June 2010

6-26-2010

I managed to spend some time in the studio this week. It felt good. Really good. It was more of a starting things week than a finishing things week. Maybe next week will be a finishing things week. We will just have to wait and see.

I suppose I should do less waiting if I want to get things done. The time is now!

6-19-2010

I got my butt kicked at work this week. My duties have now grown beyond my ability to actually do all of them. There is always a learning curve with new things and I am getting better at juggling it all, but I am skeptical of the notion that I will find a way to manage everything I am supposed to do in a successful way without additional support. I am told support is on the way. Mid July is on the way.

At least it is not boring.

I would blame my day job for my lack of studio diligence this week (and it is the biggest eater of my time) but there were other factors as well. Tae Kwon Do is still in full swing (I have a test this afternoon, in fact), but one of the great time eaters of the past has reared its head once more. Dungeons and Dragons is back. There is much rejoicing.

Unless you wanted a new print this week. You will just have to make do with this:

and with the new piece in the gallery. I hope you will be okay with that.

In media news, I saw the movie of Where the Wild Things Are. The first half was wonderful, magical and definitely worth watching. The last half had a very odd way of not actually resolving anything. Given the conflicts the movie is about, a lack of resolution or closure is actually pretty appropriate. It was certainly daring for a big movie adaptation of a children's picture book. It left me scratching my head, trying to figure out what the point was. Of course, I am still thinking about it, days later, so it was potent, whatever else it was.

6-12-2010

This week sped by, and I find no prisoners have been taken. Just as well, I suppose. The day job is over and done until Monday, when the workload of my primary responsibility is getting doubled. What's not to celebrate?

I am not certain if I want to celebrate "Meanwhile," by Jason Shiga, or not. The idea of a choose your own adventure comic book is brilliant and actually mechanically functions. (There are one or two spots where it is unclear which page I am supposed to turn to.) The story is thought provoking, but leaves me somewhat frustrated and anxious. You control the path of a boy out for ice cream (your first choice of the book is chocolate or vanilla) and you end up in an inventor's workshop testing out inventions that allow you to travel through time, transfer memories and kill every human on the planet with the push of a button. There are, of course, multiple endings, some humorous, some disturbing and some confusing. It is an interesting effort, and I do recommend checking it out as a comic book experiment. I hope someone takes up the notion and puts it through some more paces.

I will celebrate the fact I finished an etching this week. Check it out in the gallery.

Also, there is this little drawing I did a while ago. This one is based on an Italian folk tale and these fellows are magically compelled to play leap frog until the sun goes down.

Sounds like fun, doesn't it?

6-5-2010

I'm done with Lovecraft. For now. I just finished making my way through the Penguin Classics collection "The Think on the Doorstep and Other Weird Stories". I purchased this collection because I wanted to read "At the Mountains of Madness" and it was a much better deal to to obtain the other weird stories with it than to get it on its own. It is a decent edition, though it would be possible to get by with fewer footnotes.

My favorite story of the collection is actually "The Case of Charles Dexter Ward". Great horror and a nice treatment of necromancy. What else would you expect from Lovecraft? It also has something rare in Lovecraft stories - an effective heroic character. Most of the time the Lovecraftian hero sees the horror of the moment, realizes it is unstoppable and the story ends. This collection of stories actually had three heroes who made a difference. I didn't know Lovecraft went in for that sort of thing.

So now I am done with Lovecraft for a while. Fortunately I have a stack of books to read that is too tall to support itself without tipping over. Now just need to decide between "The Three Musketeers" and "Love & Sleep" by John Crowley. Such difficult choices.

In other news, there was no news last week. I do apologize. I will offer the reason that I was away from home, trapped without internet access deep in the belly of Fanime. You may argue I should have posted something before the convention or perhaps as soon as I could after my return. I will concede you that point but also mention the grasping, wretched, time wilting tentacles of Fanime extend far beyond the actual dates of the convention. I hope you will forgive my rudeness.

Missing post aside, Fanime was enjoyable. The fan base there was the most involved and enthusiastic of the conventions I have been to. (Sand Diego Comic-Con may be an exception, but it is hard to observe enthusiasm with an appreciative eye when you are wedged into such a solid mass of humanity like tens of thousands of sardines.) Fanime was a good learning experience for all of us at Megamoth Studio which means we accomplished what what we set out to do, from a teaching perspective. Fun was had by all. It took a lot out of me, but I am now looking forward the Alternative Press Expo this Autumn. Lessons learned = brighter future.

As much as I know you all enjoy reading weekly thoughts (especially when I wax windy) I expect you are also looking forward to some art. Here is some:

Hooray for drawings! Yes, that is a plural "drawings". I grant you there is only one drawing here, but I direct you to the gallery portion of the site where you will be pleased (I have no doubt) to find another new drawing.

Enjoy!

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