is that the sound of antonio banderas?

I suddenly hear the voice of Antonio Banderas and it strikes fear in my veins... and this image looks like one of those sad eyed cat pictures sold in furniture stores. But the real cat looks like this... I may need to retire for a massage and a stiff gin and overnight rest before looking at this again.
Hoarknockle likes it. Lady Sandra has not yet seen it in this most recent state.
What will the dogs think of me if they find out I have been drawing a sad eyed cat?

growing kitty

sometimes the work just seems to grow from its own volition. Its like catching a perfect wave and holding on as you surf it, unsure if you'll manage to ride it all the way. Occasionally a work does this and you are left slightly breathless by how it propels itself along and you only seem to be sitting by watching.
This cat drawing is going that way..... so far.
I have been putting down washes and working into them to model the forms and its been working well. Often even simple tasks will seem to be thwarted by inane little details and irritations, but on other days things seem to flow without impediment. This sounds so terribly Jedi.
I am having fun with this.
Hoarknockle has a TV interview with a local network this morning to cast some light on life on the estate and working for us. He has dutifully dusted off some inconsequential paintings he has done, hoping that they may ask him about them. I'll try not to interrupt the interview by calling for tea....athough, then again........

hairless

The debate over genetic engineering is often mere hysteria. Occasionally there are things that give me pause to consider why they exist. Rather like the BMX X6. Fainting goats. Chihuahuas and miniature Dobermans. Hairless cats.
Its rather as though some person was bored and decided to push the limits of sanity. "Hmmmm lets see if we can cross breed a blind mole with a horse?"
IN this case it seems as though the cat was cross bred with the skin of an elbow. (Anyone familiar with Billy Connolly's elbow skin joke?) Its an interesting animal but I'm not sure its a very good idea. This is not the kind of thing nature would have come up with without some hallucinogenic intervention.
No matter.
The cat exists and its a challenge to draw the millions of little carunculated little folds of skin. Hairless is still okay...but the wrinkled skin is not a characteristic I would have added. But as an artist, the thrill of drawing it is huge fun.
I wonder what would happen if you rubbed Oil of Olay Anti-Wrinkle on it?
The image is still in early stages, so watch this space. It will improve.
I have my very own opera ensemble warming up for their performance of the Ring Cycle while I work. I do believe its an opera about the Tour de France. ALLEZ!
Hoarknockle is shaking his head at me.
Lady Sandra is sunbathing in her Lady Godiva outfit.

baked in a pie... er, box

The birds are all in...done, cooked.
I wish I could see this image from the outside... as a person who stumbles upon it without having made or thought about it.
I have contacted artist's representatives and over a long time have done so many times... and never had anyone show interest.
Is it too far off the main road...that well travelled path which feeds popular culture the pre-digested pulp they so desire. Fast food of the mind and soul, the crippling addiction to mediocrity.
OKay...what's next?
Lady Sandra took the yacht out to get the mail. Have I mentioned how much rain we have been getting? I do believe I have seen a submarine at the local airport.
Hoarknockle is getting moldy...either that, or he is wearing a green velvet suit.

tin bird too?

this image is begging for some kind of explanation...I think. I shall abstain from stating the obvious.
As the rains continue... or has it ceased? (it has!)
Farmers were exchanging their tractors for submarines.
I have continued my exploration of this flying creature in my picture as his kin tug fat earthworms from my sodden lawn. I think I was first drawn to draw them after seeing a pelican covered in iridescent black BP spilled Gulf oil. The poor bird so entirely coated in blackness was a powerful graphic image... unsettling and inky wet. Maybe it reminds me of Mickey Mouse's foe from many years ago...The Blot! (yes...a very long time ago)
This picture is possibly a rather surreal collection of ideas... but then I do wish to avoid the obvious and easily digested literal "smack you in the face with a baseball bat" kind of concept. Or so I hope.

tin bird

Legerdemain ... trickery!
Yes... its not a real bird. Hoarknockle was aghast!
The story of the grackles continues with this rusty impostor pretending to be a bird.
After the rain the handcrafted tin cutout just had to rust...even digitally.
At least the cool weather and moisture is good for the wines in my cellar.
Red wine is a fine antidote to the damp chill.

boxing

It keeps going. The rain confines me to my studio rather than getting outside and riding with the hounds on my bicycle.
Lady Sandra has been driving indoors lest her car gets rained upon.
The grackles are behaving in their boxes.

baked in a pie...

well...in this case put in boxes, not pies.
I have laid the base of boxes in this digital drawing and am adding the birds. Its part discovery process as I look at the birds on my lawn and see how they move and act, then try and find something about them that is interesting and use in each bird in its box.
Its like carrying memories of events of experiences or people in your mind, there often seems to be some illogical memory hidden amongst the categories of things... and I often wonder how this particular memory may have become lodged in a specific group of dissimilar recollections.
This is progress thus far. No birds were injured during the making of this image. Hoarknockle was subjected to repeated tea-making.
This image still has a way to go yet. I'm curious as to where it will go. Fingers crossed.

early birds

The rain had blackbirds hunting earthworms trying to escape the soggy soil and brought the proverb, "Early bird gets the worm", to mind. Followed quickly by "opening a can of worms".
The blackbirds have quite an ominous stalking stride and their graphic yellow eyes with black centers give them a very evil look as they poke around the lawn in search of worms. Like some avian opera without singing. Equally incomprehensible story line.
Possibly the best word to explain the feeling is ominous.
Either that or I would have to say they remind me of Hoarknockle skulking around the corridors with a hangover.
These are all going into boxes I have drawn. Lots of textural patina and atmospheric marks.
Lady Sandra has been baking peasant bread. There is a certain irony in this. The house smells delicious. I need to investigate.

just a house

just a house this time. A house from the past where memories were made.
No afterburners or the smell of jet fuel.
Its for a friend who will give it as a gift to the person who lived there for a long time. I wanted it to have a feel of something well worn and well known. There are a few birds and a squirrel near the tree. There is an old push lawnmower rusting quietly.
Nothing grandiose. A peaceful drawing.
I should ease up on the relaxing herbal tea and have an espresso. Maybe give Hoarknockle a whipping.