Birdy birdy

          More sketches, more birds.

 

          And a new performer interest of mine, Matt Fraser.  I've been needing some light studies, and I found some interesting photographs of him to work from.

 

          And to finish it off, the finished punk perspective drawing.  I cannot wait to get an 11x17 scanner so I can get a high quality scan of this to color.

New Beginnings

          What have I been doing lately, you ask?  Drawing a bunch, that's what.  I've been working on my comic book (process pics coming soon,) some sketchbook work, and a single character illustration.
          So when it comes to my sketchbook, I tend to slack off.  But this week I stumbled on this little productivity helper.  So now every day at 3 pm, no matter what I am doing or what other drawing I have finished that day, I will set everything aside for my sketchbook time.  Here is the first 10 minute sketch to come out of that.

 

          And here is a little in-production pic of my punk dude illustration.  A lot more inking to go, but I can't wait.  So excited.

 

Quantity

          Some days as an artist are easier than others.  When you feel like you aren't making quality, make sure to make quantity.  Keep putting pencil to paper, and you'll work through it soon enough.

Cafe Sketching

          Here are some pages I drew today.  And yes, I actually did see a guy on a unicycle go by.

Injury versus Excuse

          I'd like to quickly address a current problem.  I have injured my neck by sleeping on it incorrectly, and moving my head up and down (like to look down at my sketchbook) makes it hurt even worse.  I'm falling behind on my comic pages, and it is awful.  I believe in the idea that once you stop working for a good excuse, it opens the doors for making poor excuses to get out of it.  But where should the line be drawn?
          It's very easy to stop oneself from working on art.  I think a lot of artists become experts in the art of self delusion and hold themselves back.  "I'm not sure how to do this, so I'll wait and think about it."  "Just one more refresh of facebook/tumblr/twitter and I'll get back to work."  "Working on this is frustrating, I should just stop before I make myself angry."  These CAN be legitimate reasons to stop working, if you allow it.  It's all mental.
          But there is a point when you do need to take control of your own life before you take control of your work schedule.  Art is painful, on the wrists, the neck, and especially on your self esteem.  Taking breaks for these reasons are important, you just need to know when you are taking them for your need, and when it is just for luxury.  At least that's my two cents on the idea.