Happy New Year!

I don't know how many times this year I have heard the phrase "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade!" As if life is some toddler following you and picking up lemons off the ground and handing them to you, again, and again, and again. Whenever someone tells me to make lemonade from some unfortunate circumstance, I imagine the lemon comes from some annoying, malicious imp like this. I'm definitely looking forward to 2011 with great hopes that this year will be less......citrusy. Too much lemonade can give you gout, you know :P
Happy New Year everybody!

Merry Christmas!

I can't ever sleep on Christmas eve...so I did some painting! Just spending some good times with family on vacation :) I feel blessed to also have the kinds of friends who share their different and interesting ways of celebrating all the holidays at this time of year with me, and I wish happy funtimes to you all as we close in on 2011! And yes, he is a little crosseyed, but you would be too if you saw a cookie that big. :P

Character study for Bunny

Here it is...me finally getting my behind in gear and moving beyond the pencil-doodle stage with ideas for a short film, tentatively called "Overturned." This is bunny. I hope you can tell from this character study that he is pure, concentrated, unadulterated, calculated evil. Oh, he is indeed.

Jellybean, the inbred unicorn

So the topic was a strange one this time... "inbred unicorn."  I tried *so* hard to make it look like he's got one nostril and one eye, in addition to the one leg,  but when I walk away and come back for another look it reads like a side view no mater what I do, AGH! . Darn the human brain and its uncanny ability to resolve unfamiliar shapes into something that makes sense. As for the name...well, if someone asks you to "taste the rainbow" in this case....you should say no.

Dreams About Flying

 This sketch group round is especially exciting because all the entries will be looked over by James Robertson of Pixar! The topic this time is "flight." I've always wondered if birds fly in their dreams when they're asleep in their cages. I'd like to think they do. The main expression I was going for on the bird was a serene longing. It's a wonderful skill to be happy wherever you are, and having dreams can be big part of that.

Camoflage

Camouflage was the topic of this round. Hide rat hiiiide! I think I'd like to try simplifying the tones on this one to get  a stronger focal point.

Things that go bump in the night!

The sketch topic was "bump" and I just had a mental image of bumpercars, and this mismatch-showdown. I really tried to paint the little girl's expression to evoke that "I'm having fun" sort of bliss, with a splendid lack of self-consciousness. Ah, I wish I could bottle that!  The giant monster seems to be good-natured and taking it all in stride. :) I did run out of time on this one, I'd like to take the rendering on the monster and the bumpercars further.