tons of toons

which wolf?

2012-02-01T12:53:00.000-08:00

This story was posted on facebook by a friend, and I got so excited, I had to post the drawing I did of the story. I included this story and illustration in a book of fables that one of my tae kwon do friends and I made for our instructor. He loves to quote little stories like this for his students to ponder.

how to swim in rapids

2011-09-12T14:37:00.000-07:00

Swimming downstream after ejecting from your kayak or canoe is a pretty important skill to know. My daughter, Maryn was writing about it at school, and needed a couple of illustrations to drive home the technique. So I put together this quick toon to get the point across. "face downstream, hold on to your paddle, keep your feet near the surface, lean back. The challenge is to show what goes on above the surface, and what goes on below the surface. So, I created a stylized water line, which shows some dynamic motion as well as defines above vs. below the surface. The fish helps that too.

Then Maryn wanted a drawing to show how to swim through "holes". So I penned up this little ditty below. It has a more dynamic water's edge as the hydraulic is also more dynamic!! For those who don't know, you are supposed to curl up in a tight ball to protect against impact with rocks, be patient, and hope the water sends you downstream. I really like drawing kayaking toons....

Fishing in Canada

2011-08-22T10:16:00.000-07:00

It has been a long time since I have posted, but I have done some more sketching, and I obviously hope to do even more. This summer has had its share of fun trips. One of them was to Canada and Alaska. While in Canada, with our friends, the Shaseks, we went out into the ocean on a chartered boat to catch our weight in salmon and halibut. I am afraid my sea-legs aren't what they used to be, so, in this depiction of our epic adventure, that is me with my tongue over the side!! We did get our limit of both salmon and halibut, but I was glad when we got back into the calm of Ucluelet bay!!

This drawing shows some pretty good action to it, which makes it a lot of fun. It represents the first draft. It will most likely be similar to the final draft, which will be in the upcoming calendar. Look for it at Christmas time.

another greatest hit!!

2011-06-15T14:24:00.000-07:00

This toon was first shown in my 2007 calendar. I had torn my miniscus (knee cartilege). It was a simple orthoscopic operation, and they didn't think I would need to be put out all the way. However, the doctors had me all hooked up just to be on the safe side. So, as the operation started, I was sooooo fascinated by the TV monitor, that I started asking them a lot of questions. That was about when the club came down. I saw the surgeon glance at the anesthesiologist and give a quick nod. That was the last thing I remember until I woke up in the recovery room!!

Greatest hits again and again

2011-04-25T13:32:00.000-07:00

Back in '07, my uncle, who had lived in Europe forever, died. My dad wasn't feeling great at the time, so he couldn't go to attend the funeral, so I volunteered to visit Paris to represent the family. I decided that taking my youngest daughter would make the voyage much more fun, and provide her with an opportunity to meet her cousins. We spent 9 days in Paris alone, seeing family, seeing the sites, and mourning the loss of my uncle. Needless to say, we had a really great time together. We did the Louvre, Notre Dame, La Rive Gauche, Tuileries Gardens, Arc de Triomphe, etc. The perfect tourists.

During our visit to Notre Dame, I couldn't help but have images from the old movie, "the Hunchback of Notre Dame". I believe it was Charles Laughton who swung out of the rafters of the cathedral to rescue the damsel in distress from being burned at the stake, and hid her out in the highest perches. So, this toon is the combination of the movie, and our visit to the site. It was also really fun to try to draw the facade of the cathedral. There is an INCREDIBLE amount of detail to that place. It certainly made me appreciate the masons of the middle ages.

La Ventana

2011-02-15T10:15:00.000-08:00

So, I just got back from Baja. La Ventana, precisely, also known as Hood River, South. It is a kite boarding, windsurfing mecca!! Very beautiful, with generally calm seas, though our first day there was pretty rough!!! But the water is relatively warm, and the sun was always shining. I figured with my surfing background and sailing background that kite boarding would be a breeze...just stand up and go!! Boy, was I wrong!!!! After doing countless body-drags, or chumming for sharks, I tried to stand up on the board. I ended up sailing through the air, going the wrong way, flat out horizontal, looking up at the sky, thinking, "Wow, this is REALLY going to hurt!" And after landing flat on my back, I decided that I was right...it did really hurt!

My son-in-law, Tyler, made it look soooooo easy!! He was Mr. Nonchalant!! Casually walking just enough into the water to put on his board, drop the kite, and GO! He had an incredibly relaxed attitude to the whole thing. He could catch HUGE air, 20' high, and travelling about 100' through the air, and casually land and go. It was beautiful to watch. So, this drawing is out of my sketch book, and I think it really captures the casualness with which Tyler kite boards. He is a joy to watch!! And I may try this again, but I have to let my bones forget what I did to them!!

tae kwon do-do

2011-01-28T15:37:00.000-08:00

I have been training in Tae Kwon Do for almost a decade now. Recently, my instructor went out on his own, and started High Desert Martial Arts. So, he is in the process of developing his own look; logo, color scheme, etc. He has always been a great supporter of my cartoons, from pages in my calendars, to a book of proverbs I illustrated for him. I even made a poster showing the different pressure points. At his former do jang, the little kids (ages 4-6) were the "L'il Dragons". So, I came up with something new...the high desert "Tae Kwon Do-Do's". The character is pictured here. I hope to get this stenciled, or silk screened on the backs of all the little uniforms. This character is exciting for me because he has a lot of potential to be in different scenarios. Hopefully he will become the subject of many coloring projects by the students, including fire-safety, dealing with strangers, courtesy, and a whole host of others. I think I can also draw this guy kicking the butt of some opponent. I will keep you posted as things develope on this new look!!

link to design blog

2011-01-21T15:01:00.000-08:00

Here is a link to my new blog site within my website. Let me know if you can make the jump. It is very exciting for me.

http://wrightdesignstudio.com/site/blog/natural-or-realistic/

greatest hits again

2010-12-30T10:02:00.001-08:00

I think Joel was a senior at Bard when he announced that he was volunteering at the local prison, teaching the inmates philosophy.

Immediately, this great image came into my head; huge thugs, crack heads, murderers, gangsters, etc. all sitting around a classroom with little, defenseless Joel commanding their attention. I can just imagine the heated discussions, like, "That guy, Ludwig Wittgenstein didn't know #($*%& about how the world works!!!" I prayed that the discussions never over heated, because Joel would have been an easy target.

But, no!! He commanded their respect and everything went very smoothly. The inmates were eager to learn!! As it turns out, Joel is showing a definite talent for this kind of thing, and is looking at getting a teaching credential, with an emphasis on special-needs kids!! It is always amazing, the things in our lives that spur us on to greatness.

Anyway, this toon is a fun depiction of my first image of teaching in a prison...

staying home

2010-12-14T14:12:00.000-08:00

This was on our '03 calendar, and I like this toon because it captures the essence of living at our house. It is very easy to just stay home!! We have nature running past our doorstep at about 100-800 cubic feet per second!! The river running past our house adds soooo much wildlife, and entertainment. When it is warm enough, our favorite thing is having that cup of coffee sitting on our deck watching the birds, river, dogs, cat,and anything else that wanders by. Plus, Chris has done such an amazing job landscaping our house that it is fun to watch what flowers are blooming, and what vegetables are getting ready to pick. I absolutely love where I live, and I think this toon really nails that. Even though the dogs in the drawing look a little wierd, you can still tell that they are relaxed and happy lying on the deck. Everything about the drawing reinforces a relaxed enjoyment of nature. That is what our house is all about!

greatest hits again

2010-12-01T14:07:00.000-08:00

After our amazing trip to Nepal, we had to get the house ready for a wedding!! We had the wedding in our own yard, and I must say...it was gorgeous!! So, I tried a couple of different compositions to show the wedding, and didn't like any of them. I finally just decided to draw the whole thing. So, I looked over our numerous photos, and tried to include everyone in the drawing. So, if you were at the wedding, look for yourself in this toon. You should be there. If you can't find yourself, let me know. This is a little like "find waldo".

preview of calendar

2010-11-22T13:20:00.000-08:00

This is a preview of the upcoming calendar. It is also the drawing that I submitted with my essay about becoming a 4th degree black belt. My poor honey has been sooooooo tolerant with me playing "master tae kwon do" for the last nine years!!
By the way...the test went well!

architectural novel

2010-11-18T09:41:00.000-08:00

I ran into one of my sketchbooks, and in it I found a bunch of drawings I did back a number of years, which made me almost want to do a comic strip. I had the background figured out. It happened when we had one of our really good electrical storms, and all the computers in the area had to be unplugged, or risk getting fried. Phone lines went dead. It was interesting. So, I came up with this...

