UPdate . . .

Wow! Does time fly by or what? Here I thought I was going to have more than 1 post this month and here it is - post #2 for the month on the last day!!!
Anyway, I've recently completed 2 images for 2 different competitions and here's hoping they place (even if they don't, I've at least got 2 pretty good images from them). So I'll be posting the sketches and finals from these here pretty soon.
Currently working on updating and fleshing out my portfolio. This is one of my blessings and curses as an artist - I'm not exceptionally great at any one thing or "style" yet. I'm pretty good at almost anything I try and I have the ability to roughly mimic most styles. This is not an opportunity to brag or gloat (oh wee, look at me!) but I am just noting some differences between types of artists. Some artists almost exclusively work in one medium (oil, ink, watercolor, etc.) and then in mainly one way, this to me seems very restricting (but of course hundreds of artists have been doing well for hundreds of years doing that very thing). Of course, do what you do and do it well. But, on the other hand there are so many great things that each medium brings to the table that it's fun to mix it up and do something different. Secondly, it's amazing to see the results of what each medium can do in the right hands. Chris Payne, for example, uses almost everything in a single image. It's incredible to watch him work and even more so to see the finished results. [If you're not familiar with him or his work please click on his name to view his site.] So I forge ahead in search of my "style" and preferred method of working. The only way to truly find it is by doing. And doing, and doing. Eventually, I WILL develop a certain look to my work and the next step is finding the ever elusive market for it. But everything in God's time, He has a plan and it will come together in His time. I can do nothing but continue to prepare for whatever lies ahead.
Onward and upward! I am looking forward to doing some more en plein aire landscape paintings and that should help. Also about to start working towards getting my CIW (Certified Internet Webmaster) certificate, which should begin this fall. So, I continue to grow and develop my skills as an artist and soon it will all come together.
Keep an eye back here for more sketches coming soon!

Illustration Academy

This is from a post I made to the Illustration Academy blog, just wanted to share it here also:
{you can read the original post and responses here}
I just saw this post so brace yourself, here it goes:

From my experience, there is NOTHING like the Illustration Academy. I went to a good art school for 4 years and I feel I've learned at least as much from the Academy during the brief seven week program as I did during my tenure in college. It pretty much changed my artistic life. I was floored by the amazing talent of not only the instructors but my fellow students as well. The sense of community at the Academy is so real and engaging that, even though it was hard work (and it is VERY hard work) I was very sad when the seven weeks were up. Second, the way the information is broken down and taught has a lasting effect. You'll remember things you learned at the Academy years later, and then it will just click - "Oh that's what Brent was talking about, I get it now!"
I have been very blessed to have been a part of the Academy and haven't been able to completely pull myself away from it. I look forward to it every year and if I could quit my job and be a bigger part of it, I'd do it in a second. Sterling said something during the initial introduction of the Academy to Sarasota that has always stuck with me - "I would come to clean the floors at night, just to be near these guys and the Academy." It is one thing to hear about it, another to read about it, but to experience it is a whole different ballgame.
Sorry to have gone on for so long, but to anyone who might read this and be considering taking the Academy, I would highly recommend this amazing program. It will be one of the greatest investments you'll ever make (especially in yourself).

In closing, go to the Academy if it's even remotely possible. Take advantage of the instructors AND the students. Become a better artist and picture maker. Continue learning and keep making art. Finally, work smart and have fun (that's really what it's all about anyway, right?).

Thanks to all you guys and gals, you really have had a huge impact on my life (especially Brent, John, Sterling, George, Mark, and "Lucky" Jon).

Tom

Been a while . . .

