Illustration Friday: Twirl

I'm busily working on a project I can't post about yet, so for this week's Illustration Friday I'm re-posting a sketch from my 2012 Sketchbook Project book:

To get home, you must first twirl the Ferris wheel until your house is at the bottom.

Sketching...

I seem to be neglecting the blog these days.  Sorry, folks.  I've been concentrating my creative energy and time on writing my latest middle grade novel and learning Adobe Illustrator (using Classroom in a Book).  I still sketch a bit in the evenings, however.  Nothing geared toward any particular project at this point--just whatever comes out of the pencil.  Here's a taste:

A cold turn in the weather had me drawing kids in winter wear.  Today the weather has turned again, and I'm thinking perhaps I should redraw these guys in shirtsleeves.  

I've decided not to sign up for the Sketchbook Project this year.  I've done the project for the last two years.  I got a lot out of the process, but I don't think I need their challenge anymore. Also, I'm not interested in the new printed book they're introducing this year.  I intend to keep taking frequent pencil-dives into my sketchbook, but on my own, and loosely, without a unifying theme or structure.  Involvement in this wonderful community of illustrating bloggers is sufficient stimulus to keep me drawing regularly.

End Page of Treehouse Sketchbook Project

Here's the end page of my Sketchbook Project book:

It's not a very elaborate image on this spread because some of it will be covered by a pocket before the book goes into circulation.  I don't remember which side they put it on.  Now I have only to pack it up and mail it to the Art House Library in Brooklyn, NY.

If you're interested in seeing all the sketches I've done in this (SBP 2012) book and the one I did last year (SBP 2011), click here or on sketchbook project label in the right hand margin and scroll through the posts.

My Last Illustration Friday Sketchbook Project Combo for the Year

This is the last full spread in my Sketchbook Project "Treehouse" book:

The contrasting designs of the two houses is inspired by this week's Illustration Friday topic "vanity."  Sorry, no prizes for figuring out who's meant to be vain in this picture, but if you can come up with a creative reason why it would be the guy in the tree on the left, I'd love to read your explanation in the comments.

One page (half a spread) left to go before this puppy gets mailed to Brooklyn.

Another Treehouse Spread for the Sketchbook Project

Another Illustration Friday - Sketchbook Project Mash-up

Silent:

Illustration Friday: Stripes

Here is "Stripes":

I am almost at the end of my Sketchbook Project book, so soon you should start seeing Illustration Friday images posted here that don't involve a treehouse.  It's been fun to combine the two exercises, but I'm about ready to move on to other themes...

A Man's Treehouse is his Castle

There are only about five spreads left to fill in my Sketchbook Project book.  No rush to finish this year.

I've been doing a little less drawing these days as I spend more time familiarizing myself with my new Adobe Creative Suite 5.5.  I had an old version of the design software (Photoshop, Illustrator, and Pagemaker, purchased in 1999) that I barely touched.  But a lot of brilliant work has been generated in the newer versions lately, and it's made me want to master the medium.  It's going to take a lot of practice.  Starting with Photoshop, I'm orienting myself with Classroom in a Book.  I'm amazed at all the tools available.  I don't imagine I'll come anywhere near to using them all.  To begin with I'll probably just use Photoshop to tweak scanned illustrations. But once there's room in the budget for a tablet with a pressure sensitive stylus, I may see what it's like to generate images like the one above in digital form.

Of course, I will always have inky fingertips.  I love the tactile experience of generating art on the page too much to ever go strictly digital.

What about you?  Do you use digital tools when you create your art?

Illustration Friday: Scary!

Once again I have managed to combine the week's Illustration Friday theme with my Sketchbook Project "treehouse" topic.  Here is "scary":

This is the darkest I've drawn on the sketchbook pages, and I'm pleased to report no problems with bleed through.

IF: Fuel

I'd hoped to get this up a couple of days ago, but - oh, well - things don't always come together as planned.  Here is my Illustration Friday answer to the theme "fuel," drawn in my treehouse-themed Sketchbook Project book:

Click on image to view it large enough to see the maple syrup dripping onto the pancakes. 

IF: Scattered

Once again, this week's Illustration Friday theme has been easy to tie in with the "treehouse" theme of my Sketchbook Project book.  Given a heavy enough gust, leaves and treehouse inhabitants are "scattered" on the wind:

Two more for the Sketchbook Project

Here are two more spreads for my treehouse-themed Sketchbook Project book. This first one, a treehouse ferris wheel, didn't come out as well as I'd hoped.  The idea looks much better in my head.  I may need to revisit it later.

It seemed appropriate that one of my treehouses should be occupied by squirrels.  I decided to give this one a little bit of story:

Treehouse Contraption

Today's drawing kills two birds with one stone. It fills the next spread in my Sketchbook Project treehouse sketchbook, and it contains a contraption to fulfill this week's Illustration Friday challenge. These little tree people needed some way to move fruit from the apple tree to the pine tree (thus making them pineapples - you may all groan now).

As always, click on the image to view larger.

Christmas treehouse

After a couple of months of neglect, I have finally pulled my sketchbook project book out from under a pile of stuff, turned to a fresh page, and begun drawing again.  This one came to me as I was imagining what sort of treehouse you might find in an evergreen...

Click on image to enlarge.

Digitize me!

My 2011 Sketchbook Project book has been digitized! Check it out on their website at
http://www.arthousecoop.com/library/4570.

Treehouse interior

For the next spread in my Sketchbook Project book, I decided to take a look at an interior room:

Click on image to view larger.

Another treehouse

Here's the third spread in my sketchbook project treehouse book. Click on image for a better view.

I draw these during the evening news. It makes listening to what's going on in the world a lot more fun.

Treehouse Sketchbook Spread #2

I spent a fair chunk of my holiday playing with my Sketchbook Project book and exploring the treehouse theme. Here's another spread. Click on the image for a larger view.

I chose to go with a more ordinary backyard treehouse because I wanted to get in some practice drawing kids. Then I decided to add a cat. (I thought of drawing a dog, but that didn't seem quite right up in a tree.) Then I added the squirrel to amuse the cat. The bird in the nest (another form of treehouse) at the top was an afterthought.

Sketchbook Project 2012 - Page 1

I have begun to fill my 2012 Sketchbook Project sketchbook. I'm taking a doodly approach with the sketchbook this year - not planning out a series of pictures ahead of time. I save it for the evening when I'm watching the news. It helps keep me happy despite what's coming out of the TV set. Here's the opening page -- sorta grew into a title page -- which I've been doodling the past two nights.

Before that I did the front and back covers:

I'm having a lot of fun with this. My theme (Treehouse) is pure play.

Do you keep a sketchbook for your own personal amusement?

New Toy!

Look what arrived in yesterday's mail:

My book for the Sketchbook Project 2012!

Here's the back with my label:

You can barely see the theme. On the label just above the barcode is the word "Treehouse." As a huge lover of trees and houses and the combination of the two, I can hardly wait to get sketching. But I am forcing myself to wait until I have finished coloring the two Doily pics. Sketching treehouses will be my reward for completing the day's work.

This year's sketchbook (from Scout Books) is smaller than the Moleskine they used for the 2011 project. It's 5"x7" rather than 5"x8". The pages are whiter, just barely thicker (thicker is good), and slightly less smooth (which may be better for pencil sketchers). This year there are only 32 pages (as opposed to last year's 80), but you can add up to a thickness of one inch. I don't think I will. If I finish this book too quickly, I may just get a second one with a different theme. "Waterslides I never rode" sounds like a fun one...