Bloomington Radio
As it usually goes after a very tedious piece (see sketch 5: Bloomfield Cows), I needed to blow off a little steam, and get reckless. That’s why I love this project: switching mediums… Read the rest of this entry »
Here is the original photo, taken in the fall of 2006 just west of Bloomington, IN, in Bloomfield. I’ve also included a photo of my savvy and responsive project35 production assistants, Furley (left) and Grover.
Bloomfield Cows
My trusty assistants: Furley and Grover.
This was a labor of love. I haven’t measured it but i would guess the final dimensions are around 40” x 30″. In the process, I was awakened to the biggest advancements of project35 so far: embellishment, adaptation and abstraction. Meaning, the organic nature of this piece (grass, cows, sky, flowers etc.) almost commanded me to take my own stab at reality. Don’t draw exactly what you see– create the scene as it should come across given the materials you’re working with. Read the rest of this entry »
What makes this one more time consuming, and difficult at times is the fact that you can’t put your hand down when you’re drawing. As a result, I’ve smeared the black ink so many times that I’ve ended up fixing (artistically, of course) mistakes more often than not.
I have been through 4 gel pens so far… Read the rest of this entry »
Note the glove– I know, it’s a good look, isn’t it? Like a cross between Scabs McGuillicutty and Tito Jackson. It helps, trust me. The ink smears, especially with any type of sweat or moisture rubbing over it. This one is taking a while, due in part to my personal schedule, but also due in part because it is a larger board. I’ve already gone through a full pen… Read the rest of this entry »
Well, before i went on my little Mexican vacation in July, i promised an entry on the occasion of projector maintenance. It seems that i wore the lamp out in my Grandfather’s projector. This bulb was pretty old, and i should have expected that.
When I cracked it open underneath, the burned out bulb read “300W”!! It was pretty hot in there and now i know why: the halogen bulb requires 120V and 300W to project a powerful light that’s bright enough for display. I went to Lowe’s and the max wattage they have there is ~20 or so. I bought one anyway and placed it in to see what would happen– idiot. The power surge blew it immediately after turning it on.
So i went the old standby, Stansifer’s Electronics. I had been there to replace my record player’s needle, and knew if anyone had a replacement bulb, they would. 1 week later, after they ordered it, i had my new bulb.
It occurred to me that I had not provided a reference for the Balboa Park piece (painted with black gesso). Here is the original photo, a snapshot taken of a statue of the Spanish explorer, Vasco Nunez de Balboa. The San Diego park was named in his honor, as he is claimed by some to be the first to see the Pacific Ocean. Others, including Wikipedia, give credit for its discovery to Ferdinand Magellan.
This photo was the original inspiration for Project35. Taken in the spring of ‘08 in Charleston, SC, while my wife (hence the beauty) and I were walking towards the harbor, on one of the cross-streets in the Battery. The town is as old as it is picturesque, and has managed to preserve itself so well. To think, these were the same city streets that witnessed the first shots of the civil war. I find that fascinating, and worth recording.
After long last, I have completed another piece. 2 vacations and much travel slowed me up, so I apologize to my loyal readers. This one is my favorite so far. I feel like each one is getting better. I ran out of ink during this one and switched pens. It turned out to be a great move, as the other gel pen that I had bought was 0.5 in thickness, and flowed like a gushing river. From now on, that will be my gel pen of course. One thing I learned: Keep multiple pens handy, as the quality of stroke decreases near the end of the pen’s life, and it shows. Luckily, I’m an artist, and can cover up those inconsistencies. 
Alas!
I learned a lot about documenting this piece, and how difficult it was to document the process photographically in a consistent manner. It occurs over several weeks (at least in this case it did), and I ended up removing it from the wall and working in different locations. Thus, my video time lapse will have to wait until I can document one of my next pieces in a more visually pleasing manner.
Stay tuned, and thanks for reading.
Readers:
I am going on vacation for a week. I have however started on another piece, as evidenced by the sneak peak video below. I plan to document the real-time progress of this one when I return, and edit down an attempt at this project’s first experiential video. Ultimately this will have music, and I will add a few touches of editing magic, but overall it will remain quite simple. And, true to the process.
Stay tuned and thanks for reading.
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