David Condry Art

Pencil Drawings for MMQ Illustrations!

2011-12-23T14:45:00.001-08:00

Hello, Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Joyous Kwanzaa, Happy Boxing Day, and well wishes all around, seriously! I'm particularly joyous at the moment, not only because my most difficult grad school semester yet is now over, but because my winter break affords me precious free moments to invest in a new freelance project called "Mary Mary Quite," or "MMQ" for short. I touched upon this in my last post, having shared one of my rough sketches that went into the very beginning stages of the project. Now I'm finally ready to start my first batch of paintings! But before I do, I thought I'd share some of the line work that will lay the foundation for these images. Enjoy the pencil drawings while they last because soon they'll be all filled in with water color.

To be fair, these images won't be in "color" per se, since MMQ is actually going to be released as a kindle book. On an e-ink screen, these images will appear in gray-scale. So rather than making these in full color and crossing my fingers hoping that they look OK on a kindle screen, I decided to paint all of these in sepia (here's a good example by another artist). Thus, I'll be all the more aware of value-relationships throughout the process while nonetheless creating images that look good both in e-ink and LCD contexts.

But now, on to the more interesting bit - what is MMQ? Each of the images above illustrates a different short story taken from the rich treasury of previously published prose by an author named Mary Huckstep. Although now primarily working as a screenplay writer and professor, she's also set some time aside to re-release a series of humorous, motherhood-inspired short stories as a kindle book compilation. Having once made residence only across disparate pages of newspaper , these stories will now dwell together in the comfy abode of an ebook brimming with illustrations by yours truly.

"The Go-Getters," A Decisive Scribble, M.A.P of D.C., and A Preview of M.M.Q.

2011-10-07T15:28:00.000-07:00

"What good is it for someone to gain the whole world,

yet forfeit their soul?"

- Jesus Christ

Fall is here! And, of course this means that the new semester at school has also arrived, which allows less time for me to invest in my ambitious little art projects. Nonetheless, I managed to get a few things done before summer's end - in a flurry of creative activity, I cranked out a few fun sketches, found an online home for my music, and did some preliminary sketches for a new freelance project called "Mary Mary Quite," abbreviated as "MMQ." This bottom image here - the half horse, half truck (or as I like to call it, the "truckotaur") - is a quick preview of what's to come for MMQ artwork. Let this whet your appetite for a slew of more finished sepia illustrations, to be published as a kindle book with an assortment of many humorous tales and meditations on motherhood. Keep your eyes open for more MMQ stuff later.

The three images closer to the bottom have to do with my (semi-) new Bandcamp page, called "M.A.P. of D.C.," which stands for "musical art projects of David Condry." Alas, there's only one song there as of yet, but eventually (say, within the next couple of decades) I'd like to put up an album or few. We'll see how that goes. In the meantime, you can click on "music *NEW*" above, or just listen to my first published track right, "a unique universe {restored}," right here:

And finally, a meditation on an impromptu picture: the drawing at the very top, which I call "The Go-Getters," was totally unplanned. Still, as it unfolded, I stumbled upon a sort of narrative or homiletic theme, so I went with it. As it turned out, we have three characters juxtaposed, each representing a different, basic worldview. The first from the left has a level-headed gaze. Let this signify someone who neither seeks to exalt nor humble him- or herself. "Contentment-without-change" is the byword for this type, aiming neither to harm nor help, only to maintain the comfy stagnancy. Then, in the middle, we see a larger face of one who, in contrast, decidedly seeks change. With his gaze fixed upwards, this figure symbolizes the thrust - or lust - for greatness, an unsettled will endlessly intent on obtaining just "a little bit more."¹Since neither stagnation nor arrogation make for a sound ethos, a third figure necessarily appears - third from the left - representing a worldview that proves not only subjectively fulfilling but universally harmonious. His eyes are gently turned downwards. He stands for the person whose concern is neither self-preservation nor self-aggrandizement, but rather to benefit those besides him- or herself. One gains life by giving it away.

