Cubist Comix

Just A Thought

This drawing is as to the point as you can get; there's really nothing vague about it at all. I know that it's something that I've had in mind for quite some time and something that I, certainly, felt needed to be expressed. The idea behind this drawing is a combination of things, mostly things that I've experienced in my recent past. Perhaps this drawing may offend some people, but that isn't important to me. I'm not here to score points with anyone; I'm here to do what I'm supposed to do: express myself. Yes, it's true; I have a disdain for the everyday, vapid mindset that seems to affect many of my fellow Americans; their lack of intellectual  curiosity really disgusts me. Maybe what disgusts me even more is the fact that they just follow along with what everyone else does; they follow along like good little sheep stopping off at McDonald's and Wal Mart before falling off the cliff. Whatever happened to individuality? Unfortunately, being your own man/woman is something that doesn't exist anymore; it's easier to have Dr. Phil tell us what to do instead of making our own decisions. So, yes, it's true, I have no sympathy for the Wal Mart lifestyle that seems to exemplify the American dream today. Perhaps I'm elitist in my viewpoint, I may even be arrogant, but if loving to grow as a person,viewing myself as a citizen of the world and not wanting to try to fit in with a certain group (any group) makes me elitist and arrogant then so be it. Life is too short to waste on conformity.    

Art On The Run

Here you have the first of what I refer to as Art On The Run or drawings created while out and about or traveling; I feel that this will add a new dimension to my blog and give you, my dear readers, more of an insight into my creative process. This particular drawing was created at the request of my friend and fellow artist Christyna McMahon while I was in Southern California visiting family and friends last week. It was the combination of Christyna's request and my recent acquisition of an iPhone that made this possible. Ultimately, the important thing here is the challenge of creating a drawing on the spot wherever I may be and to share it with all the wonderful people that visit my blog from across the globe. I must admit, I really like this idea of creating art on the run; I hope that you like it as well.

I'm Baaaaaack!!!

 Gee, has it really been a month since my last post? He he, I guess it has. What in the world have I been doing that's kept me from making new posts and keeping in touch with my dear readers? DRAWING, lots of drawing is what I've been up to. I was actually finishing up a long standing commission for a good friend of mine and starting work on some comics stories that I've been wanting to get out of my system. I will post examples of my work as it progresses; I plan to have all the material done by October of this year in time for the Alternative Press Expo in San Francisco. Amazingly, I've actually found time to work in my sketchbook over the last month and I have various pages in progress and should have them up within the next few weeks.

So, what's going on with this page? Well, I guess it's my reaction to all the layoffs that are becoming oh so prevalent these days. I thought to myself, "Before you know it even the cartoon characters will be getting laid off." Yes, we are living in tough times, no doubt about that. But this is nothing new, it's just part of life; things get hard then they get better. So, chill out folks, the best is yet to come! You know, sometimes you just have to laugh it off; it's all too silly to take so seriously. Have a good time all of the time!

Have A Good Time All the Time

My goodness, how time flies when you're having fun; that's exactly what I've been doing since my last post and this is the result of that! Do you ever feel as if you're following the rules a little too closely? I was having that feeling lately and finally I said, "Fuck it, I'm going to have fun, no matter what!" Life is too short and rules were meant to be broken so why not have a good time, right? Nowadays we have the perfect opportunity to be free and do whatever the hell we want;  fifteen years ago we were still at the mercy of publishers and galleries (Bastards) when it came to getting mass exposure, but now that's changed thanks to these blogs. I'm not crazy about everything in the technology age but being able to show my work this way is certainly one thing I do like about it.

So, what the hell is the meaning behind this latest masterpiece? Good question. Don't ask me, I don't know; I don't think too much about it, I just throw myself into it and whatever happens happens. Not knowing what the result will be is half the fun when it comes to drawing; at least that's what I believe. Putting down what you really feel is not an easy thing, you have to have the guts to do it. I don't know about you but for me it's become something that has to be done; maybe people won't like everything you do or worse they might end up hating your guts but, hey, that's their problem; I'm too busy having a good time over here to worry about stuff like that. Have a good time all the time!

Free Drawing, Anyone?

This is a good example of a working idea and self-expression. Every sketchbook that I do starts with a cover; with the cover I hope to see the tone for the rest of the book. This idea had been on my mind for quite some time and I felt the moment had come for me to do this. The statement is unabashedly frank and to the point just as it should be.