I know it's been a while since I've posted anything but it's been an incredibly busy last couple of weeks. I have been dropping in on the Illustration Academy which is hosted near me and if you've never heard of it you should definitely check them out. Simply put one it's one of the best programs I have ever had the privilege to be a part of (and this is technically my fourth year!). I am also on vacation this week and away from home as well as my scanner. I have been trying some new things and should have quite a bit to post when I return.
It's definitely great to get away and see some new things. I really enjoy traveling and would eventually like to travel more. I feel it would strongly help my work and broaden my artistic horizons; though some artists have a made quite a prolific career from staying relatively close to home. Andrew Wyeth comes immediately to mind and he stayed pretty much in one (regional) spot his whole career and did amazingly well! But each artist is (thankfully) different and I enjoy visiting places and looking at pictures of other places too much to not ever want to visit them. One day . . .
Well, time to get back to the drawing board (or sketchbooks). To my (possibly) 2 loyal readers, I hope you're doing well and thanks for following along.

Abstract Designs

Well, it's been a while but I'm finally getting a chance to post again. My computer has been out of commission for about a week, so I haven't been able to do much. Anyway onward and forward . .

I have been trying to experiment lately with some paintings based completely on abstract design. I am traditionally a realist painter, meaning I paint a tree, it looks like a tree. I do not naturally gravitate towards abstract art, it usually seems too random to me. I realize that it is painting in its truest form, painting pure design with abstract shapes and/or colors and not limiting yourself to a representation of an object or scene but rather expressing an interpretation of the object or scene (or feelings derived from). Technically, all painting is actually abstract design. I do enjoy some abstract art though it is a rare occurrence and given the choice between an abstract piece and a realist piece I will almost always be more moved and inspired by the latter. I can't help it, it's just the way I am.

So, in light of my abstinence of abstract art, I am attempting to broaden my horizons and experiment in an area that is outside of my comfort zone; in hopes that I will find some success here and it will ultimately make me a better painter, artist, and person. I hope you enjoy.

Voyage of the Dawn Treader

Well, my blog has survived it's first month. Congrats to me! AND today happens to be my youngest son's 3rd birthday!!! I can't believe he's already 3. He'll be driving before we know it.

Here is something I did a couple of years ago. Brought back to mind with the upcoming (and now pushed back) Chronicles of Narnia: The Dawn Treader. I had just finished the book and did these drawings for it. The first would be for a cover and the second is an interior page illustration. I really enjoyed the Chronicles of Narnia and especially the Dawn Treader, of course spending a couple of months just reading and rereading the book for the illustrations helped it to stand out. It had a great sense of adventure and I enjoyed seeing some familiar 'faces' again. I hope you enjoy these.

Sketchbook Pages

Here are some of my latest sketches and doodles. Sometimes meetings and phone calls are great times for me to get some mindless sketching done. It's a very difficult thing to just "sit down and sketch" something. Most times that is when the larger than life blank canvas screams back at you. In a sketchbook, pages should be screaming "mess me up, try something new" or something along those lines, but a lot of times my brain says "do something cool" or "just drawing anything," but anything can be very similar to nothing when nothing is consciously stirring around. Sketching while doing something else is wonderful because you get to access a portion of your subconscious thoughts. I've heard it described as daydreaming on paper and that's a great place to be.

Norman Rockwell had a wonderful approach to beginning a painting when he didn't have a firm direction. He would begin by drawing a lamppost somewhere on the page. It was a simple object that he could always draw and it would serve the purpose of 'jump starting' his brain. From this simple sketch, his paper was no longer CLEAN and he then freed himself to experiment in any direction. He would take this lamppost and draw something next to it and that would spark an idea. This would lead to another idea and so on and so forth, until he reached a solution he was happy to develop and paint. Leaving the simple lamppost far in the dust. Thanks Norman Rockwell, you've opened doors and paved paths that I'm sure we'll never quite see the end of.

Scribble Sketches

I was going through one of my old pocket sketchbooks and found this. Thought I'd share as it's very abstract and unlike most of my sketches. Maybe I should do more of these to 'loosen up'.

These are what I see:
A) The Gardner: quietly admires his flutterfly while listening to his headphones in his garden.
B) Sludge Monsters???

What do you see?