The work on my thesis continues, with more interaction sketches and another finished digital narrative. Some of my classes are going to have to fall by the wayside if I'm going to get this all done.
Monday, March 31, 2014
Tuesday, March 18, 2014
It Takes an Obsession to Make a Thesis
One of my greatest strengths and weaknesses is that I'm an obsessive type worker.
And I have to process things by talking and by writing.
In other news, the small-scale drawings of the backwards princesses continue with a rare serious take on one of my more psychosis-laden characters.
I've also created a more polished looking version of the Rapunzel story digitally, which I designed to look somewhat like stills from an animated movie or show (these digital versions are what the notes above are for). However, it's a fairly huge image so I'll work on getting a smaller version to post with some others at a later date.
In other news, the small-scale drawings of the backwards princesses continue with a rare serious take on one of my more psychosis-laden characters.
I've also created a more polished looking version of the Rapunzel story digitally, which I designed to look somewhat like stills from an animated movie or show (these digital versions are what the notes above are for). However, it's a fairly huge image so I'll work on getting a smaller version to post with some others at a later date.
Monday, March 10, 2014
Standard Update
New Studio space:
With more crappy random furniture than a thrift shop.
A current resting place for the backwards fairy tale originals. Trying to decide which ones need to be revisited for my gallery show and which ones are fine as they are.
A digital piece I finished last week in preparation for the pre-thesis review. My digital work appears to be a point of contention for some viewers, which is, to me, fairly perplexing. I go through every effort to make my work accessible and easy to read. I'll have to pay attention to what may be causing these difficulties, moving forward. Unfortunately, most of the feedback from my review was a lot of artists listening to themselves talk (fine artists absolutely love doing that). However, I did get some genuinely helpful suggestions, such as the idea that adding text to my digital work would help add my own touch and my own voice to it, while tying it more closely to my pen-on-paper pieces. I plan to put this to the test in the coming weeks.
And a bonus "interaction" drawing.
With more crappy random furniture than a thrift shop.
A current resting place for the backwards fairy tale originals. Trying to decide which ones need to be revisited for my gallery show and which ones are fine as they are.
A digital piece I finished last week in preparation for the pre-thesis review. My digital work appears to be a point of contention for some viewers, which is, to me, fairly perplexing. I go through every effort to make my work accessible and easy to read. I'll have to pay attention to what may be causing these difficulties, moving forward. Unfortunately, most of the feedback from my review was a lot of artists listening to themselves talk (fine artists absolutely love doing that). However, I did get some genuinely helpful suggestions, such as the idea that adding text to my digital work would help add my own touch and my own voice to it, while tying it more closely to my pen-on-paper pieces. I plan to put this to the test in the coming weeks.
And a bonus "interaction" drawing.
Wednesday, February 19, 2014
Character Design
Worked on nailing down some semi-definitive designs for the backwards fairy-tale characters.
And while we're at it, worked a bit on how I draw my cartoon-style characters when it's all done on PhotoShop. Just some practice, I suppose.
And while we're at it, worked a bit on how I draw my cartoon-style characters when it's all done on PhotoShop. Just some practice, I suppose.
Monday, February 17, 2014
And We're Back, Folks
New semester, new work. Lately I've been focusing on developing the stars of my backwards fairy-tales as characters. To this end, I've been drawing them in a series of interactions.
Rapunzel, in her backwards story, escapes from a clingy boyfriend. I tend to draw her as oldest, most "idealized," and generally pretty sassy.
Alice's backwards story basically shows her succumbing to substance abuse. As such, she ended up a druggie. She's a little chubbier than the others (munchies will do that to you).
Ariel (or the Little Mermaid) backwards ended up being dumped by her husband, but then being turned into a mermaid and living in the sea, where she learns the value of friends and family. She ended up very chipper and bubbly, given how she enjoys her new life.
Cinderella's backwards story shows her being left by her husband as well, but she is cursed by an evil fairy godmother to work in servitude for the rest of her life. I tend to portray her as a bit of a nervous wreck, most likely with OCD.
Finaly, Belle (or Beauty) is essentially an abuse victim, as in her backwards tale, her boyfriend turns into a beast and attacks her, so she has to flee to a nearby village.
