erin supinski sketch blog

vice prezzies

2012-01-22T18:44:00.002-05:00

George Clinton, our 4th vice president, certainly had the best hair.

(Based on the painting by Ezra Ames.)

the best news...

2012-01-16T19:53:00.005-05:00

I told myself that when I got a real job, I would get myself a studio. Some place where I could leave my work out everywhere without the fear of cats eating it and boyfriends yelling about how I need to clean it (“this is your studio but it’s our house”). Well the day has finally come, and I figured the 9:30 to 6 (or 7 or 8) schedule really makes it a necessity to have a space of my very own where I can get to work as soon as I walk in the door. So here it is, and it’s only two blocks away from my apartment. Visitors are always welcome. I'm so excited!

finally finished!

2012-01-14T14:05:00.006-05:00

Remember this? Well I’m pleased to announce that I am finally, FINALLY finished! I meant this roman stripe quilt to be a wedding present for my sister, but her wedding came and went with no quilt in sight. My next goal was for it to be a Christmas present, but I just missed the Christmas deadline. It’s done now, however, and it’s off to the post office. And I can go back to devoting my time to drawing and painting again. I am hooked on quilting, though, and I can’t wait to start a new one...

vice prezzies

2011-12-11T15:31:00.000-05:00

The 3rd vice president was Aaron Burr who is most famously remembered for killing Alexander Hamilton in a duel.
(Based on the painting by John Vanderlyn.)

sneak peak

2011-11-27T22:08:00.003-05:00

I’ve been getting settled into a full-time job recently, and I’m trying to figure out the best way to organize my time. Lest you think I have not been painting, however, here is a preview of a large piece I’ve been working on. Can you guess what it is?

new website!

2011-11-08T08:03:00.003-05:00

I’ve FINALLY updated my website! It still needs some tweaking, and I need to add links and things, but I finally have my work from school up along with some new things I’ve been working on over summer. Please go visit so I can see if my google analytics is working.

aarp

2011-11-01T22:37:00.008-04:00

I suppose since it's November, it’s okay for me to post this. I created this illustration for an article in AARP Magazine entitled “Dollar Stores are Popular”, so keep your eyes peeled for the latest issue. Thanks to Joanna Foucheux for art directing!

I submitted four sketches for this one. The first was a variation on the same idea—George riding in a shopping basket:

The second was Mount Rushmore including George’s head alongside items typically found in a dollar store:

The third was GW crossing the Delaware River accompanied by goods from the dollar store:

And the fourth was a shopping bag made out of a dollar bill filled with purchases from the dollar store (obviously this one was the winner):

morran

2011-10-30T21:54:00.003-04:00

The author of one of my favorite blogs, Camilla Engman, is creating a book about her dog and is requesting submissions. All proceeds of book sales go to charity. This is my entry. Make sure you look at the one my friend Dasha did too!

gw

2011-10-07T13:31:00.002-04:00

Here are some sketches I did for an upcoming job. More to come...

vice prezzies

2011-09-24T12:54:00.003-04:00

Thomas Jefferson was our second vice president. For this one I stopped using colored pencils, and—I know it’s crazy—I experimented with the background. Since I usually just leave the background white, this is a huge departure for me. What do you think?
(Based on the painting by Rembrandt Peal.)

a course in loveliness

2011-09-21T13:19:00.003-04:00

And lest you thought I forgot about A Course in Loveliness, here is the latest quote:

“Some of the easiest victims of beauty quackery are the rich.”

Chapter 6: Beauty Business and Beauty Misinformation is all about the pitfalls many women succumb to when navigating the treacherous world of beauty advice and advertisements. Dr. Crumb urges women to use common sense when seeking beauty guidance. He warns against listening to celebrities or beauty advice columnists, and he gives examples of tips from so-called experts. Such as one “Mme. Slender,” who advises a broad-nosed beauty-seeker that she can in fact change the shape of her large nose by rubbing her middle fingers along the sides of her nose for half an hour a day while thinking of her nose “as sculptor’s clay,” or that another can make her receding chin larger by developing character and speaking her mind. Dr. Crum’s bottom line is that if it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is, so save your money and avoid being trapped by faulty advice.

vice prezzies

2011-09-21T12:03:00.005-04:00

I’ve been wanting to experiment with portraiture, so I decided I’d do a series of all the vice presidents. Everyone forgets about them, so I thought they should get a little attention. This is the first vice president, Alexander Hamilton. I added some colored pencils with my watercolors to try and push the colors and textures a bit. I’m not sure if I like it. What do you think?
(Based on the painting by Asher B. Durand.)

