B. Cumberbatch - Sherlock Holmes

So hey I go a little nuts with the posting when holidays roll 'round. Who can blame me?

Well I just finished my latest drawing which I'd started at the beginning of the year and here it is. Voilà! Yes, the "beginning" of the year, coinciding with my discovery of the BBC's Sherlock. It's a brilliant show and so one can only become addicted to it. I love it when a show I initially don't expect much from and didn't want to watch, completely astounds me when I am finally compelled to watch it out of sheer boredom. Ha! Well, I don't regret any part of being bored. And of course I have Sherlock to thank for getting me into another brilliant show, Doctor Who.

B. Cumberbatch - Sherlock Holmes, 2012.

Anywhose, the drawing. I wanted to do something different this time that's why I went with a reference picture that had the face almost entirely engulfed in shadow. Something a bit more candid. I'm also using 2B leads instead of HB so that took a bit of time getting use to. The lines are darker but a lot softer. Eraser for highlights. That seriously was a first for me, usually I draw in the highlights which is the reason why I have always found hair such a pain in the ass to do, but the eraser has created an effect with the hair that I'm really happy with and the added bonus of minus a headache. I had a second attempt with the dark background. This time a soft backdrop using a tissue. Gotta love a tissue. I think it works a lot better. Although, the last dark background was way more striking with the the level of the darkness. But I am terribly pleased with how this one turned out. It was quite fun to do.

Enough said. And good night.

Graphite the Past

Because like all studious individuals, when you need to get cracking on those study notes the first thing you do is decide to do something trivial and waste time. Oh procrastination makes one do the most strangest things, even to take a trip down memory lane. Any excuse to avoid studying, I went snooping through my old VAPDs and accidentally stubbled upon one that I had forgot existed.

A book full of graphite drawings. An assignment from my good old architecture days. It was a drawing module which you can check out some of the works from my other blog. This particular assignment was to do two drawings a day for about a month. It started off as do one for the day and do one for the night, for one week and then do one for the indoors and one for the outdoors. It was such a tedious assignment that my drawings started off detailed and by the end I'd just scribbled. Ha!

Night, 2008.

These are some of the early ones. My old bedroom. Some night. Some day. This was the first time I used graphite. It turned out alright I think. Personally I'm not fond of any medium that rubs off. It gets all over my right hand and I smudge it all the time! I still remember the first time I use charcoal in highschool. It was a nightmare. Pastels are just as bad. Especially oil pastels! Conte is ok. Chalky stuff is less mess. 

Dawn, 2008.

So what's my agenda to showing you these? What, can't I share? They're not particularly fantastic drawings but they're interesting to me because it's my past. Dull, normal life in graphite.

Evening, 2008.

It's strange how boring domestic settings look ever so boring in real life and even in photographs but when it's drawn on paper it's remarkably less boring. Maybe because taking a photo requires so little effort, a simple click and 'ta da'! So in order for photography to be exciting and interesting the subject matter must be challenging. Something hard to counter balance the easy. Where as drawing requires more time and effort, simply selecting any old subject matter would do the job to attract attention.

Morning, 2008.

Or it could be just the added texture of the grain in the paper that does the trick.

Day, 2008.

Well... I think I still prefer portraiture.

Laters!

Apart (of me) ~ Part Three

Let me just say, I'm SO tired! What kind of uni has an exam at 8:30 in the morning not to mention in a tent?! So stylish UNSW. Aside from finishing another uni semester and being half way through my final year, I have finished my last finance exam FOREVER and so assuming I passed I have unofficially completed my finance major! Yay! One more semester to go!

If you got the hint I've been quite buried by textbooks prepping for finals so my apologies for the lateness of this post. But without further adieu...

