Drawing with Uncle Pat

My Uncle Pat scored some drawing supplies for Christmas.

A few posts back I introduced you to my Uncle Pat. He shared a drawing he had done and many of you asked Pat to draw some more pictures over Christmas.

He seemed to really enjoy drawing so our family got him some art supplies for Christmas. The last few days I sat with Pat as he drew pictures and have posted them below along with a couple videos. I hope you enjoy.

Uncle Pat Talks about his artwork.




A scary Bear, a Spear, and a Crow.

When Pat draws he gets really into it. His face is just inches away from the paper and he doesn't come up until he's done. I loved how he did the feathers in the crow art.


Pats friend the Cat.

The only thing we suggested Pat draw was the Moose and me shown below. Everything else he just decided to do himself. I find it interesting that all of them with exception of the Snowman were an animal. He likes animals apparently?


A Chick.

I thought he did a great job on this baby Chicken. The color and detail came out awesome!


An Alien Moose.

Pats art reminds me of something Stefan Bucher might have animated.


The playful Snowman.

In the midst of drawing all his animals, Pat quickly drew out this snowman too.


The green Grouper.

I liked the simplicity of this art and the shape of it's mouth.

Uncle Pat Draws Me.




Pats drawing of me.

My youngest sister Amy told Pat to draw me and this was the end result.

I just wanted to thank everyone for commenting on the previous post I did about my uncle Pat. We were able to show Pat the blog post and read through all the comments for him and he enjoyed it a lot. We had fun drawing together and I thank God for him, he has a very gentle spirit and I think his art rocks!

H1N1

H1N1 design.

You can become a host to this infectious design and carry the graphic contagion wide and far transmitting this wonderful creative virus on a t-shirt.

Doodle Creatures

"Turn the Worm" doodle creature.

When I doodle in the wee hours of the night my art is infused with heavy amounts of late night logic.

What emerges is strange doodle creatures like you see in this post.


"Noobitoid" doodle creature.


The past three weeks I've been drawing a lot of bizarre and fanciful characters and have wondered what a psycho therapist might read into some of these images?

So if any of you know someone who might be willing to look at 5-6 drawing and share what things they'd glean from them I'd like to talk to them. (Email link in sidebar at right)

As always you can get these designs on t-shirts.

- "Turn the Worm" Tee: View / Order Here.
- "Noobitoid" Tee: View / Order Here.

Circular Reasoning

"Circular Reasoning" design. (Click Image to View Larger)

A while back I was listening to a political talking head who was using circular reasoning to bolster his argument. This seems to be a very popular fallacy in todays media regardless of what political ideology you align with.

When something irritates me I tend to vent my frustration via doodling. So when I heard this doofus using circular reasoning I thought of the term "talking in circles" and this design idea came to mind. I quickly scribbled it out knowing I'd get to it at a later date.


"Circular Reasoning" doodle via Paper Mate® Flair Pen.

The core basis of this design was hand drawn. I knew I'd then scan it in and build out the remaining motif digitally via Photoshop. The idea was to make his tongue morph into his neck and spawn a new head.

I suppose this design could be an iconic representation of politicians in general. Frankly I'm sick of all the suited weasels in Washington. Enough R&D IMO. Maybe someday we'll get a real Mr. Smith to go to Washington and truly knock some heads together and exercise some common sense in a not so common time. But I won't hold my breath.


"Circular Reasoning" t-shirt design.

In the meantime you can always forward this link to your local politician and remind them of what not to do. After all they do play with their laptops during sessions be it solitaire, surfing the web, or watching a baseball game, so why not read an actual email from a constituent?

Of course you can also stimulate my personal economy and order this shirt from my Zazzle store too. Just in time for Christmas.

"Facial Soap" Doodle Carving

"Facial Soap" doodle carving.

The first time I did a "Facial Soap" doodle carving was way back in 1989. At the time I had taken a sabbatical from my career and was traveling across the country putting on drug prevention shows for Jr. High and High School students nationwide.

As I traveled I collected the soap you get at hotels and started creating doodle carvings with them. Nothing too complex just a bunch of goofy faces hence the term "Facial Soap." I never did manage to save any of them, I usually gave them all away to people I met and once I plugged back into my career in 1990 I kind of set the creative habit aside.


My preferred canvas: Ivory soap.

Over the past several years I've been traveling around the country speaking and I've started to collect free soap again which made me think of my previous creative habit. So I decided to do a doodle carving tonight.

I don't use the soap they give away at hotels because frankly it's too cheap and fractures too easily. I prefer Ivory soap myself and a 3-pak of these carvible canvases was a grand total of $1.07.


