Giant Sized Daily Sketch

8.26.10-8.28.10 - This is the sketch that got me in trouble.

As much as it kinda weirds people out when I ask them to pose, it really helps to have a real human to look at as a frame of reference. I try to simply visualize the way the human body looks from a certain angle, but things always work out better if I can actually SEE how things go. Without a human model, I wouldn't have actually included any of the left side of that middle guy's face.

Somebody else pointed out that this picture screams domestic abuse. That wasn't what I was going for when I started out, but that's why the middle guy's wearing a wife-beater now.

Also, I still like drawing guys in suits.

I Bought Some Art

Just got back from the Magna Main Street Art Show... and that actually was about the best way I could have spent my morning.

I've mentioned my friend Manelle here before - pretty much the individual that inspired me to take up drawing all together. Well, she had a booth at the Art Show, and I actually bought some of her prints. I got this three piece series of little postcard sized prints, and, as you can see, they were totally worth it.

Best $18.00 I've spent in a while.

See, I've always been a big fan of art, but I feel like a bit of a poser in that I go to art shows (when occasion allows) but very rarely contribute anything back financially. But I'm a firm believer in supporting art that I enjoy with my wallet, so actually purchasing something I've enjoyed looking at felt really, really good.

Plus I get to look at the pictures at home now where I don't have the internet, which is awesome, like bacon covered in maple syrup made from LOVE.

Maybe I Should Have Thought This Through...

Thought about making a Why I'm Still Single comic out of this, but the whole story's a bit too good for a single panel.

Anyway, I was working on my sketch while at rehearsals for Damn Yankees last night. Recently, I haven't been taking my sketches too seriously, so, as a result, most of them have been pretty sloppy. Well, last night, I decided to try to get a bit more authenticity. So I went and asked another castmate to model for me... sort of.

I walk up to her, help her get into the pose I was going for - head down and turned slightly to the side. I just needed to see how close the chin gets to the shoulder and how much of the neck is visible. So I looked her over as best I could, got a sense for how all the different edges of the image would line up.

It took about thirty seconds... which, if you've ever actually counted out thirty seconds in silence, takes a REALLY LONG TIME. Well, after that awkward silence, I let her know I was done by saying, "Good enough."

Trouble is, I don't think I told her exactly what I was doing.

Her take on events shows that she understood things a bit differently than I did. Yeah, um, I guess I could have been clearer.

Yeah, I suppose that she WAS "good enough" to look at for about thirty seconds, but not quite the same way SHE meant. Oh, and she's totally lovely, I should add.

(Larissa who explained it all slightly wrong was concerned with maintaining anonymity, but I figure I gave that up when I put my name on the internet)

Things I'll Love Forever: The Prestige

Y'ever hear that question, "Which is better: the book, or the movie?" I absolutely hate that question. Hate it, hate it, hate it. Ultimately, it's meaningless. Sure, MOST movie adaptations of books suck harder than a jet-engine powered vacuum cleaner, but not EVERY adaptation is terrible. When the person making the adaptation gets it right, they learn to adjust the story from the book as needed to play to the strengths of the movie format.

Some movies blow it. Some get it right. Some get it so right that the movie actually TRANSCENDS the source material.

Take, for example, Christopher Nolan's The Prestige. Now, there's a book out there by Christopher Priest, and it's pretty good. But the movie... oh, I LOVE the movie.

I can't tell you exactly why without getting into a few spoilers, but the movie's gettin' on five years old, so it's kinda your own fault if you don't know this stuff by now.

1 - The movie itself works a lot like a magician's illusion - at least as magic tricks play out in the constraints of the story. Christopher Nolan starts the story at the end - pretty much telling you what he's going to do like a magician announcing that he's going to pull a rabbit from a hat. The non-linear nature of the story serves as misdirection, and the twist... oh, the twists are delicious. All the hints are there, but they usually don't register until the final reveal at the end - and you're kinda left wondering how Nolan did it.

2 - Unlike The Sixth Sense, which has a pretty well-executed twist ending but doesn't really merit more than two or three views, The Prestige holds up to repeated viewings - partly because of HOW MANY subtle, clever hints are scattered throughout the movie. The ENTIRE time, all of the characters are telling you EXACTLY what's going on, but, for the most part, you don't realize their doing it. Part of the reason is that what Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale are actually doing behind the scenes is SO bizarre that you don't actually WANT to know. As Michael Caine says, "You want to be fooled."