That concept spawned the following development for a story line. Yep, the character sounds a little familiar, but stuck in a no-win situation. At least I am not stuck designing door knobs!! So, this is my image of what it would be like working in a large architectural firm. Not my cup of tea.

So, I put the two ideas together, and came up with this little ditty below. It has some fun potential for a continuing story...perhaps a graphic novel?? The concept I like here is showing how removed from Mother Nature our society has become, and how one instant of anger from Mother Nature, and we are TOAST!! Whether it is a bolt of lightning, a hurricane Katrina, or a psunamie. Perhaps there is something to be said about living in harmony with mother nature...

greatest hits #2

2010-11-12T14:04:00.000-08:00

I just love this drawing because of the fun time we had paddling the lower Columbia River. We stayed at Skamokawa, on the Washington side of the river, and paddled up stream from there, and down stream, to the beach where Lewis and Clark holed up for a whole winter, near the mouth. Our trip was guided, and the guide liked bird-watching. But at the same time, we could see the landscape, and paddled through some old indian villages. That's what those funny looking palm trees you see in the drawing are, old pilings from buildings that had been built over the water, and the tops were rotted off, and ferns had been growing them. They were all over the place!! The birding was great, and obviously, we saw some bald eagles that were spectacular!

topo duo

2010-11-01T13:16:00.000-07:00

Hold the presses!! I found a bunch of old sketch books from years gone by this last weekend, while cleaning out the guest bedroom. This drawing is one of my favorites.

Two kayakers, in a Topo-Duo, in a very UN-harmonious situation. Yes, dear reader, I draw from experience. Chris and I have paddled the Topo-Duo down just about every major river in the West, including Middle Fork Salmon, Main Fork Salmon, Colorado through the Grand Canyon, the Rogue, Deschutes, Umpqua, McKenzie, and I don't remember where else... There have been times when I order us to paddle somewhere, and Chris has told me in no uncertain terms...."NO!" At one point, we were going to paddle back into a rapid to help out a raft that was lodged on a rock. As I paddled forward, Chris was paddling backward!! She wasn't going to have anything to do with that nonsense! That was the episode that spawned this drawing.

I think I have learned over the years, that this is a team effort, and both parties need to be in agreement before anything gets done. At least I hope I have learned...maybe not...our latest adventure in the Topo was on the Rogue, and we ended up going over lower Grave Creek falls upside-down, dragging both our heads over the rocks; all because I thought I could make a spiffy move above the drop. I forgot to include Chris in this decision.
Old dog, new tricks??? hmmmmmmm

Pendleton Roundup

2010-10-28T15:43:00.000-07:00

Here's a fun one, just because it exudes excitement and motion. Besides, cowboys are just plain fun to draw!! This is from my '95 calendar, "Welcome to Oregon". It featured fun things to do or watch throughout the state of Oregon . This drawing represented the Pendleton Roundup, which has gotten to be quite the event, attracting pro rodeo cowboys from all over the country. I haven't been to see it yet, but have heard that it is really fun. Hopefully I will get to see it b.i.d. (before I die).

first greatest hits

2010-10-25T13:57:00.000-07:00

So, I have begun working on the calendar for 2011!! Wow, I have been doing this for a long time! My first calendar was in 1994, so that's 17 calendars I have put together. So, I thought it might be fun to do a "greatest hits" series of posts. I will be selecting my favorite drawings, for whatever reason.

My first "greatest hit" is this series from a wonderful trip to Nepal, back in the '03 calendar, which means we were there in '02. I chose to post both these drawings because they were in the same calendar, and were from the same trip. And what a trip it was!! Lindsay did an amazing job of planning our itinerary. She was there for 6 months or so, while our trip was to visit her for 2 weeks. Wow, hiking, paddling, more paddling, riding elephants, bird watching, shopping,and tons more!! So, two highlights were riding elephants, and, believe it or not, battling leeches during our 4-day trek. Our elephant ride really did come face to face with a rhinoceros!! Quite a stand off. Fortunately, our elephant won the argument. Then the battle of the leeches wasn't necessarily a good highlight, but certainly something all of us will remember.

I think these toons really capture the feeling of the time, and have a spot of humor as well. They were colored with my felt markers, which is less formal and precise than Photoshop, but a lot of fun to work with. So, the feeling that these toons evoke from me make them one of my "greatest hits."

pygmy owl

2010-10-06T18:09:00.000-07:00

I found this one in my archives, and although it never made it to the calendar, it catches a fun theme. Pygmy owls are, as their name implies, really small. Mean, but small. When one landed at our pond, there was actually a pretty big hub-bub. The other animals that come to our pond were pretty agitated. But this LITTLE bird, being a bully and hunter was an interesting juxtaposition. So, that is what spawned this sketch. I am sure the Pygmy Owl has a short person complex.

happy birthday

2010-09-29T09:33:00.000-07:00

My wife's birthday was two days ago, and I did a crappy job of addressing it. I was too wrapped up in my own affairs to pay it much attention. Not a good way to keep a healthy relationship!!

It is not that I didn't care, but I didn't take the active role in making it a special day for her. So, it ended up being just another day. Even after all these years, birthdays are special, and need to be treated as such. So, to those readers who are new to the business of relationships, remember to remember your better half's birthday, and do something special with him/her. It is now too late for me to make my better half's birthday special, but watch out for next year!!! and the year after!!!! and the year after that!!!

So, this little toon is simply posted to tell my honey that I really do love her, and once again wish her a happy birthday...even if I didn't do right.

downtown banners

2010-09-10T18:58:00.000-07:00

All right Everybody!!! I get to honk my own

horn!!! This is a photo of banners I drew for the Bend Downtown Association. These are up all over downtown. Another company did the graphic layout, but the cartoons are MINE!!! It is always fun to fantasize, and think that maybe I am getting famous. Anyway, these toons show some fun whimsey, and I am always into fun whimsey! So, come to Bend and see my posters!

House in Miranda

2010-09-03T10:55:00.000-07:00

Every once in a while, my drawings overlap with my
profession, designing houses.
This is a drawing from my sketchbook. I was at my sister-in-law's house up in the hills of Humbolt Co., and had some time to spare. So, I decided to sketch her house. It is a different looking house, obviously vintage 70's hippy-style. It is very cool, though, with a lot of beautiful redwood. Anyway, I think I caught the essence of the design well, and it reads very clearly also. It is fun to look through old sketchbooks and come across little gems like this.

good wolf vs bad wolf

2010-08-26T13:11:00.000-07:00

This is a drawing I did for a book of fables that I helped
create for my tae kwon do instructor and the owner of the gym. I illustrated a whole compilation of stories. It was a lot of fun, and Master Graff has used the book a lot since, reading the fables to his students at the end of class. It is very rewarding to know he uses the book.
This fable is of a native american grandfather who is telling his grandson about two wolves, one very good wolf, and one evil wolf. The grandson asks, "Which wolf is stronger?" The grandfather replies, " Whichever wolf you feed more."

think about it....

2010-08-07T17:26:00.000-07:00

My friend, Judy, asked for a couple of drawings that showed a person who is somewhat overweight, but not really fat to represent her marketing for a product called "Heavy Hands." That presented a challenge for me, because that meant that I had to accurately depict a character to fit a description!!! I have never been good at boundaries.

So, I worked it out with my middle aged character, Flora (see Bob and Flora post 11/30/2009). I think I captured her essence quite nicely. Her character is getting further developed. She is still cute, but certainly middle aged, overweight, and no sense of style. But you gotta like her. She just oozes, "Nice".

