"Something Happened On The Way Home" Final Reflections From The '90s

Over the past few weeks I've been digging around in some old sketch books from the '90s. If you've been following along then you've probably seen many drawings that depict symbols, or totems that was very fixated on during that time.

That was a time of great discovery for me, and most that personal journey was set in motion by a series of subtle yet powerful events that took place in the Summer of 1995, specifically August 1st. I don't share the story with many people these days, as there are religious, meta-physical and supernatural elements involved. I find that the details unnerve many, and spark discussions that challenge the typical bible-belt view of religion that permeates the region in which I live.

I can say that as I trace back the moments of my life, I always come back to this specific day as a nexus point for great change. While I've reflected on all the moments of my life, those that I can recall with some clarity, this singular day instilled an openness, determination, balance and resolve that I still call on to this very day. It defines a large part of me and I apply the things I learned from that time period quite often.

I will spare you the details of the event, but I would like to share with you a series of sketches that I developed in the year 1996 as I reflected on the details of that August day in 1995.

"It Is All Okay"

"Eternal Rose"

"Face The Sun"

"Winter Fire"

"Calm"

"Morning Light"

I think this will be the last of my '90s sketches that I share, as I believe it to be the best place to stop. Nearly five years after the Summer of 1995 I slowly started to get away from drawing. There was almost a decade where I simply did not sketch. In the past two years that has changed and I am very happy about it. I bring this up to make a point. Often we learn lessons in life, important ones, and we vow that we'll never forget them. Somehow it's hard to do that, to be committed to a solemn personal vow.

What I've learned is that you have to lose your way to learn. You have to mess things up, lay down your vow, take a different path. This is how the shell cracks and allows a new light to come in. This is how realization is born. When things are broken something new can be made from the pieces. The key is to remember. My totems help me do that. They serve as reminders to stop and reflect from time to time. These totems were the greatest gift ever given to me. I would recommend developing personal totems to anyone.

Scribbles 1994

I used to draw a heck of a lot more in the 90's. It really didn't matter what I had to use, I always managed to lay something down on paper just about every day. I've been flipping through some of my old sketch books and have found some things from the Parker Brand archives that I thought I might share.

Today's pics are a few ballpoint pen portraits and sketches I did on some down time while working at the video store. One is of me, one of a co-worker, and attempt at Christian Slater (I think "Pump Up the Volume" was popular at the time) and few hands and objects.

I'm having a lot of fun digging through these sketch books. It's amazing how a drawing can really bring you back to the very moment it was being created. Maybe it has something to do with the extreme focus that's taking place. I find that when I'm drawing I'm truly present in the now. Anyway, I hope you folks will enjoy this scribbling walk down memory lane.

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How To Make A Real Gumbo... Gumbo Gator, That Is.

A few months back made plans to work on a Parker Brand version of the Southwest Louisiana pop culture mascot Gumbeaux Gator. I posted this quick little sketch of my concept, along with a drawing I had done of the original Gumbeaux Gator, which was used as part of a t-shirt design I worked on.

I let is rest for a bit, but this past week I've been pecking along in the evenings, trying to work on the final pen and ink piece. If you've been following this blog then you've probably seen it go through it's various stages. I finished up the inking and ink wash before lunch today, and I wanted to share the final drawing with you.

I'm pleased with the way it turned out. I was trying to mimic my own style from the Monster Mash series I did this time last year. I used Pitt Artist Pens on that series and I used my Sable Brush on this. I was worried that they wouldn't look similar in style, but I think there is a close enough resemblance to satisfy me.

I've had a pretty good response from this piece, so I may be selling prints of it over at my Etsy Store before it's all said and done. I hope you all dig it. Now, on to the next sketchy victim.

It's A Likeness, Pilgrim: Attempting To Sketch John Wayne

It's amazing how much you can fit in a day. I managed to do a ton of yard work, take the family to Hobby Lobby for some creative supplies, get home and hit some cleaning chores, then sit down to work on some of my sketches for the "Drawing Board" show. I'm still adding to my Western Film Heroes series, and a list like that wouldn't have been complete without John Wayne.

I used a terracotta sketching pencil to do my initial warm-up sketch.

I did my next sketch with a Sumi brush and crimson India Ink. Similar to the Lee Van Cleef sketch I did a couple of weeks ago, I didn't do any initial breakdowns before I did this one. It's fun to just dive into the ink really quick and see how accurate my hand/eye coordination is.

Of course, these sketches moved me towards my final ink drawing, which I did with my trusty Sable and Super Black India Ink.

Like most of the work I do, I would say that this is only a likeness of John Wayne. I just don't think I'm skilled enough to do anything that's dead-on. Maybe if I'd commit to something over a period of time, really work on it for day and days... but that's just not the kind of time I have.