3 - The Prestige is full of my favorite actors. Scarlett Johansson... not so much. But Christian Bale, Michael Cain... even David Bowie and Andy Serkis put in great turns. And speaking of actors...

4 - I'm not a huge fan of Hugh Jackman. I like the guy well enough as Wolverine, and Kate and Leopold was... terrible. However, this is BY FAR his best performance as far as I'm concerned. There's a scene where Jackman plays both the magician Angier and his physical double, the drunken Root. I LOVE how well Root is able to imitate Angier - but that shouldn't be a surprise, since it's still Hugh Jackman. What really catches my attention, though, is the condescension Jackman throws in while playing Root who's playing Angier. It's delightfully chilling, and, as far as I'm concerned, one of the pivotal scenes in the whole movie.

5 - Christopher Nolan seems to like to make "thinking movies." Inception wasn't quite as smart as everyone seems to think it was, but there are a lot of deep themes hidden behind the heisty action. Even The Dark Knight aspires to be more than a super hero slap fest. To me, The Prestige is all about identity - how fluid and transcient it can be. See the Root scene I referenced above or... heck, ANY of the major plot twists.

6 - I like me some dark entertainment, and The Prestige is wonderfully dark and atmospheric. The tone's set right from the beginning with a magic show that goes horribly wrong and continues straight through to Thom Yorke's haunting song "Analyse" at the conclusion.

The Prestige asks if you're watching closely. You'd better, because it's totally worth it, and that's why I love it forever.

Storytelling: Poetry

The past two years or so I've spent a LOT of time thinking about the modern art of storytelling - basically, who tells stories and how they tell them. We've never had more ways of getting stories out there than we do right now. Most of my thoughts have focused on WHY a story should be told a certain way. Here are some of the conclusions I've come to.


We'll start with one of my personal favorites:


POETRY


In some ways, poetry's one of the oldest forms of storytelling/artistic expression we've got. Rhyming verse has its roots in old oral storytelling traditions - it's easy to memorize and easy to recite.

In recent years, poetry's been less about rhyme and meter and more about raw, verbal imagery. It's the clever turn of phrase, the subtle metaphor that rests over you like a blanket or stirs you up to action. Rhymes are still a part of poetry, but they more often find their place in children's poetry anymore.

Formal experimentation has always been a big part of poetry writing, but the forms have gotten even more diverse over the last 100 years. Just about anything goes - making pictures out of words, changing fonts and colors, stream-of-consciousness free-association... anything goes.

Poetry's greatest strengths are its versatility and relative simplicity. True, you CAN write a 300-page epic poem, but, usually, 300 LINES is considered a long poem. Poems can be written on ANY subject, from the mundane to the sublime, from the profane to the divine. Good poetry merits revisitation, doesn't demand a lot of time, and leaves you feeling NEW.

Poetry's biggest problem, though, is in it's inaccessibility. People don't GET poetry anymore, because poetry's not written for the people as a whole. It's incredibly esoteric - just because a poem CAN be simple doesn't mean it will. "Good" poetry has long been dominated by academics, who spend more time in self-congratulation that they forget the poem's original audience: the small group gathered around the fireplace.

The lack of fireplaces in our nation may also contribute to poetry's decline.


Joking aside, I really believe poetry IS in decline. With the advent of the movie, the TV series, and countless other media that are easily accessible and easily understandable, poetry may be on its way out. But just because poetry's no longer culturally relevant doesn't make it any less worthwhile as a course of study. People may not be able to name any poets from the past ten years, but EVERYONE knows how to finish the couplet, "Two roads diverged in a wood, and I." Poetry's important historically, and, therefore, will always maintain SOME level of relevancy.


Besides, poetry's sneaky. A person who would never buy a book of poetry may pick up a novel with some particularly vivid description, or watch a movie with one or two striking lines of dialog, or pick up the latest Eminem album and hear a fantastic rhyme (Anyone who can rhyme "tornado," "volcano," and "away now" is a genius in my book). Even undercover, poetry will always be around.

So you want to tell a story. Why write a poem?

• Strong, economic language - poetry's perfect for people who love their language.
• Lots of possibility for experimentation.
• Very small, but incredibly enthusiastic, audience.
• Lots of application outside of the field of poetry.

