More Friday Collaborations

These look a little more formal than Richard Gagnon's and my usual collaborations. Of course, that's generally my doing, because I did the pencil sketches he's elaborated on in ink, here.


Bikini Girl! I was going for a "Love and Rockets" or Salma Hayek vibe here.


He's based a little on a 1960s version of actor John Hurt, when he was mod and had lots of floppy auburn hair.

Montreal Comic Jam Page

Here's a page thoughtfully forwarded me by R. Gagnon, product of that last Thursday night at the Montreal Comic Jam.

I had nothing to do with this, and only two people signed it: R. Gagnon himself (bottom right panel), and Jesse Bochner (Young Adonis) (Middle row, also lower centre in the top row). Since he hasn't been at a jam for a while, that means this page has been circulating for months, worked on by various hands, before being finished by Gagnon.

Write Your Own Title Day!

Drew a racer on top of a parked cycle outside. The other sketch is a vague approximation (meaning I still can't draw likenesses) of characters at last night Montreal Comic Jam. Didn't take my little camera or bring home any pages, so I can't do my usual presentation of who was there and what they were doing. After a spark of interest because of change of venue, it's rather dwindled down again to the usual suspects hunched over papers.

But, though the group was small, it was productive. Lots of little panels were drawn, telling oddball and pointless stories. I'm still not certain how these are going to be used, or if they are going to see publication. Promised Francis, the editor of Mensuhell (ha! nice Wikipedia entry!), that I would have a story for his July issue. I've been procrastinating on this for a long time, but it's good to get going on stories rather than just the usual rambling sketches and occasional work for hire.

And the secret to getting the Jam going again is to invite outsiders and create a little energy around the event. It is cozy, though, simply to meet and be part of a group.

Surrealistic animal scenes, and Hidden Goodness?

Drawing pointed, portentious scenes involving animals. Above, THE CAT ruined this relationship, but maybe it was already over.

While below, she continued reading her tiny book, ignoring THE GORILLA in the room.


Meanwhile, cartoonist friends think that my character in a sketch the other day was channeling Jack Kirby's "Granny Goodness." Coincidence, or what?

Yet More Drawings.

As I put them up. For some reason the hits here have dropped to about a quarter of what they used to be. At least that's according to the hit counter. I don't understand it, but the people I care about seem to still be visiting the site, and even commenting on it, occasionally, so I don't care that much. It did, however, curb my motivation to post here as often.

But I've been doing this for four years, and it still feels good to post pretty pictures, and interesting events that happen.

Blondes in Watercolour

By the Red Pool Table

More brilliant bar collaborations between myself and R. Gagnon. Sorry for not blogging more. I've been distracted by working on my web page, and other tasks.

Co-Op la Maison Verte Plant Sale

On Saturday, which was a beautiful sunny day in Montreal, I went west to the neighbourhood of Notre Dame de Grace to check out the Victoria Day Weekend plant sale. They were selling special heirloom varieties of plants, especially unusual types of tomato, which you can't find at your grocery store.


She did a balancing act for me. Love the body language!



I took home three tomato plants for my back balcony. Left is an Amish Paste, a plum tomato great for sauces. Middle, a Rose Tomato, and right a Cherry Sungold. Transplanted into big pots at the end of the month, and with a bit of basil grown in window planters, these will be beautiful and very tasty this summer.

Divisions of Labour

The divisions of labour are breaking down in my weekly (well, we've actually done this twice this week) collaboration with artist Richard Gagnon. Above, I did the drawing and the ink lines, and Rick filled in the colours, to brilliant effect.

This is my drawing and Rick's ink, as usual:


Now it starts to break down. This is mostly me, with Rick's enhancements:


And now the figure on the left is drawn by Rick, with my inks, while he did all the background, and I did a lot of the rest, but it's hard to tell who did what.

Irony, Man

Gosh, these allergies are congesting my head in a way that even the pills can't seem to have an effect. Still, while I'm not working very efficiently (or at all), I'm in a good mood. Went out to a movie yesterday with my friends. Afterwards, Rick Gagnon added ink and paint to my drawing above, with the usual gorgeous results.

Below is Eric Theriault reacting to a lewd comment of mine about his comics heroine, Veena. We artists can be very catty to each other, and about other artists, but it's still fun.



Here Eric and Rick are having a whistling contest, while Eric mimes riding a polo pony.


That's about as witty as I get. I'm out of here!

Marilyn and some kids

I'm Painting as Fast as I Can

Just as the title says, whipping these out without preliminary pencil marks, or thinking much. They're interesting.

Breaking the Frame

Friday night at the bar, my friend Rick Gagnon as showing me some comics, and I had the notion of trying something different. Not the usual full page, or the square panel in a comic, six to a page, in three tiers. Above are my pencil drawings, except for strange things Rick added in the bottom, which are cool.

Also cool are these people Rick drew, solo:


Then, someone else at my right, playing the video lottery terminals. A collaboration between myself and R.:

Cyclist's Paranoia

Today's cartoon is an expression of what it feels to be an urban cyclist.