As I said in other posts, I'm not too happy to have these works appear in a show. I just don't think they're good enough for that. They're fine as hobby pieces, but gallery works... no dice.

As always, I hope you dig and I thank you for taking the time to put your eyes on my sketches. If you have a moment, why not leave me a comment? It's a great way to make a new connection.

A Drawing Lesson In Progress

In a couple of weeks, I'm supposed to be doing an hour long lesson on drawing, sketching and tooning with several groups of children, all of varying ages. Tonight I started working through some of the lessons that I think the kids will find valuable.

I wanted give the kids a chance to learn some basic human facial structure, hopefully showing them how to break down a human head. I really want to show the kids that you can start off really simple and then take the basic structure as far as they want. Here are a few of the images that I sketched out for the lesson.

I also think it would be fun for the kids to draw some sort of fantasy creature. My plan is to follow the same pattern, teaching them how to start out with something really simple, enhancing their drawing as far as their able. I got this creature idea from the little book of 100 monsters. I found one that I thought would be great for the lesson as my inspiration.

I'm still working this whole lesson out. I'm sure it'll change before I'm all done. Heck,... these sketches may not even end up in the plan. Still, working it out this way will help me get a handle on what's gonna work and what won't. I can't make this lesson too complicated. It's got to be fast and it's got to be simple. Of course, it has to be interesting too. I'll keep you folks updated. Thanks for poppin' in.

"Attempting Al" I Swear This Is Just A Sketch

I've been attempting to draw western film characters lately. Last night I attempted to draw Al Swearengen from "Deadwood" (I did an unauthorized manila envelope pen sketch last week). The idea was that these western attempts would end up in this little local art show called "The Drawing Board." The more I work on them, the less I feel that having my drawing attempts appear in a gallery is a good idea. In fact, I find myself wishing that there were some way to go back in time and get out of it.

Fact is I don't like being a part of awards, shows, ceremonies, having titles, wearing badges, showing in galleries, etc... just not my thing, I suppose. I'm okay with being that way. It's just the way I am. I like sharing my drawing attempts and creative works here on my blog, and working on projects like these with my kids and friends. Guess that's why I'll always be a hobbiest. I just like attempting to draw stuff. It's fun. If I get better at it because I make these attempts then that would be cool too. Not a big aspiration.

The big pay-off of sharing my attempts here is that I get to meet a lot of great people from all over the world who like to draw and create things as well. I attempt to draw because I can. I attempt to draw because it's something creative to do besides the work I do in advertising. I attempt to draw because it allows me to connect with folks. When it gets heavier than that a bit of the joy disappears.

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"Unauthorized Manila" A Parker Brand Preliminary Sketch of Al Swearengen

If you've been following along, then you know that I've been working on a series of sketches themed around western film heroes. I've got a list of western folks whose likenesses will eventually come to life with my ink. One of them will be Al Swearengen from the HBO series "Deadwood." 


I didn't have my supplies with me today, but I felt the itch to sketch. I grabbed a manila envelope and a Sharpie and did a quick line drawing of 'ol Al.

Not too bad a likeness for a quick burn-em-out. I'll be working on the finished ink sketch tonight (which I will most definitely post). Doing these pre-op sketches kind of helps get me psyched up to work on the finished piece. It's fun drawing with random pens, on "unauthorized" paper.

Gotta love Al, "Deadwood" and all that terrible language they throw down...

Some "Van Cleef" Sketch Action

I haven't had a lot of time to draw lately. Since I finished my Series-2 ATC set, I've been slammed over in "ad-land." Honestly, by the time I get home I'm pretty burned out and I just want to rest my brain. My wife motivated me to lay down some ink by getting me a nice, glass-top drafting table for Father's Day. I've been itching to sit down and give it a test drive since Sunday, so tonight I made some time to sit down for sketch.

I've mentioned in a few posts that I'm working on a series of western movie sketches for an exhibit titled "The Drawing Board." The goal is to do do really quick sketches, then develop one of them into a more finished piece. One of our sketch focuses is "American Heroes" and my western sketches are a part of that particular category. A couple of weeks ago, I did a quick sketch of Clint Eastwood for that series. Tonight I took a stab at Lee Van Cleef.

Since I hadn't drawn in a while I decided to do three sketches, the first two being very, very rough and quick. The first was done with a simple sketching pencil, with pretty soft lead, mainly to loosen my hand up.

The second sketch was done even faster, with a blown out water color brush. I had picked up some sepia india ink, so I decided to give that a run through. The brush really was the pits, but I still kind of dig the variation I got from the pencil sketch. It was a nice way to find the hard shadows.

Finally, I dropped some light pencils on a fresh sheet, then started hacking away with black india ink and my #3 Sable. I spent a bit more time on this final sketch. It's not dead-on, but I think it's definitely got a likeness of Van Cleef. This piece almost seems to be a combination of the two previous sketches.

