I like Blobs

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I've always liked to draw blobs--some sort of offshoot of the Humpty Dumpty fixation that's been with me since long ago.

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So that's what this short post (and the next) will be about.

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Here's a detail of a few. I can't find the original--pretty sure I finished it in pen and ink. If I find it, the whole pic will show up next time.

 

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Here's the latest in a string of recent blobs. Been drawing more than usual lately.

Thanks for checkin' them out!

 

Yep, Do it!

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The truth about the arts as an occupation: You won't get rich. 

In fact, you most likely won't even make a living.

Recently, I read a great post by Noah Van Sciver, whose words were aimed at comic artists, but they resonated with me. He wrote:

"John Porcellino once told me that every "professional" [comic] artist has a secret of some kind. Something like their grandparents died and left them a lot of money, or their spouse has a great job and supports them."

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I know a lot of artists who work at convincing their fans that they're amazingly successful doing art full-time. Maybe they believe that the truth would hurt their sales, or maybe it's just an ego thing. In either case, it's dishonest. If you're being helped along the way, fess-up to it.

 I agree with John Porcellino; every artist I know--without a day job--either has a trust fund, parental support, or a supportive spouse. Some have all three. In my case--day jobs all along the way,  and I have a supportive spouse.

 

And if you want to do the starving artist bit, that's fine with me--just fess-up to the "starving" part. In fact, I'da gone Bohemian for awhile if I hadn't wanted to get married. But to mislead others--especially young artists--well that's just not ethical.

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 When I was an art teacher, many of my students would tell me that their parents wouldn't allow them to become artists, even to the point of pulling their college money if a "lucrative career" wasn't pursued. Sheesh!

I was lucky: When I told my pragmatic, scientist father that I wanted to be an illustrator, he gave me his blessing. "Do what you love," he said. He did not say anything about "money following"--he found the pursuit of money, and conversation regarding it, pointless and boring.

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 Nobody would ever say that being an artist of any kind is easy. But in my case at least, not being one would have been a disaster. If I'd have chosen a more "lucrative" path, I'd have been miserable. 

No, a quantity of money didn't follow--but so what? My life probably hasn't been any harder than anyone else's. It's been good, actually--and I'll take quality over quantity anytime.

Anyway, click on the link below to check out Noah Van Sciver's full post. It's a good one (way wiser than mine, and the illustrations in it actually make sense)!

Noah's Blog

Thanks for reading!

 

 

An Illustration Sequence

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For Rent (detail)

Mixed media (pen and ink, brush and ink, white acrylic gouache, acrylic inks; on brown paper).

This was a sketch done for a workshop demonstration a few years ago at Foothills Art Center. I'd brought it to a convention a few weeks ago, and a curious fellow asked about my thought process and sequence. Here is a step-by-step of the thought and work behind this picture:

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1. Gesture. 

This was done on a scrap of paper--even before I had the complete idea for the finished piece. I was just trying to get a lively stance for the tree. At this point I knew I wanted a bowing Ent-like tree in the picture, but not much else. I like to let details emerge as I work.

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2. Choosing forms

This is what's inside my head. After the gesture, I try to visualize the forms that will make up the picture. The idea for the bird arrived after the gestures. ( Again, I don't actually draw this onto the paper; here just trying to show my thought-process.)

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3. Thinking about connection of forms

More progress inside my head as I piece the thing together. Sometimes I will actually draw this part--lightly--onto the gesture, especially if I'm unsure of the forms.

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4. Pen and ink.

I draw it out with light pencil--I like H leads--then I often use a fine brush to outline the piece. Next, I begin cross-hatching the values with the crow quill pen.

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5. White highlights.

When most of the values are established, the highlights are added with white acrylic gouache. In this case I wanted the light to come from the egg.

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6. Colored acrylic inks. 

I thin them down a bit with water so they don't ruin the highlights. After the color dries, I go back in with pen and ink to deepen the dark areas if needed.  

Feel free to email me if any of this needs clarification. I definitely don't mean to leave out info or be purposely unclear or ambiguous.

Coming up: 

I'm doing a watercolor workshop in May--great for children's illustrators or anyone who wants to learn new watercolor techniques! Check it out here:

Sarmo Watercolor Workshop

And thanks for reading!