Cats and Things

One of the paintings I'm working on has an animal that I'm not quite sure about yet. After hours of sketching and erasing, I realized that I was going about it all backwards and started doing sketches of some real animals I might want it to reference. So here are some cats, a bunny, and a thing I started developing after the sketches.

Storyteller

Here is a character sketch for a project I'm working on with some friends. He's a storyteller who's a little bit shaman, a little bit skald and a little bit mountain man.

Sketchbook Saturday

I'm a big fan of the Kalevala. Anyone who has let me ramble about the beautiful flowing poetry of the Friberg translation (and Gallen-Kallela's illustrations) has probably regretted it, as I will always do my best to quote the first paragraph from memory and usually fail miserably. There is also a great bit in Runo 19 about the smith Ilmarinen forging an iron eagle to battle a massive fish that has me itching to do an illustration of the scene. I mean come on! Big Iron eagle! Neat! The sketch below is not that scene. It is, instead, a funny little creature out of my sketchbook who really wants to be an iron eagle, so he makes a sort of eagle suit:



The faded drawing in the background is a Celtic version of an eagle. Someday I will actually illustrate Ilmarinen and his Iron Eagle. Just not today.

And because I can't resist, I'm going to share the first paragraph of the Kalevala which is, in my opinion, one of the most brilliant beginnings ever written:

I am wanting, I am thinking
To arise and go forth singing,
Sing my songs and say my sayings,
Hymns ancestral harmonizing,
Lore of kindred lyricking.
In my mouth the words are melting;
Utterances overflowing
To my tongue are hurrying,
Even against my teeth they burst.

You can read more here.

One of my fantasies is a week of campfires in the wilderness where Christopher Lee reads the entire Kalevala out loud.

Musicians

A couple musicians from the sketchbook. Doodled randomly on the subway.

Maiden Voyage

Well I've gone and done it. Finally, after much kicking and screaming mind you, I've decided to do the blog thing just like everyone else. Really I just want an excuse to sketch and share more strange things that won't necessarily have a home on the website, so here we go. Let's see what happens...

News: One of my newest pieces, Legolas at Helm's Deep, has been accepted into the Society of Illustrators student competition show. A LOT of people enter this show, and only about 120 get in, so this is a huge honor and I am really excited.

Ok- a new drawing to start this off. Here's a girl who was reading a book.