Then I added my new character, a young lady, again overweight, but not seriously. She is a pseudo-jock, and wants to work out. She is even using "heavy hands".

I drew these as pen and ink, then scanned them to color them in Photoshop. Again, I think it worked out quite nicely.

wrong turn

2010-07-21T09:37:00.000-07:00

I don't know if I have already said this, but I drew toons for a running magazine published here locally. This is one of the toons, illustrating a story about a marathon runner who missed his turn and ended up somewhere out in the boondocks! He obviously ran more than the 26 mile marathon. I liked the composition with the high-tech (exhausted) runner, contrasting the relaxed, pipe-smoking hillbilly. Then, colored in photoshop created some fun depth. A short stint as a professional toonist!!

discovering gravity

2010-07-16T09:59:00.000-07:00

Okay, it has been pointed out to me that I have already posted "Chemo-girl." So, I was just reviewing a little bit so you don't lose track of what I have done!

Now this toon was a special present for Joel on his 21st birthday. I researched and placed many quotes from his favorite philosophers. It is acutally kinda hard to read, but my goal was to use the written portion to create visual texture. I think I accomplished that, but this would be a good concept to try again sometime. I really like the character, walking along, pondering the cosmos, about to discover that gravity works (falling apple). He is rather R. Crumb-ish.

The concept is really quite simple, but one can spend a long time looking at it, trying to get the quotes. By the way, my favorite quote is by R. Crumb himself. Try to find it.

chemo-girl

2010-07-13T14:00:00.000-07:00

Here is one of my photo shop toons. I had this printed on a t-shirt for my sister-in-law to help her spirits while going through chemo-therapy.

I really like this because it is empowering, bright, shows a lot of action, and just makes me feel warm and fuzzy!!! How hip can you get, while losing all your hair, and one breast???!!!! This is hip!!

the photo shop coloration really helps punch out the colors, and shows the third dimensional quality, the roundness of the figure.

Fun stuff...

tae kwon do kick

2010-07-07T13:53:00.000-07:00

So, it is high time I update my tons of toons. I scanned in a couple of fun images. This is one of them. This was drawn about 6 years ago, when Maryn and I were both red belts in tae kwon do. Obviously, this is a portrait of me holding the board while Maryn executes a great running side kick. Yes, it is exciting to jump and kick a board, but is also exciting to be the board holder!!! Fortunately, Maryn's kick was precisely in the middle of the board, and my fingers lived to hold another board!!
This image grabs me because of the action, and the shadowing of the primary characters. But it also shows distance by including the masters, who are the ones giving the test. Those are the three guys sitting at the table in the background.
These belt tests were always nerve-wracking and exciting, and the board breaks were full of victories and failures. There were countless young students who did not break their board, but would tear-up as their hands or feet would quickly hurt like hell!! The key was to regroup, breathe, think about the technique to get the job done, and DO IT!!! Not so easy when your hand feels like it has been broken into a hundred little pieces.

whitewater rodeo

2010-06-10T14:11:00.000-07:00

Right now, all the rivers are up, and flushing tons of water eagerly to the sea!! I am looking forward to hearing my friend Robert's tales of adventure on the Bruneau/jarbridge river in Idaho. It was flowing at over 2x the recommended flow...ooh, exciting!!

AND I AM MISSING IT!!!

So, with that in mind, I thought I would post my image of a whitewater rodeo at Bob's Hole, on the Clackamas River in Estacada, near Portland. When I drew this toon, rodeo's consisted of jumping into a nasty hole, and trying to look cool...a smile...twirl your paddle...some have even juggled balls while riding sideways in the hole. Today, the dynamic is completely different. Now, it is how many acrobatic tricks can you do in the hole...cartwheels, flips, etc. Crazy stuff they are doing now. As for me, I just try to survive while in a hole like Bob's Hole. It is scary stuff!!

Enjoy the spring runoff!!

mom

2010-06-02T09:49:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted a blog in waaay too long. Too many things going on. Mostly, helping Mom pass into the next existence. It wasn't easy to watch her wither away. Now she is gone.

After her passing, I had a chance to go through some of the old pictures in her albums that were hidden in every nook and cranny in her house. I am looking forward to going through all the other scrap books that are scattered around. Anyway, I found this photo, which I love. Mom is 19 in this picture, before she married Dad. I believe this was taken during her first "date", a trial run on Dad's boat, "Carola". She is so gorgeous!! and full of life!! She remained so full of life, right up to the end.

I will miss her...

tae kwon do

2010-05-14T13:29:00.000-07:00

Here's another toon from my days at Berkeley, working with whoever it was that had some good ideas. I mentioned him in one of my posts awhile ago. This caught my eye as I was going through my archives because, as it turns out, I am now very into Tae Kwon Do!! Go figure!

This drawing is my imitation of a New Yorker cartoon, kind of nondescript. You have to look deep to get the humor. The punch line is in the sign in the window. I hope you can read it. If you can't, let me know.

An interesting sidebar here: UC Berkeley is host to the oldest Tae Kwon Do tournament in the United States. It started in 1973. That is just about the same time that Tae Kwon Do spread outside Korea!! Oh, wait...it was also about the time I was at UC Berkeley!! If I had gotten into it back then, instead of 8 years ago, I would be an uber-experienced grand master by now. Funny how things work out like that. Of course, I had a lot of other fun experiences in Berkeley during that time....

Joel's back saga

2010-05-11T09:43:00.000-07:00

It has been a while since I posted, but I finally got inspired!! This toon is from our calendar, 2007. In 2006, Joel had a whole bunch of hardware inserted into his back to straighten out his scoliosis, and we all thought that everything would be wonderful, and he would be straight upright, and everything would be rosey, and the weather would be sunny from now on, and there would be peace on earth!! This toon gives a direct quote from Joel's doctor at the time! I added the nut and bolt lying on the table later, because, as it turned out, the operation didn't work, and it BROKE (and there was no peace on earth, and it still rains)!! He had hardware floating around willy-nilly in his back, just waiting to poke into his vertebrae, and damage his central nervous system. Needless to say, it has been a difficult few years for all of us, but especially for Joel, who has been in pain the whole time, dealing with broken hardware on two occasions, and fighting back infections. Well, as of this last week, I am pleased to announce that all that hardware that was in his back, now lies in a glass jar, and for the first time in four years, Joel is relatively without pain!! He is now back in his home in Urbana, Illinois, recovering from his recent surgery, and fighting off the infection he has been carrying in his back for the last four years. GO JOEL!!! We are all rooting for you! You rock!!

Deer battles

2010-04-16T09:10:00.000-07:00

As I was sipping coffee this morning, gathering my strength to face the day, three healthy deer walked past our window, just outside the fence line of our garden. I figure that as long as they are outside the fence, I'm okay with them. When they get inside the fence, then I have to deal with them.

Anyway, between the deer and the time of year and the fact that everyone is thinking about gardening, I thought I would post this little ditty about gardeners battling deer. I did this poster for Heart-Springs Design, a wonderful landscape design firm that I have worked with for the last 20 years. My wife has worked for them for about the last 5 years. A very creative and talented group. Anyway, the owner of Heart-Springs gives a lot of seminars, and one of the topics was, "How to make a deer-proof garden". So, she needed some artwork for the class, and Voila!!

It is always a challenge to make deer look evil, but I think the grimace worked pretty well. And with each character wearing boxing gloves, they are on a level playing field, in that neither one has the advantage. I think that is pretty reflective with the reality of gardens here in deer-country. It certainly seems like we are always battling the deer without gaining the upper hand.

2010-04-08T15:38:00.000-07:00

This is a fun toon, again drawn in pencil. It has a brightness to it that exudes fun.

I overlaid this drawing on a starry background, with a comet tail behind the kayaker, and titled it "to infinity and beyond!" I have lost that one, though. Damit! When I find it, I will post the whole thing. Meanwhile, enjoy this piece of it.

surfing in the 70's

2010-03-31T09:27:00.000-07:00

Here's another from deeeeeep within the archives. In the late 60's and early 70's, I was getting very into surfing. At that time, Rick Griffin was a pretty regular contributing cartoonist for Surfer Magazine. He had developed the famous surfing character, "Murphy".

