Non-no Outfit

Got the latest copy of Men's non-no, a japanese fashion magazine, and wanted to sketch one of the outfits out.

Phoenix Rising, Three

Just a bit more work. When I have no creative energy left, it works to bring up an older drawing that I can do bits and bobs on.

And then sometimes...

...I'll actually like how a drawing is turning out. I drew this face without any references, and I like how different (and seemingly proportional) it is. I used a reference for the lighting, but it's not based on anyone. Let's see if I actually like it tomorrow, haha!

Watered Down

Testing the watercolor brushes and functions on Painter X.

Toon

My trainer friend bailed on working out with me tonight because he got my cold from last week. So I decided to work out on my own, but ended up having a really clear 'lightbulb moment' about how to do a cartoon of him. When images are so clear in my head, and easy enough to do, you do them. It's derivative of many other cartoonists styles, but that's okay - I think it looks like him somewhat. I think this worked out well.

After A Fashion

Still feeling like trying to recapture my line in fashion illustration, and after seeing a friend's friend's blog, I was inspired to keep to a rougher brush in Painter. I like the linework.

Face Value

I went to a fashion illustration exhibit today and I wasn't too enthused with all the work, although there were a few great pieces. But looking back on my own work in this blog, I spotted more flaws than I did gems, and I like my drawings of men more than I do my women, which was never the case before (when did that happen?... I always loved how I drew women). Mayhap I'm in a weird state of dissatisfaction. I feel like I need to go back to school and get a good feel again for drawing faces. So I drew from a magazine layout to just inspect how the features meld, in hopes finding newer standards I can incorporate.

Washed Hair

Still playing with Painter X's settings, but I was designing all night so I didn't have time to do much.

Eye Job

An older drawing needed a little nip and tuck after I decided to take a look at it again. I'm considering an invitation to be part of a group show but am not satisfied with any of my work to justify not making new stuff, but I haven't the energy, being sick and all. I mean, I did three strokes editing this and I'm calling it a day. See how lazy I am?

Sketchy, Too

I can't remember much of last night - this cold I caught last Thursday seems to be eliminating brain cells. I thin I was just sketching away with Painter X again, which is much more robust than I remember. I might have to buy this program.

Painter X trial 2

Painter X trial 1

Testing the newest version of Painter, which I'd avoided when I had an older, slower computer.

What It Is

Lots of changes I'm dealing with, which, in the scheme of things don't matter as much to anyone else but me. Been listening to a lot of old music lately and this kinda summed up some of the songs I kept listening to.

Phoenix Rising, Two

I'm being very persnickety with the way this drawing is forming because I drew the head and hair first, and m trying to make the body and pose retro-fit into it, but it doesn't sem to look right. The neck's a little too long, maybe the arm is angled wrong. Jeez, after 43 years of drawing, you'd think I'd have this down by now, right?

Phoenix Rising

The hair drawing always looked like Jean grey to me, so I've started to fill in the costume of Phoenix. Still getting the position sorted, though - there's something off about the anatomy.

Enthusiasm

One of my closest friends and I had a talk about what constitutes Artistry. I've often spoken about (and written about here as well) my own doubts about being an artist. For reasons too convoluted to get into, I have doubted what - to many others in my life (and even beyond) - seem quite certain of. But as the discussions went on, it boiled down to how one defines an Artist. This led to the idea that if I am, what am I known for? Or more importantly, what will I be remembered for, if at all?

My friend Rainer doesn't have any of my more 'finished' work, but the one thing he made a point of asking from me was a doodle of a particularly 'happy' woman, presenting her rather large breasts. This will constitute my oeuvre? My boobvre if you will. This one is a re-creation.

(H)Air, Two

I used to draw wind-blown hair as I saw other comicbook artists draw them, but as time goes on I do less stylized renditions and try to do what I've seen in magazines and editorial layouts.

(H)Air

I somehow forgot to do a sketch so picked up the stylus this morning and sketched out a quick face. I've been neglecting doing any comic-book based drawings so maybe this will become Phoenix or some other character.

Self Portrait, Photo Booth, Blue

Self Portrait, Photo Booth, Two

An impromptu self portrait.

Winded, Colored

This is similar to how I used to do my watercolors. It' times like this that I try to correct imperfections in the structure of the face (like her hairline, disparate centering of the nose and lips versus the eyes, etc), but I'm just not interested enough in fixing it. Ah well.

Winded

My friend Peter showed an amazing Spring show earlier today, and the hair was so undone and carefree it was the perfect complement to the meticulously designed yet equally carefree clothing. His models all had a look of disinterest in their eyes, so I tried to recreate that with just a few lines. Funny, while it looks nothing like her, it reminds me of model Cinthia Dicker. Or maybe Suzanne Lanza, haha! Must be the sleepy, sloping eyes.

Helmet

This is a very 80s-looking doodle I did while chatting with friends on the phone. I don't like her nose. Heck, I don't really like the drawing.

Uptown, Dowtown

There are so many rules about what to wear and what not to wear, unspoken codes among the fashion tribes of New York that it can be daunting to try and forge your own way. Among my friends I tend to push the envelope because it's who I am, but I fall prey to wanting to make the right impression anyhow. So it was quite evident to me that I had to dress one way for a work event (no matter how fashionable I'm supposed to be as the Creative Director) and shifting to another entirely different outfit for a later fashion afterparty. It is Fashion Week after all.
I wore a vintage vest inside out and belted it over an old brown John Bartlett l/s shirt and gray CCP pants, over a pair of very forward (because they're so conservative looking) Margiela laceless round-toed blugers. For all intents and purposes it was a conservative (for me) look, but not so much if you recognized the brands. Afterwards I ditched the belt and switched the l/s for a brown tee and drkshdw jeans, but kept the inside-out vest and Margielas. I rolled up one of my sleeves both because of the heat and for effect, and funnily enough, nearly all the guys at the party had their sleeves rolled up similarly (well, save for me being one-sided). Everyone at the fashion party was nearly a decade or more younger than me, and I felt odd even if they never seemed to let on whether or not I fit in. And, well, alcohol helps.

Drunken Forgetfulness

I was so drunk last night after my work event and my friend Robert's after party (I stayed a little longer because it started to rain and I was wearing my new Margiela shoes, so I opted for inebriation instead of soggy leather), that I forgot to do a sketch. Well, that's not true. I actually redid my 80s drawing a bit during the day, but I completely replaced the older one so I have no proof of work whatsoever. So here's an older lady updo for yesterday.

I was so distracted, after the huge work event and feeling I missed out on Roberts show, that I made an egregious error. I didn't realize it until this afternoon at 2 what I had forgotten to do, even aside from the drawings, that it's left a pall on my ...well, my life. My close friends will know what I mean, but I'm leaving it cryptic for here.

80s Redux

I've been rediscovering the 80s, but it's going beyond nostalgia, mostly because fashion seems to be rediscovering the era. I'm feeling huge pants and oversized volumes even more than I have been in the past few years, and there's something very appealing about this old style look again. My instincts are usually pretty spot-on, so it's just a matter of finding a way to modernize the look for now... must be why I've been living for Yohji Yamamoto lately.

Hisako

Reading some comicbook threads on CBR, I decided to do a quick sketch of Hisako/Armor, my favorite new X-character.

Simon, pt.3

I'm playing with Simon as the starting point. He never had hair like this in all the time that I knew him, but I'm taking more creative license. I used to do that a lot, and nowadays, I sometimes try to impress my models rather than follow my pwn muse. Either way, I don't know if Simon will ever see this when it's done, but I would hope that he would like it.

Simon, pt.2

Simon left New York, because I heard he was stricken with a horrible affliction. He went back to Australia as far as I know, but I don't know what has happened to him.

Simon

Simon was a friendly acquaintance I'd met back in the mid-nineties, when he and a partner ran a small cafe in the East Village. I exhibited there once, and then he and I would run into each other in the Meatpacking District when he still worked for a high-end furnishings store. Simon agreed to model for me since I liked his profile, but I never got to even start the sketch. Here, almost a decade later, I have.

Saturday, Aug.30th

From a technical standpoint, I love working with subtle colors when I do women's faces, because I know I can make them look too hard and drag queenish. But going though the latest issue of T magazine, I was reminded how much I like the theatrical, harder makeup styles currently getting editorial airplay... so I gave this sketch a quickie makeover.

Have I been drawing?

Yup. I just haven't been uploading. Last week's good but grueling photoshoot took it outta me. I think I'm still recovering! Will upload soon.