Apologies for some of the poor photo quality on a few of these.
Rapunzel, in her backwards story, escapes from a clingy boyfriend. I tend to draw her as oldest, most "idealized," and generally pretty sassy.
Alice's backwards story basically shows her succumbing to substance abuse. As such, she ended up a druggie. She's a little chubbier than the others (munchies will do that to you).
Ariel (or the Little Mermaid) backwards ended up being dumped by her husband, but then being turned into a mermaid and living in the sea, where she learns the value of friends and family. She ended up very chipper and bubbly, given how she enjoys her new life.
Cinderella's backwards story shows her being left by her husband as well, but she is cursed by an evil fairy godmother to work in servitude for the rest of her life. I tend to portray her as a bit of a nervous wreck, most likely with OCD.
Finaly, Belle (or Beauty) is essentially an abuse victim, as in her backwards tale, her boyfriend turns into a beast and attacks her, so she has to flee to a nearby village.
Wednesday, December 4, 2013
Literal Studio Update
I've moved in and then some.
Whoever has to paint over that ink on the walls at the end of the year is going to hate me.
Tuesday, December 3, 2013
Artist Statement "Final Draft"
My goal
in my work is to connect to people through stories. I use my characters and
narratives to turn people inward towards their own lives; my drawings may
remind them of a person, a place, an event, or an experience or emotion. I use ink and Photoshop, which are clear,
easy to read, and familiar. This is one way in which my art evokes the feel of
comics, cartoons, video games, and other geek-culture influences from my childhood
and today. I gravitate most noticeably
toward the aesthetic of Japanese manga, applying various elements of this aesthetic to nearly all of my work.
As I've experimented with new ways of utilizing my interest in cartooning, I began creating backwards fairy tales. These are several well-known stories, many made popular by the ubiquitous
animated Disney films from the 1930's to the present, which I have retold
simply by inverting. Extracting the
major plot elements, I reverse the order, and thus create an entirely new tale.
The results are comic-like drawings which utilize immediately familiar visuals
to first draw the viewer in, and then subvert expectations as the viewer
notices that the known story is somehow off. My new fairy tales offer something that is at once accessible and off-beat.
In these pieces, I play with the gray area between the comfortable and
familiar, and the strange and unexpected.
The Backward Princesses
I started work on taking the princesses of my various backwards fairy tales and developing them more as characters ("Princess" here referring to any character typically included in the merchandising of the Disney Princess franchise).
Also redid the Rapunzel backwards fairy tale:
And worked on out for the Little Mermaid:
Here's a confession that won't earn me many friends: I always hated the Little Mermaid (the Disney version, at least-- that's the only one I can really speak for). A girl who sacrifices her home, friends and family for a man she glimpsed once is not a great example for the younguns. And hey, let's not forget how important it is to woo men by being silent. But I think that's why I so thoroughly enjoyed rewriting Ariel's story.
/rant.
Also redid the Rapunzel backwards fairy tale:
/rant.
Tuesday, November 19, 2013
Artist Statement- Second Draft
My
primary goal in my work is to connect to people through stories. I
use my characters and narratives to turn people inward towards their
own lives; my drawings may remind them of something-- a person, a
place, an event, or an experience or emotion. I generally work with
materials that are clean, easy to read, and familiar, which evokes
the entertainment-industry feel of a lot of my work. This in turn
reflects shades of the geek-culture elements which inspired my very
early practice. In many ways, my work still draws from the comics,
cartoons and video games of my childhood and today. Most obviously, I
gravitate toward a comic book aesthetic– specifically Japanese
manga– and I am now concerned with applying elements of this
aesthetic to a more versatile and wide-ranging body of work.
My
recent “backwards fairy tales” are, in truth, various well-known
stories (many made popular by the ubiquitous animated Disney films
from the 1930's to the present) which I have retold simply by
inverting them. Extracting all of the major plot elements, I reverse
the order, and thus create an entirely new tale. The results are
comic-like drawings which utilize immediately familiar visuals to
draw the viewer in, and then subvert expectations as the viewer
notices that the known story is somehow off. I play with the gray
area between the comfortable and familiar, and the strange and
unexpected.
