spider-Man anymore. For Kirby's sake, he's on a cartoon for little kids! You know, the guy with foot-long metal claws who kills people? Little bit odd, that.

But I digress. This particular picture is known as, in the parlance of the industry, a 'swipe'. A swipe is when one artist uses another artist's work- usually a pose, but can go so far as to copy the actual style or composition. Often done without acknowledging the shoulders upon which they stand. If they do make the proper sounds (usually "-name-, after Kirby" for example), the swipe is known as an homage. Splitting hairs, but then that's what fandom does best. Let's see- using my profound geek memory, as I recall this is a swipe of Liam Sharp's Death's Head II, probably from one of the early issues. But considerably less detailed than Mr. Sharp's work. The original drawing was a character called, surprisingly, Death's Head II. I at least did the work to make it look like someone different.

'Swiping' is a big deal nowadays in the industry, what with the ready availability of photo references online. There's one artist who is almost as well-known for his swiping photo references as he is for his drawing ability. I remember his earliest work- honestly, it was better then than it is now, but I know I'm a minority opinion. He's gotten so bad, in the most recent issue of the book he shares art chores on, he swiped a different artist and 'drew' the exact same character in the exact same way- but the artist he ripped off is an amazingly different style of artist. Shame, shame! Swiping is something many artists do at one time or another, and it's difficult to say where using photo reference ends and swiping begins, and I'm probably not one to make that call. I've done it in the past- especially in terms of posing and so on- but then again, I'm not being paid for it. Oh well, as long as someone is paying for the work, artists will continue doing it.

Okay, off the soapbox.

Enjoy the day!

In other news, I think I figured out what to go as for Halloween. My only problem now is finding all of the things I need. You'd think Gothic stuff would be more in now, but you'd be wrong. Or perhaps over the age of 17 and shopping somewhere other than Hot Topic.

Also, I went to my first Haunted House in well over 20 years. I had a lot of fun, but I came to the realization that I should've been going for at least the past 10 years. I walked in and started figuring out what the gags would be, where the surprises were coming from, how they did the gags, and what music they were using. I enjoyed it, but if I were younger, or less jaded, I wouldn't be so interested in the how of it and just enjoy the spectacle. Still, I'm hoping to go to another one this weekend.

Music: "Terrible Lie" - Nine Inch Nails

Toes in the Water

2009-10-15T16:49:00.003-04:00

Well, another Columbus Day has passed, and so has another trip to Chincoteague Island, VA, with my friends. This house was the biggest yet rented (and probably the biggest house we will ever rent- it's the biggest on the island!) and filled with much happiness and good food. Here are some sights from the trip:

The Chincoteague Lighthouse. We visit the island every year, and this is the first I've been to the lighthouse in... a long time. Didn't go inside, but I'm old now and have trouble with all the steps.

Here's a lovely view from the back of the house. In spite of the weather forecasters' doom and gloom, it was all in all a great weekend.

Yeah, that's right. The house had an ELEVATOR! aka, kids'-attention-getter. Okay, I rode it twice.

That's all for now. I'm feeling a bit under the weather, so there most likely won't be a post Friday, but I'll be back Monday. Oh- extra credit to anyone who has a suggestion for a Halloween costume for me.

Music: "Toes" - Zac Brown Band

ReVision and Milestone

2009-10-04T22:31:00.003-04:00

10/4/09.

This marks my 200th post. Since Joey's been telling me to revisit my old work in order to try and jumpstart my mostly stalled creative inclinations, and since I knew this 'milestone' was coming up, I thought I'd combine those two ideas and went back to my first 'retro' post, which is also the one of the oldest pieces of 'modern' art I can find (I have older stuff, but I won't punish you like that; and I have larger art from high school, but it won't scan). In case you've forgotten, that original post was the start of a design for a banner meant to be presented at the Pittsburgh Arts Festival (or whatever it's called). My idea was to do a banner with an angel and demon, as gargoyles/statues, over the Pittsburgh skyline. Really, that was the plan. If you look back to it , it's kind of hard to see any of that. Ah well, I was young and lazy, not to mention I just didn't have the skill to draw it back then.

Cut to 15 years later. Okay, I'm still lazy, and my skills are sometimes questionable, but I've had 15 years of experience figuring out how to draw things (and finding the reference to allow me to draw things)- not to mention the fact that my imagination works differently now. The biggest difference, strangely enough, is the simplest difference: I bought a drafting table. So, I have a dedicated workspace now- no more drawing on the TV tray (well, until there's something good on). But, by buying that table, it gave me a focus and motivation to actually work on drawing again. Damned if it didn't work. I'm hoping it will continue; but if it doesn't, it won't be for lack of trying.

To those of you who've kept coming back post after post, either quickly cruising through or reading every single rambling, over-punctuated sentence, I thank you. This has been a pleasure, a burden, a pressure, and a reward, and I'm glad to have shared it with you. I plan on posting here for as long as I feel like I've got something to post... and even when I don't feel like it, I'll try to keep on going. It'll be back to the old school with the next post (next week; Chinco is this week!), but I plan on following it up with more new work.

The process is not yet finished
But it is going on;
This is not the end,
But it is the road
-Martin Luther

Cheers!

(oh, by the way, the 'hint' from last week referred to the song 'Double Agent' and the line "my angels and my demons at war"- obscure even for me, but it's my blog so there)

Music: "Doomsday" - Murray Gold

From the Crypt v.2, Item 5: SooperDooper

2009-09-29T21:28:00.003-04:00

April 22, 1993- Earth Day, apparently. (You can tell I was a college student then, since I made note of such things)

Nothing special to say about this one, other than 'hey, it was a phase I was going through'. Actually, as I look at the re-designed costume, that's very much a relic of the 90's as well. That style of costume- no-underpants, panels running the length of the body- was pretty popular back then. Hell, that was the only style Rob Liefeld seemed to draw back then. But really, the over-muscled thing? Yeesh. And not even accurate muscles! Looking ahead a bit, I think the pictures veer away from that back into the realms of normally over-developed musclebound freaks we call superheroes.

As an FYI, if I'm doing my math right, I'll not be posting this Friday, but will have something up for Monday (fingers crossed). As a hint (if you care)- it's something old, done as something new, and look at the 'Double Agent'. Surely that's too obscure, even for me. Oh, and I blame Joe for the idea in the first place.

Music: 'Bad, Bad Leroy Brown' - Jim Croce (think about it...)

From the Crypt v.2, Item 4: Mutant Mods

2009-09-27T19:47:00.003-04:00

March 28, 1993.

The first question that came to mind when I looked at this before scanning it was, "why does a mutant whose power is healing from any injury need a suit of armor?" That's the kind of thing you only think of with age... or perhaps with common sense. I can offer no excuse, other than hell, it was the 90's and people dug that sort of thing. Everyone was getting armored up back then, in the comics. Batman, Daredevil, Captain America, Spider-Man... it was only natural to do the same to everyone's favorite mutant. Though I don't think he ever showed up with armor in the comics.

As far as the picture itself, I can't make much by way of comments on it- I don't recall what made me put it together the way I did, but two things do come to mind. One, I remember struggling with what to do with those stupid boot he used to wear- they looked like full-sized versions of his mask- but on his calves. Not sure how he walked, and I don't think he was very stealthy with those things on. Two, I liked the idea of his face being completely hidden- I think it made his mask look more frightening. Don't think that would fly with Hugh Jackman in the role, though.

Alrighty- enough for now, I'm bone-tired. More Wednesday, with luck.

Music: "Mr. Roboto" - Styx

From the Crypt v.2, Item 3: Ripped (Off)

2009-09-24T20:44:00.004-04:00

March 5, 1993. Seems like it was a pretty productive time for me, artistically. I really can't think back that far to what might've been going on, but at the very least I was drawing.

And what a drawing it was. sigh. See, this is everything that was good and bad about comics in the 90's (stop me if you've heard this one before). The 90's brought a real and lasting change in how comics were seen and perceived. This is when books stopped being about the characters and (frequently) became about the creators of the books- the comic book equivalent of the end of the studio movie system and the rise of the 'movie star', in my opinion. Sure, there were always very famous and popular artists (let's face it- people are pick up comics for the art initially) out there, but it became a whole other animal back in the 90's.

If there could be said to be a unifying style to this art, it was 'dynamic'. The artists themselves varied pretty wildly in the details of their art, but overall it had a real sense of action and vibrancy in it. Lots of useless detail lines helped. Also, over-rendering the people into something that looked more like an anatomical model of muscles rather than a 'normal' human being was a big difference. Super heroes always looked stronger than mere mortals; now you could see how each muscle was better. Hell, I remember there was actually an artistic trend in comics to draw the guys with bulging arm veins! Yep, true. One could ponder the meaning, symbolism, and effect it had on the average comic reader back then, but I'll spare you (for now).

Anyway, as you can see, I feel for this trend hook, (crosshatched) line, and sinker. The main culprit of this art style you see above was a guy named Bart Sears. I don't remember him always drawing like this, but there are some artists out there who can change their style to reflect current trends, and I guess he was one of them. Of course he pulled it off much better than I ever managed. My problems with this are like all my problems with drawing: I didn't have enough background to really understand what I was drawing. These weren't copied from anyone else's work, so I was left to figure out how the muscles were put together on my own, and figure out where the lines would go. I did okay, I guess, but really? that's just ridiculous. I never had the knack to really pull off these super-muscled people. So, when you see something I've done of late, just think: I could still be trying to draw just like this.

Back then, though, I recall being pretty proud of it- it was reasonably dynamic, and God knows I put enough lines in there. Bits and pieces I'm still pretty proud of, really. But jeez, how did these people digest food, with waists like that?

Music: "Them Bones" - Alice In Chains

From the Crypt v.2, Item 2: Please Don't Go Out On Me

2009-09-22T20:35:00.004-04:00

March 4, 1993.

(Okay, so "Go" is actually off their second album, Vs., which came out in Late '93, but sue me- the title's good)

Speaking of overserious... Pearl Jam's frontman, Eddie Vedder. Couldn't tell you where I found the reference for it, but it was one of my better attempts at drawing a 'real' person. Hell, it's better than half the stuff I try drawing now.

Pearl Jam was THE band for me back then. They were the ones who really opened up my ears, musically, to all the different types of music out there, going beyond my limited interest in music back then (limited to B94- a top40/pop station). Through them, I found my way to all different types of music, and as so many teens do, started charting my own course in terms of musical tastes and, to an extent, helping me find my own way socially, as well.

The funny thing was, I'd gotten the Nirvana tape, not the Pearl Jam. I mean, I'd just started hearing PJ, but Nirvana was awesome. Then one day Joey came over with his Pearl Jam tape (sorry folks, this predates our owning CDs) and we listened to both tapes. By the end of the night, I'd decided Pearl Jam was more to my liking, and Joey ended up a bigger fan of Nirvana. Both were amazing, of course. I imagine every generation of kids comes of age with a particular group or type of music, one that really helps influence their formative years, or serves as a touchstone for them as they look back and remember. For me, and probably for a lot of my friends, it was bands like Pearl Jam and Nirvana.

Wow- God help the kids who grew up in the early 2000's...

And yes, I wore the flannels, the ripped jeans with thermals underneath, and the kickers. It was the thing to do.

Music: "Release" - Pearl Jam

From the Crypt, Series 2: Lost and Dreaming

2009-09-20T20:07:00.005-04:00

Well.

It has been a while, hasn't it?

Sorry about that, really. It's just... you know... Life. And things. Everything's going fine, or as fine as it seems to go, and then next thing... it's like... what happened? When did I stop? Sure, there've been some pretty good reasons for not being here, but really- this was one of those things I'd done, those commitments I'd made, that I thought would be easy to stick with, to see through. Until I realized that I'd started looking at this blog as one more weight on me, one more pressure. Hell, it's just a scanned picture and some rambling- don't even get me started on actually trying to draw anything...

So, to come back here, like this... well, I'm going to give it a go as I had before- I'm going to post some stuff from the past, and comment on it, and make it look like I'm doing something. Let's call it- slow-motion catharsis. I'll be posting some 'new' art soon enough, honest- I'm just not ready to yet.

If you're willing to stick around and look back 17 years or so into my past, then I hope to be somewhat illumination and not make it a waste of your time. Failing illumination, perhaps at least some amusement.

Right.

Okay then.

So, this is the first drawing of my second 'big boy' sketchbook- the ones where I started taking the drawing (too) seriously, instead of scribbles and whatnot. The subject is another recurring character, Neil Gaiman's Morpheus. In this one, he's not really patterned after Kelley Jones' take on the Dream Lord so much as a more goth/proto-emo take of my own. He does have that freakishly elongated physiognomy that I like to think I did intentionally... This drawing bears all the hallmarks of my early 90's art influences- way too much detail in the muscles, over-rendered (and incorrectly draped) clothing, and a vague 'ostentatious without being pretentious' look about it. Oh, just you wait...