Well, about this time, his "cartoons" became real pieces of art. You can Google the guy and see a lot of his posters of the 60's and 70's, as well as posters from today. Somewhere within this span of time, he found God, but that's another blog...

His art is unbelievably wonderful though, so I spent some time trying to create that graphic presentation. So, this example is an attempt using just the old colored felt tip pens and regular notebook paper. I am sure I did this during one of my really boring classes in high school. You can see that the paper has started to decay as you can see the brown area in the upper lefthand corner. This is only one of many pages, which I will post sometime soon.

Surfing and cartoons....another wonderful combination!!

bungee jumping

2010-03-26T10:58:00.000-07:00

This is a fun toon from one of my earlier calendars. Bungee jumping has always struck me as a little bit suicidal. Basically, I think it is nucking futs!! But there is also a part of me that thinks, "Wow, that would be a rush!!"

So, I think this character's face really captures that sense of terror, with a bit of exhillaration. And everyone in the background is having a good laugh at his expense.

I also like the perspective of this composition. The guys on the bridge are an integral part of the total composition, but are way in the background. So, we have a pretty long depth-of-field to this one. It is also an inaccurate perspective in order to get the pieces to all work together. In other words, while the guy jumping is directly above you, the bridge in the background had to be off to the side so you could see the people standing there watching. But, with cartoons, you can bend the rules...

I really like drawing toons...

various sketches

2010-03-18T10:16:00.000-07:00

This entry represents something that I REALLY need to do more of...simply going out and sketching people, things, whatever!!

When Chris had her store, I used to be able to go with her to different markets, and while she was busy in the various convention centers buying children's clothing, I would be wandering about aimlessly with my sketchbook. It can be a bit frustrating, but sometimes very rewarding. The frustration comes when either what you draw doesn't look anything like what you are observing, or you create a wonderful sketch, and your subject leaves just before you finish it. To eliminate this second form of frustration, I got pretty good at "fast sketching", a process of getting the gist of the subject on paper as fast as possible, then filling in the details at my leisure.

You can see from these sketches that the subject that is the most developed is the architectural post. You might think that is because I have a background in architectural forms and features. You would be wrong! That capital is well-developed because it couldn't leave before I was done sketching it!! Yep...inanimate objects can be very rewarding as well!

2010-03-04T13:57:00.000-08:00

Here's another from my whitewater calendar of 1994. I believe this one was also published in Paddler Magazine, which was then called River Runner. Anyway, I later experienced some rough sea kayaking at Wilapa Bay, and I had about as much fun as the guy in the back seat in this toon. Not much!!! The only difference was that Chris, who was in the front seat was having WWAAAAAY less fun than the guy in this toon. Sea kayaking in rough conditions just isn't that much fun!! It is a lot of work!

it is easier than it looks

2010-02-25T13:56:00.000-08:00

I kinda hate to post this one, cuz now the secret is out...the guy in the stern really doesn't work very hard. I am sure we are important, as the cartoon states, we have all the control of the boat from back there. But we certainly don't work very hard!! This toon obviously has some self portrait similarities, only this one includes my honey, who has faithfully paddled the front position for years. By God!! She sure keeps my boat moving forward!!

sketchbook revisited

2010-02-17T13:23:00.000-08:00

Again, one of the fun things about sketch books is that you can draw anything...even photos out of magazines. So, I found this photo of Jenny McCarthy in People magazine and gave it a shot. She looks a little creepy here, but there are some aspects of this drawing that do capture her....oh, like the big mouth...Then of course I have to include a "Mr. Snoid"-like character to make comment, or, in this case, a bug. That bug, by the way, is the same bug that became the logo for Gyminy Crickets, my wife's baby movement class she ran in here a gizillion years ago. That character always comes in handy.

Register to Vote

2010-02-08T12:19:00.000-08:00

Another toon from the archives...about 1975...

I think we all know who this character is....

This reaches back to my "activist" days at Berkeley. I tell you, I will use any excuse to draw another toon!! This is certainly one of my best charicatures. Nixon was an easy mark, though, and I think I caught his essence pretty well. Caricatures are definitely NOT my forte. I have tried to draw them a few times, with very limited success. The key is to find the character's most prominent attributes, and exaggerate them. I should try Obama's attributes. He has a lot of very distinctive facial details that would be fun to exaggerate. I will keep you posted.

point-counterpoint

2010-02-04T09:10:00.000-08:00

It was suggested by CAB that I present a "point-counterpoint" to the gardening experience at our house. So, yesterday's post was the "point". And today I present the "counterpoint", the on-going war we are having with various animals that like to take advantage of the juicy vegetables, and plants in our garden.

The fence, depicted here, was new when this picture was drawn, and still little critters sneaked in to the garden. So, CAB put up bird netting to catch the little suckers. Sure enough, we caught a small chipmunk, and he died tangled up in the netting. A small victory for our side!!! We left his carcass hanging in the netting for all creatures, great and small, to see the consequences of messing with our garden!!!

Believe it or not, that seemed to help. However, the battle continues, and we will see what new enemy presents itself come this spring.

gardening

2010-02-03T10:04:00.000-08:00

Here's a toon from an older calendar drawing. I like this cuz it depicts our garden, and our efforts in the garden quite well.

As much as the guy is grimacing, trying desparately to pull out whatever weed that is, I think this drawing portrays great vibes. It shows the lush foliage, abundant vegetables, and great joy being able to show the huge tomato!

This is a depiction of our garden, and I have drawn a lot of depictions of our garden. I just think this captures the feeling. Our garden is a big part of our summer. Every winter, about now, Chris starts pulling out the garden catalogs, and figures out what to order and puts together a planting layout for when the snow thaws. Whenever we have a warm spell, she thinks it is time to plant again. As much as I bitch about it, I do actually enjoy the gardening part of it. It's the moving of rocks that gets to me more than anything. And our yard is full of rocks!!! Give me a small patch of weeds to pull on a nice sunny day, and I will be quite content. I think it will get more enjoyable as I get older. That's what you do when you retire, right?

wierd critter

2010-01-25T09:58:00.000-08:00

I sat down yesterday to watch the NFL conference title games, this one between the Jets and the Colts, and felt I had to do something productive at the same time, so I got out my sketch book to draw. Just draw!

It is a strange sensation to just sit down and draw something. You have that blank piece of paper staring at you, saying nothing! I know that there are a number of things I am supposed to be drawing, but I didn't want to deal with them. I just wanted to draw. So, this little ditty is what I came up with....ooh, I am not sure this is a good thing....Maybe there are some deep, underlying psychoses working their way to the surface here. It just sort of morphed into this wierd critter holding a skull in a bizarre moonlight by a castle with a grom hanging on his back. Does it mean anything? I don't think so...just fun to draw.

It was actually bringing out some of the Gris Grimley art, with an ode to R. Crumb. (the grom on the back). Who knows...anyway, enjoy the moment.

the newsletter comic

2010-01-18T13:11:00.000-08:00

Well, I posted the cover of the OKCC newsletter last post, so I thought I would go ahead and post the portions of the newsletter that followed my theme. So, enjoy Kaptain Kayak and his adventures battling those fiendish engineers of Hoover Dam!!

Kapt. Kayak!!!

2010-01-14T09:31:00.000-08:00

There was a short period of time when I was the editor of the Oregon Kayak & Canoe Club newsletter. It seemed like a pretty long period at the time as I put in a lot of work on this thing. But my feeling was that if I was going to be doing all this work, I was going to format the newsletter MY way!! Of course, I love comics! So, hence, this cover from one of the issues of the newsletter. What was fun about this was that, in addition to the cover, the story played through the whole newsletter, along with all the regular articles. Sort of a sub-plot to the theme...

Of course, covers are the eye-candy to any successful comic, with great graphics, action, and tension to draw the viewer to buy the damn thing!! So, this being true to its roots, I tried to get a lot of action (look at those flying bricks, caused by Kapt Kayak crashing through the wall), tension (obviously Kapt Kayak doesn't like that fiendish engineer, who just so happens to look a lot like mad Dr. Frankenstein. And the engineer looks pretty scared, too), and lots of fun graphics (shading, titles, angles, etc).

