Busting Out

Busting Out: I haven't gotten political with my art in a while - and while I don't want all my content to be political, 2018 is the year I finally allow myself to make it more frequently. I especially want to do more with the Liberty and Justice characters.

(Also, Jeff Koterba who makes cartoons for the newspaper here in Nebraska liked this on Instagram, and I'm still freaking out about it!)

Tools: Pencil (outlining), Sharpie Ultra Fine pen, and Pigma Micron pens from Sakura.

Cirque and Politics

It's another double piece weekend! My summer, job wise, has taken a weird turn for the better, and because of all the time that I've got, there'll be plenty more double piece weekends to come, I'm sure.

CdS-Duet: Been doing a lot of thumbnailing for my "for fun" Cirque du Soleil page project. I made a couple of these two as Zaia (the young woman) performs an aerial strap solo. So I decided to turn those images and feelings into an illustration.

Justice and Sessions: I don't talk about it often, but ever since Trump got elected, I've been in and out of states of political angst. Rather than express these feelings with words, since people use words all the time, I'm instead turning to political art. This was in response to the Jeff Sessions testimony. He looked very nervous and couldn't stop squirming in his seat or sipping water. Perhaps it was because a certain someone was haunting his desk at the moment. (I played around with some embossing filters to get this strange, nightmarish effect)

Tools: Photoshop, thumbnails (for CdS-Duet).

Christmas Reflections

Christmas Reflections: Well, tomorrow's Christmas, and I'm so excited to be celebrating it with my family! But as Christmas draws near and the New Year dawns upon us, I can't help but think back on this crazy year.

I finally realized that animation was my dream, after three years of not knowing what I wanted to do. I got my first job, and despite feeling incredibly unhappy through most of it, I learned a lot about people in general (they're all horrible creatures-just kidding) and myself. This year was also a year of transitions-of living without my twin on a daily basis, going from traditional media to digital media in art, and finally switching from a watcher to a player with We Happy Few. 

And, of course, this was also my first presidential election to vote in. Why oh why did I get stuck with this one? And why oh why did we choose Trump as our president?! Anger and fear aside, I feel like this may well have been one of the most important elections I'll ever vote in. And all I'll say is I'll be glad when we don't have an arrogant carrot in the White House.

While I'm very excited for 2017, I can't deny that I'm also a little afraid, mainly because of the above subject. But the only way to move forward is to continue on and change.

And boy are some big changes coming in a week.....more details next week!

'Til then, merry Christmas, everyone.

Trump-The Buddha of Tyranny

Trump-The Buddha of Tyranny; From the day he announced his run for election, we all thought it was a joke. But it's not anymore. And now we're living in a cautionary tale that could take a bad turn for the worse if we're not wise with our vote.

Inspiration: I don't like being outwardly political about things like this election cycle. But in light of recent dirt dug up on Trump and the fact that this is the first election I can vote in, I have to speak out at least once. I have greatly disliked Trump from the beginning of the election for obvious reasons. Reasons such as his sexism, bigotry, bully attitude, and overall stupidity. But especially after hearing the 2005 off-camera boasts about trying to grope women, I am beyond raged.

So I made this. This is how I see Trump. This is how I feel about Trump. Send me flames or support, it won't change my feelings. This man won't have my vote.

Tools: Adobe Illustrator, physical sketch.