Shark Week!

Get it?!

Four Posts in July!

For my fourth and final post this month, here’s a celebration of all things My Black Dad. I’m on the left, boldly punching a swan in the face. (No idea.) To my left is a nod to one of Matt’s greatest creations, and one that still makes me laugh. (That’s really all I can say about that except, “Thank you, Matt.”) Next over is our biggest – and most gloriously pregnant – fan. (I put a bird on that one – thank you for all your support, Jen!) And all the way to the right is Matt, swinging his leg into the crotch of a raccoon. (Again, no idea.) This blog is a home for all things wonderful and absurd and maybe just a little offensive, and I’m very happy to be a part of it!

Pain Robot

This one was a personal project I’d been wanting to do for a while. I’ve had pain in my hip on and off for about fifteen years or so, but recently the pain has intensified to the point that it’s difficult to walk. What I find most interesting is the psychological reaction that occurs around this kind of ongoing, intense pain – planning activities (or avoiding them) around the fear of encountering the pain, excuses made to myself and to others to avoid certain movements, the depression of constantly thinking about not only the present pain, but a life of this kind of pain, this taste of what my life could be, the feeling that the mostly pain-free existence I’ve had is over, and now it’s time to pay my dues.

The past few weeks I’ve been more proactive, seeing a chiropractor and then an acupuncturist, and the pain has greatly lessened. I created this piece because my body feels like a rusting piece of metal, an old robot made of parts that not only aren’t compatible with each other but are actively working against one another. The lights in the hip (red) and the shoulder, head, and calf are pain centers, places where it radiates.

I meant this to be a pure painting, and did the body with gouache, but I’ll admit I brought it into Photoshop and went to town on it, and I really like the finished product. I haven’t painted anything in a while, and I don’t have much experience anyway, so it was actually very freeing to express my vision more fully using the computer.

I didn’t look at anything specifically as a reference, but I had one of my all-time favorite artists in mind when I was working on this. His name is Ashley Wood, and you can check out his site but clicking here. He works mainly on his own comic books with his independent label, and they often involve robots and naked chicks. I subscribe to his blog, and the amount of work this guy puts out, even in a single day, is really incredible.

Bear Hands

My second post of four! This idea is by NO means original – I actually saw a much cuter version making the rounds on Facebook. But I drew it and colored it fast and was happy with the finished product. (You get it…right? Wa ha ha!)
More fun stuff coming before the month’s out!

Ghost Can

At the corner nearest my house, there used to be a trash can. A lot of people can’t seem to let go, and they still leave garbage where the trash can used to be. At least five months ago. It’s a bit like an altar of sorts. An altar to laziness. This particular pile seems to be three bags of clothes, which is kind of extra sad because there’s a Salvation Army half a block away. You could, quite literally, throw these bags of clothes and hit the donation drop box. If you really wanted to. I took a picture and drew in the old can, just to pay my own respects. I miss you too, trash can. (PS: Why remove a trash can? I have a sneaking suspicion it was stolen, for whatever f’d up reason…)

I realize it’s been a while since my last post, so this month, I’m posting double: FOUR posts this month. No joke. Let’s do this thing.

Just Shoot Meme

I made this today because I am fed up with memes.

There are a bunch that are really funny ones made by funny people.  But now anybody can make one.  Time was, The Facebook News Feed had some variety.  Now it is mostly a bunch of  pictures of words.  It sounds weird to say that.  “Pictures of Words.”  There’s something wrong with the medium.  I can’t put my finger on it.  Laziness? Band-wagon mentality?  I hope it sorts itself all out soon, because I can’t take one more snappy wise-cracking picture of words.

Just because you type it in big white letters with a background of Gene Wilder doesn’t make it worth reading.  It’s not funny.  It’s not art.  It’s not new.  Engage your creative spirits in something more productive.  Pick up a pencil or a paintbrush or a crayon.  Bake bread, plant some flowers, or call your mother.  Just stop making bad memes.

I don’t know what else to say on this subject.  *Sigh*

Just Another Biennial Breakfast with Mike

I have to be so clear and simple with Mister G Kids that I’m relieved I have My Black Dad as an outlet for obfuscation, obliquity, opacity, obtuseness, and other “O” words.

Wild Thing

This is my tribute to Maurice Sendak, so influential to my early years for Where The Wild Things Are and a bunch of other books, including Mickey in the Night Kitchen, which I thought was pretty cool because my family calls me Mickey.

I created my own wild thing, a huge owl type creature. I’m sitting next to him, dressed in a coyote costume, another animal that has special significance for me.

Mr. Sendak created some beautiful and unique work, and I hope he’s in a good place.

Policeboy Imagined

The little girl’s idea to be a “policeboy” in today’s Mister G Kids comic set my imagination afire.  I think it’s such a cute and funny idea, so I sketched out a few possibilities of who this Policeboy might be.  I had fun! I like the motorcycle one because his hands don’t reach the handles and he has a super-soaker in the saddlebags.  The bottom Policeboy has a slingshot, though.

Maybe Tiny Teddy Bear Hitman and Policeboy can work together, and maybe they need some more cute superhero friends.  Or maybe Policeboy solves Teddy’s repulsive crimes! Mike?

Crime of Passion