"Then [Jesus] called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?" Mark 8:34-36, NIV

Footnotes:
1. Often, "just a little bit more" has been credited to John D. Rockerfeller as his response to the question, "How much money is enough?" http://starwinar.wordpress.com/daily-short-story/just-a-little-bit-more/

St. Basil's Cathedral Sketch, and Other Drawings from Yesteryear

2011-07-12T11:52:00.000-07:00

Ahoy! I hope the summer is treating you well. As mentioned last month, the season has afforded me a bit of free time, wherewith I've been able to find and scan in some artwork that I'd previously never gotten the chance to post. Last month it was a batch of paintings and illustrations - today I present a small collection of drawings and sketches from yesteryear, the oldest of which being somewhere around 5 years old.

And, thanks to our ever-curious friends at Google, I have become aware that today is the 450th anniversary of the creation of St. Basil's Cathedral, the opulent landmark that adorns Red Square in Russia, symbolizing the country's colorful history and attracting countless visitors year-round. Thus, I've decided to head off this month's assortment of artwork with a sketch that I made from live observation of the monument itself in 2006. During my first of two trips to Russia, I was able to spend but a day in Moscow, the vast and intriguing capitol city that it is. I had only a handful of moments to assail the edifice with my sketchbook and bic pen before being drawn away with the group that I travelled with.

But we dared not depart until after giving ourselves ample time traversing the gorgeous innards of the cathedral. Truly, St. Basil's is just as beautiful on the inside as on it's magnificent exterior. Having perused a few art shows from time to time, I can confidently say that I have never been moret impressed - more deeply moved and even thrilled - by any man-made craft than by the ambitious, endless dsplay of artistry that covers every last imaginable inch of St. Basil's interior. To say the least, the building made an impact on me. So, when I found out that today was St. Basil's birthday, I figured that the least I could do would be to show my appretiation by sharing this sketch with the world!

Illustrations, Paintings, Etc. from Days Past

2011-06-20T12:22:00.000-07:00

Ahoy, and happy summer! As classes have ceased, my life has become a tad less busy. Of course, work persists, but I have now managed to squeeze in a few moments to do a little artwork, catch up with some friends, and - YES - clean up around the house. Having given our closet a veritable overhaul, I have come across more than a few pieces of artwork that, for some reason or another, I never got around to posting online. So here they are! Or at least here are some of them. And diverse they are - shoot, there's even a collage in there! I'd like to post some drawings and sketches from yesteryear as well, but that will have to wait for later.

Still, I suppose the above images aren't that old, as far as art goes, though there is one image up there that I originally created almost 10 years ago (can you guess which one?)!

In fact, I almost hesitated to post this work, thinking, "man, people don't wanna see OLD stuff - the whole point of a blog is to keep on updating on the newest, freshest batch of whatever!" But within that reasoning lurks a subtle deception that many of us, at least many artists, easily fall victim too. "The world moves like mad,*" says the song, and rightly so. But the pressure we feel, fed by a results-oriented culture, becomes in my estimate a formidable foe within us that undercuts the creative drive itself! If you're out there struggling with the tension between "needing" creative results and desiring the experience of real creativity, ignore the counterfeit urgency and get back to what made you an artist in the first place: the beholding and appreciation of that which is beautiful. In Genesis 1:1, after God has finished creating everything, humanity included, he says "it is good." This is not a "goodness" of utility, as if God thought, "I bet all of creation would make a wonderful theme park - we'll make a fortune!" No, instead I believe that the "goodness" innate in young Earth, in pure humanity, is what we sometimes call beauty. Not the monopolized "beauty" strewn across magazine racks, but the beauty that seems to rest in unlikely places - a beauty that, when confronting us, moves us deeply. In other words, aspects of life and nature are not good because we can gain something from them, but rather we gain true riches when we simply marvel at them. People don't "stop and smell the roses," so to speak, because they think it may somehow be a profitable activity. Rather, we stop to soak in the beauty of life because we need it, and making art is one of the ways we "soak," causing ourselves to slow down and carefully, even meticulously, allow space for true beauty to impact our souls.

*the song is called "Those Who Trust" by Waterdeep and 100 Portraits

P.E.P.P.E.R. (purely experimental photography produces exciting results)

2011-03-14T12:08:00.000-07:00

Hello friends! It's been a busy semester at seminary thus far, but I've still got a few surprises up my sleeve as far as art goes. If you haven't checked out dcondry.com since January, you'll probably notice I've changed a few things, most noteworthily the new link section. Check out some of my friends' art - it's good!

