There Will Be Bears

Comic: Pekar

2010-08-01T23:14:00.000-07:00

I admit that it was a fantasy of mine to illustrate a story for Harvey Pekar... Obviously, that will never happen, but much worse than that- we will never have any more American Splendor or any new Pekar comics.

I didn't know the man (or "our man") personally, so I can't claim the sadness that his loved ones must feel, but like any other fan, I wish he could've stuck around a lot longer.. 70... That's too young, especially for someone who would've provided us with what he did best for decades to come. Selfish, I know...

Whatever he lacked in eloquence he made up for with honesty, and his lowest points as a writer are higher than what I could ever hope to accomplish. Harvey Pekar was strange, wonderful and imperfect, just like the best of 'em.

Click to enlarge-

For those interested, the artists I've attempted to imitate in panels 2-6 are: 70's R. Crumb, 70's Greg Budgett/Gary Dumm, Gerry Shamray, Josh Neufeld, Frank Stack, and the stick figures of the man himself. "Attempted" is the key word.

Redo: Is that good?

2010-07-26T00:28:00.000-07:00

If all goes well, my zine will physically exist within a month, printed in glorious black and white and in the hands of whoever's interested... In addition to some brand new material, I've also been redoing some older comics, in cases where I still like the idea but the bears don't look right to me anymore. I used to make them much thicker, and though that's probably more bear-like, they don't really match the rest of the material, and plus I thought it would just be fun to redraw them. Here, in part to prove that I am in fact, like, doing stuff, is one of the redos, alongside the original. I'm not sure that it really looks all that much better, but I'm happier with the new look.

Click to enlarge the newly slim, lipo'd version-

..and here we have the old version from a couple years ago-

They kinda look more like mice now, or at least less like bears.. Maybe dog-bear-mice.

Roughs: zine sketch, sculpey

2010-06-16T15:17:00.000-07:00

You would be seeing two new comics here very soon, but they're being saved for my long-awaited (by me) zine, which I'm trying to have ready to print by the end of next month.. In lieu of such zine-exclusive material, here's a glimpse into the near future...

Here's a rough version of a sketch inspired by someone else's dream (thanks, Rebecca). I'm going to redraw and fancify it a bit, with the intention of using the final version as the back cover of the zine-

Also, I've been messing around with sculpey, and though most of what I've made has been scrapped and balled back up, once I have a couple more pieces baked that I'm happy with, they should be appearing here soon as well. Here we have a crude, off-model bear head from a month or two ago, my first ever test attempt at using sculpey-

ps- blogger doesn't think "fancify" is a word, apparently. It is-
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fancify
pps- Mmm... fancified hamburger. Thanks, Webster.

Comic: What to do if you find a cockroach in your bathroom

2010-03-29T12:43:00.000-07:00

Originally drawn as two separate pages, but I think it looks better as one big square..

Click to enlarge.. and you might need to magnify again if you're using a browser that resizes images (it's kind of big)-

Maybe I should have put "gigantic cockroach" in the title instead... Based on true events, and that thing was HUGE.

Comics: Ziegfeld

2009-07-11T20:02:00.000-07:00

Doing a G*rfield parody is pretty old hat by now I guess.. I'm aware that it's been done in several ways, but just let me get this out of my system.

Click to enlarge, bringing this grand idea to life-

Perhaps I could make a plush one for your van window, with a suction cup at the end of a little noose. Adorable!

Comic: Bowl for fun and health

2009-03-30T00:10:00.000-07:00

Here's a comic I did today.. actually it was yesterday, now that the midnight hour is upon us.

Click to moisten eyes up to four times daily-

..Featuring a hat and facial hair.

Sketchbook: Bear problems

2009-03-30T00:05:00.001-07:00

Click for personal thoughts on bear-related matters-

I might start mixing animals up.. or maybe assorted kinds of bears?

..but then does it become an awkward nationality or racial thing?

Comic: How are ya?

2009-02-11T11:32:00.000-08:00

Click to ENLARGE, making the pain all too real-

Dogs are great. I don't have one. I want to pet yours.

Comic: Albear Camus?

