Even More Progress!

Now that school is pretty much over, I'm working on spending as much time as possible working on The Show. I made some major progress on the weekend, getting a new large piece started and continuing the process of giving R.W. Brackley, my main character, a proper face.

The first piece on which I worked is the second in the anatomy series - this one's a great auk, and his main washes are almost done!



And of course, Brackley, now more than just a series of pencil lines!



I'd also like to continue on my sharing of inspiring videos. This one's got music from the Fleet Foxes and is directed by Sean Pecknold and animated by Pecknold and Britta Johnson. The characters are designed by Stacey Rozich, who just happens to be one of my new favourite illustrators!

The Shrine / An Argument from Sean Pecknold on Vimeo.

(I'd recommend viewing it in fullscreen so as to enjoy the incredible visuals)

An Ice Mummy Of My Very Own

As promised, I painted me a painting inspired by Mr. John Torrington (see last entry for more on him & his amazing face). I've never created a piece of art that actively creeped me out while I was working on it (being in the studio alone? DID NOT HELP), but I love the way he turned out.

Here are some low-quality photobooth shots of the process (all done in one sitting) - he's not quite done, but is pretty darn close!













Now I want to make art inspired by other mummies - I think the Tollund Man is first on the list.

Collected Collection Collecting

Just as with my last show/project, I am making use of the incredible variety of imagery that zips through my Tumblr dashboard (as well as picking plum photos and links from other places on the web) to create a digital scrapbook, accessible from any computer and always sitting around, ready to zap fantastic, inspiring ideas into my brains.

Click through below to see a smattering of the things that have lately been providing me with inspiration:

COLLECTED COLLECTION: A Scrapbook

For those of you who'd prefer a quick overview, some of the latest additions:


Description, from Flickr: This armchair is where Charles Paget Wade, owner of Snowshill Manor from 1919-1951, would sit and listen to the radio. It's not in the main manor house itself but in a converted outbuilding called the Old Priest's House in the courtyard adjacent to the house.

MEANWHILE, THE DOLPHIN CLUB by Wendy MacNaughton
- a series of gorgeous watercolour illustrations telling a small, nostalgic story.


A microscopic stunner courtesy of Science is Beauty


A silly postcard, found on Flickr

Inspire Me With Your Insides

Since I haven't had time to do any scanning or photography (but want to try and start posting more than once a month), here's another episode of Things That Really Really Inspire Me Right Now, Hooray!

As noted in the last original-art post, I've been kind of obsessed with drawing the insides of things (thus far mostly fish, though I did sketch a human torso once). These images, therefore, are fantastic for both inspiration (the drawing style and the colours make me drool a little) and reference -







Amazing, right?

Inspiring Movement

As I embark on a whole new idea artistically (and, it so happens, in my life as well), I find myself seeking new sources of inspiration. Where my last show saw me rummaging for the bright lights of the circus and freakshow, this new direction has lately been calling for the muted colours of the sea on a stormy day, for tiny, detailed illustrations of scientific specimens, and for all manner of anatomical illustration.

To help collect the inspiring images that appear in the digital world, I have set up another Tumblr scrapbook - Collected Collection. Along with that resource, I have been absorbing stimulating images elsewhere, including at the movies. Just last night I made my way to a theatre to see L'Illusionniste, a thoroughly beautiful (and quietly tragic) film directed by Sylvain Chomet (who also directed one of my all-time favourite animated films Les triplettes de Belleville).

Though much more subtle than Les triplettes (which rollicked merrily along, skirting storms of darkness but never succumbing to anything less than manic, glorious fun), L'Illusionniste offered equally beautiful animation. The colours of the visual landscapes, which moved through Paris, London, the Scottish highlands and Edinburgh, matched the story's quiet, sad beauty with slightly muted tones, as if the whole movie was 'shot' either at the golden hour or during the soft drizzle of a newborn autumn storm.

I found myself immersed in the world of the Illusionist, completely enthralled by the detail filling every single frame, and inspired by the animators' use of colour. Cases in point:







Absolutely incredible, eh? If you've got a love for the wonders of traditional animation, make sure to see this one on the big screen, as the amount of detail put into every scene is unbelievable.

I promise I'll have a post of my own art ready soon - I've been sketching busily away in my book in preparation for actually starting to work on the new show/idea (the thrill!).

Oh, and as a bonus, here are the two trailers for the movies mentioned in this post (because the animation is even more amazing when seen in motion):





L'enjoi!

Never Look a Gift Cicada in the Mandibles

Last week, as I was wheeling my bike out onto the porch in the morning so as to leave for work, I noticed that one of my plants had been dug up. Bending down to right the uprooted cactus, something caught my eye, something I'd been wanting for ever so long -



- a cicada! The creature was already quite dead, lying on its back with its legs folded in that ubiquitous, almost prayerful pose typical of recently perished insects everywhere. I screwed up my courage and picked the thing up (hoping, as I fumbled to unlock my door that it really was dead), laid it carefully in a jar, closed said jar and left for work.