There's also a new link above that leads to my photo portfolio. I've been doing a ton of experimental photography for about a year now, though I've never posted any of it here before. If you click on the new "photos" link, you'll be sent to aminus3 , a site where I've got a portfolio and blog for posting a new photo each day. It's cool because they give you a chance to check out other people's work as well (and there are some seriously good photographers on aminus3, let me tell you).

Here, I've posted a sampling of the artwork on my photo blog. I like to do long-exposures and experiments with various colors of light. Aside from cropping and seldom brightness/contrast adjustments, none of the images above were photoshopped, editted, or anything else of the sort. Each image was attained, rather, through what we might call "trick-photography," adjusting exposure and the environment in order to produce a surreal or otherwise cool photo.

I'm pretty new to all of this, but of the litte bit that I've done, my phavorite photos (*chuckle*) have been a short series called "holy ground." The bottom photo above (how's that for a play on words?) is an image from that series, in which I was attempting to show a somewhat "modernized" depiction of Exodus 3:5, an instant in scripture when Moses encounters God and God tells him “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” (I say my depiction is "modernized" because I don't think Moses had rolled-up khakis). Hopefully, this image not only touches upon the sheer power of Moses' God-encounter, but also speaks of the way in which we today relate to God. I colored the feet with a blue flash because I wanted there to be contrast between the human being and the ground which God has made holy. Hot versus Cold. It's sad to say but we - us wacky humans - are more often then not, cold: rigid, unwilling to change our ways, bitter, resentful, lazy even, disposed towards blaming God rather than recognizing His many acts of love and goodness towards us. I could go on but the list gets overwhelming! But God, in Exodus 3:5, is depicted as purposefully pursuing Moses, getting his attention, and challenging him to new levels of faith. Thus, God is warm: a comforter, a force for change, a "consuming fire" (Deuteronomy 4:24, NIV), melting our coldness, forging a relationship with us who are in such dire need for Him. How beautiful is that? No matter how cold we become - however indifferent to loving God or others - God the "consuming fire" is by far capable of melting our spiritual tundra and mobilizing us towards wondrous ends! For example, simply look at the rest of Moses' life as reported in the book of Exodus. Had he never heeded God's call during the "holy ground" scene, he would never have witnessed such heights of adventure, leadership, and miraculous power!

I also love the "holy ground" imagery because it shows how utterly different God is from us - while we are finite beings confined to one place at any given time, God on the other hand is both above us and below us and in fact all around us! He transcends time and space. He is eternal, not limited. To be with Him is to be surrounded, yet by one compelling person. With this in mind, the incarnation of Christ (referring to how believers in Jesus consider His birth a miracluous, full-fusion of God and man) is indeed a miracle! I know I've blogged on this before but it's really mind-bogglingly beautiful: the infinite, limitness, super-utterly-powerful, Creative Being that is God... became a human.

He became a baby.

Wow.

Anyways, take care, thanks for reading. I hope these little blurbs and insights have good import for your life. Keep on keeping on and stay tuned for more musings and artwork!

New Drawings

2011-01-11T23:11:00.000-08:00

Hello friends! It is officially 11:11pm on 1/11/11. Isn't that excellent? I sense that this is going to be a good year. Even though crazy stuff has already been happening in our world so far this year, such as tragedies and birds falling out of the sky, I have a distinct feeling that good things are in store for us in '11. I was listening to a prophet the other night who had some good things to say about this year; and by the way, for those of you who are worried, no the world is not coming to an end as we speak and no, all the crazy bird occurances are not bad omens. Hence, I've posted some optimistic artwork tonight. Some of my favorite drawings I've done in a while. The top one commemorates my and my wife's 6 month aniversary! The next is a portrait of some good good friends from school. The next two, portraits of magpies, were gifts for some other good good friends of ours. A lot of people don't like magpies because they make annoying noises. I love them. I think they look very regal and have a noble way about them when they fly. Besides that, they're dark dark blue. Maybe that's how God thinks about us: no matter what other people think about us (even if they think we're totally annoying!), God sees his magnum opus in each one of us. We are his masterpiece.

