illustration friday - "help #2"

this is my second installation for this week's IF topic. i thought it fit better than the other one, but i had to get julia to take a picture of it the other day, as it is hanging on the ceiling of her classroom. the drawing is pretty much life-sized; the main figure is about five feet tall.

the bonus picture here is of me and julia, after the evil dead musical, which we attended a few weeks ago. thanks to a friend, we received front-row-center seats entirely free. we were right in the "splatter zone"! i only ended up with a single drop of fake blood on my lapel, which somehow got through my plastic poncho. well, also, my white chucks are sort of pink now. you can't see it here, but julia was fairly well-soaked, as one of the characters in the play jumped out and ripped her poncho open just before the blood started flying. it was a riot, and i recommend that if you are thinking of going to the show, make sure to sit in the splatter zone!

****also, please look at my previous post, if you haven't already. i just finished a big watercolor that i'm particularly proud of, and i've shown some of the steps it took to make it.

what i learned in watercolor class

this was my final project for my watercolor class--use a photo that has some cultural significance (to me) and make a watercolor of it. i chose an old photograph of my grandfather bill and my uncle jerry:

here is a bit of the in-progress watercolor, with some of the exposed drawing:

and here's how it turned out:

overall, i'm very happy with the results. i made quite a few freehand sketches beforehand, some in pencil, some in very basic color. in the process of sketching, i decided to omit my cousin (lori or jennifer?) in the bottom right corner, as it just made more sense compositionally. i also wanted to emphasize the "dialogue" between the two men, and the omission seemed to help with that.

by the way, i really enjoyed doing this piece, and i would love to continue to work in this fashion. if you would like to send me a picture--of you, your family, or your pets--i would be glad to do a watercolor of said picture for you. it would make an excellent, original, unexpected gift, or you could simply get one for yourself to enjoy. i would, of course, require a fee for services rendered, but such things are certainly negotiable, depending on the size and elaborateness of the piece.

illustration friday - "help"

okay, i can't write much today. no time for funny stuff. i've got to get ready for a party we're hosting tonight and finish my final assignment for watercolor class. bye!

phronesisaical

this is tom, who is one of julia's former professors from her graduate studies at NYU. he writes a blog called phronesisaical, which i recommend wholeheartedly. tom is an expert in ethics, social and political philosophy, environmental policy, international development, and international affairs; and he has about a million records (on vinyl) and makes the best mix cds of anyone i know. he's probably written more than any of us have read in our lifetimes, and his blog is both highly political and highly entertaining. from today forward, there will be a link to tom's blog under my "hey lookie" section. check it often!

illustration friday - "mask"

i'm almost done with school - when i'm done i'm going to sleep for 17 days. screw presents, just give me the bed and keep the noise down!

by the way, for those who are returning visitors, how do you like the new design of the site, eh? i like it much better than the one i had made previously. i designed this one to resemble my layout for my myspace (oh my, that's a lot of 'my's). so what are you thinking - good, bad, or ugly?