Studio Update: Tale Fairies.
Continuing the backwards fairy tale project. Loosened up this week and played around with a few different things like color and characters. Rest of the week will be business as usual though, I think.
Made photocopies of this piece and did a few colorized renditions. Decided to leave further coloring for later and focus more on the matters at hand.
Just messing around a bit. Horray for subverting traditional gender roles.
If you read Rapunzel backwards, it's about a girl who uses her excessively long hair to escape her excessively clingy boyfriend.
These things are making me come off like some kind of man-hating femnazi.
Made photocopies of this piece and did a few colorized renditions. Decided to leave further coloring for later and focus more on the matters at hand.
Just messing around a bit. Horray for subverting traditional gender roles.
If you read Rapunzel backwards, it's about a girl who uses her excessively long hair to escape her excessively clingy boyfriend.
These things are making me come off like some kind of man-hating femnazi.
Tuesday, November 12, 2013
Artist Statement - First Draft
My
primary goal in my work is to connect to people through stories. I
use my characters and
narratives to turn people inward towards their own lives; my
drawings may remind them of
something-- a person, a place, an event, or an experience or emotion.
In opening up and placing my honest thoughts and perceptions on
paper, telling them through familiar people and situations, I invite
the viewer to do the same.
I generally work with materials that are clean, easy to read, and familiar, such as graphite, ink and digital drawing. My use of ink and Photoshop in particular evokes the entertainment-industry feel of a lot of my work. This in turn reflects shades of the "geek-culture" elements which inspired my very early practice. In many ways, my work still draws from the comics, cartoons and video games of my childhood and today. Most obviously, I gravitate toward a comic book aesthetic (specifically Japanese manga), and I am now concerned with applying elements of this aesthetic to a more versatile and wide-ranging body of work.
I generally work with materials that are clean, easy to read, and familiar, such as graphite, ink and digital drawing. My use of ink and Photoshop in particular evokes the entertainment-industry feel of a lot of my work. This in turn reflects shades of the "geek-culture" elements which inspired my very early practice. In many ways, my work still draws from the comics, cartoons and video games of my childhood and today. Most obviously, I gravitate toward a comic book aesthetic (specifically Japanese manga), and I am now concerned with applying elements of this aesthetic to a more versatile and wide-ranging body of work.
To
this end, I have recently embarked on a bit of an artistic narrative
experiment. What I call my
“backwards fairy tales” are, in truth, various well-known stories
(many made popular by the ubiquitous animated Disney films ranging
from the 1930's to today) which I have retold simply by inverting
them. Extracting
all of the major plot elements, I reverse the order, and thus create
an entirely new tale. The
results are comic-page-like drawings which make use of some
immediately familiar visuals to draw the viewer in, and then subvert
expectations as the viewer notices that the known story is somehow
off. This is a trend I plan
to pursue, playing in the gray area between the comfortable and
familiar, and the strange and unexpected.
More Fairy Tales
If you watch Alice in Wonderland backwards, it's about a young girl who succumbs to substance abuse.
Have more in the studio, but didn't manage to get pics. I'll have those up later in the week, I imagine.
Thursday, November 7, 2013
Just for Fun
For the hell of it, I figured I'd post some recent character design sketches. This is more or less the most straightforward look I can give into what interests me most.
The process of drawing a new character is like getting to know a new acquaintance. Drawing characters I've worked on for a while is like a silly drunken chat with your roommate at 3AM.
The process of drawing a new character is like getting to know a new acquaintance. Drawing characters I've worked on for a while is like a silly drunken chat with your roommate at 3AM.
Tuesday, November 5, 2013
Backwards Fairy Tales
Lately I've been playing with the idea of telling well-known fairy tales with a slight twist. Following the panels, it's relatively easy to pick up on what story each "comic" is supposed to tell, but I'm telling them backwards.
These are Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella, The Princess and the Frog, and Little Red Riding Hood, respectively. Unfortunately these images might be a little dark and small, but they at least show the idea I'm working toward.
The nice thing about Fairy Tales is that there are tons of them-- and many versions of each, so I have plenty of material to work from.