Blessings, take care, and talk to you all again soon. By the way, since the website is all new and improved, stay tuned for other new features, like a photo section which I'm totally psyched about! Later.

Rob Drabkin and other lined paper art

2010-12-24T13:57:00.000-08:00

Now that I'm on vacation from school, I've got a chance to post some new artwork. The two bottom posts are the fruits of some abstract-art musings that have landed in one of my notebooks. The main post is a drawing I did in a notebook (which I've since lost!) during a live music performance in the student center at Denver Seminary. Rob Drabkin's his name. He sang with acoustic guitar, accompanied by a lead guitarist (the gentleman on the left). He also brought a killer live presence and was lots of fun to watch/hear. If you'd like, check out his website here or his bandcamp here.

I took the caption from one of the songs he performed, called "little steps," which he said was the first song he ever wrote. That whole concept of little steps, one's "first song," really stuck with me. "The day of small beginnings" (a frequent paraphrase of Zechariah 4:10), is often the most difficult yet, in retrospect, the most rewarding day of our lives. If I never begin my journey, I certainly won't reach the cherished prize at the end of it. I think the main reason I appreciate this thought is that, in my own spiritual journey, I've been feeling as though the entire last year or so has been one big "day of small beginnings." After so much effort and prayer and seeking, only now do I see clearly the direction in which God is leading me... Everything up until now has been a sort of training, yet only now do I realize that my training has just begun (and no, I don't mind sounding like a "Jedi").

YIKES! Ever feel like that? Like the further you go, the longer the road ahead appears? It's O.K. Heroic achievements often have the humblest of beginnings. It's a beautiful fact, and Christmas, at its roots, was designed to celebrate it. The concept of "incarnation" or "advent" means that the infinite, all-powerful God becomes finite and accessible by arriving as a human being... not a full-grown God-guy that drops from the sky but a REAL human being with a REAL human birth. The birth of Jesus Christ has been annually celebrated as "Christmas" for probably over 1,500 years by now (this past semester I took a class on Church history - fascinating!). Many Christians today actually don't celebrate Christmas because of various reasons, a discomfort with institutionalized religion among them. And, of course, most people think of Christmas as a chance to give and get some sweet presents while sucking down egg nog. But if you're reading this, whether or not you are a Christian and whether or not you celebrate Christmas, ponder this baffling, beautiful question: what could it mean for an infinite divine Being to become a finite human and interact with us?

That is, in my opinion, some pretty dense food for thought. Give it a go - I hear thinking actually burns calories! And do enjoy some festive calories during this holiday season! Happy New Year to you as well... Soon, I'll be back to post some portrait drawings and a couple ink drawings of birds. Later!

Wedding Art!

2010-09-27T15:40:00.000-07:00

HI! Here I've posted some cut-paper illustration(ish)s that I made for my wedding. I'm a newlywed, yes I am! And we decided to have some fun with the design aspect of our wedding... I drew up some fun little signs with which to label the tables at our reception. I made them out of whatever colorful paper I could get my hands on and then I had them displayed via some weird little card holder thingies. Each one represents the stories or the personalities of the people who sat at that particular table. A lot of couples are doing fun stuff like that with their weddings nowadays - it's more interesting than having "table #1" and "table #2." Last year, I was at a wedding where tables were named after locations in certain movies. I believe my table was named after a planet from STAR WARS! I've also heard of a couple who had each table at their reception themed after a different old-skool board game. Isn't that fun?

But as for deep musings, all I can think of at the moment is how much married life is teaching me. For the past few months, I have had a hightened sense of destiny. What do I mean by that? Simply this: big life decisions put into perspective just how much potential our individual lives really hold. Loving another human being; starting a family; contributing to one's community; influencing a culture; changing the face of history. Grandiose? Yes, and why not? Call me crazy but I think us humans are innately called to some sort of greatness. Just look at the typical wedding ceremony, for example. Cultures differ greatly on how a wedding is performed, yet almost all seem to recognize a sacred element therein. We innately desire a profound, spiritual meaning to undergird the pinnacle moments of our lives. This desire reflects a reality: we want to experience the divine because we were made to experience the divine.