I really liked doing this one. I will post some of the inside of this newsletter at another opportunity.

kickin' in the rain

2010-01-10T21:12:00.000-08:00

Wow, how time flies when you are having fun. I can't believe it has been this long since my last blog.

So, this little gem is another from my sketchbook. I was searching for something to draw about Tae Kwon Do summer camp when it rained so hard. This was drawn at the same time as the blog I posted on Dec 18. So, instead of singin' in the rain,, I thought kickin' in the rain would be more appropriate.

I have also always liked the perspective of having the foot be the biggest piece of the composition. You can see here that the foot is probably 3x the size of the guys head. Then of course to emphasize the fact that he is in the rain, his other foot is in a puddle.

So, this isn't a great piece, but just a fun little ditty.

I will try to get more on here....really....

only you can prevent forest fires

2010-01-06T14:07:00.000-08:00

I apologize for not getting more toons out, but suddenly, work beckons!! But this is fun, so I will do the best I can, so keep checking back.

So, this toon was drawn for my favorite landscape designer who has worked with me on a number of projects. She specializes in native, deer resistant, and fire resistant landscapes. She also does a lot of seminars about landscape theory here in town. So, she wanted a toon about putting forest fires on notice that they will be punished (as in fire resistant plants). So, the courtroom scene seemed appropriate. Giving Smokey the Bear personality was easy...been done already. But, making fire the bad guy was fun. He not only has a personification, but he is a complete insolent jerk. He looks a little anarchistic, defiant of what Smokey is accusing him of. Of course, the ranger and the judge are all accusatory as well. But don't you just love his little shoes??? He still has to be able to walk...
A little photoshop shading helps punch out the characters.

overladen canoe

2010-01-03T18:16:00.000-08:00

This is another from my first calendar, 1994, whitewater calendar. This was inspired from some of our expeditions...on lakes. But it would be fun to think about what it would be like to run rivers so laden down with gear.

To really get an idea of the ultimate over-laden canoes, you should read the story of Teddy Roosevelt's first descent of the River of Doubt, a tributary of the Amazon. Look at the pictures. 25 foot canoes weighing about 25000 pounds, with about 2 inches of free-board. Crazy stuff.

Open canoer

2010-01-01T21:35:00.000-08:00

So, this is a fun little ditty I did for the Lower Columbia Canoe Club. They didn't go for it, but I really like the R. Crumb look to the character. And I figure I can use the graphic with a different title sometime.

river camping

2009-12-30T09:12:00.000-08:00

This one is another from my archive of old whitewater toons. I had just completed one half of the run on the Selway River, a very exciting run at regular water levels, and extremely exciting at high runs. The water level came up to flood stage while we were on it, so we aborted the trip. How that story relates to this toon is this: the rafts that were supporting us in the kayaks were laden with EVERY gimic camping item you could think of. The whole kitchen was in a dry box where you screwed in the legs, tipped it up, and opened it up, and voila!!! your dinner was practically already cooked! Every single kitchen utensil was there.
Well, that was wonderful until we had to abort the trip, break down all the rafts and gear, and haul everything up a steep trail to the only landing strip in the canyon, so the forest service could call in an airplane to haul all the stuff out. It took us (I think there were about 12 of us) until mid-afternoon to lug everything up that trail. Back breaking stuff!! It took 4 airplane trips to haul it all out of the canyon! Then, of course, I added insult to injury, and chose to hike out along the river to the take out to get the cars. That was a two day, class 5 hike!!
So, getting back to the toon, after that trip, I found that there are a lot of rafters who love to get the latest river camping stuff. Just check out any raft supply catalog. It is incredible what they have in those things!! I equate that kind of river-camping to motorhome camping!! I mean, these people take EVERYTHING with them; beds, mattresses, multi-room tents, lanterns, dishwashers, laundry facilities, micro-waves...everything!! That is what inspired this toon. I think my tendency is to become a minimalist!!

2009-12-27T09:48:00.000-08:00

I got lots of great presents for Christmas!!! Among them were new pens and a new sketch book. Yea...I love sketch books. I also got a book on the art of Gris Grimly. Those of you who don't know who he is, go to

http://www.madcreator.com/

He is an amazing artist, who is also apparently somewhat demented. He is a "horror artist." hmmm, doesn't sound like a place I want to go, but there are aspects of his figures that are very usable.

So, after our annual present-opening orgy, I started to think about how tired Santa MUST be to have delivered soooo many presents to soooo many boys and girls. So, I drew Santa, tired, skinny, and totally haggard. How Gris Grimly can I get????? So, here it is, page one of my new sketch book for 2010!!! I hope to post a lot more from this book, and more finished drawings as well in the coming year.

So, now that Christmas is behind us, Happy New Year!!!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS

2009-12-24T09:59:00.000-08:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!!

AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR.

warhammer dwarf

2009-12-23T09:55:00.000-08:00

Another image from my sketchbook that hasn't been finished. Warhammer has been really great for spurring imagination of epic battles, characters, and scenarios. Of course, since my army is the dwarfs, I am partial towards them. But there are orcs, goblins, ogres, elves, demons, etc. I will have to draw some of the other armies too. The orcs are really fun. Look for a drawing of them in the future.

the Hobbit

2009-12-22T09:30:00.000-08:00

This is another pencil rendering from my sketch book, trying to work on the subtle gradations of dark and light. I never finished this one, but had a good time working an image of Smaug, the dragon. This scene is obviously from the Hobbit, when Bilbo puts on the ring, and goes into the lair of Smaug to steal a piece of his treasure. So, technically, this doesn't work because Bilbo is invisible!!! Artistic license!!!! I felt the idea of Bilbo being so close that he could touch Smaug was very cool, and Smaug knowing he is there, but not being able to see him. As I look at this sketch, I see that a lot of detail could be added. Maybe someday I will finish it and post it again...

oh woe is me...

2009-12-21T09:19:00.000-08:00

In this final week before Xmas, the anxiety level for many in this world is going off the scale. In the spirit of this stressful week, I thought I would post one of my more distraught toons.

Most of the toons I have drawn have been happy, and light natured. This one goes the other way, and fairly successfully at that. I believe that this was drawn in 1999, as Y2K was lurking around the corner, and everyone thought the world as we knew it was going to end. That is why my computer, which obviously has a mind of its own, is so happy. It won't have to worry about life after Y2K. Meanwhile, work sucked at that point in time, and I believe this was not a high point in my social life either. OOOOOh the despondency as I blankly stare at my drafting table....

Notice how I left the dialog bubbles blank. Fill in your own conversation...

I hope you all have a very merry Christmas!!! Don't let the bastards get ya down!!!!

summer camp

2009-12-18T09:47:00.000-08:00

I have said it before...this is great fun!!! I have been digging around the house, looking for sketch books and drawing pads, and have found absolute treasures!!

This is my take on summer camp for tae kwon do, when Maryn and I spent a very soggy weekend at Skamania Cove. This drawing may look like an exageration, but it isn't that far off. We were doing push-ups where I couldn't see my hands cuz they were so deep in the muddy water. When it wasn't raining, it was hot and muggy, so we sweat right through all our clothing and got just about as wet anyway. Then when we finally got to go to sleep, our tent was 20' from the railroad track where large freight trains passed by every 1/2 hour. That evil looking character on the left is my image of Master Preston, who is actually an extremely nice and giving person, but he was on a tirade that weekend!! Of course, that is me doing the push-ups... I haven't gone to summer camp since....

fisherman vs. the fish

2009-12-17T10:52:00.000-08:00

I like this one!!! It was drawn to be another graphic for a Knickers t-shirt. It could use some color if it ever goes that far. But I like it because it shows the perspective from both the fisherman, and the fish!!

The fisherman is jazzed because he got a great fish on the line. But underwater, the fish has friends that are either horrified that their friend got caught, or determined to strike back at the fisherman. All they have are his legs to work on. Notice the one fish biting him, and the other fish ramming his knee-cap. They have also procured the assistance from the local crawdad, who is pinching the guys toe!!

