Very Quick Sketch

It isn't a live model, just a photo in a model book for artists. But I treated it as if she were only posing for a minute or two, with Photoshop as my quick sketch medium. Of course I cheated and erased or "corrected" things that I wouldn't have been able to do in pencil or pen. 

S'mores at Trader Joe's

Trader Joe's, where I work as a sign maker, is selling the ingredients for a gourmet version of "S'mores," the sticky melted campfire delicacy. I did this sign for a display of these goodies. The main board is a Masonite panel, painted in black chalkboard paint. The colors and lettering are done with opaque acrylic markers. The extra pieces around the edges are done on foamboard with spray paint and more acrylic marker. Signs at my Trader Joe's are currently multi-panel assemblies, complete with comic book-like frames.

Superheroine sketch

A very quick superheroine costume sketch, done in Photoshop. I like to use the drawing tools at medium (50%) opacity. That looks more like pencil.

Marriott Courtyard

While I was at Balticon, I stayed in a Marriott Courtyard hotel. These hotels really do have a courtyard, and it is a nice piece of landscape architecture, contained within the building. A gazebo is always a plus. The windows of all the interior rooms look out on this courtyard garden, as if it were a terrarium big enough to walk around in. 

More Balticon Sketches

Here are some more sketches of attendees at Balticon. Many people were in costume or wore some costume elements. Balticon is like a family gathering. You see the same people every year. 

Balticon Sketches

I'm back from Balticon. I had a great time and my art collectors were there. I sold "Kosmograd" to one of my best collectors. While I was at the convention I did a lot of sketches of the attendees and here is one assemblage of them. 

Kosmograd

I have just finished my latest painting which I am taking with me to the Baltimore Science Fiction Convention this weekend. (No updating here till I return.) The painting is called "Kosmograd," in Russian "City of the Cosmos," and it is based on early twentieth century Russian Constructivist graphics. Russian Constructivism was kind of like a Soviet Socialist Art Deco. In my image you can see the stylized City of the Future which Socialism will bring us, where everyone lives in harmony and the workers control the means of production. There is also a tower (on the left) where the old church steeple has been replaced by a symbol of secular aspiration: a missile. Cultural workers of the world, let us follow our five-year plan! 

"Kosmograd" is acrylic on canvas, 16" x 12". My thanks to this design site for the wonderful name.