Yet too many times we've heard the words "your destiny awaits..." right before an advertisement kicks in: "... so don't wait! Pick up the phone and order your set of LEAFY-PRO garden tools today!" But just because people have taken advantage of your brilliance in the past does not change the fact that you're brilliant. God thinks so. He'd rather die than go a day without you. If you believe that Jesus, as God incarnate, died for the redemption of humanity, you also believe that God is super-crazy in love with you, to the point of sacrificing everything he holds dear if only to bring you near to him. If you don't believe all that, at least ponder some fun observations: human beings are demonstrably more sophisticated than animals. We bear many similarities, yes, but at the end of the day, there are no dolphins out there writing screenplays for a 6-part hollywood epic that takes place in a galaxy far, far away. Even if there were, we obviously develop systems of living that are far more complex and involved than the system of mere survival. One important similarity shared by humans and animals, however, is our literal need for companionship. Could we assume a correlation between this need and our respective levels of sophistication? If our creativity is rightly seen as a mark of the divine, perhaps companionship with divinity should be recognized as intrinsic to our heredity.

Ok, that's enough big words. I'm not trying to argue people into my worldview (what do I have to gain from that?). Rather, I'm attempting to briefly portray the very palpable evidence that humans are to play an infinitely unique role in the cosmos and that we are thereby right to think of one's "destiny" as good and attainable.

So in light of that, let it sink in today. Take a breath, forget the lies of a culture that confuses "human value" with "usefulness," and rest in this sweet reality. You have a destiny and it's good.

Art on Lined Paper

2010-08-23T08:29:00.000-07:00

Hello hello! Here are some new doodles, drawings, and what-have-you's recently created mostly on lined paper. I have been really enjoying doing word art in ballpoint-pen lately. I was actually thinking of creating and entirely new blog devoted just to word art. Not now, however. Busy with other things. But maybe someday... stay tuned.

In the mean time, I had fun scanning in the "relax" piece this morning - I discovered it looked way cooler with the colors inverted. I also had a blast making this drawing of my hand. It's probably the most "finished" drawing I've ever done on lined paper. Started off as a random doodle with a bic pen. A couple markers and pastel marks later, I had something worth posting!

And I made this "you're gonna be the next..." piece to encourage people to be who they were made to be. Many times we've heard "you're gonna be the next Michael Jordan" or "the next Tom Cruise" or "the next Picasso." I insist that you are going to be the next YOU. In fact, you're going to be the ONLY you, and that's a big deal, much more interesting and infinitely more valuable than becoming an imitation of some other person.

Nonetheless, it is our nature to imitate. From birth, each of us never needed to invent how to smile, how to speak our own language, or socialize with other people. We learn all of these things through observation. One of the key principles behind all leadership is the idea of setting an example. We, as human beings, NEED something to model ourselves after.

I believe that each of us find our true identity, not in the imitation of our idols but in the imitation of Jesus Christ, the ultimate example. In doing so, the Spirit of God does a creative work in each of us: each person becomes uniquely re-created, in a true sense of the term. In losing the false self - in surrendering to the Creator who knows us each better than we know ourselves - we become the true self. You are not an imitation of some celebrity or some famous whoever. But as you imitate Christ, you become exactly who you were meant to be all along: totally unique; a breath of life; a walking, talking fragrance of heaven on earth. Or, as G.K. Chesterson has put it, we are each living "statues of God walking about," each depicting a different, beautiful aspect of One amazing God.

Thanks for checking out my art. Have an excellent day and stay good.

Personal Work - Drawings

2010-08-02T15:03:00.000-07:00

Hello most excellent blog-viewers! After some time off, I'm doing some new work. No new "jobs" so I have decided to just show my personal work. Usually I keep that stuff to myself but recently a friend encouraged me to post... and post I shall! Living in CO, one cannot ignore the great outdoors, so here's to drawing nature! Also, I have long kept journals, replete with writings, drawings, and doodles alike. I thought I'd post a couple of those as well since I have a great love for drawings on lined paper.