Carving begins.

These go pretty fast. I spent about an hour while watching a movie creating one of these. An X-acto is the only tool I need to carve with and I keep a can of air around to blow out small pieces as I work.


Carving box.

Needless to say this can make a mess pretty quick so the best method I've found to minimize the shaved pieces of soap from scattering across your floor is to carve over a small box. One nice side effect is the scent given off by the soap, and one negative side effect is the soap dust you get on your hands and then rub it into your eyes by mistake. #$%@! burns.


Soap + X-acto = Facial Soap.

I'm going to try and make this a regular creative habit from now on. It's relaxing and fun.

Creating this facial soap made me realize my carving skills are kind of rusty. What I've done before was a lot more complicated so hopefully over time I'll improve.

Crusty Dude Doodle

Another "Red Pen" doodle via Paper Mate® Flair.

Over the last few weeks I can stop drawing with my Paper Mate® Flair Pens. For some reason drawing old crusty people is a whole lot of fun. I think it's all the various wrinkles that make it such an alluring drawing experience? The more wrinkles, the more character.


Mile High doodling.

I started drawing this art while I was sitting on an American Airlines plane at 31,000 ft. somewhere over Texas headed to Lafayette. I then finished it off sitting in the offices of Prejean Creative before I spoke at the local AdFed group.

I prefer drawing with red pens rather than black because they tend to add some artifacts in the darkest areas you just loose with solid black. It also allows me to blow out some things when I scan the drawing in as well if needed.


"Crusty Dude final artwork.

I felt my crusty dude needed an environment to live in. So I pulled a photo of a back alley I took in Savannah Georgia a few years back and composited it with my doodle art.

Download Crusty Dude PDF
"Crusty Dude" PDF Print

Dark Morsels

"Fog of Complacency" red pen doodle.

Another red pen doodle. This one however wasn't something I started last night. I found it cleaning my office and it was only half drawn.

Apparently months ago I had started it and never finished. So I grabbed my red pen and gave it a proper creative polish.


Dark morsel artwork. (Click Image to View Larger)

I've always referred to my doodles as "Dark Morsels." Mainly because they tend to be strange and I just figure they emerge from the dark recesses of my mind. Be that as it may, they are fun to visually consume regardless what psychology you want to view them through.


"Fog of Complacency" t-shirt design.

I do think it would be interesting to see what a psycho-babble shrink would say about this art though. I just may try to email one and see if they'd be willing to give their opinion? That would make for a cool future post. Hmmmm.

But for now I'll let the readers of my blog suggest possible interpretations of this art in the comments. So feel free to share what you think it means. I'm curious to see what diagnoses you all come up with.

You can view and order this shirt from my Zazzle store.

(If you want to know more about the halftone effect just go here.)

Watchers

"Watcher" doodle via Paper Mate® Flair Pen.

I think Paper Mate® Flair Pens Rule! And, just in case the FTC (Nanny State) is reading this blog post and wants to say my endorsement breaches my right to freedom of speech they should know I wasn't given any FREE pens to say that.

I'd like to say I doodle every day religiously. Well, I'd like too but I have to be in the mood and last night I was. I didn't have any idea where it would lead I just started drawing an eyeball and the rest just kind of spawned itself over the next five minutes or so.


"Watcher" design. (Click Image to View Larger)

Like I've said before, I prefer doodling and drawing on note pads rather than a sketch book. But that said I do have a mole skin.

My doodles tend to contain all matter of nonsensical strangeness. I don't really think when I doodle I just open the flood gates and just see what spills out. I think it's more fun that way.


"Watcher" t-shirt design.

When ever I do doodles I always try to use them in some way. Many times I animate them, but being a fan of apparel graphics I enjoy offering them up as t-shirts.

I think this art makes for a cool t-shirt so I put a design together utilizing a halftone effect.

You can view and order this shirt from my Zazzle store.

Doodling with Nefarious Intent

21 year old Infamous doodle.

I recently did an interview with LBOI Design Blog in which I told a story about how I almost got fired because I drew a caricature of my art director at the time. Here is what I had shared:

Early in my career I worked in an art department for a large sportswear company in Seattle.

The so-called art director was horrible and she frustrated me so much that I decided to draw a caricature of her and put it on her desk. She got so mad she went from cubicle to cubicle asking each artist if they had done it. Right before she got to me she was paged away. My buddy Dave still has that drawing and likes to pull it out when ever we go to his house just to watch me squirm.

