The Sheriff and the Red Knight

Goofing around again. I suppose if I had done a little research I could have avoided putting a cow leg on the horse. Lazy.

I found an old thumbnail for an abandoned project, blew it up and played with it. I probably spent about 4 or 5 hours on this one.

I don't much care for this painting and I wasn't going to show it, but the blog can be about failure, too. I'm feeling brave today. Here is a lousy painting.

I'd fix it, but even if it were perfectly drawn I don't think it would be a very good image. I'm just going to act like I didn't lay this egg and walk away whistling a happy tune.

Screen Capture Painting Again

Another study. This is taken from "The Gold Rush." It's probably my all-time favorite movie. Well, that changes day to day, but it's always in the top five.

These are the two guys in the assayer's office where Big Jim McKay goes to stake his claim, but he cannot remember where it is. I should have gone color with it, just for the exercise, but I'm a little on the lazy side today.
Next one!

Spidey vs Vader

I love a good mash-up. Or is that "pastiche?" Whatever.

Sherlock Holmes crossing paths with Dracula? Awesome. Tarzan off on an adventure with Indiana Jones? I'd watch that. The Three Stooges meet Vincent Van Gogh and try to cheer him up? I am so there.

I'd buy this comic, or watch this movie. But for the moment it is merely a hasty scribble. I painted a background just now because it needed one.

Too late it occurred to me to have them fighting in Fred Sanford's junkyard. THAT would have been brill.

Fish and Fowl

Here are a couple of digital paintings for an infographic that will run in most of the Bay Area News Group newspapers this week. We have a duck (a greater scaup) and a fish (a sturgeon.)

Oh! And clams! Painted in Photoshop!

The End.

Diaper Party!

What's going on here? There is a growing trend among men to have "diaper parties" for new fathers. It's the usual gathering of guys, but everyone brings diapers. I know; I've never heard of it either, and I don't believe it! I've been assured it's true, and yet still am I skeptical. But skeptical or not, I have a job to do!

This cartoony undertaking is more detailed than my usual work, but I went this route on purpose.  I had about a month of lead time; I'm always busy on the job but I've taken full advantage of my down times and used it to work and re-work my ideas for this.

The rumors of downsizing and layoffs at the newspaper are true. There will be big changes at work in the coming weeks and months, and I may -- very soon -- be without a job. This could be the last illustration I do in this portion of my career, and so I decided -- with the luxurious amount of lead time -- I would put as much labor into in as I could.

I don't think it's necessarily better because it's busier -- it may be less attractive, to be honest -- but I think the effort shows. Good for the portfolio, I think! (If a rather archaic cartooning style is considered a "good" thing.)

Abner's Dead

Another one.

35 minutes.

Okay. That's it!

Chores to do today.

Indy Takes a Punch

Yup. Another study from a movie still. Started around 11 pm after a long day. Finished midnight-thirty or so.
Are these doing me any good? I think so.

I'm enjoying the slow awakening of some skills that I have not exercised in a long time. And I'm filling up the blog at a pretty good pace, too. But that's only because I'm liking it.

Onward!

Screen Capture Study

Might come back and tweak this later...

Came home after work, had a bite to eat and then spent about an hour and a half playing around in Photoshop. This is what happened. The figure is referenced from "Once Upon a Time in the West" (Claudia Cardinale. Hubba hubba.) The background was referenced from a different scene, but that wasn't working out well, so I ad libbed it. Doesn't look right now, either; but I'm tired and going to bed.

Character Design

I found this old character doodle. It was unfinished and it didn't look very good. When I saw it this morning I liked the spikey head/ball on the end of the chain. I re-worked the rest of it, and it still isn't great, but here it is anyway.

He'd be just the kind of guy you'd find in your dungeon monster manual. "This beast roams the lower levels of abandoned dungeons. They tend to travel alone and because of their great strength and frightening roar, they will attack small groups of travelers and adventurers without hesitation. They are of low intelligence and maybe that's why they hold their maces as though they were guitars."

Another Study From a Screen Capture

Referenced from A Fistful of Dollars.

Until I did the painting for the previous post I hadn't done a study in a long time. When I was in my 20s, I drew and painted from life or from photos almost every day. But I've been out of that habit for what? 15 years? That long? Sheeoot.

Well, I had so much fun working on the previous post decided to do another one. I would like to make this part of my routine and get back into painting-shape. It's harder than it used to be, but I can beat that with practice!

I gave myself a two hour time limit, but I fudged a little on that... 2:45ish. Maybe. 

Painted in Photoshop!

The End.

Quick Study

I've grown tired of typing "I haven't had time to do any art lately," so I got up extra early and started on this study. Then I came home from work and hacked away on it again. I probably worked it too much -- I liked it a lot better about twenty minutes before I "finished" it. But there! I've finally done something.

Tough hombres, a blue sky and happy little twigs.

This is referenced from a screen capture of "Once Upon A Time In The West." It's a very dark and heavy film by Sergio Leone -- I believe it was his last western. Good stuff. Charles Bronson is our hero and the villain is Henry Fonda. You'll never look at Fonda the same way again. Meanest, cruelest, most despicable bad guy in any movie, ever.

Well, maybe not ever, but you won't believe the horrible things Henry Fonda does. I can't even tell you because you wouldn't believe me.