First Sketches 2019 - Part Two

Hello!

Hopefully you've had a chance to check out Part One of my recent sketchbook drawings.

If not—you'll find that here.

https://artmusicpoliticsfaithhopeandlove.blogspot.com/2019/01/first-sketches-2019-part-one.html

Today I'll share more of my wacky characters and portraits.

Hare Brained - Copyright 2019 - Jephyr - All Rights Reserved

 ^ ^ ^ As noted in my last post I've been creating more complete characters recently.

One afternoon I went out to a coffee house to sketch.  

I honestly hadn't planned to make any kind of social commentary with this drawing—but as I was putting the final touches on this smart-phone mesmerized rabbit I looked around me.

Almost EVERYONE was looking at their phones.  There were only two exceptions—but otherwise at least eight other people all were bent over and engrossed with their phones.

Just a few tables away from me sat an older couple—both silently staring at their screens.  I watched them for several minutes—and neither said one word to the other.

I'm not anti-technology and spend a LOT of time on my computer every day—but think we have lost a lot due to our fascination with cell phones and devices—and wonder sometimes if a plane could literally go down and wouldn't be noticed.

Off To Market - Copyright 2019 - Jephyr - All Rights Reserved

 ^ ^ ^ I had a blast drawing this character one afternoon in a coffee house.

I had printed out a few photos of wart-hogs I used as references—but obviously went in a more cartoonish route.

I picture this sad, little tough-guy waving goodbye to a barnyard friend who is being taken off to market.

The Chicken King's New Clothes - Copyright 2019 - Jephyr - All Rights Reserved

 ^ ^ ^ A while ago I heard an interview with a woman was a secretary for a famous and well regarded cartoonist/animator.

She said that she would hear him laughing out loud at his own work as she worked in an adjacent room.

I mention that—not to put myself in the same category with him—but because I sat stifling my own laughter at this character while I worked on it one day in a local coffee house.

I wish I always had this much fun when drawing!

Update:  I was out sketching yesterday and one of the young men who worked at the joint I was in came over and wanted to see what I was up to.  I showed him what I was working on and he seemed very interested so I showed him several other sketches including the one above.

I thought everyone would know the Hans Christian Anderson's "The Emperor's New Clothes" so when I showed him this drawing I mentioned the story and was surprised to hear he'd never hear of it.

Perhaps you know already, it's a morality tale about a king being convinced by swindlers that they had made an elegant outfit for him that was invisible to fools—and no one wanted to admit they were a fool—INCLUDING the emperor—so everyone agreed it was an amazing outfit.

Later the king took off his clothes and put on the new outfit and then paraded around in front of his people "wearing it"—and of course no one wanted to admit they couldn't see his new clothes for fear of being considered a fool.

Then at last a small boy stated the obvious—THE KING WASN'T WEARING ANYTHING AT ALL.

With that—everyone suddenly agreed—the Emperor wasn't wearing ANYTHING—and even though the emperor suspected they were right—he continued parading around in front of them with his noblemen holding his imaginary train high.

: )

http://andersen.sdu.dk/vaerk/hersholt/TheEmperorsNewClothes_e.html

Glub-Glub - Copyright 2019 - Jephyr - All Rights Reserved

^ ^ ^ Just a silly sketch that started out as a scribble.

I'd done some large looping lines on the page that led me to "see" the large diving helmet and filled in the rest as I went along.

Colonel Almere - Copyright 2019 - Jephyr All Rights Reserved

 ^ ^ ^ This is another example of the kind of wacky portraits created from my imagination I've been doing for ages—and was drawn before I started creating more complete characters recently.

Master Tiggs - Copyright 2019 - Jephyr - All Rights Reserved

^ ^ ^ I'll close things out with this forlorn-looking "beastie" character—which goes back the furthest because it was the first drawing completed out of all the recent work I've posted in Part One and Two.

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Well—that'll do it for my most recent sketchbook efforts of 2019—so far.....

Thanks as always for looking in on my corner of the world.

See you again soon!

God Bless!