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something I am grateful for today
May. 16th, 2023 07:00 pmbecoming consciously aware that I do not have to “earn” a nap before I can take one — been spending more time lately doing what I want simply because I finally can
something I am grateful for today
Apr. 24th, 2023 06:02 pmSwapping my new War Amps tags onto my key rings — I find it an oddly, quietly satisfying annual tradition.
epiphany of obviousness
Apr. 23rd, 2023 05:03 pmI had one of those today.
For the last couple of weeks, I've found myself listening to a lot of rock'n'roll recordings from England in the fifties and early sixties... back when rock was in its infancy, and people were still feeling their way through how to do this thing. And I realize that some of these singers and musicians and songwriters are comparatively crude. But I still enjoy listening to this sutff.
And it occurred to me that, just because there is Better Music® out there that I could be listening to, it doesn't mean I'm wasting my time listening to this instead. There are plenty of reasons to enjoy art besides how accomplished it is. Ultimately those reasons are all subjective, and so what? Heck, have I already forgotten the lessons of seventies punk? That was a deliberate reclamation of the idea that art doesn't need to be The Best® in order to enjoy making it, or to enjoy what someone else has made.
Conversely, something that is demonstrably Well Made® is not necessarily enjoyable, either. Like I said, it's all subjective. It doesn't even really matter if we can identify for ourselves what it is that we like about art, just as long as we like it. People like what they like. And we need to let them like what they like.
Then I got thinking about my own work, and how quick I am to see its shortcomings, and how many better artists and writers there are out there.
And so what? People can still like what I make anyway. Some of them actually do, and I can't say they're wrong to. I could be a crude fifties English rocker for someone out there — not The Best®, but someone still finds something in it to like, for whatever reason.
I keep losing sight of this, and I need to not lose sight of it.
For the last couple of weeks, I've found myself listening to a lot of rock'n'roll recordings from England in the fifties and early sixties... back when rock was in its infancy, and people were still feeling their way through how to do this thing. And I realize that some of these singers and musicians and songwriters are comparatively crude. But I still enjoy listening to this sutff.
And it occurred to me that, just because there is Better Music® out there that I could be listening to, it doesn't mean I'm wasting my time listening to this instead. There are plenty of reasons to enjoy art besides how accomplished it is. Ultimately those reasons are all subjective, and so what? Heck, have I already forgotten the lessons of seventies punk? That was a deliberate reclamation of the idea that art doesn't need to be The Best® in order to enjoy making it, or to enjoy what someone else has made.
Conversely, something that is demonstrably Well Made® is not necessarily enjoyable, either. Like I said, it's all subjective. It doesn't even really matter if we can identify for ourselves what it is that we like about art, just as long as we like it. People like what they like. And we need to let them like what they like.
Then I got thinking about my own work, and how quick I am to see its shortcomings, and how many better artists and writers there are out there.
And so what? People can still like what I make anyway. Some of them actually do, and I can't say they're wrong to. I could be a crude fifties English rocker for someone out there — not The Best®, but someone still finds something in it to like, for whatever reason.
I keep losing sight of this, and I need to not lose sight of it.
something I am grateful for today
Apr. 11th, 2023 01:29 pmToday's the first day this year I wore my spring/summer shoes instead of my winter shoes.
something I am grateful for today
Apr. 10th, 2023 04:54 pmWent down to the mailbox today and didn't wear a jacket when I went!
something I am grateful for today
Apr. 8th, 2023 07:22 amMy parents married on this date seventy-three years ago. Today is the day I remember that, had they not done so, I would not be here. Part of what Alan Moore called a “thermodynamic miracle” in Watchmen...
something I am grateful for today
Apr. 6th, 2023 07:50 amThis morning I woke to the songs of robins — first time I've heard that this year!
classical conditioning
Mar. 12th, 2023 04:33 pmAfter two heavy snowstorms in the space of a week, and me sitting here feeling the aches and pains of shovelling the latest one yesterday....
...the sight of light flurries outside my window just now immediately fills me with a flash of dread.
...the sight of light flurries outside my window just now immediately fills me with a flash of dread.
In my recent cartooning work, I've been using a cheap round watercolour brush to fill in large black areas with ink. Sometimes I've tried inking some of my lines with it as well, but it's not quite as good for that because it's not a great brush.
Today, I dug up some better brushes I bought years ago, when I wanted to learn proper brush inking someday, and decided to test-drive one. I ended up choosing an Isabey No. 1 Kolinsky sable round. Kolinsky sable brushes have been considered top of the line for decades in both comics inking and watercolour painting, and Isabey has a decent reputation, so it seemed a safe choice for today.
