"After Goya" and Higgins Eternal

Goya's Los Capricos is one of my "desert island" books with so much to see and learn from the master draughtsman and storyteller.
As an exercise in design I tried creating a version of each one of his plates in pen and ink; one per night. I've posted a few below.

I used Higgin's Eternal ink with a Speedball handle and nib that I've had for so long that I can't read it's number; but it been beautifully seasoned with years of build-up... draws like a dream. These were done in a Strathmore 9x12 sketchbook.

The original "Porque esconderlos", etching by Francisco Goya, No 30

The original "Nadie se conoce", etching by Francisco Goya, No 6

The original "Ya tienen asiento", etching by Francisco Goya, No 26

The Dover edition of Los Caprichos is a bargain for under 10 bucks; not the most sumptuous volume available, but a great investment for your library. Pair it with Goya's Disasters of War and you've got an awesome set.

Hand Made Christmas Cards

I just can't bring myself to send store bought cards at Christmas. This year I made a simple Christmas tree design using Strathmore watercolor cards, Canson art paper and glitter paint.... The same material a third grader would use. The foam adhesive dots make it pop off the page.

An assembly line process always makes quicker work.

Merry Christmas!

Ahab Flex Pens

The Noodler's Ahab Flex pens were finally released at Goulet Pens last week and I gotta say, they are were worth the wait! I love these pens; with a big flex nib and large ink capacity, they are awesome. I did only a few little sketches with the clear demonstrator over the holiday weekend, but I'm looking forward to getting into them. They're an incredible value at only 20 bucks and unlike the flex pen releases in the past, Goulet has plenty in stock.

Ahab sketched with an Ahab.

The Ahab in three colors clear, Mandarin Yellow and
Dec 25 Red. I started with Noodler's Black ink on
a Strathmore 4x6 sketchbook.

The clear demonstrator.

Harpoon man Queequeg.

GULP!  I swallowed up six Ahab pens in my order!

Noodler's black and a little bit of Habenaro

Halloween Cut-outs

I made these little Spooky guys to decorate the house for Halloween. I've done larger designs but these are little ones that fit on the windows of a french door. 

 I used Strathmore Artgain paper. It's a great weight and jet black. Awesome stuff for cutouts.

A spooky spider

These are Westcott "Extreme Edge"shears, probably the best scissors I ever used. They're sharp and nicely balanced; and even come with a key so you can adjust the tension on the blades.

Nothing beats a fresh Exacto blade; I change them frequently throughout a project. (Keep an empty jar on your desk to store the used blades... there's never a dull Exacto blade, especially when they're sticking straight up in your garbage can!)

Looks like a Halloween party when they're all out on the table!

 This is where all the spooky guys stay with the help of tiny bit of double stick tape.
Happy Halloween everyone!

My Kingdom for a Fountain!

This Libelle Alphabet Fountain is one of my favorites. It's got great weight and balance and feels good to draw with. The coating is a high gloss resin that's different from any other pen that I have. The description says it's perfect for "wordsmiths and crossword puzzle enthusiasts;" but they left out us type designers. I believe it's a Bodoni family printed on the barrel; looks great.

My Libelle worked through every page of a Strathmore pocket sketch. A nice little pair that I carried with me as I was reading "The Once and Future King" by T.H. White. 

Mine has a steel medium nib.

The only disappointment I have is with the cap. It posts fine, but the threads don't line up easily; you could easily cross up them up if your not careful. Other than that, it's a primo pen.

I usually use a converter for my fountains, but I used the standard Pelikan cartridges for this one, simply so I could do a quick refill on the road.

"The old man was streaked with droppings over
his shoulders, among the stars and triangles
 of his gown, and a large spider was slowly
lowering itself from the tip of his hat..."

"The Wart found himself almost hypnotized by by the
big words and hardly noticed that the big mouth
was coming closer and closer to him."

T.H. White's book is called one of the foundations of modern fantasy, I can see why. My only regret is that I didn't read this book as a boy!

I gotta try this pen with the converter, maybe with a Noodler's color...

Studio Workhorse: The 4x6 Strathmore Sketch

Like most artist/designers, I love my sketchbooks. And although I use all types of varying quality and cost like Moleskine and Fabriano, there is one that has served me pretty well over the years, the modest Strathmore 4x6 Sketchbook. When I recently sorted through my mess of a studio, I stacked up quite a few and realized I'm pretty brand loyal. They really are little workhorses. I always have one in my back pocket. They're handy and fairly durable for when ideas come to mind on the road and most important... they keeping me occupied in waiting rooms and long lines.

A few of my loyal pocket sketchbooks.
One always goes everywhere with me.

Usually no one sees these but me... and for good reason!

The siege at Hougoumont... 

probably done while waiting for soccer practice to end.

These are easy to keep stocked up on.
At under $3, I usually keep a bunch of fresh horses on hand.