Source Books

I've got a bunch of source books that I like to keep right by my drawing table.  Some of these are copyright free collections, and some are sourcebooks - which you can use as elements and reference (but must change - which isn't hard if you are putting figures as the main part of your work).

Cletic Art by George Bain - a MUST if you are doing knotwork!  My absolute treasure

Strong's Book of Designs
Art Nouveau Typographic Ornaments - Dover
150 Full Color Art Nouveau Patterns and Designs - Dover
Art Nouveau Abstract Designs by Rebecca McKillip
Art Nouveau Animal Designs and Patterns - Dover
Mucha's Floral Borders - Dover

Art Deco Designs - Search Press
Classic Boarder Designs - Search Press
Sourcebook Viking Designs - Search Press

Chronicle of Western Fashion - John Peacock
Costume Patterns and Design by Max Tilke
Pose File (I have 1, 4 & 7)

The Library of Design, Encyclopedia of Ornament by A. Racinet
1000 Symbols by Rowena & Rupert Shepherd
Japanese Design Motifs - Dover
Chinese Animal designs - Dover
Chinese Lattic Designs - Dover  (A real good one)
The Book of Signs by Rudolf Koch - Dover

There are more - but these are at easy hand

Skunks are a muse

   I came home from China Painting, and saw what turned out to be a family of skunks.  Two little babies and a mama.  Awww cute!  Now, I need to draw some.  I whipped out my cell phone camera - but it was dark and far away.
   I am putting up some of the native American skunk girl steps that I did for a bookmark a little while ago.  I don't have all the steps documented, but here's a few anyway.  Which reminds me to tweet my steps for the Steam Punk princess I am working on.

redrawing

Here's an old image I love.  I remember showing to a lady at work who liked it, thought a moment and asked if flying squirrels come that way.

I intend to get to re-drawing it.
Of course, that confuses me.  I have always been a 'move forward' sort of person.  Once I've executed an image, I rarely feel the need to see what else there is to learn in that image.

I like the branch, but think I could do the leaves differently.  I like the wings, but might want to work on them again.  The face might be more expressive.  I like the way the squirrel crosses the background element.

Memorial Day

While at Spectrum Live, they had a Jeffery Jones exhibit.  Some lovely work and I really hadn't been exposed to a lot of his work.  So, I enjoyed taking in the work.

Yesterday, I had a tree guy come over the the house.  I have a lot of trees, and one is kinda laying down.  I found him at the local comic book con.  Turns out, he knew Jones!  He has original art.  He had fun sharing a few stories as we tromped around the trees.

Stories.  Memories.  The Past giving to the Future.

Sunday!

Doing splashpages for stories for my D&D game fanzine.  Perhaps I should be working on other art - but it's a holiday weekend.  There are times you must to art to refresh your own pool of creative juices.  That way, you tackle your next project with joy.  So, I'm not goofing off - I'm recharging.

Inking on tracing paper

There!  I finished a you tube video.  That makes two total.  Since I am watching Donato's video on painting Joan of Arc, I seem to be on the same page.

@YouTube video http://t.co/AWa17q5X

YouTube on Inking

Since I am working on a picture for AnthroCon, I figured I wanted to do another of the You Tube Video.  I did the big colored pencil techniques - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DDIQFwhCR8.  So I figured I'd just do a little shorty.

Naturally, I am taking all sorts of scans as I go along.  I figure I'll just have a pretty quick part where it all morphs together. 

Dave and Sabrina are off to Anime North, and the house is mine for a couple of days.  Art, D&D and more art...  If I was smart, I would put my YouTube link on my web site -

The Con I Wasn't There

It's the first time I have had two cons on one weekend.  Well, that happens a lot - there's always too many cons I want to go to.  What I mean is that I had a table set out with my wares in two different places.  I realized that Dave was going to the con anyway - so we got a table and he was there for me.

We had the same sort of stock I usually have - Cute, Furry, Fantasy, buttons, bookmarks  - the works.  The only real difference is that I wasn't there.

Sales were down.  Not really completely noticeably down - but down.  Could be the economy, but I think it's The Artist wasn't there.  Dave did offer to draw things for people (If I were a customer, I'd thought that was hilarious and taken him up on it).  It only goes to show how much more happens when the artist is there to make that face to face connection.

Not to worry, we did make profit.  I'll be back next year (unless Spectrum is over it again).

If I have to do this again, I'll put Dave in a Hat with Horns.

Products and Projects

Thank you for all the wonderful ideas and input!  I've been dividing them all into products (which I can do now) and projects (which I can work on).  Love the idea to making a list (I make lists all the time) and then work my way through the goals.

Canvas bags - excellent, I can do these right away.  Images already finished would work great.  I could put a furry on one side and something cute on the other - thus appealing to both kinds of cons.

T-Shirts - hmmmm.  I knew someone who was licensing designs to a company.  That way, there would be no huge pile of shirts that stick around in my back room.  Someone suggested WOOT shirts to me.  I know Miss Monster gets some wonderful bizness just by watching people go by and say 'hey, I did your shirt'.

