Now In Technicolor

Let's hear it for summer. Alright. I can't think of a better way to spend a summer morning in San Francisco than to get acquainted with a fresh sketchbook over a latte and a bagel at some neighborhood cafe.

A former teacher of mine always encouraged us to incorporate words in our sketchbooks whether in journalistic, poetic, or graphic form. I thought I'd try my hand at it. Dunno if I'll keep it up.

I was forced to abandon the drawing below when I started losing the light but I sort of like it better unfinished because it says something about my process here.

Below: Yes, his neck was really that thick. Yes, it was freaky.

Below is a leftover from Ye Olde Recycled Paper Sketchbook.

The new sketchbook is forcing me to think differently about how I compose images on a page and use various media. My old standby tools just don't work in this book and washes are out of the question so I'm mostly working with gouache and these really great Staedtler triplus fineliner pens I just discovered. The painting was all done with my dying water brushpen instead of an actual paintbrush... I can't tell you how difficult a time I had with the color sketches because of that.

I actually had too many sketchbook pages for one post... got a little overstocked due to a broken scanner. Regular updates from now on. Promise. I have backstock.

May Days

No, I still haven't switched sketchbooks. No, I would not like to talk about it. I seem to be having some issues letting go... we'll call it separation anxiety. Soon, for reals, I will really switch to white and do some color stuff. Gouache, crayons... the whole deal. Here are some May drawings:

Above: Done at Arlequin Cafe in San Francisco. It got a little overworked and you can still see some old drawings I began underneath areas. I confess to committing petty Photoshoppery on the windows... a very light overlay to make the windows pop a bit and balance the overall value scale. Don't shoot.

Above: Done on a ridiculously windy day at the park.
Below: BART drawings.


Above: Another Alamo Square drawing, San Francisco. My Tombows were dying and I had to go back on 3 different days for this because I kept losing the light to evening bay fog after about 15 minutes of drawing each time.

Below: Done at an Oakland A's game on Memorial Day. I normally can't stand sports but my dad called me up and was all, "Hey, free tickets and food!" Free food? I will be there. And I couldn't pass up the opportunity for some new sketchbook subjects.


Above: Randomness... drawings done at some friends' graduation ceremony in San Jose, at a restaraunt afterward, and then trash cans and cars outside some cafe on Hayes Street in San Francisco.

Hey, has anyone seen this cool little film called "UP" that was released (or rather, unleashed) recently? I want to express a big congratulations and and even bigger thank you to Pixar. I don't know what those folks had to do to match (and possibly surpass) "Ratatouille" but they did it. Way to up the ante. Will you marry me, Pixar?