In other news, I miss my art school colleagues and I was thinking about getting back in touch with them. If that's you, post a reply. I'd love to hear from you!

In fact I'd love to hear from anyone looking at this site so post away, folks!

NICU Mural Art!

2009-09-11T19:08:00.000-07:00

Hello! It's been a while and I've been busy. At the beginning of this past summer I finished the Children's Book AND an entirely new, exciting project. These photos document the progress of my first mural project ever! I was actually chosen to be the Lead Artist on a mural project that Massart (art school where I did my undergrad) launched in collaboration with Boston Medical Center, a major hospital in Boston. I was not only able to work together with the hospital community in the design of the mural, but I had the responsibility and priviledge of finding/leading other artists who worked with me on a volunteer and hired basis. The excellent gentleman with the tattoo shown here is Richard, one of the many great volunteers who worked with me. Thanks to you all!!! Joe, the other Massart grad involved with the project, is dipicted next to our legendary "art-cart". Onto it's very small surface, we crammed all of our supplies! I'm the other guy, pictured with Joe on ladders and with Richard in front of our half-done window aspect. What a fun project. Our paintbrushes braved the smooth surface of a window and even ventured up to the ceiling!

We were allowed to create this mural on the NICU floor of Boston Medical Center. NICU stands for Newborn (or Neo-Natal) Intensive Care Unit, which is a place for premature babies and those born with complications. The hospital's youngest, littlest patients receive life-support and other forms of intensive care in this precious ward. The sheer intensity of what's at stake in a NICU make it a potentially tense place for families, nurses, doctors, and of course the newborns. Coupled with the presence of unfamiliar medical equipment and the sterile atmosphere common in most hospitals, visiting families could find this space especially intimidating. Hense the artwork! We made bright yet calming, cheerful artwork, mostly in the waiting room, to uplift the spirit of all people who enter the NICU area. We regularly received kind words of acclaim from the various hospital personel who pass near the NICU daily. It's good to know that, when you set out to brighted the day of others, the creation of art proves to be a valid, powerful way.

Finished The Book! (kind of)

2009-02-05T09:08:00.000-08:00

Hello Friends. Dave here to let you know that I've just finished working on the kids book. While I'm yet to figure out how logistic aspects of the project will work (printing, promoting), it feels good to have the artwork finished. So do enjoy!
P.S. sorry the images come up ginormous. I'll have photoshop at home someday.

SPF 30!

2008-09-04T17:07:00.000-07:00

Here are some things I've been working on for this kids' book. It's called "SPF30!: a young person's guide to the human body, cancer, and how skin cancer can be prevented". And that pretty much explains it. My client gave me full creative freedom with this one, so I decided to pretty much go bananas with it. Per her suggestion, I developed two middle-school aged characters, a guy and a girl, and, in addition, decided it'd be nice to just add a bunch of penguins in there too! Strangely, it works. So do enjoy, there will be more to follow!

Bulbflies and Noodles Patches

2008-06-06T10:10:00.000-07:00

Hello. I really like these two images. Not sure why. I guess I was just making images that, even though they were for assignments, don't have a super-specific context. They're just kinda cool ideas... lighbulbs with butterfly wings, and trampolining with pets. The Dog is noodles (my roomates' dog) and the cat is Patches (my late, great, persian cat who didn't know how to meow... she just sort of squeaked, it was awesome). Ok, much love.

Dream Illustrations

2008-05-19T08:50:00.000-07:00

Hello, Dave here. I'm just posting real quick to say that these images are of 5 dreams that I had this year. I've been keeping a dream journal. At first, it started off as an assignment from school. Now it's kind of escalated to something I'm really interested in. One or two friends of mine an I have been talking about putting together a big, illustrated, anthology of different people's dreams. They all probably be illustrators who contribute and illustrate their own dreams, so I'm imagining this to be a potentially awesome idea. So keep your eyes open for more developments on this, as well as the rest of my degree project pieces. Later!

Degree Project #2

2008-05-16T17:04:00.000-07:00

Here's my second image from degree project. This one is about my pastor Pat. I'm illustrating a quote from an artist named Makoto Fujimura. He's a Japaneses artist who grew up in Boston, studied in Tokyo, and works in New York. His work is phenomenal, please check it out: www.makotofujimura.com. The quote is "Art cannot be divorced from Faith".