Buffy Season 9 issue #10

So Cover One. Well... It's different. Personally not to my taste but it's something new I give you that. I do however, like the colours. The anchoring black at the top to a melon green for the base with a flow of orange and yogurt peach in a rippling flurry of words and thoughts. A set of eyes are sketched into the background and we see that we are focusing on the females forehead. Her mind. And like some sci-fi telekinesis mojo the inner voice in her mind takes form. We see Buffy. Her hair rippling in a breeze. Her complexion all glowy. Her expression filled with uncertainty. And so the concentric circles of her inner insecurities ripple from her reverie. The warped text create a beautiful effect.

Cover Two. Talk about misleading. I really don't get the connection here. Is it some sort of metaphor? Because I don't get it. It's a full moon and it's HUGE in the night sky. So is the scene. It's a packed house. We see in the background every good character that has made an appearance since issue one. That demon fella, that agent guy... sorry I'm bad with names... Andrew, Tumble, Dawn, Xander and Anaheed... and two other characters whose faces are blocked from view but I assume one is Willow? and the other's a man judging by the trousers but, can't figure. I'm getting too into detail here. All the characters are witnesses and mourn Buffy's death... supposedly. We see Spike crying with the halo of the gigantic moon behind his  head as he stands holding in his arms the limp body of the slayer. Of course if you've read the issue you know this is not a scene in the story and she is not dead. Instead of trying to infer the meaning of the illustration I'll move on to the very cute outfit the slayer has on. Boy is that skirt gorgeous! I love the colour and the patterns. It's by far the best thing in the illustration. Ha! You really focus on the slayer when you look at the cover, the hue, the colour, the detail allows the eye to cut out the slayers limp figure while everything else falls away to be background, including Spike.

How did I like this issue? Well to me it wasn't as great as the previous issues. Not really as great a wrap to the story arc. I'm sort of confused with how the turn of events changed tides so quickly.

The three sunset pages on the rooftops were illustrated beautifully. Loving the colours! Although the depiction was terrific but this subplot with the "Spuffy" relationship feels too much like a broken record, this from a person who did totally 'ship' the two. Ah, first time I used that term. We witness Spikey fly off with his bug crew to what we know is a mini comic, set course later this year. This feel like deja vu to you? Well it should. Someone has hit the reply button on these two. He goes away because of her. He comes back because of her. I hope this is not going to be a constant thing.  

And I stop here. Happy mid-year break!

Women of a Certain Age

Angel & Faith issue #10

"Women of a Certain Age" this title could mean so many things. The first time I heard the title I thought it was about our leading female character Faith. But then when I saw Cover One, well... My oh my Giles, so you were a ladies man after all.

After reading the issue however, I can hopefully give a more insightful take on Cover One. I think I shall start with the title because the designers decided to be witty this time. Note that the words in the title "women" and "age" are bolded in a chalk pink. And that pretty much is the basis of this story if you think about it. Smart aren't they.

Now there's so much going on in this cover I'm not sure what to pick on next. Well, it's a whirl of leather bound books and flying leaves of paper, which is a beautiful touch of motion I must add. A mature aged Giles straightens his glasses which had become askew from the sudden commotion, a wafting gush of wind stemming from a simmering cauldron. The first time I saw his expression I miss took it for a sly smile and the askewness of his glasses obstructing his brow creating a misleading glint in his eye, not to mention the women standing behind him, hence my comment above. But once recognising the whirlwind, it has obviously caught the studious Watcher by surprise causing him a state of discomfort and a rosy embarrassment on his face. Not a sly smile but a tensed expression. Right, so the fact that I had to write all that means Mr Morris had not done a great good in drawing Giles here. 

So the cause of all this flying paper? Well, two glowing young ladies. Well... I say young (touch nose). The two strangely look a lot like Faith and Buffy. Huh. One blond and one brunette. Even the facial features remind me of them. With flowing brown hair and dark plum lips, one stirs the cauldron, smiling down upon Giles. While the other gazes upon her own reflection in a hand held mirror. The background is a beautiful tangerine wash to create a glowing world behind the solid colours of the Watcher.

