RAWR?

Did I show you guys this one? It's a t-shirt design I did for, well, myself, and to sell on Cafepress.

I Can't Help Myself...

These are too fun to draw. Each one is like solving a little problem of "what exactly that colorful blob is supposed to be." Good stress relief.

Hatari - More WoW stoof

Hooray for more WoW art. I'm trying to trim down the time it takes to do these. The finished linework takes a looooong time, but it's gotta be cool right? This is my warrior alt, "Hatari," another cow, hehe.

Do you play WoW and want hand-drawn awesomeness on a t-shirt? Go here: Custom WoW Apparel and Whatnots.

Elocutionist - WoW fanart

Hooray, a drawing! I cleaned this up by hand, but I'm thinking I might do it with vector shapes next time. It took a loooong time, and it's not as clean as I'd like. Then again, the hand-inked look might be desirable...?

Nevermind All That...

Ok, so I know I said I wanted to expand this blog to include book and movie reviews, but I've decided instead to move it all to another, separate, and equally as fabulous blog:

The Wolf & Willow - All Things Artsy


I will review books, movies, DVDs, art shows I go to, artists I run into.
I will also perhaps post about crafting things, artsy events like faires, possibly even some tutorials, who knows!

The site is set up as a monetary blog, just so you all know. I don't want this site to turn into one big advertisement, so I apologize for that and will keep it strictly for sketches and artwork. Wolf and Willow, though, is a grand experiment to see if I can accomplish what others have apparently accomplished, in having blogs that generate $moolah$. We'll see, lol.

So go check it out when you have time! I've crossposted the last book review onto it, so there's only one thing there now, but I will be adding more as we go along :-).

Book Review #1: The Other Boleyn Girl

I had previously read "The Other Boleyn Girl," by Phillipa Gregory, back when it was all the rage, and topping the bestseller lists, and could be found in every airport bookshop from here to Heathrow. With the fairly recent release of the blockbuster movie (and now DVD), however, I decided to read it again, in preparation for watching the film, which will be Netflixed to me shortly.

I must add, before I start on my thoughts on the book, that I have read those novels by Gregory that followed "Boleyn Girl" : "The Queen's Fool," "The Constant Princess," and "The Boleyn Inheritance." I was completely unimpressed by the last two, which spurred me to go back and read "Boleyn Girl" to see if it really was as good as I thought the first time, or if it had been a fluke.

Indeed it was as good, and even moreso, since I have learned much about the history of the time, apart from the book. "The Other Boleyn Girl" chronicles the rise of Anne Boleyn, and subsequently the fall of Katherine of Aragon, in the court of King Henry VIII. The story is told in first person, from the perspective of Anne's younger sister Mary, aptly dubbed "the other Boleyn girl." The first third of the novel follows Mary's story, as she becomes Henry's mistress, against her wishes, to please both the king and her controlling and powerful family. Mary then fades, as Anne steals the attention of the king, and launches a relentless assault of seduction, merriment, and manipulation, to throw aside Katherine of Aragon, Henry's legitimate wife and the Queen of England, and take the throne for herself. The final third of the book gruellingly outlines Anne's downfall, her ambition and desperation to secure herself and her family by bearing a royal son, her failure to do so, and the consequences she pays for her sins.

Gregory's characters are real, filled with passion, and personal. I found myself completely loathing Anne, and feeling quite sorry for Mary, but somehow understanding the ambition, the need, and the desperation each sister felt. Some parts of the story were pure fiction, and much was based on speculation. However, Gregory's attention to detail and respect for historical facts allowed her to weave the fiction seemlessly with the history. We will never truly know Anne Boleyn's temperment, her choices, her motivations, and so we are allowed to speculate on her as either a great villainess of history, or an unwitting, helpless pawn.

As my review of the film is forthcoming, I must say clearly now that this was a fabulous book, and I highly recommend it. There seems to be a flood of Tudor/Elizabethan/courtesan/whatever-seems-historical books out there, most of them not worth reading, but "The Other Boleyn Girl," the novel that perhaps opened those floodgates, is an excellent read, a rivetting story, and just a plain ole good book.

The Other Boleyn Girl

New Directions

So. I have this blog, and I post up my art on it, and that's what I do. I would, however, like to expand it, like to move it towards something more, even just like to update it more!

I'm thinking I might expand this ole sketchblog to perhaps include artist, artbook, and artsy movie reviews. Would that totally ruin this whole thing I've got going now? Would all you lovely Scots leave me behind for not being pure in my art posts?

What should be the first thing to post? Perhaps I ought to watch an artsy movie and write a review. Any new artsy movies coming out, or should I just review any ole artsy movie I watch?

I've got tons of artsy artbooks I could review...would you all be interested in that?

Anyway, I've already implemented some changes to my sidebars, but look for more in the future. I want to be one of those information-packed blogs that lots of people go to, so tell all your friends, and link me up!

The Second Crow

And here is the second crow. I like him better than the first, in general, and the drawing, particularly. I didn't want him to be as complex as The First Crow, but I will still probably put him in a frame and pour resin on top of him. I love my resin :-).

The First Crow

And now...a piece of "real" art. Every once in awhile I go off on these "real" art kicks where I make something (or things) that are completely random, with whatever seems to be lying around. They are often kindof dark, and messy, and 100% serendipitous. I "do things" to the painting that then take it to a different place or a different level. Then I do more things. I add and add until it tells me it is done. It's very artsy-fartsy, and very relaxing.

This one's "The First Crow," mostly because there is a second crow, and will probably be more after that too. He started as a drawing, and came out a painting, encased in resin and sealed into a rustic-looking frame that reminds me of a creepy old house in the woods at Lake Tahoe. This little dude is for sale on Etsy.com, in case you want him! He's also to be hung at the KALEID Gallery, in San Jose, where I am currently showing some work.

New Art, ZOMG!

I know it seems compeltely IMPOSSIBLE, but I have, indeed, drawing something for MYSELF, and not for a client, and I can post it here. Woot! It's been sooooo long, and i'm afraid my Scottish readership has given up on me, but with every intention of creating new art in the near future, I shall begin to post it all here again.

So here's a little sketchysketch of a lady I saw yesterday, at the Impressionist's Picnic (one of those silly costume dance/picnic things I love to go to). This drawing is from my head and in marker and pen, done after-the-fact, and in a style more true-to-me than trying to imitate Sargent and failing, lol.