It's a pretty amazing little beast, that cicada, with its delicate wings, strange, square head, wide-set, bulging eyes and Shredder-esque face-mask. I'd never seen one in real life - only heard them buzzing away in the trees and seen them in segments of nature shows, so getting to finally (gingerly) hold one in my hand was pretty thrilling.

To make the discovery even more fantastic, this little bug has inspired another curiosity! What exactly his wee body sparked in my mind shall remain a secret for now, but man...if I can work out all the logistics, it's going to be AWESOME.

Thanks, cicada-dude. Thanks a bunch!

Items of Note

In conjunction with some absolutely lovely wall space, the gallery at which my show will be up has also given me free rein of their front window. The moment I was told I'd have a window display, I started (a) dancing around in excitement, and (b) planning out the design.

Due to the Very Victorian nature of the show, the window, as it currently stands in my head, is starting to look like a deliciously jumbled, curiosity-full exhibit fit for a Victorian museum. Since November is approaching ever so quickly, I'm starting to amass a collection of potential window-items (and gain inspiration from some of the items - and displays - in the antique stores on my block).

Here are some items of note that I've accumulated thus far (some of these have been decorating my apartment -and past abodes - for years already. Hooray for curated clutter!):



Moth carcass found on cottage windowsill (currently gracing one of my typesetting drawers).



Butterfly who perished tragically in the windshield wipers of our car many years ago (with beautiful but rickety brooch).



Seagull skull, found at cottage.



Mystery skull - maybe from a tiny carnivore?



Harold Rooster Jr. III, esq, my glorious puffer fish friend.



A dress that once belonged to my mom (that has a beautiful patina of age that makes it look much older than it is), and a very circus-eqsue shirt, found at a junk shop on St. Clair West.

Cataloguing

Whew. Where the hell did August go? Suddenly autumn is creeping in (something about which I have no complaints - I'm done with summer's humid heat), the nights are chilly and I spotted a few early-bird leaves donning their fiery coats when I was up north last weekend.

Though I'm eager for it to be fall, the onset of a new season has kicked me into panic mode regarding the show. I forced myself to sit down last night with a giant piece of paper and a calendar and wrote out a giant to-do list, complete with (shudder) DEADLINES. Due to the fact I'm planning a catalogue to go with the show (featuring the full stories of all the characters, the history of Farther's Freaks, etc.), I have to be finished all my pieces by the end of September, as they all need to be scanned for the book.

Cue unadulterated PANIC. Agh.

Thankfully, the internet is a bastion of inspiring images, regularly spurring my brain into new flights of fancy, especially when it comes to the catalogue.

This lovely blog entry both reminds me of the long 'animals in silly clothing' tradition of which I am a part and makes me want to create some ridiculous endpapers for the book, kind of like this:



Besides the fantastic endpapers, the creature-characters are, in general, completely mad and hilarious. Proof:










I completely agree with the original poster that those creepy cats up there are some of the weirdest clothed animals I've ever seen. They will probably haunt my dreams.

She's got a few more page captures over at the original post, plus a link to the whole book in the Gutenberg archive (tasty). Check 'em out!

Dang. Now I'm all fidgety and wishing I was at home so I could keep working on the catalogue. Oh well. Coffee break over, back to my real job!

Poster Inspiration

I apparently can't stop adding to my to-do list. First it was a whole passel of new 3D projects (freaky little plush things in jars!), then the idea of painting a few 4" x 6" 'cabinet cards' to go with some of the characters, and now it's a hand-drawn, watercoloured poster for the whole show, to go in the front window display.

See, when I was at Wolfitt's art shop on Queen West on my lunch break yesterday afternoon, the (super high-quality, usually WAY out of my price range) Aquarelle watercolour paper blocks were 40% off, meaning I was able to purchase a 36 x 51cm block and NOT cry over the bill.

The size of this thing completely intimidates me - as I was walking away from the store, I realized that its long side is just over HALF A METRE in length. Then I eyed it suspiciously and asked it if it was going to be nice to me when I start attempting to fill its vast expanse of white space. I found its lack of reply kind of ominous, but I'll overcome my issues and tackle the thing nevertheless.

Now I'm trawling Google Images looking for some inspiration for the Farther's Freaks Official (massive, ginormous, elephantine) Show Poster. Found some good stuff, like this one:



And these:





I look forward to getting a chance to get some sketches on paper - my summer's been so busy it's hard to find large expanses of time in which I can properly immerse myself in art-stuff. Eek. On the bright side, I'm one of those people who works best under pressure. Hope that doesn't just apply to essays and work projects!