Trying to do more cartoons and pictures with a point, instead of just sketches (though there will be lots of those, too). Building up the old portfolio. Plus I like it if something gets attention, like that horse cartoon last week.



Went to the Montreal premiere of my friend's documentary, American Psyche. (Called it "American Psycho" at the ticket booth, but that's a different film. Er, that's a joke, son, in current parlance: "LOL") It went very well. The theatre was full, and the Q&A was lively afterwards. Everything you could wish for if you're having a screening (I've been to some bad ones - nay, disasterous!)

Met a filmmmaker at the screening named Howard Goldberg who is showing his own film S&M - Short and Male at the same theatre, the Cinema du Parc (good for them for giving screen time for documentary filmmakers, but the admission prices are the same as for their first run features, even if the film is only an hour long!) Will try to get the details and post them here, later.

Colour Sketches

Colour stuff from the sketchbook. It's Sabu the Elephant boy, and an inhabitant of the Planet Sssssnnnnz. Below, a character from the computer game Portal, Vash ('click) Bosh from the Planet Snrrrrl, and the SS (that's Space Ship) Thunderthighs, among other things. Later today, maybe another political cartoon!

I'll post anything

Some blogger/illustrators have standards and strive for the most beautiful, excellent work to share. I usually just post whatever it was I drew the other day. Strange expression on that kid above. Where was I going with that?

Below, is Mike the Orc, with his girlfriend Debbie-thiel. She's an elf who never fit in with the Rivendell crowd. Should do more of these, in greater detail, and give Alan Lee some competition.

Girl out standing in her street

Another Sketch, and Adventures in Mirvish Village

Another random drawing I did last night. Either he's a Navy officer, or a valet.


Now a couple of belated images from my trip to Toronto in April. Went to an area near Bathurst Street called Mirvish Village, because it's dominated by the huge, garish store named Honest Ed's, which I didn't get any pictures of. Behind the store is a nice little street full of galleries and interesting shops, such as The Beguiling, which is a truly interesting alternative comics store.

I walked into a gallery which seemed to have a lot of watercolours in it, and had a conversation with this man, Gabor Mezei.


He's a retired gentleman, and painter, keeping the gallery open for as long as he keeps enjoying it. He told me that the Frank Stella painting in the art book store across the road was worth $5 million dollars. So, I thought that was worth a picture, too:


Frank Stella’s 1970 “Damascus Gate, Stretch Variation” in David Mirvish Books, Toronto.

Another Gagnon Friday, and bike loss

A little late in posting these, the results of another Friday night meeting with my friend, artist Richard Gagnon. Maybe I was depressed over losing my bike that night.

Above is a collaboration between Rick and I. I did the drawing, Rick did the inking. Below is a solo effort of Rick's:



I had (I think!) badly chained up the bike, after leaving the bar, and just hopped into a store Rick wanted to go into. Maybe the pitcher of beer had clouded my judgment, but whoever it was, was darned quick. The bike was gone after a only couple of minutes, disappeared into the crowds of Friday night downtown Montreal.

Anyhow, I have my old bike, which was sitting in pieces in the shed. Though it doesn't have all my lights, and the rack, and stuff, I kind of like it. It feels light, and good to ride.

American Psyche

Paul van den Boom's film, American Psyche, is playing in Montreal this Thursday, May 8, 2008 at 9 pm at the Cinema du Parc. Good for him. It's been shown at film festivals in Valladolid, Spain, Sao Paulo, Brazil, also Italy, and Istanbul, Turkey, but so far hasn't had a showing in Quebec. So this is effectively the Canadian premiere.

It's a serious piece of work. Back in 2004, when George W. Bush won his second term in office, van den Boom and co-creator François Le Goarant took off across the United States to interview all kinds of Americans, and see how they were feeling about the direction their country was taking. Now, in 2008, when the effects of Bush's rule have taken hold, what they had to say then takes on discomforting new meanings.

We get a full spectrum of voices: teenage girls in Ohio who are enthusiastic for Bush, wealthy artist/professors who are more guarded; a fundamentalist doctor, surrounded by his many daughters, warning that most of us are going to Hell. Also Native Americans and the homeless, all articulate, and eager to talk about America and leave a message on the record.

What's interesting about this film is that it comes from an outsider's point of view, almost without any preconceptions. His subjects are happy to explain themselves and their country to a stranger.

Filmgoers might want more context to go with the talk. The structure of interview after interview coming after various chapter headings makes the film a little slow going. Still, by the end it builds a fascinating cumulative picture of the American Psyche at a crucial point in time. Viewers will leave the theatre enlightened and moved, and maybe worried at what is ahead.

Painting, and horse success.

People liked the previous day's cartoon. I think three or four blogs posted it, and it got a lot of views. That's great, and it suggests a new direction for me, which you'll see more about on this blog, later.

In the meantime, watercolour sketches. I'm painting too light for my scanner, so I tried to snap a picture of the above one, which led to its own problems. The solution? Get a better scanner, better monitor, or learn to paint more dark, saturated tones. Working on it!