Lots going on here, but still a simple graphic that can translate into a nice t-shirt. I also think I came up with a nice detail in showing the water level. When colored, the waves would stand out as the dividing element between air and water. I think it worked well.

I like to draw fish. It is fun to give them facial expressions when real fish don't have any personality per se...

2009-12-15T10:40:00.000-08:00

This is one of my drawings that was actually published!!! Paddler magazine was, at one point, a locally published magazine called "River Runner". A guy published it out of Prineville. If you have been there, you would realize how out of context that is. The place is all cowboys!!! How a whitewater publication started there is beyond me...

Anyway, I like this one because it has a sort of Pinnochio-esque quality to it. The sea monster, "Il Monstro", is silently creeping up on the unwary boaters. I have done some paddling in the ocean, even though mostly in protected areas, and my imagination goes wild, and I start looking for giant dorsal fins of that great white shark that I know is lurking just below the surface of the water. I get that feeling even more when I am surfing. If my buddies have all caught waves and are inside paddling out, I tend to suddenly need to pull my feet up on the board, and I start looking nervously in all directions. The ocean can be a very scary place.

little golfer

2009-12-14T11:14:00.000-08:00

When Chris had her children's store, Knickers, we printed some clothes with my graphics on them. This is one such graphic. I actually colored this for the t-shirts. They sold, but not well. This composition attempts to hit the fanatical golf phenomemum. There are so many golfers and golf courses in this area. It has been known as the "Palm Springs of the North". So, we tried to capitalize on the market. I probably should have hit the pro-shops as well as Knickers, but it gave the store a little advantage. Very little advantage...

I like the simplicity of this graphic. Easy to understand, but not a lot of busy-work. Just enough shading to see the shapes, but not overdone. And the little guy is just so cute!!!

clients

2009-12-11T11:12:00.000-08:00

Chris and I were talking this morning about blogs, and relating blogs to my website. Those blogs would be a bit different from this one, in that they would have to deal with house design issues and architectural highlights and such. So, when I was trying to decide what to post for this blog, I decided on this drawing...kind of a self-portrait, in that the poor schmuck behind the drafting table looks a little bit like me...hmmm, Freudian? Anyway, this drawing shows a lot about working with clients. Think about all the different dynamics that are at work here with the clients looking over my shoulder. (something I would never allow today!!!) So, maybe this will be the first panel of my new blog for Wright Design Studio. I will keep you posted...

going bananas

2009-12-10T10:36:00.000-08:00

This is another drawing I did at Berkeley responding to the gag provided by the fellow I was working with ( see post "getting bald lately"). So, obviously, the caption should read, "Going Bananas!" Okay, it's a stretch, but I kind of like the transition from cranky, old suit to a bunch of bananas. I think I pulled it off pretty well. Again, never published.

ancient history

2009-12-09T09:36:00.000-08:00

Okay, boys and girls!! Now we are really reaching back to ancient history. I don't know why, or how, but I have a book of my drawings that date back to 1964!! So, this page shows my great artistic prowess when I was in the fourth grade!! I am not sure one could call me a child prodigy.

Don't you love the salt-flat racer???? Of course, everyone wishes they could drag race a shopping cart! Anyway, hot rods were a big deal in 1964. This was during the Hey Day of Ed "Big Daddy" Roth, and Rat Fink. I had a bunch of models of Rat Fink and other monster hod rods that I had built and painted. So, this page shows my rendition of their work.

Also, you have to love the signature of the artist. Who was that guy anyway?????

computer geeks

2009-12-08T10:26:00.001-08:00

It is fun to see the evolution of a concept. These two drawings show exactly that, and the final, the drawing below, is not necessarily the better of the two drawings.
The prelim drawing, at left, is from my sketch book, and depicts the essence of computer hackers after spending waaayyyy too much time in front of the screen. The perspective is a flat, two dimensional side view. The final drawing, below, is from a more dynamic perspective, and shows more action than the prelim, but loses some of the "wired"-ness of the first drawing.

And, the hackers look to be having more fun tapping into someone else's account online. The other thing that the final drawing plays with is the light from the computer screen. The black background gives the opportunity to play with the glow of the computer. Shading then becomes really fun, dramatizing that lighting effect.

A fun little study of the progression...

boats? what boats?

2009-12-07T08:29:00.000-08:00

This toon was inspired by a float on the lower Klamath River, in Northern California. It was back in the mid-80's, and we floated right through a hydro-plane race. There were SO many boats zipping by us, disturbingly close!!! We dodged them the best we could, and they seemed to take absolutely no notice of us. And it wasn't like it was totally flat water. There were some pretty significant riffles going on there. But these were jet boats, which means they didn't have propellers to hit rocks with. Man, they were fast!!!

Don Quixote

2009-12-06T13:14:00.000-08:00

This drawing almost made it to the calendar, but I like it anyway. I was inspired to draw this one as we were driving from Madrid to Granada, via Toledo, home of Don Quixote. As you walk in the old part of town, you see the influence of Don Quixote all over the place. Yet, as we were driving, and nearing the town, the countryside was covered with modern, power-generating windmills. I had never seen such a concentration of windmills. And these are not small unobstructive things. These things stand about 150' high!!! The windmills in this drawing do not do them justice. They were huge!! There is no way Don Quixote would have beaten one of these new windmills, I don't care how good he might have been with a lance!!! By the way, Toledo was a wonderful place to visit.

I hate roll practice

2009-12-04T09:45:00.000-08:00

Up here in the cold northwest, during the winter months, kayakers will hone their skills at the indoor pool. Every Sunday evening Parks and Rec opens the pool to roll practice, and for a few bucks, you can bring your kayak in and work on your eskimo roll. They limit the number of boats allowed at 12 boats max. Well, that many boats pretty much fills the indoor pool!!! So, it is always fun to witness the chaos during roll practice. Yes, some people have been known to launch their kayaks off the high-dive.
This drawing pretty much depicts the fun that can be had at roll practice. Everyone comes away feeling water-logged and happy. Everyone, that is, except the life-guards...

mouse in space

2009-12-03T15:03:00.000-08:00

I just can't tell you how much fun this is...this blogging!! This entry is like the old 45 records. With the smash hit on side 1 of the record, what does the artist put on side 2??? Well, this drawing is what I found on side 2 (the back side) of the last entry "three amigos".

"Mouse in Space!", tethered to his space capsule, obviously before the shuttle series. The space ship looks like the old Apollo rockets. Then the moon, and some sort of half sketched face all in on the action. It is great, like a christmas present!! What really bakes my noodle is that I have absolutely no memory of drawing this.

So, I just had to share!!!

three amigos

2009-12-03T11:24:00.000-08:00

This is a graphic I made for a t-shirt for one of the many Riverhouse Rendezvous slalom races I ran in the 90's. I think this was for the third series. Anyway, I really like this one because it is sooooo happy!! The goal here was to make the three "amigos" be in perfect synch with each other, like a dance step. Take the aspects of dance steps; precision, rhythm, grace, and balance, and apply them to whitewater, and you get something very close to kayak slalom racing.

Now, those of you who know about whitewater kayaking will see something missing from these three...give up? Okay, THEY DON'T HAVE LIFEJACKETS!!! Big no-no in the kayak world. I have no idea why I didn't draw them with pfd's, but there you go. By the time I realized I had left them out, they were done, and at the print shop. Fortunately, I haven't been so forgetful when putting in for a kayak run, though a couple of friends I have boated with have forgotten to wear their pfd......no names...

dancing stegosaurus

2009-12-02T11:03:00.000-08:00

Every once in a while, I get delusions of grandeur and think I could actually be an illustrator. Usually reality creeps back in to my mind in time, but occasionally I get some pretty good concepts and drawings out of the process.

Here is one such case. I love the idea of a great big lumbering stegosaurus getting up on his hind legs with a good pair of cheap sunglasses, and dancing something like the jitterbug!! Somehow, this drawing hit everything just right; the amount of detail, the proportions, the attitude, the color, the action, all work together to make a great composition.

From this drawing, the plot expanded to include Caveman Clyde who discovers a ghetto-blaster somewhere in the bushes and becomes lord of the dinosaurs with his music blazing away!!!........until the batteries run out.....