After I felt like I had laid down enough black, I went back and added a really quick wash to help enhance the light-play on his face. I think it helped.

All-in-all, I had somewhere near an hour and half in all the sketches. This fits right in with the parameters of "The Drawing Board" gallery series. I've got quite a few more of the screen western heroes to sketch out. I'm having a lot of with them, so I hope you folks dig them.

"A Man Named Clint" A Parker Brand Sable Brush & Ink Sketch

If you follow this blog, then you may remember me mentioning the art show that I'll be a part of titled "The Drawing Board." This show will feature three Southwest Louisiana artists, and will be made up of our quick sketches, with each artist turning three of their sketches into more developed, finished pieces. The goal is to try to spend 15 to 30 minutes on each sketch.

One of the subjects requested for the art show is "American Heroes." I thought it would be fun to produce some really quick Sable brush & ink sketches of American movie cowboys (of which I am a tremendous fan) then choose one of the series to develop further.

I sketched out the first of this set tonight on a piece of 8.5x11 Bristol. I spent right at 20 minutes on it, which makes this exactly what this particular art show is calling for. You may recognize him. If you don't then I'm almost 100% certain that you won't get into heaven.

SIDE NOTE: It was nice to draw something besides super heroes.

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Anybody Like Thumbnails In Their Gumbo?

It was about this time last year that I decided to start drawing and sketching again, after a 10+ year hiatus from the hobby (more on that here). Not longer after that, I drew these five monsters for a local art show at the Henning Cultural Center, titled "Chaos Theory."

I felt that I drew these creatures in a very specific way, and since that time I haven't taken the opportunity to revisit that style on any of my drawings.

This year, I was one of three men asked to be a part of another local art show at the Henning Cultural Center, titled "The Drawing Board." This time we were asked to provide a variety of very quick sketches and drawings, then work on three pieces that we would develop further into finished pieces.

One of the subjects is "Local Flavor." My concept for this Southwest Louisiana piece is actually based on a local icon called "Gumbeaux Gator," but I plan to re-imagine Gumbeaux, then draw him in the style of the monsters I created last year.

Gumbeaux was created years ago by a local artist, and since then I've been asked to draw him on a number of occasions for the Southwest Louisiana Convention and Visitors Bureau. I've done my best each time to emulate the style of the original artist (Marty Myers), but each time I've received criticisms that my Gumbeaux Gator looked to "mean" in the face, where Marty's Gumbeaux Gator was playful and fun. 

I've decided to take those criticisms and use them as the inspiration for my re-imagining of Gumbeaux. What would a talking, dancing, Louisiana gator really look like if he were to stand up-right, play music, and wear human clothes? Certainly, there have been many toon gators out there, so I'm not really re-inventing the wheel here. I'm just taking my specific style of creature creation, and applying it to a local pop-culture icon... and making him look mean.

As required by the gallery, here is the thumbnail sketch of my initial "real" Gumbeaux Gator concept, side-by-side with the recent ink drawing I did for the 2010 Washington Mardi Gras t-shirt design.

I plan to start the finished piece sometime this week. I'll post it once it's complete. I think it's going to be a really fun drawing to work on, and I'm pretty excited to be revisiting my monster style of illustrating. I hope you'll follow along for the creative process.

Sketch Lab 2010: A Gathering of Creative Friends

Last night I invited several of my friends over to my place for an informal sketch lab. The idea was that we'd all bring our own sketching supplies and then do some figure drawings. Add a couple of pots of coffee, plus apple cider & beer and you've got the recipe for a good time.

We figured that 5 different figure poses at 15 minutes each would be just about right, but once we got started we found that 20 to 25 minutes was more accurate. I suppose if it were a classroom environment, 15 minutes would have been fine, but since we were talking and cutting up, 20-25 worked just fine.

We used my new art models for the subject matter this time. If we continue to have these little sketchy jams, then we'll probably get more creative with what we choose to draw. The male art model worked fine for this session.

There was 6 of us last  night, but I imagine that our numbers will grow as time goes on. Last night, our list of creative folks included Darren Hanks, Erik Jessen, Chris Bacarisse, Thom Trahan, my wife Michelle Parker and myself. Thom and Michelle showed up a couple of hours after everyone else, so they don't have as many studies in the collection of finished sketches, but it was still nice to have everyone participate.

All-in-all, it was a really good time and I look forward to doing it again real soon. It was really nice to sit back and relax with friends over something so healthy and creative. I think this is a good thing for all of us and I hope to see it grow into something that we all look forward to every month.

If you'd like to see the individual sketches from our sketch lab, just click here to be redirected, or simply view the slideshow below.

As always, your comments are appreciated. I'm sure the individuals involved in this little project would appreciate them as well. Thanks for stopping by.