Winged Figure 2010

This is a repost of a winged figure drawing (Heaven and Hell series) from last year...this is a larger version.

Winged Figure, 2010, brush & ink on paper, 8" x 8".

Fecundity

New ink drawing of a head with coiled, writhing hair:

Fecundity, 2011, brush & ink on paper, 16.5" x 14".

Pensive Tondo

Tondo (round) drawing of a head thinking, done on the cardboard insert from a pizza box...

Pensive Tondo, 2011, brush & ink on cardboard, 11" diameter approx.

Shadow Bay cover mockup

I was just playing around with some text & design elements with the "Face in the Water" image...the final Shadow Bay cover may not look anything like this...

Shadow Bay cover, 2011, digital low-res mockup.

The Face in the Water revised version

Here is the current version of this image, possibly the cover image for the Shadow Bay book. It's been through many, many variations in the last few days. This might or might not be the finished one. It's time to take a break again & let it sit.

The Face in the Water (from Shadow Bay), 2011, acrylic on board, 16" x 12".

Man with a Strange Eye 2010-2011

This was a drawing I found in a pile in my studio...while an interesting drawing of a man's head, I felt it was not quite done, so I finished it.

Man with a Strange Eye, 2010-2011, brush & ink on paper, 11" x 8.5".

The Face in the Water WIP

This is a work-in-progress color version of the iconic cover image of Shadow Bay, the noir illustrated crime novel collaboration with Donald J. Rothschild...not finished yet...

The Face in the Water, 2011, acrylic on board, 16" x 12".

Land of Myth and Dreams

Also from 2006 (as in the previous post), here is a color painting:

Land of Myth and Dreams, 2006, acrylic on board, 24" x 24" approx.

Wounded Titan

Another drawing from the archives, this one from 2006:

Wounded Titan, 2006, brush & ink on paper, 11" x 8.5".

The Sphinx

Here's a drawing from 1992 that hasn't been seen much:

The Sphinx, 1992, brush & ink on paper, 25" x 20" approx. It doesn't really have a sphinx in it, but the title suggested itself.

Cycloptic Angel -- better photo

The photo I took of this piece last night (see a couple of posts below) was not entirely to my satisfaction, so I've taken another version. This is not perfect either...I really need an overcast day with indirect sunlight...but I think this is better & it will do for now.

Cycloptic Angel, 2011, brush pen & ink on paper, 16.5" x 14".

Boy Supervising the Construction of a Ziggurat

This is a brush pen sketch on a scrap of paper I found in the basement (see previous post) for the Journey to Somewhere collaboration on Flickr with Barry Farmer:

Boy Supervising the Construction of a Ziggurat, 2011, ink on paper, 9" x 7" approx.

Forgotten drawings from the basement

I was down in the basement last night going through boxes from the time we moved house 5 years ago. I vaguely recall that at the last moment I was throwing things randomly into boxes, including some drawings, it appears. Following is a selection of some of them from around 2001-2002. They all seem to have been done with a Rotring pen or similar.

Head, 2001, ink on paper, 9" x 7" approx.

Falling Man, 2001(?), ink on paper (with stainage), 9" x 6.5" approx.

Head with Closed Eyes, 2002, ink on paper, 6" x 5" approx.

Strange Group of Figures, 2002, ink on paper, 6" x 6" approx.

Lost Head, 2002, ink on paper, 5.7" x 6" approx.

Sketch of a Head

Just a sketch of a head.

Sketch of a Head, 2011, brush pen & ink on paper, 16.5" x 14".

Cycloptic Angel

This is a fairly detailed sketch, of a cycloptic angel crushed by the weight of history, that might be developed into a more finished piece, or it might just end here...

Cycloptic Angel, 2011, brush pen & ink on paper, 16.5" x 14".

Woman's Head, 2006

An overlooked one...drawing of a woman's head from 2006:

Woman's Head, 2006, brush & ink on tinted paper, 12" x 12".

I don't believe I've posted this one before.

Death of the Minotaur

A new photo of a Minotaur drawing from 2003.

