Deep Sea Diver

Lately I have been pondering the word DEEPEN...and the phrase "deepen your discipleship."  This phrase is useful in various aspects of ones life, I suppose.  Nonetheless, I came across an old photo of a deep sea diver that I really liked, and decided to play around with it.
I started with a quick sketch:

Then finished up the pen and ink work:

I then antiqued it with my favorite mix of chicory brew in cooked it in the oven a bit:

Then I did a few highlights with gouache and some prismacolor, and created a little more subtle background for the finish:

The scan came out a little blurry in some spots, but I'm happy with the way the final piece turned out. It will go nicely by my aquarium.

Playing with my Food

Tonight, after being inspired by just how beautiful a good sardine is, I decided to try drawing my food.  I've seen more and more people starting to sketch what they eat, or don't eat, if they're using their doodles as propoganda...but I haven't really dabbled much into sketching edibles.  So, tonight I gave it a whirl.  There's nothing better than a well prepared sardine, or any fish, for that matter. When I bust any of them open in my house, however, I'm promptly excused to the back of the house, or banned from using the kitchen till everyone is gone since the Mrs. doesn't care for the smell.  Her loss, my gain. Here's pre and post the addition of color to the drawing:

   

   

Little Colorful Children

Today I decided to take a few hours just to paint something random and colorful, and came up with these little Tibetan girls, in the style of paper doll cut outs.  I'm actually enjoying painting various cut outs and putting them together.  If tomorrow proves to be quiet, I'll keep adding to this one.

Who ordered the Fish?

My eldest son and I have been on our own for the past week as family business up in Utah has taken away the rest of the family.  Consequently, we've been eating a lot of easy, no-fuss, meals due to time constraints, and, frankly, the lack of desire that either of us have to cook.
The other night we ran through a quick "drive through" after picking up my son from band camp, and I ordered fish.  Mistake.
I've always loved a well cooked, succulent filet of fish.  This was far from it.
So, today as I found a few minutes to doodle, I thought I would sketch a few fish.  I love the way that the expressions on most fish are as if they were either in utter amazement, or bewilderment.  I'm not finished with it yet, two more fish to go...but I thought I would post it for postings sake....

Fish, anyone?

Dr. Who

When I was a kid, I remember seeing the cheesy, old Dr. Who episodes and thinking, "who in their right mind would watch this excrement?"  However, a few years ago when they rebooted the series, I was up on a Saturday night and started watching the first episode with Christopher Eccleston, and have been hooked since.  I've also convinced my youngest son to be a Dr. Who junkie.
Strange things are afoot, however, with the newest incarnation of the Doctor..... I did this below a little while ago to capture my concerns:

There Are No Mosquitos in Phoenix

Maybe I'm just gullible, and typically bow to the wisdom and good counsel of my elders.  An experience recently has caused me to wonder if I should be more cautious:

Yard Work

Wow...doing yard work in the middle of summer in Arizona is an exercise of self-flagellation of sorts.  It was past 100 degrees when we started and when we ended, I had sweat enough to water all the bushes we trimmed and lawn that was mowed.  Talk about the circle of life.......

We Believe in Obeying the Law

Looks like I am teaching the little ones at church again this coming Sunday and the lesson is on the importance of laws, and our belief that we have a responsibility as a good citizen to obey the law.  The reality is that "We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law." See HERE for more information.

  Nonetheless, I thought I would create a fun little badge for each of the kids to take home with them, similar to the one I did last time, and see if they like it.  Here is how it came out:

Contemplating the Robin's Fall

Much has been said in the media for the past couple of days about Robin Williams.  I, for one, did not know the man, only some of the characters that he played (but played well.)  My wife and I spoke tonight about the impact of his life, his loss, the demons he must have been fighting, the good he did while here, and other things.  When I was younger, my favorite movie was The Dead Poet's Society.  I watched it over and over, and felt a desire to LIVE.  It's fitting, then, that in my little sketch of Mr. Williams, it is accompanied by a poem.

Herbarium - Oleander

Recently, I spoke again to a dear friend after somewhat of a lengthy period of time in which circumstance prevented us from communicating much.  It was an insightful conversation, and I was reminded how time really cannot tarnish deep and sincere friendships.  Amongst other things, he spoke of his desire to begin journaling about the various types of vegetation in his surroundings.  We spoke about the different possibilities of layout and format.  Listening to his excitement about such an endeavor, and after doing a little research about the formats and history of herbariums, I decided to do an entry in my sketchbook of some plants that are very common in my part of the country.

