Masks

These are two African style masks I drew on the front and back of my idea book at work.
I recently bought a book on African masks, I started researching them for a design project when I was in first year design and I have always liked them so recently I have found myself sketching them and trying to develop new masks out of the bits and pieces of the real ones.

Vulture Lady

I love having a sketchbook on me.

Last Sunday Beth and I were out for breakfast. This breakfast joint that we frequent had quite the line up and while we were waiting Beth pointed this lady out to me. The lady was wearing a checkered black and gray shirt with a huge puffy collar, she had a bucket hat on and had certain birdlike mannerisms. Really and truly, the more you looked at her the more birdlike she seamed, because of her collar she looked like a specific kind of bird. So when we finally got to sit down I whipped out my sketchbook and put pen to paper. I added some of the surrounding environment but I could not remember what the painting looked like behind her so I gave a shout out to Across the Universe.

I think I might do a larger version of this sketch.

It was done in my Moleskin with my Tul pen and watercoloured later at home.

I will be making an exciting post soon so check back in the next couple of weeks for BIG NEWS.

Not as big as the pregnancy thing but pretty big.

The Valiant James Returns with a Sketch of Old Tweety

Wowwy wow wow wow... Has it been a long time or what?

So much has happened in the past couple of months and I have neglected my blogging something fierce.

Why do you ask?

I'm a gonna tell you.

Where to start...

Firstly I have recently tried to re-capture my ability to communicate in French. I graduated almost a decade ago with a French diploma from Silver Heights Collegiate (No longer in existence). Since that time I have used my french never. My wife and I had plans of moving to Montreal in the next year so we thought "Let's update our French." So that is exactly what we did. We went to a institute called Alliance Francais and started to learn french again. It has been a very rewarding experience not only because my early schooling has allowed me to pick up the language quite fast, but also because my teacher turned to be from the Congo. As it turns out he is the chairman for an anti-war organization called Hand in Hand for Peace. He needed help organizing and producing an updated video to play after he finished giving speeches about the problems the Congo is experiencing. I have done what I can and in the last couple of weeks I have helped him produce a 13 minute long photo-montage/documentary.

While doing this the wound on the side of my head has closed up and left me with a healthy scar. I will have the rest of the nevus sebaceous removed in another 7 months.

Speaking of 7 months, Beth and I are putting our plans for Montreal on hold. We still have intentions of going but we have to postpone due to pregnancy.

Yeah you heard me right. Beth and I are having a Baby! So I hope you can forgive the radio silence for the last while but I have needed some time to gather myself and come to terms with the fact that I have some serious responsibility coming my way.

I'd like to thank all the friends and family to this date who have been amazingly supportive of Beth and I. It all seems less daunting thanks to you all.

In closing, I would like to thank everyone who has checked back here and silently cursed me for not updating. I will do my best to keep fresh sketches and art pieces a flowing through this blog... site... thing...