Death of the Minotaur, 2003, brush & ink on paper, 24" x 19".

Some more drawings from the archives

Every now & then I go through my files & then re-photograph, or photograph for the first time, some of my older works of which I have inadequate records. I just did this again this morning to upload them to my "intricate" set in my Flick portfolio, & I thought I'd put them here, too.

Oedipus, 1992, brush & ink on paper, 25.5" x 19.5" approx.

Titan Sleeping, 2003, brush & ink on paper, 24" x 19".

Man, Mask and Chimney, 1992, brush & ink on paper, 25.5" x 19.5" approx.

The Madding Crowd

This being the second working drawing for "The Struggle for Survival", a large-scale piece I'm gearing up for. The heat is supposed to be going up to 99 degrees F today, so I might not get started on the big version for a day or two.

The Madding Crowd, 2011, brush pen on paper, 16.5" x 14".

Drowning Man | Mumblin Deaf Ro

I occasionally do Google reverse image searches to see what I've been up to lately & where some of my images have wound up...I guess I could sue for copyright infringement or something, but in most cases I find my artwork on some smallish blog or website where my work is not being leveraged to bring in vast sums of cash...

Case in point, last night I was looking through Google & found that my image from 2007, Drowning Man had been used by Irish(?) folk band, Mumblin Deaf Ro on their bandcamp page to illuminate their song "The Drowning Man"...I assume they wrote the song first & then Googled (or similar) the image, but maybe it was the other way around. Probably not. Anyway, I can apparently embed the song here:



The song is pretty good, I have to say...

The Struggle for Survival

This is a new drawing for a possible much larger piece with a large pile of struggling figures...I've been meaning to start working on a much bigger scale, but upstate NY where I live has been such a sweatbox the last few days...

The Struggle for Survival, 2011, brush pen & ink on paper, 16.5" x 14".

Demonio

Demonio being Spanish for "demon"...this was a sketch of a demon head I began a week or two ago & worked on some more this morning...liked the way it came out...

Demonio, 2011, brush pen & ink on paper, 16.5" x 14".

Boy Alchemist

This was a sketch of a head that I started a week or two ago, & have, over time, added more bits & pieces...

Boy Alchemist, 2011, brush pen & ink on paper, 16.5" x 14".

The Branch Manager

A pun so awful for a tree man image...that I just had to use it...

The Branch Manager, 2011, brush pen & ink on paper, 16.5" x 14".

The Rise of the Man Tree

Who speaks for the trees? After my recent variations on Bosch's Tree Man (and other Tree Men), here is a tree-human hybrid...

The Rise of the Man Tree, 2011, brush pen & ink on paper, 16.5" x 14".

Bosch's Tree Man Goes Walking

Another variation/meditation upon Hieronymus Bosch's Tree Man:

Bosch's Tree Man Goes Walking, 2011, brush pen & ink on paper, 16.5" x 14".

Lost in the Sea of Dreams, Searching for the Shore

A new large-ish brush pen drawing:

Lost in the Sea of Dreams, Searching for the Shore, 2011, brush pen & ink on paper, 16.5" x 14".

Head from Long Ago and Far Away

A new brush pen drawing on paper:

Head from Long Ago and Far Away, 2011, brush pen & ink on paper, 16.5" x 14".

Tumblr blog now has 100 images

Just a note to say that my new blog on Tumblr, My Myths and Monsters now has 100 images, & I think I'll let it sit like that for a while. The idea was to upload my best & most iconic pieces there, if only so that I could look at them in one place (via the "Archive" feature, which is one of the best things about Tumblr, IMO).

I may add or subtract some more, but for now I'm done.

The other idea was to disseminate the images virally, by people "reblogging" them onto their own Tumblr blogs. This kind of thing tends to happen anyway, as I find my artworks on all kinds of blogs & web sites from time to time...at least this time I'm sort of controlling it (or allowing it to happen in a controlled way), & people have the option of tracking down who created the piece...

Below, the 100th image I uploaded onto the blog, "Beauty Under Pressure" from back in 1991. I just retitled it today (from simply "Beauty").