Mad Hatter

Got a new hat today....decided to do a quick selfie and study in gouache in the sketchbook.  Enjoy.

Sadie

We have the best dog in the world, except for when she is the worst.  When back in Georgia we acquired a lovely little Beagle puppy and we fast fell in love.  Until, of course, we realized that she has no self control when it comes to food, and a bladder the size of her brain...(both can be measured in millimeters.)  Last night, after being scolded by the wife for sharing a bit of my snack with her...I decided to do a little sketch of our beloved little beagle, Sadie.

Thanksgiving Point, and other stuff

Recently, my family returned to Utah for a brief vacation and to see family.  While there, we went to Thanksgiving Point Gardens which were rather breathtaking.  I took many photos of the flowers, which were really quite spectacular.  Upon returning, I sketched the following, trying to capture a handful of the images that were left in my mind from the trip:

Also, while there, a visit to my wife's father's house afforded me a few minutes to sketch a beautiful tree that they had in their back yard with a swing on it.  This tree has seen many grandchildren spend many hours swinging underneath the brawny, black limbs next to their swimming pool.

Seer

Last night I couldn't sleep because of the hundreds of work items that were spinning and bouncing off the walls of my mind. So to extinguish them I went again to my trusty moleskine and started sketching. I found a picture on the net of a blind lady, and did a little rendition of what I saw.

E.D.M. Challenge #3

A while ago I promised myself that I would do all of the "every day matters" challenges in order to keep the creative juices flowing. I puttered out after the first two. Mustering up my resolve, I have moved onto #3 (Draw a wallet, purse or bag.) This is a sketch of my watercolor bag. I've had this old rawhide bag since my mission in Brazil and have been storing brushes, watercolors, gouache, and pens in it for the last few years. It's been through the ringer...

The great chicken dilemma....

I've recently been trying to convince my wife of my genius surrounding my chicken dreams. You can read about my attempts on my writing site. I did this painting tonight after being thwarted.

A study in...grunt

I have recently decided, through a few minutes of boredom and a fully charged digital camera, that I will be doing a series of self-portraits (not to mention that the price of this model is extremely reasonable.)

I call this one CONSTIPATION:

The "PIT" of despair...

Ahh yes, a post about my armpit. I decided to address this topic and my concern thereof with a little journaling page:

I was thinking about lips today and how the lower lip is generally larger than the top. My mind got the best of me and I started to think of favorite quotes while I was drawing. This came out:

Then finally, an incomplete sketch that I have been working on here and there. I've been reading a lot of fantasy lately, and this always conjures up images and stirs the imagination. I don't know if I'll finish this little, mischievous fellow, so I'll post now in case he ends up in half-drawn hell (pun intended...)

A splendid Saturday

Today was one of the good days. After getting up and playing with the kids a bit, I was off to get my haircut. I've posted previously about the barber shop that I go to. There is a single barber, pulled right out of Mayberry, who comes to work in a white shirt, a tie, slacks, and he takes his own sweet time cutting hair. There are 3 chairs, 2 are never used (from his partners that have both died already) and the old men in town line up more for the conversation than the haircut. There is nothing better than sitting, sketching and listening to the conversation. I did the sketch above while listening to a handful of angry southern men ranting about the drought, politics, how to use a computer, and women not knowing how to drive. It was blissful. I kept my head down while I sketched because I had a grin that was hard to wipe off my face.

A bit later we took the kids on a drive to future camping and fishing spots, went out to dinner, and came home to relax.

A great day.

Enjoying diversity...

I found this delightful photograph of a Hindu man and decided to do a little doodle. I loved the colorful turban. When painting the happy man, I thought a lot about religion, diversity, culture. Isn't it a sad commentary that we attack the things that we see as different...or even define our own beliefs based on what we see wrong in the beliefs of others...

I think Mohandas K. Gandhi deftly explained it best when he uttered:
"It is the duty of every cultured man or woman to read sympathetically the scriptures of the world. If we are to respect others' religions as we would have them respect our own, a friendly study of the world's religions is a sacred duty."