skritch...skritch...skritch...redux

sketch161, originally uploaded by ryanjebelt.

That's correct. I drew an Aardvark. Now, by all means, justify your existence.

Comet and Cupid and Donner and Blitzen...

sketch160, originally uploaded by ryanjebelt.

Because of some reasearch I've been doing over the last few weeks, I decided to try my hand at something a little Neo-classical. Granted my composition is sort of lacking but overall, the drawing came together easier than I thought it would. I wouldn't, however expect me to produce any Waterhouse-syle paintings just yet...

My world's been sun baked...

sketch159, originally uploaded by ryanjebelt.

The quills led themselves to drawin' some ice cream on this heated weekend. Who was I to argue?

I Saw That...

sketch158, originally uploaded by ryanjebelt.

To close out the week...a sketch I did of someone else's sketch just to be cheeky.

skritch...skritch...skritch...

sketch157, originally uploaded by ryanjebelt.

Again, playing with the quills and drawing directly in ink.

sketch156, originally uploaded by ryanjebelt.

My mother complained that the first painting on my website's most prominent feature was nudity...so I thought the only mature way to handle it was...well, more nudity. Broke out the quills again for this one...and though I do love the brush for ink these days...there's just something about that scritch-scritch of the quill on the fiber of the papers that feels so amazing.

Substance...

sketch155, originally uploaded by ryanjebelt.

Indeed.

Denied a Thursday...

sketch154, originally uploaded by ryanjebelt.

My new regular Thursday night out with friends was cancelled due to Comic-con (which I won't be attending sadly). So if you're down San Diego way, be sure and stop by and say hi to Jason Shawn Alexander ( http://www.jasonshawnalexander.com/home.html ) and Kent Williams ( http://www.kentwilliams.com/ ). They prefer Scotch.

Almost have the hang of sketching...

sketch153, originally uploaded by ryanjebelt.

I've never been as good and as diligent about sketching as I should've been over the years. There is, however, a fine line between sketching and doodling. More than once, I've watched myself start to cross over that line. It's like standing on the edge of an abyss.

Hey now, look....

sketch152, originally uploaded by ryanjebelt.

If you don't get it...I can't explain it to you.

A Study in Hammers...

HammerStudy3-tease, originally uploaded by ryanjebelt.

A sneak peek of my latest painting, which will be on display in August. I bet you'll just be tearing your eyes out wondering what the rest of it looks like.

Loaded Imagery..

sketch151, originally uploaded by ryanjebelt.

There's still something I've always liked about the finger-gun. The implied danger leaves a little threat, menace, or sexiness in the air. I was just having some fun, and keeping things pulpy...

The Light is On!

sketch150, originally uploaded by ryanjebelt.

For some reason, sketch-wise, I've been getting into a sort of surreal pulp zone. The results are evident.

How Are You?

sketch149, originally uploaded by ryanjebelt.

It is what it is....you see it dontcha?

Modernity

sketch148, originally uploaded by ryanjebelt.

If you weren't there...you're not likely to know what was going on...but it's likely the closest I'll ever come to Cubism.

Movement...

sketch147, originally uploaded by ryanjebelt.

This was a relatively quick sketch of a young woman who was moving around quite a bit in high contrast lighting. I started her off one way, but then she turned and settled in another (...hence why the eyes are a little off...). The nice thing about my pen is that once it runs low on ink, you can actually do some soft shading.

Perception

sketch146, originally uploaded by ryanjebelt.

On one hand, I'd say it's the drawing with speed from close up that harangues me about this drawing. Or, is the distortion I always seem to see when I scan/photograph anything...like how a drawing or painting appears when I look at it, versus how it looks when digitized. I can't say exactly...in any event, I was happy with the drawing at the time...and the subject was as well...

All Things Considered: It can be tough avoiding bee puns...

Bee - Painting Detail, originally uploaded by ryanjebelt.

A close-up of one of the items featured in the painting I finished last week, which will be on display next month. I have more sketches on the way, but thought we needed some color to brighten up all that ink.

Live and Interesting

sketch145, originally uploaded by ryanjebelt.

There's not much for me to say here other than I'm glad I managed to do more than just a portrait.

A Sneak Peek at the Past...

sketch144, originally uploaded by ryanjebelt.

I remember when my attention in drawing turned from superheroes to pretty ladies. My grandfather took me aside, and showed me a picture of a Vargas girl in an old magazine. He made a joke about having a pin-up artist in the family, but I looked at it and thought "I could probably do that..."