Saturday, January 12, 2013

Portfolio Week 1

Work This Week: SKETCHES!!!
First ideas for Dumpy the cat.

First sketches for Mr. Crumbly, face shape drawn directly from Kate Beaton.

Second attempt at Mr. Crumbly with different proportions and a more human face. Didn't like it.

Mr. Crumbly, a more finalized Dumpy, and concepts for the children.

Dumpy "action pose" sketches working with an inverse-bean (curve on bottom) body. Don't like it as much as regular bean (see previous Dumpy).


Inspiration Images
by Kate Beaton for her web comic Hark! A Vagrant

You can tell

From the Chester 3000 XYV web comic by Jess Fink


1. What work have you made that seems most yours? Why?
My Flying Robert illustrations from Illustration 1. I was able to include humor and convey narrative and work in pen. Although it's not necessarily gallery-art, it's exactly what I want to do with my life. Books.

2. Who are artists that are making work that relates to you? Are there other influences? How are these other influences connected to your work?
There are so many artists whose work I admire in the fields of writing, illustration, and music, often overlapping. Joey Comeau, writer of A Softer World is friends with Ryan North, the genius behind Dinosaur Comics, who ended up being the writer for Pendleton Ward's Adventure Time comic book. Gerard Way, My Chemical Romance's lead singer wrote the best selling Umbrella Academy graphic novels working with artist Gabriel Ba', who in cooperation with his brother Fabio Moon created the masterwork Daytripper. And the illustrator James Jean, who did the original covers for the Umbrella Academy comic series also did the cover of Freaks! Alive on the Inside!, one of my favorite books. These have all lead me to other connected artists who have influenced my work.

3. Discuss, in your own words, why you think this is so.
I think it's a bit ridiculous to say any civilization lives without art at all. As discussed in the book art includes craft, which is present in all things made. If the quote suggests that civilizations can't survive without the western artist-centric idea of art, then I think that's a bit silly too, because as the book says, Eastern civilizations are still producing craft-centric work.

4. Which of these ideas resonates most with you? Why? If they all resonate, how do they differ?
Both ideas resonate. They're just different motivations for creating. I like the idea of doing things for the world, ie my funny stuff is obviously not just to make myself laugh, but I can also see how certain themes explored can be self revelations.

5. What do you notice about yourself? What are your methods? Subject matter? The answers do not have to be limited to art related topics.
I seem to work in stories, playing between writing and illustrating, usually something of the dark-humor variety, or somewhere on that spectrum. I'm not really concerned in being a traditional gallery artist, I'm mostly concerned with concepts.

6. What do you care about? The answers do not have to be limited to art related topics.
I care about people, overall I suppose. I think a lot about the human condition and depending on my mood, try to think of ways to make the world better (humor, kindness, winnie-the-pooh stuff) or spiral into depression and rage about how nobody is self aware and constantly causes pain to one-another. So I write to avoid the real world, or critique it, or critique myself for being assuredly hypocritical. Humor helps the biting sarcasm go down.

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