Romance

The Corporal offered his love a perfect tulip, plucked from his family's ancestral garden. But the ghosts of departed, impossibly cute household pets intruded on their memories, and they could never be together.

Or something like that. Just another sketchbook page, with pictures on it having nothing to do with each other. (Notice the fish tail on the back of the kitty cat)

In My Life / In My Mind

Producer George Martin strangled Robin Williams after Williams totally Shatnered a version of "Come Together." Martin had already given Goldie Hawn what she deserved. At least that's what happened in my mind, drawing while watching the documentary of the making of the album In My Life. Actually, Jim Carey and Celine Dion were a lot more annoying than Goldie, at least when doing music. But there wasn't enough room to fit them in the drawing.

I was watching this for work, so it's not the usual kind of music I'm fond of. Okay. These days I'm listening to Morton Feldman, and Mendelssohn string quartets. Is that pretentious enough for you?

Kind of misaligned George Martin's eyes, which happens sometimes if you draw without guidelines. Did this with a ballpoint pen, while watching the documentary program about the making of the album. It was actually a good documentary, though shot for about 14 cents.

Breakfast Gerbil

More early morning surrealism to complement my post below. I wonder if that's going to stay? It resembles more my computer journal ramblings than anything I put up for public consumption.

Anyhow, to keep things colourful, I'm posting a random, recent sketchbook page. The title words may at least attract some random Google seachers. (I like putting strange, possibly stimulating words on the page: things I overhear from the television, or just drag from the back of my mind)

Winged Migration

Started a new job which may take me all year, but will earn me a decent amount of money for a change. But the work has me excited, like a little kid at Christmas, so I'm here, typing and reading at ten minutes to seven in the morning.

I've been leaving comments on other artist's blogs which I hope aren't too nosy. They're intended to be nice. Sometimes I try to be helpful when commenting on art, both on-line and in the flesh. Everyone has their own ways of doing things, so perhaps it's not always welcome.

This is a word entry, rather than a drawing entry. I may find something to spice it up a little. It's not as if I'm not drawing all the time. Still, I think the colour drawings are prettier, but not all of them succeed.

Actually, what prompted this entry was my looking out the window this fine, clear morning (on-line reading the news from the Gulf Coast, where the weather is not quite so fine). But in my blue sky tinged with vermilion and yellow (that's the wash I would give it. The yellow helps to give a sense of light, as in the American luminist landscape painters from the turn of the century, and the Italians), connecting the thought, I saw a line of birds making the Greek letter "lambda." They were tiny, yet so in snych, the line itself seemed to vibrate from side to side. I had to look closely to make sure they were birds, and not some otherwordly crafts. That's where my head is, this early in the morning (I've been up since five).

Don't worry. They were birds, and not intergalactic invaders. Still, it was one of those moments tinged with unreality, which I like, because in this slightly groggy way in the morning I'm relaxed and still receptive, as if not finished dreaming.

Artivistic Montreal Artists' Conference

Participated in a pleasant little chat at the Artivistic Art and Activism Conference. Chris Hand of Zeke's Gallery chaired a session on artists and blogs. I, and Karen D'Amico, an American living in London were the guests. Very unpretentious. A small, but warm and interested group. I had a good time. The conference took place in a space above the Eva B. used fashion store (it's much more hip than just a friperie) on Saint Laurence Blvd, just above Ontario. A pleasant space with old theatre seats and barber chairs to sit in, if that takes your fancy.

We explained a little about what are blogs are. My blog isn't really a fine arts blog, but I gave my best accounting of it, as a place for some of my thoughts and sketches.

Karen had a good point that blogs give you a look into an artist's processes, where you once had to be satisfied with looking at the work on a gallery wall, and reading a statement that was often opaque at best. There also seems to be an increasing number of blogs by artists and sketch blogs. So hooray for artist's blogs, and thanks to Artivistic, which ends Saturday the 24.

Actually, there are two more art blogging panels with different guests this time, today and tomorrow (Saturday) at about 2 pm. So why not go to 2013 St. Laurence Blvd, if you're in Montreal, and check it out?

Painting

Trying out stuff in colour that worked in black and white. It just started from the face in the middle (vaguely influced by the movie "Pollock,") and I drew out from that, and then painted it. Well, it's a little stiff, but fun to play around! Going to be busy with some interesting writing work I don't like to talk about here (other guys are putting up their financial stats. What's that about?).