The Boy Who Witnessed the Birth of Stars

A new brush & ink drawing where hopefully the title tells it all...

The Boy Who Witnessed the Birth of Stars, 2011, brush & ink on paper, 16.5" x 14".

To Dream of Nothing At All

Another smallish brush pen sketch of a head in profile.

To Dream of Nothing At All, 2011, brush pen on paper, 11" x 8.5".

Consternation

Just an ink sketch of a head, really. I was trying the brush pen over regular pen & ink wash.

Consternation, 2011, ink sketch on paper, 11" x 8.5".

A new blog on Tumblr: My Myths and Monsters

I just (last night) created a new blog on Tumblr to highlight my more imaginitive and powerful images, My Myths and Monsters. The problem with this (Blogger) blog, and also sites like Flickr, is that the sequence of images becomes a stream of consciousness whereby the selection is done on the fly and with the consequence that things like consistency and quality can sometimes take a back seat, and the best images can get lost in the sea of many...

We'll see how this works out. After having uploaded a goodly number of images from over the years to the new blog, my intention now is to put only the best pieces up on Tumblr.

Selected image below: Eros & Thanatos Were Lovers (2003)...this seems to be my most popular and iconic image, if Tumblr reposts & its presence on other blogs and web sites are any indication...

The Treeman Laughs

Who says trees don't have a sense of humor?

The Treeman Laughs, 2011, brush pen on paper, 16.5" x 14".

Among the Roots of a Great Tree

I've always been fascinated by the organic shapes of trees and tree roots. This is one of several images I've done on this theme.

Among the Roots of a Great Tree, 2011, brush pen on paper, 16.5" x 14".

Kaleidoscopic

This is me digitally recombining the drawing a couple of posts below (The Head that Imagined Itself into Existence) with itself...I don't do this too often, but once in a while it amuses me to do so...

Kaleidoscopic, 2011, digitally recomposited drawing.

Primavera Unraveling

Another new brush pen drawing of a head in a kind of "art nouveau" style, for want of a better term. I find that the brush pen (kind of a high-quality marker with synthetic brush bristles at the nib end) has unleased my lines into a more flowing, organically curved direction. The brush pen is not perfect & sometimes I wish the lines were more brushlike and less markerlike, but all in all it functions very well. I'd like to see them (Pentel) develop the pen into a bit more of a fine art tool, perhaps, but it works fine for now.

Primavera Unraveling, 2011, brush pen on paper, 16.5" x 14".

The Head that Imagined Itself into Existence

This is a brush pen drawing that developed quite quickly and organically in a flowing, if not exploding, manner...

The Head that Imagined Itself into Existence, 2011, brush pen & ink on paper, 16.5" x 14".

Asleep in the Desert

This is a drawing that I did about a week ago for my ongoing collaboration (via Flickr) with Barry Farmer, entitled "Journey to Somewhere".

Asleep in the Desert, 2011, brush & ink on paper, 12" x 9".

Spiderhead

Another monster (an occasional series), this one inspired by a photo of Louise Bourgeois' sculpture "Maman" over James Ensor's grave at Ostend. Also brings to mind some of Odilon Redon's graphic images.

Spiderhead, 2011, brush pen on paper, 16.5" x 14".

Front View of Bosch's Tree Man

A re-imagined version of Hieronymus Bosch's iconic Tree Man, from a different viewpoint.

Front View of Bosch's Tree Man, 2011, ink on paper, 16.5" x 14".

Lifegiver

Another textured brush pen drawing.

Lifegiver, 2011, brush pen & ink on paper, 16.5" x 14".

Angels Passing By

A new layered & textured brush pen drawing:

Angels Passing By, 2011, ink on paper, 16.5" x 14".

The Beast

This is my half of this week's collaboration with NC Mallory, where we each complete a drawing on the same subject. Last week, it was "Beauty", this week it was "The Beast".

The Beast, 2011, brush & ink on paper, 10" x 8".

You can see the combined drawings here.

Below you can see "The Beauty & the Beast" together (my versions):