2009-01-20T17:09:00.000-08:00

Click to ENLARGE and reveal the possible nature of your existence-

Not my favorite. Oh well. And for the record: just because I'm on the balcony, it doesn't mean I'm wallowing... I'm usually venting.

I think I may have painted myself into a creative corner with these bears. They're not supposed to specifically be me, i.e. based on real events all of the time, but now I pretty much keep making comics where I (or the bear-version of me) am the central focus. Am I the bear? The answer is usually yes and no, to varying degrees.

Tiny Comic - Cute things

2008-12-20T20:42:00.000-08:00

Here's a very quick one that I cranked out today. I said that I wanted to get a comic posted before the holiday week, and so that's what I've done.

Click to enlarge and get your heart so warmed that it might be unhealthy-

Comic revision: Pygmy Hippo with color

2008-12-19T12:15:00.000-08:00

Not exactly a new post, but I thought it would be fun to throw a little color on the pygmy hippo comic. I love black and white, but this comic in particular seemed to be begging for some sprucing up, and if nothing else that "leader" panel looks more fully realized.

Click to enlarge and enter a colorful world of hippo-related fancy-

I want to do a quick new comic in the next day or two and get it posted before the holiday week.. If I don't make time, I think my parents have a decent scanner back home so I can at least get it up sometime before Christmas day. We shall see.

Comic: Can I Interest You in a Pygmy Hippo?

2008-12-03T00:04:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago, the world fell in love with Monifa, the pygmy hippo baby born at the Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia.. So let's start breeding these things faster and in bulk, because we all want one.

CLICK to make the tiny hippos grow up too fast-

Comic: Comic

2008-11-23T22:45:00.001-08:00

I made a comic today. I still do that.

Click to enlarge-

I've been pursuing other creative endeavors lately, though there should be more here soon. I don't want this blog to be about how little I'm blogging.

Tiny Comic: Soy Milk

2008-10-05T23:28:00.000-07:00

Been a while.. Here's a wee little comic that might just add a small touch of joy to your day. Like a tiny scented candle implanted beside your heart.

CLICK so you don't have to strain your eyes so much-

If I find myself getting upset about something stupid, I think that the best course of action is to make a comic about it in which I make myself look ridiculous (see last post too). Perspective!

Comic: Road rage is sexy

2008-09-14T22:25:00.001-07:00

After far too long without one (though I guess that's a matter of opinion), here's another comic, done today.

CLICK to expose your innocent mind to the salty language within (not for the young ones)-

Remember: You shouldn't get angry about that which you can not control or influence.. Some unsolicited therapy for you.

US Presidents with facial hair #1

2008-09-07T22:27:00.000-07:00

Only full-on beards and moustaches, sideburns excluded so far (sorry, Martin Van Buren). It might be fun to draw some of the livelier muttonchops in presidential history, but then where do I draw the line?

Abraham Lincoln-

Ulysses S. Grant-

There's a string of facial-haired presidents from Lincoln through Taft, with Andrew Johnson and McKinley being the only spoilers.

I didn't get much drawing/comic-making done in the past two weeks, and I'll blame the conventions for the most part, but also a changing work schedule.. I may continue this series, but I've been sitting on several comic ideas for weeks, and though I've second-guessed them by this point, I'd like to do one as soon as I can.

Flightless birds, stupid hats

2008-08-24T22:54:00.000-07:00

Sometimes you get what you pay for, and this blog is free.

Clicking will magnify somewhat-

I haven't posted much this month, but I've got some stuff in the works. I'd like to put together a small zine or something. Hopefully I'll make time to do a new comic this week as well.. We'll see how it goes, with the real job to contend with and all.

Comic: Owls doing stuff

2008-08-16T00:16:00.001-07:00

I was going to post this in the morning, but I got back from the Mike Bertino show at Secret Headquarters and I'm awake/inspired, so why not scan this bastard and move onto the next one?

Click to ENLARGE, making the owls so big and lifelike that you may feel them flapping around your room-

I guess I missed my self-imposed deadline by a few days, but the great thing about self-imposed deadlines is that failing to meet them only results in a nagging feeling of self-hatred, and nothing worse.

