'Happy New Year 2014' | Daily Drawing #57. A quickie brush script video to bring in the new year.
Take Your Time
Take Your Time
Tools: Zig Clean Color Real Brush Marker, traced and filled with Micron pens. I just scored the Zig brush marker from ArtSnacks and I'm really liking it. The pointed tip has just enough 'give' and nice ink flow to create natural strokes.
I realize that I've become quite impatient the last few years (I blame the gadgets) and lately I've been making a more conscious effort to be present and to slow down and enjoy the ride. I started this morning's practice writing some phrases and quotes. I try to cram at least 30 minutes of drawing in each morning, even if I don't have an idea of what to draw. I keep a notebook close by with words, phrases and ideas in case I don't have that thunderbolt of inspiration right away. So, I pulled some quotes out of the book and started writing them out with the brush pen. I could see myself trying to letter them faster and faster. My perfectionist streak wants to crank out something perfect each time, (and usually I don't) so I get frustrated. Fast lettering is sloppy lettering, so of course I got more frustrated. I'm also looking at the clock, because as much as I'd like to sit and draw all day, I have paying projects on deck. Then I just found myself saying, "Take your time, take your time.." and then began writing the phrase. I liked how the letterforms came together, so a few iterations later, I was ready to trace and scan. The photo composite includes a photo I shot at Seaside Park, New Jersey last week.
Take Your Time (Tracing)
Procrastinate Now!
Procrastinate Now! (write a post about it later!)
Hand-lettered with Micron 1, scanned/colored in Photoshop. I started with smaller thumbnails until I got the letterforms the way I wanted them. I then scanned the thumbnail and printed it larger and did a clean lightbox tracing from that.
Scanned Thumbnail
Inked Drawing
You Should Know Better
A quickie script outline with a Micron 05. Scanned and colored in Photoshop.
Poor Planning (Measure Twice, Cut Once)
Bad planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part.
A 5-minute quickie. Sakura Pigma Sensei (0.6mm) on Bristol board. Scanned and colored in Photoshop.
The Things You Own End Up Owning You
“The things you own end up owning you.” - Tyler Durden, Fight Club
The full quote from the book Fight Club (by Chuck Palahniuk) goes like this: “The things you own end up owning you. It's only after you lose everything that you're free to do anything.”
I occasionally experience manic states where I suddenly feel the need to shed all the crap that's accumulated around me. This week, I'm in one of those states, so if you're close by, you might find something useful out on the curb.
Drawing: Micron pens on Moleskine notepad.
Fortune Favors the Bold
Take initiative, amplify your inner voice, risk failure, perservere. Inspired by the TEDx talk by Ernie Parizeau.
Lately, I've been leaving my drawings in more of a rough state. I have a folder full of drawings waiting to post, but they're in an unfinished state because I don't have time to get them clean enough to post. I realized that my goal should be to keep pushing out work and not worry so much as to how polished the final outcome is. The purpose is to develop a daily practice and to explore and improve my skills. Not every drawing will get a gold star and hung on the refrigerator door.
Also, I don't have the luxury of being able to sit at the drawing table for hours on end. I have paying projects and obligations to attended to, so I try and carve out an hour or so in the morning for this. I try to get the illustration scanned and colored by 9am. Sometimes I make it, sometimes I don't. There are other days where I'll just do a quick set in my Moleskine.
I'll go into further detail about my process in another post. There's work to be done:)
It's Time to Grow the Fuck Up
Unless you're an artist... A quick Sunday morning hand-lettering exercise. Scanned then colored with the paint bucket tool in Photoshop.
You Can Do Better
Hand-lettered, scanned/cleaned up in Photoshop. Traced/refined in Illustrator.
Prints, tee shirts and more available at Society6. Support starving artists!
Production photos: Loose drawing:
Inking in progress:
Scan. I originally thought of keeping the rough look, but eventually went for the clean, smoother lines.
you-can-do-better-scan
Eat Well, Travel Often
Life is too short for bad food and sitting in one place.
Prints and more available at Society 6. Support your local starving artist!
Tools: Hand-lettered, scanned/traced/composed in Illustrator.
At Some Point, Excuses Don't Matter
“He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else.” ~ Benjamin Franklin
“An excuse is worse and more terrible than a lie, for an excuse is a lie guarded.” ~ Pope John Paul II
Tools: Copic Multiliner SP BS, Brush Tip, Strathmore Tracing Paper. Scanned then outlined in Illustrator. Composition in Photoshop.
5-Minute Drawing: Make Something Cool Every Day
Here's a time-lapse video I did of a 5-minute lettering practice. There was no tracing, no sketching, no guideline, just a blank piece of paper and a pen.
Pen:Sakura Pigma Sensei (0.4mm) Paper:Canson XL Recycled Bristol Board
'Fearless' Hand-Lettered Logo
Fearless-with-Shadows
Hand-lettered on vellum paper, scanned then redrawn in Illustrator. Shadows and background texture created in Photoshop.
Meh.
johnsuder-meh-thought-balloon
Today's drawing: Waving my apathy flag proudly. Hand-lettered. Yawn. You probably don't care, but prints are available at Society6. Buy some. Or not. Whatever.
Lettering Portfolio of Pablo Delkan
A short video by artist Pablo Delkan showcasing his hand lettering. Beautiful work.
[via Kottke]
Plymouth Shutdown 1969 Slot Car Set
Yesterday this little beauty landed in my inbox courtesy of my old buddy John Skidmore. It's the front panel of a 1969 slot racing set called Shutdown! Plymouth Super Stock Racing Set. It was sold by Republic and manufactured by the Tool and Manufacturing Co. in LA.(An all-American product!) These sets were only sold at dealerships, so they're a pretty rare find.
What's not to love about this box illustration? Given that it was made in '68, we see the psychedelic poster style influence and big typography that was common in the day. It's even got the Road Runner character in one of the cars. Plymouth licensed the Road Runner character in the late 60's to early 70's for their advertising and for the emblems and styling of the classic Road Runner car.
I love this box cover, and since I was a big slot racing fan in my youth, I wanted to learn more about the set. The first thing I found was this video that shows the unboxing of a vintage set. I'm blown away by the level of detail this set has. Since the set was featuring Plymouth branding, the cars themselves were perfect in every detail. What really got me was the level of design in the supporting print materials. Unfortunately, we don't get to see the set run, but I can understand why – this set has all the original packaging, including the poly envelopes and car decals, full intact.
I couldn't find any of these for sale on eBay, but I'm told these can go as high as $400 (a mint set was up for bid at $725, but we're not sure if it sold at that price). I did uncover an ad for the set that appeared in Life magazine on November 8, 1968. Just $14.95!
