Please Put Your Scarves On.

I've had an idea for a while now to start work on a couple of books. One is the Mr.Eraser comic mentioned in previous entries (which I have actually started, it's just top secret is all) and the other a zine - just a collection of works that I've been doing over the Post-University time. Today I finally managed to get a few finished pages together along with a cover for the zine which will be titled 'Please Put Your Scarf On' named so after a quote taken from a J.D. Salinger Book I read earlier this year. Hopefully I will do something productive with both of the books such as sell them or mail them to people who may be interested. We'll see - I've got plenty of time to think about it while I'm putting them together. Here's the front cover - 

'Please Put Your Scarf On' - the book will be printed solely in

 black and white, and the front cover on blue paper - 

this is merely a mock up of what it may look like.

One image that I've done is a picture of Ted Danson - an idea that I'd thought of a while ago but hadn't been able to come up with something I really liked. I feel that I had a good concentrated period of drawing/painting time today that I really got a lot done over a short time. I think I just need to maybe be more meticulous and specific when dividing up my time and making my plans.

Indeed it is true.

The next image is where the name of the book comes from, speaks for itself I suppose.

'Stop being an awkard bugger now John.'

The final image I produced today was a new version of the Transcona picture I did which is posted over at Sea Legs. I really enjoyed doing this, I simply decided to do it bigger than the original in order to get in some more detailed pattern. I liked the colours I used, although I couldn't decide whether it actually needed the ink wash in the background - this may take over the picture a little too much when it's converted to grayscale.

Thank you Transcona for bringing me home.

It's nice to be feeling productive and to be coming up with ideas, just hope that this state of mind sticks around for a while. Oh yeah, I was totally going to have a crack at that drawing yourself as a teenager and drawing yourself now thing that Jen had mentioned to me but I got carried away with the above - I'll probably have a go soon. That is all. 

JAB

The John Keats Show

After wandering around lovely Liscard for the beginning of the afternoon, I found my way into WH Smith and purchased another Skecthbook...I seem to have more sketchbooks than i know what to do with at the minute, oh well it's not like I won't use them. I thought i needed a bigger sketchbook for getting more 'finished' ideas down. I felt like the books I've been using are a little on the small side for finished things. anyways, blah blah blah, I spent the rest of the afternoon sitting on my Dad's veranda in the sun doodling away, got a few bits and bobs down and found myself enjoying what I was drawing properly for the first time in a while. I also discovered that the first page in all of my sketchbooks seems to be the worst one. not that it really matters to much as it is just a "sketch" book after all but maybe from now on I'll start from the end of the book and work backwards...just a thought. 

One of the things I drew this afternoon, think it needs a little more development but I do like it.

I started to pack my stuff for the Morocco trip but i got sidetracked here again, but I won't be able to blog again for about 3 weeks so I suppose I should make the most of it. Tomorrow me and Dad are off to Chester to pick up the last few things we need for the trip and to meet my sister for lunch.

This evenings song? erm..."Cool and Unusual Punishment" by NoFX

Until tomorrow, fare thee well.

J.A. Birch