None of the other drawings came out as well as this one....back to the drawing board!!!!

jumble of kayakers

2009-12-01T10:24:00.000-08:00

Sometimes, my drawings are from a snapshot image in my brain. This drawing is one such example. The occassion was running Quartzville Creek at flood stage. Normally considered too high to run above 2500 cfs, we had the priviledge of running it at 8000 cfs. Boating at this high level demanded a new technique for me...I call it "brainstem paddling". Basically, you get about 1/4 of a second when you are at the tops of the waves to map out your course. Then you drop in to the trough between waves, and can't see anything. Then you get to the top of the waves again and have that split second to alter your course. Well, this drawing depicts that split second at the top of the wave, looking down into the next hole. I found the hole significantly occupied with multiple kayakers getting tumbled in the hydraulic. Somehow, I didn't run into anybody, and joined the fracas and was tumbled around myself for a couple of seconds, then spat out below, where I rolled up and kept paddling. That was an exciting trip!!!

Bob and Flora

2009-11-30T09:51:00.000-08:00

Well, I don''t know about all you folks in internet land, but I am having a great time posting all this stuff!!
This time, I uploaded three pages out of my sketch book. Sometimes, the drawings in the sketch book are more fun than the final drawings that may get published in some fashion. You get to be a bit freer with your composition in a sketch book. They don't really matter. For instance, who is that guy climbing on Flora's right shoulder? Who cares...it is just a sketch book. I am trying here to work up a good "Flora". Her progression is fun to see, going from the first page to the third page. Again, I have to work harder to draw women than men...even middle aged women. So Flora gets
more work than Bob. He was easy...just a skinny, balding old guy!!

These pages show a progression in the development I had for illustrating our travels. It is the Bob and Flora Show!!

The idea is that Bob and Flora can travel around the world, and show illustrations as well as their reactions to different places. For instance, what would be their reaction to seeing the Matterhorn? Well, that would mean that I had better go see the Matterhorn myself to get an idea. Oh darn!! Would I be able to write off all my travels this way??? An interesting idea, eh?

who is this guy shooting himself in the head? Or the dog, and why is that man running across the page? SKETCH BOOK!!!

This is the latest rendition of Bob and Flora. Let me know what you think of this idea. I am still intrigued by the concept....

Chemo-girl

2009-11-29T17:20:00.000-08:00

Along the lines of superheroes, here is Chemo-Girl...Baddest Babe on the Planet!! The idea of this drawing was to empower my sister-in-law, who was undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer at the time. So, I made her a t-shirt with this graphic. Note; single boob, and bald head...how bad-ass is that!!!?? See the energy field she is shooting off her hand? Well that's radio-active bombardment that her body has absorbed, and can now command at her will. Totally Bad-Ass!!

I had a great time coloring this in photo-shop. One of my early attempts. I thought it came out fairly successfully, and the clean lines work better on t-shirt graphics.

So, if you happen to know someone who needs, and would wear such a shirt, let me know, and I will make a special print for you...in time for Christmas???

roll, kayaker, roll

2009-11-28T17:45:00.000-08:00

Back in '94 I did my first calendar. It was all about whitewater. This was one of the toons on that calendar, and it reflects something that ALL whitewater kayakers put up with.

For some reason, everybody wants to see a kayaker do an eskimo roll. And yes, I have actually been offered a beer for doing a roll for the group of onlookers. Naturally, I have no pride, and promptly flipped over, only to set up, and properly flip the paddle in just the right way to come up quickly. In fact, half the group of rafters didn't even see it. They wanted me to do it again, but failed to offer another beer. So, I took my payment for the first roll, and happily paddled away.

So, I felt this drawing properly characterized all the participants. The rafters are all rowdy, drunk juveniles, except the guide that is rowing them. He is too cool to perform such antics, and just knowingly smiles at the kayaker. Meanwhile, the kayaker is just disgusted at the loud-mouthed yahoos.

widowmaker

2009-11-26T11:04:00.000-08:00

This is an image from one of my many river trips. This was a long time ago, on the Owyhee River in eastern oregon. We were scouting a notorious rapid appropriately called "Widowmaker". Ron was bringing his raft closer to the rapid so it would be easier to portage. He hit a small ledge class 2 rapid sideways, and dumped his passenger, all loose gear, and one of his oars out as his boat was tipped on its side.

Ron stayed in the raft, but now had no way to maneuver it with only one oar left, and was drifting right in to the meat of the rapid. There were other parties on the side of the river scouting the rapid, and they all ran to their throw ropes as soon as they saw what had happened. Every rope thrown fell short of the raft. That is the moment I have immortalized in this drawing. The total look of helplessness and despair. Then Jim (the guy with the beard) grabbed the only remaining throw rope, jumped into the nearest tied up raft and threw it to Ron. The rope hit Ron in the chest. He grabbed it and jumped into the bottom of the raft, while Jim did the same thing. The raft pendulumed to the side, overhanging the first drop of Widowmaker Rapid by a few feet. RON WAS SAVED!!!! As he got out of the raft, he wobbly walked off, down the trail, and sat by himself and recovered. Very exciting...

warhammer

2009-11-24T10:29:00.000-08:00

So, this is a re-creation of a composition I saw in a Warhammer magazine. The dark, ominous tones of the original were what drew me to it. I felt like I achieved some pretty good pencil work making this drawing. It was a fun exercise.

Those of you who do not know what Warhammer is, it is a game pitting different armies of "Middle Earth" against each other. The figures are small, highly detailed models that you paint, then use the painted figures in battle against an enemy army. My army is the dwarfs. Joel likes the Orcs and Goblins!! I mostly like to paint them. Joel is much better at the game than I am. The rules of the game are WAY too complicated for my feeble brain.

So this drawing is obviously not my typical character, but still a lot of fun.

nano carbon technology

2009-11-22T10:36:00.000-08:00

So, this is another toon that I haven't really published. It was part of my group's final submittal for a sustainable building advisor class. This hi-tech nerd presented our group with a whole new technology, "nano-carbon" technology. His concept was that you would be able to create complete vacuumes inside nano carbon tubes, thereby eliminating all friction, and create ultra fast mobility. He claimed that top speeds could be as high as 4000 mph. So, you could be in Tokyo in a couple of hours!!! Now, I am not a great scientist, or engineer, but that seemed like a really difficult goal to achieve in a perfect environment, much less achieve in the real world. He call himself a progressive thinker. I guess so!!! Well, my group was working on a sustainable development here in Bend, and we get this presentation. The irony of the whole concept here in Bend was too much. So I had to draw it. I love the juxtaposition of the hi-tech tube with the farmer plowing his field. The thought of going from 0-4000 mph is pretty scary, so I had to show that with the first commuter in the line. Total Terror!! Then, of course, when I think of wierd contraptions (which is what I thought of this nano carbon tube), I have to think of Dr. Suess. So, the tube, stantions, and platform are modelled in that spirit. Meanwhile, everything is normal, and the guy is reading his morning newspaper waiting for the next car, and the lady is trying desparately to control her kid. How could something like that be normal????

drawers

2009-11-20T09:52:00.000-08:00

A request from my fan club!!! (thanks, Joel) This is another "off color" drawing. This one never made it out of the sketch book, but I always liked it. When I just uncovered it, I found that a lot of paint had been splattered on it, so I cleaned it up in Photoshop as best as I could...

The humor is pretty basic, really, but the play on words was too obvious. I had to draw it. I remember showing it to my mom afterwards, and her only comment was,"Criminy!! That's as old as the hills!" Well, maybe some of the older gags never get too old.

I have to say, I like the girl's attitude!! She has everything under control, especially the guy!! He is so excited to be just going through her drawers. His salivary glands (among others) are flowing overtime!! And yet she is soooo calm, checking out her fingernails and chatting on the phone... The poor chump doesn't have a chance!!

Been Getting Bald Lately?