triangles

2011-09-16T20:53:00.003-04:00

blue

2011-09-11T14:31:00.004-04:00

self portrait with cold mask

2011-09-04T22:37:00.003-04:00

colorado post #3: everything else

2011-09-04T01:09:00.007-04:00

Due to the wedding hysteria, we didn’t have much time to embark on any major adventures, but we did manage to squeeze in a visit to Leadville (the highest city in the US), some scenic overlooks, a working steam engine, a drive on the million dollar highway (which was absolutely worth every white-knuckle-sheer-cliff-face-sans-gaurdrail hairpin turn), a peach orchard, a couple marshmallow-roasting-bonfires, a tipi, antiques, and rainbows.

colorado post #2: the wedding

2011-09-04T00:41:00.006-04:00

Congratulations sister and Brian! I love you!

colorado post #1: the bachelorette party

2011-09-03T22:36:00.007-04:00

I was in Colorado for the past couple of weeks because my little sister got married. Here are some photos from her bachelorette party; my sister, her bridesmaids, my mom, and I stayed in a cabin in Eldora, CO, and the next day we went for a hike. No male strippers were involved.

rucksack

2011-08-13T21:58:00.003-04:00

bugs

2011-08-08T10:27:00.003-04:00

I wanted to experiment with painting on a black background so I pulled out the gouache and painted these butterflies.

color study

2011-08-05T17:01:00.002-04:00

a course in loveliness

2011-08-03T18:09:00.004-04:00

This week we have Chapter Five: Cosmetic Dancing, in which Dr. Crum expounds the benefits of dancing for exercise.

“Realizing that most women like to dance, the idea occurred to me that it might be possible to make dancing an effective form of exercise. I had often heard such statements as ‘I would rather dance than eat,’ or ‘I could dance all night.’”

He states that one does not need much space in which to dance; the area around the bed should be sufficient. A bedroom is also ideal because he recommends dancing “barefooted and with little or no clothing.” He also suggests you procure a phonograph if you don't already have one, along with “one of each of the following records: a waltz, a fox trot, a fox trot suitable for a shag, a polka, a conga and a tango.” He says the best form of dancing for exercise is the shag. I didn’t know what a shag was so I had to look it up. You can see an example below:

So just do that every day. “If you dance one or two shag records every day, it will do more than keep the doctor away; it will also keep Old Man Time away.”

for my sister

2011-07-19T17:14:00.012-04:00

My little sis is getting married in August, and she asked me to design her wedding invitations for her. She wanted something to reflect their outdoors-y lifestyle, so I included some Colorado wildflowers and their cutie dog Sadie alongside hand-lettered text. Then she had her friends at Sweet Letter Press print them for her. I’ve never had any of my work letterpressed before, and I love how it turned out. I really had fun working on this project, so if you know anybody getting married, send them my way!

a course in loveliness

2011-07-14T22:33:00.003-04:00

“Regardless of your age, this systematic course of exercises will not only improve the contour of your body, but it will increase your strength and vitality.”

This week, I combined the next two chapters into this one installment since they are both about exercise. Chapter Three: The Question of Exercise discusses whether or not you should exercise every day with the obvious answer—YES.

In Chapter Four: The Crum-a-cises, Dr. Crum recommends that you do his “crum-a-cises” for 20 minutes each morning and evening, with the windows wide open (regardless of the season), WITH NO CLOTHES ON for maximum effect. He explains exactly how to do the crum-a-cises with names like the General (jumping jacks), anterior-posterior stretch, torso twist, mouth-line crum-a-cise, etc. It has little diagrams, as well as written descriptions of how to do each exercise and provides a recommended amount of repetitions. There are nine exercise in total which “will give you real and perceptible results.”

weekend adventure

2011-07-11T12:54:00.004-04:00

Joe and I have been dying to escape from the city, so on Sunday we woke up very early and took the train up to Cold Spring. We went to the antique fair they had there (which was horrible), and then we went on a 5-mile hike. It felt so good; I haven’t seen trees in far too long. (And yes, those are my man hands holding that little toad.)