As usual, I'm left with a mix of pride, abashedness, and wistfulness when I look back at these drawings. I think I did pretty well back then, for no formal training, no anatomy knowledge to speak of... and I also feel kind of silly for looking at the overseriousness with which I approached just about everything back then. But, having just spent some time at my niece's high school, watching and listening to large groups of teens interact, I'm pretty sure that overseriousness wasn't just me. And a touch of wistfulness, because I drew the hell out of things, then. Day after day. And I had the patience to keep at it- I think the longest I might've gone without putting pencil to paper back then was maybe a week... and I bet if you checked my school notebooks you would've found something in them that wasn't notes.

So there you go. That's today's post. I'll be back with something else 'fore too long. I think there's an anniversary of some sort coming up.

Music: "New Divide" - Linkin Park

"With Great Power, Comes Great Merchandising Opportunities"

2009-08-10T19:57:00.003-04:00

...Does Whatever a Spider Can...

Hi guys. Just posting a Spidey drawing I've had sitting around for a while. Well, hell, they've all been sitting around for a while. I've been wanting to do this one up in a certain style- which I've kinda/sorta done here. If it looks a little different from most of my posts, that's because I've also colored the lines making up the picture. This is done all the time in animation (especially Disney, if you can remember seeing traditional hand-drawn animation from them, and especially the 'new classic' Disney stuff like Little Mermaid on), as well as by a growing number of comic book artists. It gives the work a different flavor, which is what I was going for here.

To be honest, I should've inked this first to eliminate a lot of the roughness in it, and perhaps I will in time, but I just wanted to post something, anything, so here it is. I'm really taken with this particular design of Spidey; it's something a little different, a little (okay, lot) cartoony, but fun. It's definitely inspired by the Spectacular Spider-Man cartoon on TV now, especially the design work of Sean 'Cheeks' Galloway. His style is so clean and fun, it's not hard to see how it would be perfect for cartoons.

Anyway, there you go.

Music: "Spider-Man Theme"

Who Watches?

2009-07-21T21:36:00.003-04:00

Just a quick post. Since it's been weeks, I figured the best way to return was by barely posting anything.

Here's a quick sketch I did back at a drawing session at Sean's. I'm not sure what else I drew, if anything. I remember being really frustrated at not having any ideas, but this came to me. It's not much, but vaguely amusing. Even vigilantes need to eat, right? The one red shoe is a (now-intentional) accident of painting. Oh yeah, I'm posting this in honor of the DVD and Blu-Ray release of Watchmen- and if you go to Best Buy, you can pick up special edition packaging in the shape of either Rorschach's or Doctor Manhattan's head. Possibly the most disturbing, yet sure-to-sell, packaging I've yet seen. Oh wait, they did do the Ape head for the complete Planet of the Apes series. Nevermind.

Apologies for the lack of posts, especially to those of you who check the blog on anything approaching a regular basis. Things are... things are fine, but the past few months have not been very kind to my desire to draw. I feel like I don't have the time I once did, and there are so many things to do, sometimes other things have to get put back on a back burner. Right now, drawing is one of them.

I'm hoping the next couple weeks will change that. I'm not going to say more, but we'll see if history is kind enough to repeat itself.

Music: 'Desolation Row' - My Chemical Romance (after Bob Dylan)

Hey Now, Hey Now...

2009-07-08T18:16:00.002-04:00

Sometimes, you just don't feel very happy.

Do You Mean Something Like This?; or, the Loneliness of Command

2009-06-16T21:24:00.002-04:00

I forget when I drew this; a few months ago, probably. My niece, Emily, was trying to draw something. She asked me about drawing someone in a military uniform, with his hands behind his back. She draws like I do when I first started drawing: try to draw the finished picture all at once. As a result, things weren't working too well for her. So, once I thought I understood her meaning, I threw this together quickly- as you can see. I hadn't given it any conscious thought at the time, but looking at the picture, it seems to me like this poor fellow has the weight of the world on his shoulders. Certainly not intended, but kind of interesting.

Not sure if she ever did anything with the picture or not. Hope so.

Something more later.

Music: "Feel Good Drag" - Anberlin

"Fat, Drunk, and Using Adamantium Claws is No Way to Go Through Life, Son."

2009-06-04T22:09:00.005-04:00

The Art Club got together a while back, as we occasionally do, and were trying to come up with things to draw. I don't remember why we decided what we did (pretty sure Sean had nothing to do with it), but we opted to draw Wolverine. I think we were talking about either artists or the movie or- oh wait, it was the new Wolverine comic that had recently come out (now like 8 or 9 monthlies, including at least 4 team books- pretty impressive for a loner).

So we talked about interpretations we liked, and naturally drifted to an old favorite of mine and Joe's, Havok/Wolverine: Meltdown. This came out in the early 90's, and was distinctive for two reasons: 1) it was published by Epic Comics, Marvel's "mature" imprint, so it had cussing in it, and more importantly 2) it was painted by two different artists, Jon J. Muth and Kent Williams. Each artist painted one set of characters; Muth painted Havok, Williams painted Wolverine. We loved this series.

Williams's take on Logan was like nothing we'd seen before. Gone was the ripped superhero with slick, yet pointy, hair. In his place, a pale, potbellied runt with broken capillaries (how much drinking does it take for a man who heals to get those?) and hair that looked more like a pelt than anything human. He painted him with these two wild tufts of hair that streamed out behind him, almost like antenna.

It was awesome.

So it was, as we sat down and started drawing, that I decided to go with this Williams-inspired look. To be perfectly honest, all the smoother, animated-style, cartoony work I put up isn't really how I draw. What's above is really how I draw, when I'm just throwing something down without worrying every little thing. It really lent to this version of Logan, as Williams's style is much rougher (though still magnificent) than many painters today. I had a blast drawing like this, as it indulged my comic geek side, while letting me stretch my artistic muscles somewhat.

By the end of the night, there were three Wolverines in the basement: my rough and drunk Logan, Joe's masked Wolverine (with Williams-inspired long pointy mask), and Sean's Hugh Jackman-styled Logan (no mask). It was a lot of fun to see how all three of us took the same idea and went running off in totally different directions.

I wasn't done, of course. Once I finished the drawing, I decided to take it a bit further and try to color it along the lines of Williams's fantastic watercolors. Doing subdued coloring in Photoshop is a lot harder than I would've imagined. As you can see from my past coloring efforts, loud primary colors are a lot easier to do than subtle variations- at least for me. I've seen other digital artists whose work made me want to cry. In time, perhaps... but I'm pleased with the result, though as always I'd like to change things here and there.

Thanks to Dean Wormer for the quote.

---

Welcome back. Sorry it's taken so long to get this post up. Getting the picture to the point where I wanted to post it took longer than I expected, as well as life getting in the way. All's good, though.

See you next week.

Music: "Friends in Low Places" - Garth Brooks

Lines of Force

2009-05-27T20:24:00.002-04:00

Hi, everyone. Welcome back after a long weekend. Hope everyone had a good time spent with family and/or friends. I managed to do both.

Nothing too fancy to post this time; I'm going to try to go back to a (mostly) chronological posting of what I've drawn. That'll last probably as long as I don't find something else to put up, or something comes along of more interest to me.

Anyway, this was just a simple exercise I did a while back. Since one of my many weaknesses when drawing comic characters is their complete rigidity (talk about a stick up the-), I like to try to goof around every now and again with loosening up the posing, and just look for something dynamic, regardless of things like anatomy, look, or anything like that. This was such a thing.

There are actually a number of books on the market addressing such things as force and motion in drawing. I have a few of them, but haven't found/made time for them yet. However, this is a little like what you'd see in those books, except very poorly rendered. I threw in a couple sets of lines in here, to show what I think is the 'skeleton' of the figure (where the limbs will go, how they're posed, etc.), and to show the sense of motion I'm going for. A good artist can make a perfectly static image look like it's about to leap off the page. I'm not such an artist, but I did enjoy doing this. If only he had someone to hit...

That's about it for now. I'll probably have something up again either Friday or next week...

Oh hell, let's be honest: it'll be up when it's up.

Music: "Time and Motion" - Rush

Service

2009-05-21T21:08:00.005-04:00

Last weekend was, in its way, Memorial Day for me and my family. We spent the weekend remembering Dad, in three different, but appropriate ways.

Saturday-

We got up early Saturday (early for Emily, at least) and packed Mom, my sister Bobbi, and my niece Emily into the van and took a road trip to Maryland. Not normally the kind of thing we'd do (I like sleeping in as much as the next person), but this was a little bit special. We were headed down to the Hilltop Fruit Market. Nothing fancy about it, just a roadside market, but it was a place Dad used to take Mom (and Bobbi and Emily from time to time) as an excuse to take a nice leisurely drive through some wonderful country. It was about the journey, not the destination. I'd known they used to take drives down to this place, but had never gone with them, so I didn't know where it was or how to get there. Mom couldn't remember the name of the place, but gave a really good description of it. I found out through a friend where it was, then found some directions for it. Instead of taking those, I took a look at a map and asked myself, "Which way would Dad go?" Well, knowing him, there were probably at least 3 different ways to go, with another 5 in reserve. I picked the most obvious one, and off we went.

I wasn't sure what the drive would be like, especially for Mom. Would it be sad for her? Bittersweet? As we drove down, I imagine all of our thoughts drifted to thoughts of Dad from time to time- 'what would it have been like to come with them?' 'I remember the last time we came down' 'I remember the first time we saw that place, all those years ago'... but it never felt like those thoughts were oppressing, or taking the enjoyment out of the trip. Instead, it felt like he was there with us, or maybe in the next car over. We talked about things they'd seen on different trips with Dad down there, about the scenery, the towns, or whatever- it was just another family trip. Partway down, they talked about seeing Nemacolin, a fancypants resort, one time. I was pretty sure we wouldn't see it; I felt bad, since I wanted to take them the way Dad would, I wanted it to be like when he drove.

I shouldn't have worried; sure enough we passed Nemacolin about 20 minutes later. The rest of the day was a lot of fun. We passed a horse and wagon train- I don't know what else to call it; it was in celebration of Pike Days or something like that. Plenty of people on horseback and in horse-drawn carts, some of them authentic, some of them looking like giant-sized Radio Flyers. We got to the Hilltop Fruit Market (after asking directions from a nice kid who essentially pointed and said 'look that way') and loaded up on an insane amount of bulk candy (my sweet tooth is genetic, thank you) and some veggies and sundry other stuff. We stopped for lunch at that quintessentially American site, McDonalds. And we took a drive through Nemacolin on the way back (though I drove through kind of fast before they could figure out the Dodge Caravan didn't fit in with the Hummers and BMWs...). It was a great time, fun and relaxing, spent with the family.

Sunday-

Saturday was about our family remembering Dad and what he did for us. Sunday was about remembering and honoring what he did for others, and for his country.

After chuch, we drove over to Harmarville for a memorial service hosted by CORE. CORE is the Center for Organ Recovery & Education- they are a non-profit group dedicated to helping promote organ donation and transplants. They get involved whenever someone needs a transplant- they help find donors for those in need, and help make people aware of the tremendous good that can come from signing up to be a donor.

We first learned about CORE shortly after Dad passed. Someone from their offices contacted us to let us know that they might be able to use some organs or tissue from Dad's body, and would we be willing to make that donation? Mom and Bobbi didn't even hesitate: "If your Dad can still help someone, then he will." We were surprised they even contacted us, actually; Dad was 78 years old, and in very poor shape.

Days passed, and we would occasionally wonder what had come of that phone call. Had they just decided they couldn't do anything, and didn't want to tell us? What had happened? About a week or so later, we received a letter in the mail: CORE had in fact been able to use tissue from Dad's body. It made perfect sense. Why would something like Death stop him from helping someone?

And so, almost a year later, we found ourselves at 'A Special Place' Ceremony. It's not so much a Memorial as a Celebration, for all those donors and their families, whose tragedies were instead turned into triumphs for so many others.

I wasn't sure what to expect; I figured maybe a couple hundred people would be there. Instead, what seemed like thousands were there- I had no idea so many would attend. And I learned that it wasn't just the donor's families who'd showed up; there were many recipients who'd also shown up. There were speeches from CORE members, thanking the families for the donations, for giving that gift to save lives. There was a speech from a man who looked through the grief of losing his only child to help others, and from a man who, thanks to two donors, was able to see again. Finally, two people spoke about the impact donation had on their lives: a woman's sister died in a fall, and her liver was donated to save the life of a man. Some years later, the families decided they wanted to meet because, as the woman put it, "she just wanted to make sure he was okay."

At the end of the ceremony, there was a balloon release, one balloon for each of the donors:

The next picture was a few seconds later. The circle you see towards the top of the picture is a circular rainbow; it was around the sun for almost the entire time of the ceremony:

As we were sitting, waiting for the crowds to thin, a woman walked up to us and said "Thank you for your donation. Because of someone like you, I got a kidney transplant. That was 21 years ago." That simple statement made me so thankful, and so proud.