Confessions: Dreams

1 - You know that dream where you go out, off to work/school/whatever, and then you realize that you somehow left without your clothes? Yeah, I have that dream ALL THE TIME.

Seriously, like once a week. I've heard that means something about being insecure and unsure of your own self-worth, but I can't belive that, because, seriously:

I also have that one dream where you sign up for a college class, walk in the class on the day of the final, then realize that you've never actually BEEN to the class. I guess that probably means that I place a lot of value on education, but don't ever actually SUCCEED in learning anything...

2 - I once had a dream where I couldn't spit. I can't explain why. It's like I HAD to spit, like I had blood or something in my mouth, but I was physically incapable of actually spitting. The weirdest part is that I've actually had this dream TWICE, and the second time was just a couple of days ago.

At least the second time I woke up before I finally succeeded in spitting.

3 - I once dreamed I spent an entire day dressed up in a nun's habit.

4 - The first nightmare I ever had that actually scared me involved a vampire. And I mean a REAL vampire, with pale skin, widow's peaks, fangs, and NO SPARKLES.

It's probably cliche now to make fun of Twilight. And, one of these days, I'll probably stop.

But that day is not today - Twilight's stupid.

Braddy's Resentful Again

I hate food metaphors for dating. I've hated them ever since one of my college Stake Presidents compared the Mormon dating scene to a buffet - which kinda made me want to beat him over the head with the entire dessert bar.

Still, this is what's been on my mind today - Dating is a lot like looking over the menu at a restaurant. You hesitate to go for the things you'd really want, because they're either too expensive for you or really bad for your health. And the items on the menu you can actually AFFORD... well, they'd probably resent you if they knew you considered them to be part of the Value Menu.

Well, at least, if you don't like the hamburger, you're only out two bucks and about ten minutes. Amiright?

Giant Sized Daily Sketches

It's been a while since I've posted any of my sketches. A lot of that has to do with the tragic loss of my thumb drive... *sniff*

Anyway, so I've kept up with the daily sketches, and I thought I'd take a minute and share some.



7.4.10-7.6.10 - Here's one of my first attempts at comic-style storytelling. Not much to say... Hopefully it comes across.


8.7.10 - I took a great little vacation this past weekend up to my sister-in-law's cabin. Since I got to spend so much time relaxing, I had time to fill pretty much this whole page with some type of concert scene.

I've never really drawn fireworks before, so the pyrotechnics here look a bit... weird. Sorta like ultra-stylistic Christmas trees or something.

The singer was inspired by a kind of mental picture I have of David Bowie. Still, he looks a bit like Michael Jackson.

And, for those that are curious, the name of the band on the drum is "Shazam!"

Are You KIDDING Me, Kevin Smith?

Okay, I've let this one slip for long enough.

Writer/director Kevin Smith has taken a crack at writing Batman, and... well, I don't think I can approve of his storytelling decisions. Wanna know why not?

THIS is why:

BATMAN PEES HIMSELF!!!

Seriously, who wants to read about Batman peeing himself? How did this get published? How did the editors let this slide?

Kevin Smith: "Did you see that Dark Knight movie Christopher Nolan put out?"

DC Editors: "Yes. Absolutely fantastic."

Kevin Smith: "Eh, I thought it was okay. But you know what would have made it better?"

DC Editors: "What?"

Kevin Smith: "----in' urine!"

This moment is actually a bit more offensive when you realize that the "wet moment" takes place during a pivotal scene in Batman: Year One, considered by many (myself included) to be one of the best Batman stories ever told.

Okay, let's handle this a different way. You tell me: Who do you think is more likely to lose control of his bladder:

A) Batman

B) Kevin Smith

Why I'm Still Single #13

Okay, one more:

Let me clear up one more thing:

As you can see, I had a bad week for romance. This didn't exactly happen, but something similar to it did, thus prompting this past week's string of angsty romance-and-despair-themed comics. I'm actually on pretty good terms with the woman involved (I think), but I got so many ideas I thought were funny that I just had to put them all on the internet for everyone to see.

So, yeah, I'm not bitter or anything...

Well, not more bitter than usual...

Well... shut up.

uBeR pOeTrY kOnTeSt 4 tEh KiDz!!!1!

Yeah, I have no clue how to properly write in 1337.


