I'm Back!

The road trip was a huge success! Angela and I drove from our current abode in Providence RI, across the states to California, up the pacific coast, and back. We saw many marvelous things along the way including all of the museums listed in my last post, as well as the Delaware Art Museum (thanks to Nick and hedr_goblin who left a comment on my last post suggesting it!), the Grand Canyon, Zion Canyon, Joshua Tree, Redwood Trees, Crater Lake, Yellow Stone, Niagra Falls, and many many galleries!
So now I'm back and I have things to show. Some from the trip and a few things that I ran out of time to post before I left.

I drew this kid at an Italian diner in Pennsylvania, waiting for a severe storm to pass. He was telling his family how they had finished his little league game just in time for the storm to roll in. Soon after his story, people began getting up and moving to tables that were further away from the windows because it was starting to look like the windows were in danger of breaking under the stress of the wind and rain outside.

I started playing with these designs after being inspired by the Frank Lloyd Wright home and studio tour in Chicago.

A suburban home by a park outside Denver.

A huge old oak tree in front of the visitor center inside Zion Canyon

A few people in a coffee shop along the way.

Back at the regular coffee shop in Providence!

Here's Timmy! Just before he took off for Maine.
...and the rest are from before the trip as well

Sketches and Shading

Prompted by my friend Rich who's got a great blog here, I've been tinkering with a few blog features. You can now subscribe to my blog by email and have each post delivered to your in box when it is posted , or, as always, you can subscribe using any reader, such as Google Reader which is an awesome way to keep track of things on the interweb. (subscription links at left) Before too long you may even be able to buy artwork here using paypal, but I'm still looking into that.
So here are some recent sketches. I would show you the latest Monday night portrait too, if it wasn't still too wet to scan. Soon.



I've been interested lately in shading more than usual. I may attempt some nice large atelier style drawings soon, if I find the time, Hah!
Anyway, I did this sphere to practice using multiple hardnesses of graphite to achieve smooth shading. I probably should have actually been looking at a sphere to make this look right, but my goal was really just to practice smooth shading.
On the gray paper search, for now, I think I've settled to use gray card stock wire bound with a mat board cover. It's not too bad actually, I thought it would be too smooth and maybe it is, a little. But It'll work.

Portrait Pose 2

Here is week two of my new Monday night long pose group. I decided to try canvas again for the first time in about 4 years. It's alright I suppose, I'll probably stick to board though.As a fun experiment I did this sketch the following day from memory. It's not exact, but I was surprised how many little details and nuances I retained. Interesting how well our brains can pick up information and store it while we don't even realize this is happening.

Monday Night Long Pose

I have a new weekly activity! I heard not too long ago about a life drawing group in Providence that I was previously unaware of. In addition to regular figure drawing on Wednesdays, this group also does a 3 hour long pose on Monday nights! So I checked it out last week and I think I'm going to be a regular. Here is last week's painting...

Three hour study, oil on board

A few more coffee shop sketches...

My quest for a gray paper sketch book has lead me to settle on a Borden & Riley kraft paper pad... For now, that is. I guess I don't mind the color too much but the paper does have a higher tooth than I wanted. The search will continue.

A Taste of My Own Medicine

Last week I was sitting at the coffee shop, drawing people as usual. The man below and a friend of his sat down at the table next to me and started a cheerful conversation beginning with what a nice city Providence is. When I had finished drawing him I put my sketchbook down to drink some tea and he noticed my drawing..."Let me see that," he said. I don't usually mind showing, so I handed him the book. Then he said, "Let me see your pencil."
Now I was a little uneasy, expecting that he might scribble over the drawing and write something like "That'll teach you to draw unsuspecting people!"
But instead, he steadied the book on his knee and began to look at me intently. In a few minutes, he handed it back to me and said, "Ah well, I'm just a photographer." He then explained that his name was Irving Schild and he has been the primary photographer for MAD Magazine for the last 30+ years! I said "Wow, well then you have to sign your drawing of me!"...
We had a nice conversation and it was a really fun chance encounter.
Here is the cover of last month's issue of MAD where Irving is credited for it as "Irving 'Schenanigans' Schild."

Opera Oils

Illustrations for the Boston Lyric Opera, 2008-09 season! A really fun set of paintings to work on.

The above image is for the opera "Rusalka," A predecessor of "The little Mermaid." although I don't know which came first, the opera, or Has Christian Andersen's story. Either way, I believe it began as a Russian folk tale.

This one is for "Les contes d'Hoffmann," or "The Tales of Hoffman"

The above image is for "Don Giovanni," as is the image below. The painting below was mostly complete when the needs of the Boston Lyric Opera suddenly changed and a new painting was required. They're only using the one above, but you get to see both.

Above is the cover for the season brochure.
Below are some sketches and color studies leading up to the final oil paintings.

Some Things That I See

More sketches.

This fist page is made up, the rest are from life.

Here's a portrait I did a while ago, it needed a touch up but I got distracted by other projects until now.

...the day job

My girlfriend recently returned from a trip to Australia and she found this for me while she was there! So if you've ever wondered what a wallaby vertabra looks like, now you know.