These are Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella, The Princess and the Frog, and Little Red Riding Hood, respectively. Unfortunately these images might be a little dark and small, but they at least show the idea I'm working toward.
The nice thing about Fairy Tales is that there are tons of them-- and many versions of each, so I have plenty of material to work from.
Artist Statement - Draft Zero
My primary goal in my work is to connect to people through stories. This sounds vague, I'm sure, but what I'm aiming at specifically is more a certain kind of feeling. I want to use my characters and narratives to turn people inward towards their own lives; I want to remind them of something-- a person, a place, an event, or an experience or emotion. In opening up and placing my honest thoughts and perceptions on paper, telling them through familiar people and situations, I hope to invite the viewer to do the same.
Primarily, I work with materials that are clean, easy to read, and familiar, such as graphite, ink and digital drawing. My use of ink and photoshop in particular evokes the entertainment-industry feel of a lot of my work, which reflects shades of the "geek-culture" elements which inspired my very early practice (comics, cartoons, video games, etc.). My work is accessible, and I refuse to put up pretenses or speak down to my audience. While I allow for ambiguity and encourage room for interpretation, I place huge importance on the viewer's ability to take something away from my work, rather than only walking away confused. A person should not need a fine arts education to appreciate my pieces.
Primarily, I work with materials that are clean, easy to read, and familiar, such as graphite, ink and digital drawing. My use of ink and photoshop in particular evokes the entertainment-industry feel of a lot of my work, which reflects shades of the "geek-culture" elements which inspired my very early practice (comics, cartoons, video games, etc.). My work is accessible, and I refuse to put up pretenses or speak down to my audience. While I allow for ambiguity and encourage room for interpretation, I place huge importance on the viewer's ability to take something away from my work, rather than only walking away confused. A person should not need a fine arts education to appreciate my pieces.
Monday, October 28, 2013
Mariel Clayton
I recently recalled an artist I stumbled across online a few years ago. Mariel Clayton is a photographer who works with a couple of well-known characters, Barbie and Ken. She has a playful outlook on her often dark and gruesome subject matter, as she subverts the bubbly portrayal of Barbie and her sometimes-boyfriend Ken (near-sociopathic in its detachment from reality). Clayton's work tells stories in single frames, and the stories are rarely pretty. I think perhaps the best way to explain her work is to show it:
In Clayton's photographs of the typically utopian world of Barbie and Ken, the viewer is treated to every day unpleasantness, abuse, murder, sexual depravity, suicide, and a host of other jarring themes. More than anything, I'm fascinated by her ability to imply such a thick and disturbed narrative in a single image, frequently with only one or two characters, and with distinct limitations of expression and pose.
(Needless to say she has some other work too-- still with the dolls, but a little bit more typically aesthetic rather than the freakish stories she seems most interested in)
Here's the link to her website with a host of her work:
Mariel Clayton
And here's an extremely interesting article in which she discusses it quite candidly:
Bad Barbie: The Works of Mariel Clayton
In Clayton's photographs of the typically utopian world of Barbie and Ken, the viewer is treated to every day unpleasantness, abuse, murder, sexual depravity, suicide, and a host of other jarring themes. More than anything, I'm fascinated by her ability to imply such a thick and disturbed narrative in a single image, frequently with only one or two characters, and with distinct limitations of expression and pose.
(Needless to say she has some other work too-- still with the dolls, but a little bit more typically aesthetic rather than the freakish stories she seems most interested in)
Here's the link to her website with a host of her work:
Mariel Clayton
And here's an extremely interesting article in which she discusses it quite candidly:
Bad Barbie: The Works of Mariel Clayton
Thursday, October 24, 2013
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Our senior Art Thesis Prep class decided on a sort of "works in progress" theme for our group gallery show. It's fitting, since although I can't speak for my [incredibly talented] classmates, I know that I am still very much in the process of figuring out what direction I want my work to go.