Comic: It's a tasty treat

2008-08-06T23:14:00.001-07:00

Bears! Comic! Done today, just for you. Perhaps you'd like to print it out and tape it up somewhere in your workspace. Let everyone share the laughter. Maybe you could staple it onto your shirt.

Click to experience life at its fullest-

The average adult male thinks about it once every 7 seconds.

Comic: Productivity is relative

2008-07-30T22:41:00.000-07:00

I seem to recall a time, not so long ago, when I would draw and post quick, simple comics about bears.. Let's revisit that time, shall we?

Clicking the image will allow you to see it larger and all proper-like -

Ahh.. A nice change of pace after all of the real humans lately. It's always easier with bears.

Comic: Goldblummates

2008-07-24T23:02:00.000-07:00

Jeff Goldblum and Jeff Goldblum.

Click/Enlarge to receive maximum Goldblum-

The dialogue consists of quotes from the man himself (and not characters he has played), which I found online and arranged. I can't say for sure that the lines are entirely accurate as I didn't compile them, but I seem to remember him saying such things on Letterman or Conan some years ago. Who cares, anyway? The words themselves are clearly somewhat inane, but the magic is that they are from the mouth of Goldblum. I do not appreciate Jeff Goldblum in an ironic way; He is a fine actor and one of my all-time favorite talk show guests. Remember those Apple commercials? I want to have a conversation with this man.

As for me completing the redo of what I set out to do last week, I am not thrilled with each depiction seen here, but I feel that overall it's Goldblumy enough, at least compared to the failures as described in my previous post.

Failure: Goldblum

2008-07-17T22:47:00.000-07:00

I am having a personal crisis: I can't draw Jeff Goldblum.

Maybe I can draw something that looks vaguely Goldblumesque, once or twice, but I've given myself the task of drawing Goldblum six times for something that I'm working on (or was working on up to this point). I have penciled and redrawn all six figures many times, and I can not manage to muster more than a couple of slightly Goldblumish creatures, who seem to only get much less Jeff-like after the introduction of ink..

-A sampling of my feeble attempts at Goldblum.

Have you seen pictures of Jeff Goldblum? Of course you have. You've seen him on television, on film, and perhaps even in your dreams. You know what Jeff Goldblum looks like, as do I. I can close my eyes and picture an entire room full of Goldblums (laughing, pondering, chatting about this and that), and each one of them looks enough like him in my mind to the extent that I can certainly say, "I really, really know what Jeff Goldblum looks like," and I can mean it.

Jeff Goldblum is a chameleon. He is such a great actor that he has the ability to look totally different every time his image is captured on film, and yet he still completely remains himself. I'm confused by his nose, his eyes, his eyebrows, his chin, his damn smile-crevices.. What's up with his hair? His ears- what is going on there?

Has he had work done, or is his ever-changing appearance just the effect of aging and muscle gain and/or loss? Have you considered the possibility that there might be several Jeff Goldblums?

I couldn't draw Giada De Laurentiis, either.. and I was only trying to do just one.

(Sigh) I will get past this.. Perhaps I will at some point, sooner or later, redo what I started.. not that the idea is necessarily worth it in and of itself, but this could become a personal mission.

TV Chefs and Cooks #3

2008-07-10T22:37:00.001-07:00

More food people you mighta seen while lookin' at the TV..

Nigella Lawson-

Guy Fieri-

Julia Child-

The Swedish Chef-

-For Aaron. Bork bork bork!

TV Chefs and Cooks #2

2008-07-09T22:53:00.001-07:00

Mario Batali-

Anthony Bourdain-

Duff Goldman-

TV Chefs and Cooks

2008-07-08T23:21:00.000-07:00

Paula Deen-

Butter, y'all!

Gordan Ramsay-

And tonight, let us all shed a tear for Petrozza-

Oh, Petrozza.. If only you hadn't started off so poorly. You were still robbed. This may not have worked out, but maybe now you can become the "Next Food Network Star" instead. You may be messy, but then again so is Rachel Ray.

Me?

2008-07-08T19:25:00.001-07:00

A self portrait.. The nose seems to be a little off (a bit too Duchovny-esque).