For me doodling is very cathartic and I often find myself releasing frustrations through my sketches.

So yeah I guess you could say I’ve abused my creative powers for the sake of nefarious intent at various times in my career.

Well I got an email from another designer friend today who read my interview and asked if I had a copy of that caricature I could show him. I didn't but I was pretty sure my buddy Dave still had his copy so I emailed him and sure enough he even had it at work so he scanned in the caricature and the below photo and sent it to me.

You gotta love designer friends who hold onto a doodle you did 21 years ago just so they can pull it out now and get a good laugh. Thanks Dave!

The Back Story
I realize now that the title my art director held back then was just that a title and it certainly didn't reflect a skill set or ability. Our entire art department would get frustrated all the time over her inane methods. I was just young and stupid and acted upon one such occasion by doodling out my frustration in a not so diplomatic manner.

I remember in high school a class bully in Drivers Ed was harassing everyone so I just walked up to the chalk board and drew a goofy caricature of him and the whole class started laughing at the kid. He got embarrassed and sat down. After class he started pushing me around saying "Funny picture Glitschka! What are you gonna do now?" wanting to pick a fight with me, but a teacher broke it up. (Good thing because I was about to kick his....writers' embellishment LOL)


That's me in an art department meeting circa 1988.

Our whole art department at that company was a lot of fun to work with. So many unique characters, funny stories we still talk about to this day. The company however "Sun Sportswear" is no longer around but I still keep in contact with about nine of the artists I use to work with there.

I'd like to think I handle things a little better now but I'll admit sometimes things bug me and I still manage to find new ways of venting that frustration creatively speaking. I do what I call "Logo Mocks" from time to time and post them on Brand New. Here is an example of one I did when the new yellowbook logo was revealed.

Live and learn.

Beyond the Glory

"Fungi Film" Doodle Movie.

I'm always doodling. Most people never see my doodles except those I choose to post on my art blog. Over the last few years I've been creating what I call "Doodle Movies."

In an age of increasing multi-media via interactive web sites, touch screens and a continuous non-stop march towards ever increasing technology, the former stalwarts of web interactive are quickly becoming obsolete.

What I call a "Doodle Movie" others refer to as an "Animated Gif." They're of course technically correct but I prefer my moniker instead.


Root King.

I don't animate all my doodles. Sometimes I draw something and look at it later and think "What is that?" Such was the case with my "Root King" doodle. No clue why I drew it? It just kind of flowed out of me onto the paper like a stream of conscience captured via a doodle. I like it, even though I have no clue what it means.

Almost everything animated online today is handled through Adobe Flash. Be that as it may, I still enjoy working with the simple methods of creating unique animations via my "Doodle Movies."

I know if there was a "Beyond the Glory" TV show for design methods an animated gif would no doubt be featured.

That said I think it's fun creating simple animated "Doodle Movies." It's like the doodling of multi-media.

George

Moleskin sketch "George."

Rarely do I plan anything I draw in my moleskin. I just sit down and let it just kind of flow out. Open the flood gates and see what spills out onto the page. Last few years it's been a lot of orbs, snakes, flames, hands and arms appearing from no where and characters like George.

Why the name George? I have no clue? I'll let you tell me.


Scanned in and played with.

I like moleskins but my favorite pen to doodle with is a Paper Mate Flair felt pen and unfortunately for what ever reason the paper stock in a moleskins kind of repels the ink. You can notice the splotchy dark areas in my photo above.

So most often you'll find me doodling on simple white note pads that you can tear off and that is what I tend to prefer to draw on. I like the flexibility of being able to easily scan something in or tack it up for inspiration or put it in a project folder etc.

But if you're looking for a top-notch bound sketch book look no further than the moleskin.

Like I said, I prefer doodling on note pads and in the case of the image at right I doodled it on a project outline I had printed out. I find I doodle best when talking on the phone or listening to someone else talk, don't get me wrong I pay attention to what is being said and doodling helps me to focus better.

When I scanned the doodle in I noticed it picked up some of the copy from the opposite side and I thought those artifacts looked pretty cool so I worked into the final image you see.

Like "George" I have no idea as to the meaning of this but I sure do like it. For what it's worth I titled this random doodle "Unsure Ltd." I think it's appropriate for the economic landscape we find ourselves in at the moment globally.

Remember, never stop drawing!

Freedrawing!

"Black & White Freedrawing" book by Zeptonn

I love participating in artistic collaboration. This being the internet age I am no longer limited by geographical location so when Zeptonn invited me to take part in a new book venture he was heading up called "Black & White Freedrawing" I eagerly jumped on it.