Cover Two is a fun cover. Yes, it's scene from within the issue but here Isaacs gets the opportunity to explore the scene in more depth, colour and detail than the panel within done by Chris Samnee. It's way more exciting! Claws, arms, tongues, eyes and webbed feet? Scales in red, green, blues, purples and browns; and claws of all shapes and sizes. It's demons galore clawing their way through the gap in the door as our heroes struggle to keep them out. We see Faith leaning back up against the door, her arms in an Egyptian hieroglyphic pose. Her body tense and eyes fearful as she looks through the corners of her eyes at the masses of limbs sticking out from the ajar door. While Angel braces the door with hands, elbow and knee. A boney claw closes around Faith arm and a scaley, red hand tugs at Angels sleeve. Most menacing of all is the the sole claw at the top of the door and the vertical claw marks scraped into the wood. It's a sticky situation our protagonists have found themselves in but it's sheerly brilliant. The cheerful rainbow of colours contrast with the tension of pushing, pulling and clawing and most importantly fear all making for a delightful cover.

Cover by Rebekah Isaacs with Dan Jackson

What of the issue #10 then? Well, I can say it was really a great one. We get weirdness, new characters, humour, a bit of the past, some cuteness, more weirdness and a ginger drops by. Oh and need I say, loads of demons.

Now I know I haven't done a most memorable page in a while and well... it's not gonna happen this time either. Sorry guys. There's lots of great panels though. I'd definitely recommend checking this issue out.

Till next time.

Case of the Missing Toothpaste

How can life be so dull? And how could an argument stem from something so silly? A missing tube of toothpaste...

A woman's chilling scream. Argghh! ... Truthfully there was nothing of the sort but for dramatic effect... Argghh! Good grief the toothpaste is missing! Someone call the authorities. There's a mystery to be solved. Me: Yawn.

On a cold autumns night, a normal night like any other, an unsuspecting woman washes before bed.  She reaches for the toothpaste on the bathroom sink and... Surprise, surprise it's not there. Perplexed with a hint of fear she holds her composure together to question her husband.

Like in the eyes of many of those fortunate to have been in wedded bliss for decades they know their partners too well. Sometimes all too well. In recent years, though loving and all, the man had come tired of his dear's foibles. In his eyes, was a woman who had grown untrusting of the world, suspicious of every missing possession and ever so more of people.

"What's missing this time?" with a raised eyebrow.

The mistake was a poorly hidden growl under toning his reply. And with that note a battle begins.

Accusations fly east and west. Insults and mockery being the basic artillery. And not long now... Cue casualties!

The war zone finds itself turning to the court of justice. Or really the interrogation room.

Suspect 1.

A poor chap with selective memory. No motive and a valid alibi. He was at work all day.

Suspect 2.

Home all day. Last to have been in contact with the lost property. Probability high. First interrogation, denied claims.

Suspect 2: "Why would I have the toothpaste? Did you think I took it to eat?!"

No motive. True. But given Suspect 2's whereabouts during the last twenty-four hours of the crime she is still high on the suspect list. If no motive, then unintentional.

Interrogator: "Did you possibly take it by accident?"
Suspect 2: "Am I a nutter?"

No luck with the interrogations lead to a second search party. As team of "highly trained" operatives sweep the scene of the crime once more. Claims of a ghost. A giant rat. Something living in the attic. Boo!

Jeez. It's a tube of "TOOTHPASTE"! It's missing. Then open another tube! But of course if the voice of reason could work to begin with then this silly charade would not have begun in the first place.

But alas the toothpaste was missing.

The case remain unsolved and so husband and wife were left with no option but to call it a night. Yes, sleep with you're bloody grudges under your pillows!

...


In the last hour of the night, a cheerful fella saunters home. Unbeknownst to the others his visit to the dentist that morning. And in his bag, bound tightly the infamous missing toothpaste.

Of course it was Suspect 3! How could you really think a tube of toothpaste could vanish into thin air?

Well the reason why I told you this silly story is because: One. It happened. Two. I can't believe it happened. And three. It reminded me of one of my earliest posts: Lost and Found and FYI, I'm still waiting on the mystery of my lost comb, lost hairbrush and a lost second hairbrush to be solved.