Our next trip was to the local American Legion, Post 980. They have a Memorial Day service every year, to honor those Legion members lost in the past year. They have it a week before Memorial Day because, as they said "We want people to remember the reason for Memorial Day." It was a great service, as I would expect nothing less from these men- they were there for Dad to pay tribute at the funeral home and at the cemetery. One of the men at the service read the names of those who'd died in the past year- sadly, it took all too long. Near the end of the ceremony, the honor guard fired a salute:

I looked around at these old men, and the young men and women, and listened to what they had to say, about duty, and honor, and America, and comradeship, and love. I was filled with such pride- not just for Dad, and his humble sacrifice- but for all of these people, who gave so much not only for their families and friends, but for their entire country. To know that, even in these cynical and jaded times, there are those who will stand and fight for our country- for the ideals our country represents, for the flaws in our country, for the hope that we can rise above those flaws-

It was an honor to be in the company of such people. It is an honor to know my Father was such a person.

That was Sunday.

This weekend, as you kick back and enjoy the idea of not working, eating hot dogs, and the idea of the Penguins continuing their winning ways, please take a moment or two to think about those who serve- not just in the military, but all those people who serve others, by teaching, by protecting, by healing, by parenting, by supporting, and those who serve, and save, even though they're gone.

Moonlight Madness

2009-05-14T20:59:00.004-04:00

One more Dracula picture. I originally sketched this late one night at Mom's place, when I had a hankering to sketch something, but not really go into much detail. I found an old card left over from the 'Dracula' trading card series back for this movie. The original card was painted by Mark Chiarello, a fantastic painter who does most of his work behind the scenes at DC Comics nowadays. I best know him for painting a team-up book of Batman and Harry Houdini, of all people.

My favorite part of drawing this was using a heavy leaded pencil- you get such thick, black lines out of it, it gives whatever you're drawing a lot of weight and power. It also leaves less room for goofing around with the pencil, thus making the work itself a little more deliberate. It gives me the feeling of almost working in ink, as it doesn't take much extra work to make a fully-rendered picture.

Then I put it in Photoshop and hid all the lines. I was originally going with a more watercolor, faded look, but then I saw how good it looked with solid black in lieu of the pencils, I decided to mess around with the colors and textures more. I'm very pleased with it, as it's a solid picture, but I colored it in a much looser fashion. Sure, it's mostly inside the lines, but there's a bit more going on in the face than just one tone. I had a lot of fun with this one, not least because it's the first really creative work I've done in PS in a while. Hopefully this'll continue.

And no, it's not secretly Alan Moore.

Music: "Panic Switch" - Silversun Pickups

America's Artist, and The Habah

2009-05-11T20:39:00.006-04:00

This past weekend, Kelly and I took a long weekend and drove up to Massachusetts so I could finally fulfill a wish of mine: to visit the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, MA. We filled out the trip (going to the NRM was absolutely my only goal for the weekend. I could've turned around and driven back that day and been happy). It was a pretty amazing time all around- there's nothing quite like going on vacation with only a vague idea of what you want to do. Then when you're headed back home, thinking about how fantastic the trip was, the realization that most of those great moments came about through no planning, hits you and makes you see how wonderful spontaneity can be. Yeah, it was a good time.

I've been a fan of Norman Rockwell for a long time, but mostly without realizing it. I'd seen his paintings all over the place for years: old magazines, pictures in doctors' offices, books, and the like. I'd always admired them- there's no denying the... reality of the pictures. But my obsession with comic books and comic book art sort of kept Rockwell out of the spotlight for me throughout most of my 20's, or came in behind the ever-popular fraternal twins of Arts Nouveau and Deco. However, as I left the 20's and crashed into the 30's, my tastes and appreciations broadened considerably, and I began to pay closer attention to those artists I've always known, but never paid close attention to (Maxfield Parrish, Andrew Wyeth, and Edward Hopper also fall into this category). It certainly didn't hurt that Joey and Sean were branching out as well, or at least cluing me in to their own favorites.

I found a few Rockwell books in the used bookstores down around Frederick, and it was through those I began to really understand the power and depth of Rockwell's ability. Norman Rockwell's covers to The Saturday Evening Post told stories; simple stories, stories familiar to anyone, but with such skill and thought and life, it's impossible not to feel something when viewing them. The people populating his pictures nearly seem to live and breathe, and it's impossible not to know exactly what's happening to each person in the painting. You can practically read their thoughts written on their faces. Regardless of the setting of the painting, you can't help but feel understanding for the subjects. You will laugh, or sigh, or nod in agreement to the painting in front of you. You will feel something.

I thought I'd grasped his mastery of understanding both people and paint, but I really had no understanding of his ability until we went to the museum. The first one I saw, Strictly a Sharpshooter, left me a bit dazed. I'd only seen this in one book in the past, and compared to the real thing, the print was a pale, pale imitator. What in print looks nearly like a gray tonal painting, in real life was rich with shades and hints of color- just look at the woman. The red of her flower draws you to her- then you take a closer look, and you think she's more photo than painting. You can see how upset she is, while the ragged boxer is shouting at her, most likely in disbelief. Apparently she's drawn a crowd- look how she's gotten the attention of the other boxing fans?

Then, of course, there are The Four Freedoms. I've seen these before, probably a lot of folks have. Norman Rockwell painted them in response to FDR's 1941 speech outlining the Four Freedoms: Freedom to Worship, Freedom of Speech, Freedom from Want, and Freedom from Fear. Four basic yet fundamental freedoms all people want and should strive towards. The four paintings were printed in the Post, and then again and again by the government. I'd seen them in so many books myself, I'd mostly forgotten what they meant.

Until I saw them with my own eyes.

They're situated in a gallery of their own in the center of the building, across from each other in each corner of the room, rather than on the walls. It was a good time to be there; there was no one in the gallery when I walked in, so I could have a minute to take it in on my own. Without realizing it, I was taking deeper and deeper breaths, nearly gasping. Goosebumps ran along my arms, and I actually felt the hair on the back of my neck stand on end. I was nearly in tears, and I'd only just walked into the room. What was it about those paintings that had such an effect on me? A thought flashed through my mind as I stood there: This must be what they mean by 'religious experience', though it went beyond the idea of religion. I think it was just the idea of these simple ideas, - such amazing ideas pared down to their essence and so exactly and perfectly rendered into these paintings- I think that's what struck me so deeply. That's really the only way I can put it to words.

It was just amazing to see with my own eyes so many of his paintings, which I'd only seen previously in books and magazines. As I told Kelly later, I almost didn't want to bother looking at the prints they had for sale, since having seen the originals, they couldn't hope to compare. But I bought some anyway.

So that was my pilgrimage to the Norman Rockwell Museum.

Boston was wicked good, by the way.

A Gentle Reminder

2009-04-28T20:53:00.003-04:00

My Sister-in-Law, Linda, is quite talented.

Not only is she a very good nurse (that's her 'day' job), she's a phenomenal seamstress. For as long as I've known her, she's made all manner of fantastic creations out of fabric, thread, and what I imagine must be an incredible amount of patience. Back in the mid-80's, she made me a jumpsuit for Halloween so I could go as one of my favorite movie characters back then, the Ghostbusters. It zipped up, just like theirs did, and had silver thread stitched on it to make all the 'pockets' of their jumpsuits. It went quite well with my cardboard-box-backpack and broomhandle/tissue box particle thrower. I wore the hell out of that thing, often wearing it around the house to play in. Later, when we got our first computer (the venerable Apple IIc), she made a heavy-duty dust cover to fit snugly over the monitor and computer when not in use (remember back in the day, when people worried about such things as getting dust in the computer?). She's made all sorts of cool, clever, and sweet things throughout the years.

And then she made this.

Linda started making these bears a few years ago, to give to the parents of newborns who never made it out of the hospital. Then, when her own father passed away, she took one of his favorite shirts and made a bear for her mother and for herself. These bears, made of fabric and memories, became lasting reminders of those gone from our daily lives, but gone from our hearts and minds. She's made several for us- this one was the one I asked her to make.

The original shirt was a polo shirt made out of a football-jersey type of material, kind of like a mesh. The Cummins logo was on the left breast. Linda makes the entire bear (sans stuffing) using only the shirt; the bear's eyes and nose come from the buttons for the neck and collar. Since the fabric is like mesh, the stuffing actually pokes out a little bit- so he's a fuzzy bear (funnily enough, Dad always liked Fozzie Bear from the Muppets). As you can see, she put the logo on his leg, so everyone knows where he came from. Best of all, Linda put the tag on his back. The shirt was made by Champion. It reads:

It Takes a Little More to Make a Champion

Very appropriate, I think.

I always keep Dad close to my heart, and talk to him often. Now I have the Bear around, and I sometimes talk to him, too. He doesn't answer, but sometimes, he gets this look in his eyes...

Thanks, Linda.

---

Sorry for the missed Wednesday posting- there was a computer meltdown, but we're feeling much better now. Hopefully back with more newness early next week.

Cheers.

From the Crypt, 16: More Heavy Metal

2009-04-26T21:50:00.003-04:00

9/6/92.

Lo! There shall be an ending!!!

To this run of retro, at least. This was the end of this sketchbook, so it's a good time to stop and take a breather. This was a team-up of two popular 90's characters, one you already know (Deathlok) and one you've not seen before (Death's Head). Both very popular, both with pretty bad names, and a good indicator of what the 90's were like. It was a very violent time in comics, with the words 'Blood', 'Death', or some other nasty name popping up more often than rude drivers in Maryland. It was all so over-the-top, though, none of it really seemed to stick. Although it was the time of 'grim 'n' gritty' in comic books, it was still far enough removed from 'realism' that none of it seemed very serious. But, typical action poses, typical oddly-shaped guns, typical avoidance of drawing detailed hands or feet. Still, there are a few things I really liked out of these last few drawings.

Probably going to post some new stuff in the next post or so, along with some pictures I think. We'll see.

Hope all is well.

Music: "Big Guns" - AC/DC

Men At Work

2009-04-23T21:51:00.002-04:00

When you call and tell them you need help, and they don't ask 'why?', but ask 'what can I do to help you?', you can't really just call them friends.

Thanks, Brothers.

The cookies are on the way!

Music: "I Wanna Be Sedated" - The Ramones

From the Crypt, 15: Heavy Metal... sigh

2009-04-21T21:24:00.002-04:00

8/30/92.

Deathlok and Cable. One's a brave and honorable man trapped in a mechanical death machine, the other's a cyborg sent back from the future to save mankind. In other words, it's Robocop and the Terminator.

These were two of the more popular characters from Marvel back in the day... Hell, Cable was one of the most popular characters around back then. Things have changed somewhat... for one thing, shoulder pads are OUT.

Anyway, this was one drawing I recall being particularly proud of, if only for actually getting more than one character on the page. I always liked the way Deathlok looked in this shot- the turned head was quite an accomplishment for me back in the day (which is funny, as nowadays that's almost all I draw). More overexaggerated muscles, and guns that seem to be random assortments of rectangles. All good fun.

That's it. One more picture and this book is done, I believe.

Music: "More Human Than Human" - White Zombie

From the Crypt, 14: The Main Man

2009-04-19T20:49:00.002-04:00

8/21/92.

Oh, you whacky 90's, you... The only excess was excess itself. Nothing exemplified the idea of over-the-top 90's comic book sensibilities better than The Main Man himself, Lobo. I'm not sure where he started out in the DC comics' universe (not entirely true- Omega Men 9, I think, off the top of my head), but this definition defining "Anti-Hero" really came into his own in the early 90's with a series of hyperviolent, dementedly funny miniseries. Lobo was the last survivor of his race (having killed them off himself) and an intergalactic bounty hunter for hire. I really couldn't tell you what any of the stories were about, aside from as much violence, sex, and bad humor as a 'mature readers' comic would allow. Nowadays, I'm not even sure if the books would get any kind of label at all.

This picture probably looks ridiculous and over the top; for Lobo, that's about right. I remember having a lot of fun making up the drawing, coming up with all of the little gun details and other details in general. Also, I like the foreshortening of his arms- one of the few times it actually looks pretty good. Also, I remember being afraid of what Dad would say when he looked at it (not Lobo's hands, and the rings on them). He said nothing, but I think he shook his head...

Anyway, that's it for now. Two more pictures to go from this first sketchbook...

Music: "Outshined" - Soundgarden

From the Crypt, 13: Guns, with Occasional Spandex

2009-04-16T22:44:00.003-04:00

8/18/92.

This is another character from the 'big idea' I mentioned for a team a few posts ago. No idea what his backstory was at this point, but he sure did love guns. Back then, I did to- drawing them, at least. It was a cinch- draw some shapes, make one end look like something fires out of it, and you're done. Nowadays, it's all about realism and perspective and logic... Booorring.

Looking at this again, though, I notice a recurring motif throughout my years of drawing: the funky half-hood/half-mask. I'm not sure where it came from, but I've used it probably literally dozens of times. Anyway, taking a look again, all I can say about the design aesthetic, and the drawing itself, is: hey, it was the 90s...

Alright, that's it for now. I'm having considerable heartburn right now ('heart? since when?') so I'm headed to the medicine cabinet then bed. See you Mondayish.