2009-11-19T09:18:00.000-08:00

Okay, so we are pushing an R-rating. I found this one DEEP in the archives, dating back to the days at Berkeley. Sometime around '75. Back in those days, I was totally in to R. Crumb (oh, wait, I still am...) and ZAP Comix (I have almost every ZAP published). There was a great store on Telegraph Ave called Comix & Comics. I spent a lot of time there. I remember reading an ad in the local paper for a guy who wanted someone to draw his concepts. He claimed to have great ideas, but couldn't draw, and so, when I met him, we decided we could take all the magazines that accept cartoons by storm!!

So, this was one of the few ditties before we gave up. We sent cartoons to Playboy, of course. But also New Yorker, and a couple of others. Nothing published, but I got a couple of fun new drawings for my portfolio...

I like this toon for a number of reasons. First, it shows the style of the times. Note the angled wood panelling, deep red plush carpet, macra-may hanging plant, and of course the Farrah Fawcett hair style!!

I have never been very good at drawing gorgeous babes. Sounds sexist, but there ya go. Anyway, this was one of my better attempts, and the poor guy...he looks exactly the way I feel when in the presence of a gorgeous woman...kerflumexed!!!

Cute punch line too, don't you think?!

Boat or Die Ya Wimp!!!

2009-11-18T09:48:00.000-08:00

I have always liked the Marvel Superheroes. I have liked Marvel artwork too. I was first introduced to Spiderman back in 1964 when I was at Camp Longhorn in Burnett, Texas. When I was at Cal, Captain Marvel moved up with Spiderman as my favorite superhero. Man, he saved the cosmos sooooo many times!!! So, this drawing was a T-shirt graphic for the second annual Riverhouse Rendezvous 1996, a local kayak slalom race I was organizing for about 7 years. My favorite part of that was designing the T-shirts. (more T-shirt graphics to come) So, this guy here was modelled after one of the supervillains from a Marvel Comic. I think it was Juggernaut, but I can't be sure. Anyway, his face, and arm position were perfect to mimic a kayaker. Leg position didn't matter, because I poured him into this tiny kayak. So far out of proportion that it is obvious that the kayak is a part of his own body. He is also a ferocious competitor. You can tell by his expression!! I call him "Kaptain Kollosus Kayaker"!!!

maytagged

2009-11-17T09:42:00.000-08:00

I have a lot of drawings from kayaking experiences. Some have even been published!! Not this one. This was an idea for a T-shirt design. I like it because it portrays the feeling of "getting maytagged". A funny "double entendre"...

For those of you who are not familiar w/ "getting maytagged", it is what can happen to you on a river, if you get sideways in a hole, or where the water pours over a rock vertically, and actually makes the water downstream of that rock flow upstream, meaning...you are stuck!!! Then the water coming over the rock pounds on your upstream edge of your kayak, and causes you to flip REALLY fast. Of course, your desire is to then roll back up so you can breathe again. You then find yourself still sideways in the same hole, and suddenly, the water hits your upstream edge, knocking you over again, setting yourself up to do this whole process over, again and again and again. Sometimes you get a rhythm going of flipping and rolling back up really fast. I have actually gotten dizzy from getting maytagged!! Sooner or later, you have to break the cycle, and either stay upside down and hope the deeper water moves you downstream, or pull the spray skirt and swim out.

Or, you could get the same sensation by jumping in your washing machine and turning it on spin cycle...

sirens of wildcat rapid

2009-11-16T10:22:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I really like the drawings because of the tales they tell. This is one such case. Fortunately for us, Chris and I are in the background in this picture, having already made it through the rapid, and are trying to warn our friends of the impending doom that awaits them. Those folks in the foreground with looks of desparation on their faces are our river-running friends. The two buxom beauties sitting on the rocks are obviously sirens, luring our hapless companions to the rocks. And no, dear readers, our friends did not make it around the rocks. They broached their canoe royally plastering it against the rocks!! We ended up spending 2-3 hours trying to get the canoe off, finally giving up before it got dark. We salvaged the gear off , and left the canoe behind. The boys then paddled the remaining overloaded canoe to Black Bar Lodge, while the girls hiked to the lodge. Fortunately, no one was hurt in the adventure. As we had dinner in the lodge that night, pondering what to do, one of the other guests came up to us and asked, "Are you the guys that lost that canoe?" Ah yes, infamy!!! We ate humble pie that night for dinner, and drove out from the lodge the next day to the coast, where we ate fresh cracked crab, and drank lots of white wine. It was a good weekend!!

in my office

2009-11-15T11:35:00.000-08:00

I like this self portrait because of its setting, my office. It gets the general idea of what my office is like, old brick, funky exposed rafters, kind of messy. (actually, at the present time, it is REALLY messy) It is a very comfortable space, and I am very comfortable in it. I think this drawing portrays that. Heaven knows, I spend enough time in this space. I had better be comfortable there!!!

golfer

2009-11-14T10:36:00.000-08:00

this drawing goes back to my sports theme. Golf is HUGE in central oregon. Many consider us the palm springs of the north. That seems kinda dumb...but anyway, I had to address it. I love this golfer because he was modelled after my father-in-law. Tony had a pair of pants that he always played in. They were the greatest combo of plaid, yellow, and lime green!! Almost every golfer I draw wears pants like that! Then, to really reflect my abilities at golf, I added the two guys in the background. They are about as good at this as I am. In fact, that one guy is using a pool cue! I am not a golfer!

skydiver

2009-11-13T09:20:00.000-08:00

This is one of my favorites on a number of different levels. First, it shows complete, abject TERROR!! What kind of an idiot purposefully jumps out of a perfectly good airplane 10,000 feet above the ground?? (oh, wait, I did!) Then, of course, the cool, suave demeanor of the instructor counters all the terror. Oh, he is soooooo cool.

Yep, I did jump out of a perfectly good airplane. But it was my daughter's idea!! She had set up the whole thing. All I had to do was show up. 30 seconds of FALLING. When we finally pulled the chord and released the parachute, the harness yanked so hard that I had a high voice for the next 45 minutes. Then, of course, my cool, suave instructor, who was attached to me, decided to spin us around in circles. I replied under no uncertain circumstances that was not acceptable behavior!! So, the final 5 minutes of my float were a wonderful sight-seeing experience on a beautiful day outside Eugene, while recovering from motion sickness. We could see the coastal mountains to the west, and the Cascades to the east. By the time we reach "terra firma", I was exhausted!!

This was drawn with pencil, which afforded a wider variety of tones. Rather than working with simple lines, I could create shades. This is really fun to create shadows, wrinkles, and more depth of field. The difficult thing about pencil drawings is that they are hard to copy. So, when we did this calendar, we had to print every page directly from the scanned image because the printer was all that could get the nuances of pencil. I will be posting more from this calendar later as I really liked the effect.

mountain biker

2009-11-12T09:20:00.000-08:00

So, this one is from my "sports" collection. And I have a lot of them! But I like this one because it shows a reckless abandon that is an attitude of many mountain bikers. This guy is peddling right at you without a care in the world, happy as a clam at high tide! Meanwhile, the poor mouse, and anything else in the way better watch out. I have had that experience when I have dared to get on the bike. However, I have also found that things like trees, and rocks don't move fast enough... maybe I need to draw what happens next.

the first entry!!

2009-11-11T09:37:00.000-08:00

So, here is my first REAL entry to my new blogspot! The purpose here is to share some of my old drawings, and some of my new drawings with you all. This also gives me an opportunity to explain myself and what I was thinking with some of the drawings. Many of these will be recognized from my annual calendar. I can't believe I have been drawing the family calendar for over 15 years. Wow!

So, I thought it would be appropriate to have the first drawing be a self portrait. I really like this drawing as it hits a lot of what I had been into at the time. Notice all the fun gear, including a tae kwon do outfit, including headgear (cushion those blows to the head), a bow staff (another tae kwon do implement),a snowboard, kayak, and dartboard. The two drawings on the wall represent house designs, and some 'toons I did for a running magazine for a while. The little figurines at my feet are Warhammer miniatures, which I have spent a lot of time and $$ painting. More about that another time...then, of course, the chord to my computer screen is always attached to me, so work is never far away. Obviously, I am happy about the whole situation here, oh, and also have my favorite tunes playing at all times. Life is good!!!