Little Bird House: April 2006

28.4.06

26.4.06

i still find the 3 investigators entertaining to read, sometimes even more so than when i had read them as a kid. the firm's motto "we investigate anything" is a crack-up! when i was twelve, i took this to be a very serious thing... i guess my perspective has changed.

it'd be awesome to read these stories in comics form. there are a lot of cool "bad guys" and the action sequences would be easy to translate into pictures. someone's gotta do it!

jupiter jones: chubby, cocksure brainiac somewhere in his middleschool years.

bob andrews: bookworm, with the firm's pet mynahbird Blackbeard the Pirate. Blekki? (auf Deutsch) likes to pull hair and bite ears.

pete crenshaw: atheletic, but somewhat high-strung. jupiter is having a bad hair day.

i'm working on my flight and pet noir stories right now, so when i goof off, all i have time for is heads really. full bodies take me a lot longer. but hopefully i'll get around to drawing these kids on the way to the beach, meeting with Alfred Hitchcock, outwitting Hugenay and other evil-doers!

the mystery of the Laughing Shadow: bob gets clonked on the head by an ugly statue that comes hurtling from the sky. pete is there to witness.

25.4.06

practice, practice

i've been really lazy. drawing mostly from my head -- relying on the shortcuts picked up somehow from somewhere. it's no good for growth. shiga's portraits were inspiring. i dug through some old photos, stayed up till four sketching from them. but even photos are kind of cheating. need to get out and draw something real. loosen up that hand a bit.

craig thompson, hunched forward, talking to thien off camera.

gabrielle bell, looking up. this photo was taken from above where she was sitting - a weird angle. this also doesn't really look like her, i think i failed on this one.

jesse hamm, in his black sailor hat. i think i drew his nose too small. it's more manly looking. also he was wearing a black shirt, maybe i should fill that in.

me. my face looks sort of long - i don't know what's wrong with this picture, i can never tell with myself!

24.4.06

derek kirk, jason shiga, and me

derek kirk, jason shiga and i met up for a day draw.

first dkirk ate a tuna sandwich. then we got to work.

derek worked on his mini-strip. he has a website called Lowbright with online comics. he draws very slowly and carefully, and he's one of the best artists i know. he also is very good at explaining the technical aspects of art. i learn a thing or two from him.

shiga practiced sketching. the above is actually a sketch he did for me awhile ago. it is my favorite of all time.
jason just finished a choose your own adventure the size of a telephone book. knock-knock, i think. i haven't got a copy yet 'cos he sold out! his site is called Shigabooks.

shiga's portraiture of derek. that's auh... pen he's nibbling on.

and shiga's portrait of me. i could be related to the simpsons! he gave me the cutest ear. ahh... it's nice to have neighbors who draw.

i worked on my pet noir story. it's going to be 7 pages of funniness and fatality. later on back at home i did some computer stuff. a small present for my sister, and separating colors for a silkscreen design. the latter will probably have to be done by hand, as there are so many colors it would cost a pretty penny to have each screen made for it.

my goal is to have it done by may 12th, when we have our BASE spring fling. yes, you are invited.

17.4.06

FLIGHT thumbnails

hooookay, so i'm back to the anthology stories, a 7-pager for Pet Noir, and 26-pager for FLIGHT. not too exciting to look at just yet, but will flesh out soon. click on the images for a larger view.