I Ain't Dead Yet!

Just when I thought the days of youthful cavorting with the likes of old friends through the steep streets of the Great City de Fogg were going to last forever, the iron bitch-slap of reality brought forth a sober attention to the awareness that tasks of great import, i.e. homework, had yet to be completed, and as such can account for every spark of energy spent, both physical and mental, over the last week and a half. And I must admit, I have yet to find myself wandering the streets in soiled underwear with my fingertips chewed off, as had been my prediction to the outcome of intense labor over school projects several times over the course of the summer. So perhaps there is hope for this honky-turned-city after all. And to maintain my growingly fierce, absolute and often-lamented reputation as one who always follows through with the completion of any task to the peak of my ability, regardless of size, difficulty, time, or any other obstacle threatening success, I present the fruits of my labor for all ye to witness, posthaste:

The image above is the second project for my Drawing From Imagination class, an interior in two-point perspective. The still life below, featuring an angry Mexican shaman using his "skull powers" to obliterate my coffee cup, was completed for my Chiaroscuro class. Following that are several more in-class drawings from Clothed Figure Drawing, and since we are encouraged to add character and situation to our drawings to enhance their status as quality illustrations, the last four were all done using the same male model with subtle licenses taken. Also, I have added a couple images of my new studio space at the Academy's Fine Art building, which now serves as my second home and place of sacrificial-goat-worship. The last picture can be used as a metaphor for city life.

A Reunion Of The Brothers W

Last weekend, Wayne, my might-as-well-be-brother-since-the-seventh-grade emerged from the treachorus sticks of West Virginia to experience the left coast and San Francisco. It was three long days of intense tourist action(minus the fanny packs, of course) in which we covered a wealth of ground, including a cheap walk through Chinatown, the windy Golden Gate Bridge, tourist infested Fisherman's Wharf, the downtown financial district, numerous rides on the Cable Cars and Alcatraz Island. For the sake of space (and my current mental capacity), I'll let the column of following photos speak on behalf of these experiences, saving personal embellishments and additional photos for another post. You can read and see Wayne's account of his trip here.

[click on the small-ass images to enlarge them]

Street Sense

The image above was the first project completed for my Drawing From Imagination class, and hence...was drawn from my imagination. The idea of this class is to learn various aspects of linear perspective in order to create realistic people, places, scenarios, etc. without the aide of visual reference. The buildings and shadows in this drawing were created using specific methods of perspective geometry to give it proper effect.

Below are two twenty minute in-class figure drawings and the first homework assignment from my Clothed Figure Drawing class. The goal of this project was to evaluate form by analyzing the elements of stretch and compression as exemplified by a flour sack, of which we were encouraged to embellish with character and narrative.

(V)PR: II

San Fran Gets A Little TRICKY

Yes. After ten long years of parental roadblocks, just-misses, and cancellations, I finally got to see one of my musical heroes, Tricky, in concert last night at the Independent here in SF. This British musical badass had been creating weird albums since 1995, all the while spinning this fan-boy's head into hazy whirlwinds of beats and riffs, creating a truly unique atmosphere. And since Tricky is frustratingly elusive when it comes to the public, especially in America, catching a live show is about as easy as trying to catch a gazelle by dressing up as a tiger. But the tears ceased to fall as I claimed a front row spot for the show, only to realize that I was standing to the right side of the stage, forgetting that Tricky consistently claims the left. It wasn't all bad, as I was directly in front of Tricky's lead female vocalist, Veronika, who is very easy on the eyes, not to mention a great singer. Having heard that Tricky shows can be hit or miss in regards to quality, I was thoroughly impressed and blown away; the musicians were spot on, the singing was great, and all the while Tricky stiffly lurched across the stage, throwing his arms in the air, shouting bits of verse and chorus like a possessed musical shaman channeling notes from the great unknown, while simultaneously directing the rest of the band with tempo cues. This spectacular show was complete with key songs from Tricky's repertoire, including a cover of Black Steel by Public Enemy, and several songs from his new album Knowle West Boy. Surprisingly, before the encore, Tricky made an announcement apologizing for not being one hundred percent, saying "it's been a rough night" as he had just gotten out of the hospital, and was playing despite doctor's orders. Can I get an AMEN?

(Visual) Progress Report

A light smattering of in-class studies from two of my courses, Clothed Figure Drawing and Chiaroscuro, featuring half naked girls and big balls...

Shape Happens

If one contemplates the idea of "Graduate School," then one might surmise of a concentrated effort on the advancement of personal/technical skills through large projects of professional caliber in an attempt to hone said skills to that of high level industry standards, whereupon the result of intense study yields a professional career in which one can attain greatness, no? Yet I find myself at the bottom of a canyon I once thought had been conquered long ago, i.e. "the Basics." Indeed, my first class, Chiaroscuro (the study of light and dark), begins with the study of basic forms and shapes that each and every object in this vast yooneeverse can be broken down into, such as spheres, cylinders and cubes. Our first task was to draw the shapes to master their form, through which I was brutally reminded that "Ah caint draw shapes fer sheeit."

This past weekend, apart from being sunny and beautiful as opposed to foggy, cold and supportive of mass delirium, I got to see an all-girl band, The Shes, at an outdoor block party. If you have not heard of this band before, it is most likely due to the fact that they are fairly new, have only a handful of songs, and are under the age of fifteen. Despite that, they were very good; especially their drummer, who's maybe four feet tall and could rival Joey Kramer from Aerosmith.

Below are more shape studies, a picture of The Shes, and photographic evidence that experimental weight loss studies should always be attempted out of public view (I'll bet it tasted good though.)