The "painting" on the wall is actually where I was testing the burnt sienna paint before I decided to paint the thingie. Watercolour's about incorporating your accidents.

Also updated the links at the side. Took out some of the snark in the comments in the brackets. But snark is fun! Still, I wasn't updating, because it's tough to fool with the template. But the list doesn't seem all that different. (As I found out, it's because I was leaving off quotation marks, which was fouling up "source code.")

Kindhearted Mister Boggedy

What better way to reward one's loyal feline pal than to draw an unflattering picture of him, and put it on the web?

(Actually, he'll look like this in ten years. If he's lucky.)

Further Fantasy Cats

I thought these should go in a separate post. They were also drawn in the park. On the left is the Owl Persian, who sort of looks like the cat at S.W. Welch's bookstore, Khan. To its right is the Dreaded Laundry Biter, inspired by a photo on the My Cat Hates You website. Sorry, I'm not going to prowl around for the photo, but I might post the link to the website, later.

Boogie Nights

Been drawing a lot. Above is inspired by "Boogie Nights," so I guess that's a slightly beefier version of Don Cheadle in the background. Don't know who the girl is, except I could have researched her hair if this was a big deal illustration, and not something I'm drawing in my sketchbook while trying to pay attention to a movie. Still, I have tremendous fun doing stuff like this.

Below is something I painted while sitting in Lafontaine park, later in the afternoon, on one of the most glorious days I've seen for a long time. Imagine this green park, around Magic Hour, very warm, filled with happy people, and a couple of gypsy guys with accordion and guitar playing music. I felt like I was in a movie. Not the best sketch, but still a pleasant day, and I enjoyed throwing paint around in the middle of it. That thing up top that looks like a planter is in fact the Lafontaine fountain.

DVD Guys

Sitting here, drawing while watching DVD bonus features. Actually, I'm waiting for a producer to get back to me on something, so I don't feel I can get away at the moment. Only one of those guys (maybe two) really look like who they're supposed to be, so I'm not going to tell you what film it was.

Feel like I'm working a little bit, because you do learn things about films by listening to extras and DVD commentaries. It's actually pretty amazing that they do these. Actually, it's "The Incredibles." Man, I'm glad I'm not an animator. Can't draw the same thing twice.

The guy is the lower left hand corner wasn't in that at all. In fact he's Morton Feldman, fantastically ugly but interesting-looking avante-garde composer.

Actually, he's the perfect male version of Edna Mode from that movie, but in real life. Late, now, however.

Miz Gerde

Miz Gerde, taking her dog "Schutzi" out for its last walk of the summer, was displeased to find that she had forgotten to bring along any little plastic bags.

Park Guy

He was tall and limber, and swayed his head and arms as he walked, like a basketball player. But he was more of a poser, or at least an inhabitant of the scene. I drew him walking through the park by rue L'Esplanade near the foot of Mount Royal. The creator of "Triplettes de Belleville," Sylvain Chomet, gave a simlar form to some of his old ladies. I like drawing all kinds of people. Fat old men, sexy women, muscular or ethereal guys. Animals rock, too, of course.

Beautiful Boy

This isn't the person I was thinking of when I was remembering this comment. He's not homeless, for instance. But, I wish I had a photo of what he looked like then, because he looks like Richard Nixon now. Still, it's cool to age people.

Orange Cat

Not been doing too much. Watching the news, and despairing for humanity. Drawing a lot of black and white anonymous faces, which aren't too interesting to look at. Maybe I should be putting them up. But here's a cat inspired by Joann Sfar.

Hey, I kind of like the Orange Cat. It goes well with the background. Other drawings, like the previous one, I'm not so fond of, and am happy when they get bumped down in the queue. But this isn't about prettiness. I don't know what it's about, actually. More my response to the day, mainly in the form of sketches, and a modicum of writing. I'm trying not to censor. I suppose if it was really like that, I'd post a sketch every day, good or bad, because I draw a lot of sketches.

Feel very lucky I'm living in Montreal at the moment. Don't know how they would have handled the ice storm in a place down south, but imagine it would involve heavy weaponry fired in unexpected directions.

Quebec is a little crazy in some ways: its crime blotter is certainly unusual and splashy. But I feel more of a sense of community around here, which is probably buttressed by a certain amount of money, even though this area is near a place rumoured to be one of the poorest neighbourhoods in Canada. Sorry, don't have stats to back that up. This ain't my journalism -- it's blogism!