Music: "Everything About You" - Ugly Kid Joe

From the Crypt, 12: Marvel Team-Ups

2009-04-13T21:15:00.003-04:00

July 15, 1992.

And it started out so promising, too...

Just a quick comment or two here (yeah, I hear you saying "Thank God", too). Looks like I was planning some kind of super-hero team-up for this one, and got pretty far along, too. However, if nothing else, this picture highlights 1) I REALLY suck at drawing legs (and feet) and 2) you can always tell when I start running out of enthusiasm for a picture. As in, did you SEE The Beast there, at the bottom of the picture? Looks like I smudged it to hide something criminal about it, it's so blurry. Spider-Man and Daredevil actually started out halfway decent (check out the foreshortening on DD's left arm!), but rapidly fell apart when it came to the legs. I'd like to say it's intentional, but it's not. It's funny, but looking through these drawings, I've really learned how much future grief I'd save myself if I'd just take a second look at a picture- or better yet, as was taught to me by Joey and Sean- turn the paper over and look at it backwards. Many pictures reveal their mistakes by forcing you to look at it from a new perspective. Ah well. Also, once again, my pseudo-super-hero anatomy is on display.

How much of this would be cleared up through the judicious use of an eraser. However, I would work so hard on the most minute details, I'd be so afraid to erase what I'd done for fear of being unable to reproduce the work, so the pictures would often be unnaturally or poorly completed just for the sake of those details. It's something I still struggle with.

Alright, enough already.

Something else on Friday, then maybe something new on Monday.

Sorry for the delays, but you know me, etc., etc., etc...

Music: "Better Man" - Pearl Jam

From the Crypt, 11: It's Not Death If You Refuse It

2009-03-31T18:52:00.003-04:00

7/11/92... Happy Birthday to me! Good to see I was out celebra... oh, wait, I was home drawing...

Well, this is good ol' Eric, otherwise known as The Crow. You've seen him on this blog before, though it's been some time. This particular version of him is based on the comic series that, like The Evil Dead and Sandman, was a gateway for teenagers into whole new worlds of fiction beyond those boring old superheroes.

Driven to create the comic in the wake of his girlfriend's tragic death, James O'Barr created a haunting, lyrical, disturbing and beautiful work of art about love, death, revenge and redemption...

Or at least that's how I saw it then. To be honest, I've not read it in many a year- part of me is afraid to, fearing that, like so much of the past, it won't stand up to the harsh light of time. Perhaps I'll take it off the shelf and give it a read through sometime soon. Who knows, it might still have some of the impact it had then.

This picture was heavily influenced by O'Barr's drawing style- his Crow was drawn as though he were almost sculpted, but with a fluidity to the character itself that always reminded me of a dancer or gymnast. I tried my best to bring some of that to my version here, though as with most of my characters, it can't help but look stiff and poorly posed. Not to mention all the anatomical errors (I've just now noticed how out of proportion it is). Damned little hands, too. I also just now remembered all the hell I used to give myself when it came to drawing the boots. They were always just supposed to be combat boots, coming to below the calf. However, with my drawing, they always seemed way too big... I've only now realized it's because I was drawing with the 'superhero' proportions (at least 8 heads high) rather than a more realistic height- so his legs were always too long to look right. Ah well. Anyway, that's that. I've done more than a few Crow pictures throughout the sketchbooks; it was a big influence back then. I'm pretty sure it will turn up again before long.

MMMMMmmmmaybe something Friday. We'll see.

Music: "Dead Souls" - nine inch nails

From the Crypt, 10: Bat Attitude

2009-03-29T22:04:00.002-04:00

June 10, 1992.

Batman was one of the first DC heroes I really liked. I was a die-hard Marvelite (or Marvel Zombie, if you like) from my earliest days; it wasn't until I got back into reading comics in the late '80's that I found the DC heroes. I can't remember which issue of Batman or Detective I first picked up, but I remember well the craziness of "A Death in the Family", the famous story-arc/publicity stunt whereby readers were given a 900-number to vote on the fate of Robin. They killed him. I gravitated to Batman because, like a lot of kids, I thought Batman was cooler because he was 'dark and grim'- it would take a number of years for me to first realize a) 'dark and grim' can kind of wear on a person and b) a good writer can make ANY character cooler than any other character- there have been a number of comics showcasing Superman (often the less-favored of the two characters- too much a boy scout), showing just how fantastic a character he can be.

But that's now, this was then- Batman ruled.

Nothing fancy about this one, either- just a picture of Batman leaping through the air. Possibly from a great height. Note that, for one thing, I didn't muck around with the costume, as I (and many, many other comic fans) would in the future... Chris Nolan's armored Dark Knight, and even the more armored-looking Keaton Batman, are a few years away. I'm not too sure about the mechanics of the muscles here, either- I'd not really spent any time looking at anatomy or reference books, other than comic books. And, as I recall, overly-musclebound heroes were the rage back then. I do still like how the hands were drawn, though. Hands and feet, tougher than anything else to draw.

So there's ze Batman; he'll turn up here again before too long, I'm sure.
---
Obviously, not a new picture. This weekend turned into one mildly productive, so I set aside plans to work on the new picture. I think I should get it fixed and posted this week, though... but you know me, don't you? Something will show up again soon, either something new, or something... not.

Music: "The End is the Beginning is the End" - Smashing Pumpkins

From the Crypt, 9: The Times, They Are A-Changin'

2009-03-26T21:12:00.002-04:00

June 4, 1992.

Oh 1990's, how I miss you so... cyberpunk-styled cyborgs were such the rage back then- undoubtedly some type of latent self-mutilation/body modification, cry-for-help-or-at-least-attention. Cyborgs were all over the place back then, certainly in comic books, or at least godawfully huge machine-wearing people were with guns as big as small cars- you know who you are- yes you with no pupils and tiny feet, you know I'm talking about you. The whole latent image problem business could just be so much bunk, but the big cyborg thing was very real, and I bought into it wholeheartedly. Couldn't even tell you why, really, other than I was a big fan of Robocop and a big fan of rampant technology in general. Also, it looked cool.

These two were my first attempt at an idea that's been with me ever since- like the best ideas (or like a Hollywood producer), I came up with the name first, then the rest sorted itself out. I won't spoil the name just yet- the concept evolved from this first idea, that of a group of 'highly-trained operatives, with state of the art cyber-enhancements' doing massive amounts of property damage, into something less... '90's, and into something I think is a big more interesting, or at least copywrightable.

Nothing much to say regarding the drawing itself, other than it was plenty of fun to draw at the time, I got a kick out of coming up with the crazy weapons and tech, and man, she's got a really small hand... and I just noticed, they apparently have the same sized waist... jeez...

Okay, that's all for now. I think next week I might just post something new, to break up the monotony of all these flashbacks.

Cheers.

Music: "Demolition Man" - Sting (yes, originally done by The Police, but this is the specific version I'm thinking of)

From the Crypt, 8: Groovy

2009-03-24T21:05:00.004-04:00

June 2, 1992.

Ah yes, to be a teen and exposed to movies.

I think every teen finds a movie, or set of movies, that becomes a bit of a touchstone for their age- something revelatory, stretching their boundaries and ideas of what can be done in film, or something profoundly in-the-moment, something that will always draw their memory to a time or place, something that will always say to them, 'you were doing this at this time when you saw this' and open a floodgate of memories. For some people, one can become the other- those eye-opening moments of 'wow, there's a lot of stuff out in the world' can become a half-wistful, half-chagrined walk down memory lane, thinking back to the idea that a movie really could change a person's life. Of course, for just as many people, those movies get locked in time, put in a place of importance, and relevance, beyond all reason. It's all a matter of perspective, of course- one man's Clerks is another man's Citizen Kane... If you're of the former thoughts, you all know someone like I'm describing. If you're of the latter, chances are you really have no idea you're like that. I'm sorry, but while Reservoir Dogs was a great movie, it was hardly the greatest film put to celluloid. Nor was Highlander. Or Clerks. Or, for that matter, The Evil Dead.

But we're speaking of then, not now. And for the then-me, The Evil Dead was damn near the best thing ever filmed. Specifically, Evil Dead II. The first movie (the one without the 'II', of course) was an ultra-low budget horror movie directed by some guy named Sam Raimi, who would go on to eventually direct Spider-Man. Back then, pretty much a nobody. The movie was a genuine horror movie though, with plenty of scares and gross-outs... but also a pretty wicked sense of humor, and a knack for the left-turn into the bizarre that seems to cater to teenage boys everywhere. Nothing highlights this quite so much as when, in Evil Dead II, the main character Ash (played by champion to nerds and Old Spice fans everywhere, Bruce Campbell (a guy awesome enough to teens that friends of mine wrote a song about him back then)) cut off his hand when it went bad... and replaced it with a chainsaw. That, my friends, is cinematic gold. Then the third movie came out and dumped the character into medieval times... and not the restaurant. I can certainly look back on those movies quite fondly- and honestly, they still hold up pretty well for what they were- but mostly, I look back at them and realize how many more great movies (and not so great ones) I've been exposed to because, once I found the joy of Ash and the Deadites, I wanted to know "what else is out there to watch?"

This picture is essentially a swipe/homage to the original poster to the first movie... or at least a poster for the first one...

See you around- sorry about the randomness of the posts, but a number of illnesses and a trip to the hospital have left me with some serious catching up to do. Hopefully Friday, but don't hold me to that.

Music: "Man in the Box" - Alice in Chains

P.S. If someone comes up to me and seriously tries to compare Clerks to Citizen Kane, they get punched in the face.

From the Crypt, 7: Do You See What You Hear?

2009-03-15T19:48:00.003-04:00

May 29, 1992.

It was near the end of the school year, and our English Class had pretty much wrapped up by that point, so it was essentially a free period to do whatever. So naturally, I had out pencil and sketchbook. I popped Nirvana's "Nevermind" into the tape player, turned it up, and drew. "Breed" was the song that was on, and essentially made me draw what you see above. I had no idea what to draw until I actually heard the music playing- this is what came out. Sure, it's pretty typical of what I was drawing at the time, but I really liked the energy that came along with the music when I was drawing this. Nothing fancy, but pretty enjoyable.

This is one of the earliest pictures I can find that links my enjoyment of music with my love of drawing. I've drawn to music since then, but this rests most clearly in my mind. Since then, I've taken to thinking of music much more visually- not just in terms of how the music makes me want to draw, but actually drawing based on what I'm listening to- both in terms of the lyrics and the music (which can sometimes compliment, sometimes contradict, each other). One of many incomplete projects I've got on my plate is a number of pieces based around music. Some folks have helped with with ideas over the years, and I hope to get around to working on it. Time, Skill, and Energy willing, of course.

Next time- a surprise! (I forgot to look ahead)

Music: "Breed" - Nirvana

From The Crypt, 6: ...Bring Me a Dream...

2009-03-10T21:42:00.003-04:00

So it looks like this one was done around April 9, 1992, and this must've been around the time I picked up the fourth trade of Neil Gaiman's genre-defining magnum opus (I could write copy for movie posters, I swear), Sandman. When I first picked up the original two trades (at a comic show in the old Holiday Inn in Monroeville, back when they were locally run and filled a small room), I had no idea what to expect. I'd heard plenty of good things about it, but I wasn't sure I was ready for it- no costumed heroes, for one, although the skinny pale guy dressed all in black, so that was something. I tore through those first two trades, as fast as I could, then re-read them- not just because they were amazingly written, but because there was so much more going on than what would be seen from a single reading.

Sandman is like nothing I'd read before, and to this date still stands apart from all that have come since then. It was a comic with no real action in it (although Morpheus faces down the legions of Hell in the first story arc), but was as gripping as anything I'd ever read. Breaking down social, sexual, religious and storytelling boundaries from page one, it redefined what comics were capable of being, and elevated the art to true literature - though surely not single-handedly; Watchmen came first, of course, but this broke down the boundaries of acceptability. Goth kids everywhere found a new hero. It was the first comic book to win the prestigious Hugo Award (first and only- they changed the rules after it won), and the author, Neil Gaiman, has gone on to critical and public success with a number of novels and stories.

Anyway, one of the great things about the series was that it used a number of comic artists, with wildly varying styles- so if you didn't like one guy, wait a few months, and someone else would show. This particular version of Morpheus was heavily influenced by the great Kelley Jones. He used heavy, heavy blacks and wildly stylistic characters to define the Sandman for many people. The cloak is all Jones.

There's a good chance that you'll see more of Morpheus as time goes by- each time I would pick up a new volume, I'd invariably return to drawing the character.

For folks who aren't into superhero books, but aren't adverse to trying something different, I can't recommend Sandman highly enough.

Music: "Enter Sandman" - Metallica

"Quis Custodiet Ipsos Custodes?"

2009-03-08T21:27:00.003-04:00

In honor of this weekend's viewing of Watchmen, I thought I'd post a picture of one of my favorite characters, Nite Owl (II). And, in honor of the fact that it takes place in 1985, I thought I'd do it up a little retro. I drew this entirely with the line tool (except the moon, obviously), which is how I used to draw on the computer way back in the day (1987-1988) with my Apple IIc. I guess to be really retro, I should've done this in greenscale, but you can't have everything.