I won't bother trying to explain the concept behind the book in detail I'll let you source out that information yourself at the books official web site.


Simple tools, simple method.

How it's done: Zeptonn starts off by drawing a little bit than gives it to me. I draw on to it more than hand it back to Zeptonn etc. This goes on until we have a full page filled. There is no underline concept, not theme, no purpose were just free drawing what ever comes to mind or tickles our fancy at the given moment. Hence the name "Freedrawing."

Sure it's a somewhat twisted, weird and risque but fun none the less. I think it would be interesting to have a psychologist look at this art and comment on it's possible meaning. ;-P


All six stages as the "Freedrawing" progressed.

How long did it take: We did a total of six rounds. But there are no set rules to how long or short it can go. You're just trying to fill the page. All though I'd say you want to do at least four rounds. The fun part is playing off what the other had drawn. You can see a larger version of the final art here.


Another interior page of mine in the book.

I have to admit I somewhat cheated on this one. Meaning I took an old doodle and just drew more onto it and called it good. So it's half freedrawing and half recycled freedrawing. Why did I do this? Because I was buried in work at the time and because I get lazy like anyone else. So deal with it.

If you'd like to see other contributors to the book you can view sample spreads at the books official web site it's sure to draw your attention! What? That was punny!

Thanks Zeptonn for the opportunity!

The Return of Mr. Cubistic

'Mr. Cubistic enjoys a stroll in the park.'

A few years ago I created a character called "Mr. Cubistic." He existed mainly as an OSX desktop icon but now lives on as a fun nifty little download.


'"Mr. Cubistic" is looking for a friend.'

Invite "Mr. Cubistic" over for dinner and enjoy his segmented elegance.

DOWNLOAD FREE PDF TEMPLATE HERE.

Enjoy!

Oopart

'Oopart Circle.'

Lately I've been reading a fascinating book about technology and ancient man. One specific subject in the book which is amazing is the whole area of "Ooparts." This name is given for a historical, archaeological or palaeontological object found in a very unusual or seemingly impossible location. The one that caught my attention in the book is a Jin Dynasty tomb unearthed about 1,500 years ago in China. In the tomb they found an ornate belt and on the belt were pieces of aluminum metal which shouldn't be since modern metallurgy hadn't developed aluminum at that point. At least that is what the common belief is regarding technology and history thus the reason for "Oop" in "Ooparts."

If you want to know more Wikipedia has this page.

The book also gets into the Aztecs etc. so I was thinking about their graphics and the above visual popped into my head so I just doodled it out, scanned it in and colorized it. Don't ask me what it means? I am not sure I like it that much but figured it made for a good blog post.

Doodle Art

'Wall Art Installation.'

Sometimes I get inspired on the spur of the moment. When this happens I tend to put aside what ever I am working on and just pursue the creative rabbit trail to see where it leads.

Such was the case here. I had a tight project deadline and I was cleaning off my desk when I picked up a pad of paper that was almost empty. I took off the two remaining sheets and was going to toss the cardboard backing away when I had an idea.

I grabbed a pair of scissors and cut out a rough shape then proceeded to doodle on top of it until I had "Doodle Dog." It was so much fun I did a few more. All of them are shown on my studio wall above. They are attached to thumb tacks so they pop out from the wall a little and I plan on doing more and creating a whole scene.


'Doodle Dog.'

I even took one of the pictures into Photoshop and applied some color. It was a fun creative exercise and this type of creative interlude truly lives up to the name of this site.


'Doodle Fish.'

Man alive these little things are addictive. I couldn't help myself and created the above fish last night. They are spawning faster than Tribbles on crack.

If you want to see and read more about this then visit my other web site www.illustrationclass.com and download my complete creative exercise.

Book Worm

'Doodle Art "Book Worm"'

This past weekend I stumbled upon a fun little creative exercise. I won't go into it now but I'll be posting more about it in my next post in a few days which will explain what it's all about and show you how to do it yourself. The above image shows you the result of my doodle exercise. As I drew his worm like torso I thought of this specific usage. That is emerging from my books on my shelf and thus "Book Worm" was born.


'Refined Doodle Art "Book Worm" Download in context.'

I liked the raw nature of the doodle art so I scanned that in and colored it. Normally I avoid live trace like the plague but in this case it served its purpose. In general however I pretty much distain using it.


'"Book Worm" wants to snuggle up to your books.'

Give "Book Worm" a home in your bookshelf today!

DOWNLOAD FREE PDF TEMPLATE HERE.

Enjoy!