However, I couldn't help noticing how ragged the brush looked [you can see it on the left]. I didn't remember it being such a mess when I bought it, that's for sure. One of the most important things a round brush needs, in either inking or painting, is to be able to form and hold a sharp point — this gives you the control and precision you want in a round. I figured I could still use this one for low-precision fills anyway, and I gave it a whirl.
But then I noticed what happened when it got wet [you can see it on the right]. Gorgeous point that it holds together while in use. What a pleasant shock, I gotta tell ya. This brush doesn't look like much at first, but the quality of its performance is all you could want. (Kinda like me!) And yes, after I cleaned it and let it dry, it went all ragged again — that's just its way.
So there's that whole “don't judge a book by its cover” aspect to this, yes indeed.
Today, I dug up some better brushes I bought years ago, when I wanted to learn proper brush inking someday, and decided to test-drive one. I ended up choosing an Isabey No. 1 Kolinsky sable round. Kolinsky sable brushes have been considered top of the line for decades in both comics inking and watercolour painting, and Isabey has a decent reputation, so it seemed a safe choice for today.
However, I couldn't help noticing how ragged the brush looked [you can see it on the left]. I didn't remember it being such a mess when I bought it, that's for sure. One of the most important things a round brush needs, in either inking or painting, is to be able to form and hold a sharp point — this gives you the control and precision you want in a round. I figured I could still use this one for low-precision fills anyway, and I gave it a whirl.
But then I noticed what happened when it got wet [you can see it on the right]. Gorgeous point that it holds together while in use. What a pleasant shock, I gotta tell ya. This brush doesn't look like much at first, but the quality of its performance is all you could want. (Kinda like me!) And yes, after I cleaned it and let it dry, it went all ragged again — that's just its way.
So there's that whole “don't judge a book by its cover” aspect to this, yes indeed.
something I am grateful for today
Feb. 6th, 2023 01:04 pmI sang — first time I have felt moved to in well over a year.
Evening Star
Jan. 26th, 2023 03:51 pmMy thirty-eighth acrylic [and first acrylic of 2023] is a miniature [4 by 6], done in one sitting, that was inspired by two considerations:
It's not brilliant by any means, but it was instructive and fun, so why not share it here...
- I felt like doing some more work with the bold colours and simplified shapes of Paul Sérusier
- limited palette: I wanted to see what I could do with the triad of turquoise, quinacridone magenta, and cadmium yellow light — the classic CMYK of printer ink. [Plus burnt umber to darken, and titanium white to lighten, which apparently can be permitted in a triad.] I was very pleased with the blues, purples and violets I got from these colours... the oranges maybe not quite what I hoped, but a step up from some other mixes I've used in the past.
It's not brilliant by any means, but it was instructive and fun, so why not share it here...
something I am grateful for today
Jan. 23rd, 2023 06:25 pmstaying on track
In retrospect, I feel like I had a pretty decent day. Ran an unusual number of errands this morning, all successfully, including a physio appt. Navigated the snowy streets without incident. Remembered to change the furnace filter. Stayed on top of the dishes despite being tempted to blow them off. Inked a page of comic strips. And got thru most of the day without needing meds. So yeah, I feel like I stayed on track today a bit better than some days.
In retrospect, I feel like I had a pretty decent day. Ran an unusual number of errands this morning, all successfully, including a physio appt. Navigated the snowy streets without incident. Remembered to change the furnace filter. Stayed on top of the dishes despite being tempted to blow them off. Inked a page of comic strips. And got thru most of the day without needing meds. So yeah, I feel like I stayed on track today a bit better than some days.
something I am grateful for today
Jan. 5th, 2023 06:13 pmthese:
I got a bunch of them for Christmas, and today I used them to sort and put away my watercolour paints — they are now organized at last! Yay!
I got a bunch of them for Christmas, and today I used them to sort and put away my watercolour paints — they are now organized at last! Yay!
Someone posted a piece of AI art somewhere and asked for thoughts and comments. It's the first time I tried to nail down my vague feelings on the subject. Here's what I came up with:
I'm still coming to terms with AI art. On some levels, it's just a new manifestation of something that has long been with us... for example, the human artist who repeatedly paints variations of the same picture and sells prints of them to people who are easily satisfied. It makes visual pleasure affordable and readily accessible. Similar to the way that portrait photographers [as opposed to portrait painters] did. In a way, AI art is a fancier form of clip art, I guess.
This doesn't mean that I wholeheartedly approve of it, just that I recognize that it arises from economic and cultural forces that are not new. It means that original human art will be obliged to become more sincere, less of a commodity and more ars gratia artis. That's bad for artists and their livelihoods, but it's not bad for art per se.