Illustrated stories - huh.  I always figured I was just forcing my gamers to read the darned things.  Can't help but draw my guys.  Is there a market for illustrated stories?  I can't help but think 'young' when you need pictures to go with the words.  Although - now that I think about it, I have seen some pretty graphic novels that are heavy into the words and have some pretty pretty pics....  huh.  Uh oh - now I can see it.

Graphic Novels - love some of these.  There's so much work in them.  And I would need the right story.

Art Books - Retrospective or Yearly catalog - Yes.  I suppose I should really pic a time of the year to declare the production of the yearly catalog.  A total retrospective, I think I need some better works - yet I should pic a year and make a goal.

Art Book - Themed - like a mermaid book, or a dragon book.  I think this is what I have been thinking about most.  A Suburban Sylvan Spotting style collection with dragon birds, firebirds and griffakeets.  I made a list of 18 sorts of things I could feature - so I'll get to work on this.

Sticker Book - I saw this web site, where they had a booklet of little stickers and I was in love.  I might want to do some more of these.  Got a web site for die-cut stickers too - since I love buying them myself.

Charms - Dave sold a buncha charms at the local comic con.  I need to get some more done.  This works out fine since they were the company with the stickers.

I'll make a list of 15 things.
OOooo... Tomorrow I will talk about the Motor City Comic Con that Dave did without me.

Projects

As a beginning artist, I worked hard on drawing.  Refining my skills, learning everything I could and drawing, drawing, DRAWING.  To this day, I tell people carry a sketchbook with you everywhere.  Then, I started to be happy with what I could do.

Next came art shows.  Getting art done for art shows.  Seeing what I liked and what sold.  Refining my skills.  Making certain I could add color to the works I was doing.  Getting 'out there' with many offerings.

I had a couple of shows recently where people asked me 'what are you working on?'.  I blinked, and tried to remember.  Oh yeah....  next show, commissions, comic...  I've been so busy focused on what's loaded on my plate, that I think I have forgotten to imagine ahead.  Charles Vess said that when he was young, he realized that no publishing company was going to beat the way to his door - so he made his own project.

Having just come back from Specrtum Live, I couldn't help but listen to 'the big guys' all talk about the projects they are involved in.  It certainly made them seem exciting and even more successful.   Perhaps, the next level beyond refining and practicing your skills is some project.  A DVD, a book, graphic novel....  something.

So, I'm going to take part of the week to figure out a project to be working on.  I have some ideas.

In the past, I've organized a bunch of projects with other artists - so I could totally add people to the mix if I wanted.

Now, what sort of things lend themselves to projects for artwork?

• art books
• comic / graphic novels
• DVD's / You Tube 
• sculptures
• T-shirts can be pretty normal, yet coats, bandanas, bags

Thinking hard.  If anyone out there has some ideas - I'd be grateful.

Spectrum Live

Of course, I had a total blast!  Karen, Joseph and April met me at the airport and we whisked down to the convention center in Kansas City.  The show filled up with so many fabulous artists!  It was a pleasure to run around and have the chance to meet and talk to people.  That was the best part - there was actually time to talk.

I found lots of stuff to buy, and it was hard not to just go crazy.  Got some collection books, and hunted autographs down for my new sketchbook.  I went in search of Justin Gerard and a gorgeous Tolkien work he did.  I found him, and no prints - so I set about dropping un-subtle hints about hansom elf guys all weekend.  Talked to Dave's favorite graphic design artist, Andrew Bawidamann.  Met R.K Post - seen him so many places and I never wandered over.  April and I went around and looked for our fellow IMC alumni.

Tracked down Iain McCaig for autographs and he wants to help me out with some sketch input.  I had breakfast with Donato and a publisher.  Went to Dinner with RK Post, Echo and a whole bunch of other artists and their peeps.  Went to the Spectrum award show and did the late night hang out thing.

Found the Batmobile on Sunday.
There's a point where you feel you kinda know someone way cool and you sorta duck your head and grin - and then you cross the line and feel like a real friend.  That you do know them and can easily claim so.  Crossed that point with Micheal and Jim.
Still thinking of buying a few things.
On the way home, there was a sunset partial eclipse of the sun.  wow.  I took a cellphone pic even if the captain had said to turn off electronics.

There was so much more, but right now I'm a little tiered and scattered.  I gotta go and grab Irene's pics now.

Traveling

It always amazes me that I can get my big portfolio through the luggage x-ray. I think it's the limit. Sometimes I get the stewards to put it in first class closet. Well, I like it with me.

Excited to see friends and get the art mojo working. It's my IMC substitute this year since AC moved it's weekend

Hooking up my phone

I want to be able to put up pics I take at the con - so, I am trying to see how everything works

Spectrum Live

I'm heading off to Spectrum Live this weekend!
I'm sharing with April Lee, so if your going - look for us as if we were at San Diego Comic Con (Under April).
My excitement is tempered by my nervousness.  The company of other artists is so wonderful!  I've got a list of people I need to look up (and buy stuff from).

Did a new picture for the con (a couple actually) - but I like this backyard firebird best.
http://www.spectrumfantasticart.com/spectrumfantasticartlive/?page=sfal_home

Dave and Sabrina will be manning the local Motor City Comic Con for me.  I've got a table there too!  This is the first time my studio will be in two places at the same time.  If you are local, come tease Dave about how he's missing my hat with horns!
http://www.motorcitycomiccon.com/