Bad People #2

2008-07-03T21:08:00.000-07:00

More total jerks.

Click on them and they shall appear larger, and perhaps more sinister-

Bad People

2008-07-01T22:46:00.000-07:00

Collect 'em all!

Click images to make them grow slightly before your eyes-

I did this first one with a ballpoint pen.. I later took a rapidograph to it in an attempt to touch it up a bit.

Comic: This wheelin' ain't free

2008-06-24T22:09:00.000-07:00

Comic! ..Done today.

Click the image for maximum enjoyment-

Has "pimp" ever been on one of Groening's "Forbidden Words of.." lists? If not, it should be. Not only is it kind of a stupid word to use for anything other than an actual pimp, but by now it's also terribly antiquated. Rappers and whoever else may continue to use it to describe themselves should it apply, that is if they wish to repeat the same things many of them have been saying since 1992, but neither objects such as cars nor elderly folksmen are "pimp."

More Filler!

2008-06-23T23:51:00.000-07:00

In an effort to put some wood on the little campfire that is my blog, here are more sketches, some more recent than others.

As always, CLICK for optimal image display-

First, above we have a bit of concept art for a comic I made for an as yet unreleased CD by composer Michael Perilstein (The Deadly Spawn, Winterbeast). Buy his The Least Worst of Michael Perilstein, and you will not only enjoy some of his finest music (plug!), but you will also see the first comic I did for him a few years back. I suppose I own this image as it didn't end up in this comic, but my current profile picture is actually from yet another comic that I worked with him on, and therefore he technically holds copyright on it (!). I, however, retain ownership of myself and Michael Perilstein likewise holds all rights to Michael Perilstein. Above we find him in France.

Birds are always pretty good.

"So I was hawlin' muh trailurh down ta Dixon Cownteh.."

Attempts to draw my old roommate's dog.. Honestly, it doesn't really look like her.

Why not?

Comic: onyd!

2008-06-16T00:58:00.000-07:00

Clicking this image will make it oh so much better (and somewhat bigger)-

..I used different paper this time and suffered for it. My pen line was quite bloody, though it doesn't look much different than usual when shrunk down a bit.

Filler

2008-06-10T22:56:00.000-07:00

I picked a bad time to start this blog, given how I've been pretty busy in the month or so since its inception.. Barring the event of some sort of disaster or personal crisis, I am vowing to not let this blog go an entire week without a new post (and I'm certainly hoping to post more often than that). That being said, I haven't drawn much of anything in the last week. So here, instead of something fresh, is a bunch of old stuff from a sketchbook of mine from several years ago. Is there anything more exciting than looking at somebody's old sketches? Of course not. Something good came of this though, in that I found an old idea that I plan to turn into a new comic when I get a chance.

Also, I think it was actually a great habit to be in.. Just coming home at the end of the day and drawing without really thinking, which I too rarely do nowadays, especially with just a pen. I would scribble out anything that came to mind.

Click to digitally transform them into larger, more robust images.

Abe Lincoln often comes to mind.

What?

Hmm.

I like this a little bit.

Moustaches can be a little creepy. Not always, but sometimes.

I don't know.

Yep.

Comic: Gull

2008-06-03T23:10:00.000-07:00

No gag, just some sketchbook fun.. I haven't had a great deal of free time lately thanks to work, but today wasn't so bad; hence this comic's existence. Click to enlarge-

Comic: She

2008-05-31T02:29:00.000-07:00

What do you do when you get home after an opening at Secret Headquarters? You crank out a comic, that's what. Then, if you happen to still be up after the ink dries, you post it. Click for a larger view.

Comic: "It Looks Okay"

2008-05-27T23:49:00.000-07:00

Another quick one, done today.. Click to enlarge-

Fighting Animals - The Jungle

2008-05-26T12:10:00.000-07:00

As predicted, real work has left me very little time for fun work in the last week.. But my day off yesterday led to this disturbing little battle royale. Don't blame me- nature is a violent place. Click to enlarge:

My money's on the toucan.

Animals Smoking, #2

2008-05-18T23:27:00.001-07:00

Bereft of short-term ideas, I turn again to smoking animals. Here we have some of our more disgusting animal friends enjoying a smoke or two, apparently on break from being so gross.

