Christopher Walken

This is a caricature of Christopher Walken performing one of my favorite monologues from the movie "Pulp Fiction." I think it's Walken's performance that really makes it shine. If you've never seen the movie, here is a link to the scene on youtube: The Watch

Saturday Morning Cartoons: The Great Piggy Bank Robbery (1946)

I've been studying a lot of classic animation recently and thought I would share some goodies on Saturdays. This is a classic Looney Tunes cartoon starring the one and only Daffy Duck. I've always been a fan of the loonier/crazy Daffy than the newer angry duck. I liked that you never knew what he was going to do. With every new generation Daffy just keeps getting grumpier and grumpier. It's like his crazy side never existed.

This little gem is a hoot. Not only is it non stop hilarious, it is also just so visually spectacular. I think I could learn a lot from this just going frame by frame. Look at the mail man's hands when he delivers the mail (I never realize how creepy they were til now). They've also got Daffy making so many different kinds of expressions and poses. If I was half this creative I'd be happy.

B: Beaver

Beaver Fun Facts:

- Water downstream of North American beaver dams is cleaner.

- Beavers mate for life.

- A beaver can remain submerged in the water for up to 15 minutes.

- The beaver waterproofs its thick fur by coating it with castoreum, an oily secretion from its scent glands.

- Beavers can close both their ears and nose.

- Beavers were hunted to extinction in England in the 12th century.

On a side note, When starting a new sketchbook either make sure it fits your scanner or draw smaller to fit your scanner.

RIP Sketchbook: 2010-2011

I've done it. I've finished another sketch book. Every single page filled with doodles and sketches and everything in between. One of the greatest feeling for an artist is filling up a sketch book. You know that every page is something that you put together and that this book is a compilation of your time and effort. This sketch book took me a little over a year to complete. I started it on August 10, 2010 and finished it on August 22, 2011. My sketch book before this one took me two years to complete, so I really feel like I've accomplished something by doing it a year faster. I like that pace and I hope to do my next sketch book as fast or faster. For your viewing pleasure, here are the first and last pages of my sketchbook.

This was page one drawn on 08/10/2010. At the time I was interested in using brushes and india ink. I think I went to the Dallas Aquarium a little before I drew this and I was very interested in the sloths that they had there. They didn't look real, they looked like puppets.

In my last sketchbook I finished it off with a picture of Batman. I decided to go a similar route and draw one of his many villains, the Ventriloquist. I also decided to use brushes and india ink to tie it into the first page. This was drawn on 08/22/2011.

Rest in Peace sketchbook, it's time to make room for your replacement. Another exciting moment for an artist is the new sketchbook. Oh, the possibilities.

A: Alligator

Alligator Fun Facts:

-Spanish sailors visiting the New World called them el lagarto which means, "the lizard." English sailors took the name as "allagarter" and over time it became alligator.

-An alligator cannot move its tongue, and must raise its head to swallow.

-Alligators have a translucent third eyelid to protect their eyes so they can see underwater.

Back to School

As well as being a caricature artist, I am also a teacher's aide in a elementary school special ed. classroom. I love my job. There is something about these children that just warms my heart. Anyways, School is back in action starting on Monday. Last night this image popped into my head so I decided to put it on paper and share it with you. It's not a caricature so I won't mark it as such. It's more of a cartoon rendering of Doc Brown and Marty McFly from Back to the Future.

I've been studying Preston Blair's book, "Cartoon Animation" and as you can tell I drew this in that classic style. I've made it my mission to study the classic animation styles in hopes that their foundations will help me become a better artist. So far I've really enjoyed what I've learned and fell like I'm starting to understand some of the basics. What amazes me the most is that learning these basics actually helps me draw things easier and with a much better look.

Caricature Commission: the Akins

An old friend of mine commissioned me to draw caricatures of his family and I was more than happy to do it. These were done with marker and airbrushing for color. The most interesting thing about drawing people you know, as opposed to guest at an amusement park, is that you have a heightened sense as to whether or not you've gotten a likeness. It's not about getting the features right as much as it is getting the relationship of the features to capture an "attitude" of that particular person. I think this is what will keep me interested in the art of caricature for a very long time.

Here is the lovely Akins family. I actually didn't use this photo as a reference, but I put it up here so that you (the reader) can get an idea of what they look like.

Bucket Gnome Classic: Master of Shadows

Russell Crowe

When I look at Russell Crowe, especially with the beard, his cheeks look a lot like Droopy's. I was trying to get that look across here.