Q Pop Grand Opening Event!

It's Q-Overload, so I'm going to allow the pictures to tell the story.  I will say, that last night's event was a lot of fun!  The store itself looked like a cute monster swallowing visitors up all night long.  I'm very happy for shop owners, Chris Mitchell and Miki Panteepo.  I wish them all the best in their new adventure.

UPDATE:  Feb 06, 2011: You can now visit here to see who did what for "What Is Q?".

"Yum-yum-yum-yum-yum... people!"

The awesome duo who put this whole event together!

LEGO Poké Ball...

Proud Dad?  Maybe.

Still, this Jack Logan (age 9) creation looks pretty cool!

Check out his X-Wing fighter here!

Captain Sourpuss & Vince...

It rained today, so I can't mow my lawn.  Darn.  It's a good day for drinking coffee and blogging.  These are my latest experiments in watercolor and ink...

I mentioned to my story supervisor at work, Bob Persichetti, that I was looking for a really black ink to draw with, one that "sits" on top of the paper.  He lent me his bottle of Winsor & Newton ink to try.

"Capt. Sourpuss"

Winsor & Newton Indian Ink & watercolor on Arches cold-pressed

watercolor block, 9 x 12"

In doing these studies, I had no specific subjects in mind.  I just wanted to get a couple of sketchpads going at the same time.  Aside from the burly bearded gentleman we shall call "Captain Sourpuss", I did a spontaneous portrait of Vince Guaraldi after glancing at an album cover of his.

For the Winsor & Newton, I used a sable brush.  It definitely feels different from a pen.  I think my next experiment will be to find a way of combining the two.  I love the boldness of the brush ink, but I also favor being able to carve out a drawing with a big Sharpie.  A fun discovery with our friend Captain Sourpuss, was laying down the blue shadows first, then going over him with a ghoulish green.  I think the effect feels natural, yet there is a graphic poster quality to working this way.  It definitely warrants further exploration.

"Vince"

Winsor & Newton Indian Ink & watercolor 

on Arches hot-pressed watercolor block, 7 x 10"

"Vince" was done on smooth, hot-pressed paper.  I didn't care for this as much.  I like seeing the tooth of the paper.  Watering down the ink was fun though.I think I'll try adding granules of salt next time.

Well, the Winsor & Newton definitely "sits" on top of the paper.  I saw it in an art store two weeks ago and thought the bottle looked fun, but I passed on it.  Luckily, Bob hooked me up with his supply.  I will be buying more.

What Is Q?

"Q is for Quest"

Sharpie and gouache, 9 x 20"

My small contribution is brought to you by the letter "Q".  Q POP is having its grand opening and first gallery show this Saturday, January 29th!

Q POP

128 Astronaut E S Onizuka St

Los Angeles, CA 90012

Read a recent interview with shop owners, Chris Mitchell and Miki Panteepo here.  Read another interview here!

This Is Called: I-Was-Supposed-to-Mow-The-Lawn-But-Drew-Pictures-Instead Post...

This weekend, I enjoyed experimenting with drawing.  I have a love/hate relationship with watercolors.  I love the way they look, but hate how I can't control them.  I think I'm afraid of them, actually.  It's early yet, but this little guy was one of my more successful doodles.  I've been searching for interesting ways to color my pen sketches.

Uniball Pen, watercolor, &  Prismacolor Pencil
on cold-pressed watercolor paper.

This next chap is an experiment in opacity.  I love drawing with chisel-tipped Sharpies, the really big markers. Sharpie takes to textured paper very well, allows you to draw big, and does not bleed when you layer in the watercolors.  I wanted to play with varying opacities by bringing gouache into the mix.  I added a little colored pencil to try different textures.  Again, this is just me learning by trial and error.  I thought it would be fun to blog my results, to see where this eventually goes.

Sharpie, watercolor, gouache,

& Prismacolor Pencil on cold-press

My New Schwinn...

Ding-Dong!

Fully-Loaded!

This is the year of the beach cruiser!  No gears to contend with, just pedal power and my whitewalls.  They sell these bikes pre-built at Target for around $120 dollars.  I added some extras, a coffee cup holder, a basket for errands, a big ol' bell which sounds amazing, and some matching skull tire valves.  I took a test drive to my local library and it works great!  If you are interested, I would recommend buying a pre-built one at a Target so you can check for any significant dents or scratches, then get it tuned up at a bike shop.  My research revealed some problems with the disassembled boxed bikes.

My family and I are looking forward to riding bikes at the beach this spring and summer.  I may even pinstripe my fenders!  I think I'll call my bike... "Bleu Bell"

Noted on 01/17/11:  Since the purchase of my new bike, I have now added a headlamp and a blinking taillamp taken from my old bike.  Now I can night ride!

Temple Shapes...

"Temple Madness"

Pencil and marker, 12 x 24"

Over Christmas, we got the new Donkey Kong game for the Wii.  It is absolutely bee-yoo-ti-ful!

I think it crossed over into my doodles a bit.