2008-04-18T14:58:00.000-07:00

So here it is folks, the 3rd and final aspect of the "Unfashionable Heroes-of-the-Heart" series. This one may in fact be my favorite, bearing the brazen title of "The Un-Popularly Epic Hero-of-the-Heart Madcap, Braving the Terrific, Flying Jet-Cycle". Maybe one of these days, I'll make some sort of story to go with these guys... for now, you'll have to use your imagination. Also, this week, I finished my illustration degree project. Stay tuned for this and other work to be posted soon.

2008-04-17T16:28:00.000-07:00

Here's installment #2 for the "Unfashionable Heroes-of-the-Heart" series. This one, as previously mentioned, is called "The Clumsily Courageous Hero-of-the-Heart Doctor Swamp Rescue". I'm so pumped about these! They're just funny. Maybe I'll eventually think of a story to go with them, because they kind of have that feel to them. I'm making them with the idea of being a noble person in mind. This comes from my faith in Jesus: that the best people who do the best things (heroes) are always normal people who make extraordinary decisions; more often then not, the world views them as unpopular, lame, annoying, or just boring. But from an eternal perspective, such people are admirable and precious. And I love these people, Jesus was one (and so much more)... and it's my goal to live like that every day.

3 Heroes

2008-04-01T09:03:00.000-07:00

This is the first installment of a 3-piece series (a tryptic). I calling these guys the "Unfashionable Heroes-of-the-Heart". I dunno where I thought of this; each of them was just a random scribble in a sketchbook. But now they've become something else. Something hilarious. This guy's name is "The Un-stylishly Friendly Hero-of-the-Heart Guitarist". Soon to follow: "The Clumsily Courageous Hero-of-the-Heart Doctor Swamp Rescue" and "The Unpopularly Epic Hero-of-the-Heart Madcap, Braving the Terrific, Flying Jet-Cycle".

Birdies and Elephants!

2008-04-01T08:46:00.000-07:00

I had so much fun with this. In this class that I'm in, where we work with art directors and get assigned freelance jobs, we had to design a repeatable pattern for gift wrap. This project was so much fun! If anyone wants to see more variations of these designs, please just e-mail me... I got a bit carried away with this one and made a bunch of variations. And I'm looking forward to making more!

Degree Project # 1

2008-03-27T16:07:00.001-07:00

I'm in the middle of this big Degree Project for graduating from college. This is piece #1. My idea is to somehow take little blips of wisdom, which I've been finding in the work of several abstract artists, and put them into illustrations. The pieces are inspired by short quotes, which are taken from the words and writings of artists like Jackson Pollock, Makoto Fujimura, and Clyfford Still (if you haven't heard of these guys, google them, they're really cool). Each little proverb is portrayed as a different member of a small group of friends, artists, members of the Christian fellowship at massart. I'm one of them, so the first piece is a self-portrait, illustrating these words from Jackson Pollock: "There is no accident."

Banana Explosion!

2008-03-27T16:04:00.001-07:00

This is an Illustration I made for a sort of narrative experiment. Think of it as the 3rd frame in a 4-frame comic. Two others did the first 2 frames, and another illustrator did the last one. I wish I could post those too. It was a pretty fun project.

My Friend Sam

2008-03-27T15:54:00.000-07:00

That same year, as the "Cut Away" piece, I made this tryptic of my friend Sam. This guy also draws and paints. He's really into comics and is in the middle of making a graphic novel right now. The idea behind the picture is that he's starting in his hometown in Maine (he's younger, not by his features but because the time-of-day is morning), progressing to when he studied abroad in Japan (now it's noon), and then finally ending the day in his appartment in boston (ahh, sunset). For reference, I used my friend Matt G's apartment. I miss that guy. He lives in Vermont and is an awesome painter/illustrator!

Cut Away

2008-03-27T15:44:00.000-07:00

Here's a self-portrait I did a couple years ago. I was really trying to express my faith in Christ through this one. It's mostly inspired by this verse: "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." -Galatians 2:20. When I painted the piece, this verse was crucial for me. It still is.