Thursday, April 13, 2006

Here's What I'm Working On


Sorry I've been so bad about posting, but here's what most of my sketchbook pages look like these days. I don't know why, but currently the process seems to start with a lot of words at first, which slowly, over time, resolve themselves into pictures. Also, I'm uncomfortable with showing work in progress. I suppose I should do some side sketches in the meantime, but I lack Rick's spontaneity, tending to become fixated on just one project at a time.

14 comments:

Mr Goodson said...

It's neat seeing your process. I'm trying to get better a caricature. I ought to get back to storytelling but that takes massive focus and dedication to get it done.

Tom Moon said...

I loved your caricature sketches Ellis. It's great to see people experiment and branch out into new creative forms.

Dok said...

too.... much... gaussian blur... can't quite... make out... words.

going to "sharpen" mode...

_negative legiblity!

going to "sharpen more" mode...

_negative legiblity!

going to new "smart sharpen" mode...

_too stupid!

aaakkkkk just have to wait for next cosmic theatre...

damn you, gaussian blur!

Skribbl said...

Looks like you're covering up a dictionary page! By the looks of the scribbles I think you know where the Grail is located!!!

BTW you should be a hand model.

Tom Moon said...

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Tom Moon said...

Heh heh, I was wondering if anyone would try and reverse filter the pages and read the words and thoughts I so carefully tried to hide. I find it strange that these pages full of words eventually boil down into a nearly wordless comic.

Thanks Skribbl, my anatomy teachers in college did used to point out point out my hands as being good for observing anatomical structure; the big knuckles, the visible tendons and veins, all those swirly wrinkles!

TopCat said...

Skribbl stole my thunder ... I was going to make a sketch of Tom's hand and post it ... perhaps a series of hands, each printed with different colors (and some holding Campbell's soup cans ...) or each drawn on a separate Post It note.

Maybe I still will ... sometimes thunder is worth stealing.

Tom Moon said...

Tom, your comment on thunder-stealing brings to mind something I read recently in a book about writing. The author is talking about how he has never come across a writer, no matter how great, who didn't admit to getting his ideas from others. He quotes Lionel Trilling- "Immature artists imitate. Mature artists steal."

Of course T.S. Eliot said,"The immature poet steals; the mature poet plagiarizes," so maybe one of them ripped that quote off from the other.

Dok said...

Heh, like those.

There's one similar that I've always admired from an idol of mine, Woody Guthrie. Pete Seeger asked him about some other songwriter who plagerized one of Woody's songs. Woody responded
"Oh, he just stole from ME. But I steal from EVERYONE." And he felt that was the way it should be!

One thing leads to another.

Tom Moon said...

Ha! That's good too. Then there's the ever-famous, "Steal from one person, that's called plagiarism; steal from many people, that's called research."

TomCarroll said...

You guys personify "useful threading..." as much as any other peeps, inanimate objects, or sentient Post It notes do ... in my book, anyway.

rickart said...

I think you should just print your notes as a book... they look intriguing! Directions to Amber or something...

TopCat said...

HA! Tom's "non art posting" got more comments than most of the "serious" posts ... I have to put together something special of a similar vein this week ... heh heh

Tom Moon said...

Maybe this means that we all have a great interest in not just the posted drawing, but in the process, the motivations, the intentions and the personal feelings that go into the drawing. The story behind the art. That's of interest to me, and what many of the posts deal with directly or indirectly.

Or it means I'm padding my posts by adding a lot of my own comments.