Mind Gangsters

I'm getting very close with the Beach Boys Smile documentary! (part 3 anyway) I only have a few major sections left, and this was one of the most major ones.

This is where Brian Wilson really starts to unravel before everybody's eyes. Watch as he takes drastic measures to ensure his dad and Phil Spector weren't wire-tapping his home and sending hit men after him.

I've Barely Changed In 20 Years - Part 1

 By Aedan Peterson

I recently dug in to some old journals and sketchbooks at my parents house, and I realized that my interests as an 8 year old are basically the same as my up-to-date current nearing 28 year old self. Then, it was birds and animals and knights and dragons and monsters and superheroes, and now, well, if you look at what I've been posting you'll realize that I haven't deviated from that list. I'm not sure how to interpret this realization of shocking consistency, but there it is. 

Anyway, there's a particular journal from 2007 that had me and Nat well on the floor with laughter that I thought I might share some excerpts of. This is a two part post. In the next one I'm going to revisit some of the ideas my lil self got on paper two decades ago with updated drawings. 

Veggie tales! I think there was a how to draw feature on one of the dvds that we had. Pretty complex stuff! I labeled TWO of them for my sister Skye, so I guess she appreciated my talents.

The second attempt was shaping up to be Bob the Lemon.

Are Christian cucumbers allowed to wear witch hats?

Wasn't feeling this one.

The next several of drawings are concepts for my unfinished fantasy epic called "The Woons of Jacareth."

Heegie!

Crazy high level.

Where's the Hanchee in your life?

I hope he feels good about being labeled a "non pretidor"

The Horco seems to be eaten by every other creature.

And of course, birds and the like. Somehow I knew what a Whimbrel was then, and yet mysteriously I don't know what one is now.

And finally, a list of very regular cars I wanted with a bible verse on top.

An old drawing and a call to do better!

​I came back to an unfinished set of characters and decided to finish them. I’m not sure I like it. It’s very classic Natalie character design  (I’m famous so I can call something “classic Natalie”) in that the characters are not in an interesting pose and also they are smirking. I just like a smirk- sue me! 

In the future though- I’d like to design some characters to post on the blog that are in an interesting/dynamic pose! So this is me posting my un-posed standard characters as a reminder to pose your characters- and I shall pose mine in the next post- maybe compare and contrast see how it feels. 

I do, however really enjoy the colors in this. I don’t remember what the story is with these two- are they related- are they both at a birthday party? Is she his babysitter? I don’t know! But ain’t it fun to wonder? Sure.

Happy 250, America!

 By Josie Millikan

Not much to say today other than a Happy 250 to our home sweet home! The Fourth of July was almost 10 days ago now, but I still had these joyous images stuck in my head from the best holiday on the calendar. Enjoy these doodles of a very happy birthday, as seen through some scenes from Middle Tennessee. Let me know which of these moments would have made you let out a patriotic eagle screech if you had experienced it on that glorious day in July!!!

 🇺🇸🎆🌭☀️🍉🦅🎉

Fish Bowl

 by Chloe Arvin

I have been more intentional about creating with traditional mediums recently, partly because of this bowl! I free-handed each fish, loosely referencing a chart of native TN fish. As recommended, I painted on three layers for each body; each new layer deviated slightly from the last. The fish didn't turn out perfect, despite my efforts to be precise, but strangely, I didn't mind. I was really happy with the simplicity of each fish, and the character added by the hand-painted quality of it. 

Beloved longnose gar <3

This catfish's whiskers were thicker than
I would've liked -- Oh well! Still cute!

Had I been designing these fish digitally, I would've been deep in the weeds ensuring each outline was perfect. Trapped in the endless cycle of draw, undo, draw, undo, draw for every brush stroke. When working traditionally with a less forgiving medium, I was forced to be more thoughtful with my brushstrokes and accepting of the imperfections. Not only was it faster, it was a lot more enjoyable! Undo had become a bit of a crutch, along with the ability to zoom into my work and fixate on every pixel. Relieving myself of that precise control was exactly what I needed!

More fish!

Pelican Produce & More

I don't know if this embedded PowerPoint will work (click on the signposts to navigate the store!), but this is a video game Madi, Mer, Matt, and I were working on circa 2022. It is about trying to find gum in a grocery store, and through various puzzles themed by grocery aisle, sinister secrets emerge and you become involved in the troubled history of Pelican Produce and More and its mysterious founder. We would have weekly meetings over Zoom to update each other, and we created most of the assets needed for the game. And I assembled this playable PowerPoint game with original animation, writing, backgrounds, and music as a sort of "demo." The above logo was designed by Mer. And the backgrounds are by Madi. hope to share more art from this in the coming days while we wait for the time and the programmer to finish this!

Side Fun

 

    Im still workin on Flea every now and than. I have the full 28 page first chapter drawn out, but only about 8 pages inked. Sometimes its nice to not draw Jojo haha even though i am excited about that comic story and am really happy with what Ive been doing there. 

    I do still, really like the story for Flea, and i personally would enjoy reading it alot. I think thats the point in the end anyway right? Make stuff that you would want to read? Flea is definitely one of those stories for me so yeah. I find it interesting making it digitally too. Making Axolodyssey traditionally is thrilling, but making flea with a fun little jittery brush, just seems right! 

    Ah well, ill make it eventually! Once people believe in me a little more as a comic artist.