And yes, I think I'll be writing some thoughts on the movie, but not until I've seen it at least once more. But yes, it is good.

Music: "Hallelujah" - Leonard Cohen

From the Crypt, 5: It's Uncanny!

2009-03-01T20:37:00.003-05:00

Man, it was great to collect comics in the 90's. Books were routinely selling over 1 million copies an issue, there were multiple covers for all your favorite books, and just about every character had their own comic (actually, it was really just great to sell comics in the 90's). And no one was bigger than the X-Men. The biggest artist in American comics at that time, Jim Lee, was drawing the biggest comic in world, X-Men, written by one of the most popular writers of the day, Chris Claremont. The X-Men was everything good in comics...

And everything bad.

Convoluted plots that went on and on, only to go nowhere, badly-written dialogue, and yeah, the art was great, but spawned (inside pun there) so many bad knock-off styles that, after a surprisingly short period of time, seeing any hatchmarks to indicate shadow (or worse yet, to indicate hatchmarks) drove me to twitching.

But all that was in the future. At the time of this piece of unfinished business, I was completely in love with Jim Lee's art, and the X-Men comic in general. Though I'd never be able to draw like Jim (though I've done a decent knock-off-- excuse me, homage-- in my day), I loved the action and dynamics he brought to his characters, not to mention the cool as hell poses, so I did my best to mimic that here. As near as I can recall, these aren't based on any specific poses he did- but the poses are so generic, it's hard to say that for certain (Joey, maybe you can correct me on that). Regardless, it was fun to draw, no doubt. And of course, not finish. I remember having plans for the rest of the picture (as you can see, two characters- Rogue and Psylocke- are missing, as is the logo), but not why I never finished. Probably because drawing women is tough. Was then, is now.

This picture is a great example of how my 'style', such as it is, has changed through the years. I always found a great deal to like in the dominant style of the day, whatever day that was, but I never did a great job of taking it to heart. This is probably as close as I would get to that painted-on, well-defined muscle-bound superhero look- as defined by the clean lines of Jim Lee (before the hatching, obviously)... actually, this isn't the most well-defined muscle look I've ever done- that's coming up later on, and we'll get to it, but this is probably the most super-hero style I've ever done. In some ways, I wish I could return back to this style, if only to apply what I've learned since then in anatomy and composition, with the dynamism and cleanliness of what I've done here. Clean lines, without being cartoony (as I tend to veer into nowadays).

Anyway, there's a new bit of look-back for you. More to come later this week. If I'd paid attention, I could tell you what's next... but I didn't.

Cheers.

Music: "International Bright Young Thing" - Jesus Jones

Ashes

2009-02-25T21:43:00.003-05:00

I went to Ash Wednesday services today. For those uninitiated, this is the day Catholics get dirt on their foreheads. It's been oh... twenty years since I last went to a service. I can't really say what actually had me going back after all this time- I guess it's a combination of things, events of the past year catching up, the comfort of ritual, and the sense of community, amongst others. The need to belong, in short. Those who've known me for a long time are no doubt scratching their heads at this, since I've hardly kept quiet my general disdain for religion. But, what can I say? Time has a way of changing you. Don't get me wrong- there's still plenty of things I don't like about religion (all religion, not just one), but I'm starting to see some of the, dare I say it, positive aspects of it. One of the things I've really noticed about church-going recently (since I've come back home, in fact) is my perspective on what's done and said in mass (en masse, also, as it were). Having been gone so long, I have a different point of view on it- I find myself listening more closely to the words, particularly during the sermon, and not just going through the motions (ironic, since I find some comfort in ritual and rote). This was the first time at the 'local' church. Not a bad place- lots of color. One thing going against it though- the Crucifix hanging above the altar? The nails are through the statue's palms, rather than the historically- and physically-accurate wrists. On the other, they rang a little bell during the part of mass when the priest blesses the Host- something the old church stopped years ago. An interesting hour.

So, I went to church, where they stuck dirt on my head, then came home and had fish for dinner. Mom would be so proud.

'Normal' posts will presumably resume on Friday. Or Monday.

From the Crypt, 4: The Closest I Got to High-School Sports

2009-02-23T21:09:00.004-05:00

...and by "Monday", I meant "Tuesday". Sorry, folks.

Today's post is another piece of work (heh) done for Art class. This time, as part of our Senior year, we were all painting murals around the school. I'd already painted up one, based around the Gulf War (who knew I'd have to sneak back in 12 years later and paint a 'I' by it...)- unfortunately I don't have any of the layouts for that, though I remember it pretty well. This one was to go in the hallway leading to the gym, and represented, quite shockingly, our basketball teams. Funnily enough, I had no idea who played on our team (I assumed they were mostly the tall kids walking around), so I went with some nicely generic players (thank you Sports Illustrated). I put this together, sketched it on the wall, and got about exactly as far as this drawing, in terms of painting. I was never known for my ability to beat (or even meet) deadlines. Lucky for me, Mrs. Geier understood, and so I never got the big ol' 'F' I deserved on the project.
---
Proof that my niece Emily and I are too much alike:

ME: "No one likes a smart-ass... unless it's me."

EMILY: "No, they don't like you, either."
---
Another post down. Meet back here... Wednesday? Sure, sounds good. Or maybe Thursday. But soon.

Music: "Once" - Pearl Jam

From the Crypt, 3: Sensitive Heavy Metal Artist

2009-02-19T21:07:00.003-05:00

One of the first times I drew something not-comic-booky; and also one of the first times I drew something realistic for my own enjoyment, rather than an art class.

I admit it, back in the day I was a huge Queensryche fan. Of course it was because of 'Silent Lucidity'- you know, one of those counter-programming songs metal bands used to do back in the day to get lots of radio airplay, and make people think that was their typical sound (Extreme, I'm looking in your direction). Still, Empire was a great album of its day. In keeping with the 'seriousness' of the album, they had appropriately serious pictures in the liner notes. This one, of lead singer Geoff Tate, was particularly dynamic, and so I naturally wanted to steal the picture and draw it. I really enjoyed how it came out- 'stretching my wings', so to speak. But, I always remember this picture for my brother looking at it and complimenting me on it, then saying, 'You should've made all the lines going in the same direction.' Very true- it would've looked much better if I had. One of many head-smacking, 'duh' moments, in my artistic career.

---

My profuse apologies for the delay in posting. No, it has nothing to do with me secretly passing off current work as old work; instead, I blame the computer. Whether it's mortally wounded, or simply tempermental, it's been particularly difficult getting Photoshop and IE working. Today is a good day for it, so here you go. Come back Monday and we'll see if it continues to work.

Have a great weekend. I'll be working.

Music: "Empire" - Queensryche

From the Crypt, 2

2009-02-12T18:03:00.004-05:00

Second in a series, collect them all.

Well, looking back at this... um, well, it was the 90's. Crazy stuff like cyborgs and huge bladed weapons was all the rage back then. And, judging by looking at this pic, small feet were also apparently in. And body modifications (poor guy lost his whole right forearm on a whim!)

No real idea where this came from, other than like I said, it was the 90's. I don't recall any real backstory to him, but back then, I didn't often have need for it- as long as I had an idea of something to draw, I was pretty happy.

---

Sorry for the delay of game on getting this posted; believe me, there's no shortage of old crappy 90's-style drawings to post, but I've had a real problem with the computer of late. Hopefully it's back running for the time being, and I can continue to regale you with trips to the crypt.

Cheers!

Music: "Holding Out For A Hero" - Bonnie Tyler (80's, I know, but appropriately bad)

From the Crypt, 1

2009-02-08T21:10:00.004-05:00

It's possibly a good thing that I rarely throw stuff out.

Not long ago, while searching through boxes of books at my mom's place (yeah, sorry those of you who helped me move- I have more books at her place, too.), I unearthed a few sketchbooks of mine. Some of them go back to the mid-80's (but I don't think I'll be posting those- strangely enough, they seem to have disappeared...), but I thought you might be interested in some of the work I did when I first really started drawing in earnest, back in the early 90's. I have something like 6 or 7 sketchbooks, from February 10, 1992, up through the months leading up to the start of the blog... Wow, some of these things are 17 years old. As we go through these pictures, I'll probably talk a bit about what was going on at the time of drawing them, point out some details, or just make observations about my drawing style back then. If all else fails, I'll settle for smart-ass remarks.

This was the first thing I found in the first sketchbook, probably done around late February, 1992, and the third thing drawn in that book (if you think I'm not posting everything to avoid embarrassment, you'd be right- but don't worry, there's plenty of embarrassment that will make it's way to this site). This desperately unfinished sketch was done for Art III class- Mrs. Geier's class, and my favorite high school class- unsurprisingly. She asked us to design banners for some project or other to be displayed in downtown (dahntahn) Pittsburgh- maybe the Arts Festival? They would be made out of fabric, and I think they were to be 6 or 8 feet in height... or not, I'm just guessing. Anyway, my idea had been to make an angel and a demon as gargoyle statues on top of some appropriately Gothic building. As you can see, it didn't make it very far. As usual, my grasp exceeded my reach, and it didn't get any farther than this. It wasn't a horrible idea, but it wouldn't have worked for a number of reasons, the least of which being a banner done entirely in shades of gray is hardly visually appealing. As I recall, one student actually did make a banner- Lisa Vitalbo was her name, and she made a really wonderful face done in many different colors. But that's all I can remember. So, a little walk down memory lane here, and the recurring theme of my life- unfinished work.

(bonus to you observant folks- note the little drawing in the lower right corner- kudos to you if you know who/what that's supposed to be)

That's it for now, but I'll try to post again Wednesday, with more retro graphics. I'll be curious to see what your thoughts are on some of the stuff I'll be posting.

Cheers!

Music: "Angels and Devils" - Toby Lightman

Sightings and Homecomings

2009-01-29T21:53:00.003-05:00

First:

Unintentional Hilarity, or Brilliant Cross-Promotion- You Decide:

Second, and perhaps somewhat more relevant, I've finally become an honest citizen again:

It's good to be home.

Have a great weekend everyone- I'll be back sometime next week, hopefully with some sketches or some more photos.

Music: "Home Sweet Home" - Motley Crue (yeah, I said it, Motley Crue)

Just Passing Through...

2009-01-22T21:16:00.002-05:00

Sorry folks- I really had planned on posting something here tonight for your viewing enjoyment on the morrow, but as life would have it, tonight's not to be that night.

It's been really difficult these past few weeks/months coming up with material to post (I haven't looked back to see just what I've posted, to be honest; perhaps that's for the best). I do know it's been a hell of a lot more writing than drawing. I'm not sure what makes it easier to type- well, that's not true. It's easier to type than draw because it's so much easier to type out what's in my head than try to draw what's up there. So often something gets lost on the path from my imagination to the paper- I think it has something to do with the distortion of the images in my mind. I tried explaining this to my niece when she was working on one of her art projects. To me, it's a lot like looking at something partially submerged in water, like a straw or post- it seems to bend in the water, making it distorted. But, when I go from thinking to drawing, the distortion occurs as the image makes it onto the paper, thus looking little like that which I'd originally imagined. Since it's not a constant, I never quite know how the image will actually come out. Which can be exciting, or very frustration. As of late, frustration has held sway.

Motivation has been awfully hard to come by, as well. I find I have little to interest me to the point of putting pencil to paper; and when I do, I find myself so distracted by life, thoughts, and shiny objects, it's all but impossible to concentrate on any one idea. And when I do find that idea, it's almost impossible to get it to the point where I even want to try to draw it.

Which is not to say I've not been drawing. But I've just been so worn out lately. I have a couple things, none of which are really worth posting, but with some more attention, might not be too terrible to post. I've not yet given up on the art, but we're not really on the best of terms of late.

I do know that I occasionally do better if given some manner of external motivation. So, I'm taking requests. What do YOU want to see? Less words? Polar Bear in Snow? Coal Mine at Night? Please, let me know.

Thanks for stopping by.

Music: "The Sound of Silence" - Simon and Garfunkel

Sketchadoodledoo

2009-01-20T21:56:00.002-05:00

Because no one demanded it!

More sketches.

Hmm... looks like this one is Kung Fu Panda (looking like the head of some CGI Care Bear for all I know), some bizarre escapee from The Incredibles, cartoon girl's head, a really freaky Mr. Spock (with all the lines being kinda parallel, he looks like his face is melting), a shadowy hatted fellow, and some Imperial Moff (which now explains the solar panel coming from Spock's head).

I'm tired, sorry- this is as funny as it gets.

Something Friday, I think. You may now rejoice.

Music: "Outta My Head"- Ashlee Simpson

P.S. Did something happen in the news today?

I've got a feeling...

2009-01-18T22:26:00.002-05:00

... Pittsburgh's going to the Super Bowl.

Music: "Pittsburgh Polka"

Sketchaway

2009-01-15T22:04:00.003-05:00

As threatened, actual drawn content.

