September 9, 2016
I’m excited to announce my newest book – “If Dinosaurs Could Talk for Me,” coming in January. And I’m extra excited to announce that this time, I’m both the author and illustrator! I’ve been working extremely hard on this project and it is very close to my heart. I’ll be revealing more details soon!
August 4, 2016
A centauress (or whatever you call a female centaur).
Side story: A year ago, for my senior show at Southern Virginia University, I did an oil painting that included a female centaur (see image below). A visiting professor of Latin and Greek saw my painting and was very shocked at the idea of a female centaur. He told me that it went completely against the Greek notion of centaurs.
I am by no means an expert in centaurs or mythology, and I defer to his Harvard Ph.D. knowledge. But I would just like to point out that I’m not the first person to use the subject of a female centaur. While at the Musee Rodin in Paris, I saw this:
Somehow seeing Rodin’s centauress sculpture made me feel justified in making my own centauress artwork.
July 27, 2016
My wife and I just finished watching Stranger Things. It was creepy, nostalgic, funny, heartbreaking, and just really well made. Highly recommended!
This is my drawing of Eleven.
July 24, 2016
I made these three personal drawings as creative exercises. When I’m drawing, there’s a constant internal dialogue. It starts with an idea that gets me excited – a spark in my mind that I try and hold onto. I sometimes hold this spark for days until I have time to work on it. As I work to capture it, I analyze the mood and the aesthetic. Does it live up to my idea? Was it a good idea? Does it feel right? Is it pleasing to my eye? I think about the elements of design – things like balance, composition, value, color, etc. I try to curate myself as well – keeping in mind the personal “brand” I’m creating as an artist. Then I’m thinking of the artists that inspire me like Matisse or De Chirico (among many many others). To me, it’s an exhilarating process that keeps me picking up the pencil.
June 30, 2016
As mentioned in a previous post, I had the opportunity to go on a crowd-funded trip to Paris. As thank you gifts, I have made three drawings that my amazingly generous contributors can choose from. These were all inspired by sights I saw and photos I took in Paris. It was an incredibly inspiring trip and I’m so thankful to to the friends and family who made it possible.
This was inspired by a building on a corner near the Pantheon.
This is one of the oldest churches in Paris, Saint Germain des Prés. I loved exploring the less known, less crowded churches in Paris and seeing locals really worshipping there, unlike Notre Dame and Sacre Coeur which were very beautiful but crowded with tourists.
This bunch of buildings was across the Seine from Notre Dame. I love all the vertically sandwiched buildings and chimney stacks that filled Paris. It is a gorgeous city that seemingly never ends.
Here are the real places that inspired these drawings:
