Inktober 2019 - Oh what a feeling

A day late but not a dollar short. . .So this was my most successful Inktober with the most posts and most views.  Yay!!

Below is based on the cover of a VHS cassette tape (yes, you read that correctly) for an aerobics workout.   You cannot see it from the scan, but this ink has a pretty cool red sheen.  It looks better "live".

                                      Robert Oster Aqua ink in Stillman & Birn

Inktober 2019 - Hellboy

I love brown/sepia inks and I love Hellboy comics.  Turns out that they go great together. 

This is based on a panel by Duncan Fegrado from Hellboy: The Wild Hunt comic series.  The most recent Hellboy moveie was loosely* based upon.

                                Birmingham Ink Jonas Salk Serum Umber


*And I do mean loosely based upon.  I mean, it would be like doing all three Lord of the Rings books into a single, one hour and 45 min movie.  The collected graphic novel is over 500 pages long and culminates Mike Mignolo's nearly three decades of Hellboy stories that started with the first Hellboy comics from the early 90's.  Sheesh!

Inktober 2019 - Rumble

Another quick sketch based on a comic book cover.  This time it is the Image comic, Rumble by John Arcardi that tells the story of Rathraq. . Warrior. . .God. . .Scarecrow (really, it is wild ride of a book).  

The ink is Birmingham Ink's Jonas Salk Serum Umber drawn in the a Stillman & Birn hardcover.

Vancouver and Whistler

Hiking in and around Whistler was amazing.  Around every corner was another, incredible vista.  This is the view of Black Tusk from atop of Whistler mountain.

             Watercolor on 230g acid-free, artist grade 100% cotton paper, 16.4 x 5.9"
                                              (click to enlarge)

On drive to Whistler (along the scenic and beautiful Sea to Sky Highway) we stopped at Shannon Falls Park.  It is just a short hike from the parking lot to the falls themselves.  Despite the clouds threatening to unleash their rain, I painted this onsite. 

                                    Watercolor on 270 gsm paper 11 x 8.5

On the Amstel

The first time I was in Amsterdam I was unable to sight see, so this time I made the effort go beyond the convention center.  Between the canal boat ride, the bike tour, and walking (~8k m on the last day), I really got to see this wonderful city.  However, only had one opportunity to do one painting (and the rain prevented me from finishing onsite).  Finished this at home and tried to be more playful with the colors (visited the Van Gogh museum between starting and finishing this for inspiration).

                                       Watercolor on 270 gsm paper 11x8.5

Back to the Rockies and Pikes Peak

"The mountains are calling & I must go

& I will work on while I can,

studying incessantly."

John Muir

                                   Watercolor on 270 gsm paper 11x8.5

The view from our friends back deck in Colorado Springs.  You can see Pikes Peak. . .peaking over the Rockies, cast in the late day shadows, a stark counterpoint to the snowy brilliance of the distant giant.  There is just something inexplicable about mountains, always calling.  To spend time even a brief moment in their presence is to be invigorated.

Tyrion Lannister

He drinks and he knows things.

                        Watercolor on extra weight 270 gsm mixed media paper

Jon Snow

Whatcha gonna do Jon Snow?

               Pen & ink and watercolor on extra weight 270 gsm mixed media paper

Et tu hippo (noto)?

What else should you first draw with an ink called Hippo Purple, but a hippo?  Maybe not a hippo that is so serious. . .

This combines some of my favorite things: Rober Oster ink, FPR flex nib, Serendipity Hybrid Pen, and Stillman & Birn sketchbooks.

                                Pen & ink on extra heavy weight 270 gsm mixed media paper

Spring. . . are you coming?

The recent bomb cyclone not withstanding, can Spring be around the corner?  Probably not.  So as we all wait, here is the first in a bunch of Spring-inspired posts.

This is a true mixed media, using watercolor, fountain pen ink, opaque watercolor, and Tombow brush pens. The background is a simple watercolor wash, the body of the butterfly's body and wing veins are Birmingham Lilac Wind ink, the wing cells are Tombow brush pens, and the white dots are Dr. Ph Martin's Bleed Proof White.

          Watercolor + pen & ink on extra heavy weight 270 gsm mixed media paper

Angry Andrew

The governor of NY always seems to be angry, but that makes for interesting creases and wrinkles worth sketching.