Nothing could be more hideous than bats. Look up "bats" on wikipedia and see the picture that comes up.. It's difficult to make them cute and digestible (not literally) and still make them look like bats.

Next, we have a capybara smoking a cigar. Not really gross like the animals above, but not so cute that I would want one around the house.

Capybara's are the world's largest rodent, who sometimes grow to be more than 4 feet long. In the 16th century, the Catholic Church decided that the capybara was a fish, which allowed people to eat it during Lent. I don't think I'd eat one.

Oh, and I need to decide on an actual title for this blog..

More old comics- Spiders, Cat n' Mouse

2008-05-18T13:21:00.001-07:00

Here are some more older comics of mine, created toward the end of my college days.. I think that they were done sometime in early 2004, predating the clowns posted last week (so not that long ago, I suppose). The spiders might be a little too cutesy, and I don't think anyone ever understood the cat/mouse one, but still I decided to post them here anyway. Actually, I made one change to the cat/mouse before posting: I added the mouse's line in the last panel. Maybe it's a little easier to get now? Again, I drew them very tiny- I tend to do that, rather than draw larger with the intent to shrink down for web or print. Click to enlarge-

I don't know much about action anime, manga or fighting robots in general, but I still think I did a decent job with the cat/mousebots..

There should be some more new comics posted soon, as I'm just starting a one-pager right now. I don't foresee a great deal of free time for drawrin' in the near future, but I'll make time. Probably some more sketches later on or tomorrow, too.

Comic: Birthday

2008-05-14T18:24:00.000-07:00

Here's a quick one I did today. I drew it tiny, too- about 6x2 inches. Click to enlarge.

I wanted to make this toward the end of last year but I never got around to it.. It's not verbatim by any means, but it's based on a true story.

Comic: Clowns

2008-05-14T17:05:00.000-07:00

I did this comic about four years ago.. Chances are that if you're viewing this blog you may have seen it before, but this blog needs some comics now. Click for a closer look.

He says "clown" a lot, doesn't he? At the time it amused me that if you put the two clowns together, it would kinda look like Krusty. Homage!

Animals Smoking

2008-05-13T22:28:00.001-07:00

Smoking is awful. It's terrible. I'm going to quit, I promise (right after this next one). Yes, smoking is a disgusting habit, but there's a grand tradition of smoking animals in comics, cartoons and other visual arts. From Herriman's Gooseberry Sprig to Kozik's Smorkin' Labbits, many an animal has partook in this nasty yet somehow enjoyable vice.. I felt like drawing some of my own-

These rabbits came out okay.

The thing I like about this one is how the one on the right is holding his cigarette without the aid of opposable thumbs.

I don't know about this bear.. I messed him up twice and tried to fix him without white-out, and he turned into a mess of sloppy hatching (I criticize myself so you don't have to! Comments welcome). I think he's holding his arm because he's emo or something- He came out sadder than intended, thanks to my wrist having a mind of its own when I was inking the mouth.

A Brief Word of Introduction

2008-05-13T21:03:00.000-07:00

Here I am, learning how to draw again (though you could argue that I was never really that good anyway).. Over the past few years, my urge to draw and/or write has come and gone, with patches of creativity but just as many periods where I simply don't bother. Too busy with real work, or perhaps just frustrated or lazy, I've neglected my "gift," if you'd like to call it that (and I would). This blog is being started as I catch the latest wave of inspiration, in an attempt to keep riding that bastard all the way through the rest of my days. Right now, though I don't harbor any grand expectations for a large audience with a dinky blog such as this, this blog is a reason for me to keep going. It's something to do with my drawings and comics after I'm done with them (and perhaps in time there will be other things to post about as well).

That being said, I expect to look at these drawings, etc. five years from now and cringe. Hard. Maybe it'll just be a few weeks, I don't know.. I'm kinda cringing at what my first real post is going to be right now. But that's okay (I tell myself). This blog is also an attempt to get better- to grow and learn as an artist, cartoonist, or whatever. So, enough nonsense- It's effin' blog-time!