I’m happy to announce that my entry was accepted into Emerald City Comicon’s Monsters and Dames art book. This year’s entry also includes a cast of three compared to my last couple of entries. I will also be tabling at the ECCC artists alley again Mar 1-4, so if you plan on purchasing the art book, come see at Table J4 so I can sign your book. You can read more about the details and other artists in the book on ECCC’s Monsters and Dames page.
red panda
Monsters and Dames 2018
It took a while for me to land on a concept. I knew I was going to do something with northern lights, so my first concept had glowing fish flying out of a lake and forming the lights in the sky. After trying out several compositions, I felt like the idea wasn’t working for me. I was also starting to run out of time to work on the piece, so I decided instead to go with a different idea for the figure in the sky.
I also doodled a bit with the colors to figure out what the end result could look like. Another reason for abandoning the fish concept was because I didn’t want to make this piece feel like a continuation from last year’s entry which was also on a lake.
I started playing around with the lines of the northern lights and ended up with a stag-like creature. Northern lights have a flowing quality to them, and it felt like the stag was a good solution.
Lastly, I gave the Panda Courier a winter makeover and included the red panda just because I feel like it’s about time he gets included in one of these pieces.
Oh, and one more thing. Next week, I might be taking over a certain Instagram account. You’ve been warned.
Snackin’
I also made another character to the panda world. Introducing Handy the red panda. His name will make sense eventually. For now, he’s the panda’s snacking buddy.
Zoo Sketches
Squeezed in a couple hours of zoo sketching over the weekend. I tried to read a little bit right before I started sketching on how to approach the animal, but I think that made me tighten up a little bit. The red panda was particular tricky as I wasn’t used to sketching him out in the open since normally when I visit him, he usually sleeps in his tree. Even though I may not be happy with the results, it’s still another step in learning just like how my next sketches will be another step.
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- Kunekune pig and white-crested laughing thrush.
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- Flamingos.
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- Red panda waking up from nap and white-naped crane.
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- Normally, the red panda naps in the tree when I visit, but today he is unusually active.
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- The red panda takes a stroll.
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- Ostrich and kunekune pig.
Zoo Sketches & Sara Bareilles Concert
Seeing as it was going to be one of the last remaining sunny weekends in Seattle for a while, I spent part of my morning at the zoo doing some animal sketches for my mom. My mom would give me all sorts of books from the library about insects and other bugs, as well as dinosaurs, and rocketships. As a tribute to her fostering my curious side, I spent a little time in the humid bug world exhibit over at Woodland Park Zoo.
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- American cockroaches, Black Widow web, and giant water bugs
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- White-eyed assassin bugs, flamboyant flower beetles, and golden orb weaver
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- Leaf insects and tarantula
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- Red swamp crayfish and northern helmeted curassow
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- Temerick’s tragopan and blue magpies
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- Blue magpies and Japanese serow
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- Red panda napping
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- Red panda waking up
In the evening, I rendezvous with some friends over at the Showbox to catch a Sara Bareilles concert. I don’t go to concerts usually, but this was the first that I got a seat this close to the stage.
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- Head sketches of Sara Bareilles concert
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- Sara Bareilles sings for the audience
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- Singing from the stage right with ukulele
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- Playing the e-guitar stage left