Did this bit of sketching at Mom's house on or around the Christmas holidays... I think. It's been a while. Anyway, not really attempting much of anything, though I will say Star Trek was on my mind somewhat. A little bit of a mix of styles (such as they are) show up here, as you can probably tell. I find that style is still the hardest part of drawing (and just about everything else, as most folks who know me will attest ;), as I tend to draw based on a shape or idea, rather than from a core 'style'. Hence the old McCoy face in the middle, which is most like my usual style of drawing, to the simplified Doctor Who in the lower left (this is how I usually think of the character, almost cartoon-like by nature (in the best possible way)), to a further reduction/simplification of the guy on the right (sort of taken, stylistically, from a graphic novel some years ago called Mister Blank, to the bare-bones, angled linework of the Spock on the upper right. Not to mention the face in the lower middle section. Meh. God only knows what I was thinking at the time.

But hey, it's still drawing. As I was told, "Draw. Even if you hate it." So I did.

Anyway, that's it for now. I'll probably post some more next... Wednesday, let's say, if not sooner. Maybe a photo or two.

Stay warm.

Music: "The Devil You Know" - Jesus Jones

2008: My Year in Review

2009-01-12T19:19:00.005-05:00

Or, "And I Thought 2004 Sucked..."

As promised/threatened, let's take a look back at the year that was 2008.

...

Okay, look- the only way I'm going to get through this is to break it up into two sections: the Bad and the Good (for those interested, you can look at 2007's year in review here).

The Bad.

-I said, if not "goodbye", then at least "I'll see you very infrequently" to some of my dearest friends on the planet. My family, really, for the past 8 years. People who were once strangers to me, then casual acquaintances, then such a close part of my life that I can't imagine life without them in it. Some I've known since before I'd moved to Maryland- back when I was just visiting, when I had to prove that I was a real person and not just an imaginary person. Some I'd met after I'd been there for a few years, voices of comfort in my darkest days, unexpected friendships blossoming like roses from a sidewalk. Some were coworkers, folks who'd watched my life fall apart, and helped me build it back up. Some were just people who, instead of just smiling and going on their way, stopped and talked and laughed and made me feel like I was a person again. Some of them, in their quiet ways, have literally kept me alive- and I don't know if they knew it. Leaving these wonderful people, who'd given me such hope and joy and comfort, was far and away the hardest part of leaving Maryland.

-I had to watch one of my oldest and dearest friends, who has, in her short life, suffered more than any human should ever have to bear, stand by and lose her mother, and know there was nothing she could do, except bear this further suffering.

-I stood by my brother (remember, not all brothers need share blood) and watched the man we both call 'Father' slip the surly bonds of earth. I cried with him, hugged him, stood by him, because there was nothing else I could do.

-I lost my Father. I had the man I most admired, the man I looked to for inspiration, for guidance, for my self, taken from me, from all of us-- no, I'm sorry. He wasn't 'taken'. He chose the time to walk off this stage; he just didn't tell us beforehand. Which was his way, so as to not hurt anyone. Regardless, though, he's gone. He left suddenly, unexpectedly, as though in the middle of a sentence. Four days after I returned home, and he was gone. His passing has hurt me so deeply, so profoundly, I don't even realize how badly I'm hurting until I'm already crying, or screaming, or shaking. Now walking down the path walked before,by so many others, I just don't know how you've all do it. I just don't know how I make it through the day, sometimes.

-The three men in my life that I called "Father" (or "Pops" or "Dad" or "The Fascist") are gone. I can no longer ask them for advice, or ideas, or even just a funny story. I can no longer talk to my fathers. But Thank God, I can talk to their sons. My brothers and I, those of the blood and those of the will, all bear scars now- these scars of pain, of loss, of pride. These scars that say "We are our fathers' sons." We stand there, we scarred sons. But we do not stand alone.

The Good.
(an abbreviated list)

-As if I needed any further reminding of how immensely blessed I am, I need look no further than the outpouring of love and concern from my friends and family during those days- How lucky my whole family is, to know such people. My brothers were there, whenever I was feeling lost, to help me find my way. Friends came in from many miles away, which meant so much to me and my family. My Mom said it exactly right when she told me "You have such good friends; you're so fortunate to have them in your life."

-I made the conscious decision to give up everything I knew in my life, my comfortable mire of my own making, and took the biggest gamble of my life, and moved back to Pittsburgh. While at first this doesn't sound like much of a gamble, for those who know me, they know how hard this was for me. To give up the easy life, as it were, to come back to a place I've not really known in almost 10 years, where it would've been just as easy to slip back into those old habits and become that boy I was all those years ago, it was one of the hardest choices I've ever made. But, of course, it turned out to be the exact right thing to do- really, the only choice I could've made. Who knew? Well, I have my suspicions about that, and when I see him next, I'll be sure to ask.

-I started a new job, in a new town, where I only knew one person. And damned if I don't do it pretty well. Not as well as I'd like, of course, but hell, I feel like I do it okay, and if that's not a triumph, I don't know what is.

-I got to welcome yet more of the next generation of my friends into the world, and celebrate the first of many, many birthdays to come for some of the 'older' members of the JE:TNG club.

-I walked up to a woman and gave her my phone number. And we went out.

-I made it to 150 posts on this infernal thing.

-I watched a bunch of movies with family and friends, both old friends and new.

-I met new people, and talked to them!

-I went on a date again- more than one! With the same person! We're still dating!

-I learned sometimes, it's okay to be pushed.

-I drove to Toledo, OH, with my niece to see a concert for a band we both like.

-I started to be a better uncle to my niece.

-I started to teach her how to drive a car (debated if that was 'good' or 'bad')

-I was able to terrorize my cats more by moving.

-I got to spend more time with my brother and nephews, hanging out.

-I had fresh Gino's pizza on a drive back to Maryland.

-I was able to visit the best part of Ledo's.

-I surprised Katie, Courtney, and Doris.

-I went to dinner with the Tooth Fairy.

-I surprised Ashley.

-I read a lot of friggin' books.

-I spent my tenth year at Chincoteague with my friends.

-I got to have some really good talks with my Mom. Not just about this or that, but about things that really matter.

-I was able to see first hand just how strong my mother is.

-I fulfilled a promise I made to my father over twenty years ago. And he remembered.

-I was able to surprise my Mom and Dad, and spend one of the best days of my life with them, sitting in a hospital room, talking and listening and laughing with them.

-I told my Dad how much I loved him.

-My brothers stood by me, and I by them.

-We honored our father.

-I realized just how much my parents love and respect me.

-I learned I can be the man my father knew I could be.

-I kept picking up a pencil.

---

If I haven't said it enough, thank you all for stopping in to visit, whether it's been your first stop or your hundred sixty-whateverth, knowing this doesn't exist in a vacuum helps make it all worthwhile.

I know this past year's hardly been a cornucopia of drawing greatness (or even drawing mediocrity), and I do apologize for that. I've found a good bit of trouble in focusing, as you've noticed, and although I've kept picking up that pencil, it's hardly been an easy go of it.

But I've not given up yet. I have some things in the pipeline, and I'm thinking about posting some of my old, old sketches. It'd be interesting, I think, to show how I've changed as an artist, both in subject and method (though maybe not so much the subject). I do still plan on writing, so don't expect that to go away. Hopefully you'll be back. If you like it, tell them I did it; if you don't, tell them I did it. Go ahead, I can take it.

Love,
s.

Songs are in the sky now
Suns are in my veins
Throw me in the fire now
Love is what remains
-Joan Osborne, "Hallelujah in the City"

Hey Kids, Look! Drawings!

2008-12-28T22:14:00.003-05:00

Believe it or not, a post with actual drawings.

Well, sorta.

I did this about a month or so ago- just trying to sketch something, not necessarily with any goal in mind. I think the Punisher came about after Sean and I were talking about the then-upcoming Punisher movie (never seen, and planning on keeping it that way). I was just trying to come up with something fun and cartoony- which mostly worked here, I think. I mean, seriously, does that look like a realistic gun?

The other was just the usual drawing of a face- nothing planned or thought out, just trying to make it look not-horrible. It's an 'eh' face, though I do like the nose.

But there you go, actual pencilled work. Crazy, right?

Alright. Next post, sometime this week, God help me, will be the Year in Review. Yeah, it'll probably not be as feel-good as last year's.

Music: "When the World is Running Down" - The Police

Peace

2008-12-23T18:35:00.002-05:00

Wherever you may be, and with whomever you are spending it, let this be a time of peace and joy for you and all those you love.

Merry Christmas

Self Portrait(s), Hand(s)

2008-12-17T22:29:00.003-05:00

This is the start of an idea I'd had a while ago. Apologies for the lack of a truly finished product, but I think it works interestingly as is. Note that the paper is blank.

Apologies as well for the lack of any real update. Life has been, as they say, interesting. Up, down, most points in between, it only proves the says "Changes aren't permanent, but change is". Also, "Expect the unexpected". Hopefully I will have something at least marginally artistically-inclined to post next time, or else I'll subject you to the oft-threatened written post. Perhaps about music. Or perhaps set to music.

Anyway, to the Land of Nod with me.

Music: "When The Day Met The Night" - Panic! At The Disco

Blue Barchetta

2008-12-04T22:20:00.003-05:00

I commit my weekly crime, with nary an alloy air-car in sight...

And yes, this is exactly where it stopped, first time.

Music: Duh...

Thanks for the Memories

2008-12-02T22:27:00.004-05:00

So, I can either write about how I felt through most of Thanksgiving, or I can post pictures of some of the fun had over the long weekend with my family.

Right, pictures it is.

Friday, the whole pack of us (excepting my sister, who had to work!) went to Phipps Conservatory in Oakland. We'd mostly all been there before, though the trips range from 15 years ago to "it's not polite to ask" years ago. I'm no plant lover (just look at my botany grades from college for proof), but there's something very... satisfying about looking at the wondrous variety to them, from shape to color to smell (Chocolate! They have a plant that smells like chocolate!), even texture. The Conservatory is overwhelming to the senses, and in a good way. It's so- alive. Which is an obvious, yet appropriate, word choice. The highlight would be the fact that we took my mom with us. I haven't been out with mom to a "fun" place (like an amusement park, or whatnot) in probably 20 years, and it was great. It was so cool to see her out and taking in all the sensations of the place. She couldn't get around very well, but my niece Emily was more than happy to steer her around in a wheelchair. I think we were all tired by the end of the day, but it was a good kind of tired.

They have a wonderful Thailand display there, with all kinds of plants and flowers. They also have a pond-type arrangement with clear sides... and if you look close, it looks like someone's about to grab the fish. That jerk.

Saturday was a trip to the Carnegie Museums with my brother Mark and his son Jon. I'd been there earlier this year (also known as the 'Apocalypse Vacation'), but Mark and Jon hadn't been in some time. Enough had changed that it was worth the time to visit and snap some pics, including this one of one of the two T. rexes (rexii?) from the Museum's new 'T. REX VS. T. REX' display. Let me tell you, if you've not been since the renovations, it's highly worth the visit. Taking pages from amusement park playbooks, the information and education is well-disguised as fun. Sadly, though, as you walk through the rest of the museum, it's easy to see that not all branches of science and learning are equally appreciated. It is nice to see, however, that there were still plenty of people stopping to look at the rest of the museum, though maybe not with as much enthusiasm.

Worst thing overheard? "I don't get it- this is a HISTORY museum- why do they have modern animals? They aren't history!" *sigh*

We also hit the art museum pretty hard, but don't have any pictures of that. Sadly, most all of the 'modern' art is copyrighted, and thus can't be photographed. Because, after all, art is a commodity. *sigh, again*

Those complaints aside, it was a weekend of high culture for the Darrall clan, and another great chance to spend time hanging out. To cap it off, Mark, Jon and I went to Sean's place to watch Sukiyaki Western Django- I loved it, but I'm not sure that's a universal opinion...

Later.

Music: "Angels" - Robbie Williams

Thankful

2008-11-25T22:05:00.004-05:00

I'm thankful for time.

Time, to spend with loved ones.

Time, to reflect on all I've learned, all I've lived.

Time, to remember those not here with us now.

Time, to recall the past.

Time, to move beyond.

Time, to ease my wounds.

Time, to bring a new tomorrow.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.

One Little Victory

2008-11-23T22:30:00.005-05:00

When it comes down to it, I think the little things are what make the strongest impact in our lives. To be sure, there are momentous, life-changing events, those ones that are marked down either on a calendar or in our hearts, those ones we always seem to associate with a date: beginnings, milestones, endings. These events most people recall most readily when discussing a particularly great or terrible time in their lives. For me, this year has been the kind of year punctuated by these dates, events marked in my mind and in my heart, and no doubt, in the years to come, I'll look at a calendar and begin a countdown to the anniversaries of those dates held so close to me, and the days will seem a bit more grey, life a bit more listless, time a bit more wearying. Those times will wear at me. Those times will be reminders (as if my life isn't a constant reminder) of all I've lost, of all we've lost, this past year, these past years. These events are like anchors in a soul, if not dragging one down, then certainly slowing him down, making it so terribly hard to move, to move on.