Being an artist, especially an up and coming artist, puts you in a certain situation in the public's eye; you're seen as starving and in need of their skewed, benevolent assistance. Because of this, they somehow feel that they are entitled to art direct you, despite their ignorance and lack of aesthetics. Then to add insult to injury, they try to bargain with you as if you were at the flea market or something. Aside from that they also expect you to be a plastic surgeon, "Could you remove the three rolls from my husbands chin?" Trust me, I've heard it all and then some. I guess that at the bottom of all this lies the utter lack of respect that some people have for artists; their total failure to recognize the years and work that go into making the things that we make. I've always believed that people think that we spring out of bed one day and voila, suddenly we are artists!  All of this, is of course, a cruel test that we all have to pass; in the end it will either make you stronger or it will make you quit. I personally am too bullheaded and arrogant to let that happen. "He's so arrogant," some will say. Art is about belief, if you don't have it then you're dead. The majority of these people could never have the perseverance and patience to refine a skill. That's why there are artists and why there are people who work at McDonald's for a living. I am currently doing a larger, slightly different version of this for a collection of stories that I hope to bring together sometime in the near future. Pen and ink in Aquabee.

Past, Present and Future

I did this drawing with the idea of eventually turning it into a large scale easel piece. I started the larger piece but abandoned it shortly after I started it. To this day it languishes in a portfolio in my studio. Luckily, this pen and ink version exists; I certainly like this version quite a bit, perhaps even better than the large scale watercolor that I had planned. Overall, I would say that the design pleases me, the line work also pleases me, the texture, line quality, etc. Whenever I look at older pieces I always find a small hint of what was to come even if I no longer do things in the same manner. This certainly hints at things to come despite its date. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the people that visit my blog on a daily and weekly basis and my fellow bloggers who inspire me with their wonderful work. Thank you. I have exciting changes planned for this blog in the coming months; lots of new work will be posted; some pleasant surprises are assured. Pen and ink on illustration board.

Real Life Touch Up

I recently realized that this blog enables me to go back and finish or touch up older pieces, in this case my sketchbook pages. I'm sure that I'm not the only artist who has a  box full of sketchbooks with pages that are best left unseen, right? Well, trust me, I've got my fair share of these types of pages, this being a good example. This page has been almost totally reworked from its original version, lots of things have been taken out and even more have been added. The original page now has loads of ink and white-out on it not to mention lots of extra time. This method of working appeals to my sensibilities very much, it shows that there's active involvement in the work, you can see me thinking on paper. Some people don't like it when work is done this way, they want everything perfect. Ha! Perhaps that may be the case for some artists, but not for me; I do what I have to do to get things the way I want them to be. Otherwise, I'd never get anything done. Rapidograph, Crowquill and White-Out in Aquabee.

The Exact Meaning of What?

This page comes from a sketchbook that I was filling with stream of consciousness drawings. It was an attempt to get away from the rigid rules of academic drawing. I've always believed that a stream of consciousness drawing can be much more revealing than a drawing that's intended to be revealing. When you put pen to paper and start drawing you have no idea what is going to appear, hence the magic of this type of drawing. So, what the hell does it mean? Good question. You're answer, dear reader, is probably as good as mine. There are things that are obvious to me but beyond that I couldn't tell you much more. So sorry. The quote at the top is from a Kate Bush song, sometimes the lyrics in a song somehow apply to a personal situation and so on and so forth. I stopped work on this project; I'm not sure why,  maybe it was a little too revealing, who knows. Rapidograph in Aquabee.   

A Thought

I did this series of comic strips at a job I once had. As you can see, I was very, very busy there. At the time that I did these I was going through a very challenging time and some of my thoughts on this spilled out onto this sketchbook page. I touch upon a variety things here, perhaps not all of them are pleasant but it's how I felt at the time. The important thing, for me, was to express how I felt; this was the result. Despite the fact that I was going through a rough time I never stopped drawing. People deal with difficulties in different ways: some drink, some get high, some cry, some destroy things. I draw. As I say in one of these strips, I work it out on paper. This is how I deal with things. This set of strips is, in my opinion, an excellent example of comics as art, of comics that say something that's real and meaningful. This is a small example of what can be done with this medium, it's also the first example of graphic narrative that I've posted here on this page. It won't be the last. Rapidograph in Aquabee.

Tea For One

An illustration from a work in progress entitled Innervisions. My goal is to fill a 64 page, 6"X9" Aquabee sketchbook with stream of consciousness illustrations. It's always interesting to see what will spill out onto the page when doing this type of work; you never quite know what you're going to get, all you know is that it will be a surprise. Often I am asked about the meaning of my drawings and  the truth is that I, myself, don't always know the exact meaning behind some of my work. Sometimes I will do things with a specific meaning but even then I prefer not to reveal the meaning behind them. Why do I do this? I do this because nowadays people want everything explained to them, the don't want to make any kind of intellectual effort when it comes to things like art. They want things spelled out like a map and that's not what art is about. In the end the most important thing is that the viewer go away with a personal impression of what he has just seen and not about what he has been told to see. Rapidograph in Aquabee.