But really, this picture was just an excuse to fully try out G.C. Murphy Tarnished Nickle ink (Birmingham Pen Co.) that I used as an accent color on the Rusted Pipe.  It is a complex grey ink with blue and pink undertones.  I just love it!  To round out the picture, I added a touch of watercolor to give his face a bit of color.

         Pen & Ink on extra heavy weight 270 gsm mixed media paper (Stillman & Birn)

This is just a quick sketch but you can really see how complex the G.C. Murphy Tarnished Nickle ink.  Just so much fun!

Rusted Pipe

Much like the little tree frog doodle, this is also not watercolor but ink (with a splash of watercolor in blue).  I am really enjoying the Birmingham Pen Co inks, with such fun names like Carrie Furnace Pig Iron (the rusted red brown) and G.C. Murphy Tarnished Nickel (the steel black).  This is a bit of a departure from the stuff I have been doing lately.  Always nice to try something different.  

     Brush and ink on extra heavy weight 270 gsm mixed media paper (Stillman & Birn)

Merry Inkmas Part I

While I have not been posting a whole lot, I have been very active painting, but also drawing (I will post them in the new year).  Actually, I have be drawing and cartooning a lot. Below is a series of drawings using various colored fountain pen inks.  These are the first four, the next four (superheroes!!) will be posted after Christmas.

All of drawings were done in a Stillman & Birn Zeta series (270 gsm wt paper) 5 1/2 x 8 1/2 inch hardcover.  Ink and pen combo written below each image.

           Robert Oster African Gold ink; Monte Verde Intima (Goulet broad nib)

        Robert Oster Black Violet ink; Edison Nouveau Purple Reign (Spring 2018 fine nib)

      Birmingham David O Selznick Lilac Wind ink; Lamy Al Star Purple (fine nib) and a little bit of Daniel Smith rose of ultramarine watercolor for the background

Robert Oster Australian Brown and Orange Rumble inks; Edison Nouveau Premiere Galaxia (Fall 2018 extra fine nib) and Lamy Al Star Copper Orange (fine nib) 

Washington Valley Reservoir

I have no idea what this building is or what its purpose is, but I wonder about it every time I go hiking around the Washington Valley Reservoir.  It probably had something to do with controlling the dam of the west branch of the Middle Brook (the brown berm in the mid-ground) that created the reservoir. 

What ever its function was, I think it is pretty cool.  And having just finished  Mark Lawrence's second trilogy set in the Broken Empire (think violent post-apocalyptic Game of Thrones), I imagine the building holds a long metal rung ladder that goes deep below the reservoir leading to a bunker where Builder-ghosts seek to influence the events of the Red Queen's War.

                            Watercolor 11 x 8.5 on heavy weight paper 270 gsm

Madrid -- Palacio Di Cristal

Sketching buildings ain't my thing, but sometimes you gotta try and stretch, and do things that are not easy.  And sometimes buildings just catch your imagination.  The Palacio Di Cristal in Buen Retiro Park (literally, according to the wikipedia, "park of the pleasant retreat") in Madrid was one such building.  I did not have much time for sight seeing whilst in Spain, but I had to see this building.  There are many other interesting buildings and places within the park, but I thought this was the coolest.  

So under the barest of shade (it was another scorcher, around 100 degrees out), I sat and drew and painted for close to an hour.  Sometimes when I paint, people ask to take a picture, in Retiro park lots of people asked.  Despite the heat, it was a very lovely day.

                        Watercolor 11 x 8.5 on heavyweight paper 270 gsm

Below is an actual picture of the palace, and the pen & ink before the watercolors were applied.

Lugano, Switzerland

I just got back from a two week business trip in Europe and was able to do a few paintings in my new Stillman & Birn softcover (Beta Series).  I have been wanting to try it out for awhile and I must say it is pretty great.  It lies flat and handles watercolor washes amazingly as advertized.

Both of these paintings were done in Lugano, Switzerland (although the first one is technically Cademario).  The first is the view from the Kurhaus hotel, high up in the mountains. The second is down by Lake Lugano (sitting on a bench on Riva Vincenzo Vela).  It was so hot that the water was evaporating in the watercolor pans!

                                Watercolor 11 x 8.5 on heavyweight paper 270 gsm

                          Watercolor 11 x 8.5 on heavyweight paper 270 gsm