And then there are those events that will never appear on a calendar, never marked by milestones, nor celebrations, not noted by the date nor by some other sign so obvious. Instead, those events will be remembered and revered at the most inconspicuous times, triggered by the most minor of reminders, bringing out a feeling of light and life and love that just overwhelms that grey, listless and weary dreary existence. It reminds you that you are alive, and life, no matter how bad it can sometimes seem, is ALWAYS worth living. Where there is life, there is always hope. These little things, these ones that ultimately mean so much, can happen every day. It doesn't have to be much: it can be something as simple as having an unexpectedly deep conversation with your mom, spending a few minutes laughing with kids, of any age, or spending a weekend with your friends, just... watching TV, or going shopping, or going to a bake sale. Whatever! These little things will be those things you look back on, days or months or years later, and say to yourself "THAT'S when life got better for me."

I've spent this past year surrounded by death. What should've been a mental and emotional rebirth of sorts for me has instead been hammerblow after hammerblow to me, to my family, and to some of my oldest and dearest friends. I'd been so slowed down, so worn down, by all this death and loss, I hadn't even realized just what kind of toll it had taken on me. All those events marked on those calendars from now on, all those dates I'll dread to see coming up...

But now, finally, I've also seen all those events that get no marks on calendars, those little victories that take so much of the sting out of that loss and bring sweetness and joy back to life. I've finally seen and realized how important those are to me- just as important as all those losses I'm reminded of, I'll be looking back at those little victories and remind myself of all I have, and all I've gained.

Welcome Home, Jagoff

2008-11-18T22:24:00.002-05:00

Back, for now.

Here's Pittsburgh, from one of the bridges, in the middle of my first sustained snowfall here since moving back. On one hand, I'm very happy, as I miss proper winters. On the other hand, since I spend most of my time working outside, this is gonna suck. Oh well, that's what health insurance and whisk(e)y is for.

I don't know how often I'll get anything posted up for the forseeable future. Certainly not much by way of actual drawing. I have been picking up the pencil again, but I've been taking it slowly- so as not to scare off my already far too fickle muse. Sad to say, but I'm just not often in the mood to draw recently. I'm hoping that'll all change, but we'll see. I still have plenty I'd like to draw, and much to write about (new music, for one, movies for another, still plenty of books to go around), but until I can get back into the groove, I just can't come around to firing up that creative spark. Or when I do, I'm rarely in a position to act on it. Finding that spark is a lot like being a 15-year-old boy; I never know when I'll get the urge, or how long it will last. As it were.

Anyway, that's what I've got for now. Thanks for sticking with me, I'll try to make the visits worthwhile, as best I can.

Music: "Monster Ballads" - Josh Ritter

Lost

2008-11-12T21:43:00.004-05:00

High Flight
Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds - and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of - wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there
I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air.
Up, up the long delirious, burning blue,
I've topped the windswept heights with easy grace
Where never lark, or even eagle flew -
And, while with silent lifting mind I've trod
The high untresspassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand and touched the face of God.

Pilot Officer Gillespie Magee
No 412 squadron, RCAF

For Roger Hutchinson, my third father.

DEATH, be not proud, though some have called thee
Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so:
For those whom thou think'st thou dost overthrow
Die not, poor Death; nor yet canst thou kill me.
From Rest and Sleep, which but thy picture be,
Much pleasure, then from thee much more must flow;
And soonest our best men with thee do go--
Rest of their bones and souls' delivery!
Thou'rt slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men,
And dost with poison, war, and sickness dwell;
And poppy or charms can make us sleep as well
And better than thy stroke. Why swell'st thou then?
One short sleep past, we wake eternally,
And Death shall be no more: Death, thou shalt die!

John Donne

For Catherine Elder, mother of Dawn, one of my oldest friends.

Be at peace.

"Keep watching the skies!"

2008-10-30T22:01:00.007-04:00

Nikki, Captain Hendry, and The Thing From Another World!

This is it- this is my favorite movie. Ever.

I know, it's hardly the first movie you'd think of when it comes to me and movies. Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, those are the movies that leap to mind. And don't get me wrong, they're great movies, and I consider them some of my favorites...

But they're not The Thing From Another World. I discovered this gem back in grade school. Our school library used to have a pretty impressive selection of books about movies, especially classic sci-fi and horror (I'm guessing, since this was the early 80's, they figured the classic monsters were a safe alternative from the likes of Michael Myers and Jason Voorhees... if only they knew!). There were a series of books I really loved, about all the classic monsters, written by a man named Ian Thorne (yes, I remember that, 27 years later). They would tell the story of the main movie, then go on to describe other movies with similar themes. Books like this are the direct reason why I love the Universal Monsters. And, naturally, The Thing From Another World.

There was just something about the description that hooked me: a group of scientists and soldiers, trapped at the top of the world, must fight to survive against an alien terror. How cool is that? The photos I saw looked great, as well: fire, axes, electricity, all were used against The Thing. The Thing itself looked like another classic Universal Monster (even though it was released by RKO Pictures): nasty-looking, with wicked clawed hands and that super-developed brain, he looked like he could outthink you as well as tear you apart. It just SOUNDED awesome.

Sadly, I had to wait another 5 years before I'd ever see The Thing in motion. By that time, we had cable, and TBS was showing all kinds of movies. Most of their programming consisted of classic movies, black and white features you nowadays only catch on AMC or Turner Classic. But, lo and behold, what should I come across one Sunday, but The Thing From Another World. What would it be like? Would it be as great as I imagined? Would it look silly, these moving pictures showing how poor special effects were back then, the dialogue show how painfully poorly scripted most horror movies were back then? What if it sucked?

It most definitely did NOT suck. I was amazed, from the start. The dialogue was rapid-fire, actors speaking over each other, dishing out lines like they were old friends, the jokes were fast and funny, delivered like they were in an Oscar-worthy movie, not a 'B' movie. The story itself was just as I'd imagined- filled with tension, wit, and decent scares for the day. The actors were fantastic- they looked like they were having a great time with the filming, and that shone through in the performances. The Thing itself was great- like the best monsters, he shows up without warning, strikes fast, and leaves them scared for their lives. Even the music was freaky- in a good way. I also learned that Thermite is the cause, and solution, of all men's problems. By God, this was a good movie.

Thankfully, TBS played their movies more than once a day, so for the next showing, I had the VCR ready to go. And oh yes, it was taped. Over the following years, I would put the tape in, and let it play. When it finished, I rewound it, and played it again. And again. And again. I'd fall asleep to it, and wake up to it. Those were good times.

As the years passed, I would go on to learn more about the movie, and the people behind it. I learned that it was based on a short story, "Who Goes There?" by John W. Campbell, and immediately tracked it down (reprinted in a great paperback, Between Time and Terror, a wonderful compilation of sci-fi stories with a distinct horror aspect to them; one of the best anthologies I've read). It was like night and day, the differences between the two stories, but I didn't care; I ended up loving both. I learned that John Carpenter's 1982 movie was a remake, and fell in love with that one, as well- though it was nothing like the original. But I loved them both, as well. As my understanding and appreciation of film grew, I learned why it was so good- the man behind it, Howard Hawks, was one of the great filmmakers of his day, responsible for some of the best movies of the 30's through the 60's. I began to also appreciate the story itself- like all good sci-fi, it was a reflection of its time, filtered through a glass darkly. A great allegory for the Cold War, there's still insight to be gained from the movie. And the dialogue- oh, the dialogue is still a joy to hear. I still pick up new things, after all this time. Not to mention, as I got older, I could better appreciate the dynamic of the relationship between Nikki and Captain Hendry. She was definitely NOT a stereotypical damsel in distress. The stunts were just crazy, I could see- they set a stuntman on fire, in a closed room, with the actors present- then thrown on Kerosene! Now THAT'S bad-ass! So much goodness. About 5 years ago, when the movie finally came out on DVD, I figured that was it; it didn't get any better than that.

I was wrong.

Frederick County, Maryland, has a nice little theater- year 'round, they have musical programs, dance troupes, plays, and movies pass through. Every Fall, they show some classic horror movies. Dracula, Frankenstein, Phantom of the Opera, all have played there. Well, about 3 years ago, when I was living there-

You know where this is going, right?

-they were showing The Thing From Another World.

So, I sent out an email to all my friends (more like a flyer- I take this thing seriously), letting them know of this momentous occasion. Two of them rose to the challenge: Dave and Thad. I reserved my tickets, and eagerly awaited the day. I would finally see it as it was meant to be seen: ON THE BIG SCREEN.

At last, the day was upon me. Dave and Thad showed up at my apartment, and we made our way to downtown Frederick. I picked up our tickets-holy crap! It says The Thing on the tickets!!!- we picked up some popcorn, and went in to the auditorium. The lights went down, I got goosebumps (seriously, I did) and I spent the next 87 minutes on the edge of my seat. We all went out after for some mediocre food and good beer, talked about the movie (the guys pointed out, when the military barricaded a door, The Thing outsmarted them- because the door pulled open. All these years, and I never noticed.), talked about life in general, and we all left the restaurant, and that's how one of the happiest days of my life went. All because of a 1950's sci-fi movie.

So there you go, the story of my favorite movie of all time. Others will come along, better movies, smarter movies, funnier movies... but The Thing From Another World will always be my favorite.

-oh, one last thing. earlier this year, when I was up visiting with my folks, Dad and I were sitting around talking about old movies we liked. It was late, I think I'd just gotten in from Maryland, and he had on TCM- I'm pretty sure it was Creature From the Black Lagoon, but I could be wrong. Anyway, we were talking classics, and I mentioned The Thing, and told him how it was my favorite movie ever.

"Did you know, I saw that in Korea?" he said. "That was a great movie."

25 years after I first discovered what would become my favorite movie, I learn my Dad loved it too. That pleased me immensely then, and it makes me even happier now.

---

Thanks for reading. And Happy Halloween!

---

Okay, one last thing- this makes my 150th official blog post! I honestly can't believe I made it this long. Thank you to everyone who's been stopping by to visit and read, and extra thanks to those of you who leave comments or email me with your thoughts- getting that feedback really makes my day, and I appreciate it all. Fingers crossed, next stop, 200!

Music: "The Thing From Another World- Main Title" - Dimitri Tiomkin

"I know I'm human..."

2008-10-29T21:55:00.002-04:00

R.J. MacReady, from The Thing.

The Thing is both a remake and an adaptation that, while veering far from the original movie, adheres much more closely to the original source material (but still veers readily from that, as well). Tense, claustrophobic, terrifying, and flat out disgusting, The Thing is one of the most effective horror movies of all time. A critical and financial bomb at the box office, it has since gone on to become one of the most well-regarded genre works of the '80's, and holds up amazingly well still. Its themes of distrust and alienation (no pun) are perhaps more relevant than ever. After all, when your very neighbor could be The Thing, who do you trust?

Based on "Who Goes There?", a short story by legendary editor/writer John W. Campbell, the movie takes place at a remote scientific outpost in Antarctica. A bizarre attack on the outpost leads the men to the slow realization that they are not alone. Among them is a terror unlike any they've encountered... and it can look like anyone. The Thing is just a truly scary movie, in the best sense of the word. Don't watch it with the lights out.

I couldn't even tell you when I was first introduced to this movie. Probably back in the mid to late 80's, when it was playing on Saturdays on WPGH. Of course, since it was broadcast television, I was spared the full impact of the movie (friggin' gross!) until sometime later, most likely HBO. The science fiction aspect of it was certainly a draw, as well as it being a horror movie. I know it scared me every time I watched it. It was a Kurt Russell/John Carpenter movie, so it had that going for it as well (see Escape From New York and Big Trouble in Little China for further proof of greatness). I just loved how, when so many movies were about flash and action and simple, happy resolutions, this movie took the road less traveled. This is one of my favorite movies, and I can't recommend it enough. For more on this movie, please check out Outpost 31.

Tomorrow: The Other Thing.

Music: "A Warm Place" - Nine Inch Nails

In the Blood

2008-10-28T21:58:00.002-04:00

Dracula, of a sort.

This was really just done as a very sketchy sketch. Basically, I was just trying for the arced lines rather than anything particularly accurate or intentional. It turned out alright for what it was meant to be, and I like the solid colors of it. This is probably my... third?... Dracula picture on here, and it's probably only appropriate that each one is radically different from the last, as the character of Dracula has been interpreted and reinterpreted in a nearly endless variety of fashions.

Dracula is probably not quite so readily recognizable as Frankenstein's Monster (thanks to the makeup, Frankie is pretty much one of a kind; unless you look just like Bela Lugosi (or Joe Flaherty), it'll take a second or two for someone to realize the evening suit makes you a vampire). However, Dracula as a literary character is second to none when it comes to a life beyond his origins, and world-wide recognition. I personally own more than 20 books featuring just the character of Dracula, each of them portraying some different version of him, sometimes incredibly different, sometimes very familiar. One of my favorite books ever, Anno Dracula, features a Dracula based directly on Stoker's novel, but also manages to create an entirely new mythos around the vampire. Tremendous reading for anyone, in my not so humble opinion.