Before I get into my rant for the day, I want clear something up. I made a comment the other day that rather strongly implied that I'd given up on poetry writing. I'll own to being a bit discouraged, but I don't think I've actually QUIT. After the setbacks I've had, I feel like I just need a bit of time to recuperate* Also, remember that, in the past, I have threatened to quit the dating scene, my job, all video games ever, my crippling cocaine addiction, and using the word "shizzle," and I haven't actually given up on any of these things.


Well, except dating.


Anyway, so I belong to a poetry group made up mostly of middle-aged women (and one gay man) (that's not me). The group leadership has decided that they need to attract younger members - presumably so this herd of poetic wildebeasts will survive after the next lion attack (metaphorically - that wasn't meant to be an agist joke). To that end, they've decided to create a poetry contest, and they're currently debating what type of contest they can have that'll attract the young 'uns. Here's what they've come up with:


Write a poem on the subject of science and technology (eg, space shuttles, cosmology, use of computers such as finding information on the Internet and connecting with others via social networks such as Facebook and Twitter)


Now, I'm all for expanding the circle of poetry writers in the community, seeing as how I'm a three-legged poetic wildebeast with skin cancer and asthma myself, but I'm not sure how effective this contest will be at attracting young people. It seems too much like an attempt to capitalize on what's "hip" rather than what's relevant and comes from the very generational disconnect their trying to work around.


"Them whippersnappers got no respect for the art of their elders! They'ze too busy with their Facebooks and cellular tellyphones to pay us any attention! We gots ta get them ta appreciate poetry soon, or they'll all be lost when the Rapture comes!"


"Maybe we could invite them to participate in a poetry contest?"


"Naw, only if they write about that darnfangled Internet thing. They don't know nothin' bout nothin' else."**


That said, I don't know what they could do that would work any better. I don't think I'm being overly pessimistic when I say poetry is a dying art form. To me, it's significant that even big bookstores like Barnes and Noble are constantly putting their poetry sections on smaller and smaller bookshelves more difficult to locate than the section on midget pornography.

(Although I have to say that this idea for a contest reminded me of an idea my cousin JC told me about: text poetry. I like the idea of writing micro-poetry that can be sent via text, but I'm afraid too many rhymes would be made with the word "lulz")

My biggest fear is that people just don't see poetry as relevant anymore - and it may not be, at least in any form currently existing. Traditional poetry's a bit too esoteric for the general public - if not by design, then by history. Now, if you could get Angelina Jolie to make a movie based on the life of Sylvia Plath, maybe we could reverse that.

You know you'd watch that. I would.



* i.e. curl up in a ball behind my bed with my thumb in my mouth.

** Celebrity voices impersonated

Why I'm Still Single #12

Braddy Reads Absolute Trust in the Goodness of the Earth

So I’ve had a lot of setbacks when it comes to my poetry writing recently. I lost my USB drive with all my poetry on it for the second time in two years. Oh, and you couple that with the fact that the poetry section at Barnes and Noble keeps getting moved to smaller and smaller bookshelves (assuming they still have a section dedicated to poetry AT ALL), and my enthusiasm for the art has nearly completely disappeared – despite the fact that I GRADUATED from college in poetry writing.

I hope I never lose my enthusiasm for READING the stuff, though – cuz then I’d miss out on some pretty good poetry. Take, for example, Absolute Trust in the Goodness of the Earth, by Alice Walker.

There are some fantastic poems in here that revel in simple language and everyday settings. Alice Walker pulls out a lot of themes involving aging and acceptance, and she pulls some pretty fantastic word pairings out.

Seriously, the woman has a line about war not paying attention to frogs, and she calls garlic “cool as nuns.” This, by the way, is Awesome Poetry™.

There are some aspects of Alice Walker’s poetry that I had a bit of trouble wrapping my head around. Ms. Walker dedicates a lot of time talking about the importance of using mushrooms to tap in to the divine. I don’t know that I can really get behind that… but it feels appropriately poetish.

Oh, and she writes a lot about a kind of “divine femininity” that I, as a male reader, have trouble getting behind. I mean, there’s a lot of talk about “divine femininity,” but I never hear anything about a “divine masculinity.”

I bet the divine masculinity just belches a lot.

Anyway, Absolute Trust in the Goodness of the Earth – recommended for anyone who happens to like poetry.