I'm most interested in characters and storytelling. It's a broad subject matter, as I'm discovering more and more. To work through my interest in this area, I have been working on the type of drawings I've put up in the gallery. These are graphite on paper drawings based on the movie, The Rocky Horror Picture Show. This particular movie is an over the top musical-horror-parody-comedy-scifi-mystery-burlesque-rock n' roll mishmosh with tons of flamboyant movement and theatrical framing-- so of course, it's perfect subject matter for these somewhat chaotic, overlapping drawings. Best of all, working from this movie brought the kind of lightness I like to maintain in my work; a certain fun, absurd and silly tone I try to be mindful of even in "serious" work.
I'm most interested in characters and storytelling. It's a broad subject matter, as I'm discovering more and more. To work through my interest in this area, I have been working on the type of drawings I've put up in the gallery. These are graphite on paper drawings based on the movie, The Rocky Horror Picture Show. This particular movie is an over the top musical-horror-parody-comedy-scifi-mystery-burlesque-rock n' roll mishmosh with tons of flamboyant movement and theatrical framing-- so of course, it's perfect subject matter for these somewhat chaotic, overlapping drawings. Best of all, working from this movie brought the kind of lightness I like to maintain in my work; a certain fun, absurd and silly tone I try to be mindful of even in "serious" work.
Wednesday, October 23, 2013
Moving In
It was strongly suggested that I start really moving in and making use of my studio space. I've never had that kind of space before, but I figured step one was laying claim to my wall with the theme song of my year.
Monday, October 21, 2013
Early Delving (Thesis Prep Post)
The influences of my childhood are fairly obvious in my current work. Seriously, I draw comics. I first started getting really into drawing because I watched Yu-Gi-Oh and Pokemon on TV as a kid and thought it would be so cool to turn myself and my friends into characters like that. Some of my earliest memories are of getting yelled at in school for drawing under my desk instead of paying attention in school, and on at least one occasion, my drawing was taken, ripped up and thrown out then and there. I kept at it though, because when I showed my drawings to my friends who had helped me come up with these characters and ideas, they were always thrilled, and immediately we would be planning the next moment or adventure.
Well, the more things change, the more the stay the same, as they say. Here's a little confession for those of you who maybe don't know me as well (and maybe this won't come as too much of a surprise): my friends and I play Dungeons and Dragons. Which of course means that, to this day, we are creating characters and telling stories together, constantly seeing how personalities interact, and working on creative solutions to fantastical problems. My favorite projects now are those which involve drawing characters and moments conceived of by my friends and brought to life on paper or screen.
Well, I suppose I'll leave it at that before I really start rambling. One more item, perhaps, before signing off for tonight:
This is a sheet of scrap paper I used to mix paints on last semester when I worked on a painting for a friend of mine. It was the most passionate I had been about an art piece in years, and all of the eagerness for a friend's excited reaction came rushing back, just like as a kid drawing under my desk. Now, I keep this tacked up in my room, because I want art to always feel like that, and it reminds me of why I decided to take a crack at making art to begin with. I just hope that I can incorporate that kind of passion into more "gallery" type work in the future.
Well, the more things change, the more the stay the same, as they say. Here's a little confession for those of you who maybe don't know me as well (and maybe this won't come as too much of a surprise): my friends and I play Dungeons and Dragons. Which of course means that, to this day, we are creating characters and telling stories together, constantly seeing how personalities interact, and working on creative solutions to fantastical problems. My favorite projects now are those which involve drawing characters and moments conceived of by my friends and brought to life on paper or screen.
Well, I suppose I'll leave it at that before I really start rambling. One more item, perhaps, before signing off for tonight:
This is a sheet of scrap paper I used to mix paints on last semester when I worked on a painting for a friend of mine. It was the most passionate I had been about an art piece in years, and all of the eagerness for a friend's excited reaction came rushing back, just like as a kid drawing under my desk. Now, I keep this tacked up in my room, because I want art to always feel like that, and it reminds me of why I decided to take a crack at making art to begin with. I just hope that I can incorporate that kind of passion into more "gallery" type work in the future.
Friday, October 18, 2013
Headlines
Lynn sent me a list of newspaper headlines with the instructions to pick a few and illustrate them without context. These were the results:
I have to admit, there's something gratifying about the moment you realize that your homework involves drawing a spider flipping someone off.
I have to admit, there's something gratifying about the moment you realize that your homework involves drawing a spider flipping someone off.
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