Of course, the many facets of the literary Dracula are equaled or exceeded by those shown in the movies. Each actor who steps into the role brings something different to the character. And naturally, neither of these paths take into account the many, many different types and stories of vampires in general to appear in both media. The character's continued success probably stems from any number of reasons: the "dark romance", the supernatural, the underlying themes of the character (which seem to find new relevance through every age), even just the idea that living forever is pretty cool. There are as many different reasons for loving Dracula as there are interpretations of him. From a pop cultural point of view, Dracula will never die.

So that's the big three, insofar as the classic Universal Monsters go. Certainly, three of my favorites. Next up, a couple of pictures of two of my personal favorite movies... One is a remake of the other, both based on a single short story, both completely different in tone and character, and both tremendous movies.

Music: "Killing Moon" - Echo and the Bunnymen

Prometheus Unchained

2008-10-26T21:10:00.003-04:00

Frankenstein's Monster.

This one was REALLY sketchy, as you can tell. Again, from the 'loosey-goosey' sessions. I can draw pretty cartoony faces and heads, without a ton of problems, but when it comes to the bodies, I almost always end up drawing in the super-hero fashion- exaggerated, but realistically exaggerated. So this was an attempt to somewhat merge those two habits of mine; ultimately, I'd like to find a sketchy, cartoony, kinda realistic-looking style. I'm actually pretty pleased with how this came out- there's way too many lines in it for any kind of 'serious' drawing, but I liked where it went with stretching out the body's dimensions somewhat. I think it helps contribute to the distortions and imperfections of the Creature. I like the roughness of it, as well- since my natural style, such as it is, really tends towards lots of short, sharp lines (or 'scribbling', as it's also known).

Frankenstein (technically Frankenstein's Monster) is arguably the most recognized Monster in the world. Books have been written solely about his cultural impact on the global villagers. He's seen everywhere, from movies to cereal to insurance to god-only-knows-what. Everyone knows him. I find it funny that so many people feel like they know his story, yet so few people have read the novel, or even watched the movie (worlds apart, but both fantastic in their own ways). But, such is the power of pop culture that his story is so well known, folks feel like they've already seen it or read it. Too bad they mostly remember the Strickfadden generators and the shambling, arms-outstretched walk, rather than the cautionary tale it really was. Especially as it's becoming more and more relevant, almost 200 years after it was written.

Not saying you should go out and read it (definitely not for everyone, but still an easier read than Dracula for most), but it doesn't hurt to know the deeper themes behind the story- and those themes, even though seen through a Hollywood filter, shine through in the movies. (If you're only going to watch one, watch Bride of Frankenstein- it's the better of the original two).

Not sure what's coming up next- maybe something I'm working on now, or maybe something completely different.

See you Wednesday.

Music: "Frankenstein" - Edgar Winter

When The Wolfsbane Blooms...

2008-10-23T22:13:00.002-04:00

... And the Moon is Full and Bright.

It's that time of year again, Halloween is nearly upon us. So I'll be giving over some posts to the theme again this year, though nothing like last year. Sorry, things just aren't what they used to be. Maybe I'll get wordier to compensate. Sorry, things haven't changed THAT much.

Today's picture, like a couple to follow, actually precede the idea for the Halloween postings this year. This, like the other recent postings, began as a drawing exercise, something to loosen up those drawing muscles. This one, however, I did in pen. Pen is an interesting drawing tool for an unrepentant sketcher like myself. There's no erasing, and at least with these pens, virtually no line variation. So it forces me to be much more... choosy about what I'm drawing, in terms of line choice. But since I wanted to be loose with the drawing, it ends up being a fine balance. Or, I sketch the hell out of the lines and hope something recognizable comes out of the whole mess. I actually did this while on the phone with a friend, which may explain why it turned out relatively well- by not concentrating on the drawing, I didn't overthink it.

As you can probably/hopefully see, this is the wolfman. No particular version in mind here, though it's not hard to see Chaney's influence (the buckle is also a direct homage to the original Wolf Man movie). I was thinking of a more traditional wolfman, rather than An American Werewolf in London style, or even the greyhound-like Lupin from the third Harry Potter movie (to which my friends rejoice...). Marvel Comic's "The Beast" must have interjected himself into the drawing at some point, hence the much bulkier figure. And, as I can't directly recall what Victorian-era clothing (referencing the upcoming Wolf Man remake), I just made something up. Like usual. Then, to mess with the whole thing, I inverted the coloring. Not sure why, as it's not a true inversion, but it lends a certain look to it that I like. So that's that.

The Wolf Man is one of my earliest 'favorite' monster movies. It was also my sister's favorite (and I think still is), and is well-known amongst the general public. The look of the Wolf Man himself, along with those of Frankenstein's Monster and Dracula, is completely iconic. Unlike those two movies, however, The Wolf Man had no literary background, and so is one of the first "original" movie monsters to stand the test of time. The story is a mish-mash of different legends and myths from around the world. The movie itself is a mish-mash, much like the creation of the movie's mythology: it's an interesting, if not always agreeable, juxtaposition of (then) modern-day America with Old-World Europe, modern sensibilities with long-standing tradition, even science and superstition. One of the visual cues that let's you know you're watching a Universal Monsters movie is that the town it takes place in has modern conveniences, not to mention cars, but is populated with villagers right out of the 18th century. Rather than pin themselves down to one era, Universal went for a 'timeless' country, and ended up with a crazy-looking retro-modern-historic town.

The Wolf Man is a great movie of its time, in my opinion. As a straight-up scarefest, obviously it doesn't hold up against today's storytelling. But in its day, it was something to see. Its oblique references to "the beast in us all", particularly men when around women, is certainly a timeless theme worth revisiting. Plus, it gave the world one of the best quotes from a movie:

Even a man who is pure in Heart
And says his prayers by night
May become a wolf when the wolfsbane blooms
And the moon is full and bright.

Interestingly, The Wolf Man is the only of the "big three" monsters to not feature a direct sequel. Dracula had a sequel called Dracula's Daughter, and Frankenstein begat a number of sequels. The next time The Wolf Man appeared on screen was in Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, but that's more of a mash-up than direct sequel (though there's a thin ongoing story with poor Larry Talbot; much like David Banner from The Hulk TV series, he wandered around looking for a cure to his problem). As a co-star of the monster movies, Wolf Man appeared a number of times in various "House Of" movies... and met Abbott and Costello.

Here Endeth the Lesson.

Music: "Woke Up This Morning" - Alabama Three

Not Quite Fork Art

2008-10-21T22:09:00.002-04:00

Just a quick update- it's late, and I'm tired.

A picture of some doodling while waiting for lunch to arrive on our way back from Chincoteague. Not my typical doodle, but nice enough for all that.

Music: "Happy Birthday" - The Beatles

Walking on the Moon

2008-10-16T19:12:00.003-04:00

Or at least, walking on the beach.

Here's but one of many pictures I took on this past weekend's annual trip to Chincoteague. Taken with my phone, no less. When I bought it, the first thing I asked the clerk was "which phones have the best camera?" This one is surprisingly good, with an actual physical zoom and focus.

I was walking on the beach, since that's something to do on the beach that doesn't involve lying in the sand. I thought it would be cool to take some pictures, and thought of my footprints in the sand. Of course, it made me think of that poem/greeting card saying about how God will carry you, which is why you only see one set of prints. Made me laugh, so I took the picture.

Well, as I was looking at the picture tonight, I saw there was a second set of prints.

And they were walking away from me...

-sigh-

Anyway, that's about it this time around. I have some sketches that need scanning and cleaning up, not to mention all the other pictures that need work on. I just connected my computer to my TV, so everything looks MUCH BIGGER now- so hopefully less squinting as I work on the pictures one pixel at a time. But we'll see.

Cheers for now!

Music: "Be" - Neil Diamond

Portrait of the Artist as a Young Crimebuster

2008-10-14T22:24:00.002-04:00

I'm back.

So, here's the second part of my attempt to 'loosen up' my drawing. At this point, Sean had seen what I was doing/not doing, and told me to really loosen the drawing- to not try to hit the image right away, but to just let the pencil draw what it will, and find the shape in it- like a cloud(Sounds very Zen, I know). This time, I actually took to heart what he'd said, and so I think the results came out much better. After trying for more of the same with the first cloak, I really just let myself start drawing with the second... and ended up drawing a cross between Nite Owl and, in my opinion, myself. First, Nite Owl is a character from The Most Influential Graphic Novel of All Time, aka Watchmen, and second, it's a pudgy guy with glasses. Combine the two, and that's what you get. I'm really pleased with how he turned out, especially since I didn't know it was him until I was partway through. Somehow, I think I managed to capture a fair bit of emotion in him, through his pose and posture. Anyway, it was cool. Finished with a quick sketch of some superwoman-type and a REALLY vague sketch of a face from a DVD case. There's definitely more to come from this loosy-goosy style, to be sure.

The weekend was excellent, as always. Delightful company, wonderful weather (hey! No hurricanes!), fantastic food, unexpected and awesome conversations, and kids- who can ask for more? I also got to draw, if only a little bit. Which is fine, as I wasn't in the mood for much drawing. Also got to take plenty of pictures with the new phone, some of which I'll post here soon. There's probably some commentary to be had on the weekend in general, but we'll see what happens. I will say, that I was very fortunate to be able to get caught up with some good friends who I haven't seen since leaving- it did my heart good to see them, and made the mad dash to get down to MD by Wednesday night more than worth it. If only I could drive down there every other Thursday... Anyway, it was great to be there, and I can't wait to visit again.

Okay, so there was a little commentary on the weekend. Sorry.

More to come!

Music: "Tonight and the Rest of My Life" - Nina Gordon

Holding Pattern

2008-10-07T22:56:00.004-04:00

Sorry, no post today, I've been busy busy busy gathering all my things together for the annual Chincoteague Trip- our Tenth Anniversary! I'll be back... Wednesday with a report. Along with actual art. No, really.

Have a good weekend- I know I will!

Cloaking Devices

2008-10-02T21:34:00.007-04:00

I try too hard.

No, seriously. Not with most things in my life, but with drawing, I tend to try too hard to get something perfect the first time. And when it is inevitably not perfect, I get frustrated to no end. Part of the problem is that I tend to like art styles not natural to me (cartoony, clean lines, etc.). Part of the problem is I just don't spend enough time on fundamentals of drawing, like anatomy and composition. And part of it is I don't take the time to loosen up, letting the picture find its way out, as it were.

Luckily, I've got friends.

Sean and I were sitting around a couple weeks ago. He was drawing some insanely accurate and realistic picture of a real person, and I was... not. I was just staring at the paper, waiting for inspiration to strike. No doing. Sean saw my impression of 'polar bear in a snow storm', and offered to give me an idea of something to draw.

"Cloaks."

Um, okay. Reading comic books, it's easy to imagine the uses and poses for cloaks (or capes, as we in the know call them). I did try for a little variety, with not just the super pose, but also some other types and/or styles. It came out alright, but something still wasn't working. I was trying too hard. Sean and I had been discussing how he needed to loosen up his style, to get more comfortable with sketching- letting the picture find its way out, so to speak (which is crazy, if you've ever seen Sean draw- his so-called 'sketches' would be hours of work for me). So, we talked a little more, and I went back at it.

This isn't that one.

Still, it was the first I'd drawn in a while, and I like the shapes of the comic-book guy (as opposed to the shape of the Comic Book Guy, which is mostly pear-shaped), and the wizard-type. Meh. first time in a while I'd actually just sketched in general. I'll post later results... well, later.

This weekend, with luck, will produce some more sketchery. I'm headed home tomorrow, and plan on drawing with the Brothers Weaver while watching some scary movies. Good times, folks.

That is all.

Music: "Nights in White Satin" - The Moody Blues

Praying for Time

2008-09-30T22:28:00.002-04:00

Spotted while out in the Yard at work.

Although I often feel like I'm moving from one task to the next with my head down, I'm glad to know I still stop to look around me every once in a while. I never know what I'll see. This was amongst our racks of our barstock inventory. He was very patient with me.

Sorry nothing's getting posted with any regularity or clarity. Especially as to the lack of anything 'artsy' on here. It's not for lack of ideas, or even lack of work (though that's been suffering, I have some stuff I'd like to get posted by 2010). However, life has just been beating me severely about the head and shoulders. Nothing horrific, mind you- just life. Hopefully I'll be able to get some semblance of control to it, and will be able to get to work on some (hopefully) cool artwork. Anyway, thanks for stopping by. See you soon.

Music: "Hallelujah" - either Leonard Cohen or Jeff Buckley; they're both amazing.

And you thought YOUR job was scary...

2008-09-23T22:10:00.002-04:00

Yes, I actually took this picture at work.

No, those aren't my pants.

Might not be a post until next week- big-time fun this weekend means much running around this week. Hopefully something fun to post when next I post again!

Music: "Dirty Deeds" - AC/DC