treatz

2011-07-09T20:11:00.004-04:00

I haven’t baked in ages, but now that summer is here, I wanted to make my favorite summer dessert—galettes. Blueberries were on sale, so I thought I’d give it a go. Joe thinks this photo looks a bit violent, but he had no problem eating it all...

blog header complete

2011-07-07T17:26:00.003-04:00

I keep forgetting to post this. My friend Caren is in pastry school, and she has a blog where she keeps record of all the amazing things she bakes. I made her a new header—we thought sprinkles were appropriate.

a course in loveliness

2011-07-06T22:46:00.006-04:00

Sorry I missed last week’s loveliness posting—I started on one, but I didn’t like how it turned out so I had to start over. So in this installment, we have a lesson that I really should pay attention to—Chapter Two: Good Posture for Health and Good Looks.

“So, as the builder in erecting a beautiful structure starts with a foundation, you and I must start with posture, the foundation of beauty.”

This chapter discusses how poor posture gives a negative first impression and that the woman who stands up straight “radiates an air of alertness and cheerfulness” and has “confidence and a more magnetic, vibrant personality.” Dr. Crum stresses the importance of standing tall and gives examples of things that can negatively affect your posture (poor eyesight, bad hearing, high heels, etc.), and then he provides exercises and stretches you can do to improve your posture, including (of course), balancing a book on your head. (I have a book on my head as I’m writing this.) And then "almost before you know it, you will—automatically and unconsciously—stand, sit and walk with a new gracefulness of carriage that will both surprise and delight you.” I’ll let you know when I’m feeling surprised and delighted.

test

2011-06-26T17:08:00.002-04:00

This is a test for a project I’m working on for a pal. More to come.

a course in loveliness

2011-06-23T15:45:00.005-04:00

I have this funny book that used to belong to my great-grandmother, called Beauty and Health, A Course in Loveliness written by one Dr. Crum, Beauty Consultant in the mid 1940s. The possessor of said book is given a plan to “enrich your life, add to your health and beauty, prolong or regain your youthfulness, and increase your charm and personality.” Well, since working working on the title page for my thesis, I really wanted to explore hand-lettering, and I think this book will provide me with the perfect subject matter. Each week we’ll look at a new chapter, and I’ll illustrate my favorite quote. We can learn how to be lovelier together.

Chapter One: Beauty—Our Goal. The quote I chose for this week is “I warn you that the quest for beauty is no Jack’s beanstalk, to be planted today and climbed tomorrow.” In this chapter, Dr. Crum warns that the path ahead will not be easy, but if we work hard and stick to the tasks he assigns, we are certain to achieve our goals. “Your goal is to combine a perfect figure, a beautiful face, a fascinating personality, a youthful appearance and a real deep-seated happiness.” No problem.

a new one

2011-06-15T09:50:00.004-04:00

After seeing my friend Hilary make an amazing patchwork computer cover, I was inspired to start a project I’ve been meaning to do. (I certainly have the time.) These are my fabric choices and color palette.

hot cat

2011-06-09T16:12:00.004-04:00

Poor Murry.

In other news, one of my musician drawings got blogged on jazzanddraw. Thanks Philippe!

design portfolio

2011-06-07T16:33:00.004-04:00

In the post-graduate-school quest to find gainful employment, I’ve created an online design portfolio. Spread the word.

color study 3

2011-06-05T17:15:00.003-04:00

color study 2

2011-05-29T20:39:00.003-04:00

color study

2011-05-28T10:42:00.005-04:00

calligraphy job

2011-05-24T09:49:00.005-04:00

My friend Andrea got me a fun job doing the calligraphy for the place cards at the black-tie Author’s Guild Dinner last night. Then I got to stick around and hobnob with celebs and eat a fancy dinner. The top is a picture of one of the cards in daylight, and the bottom is the best picture I could get at the event—it was so dark in there!

finished!

2011-05-20T15:56:00.005-04:00

Well, here it is—my first real foray into embroidery. What do you think?

contest

2011-05-19T21:23:00.005-04:00

If you remember last year, Playboy had a college fiction contest and then an illustration contest for the winning story. This year’s winner is entitled “Hot Damn”, and this is my entry. Fingers crossed! (And thanks for modelling, Jess.)

last ones

2011-05-16T11:48:00.003-04:00

Here are a couple more paintings from my thesis that I never posted.

a new project

2011-05-15T21:38:00.004-04:00

During the semester I watched my good buddy Hyesu work on an embroidery project as part of her thesis. It looked like so much fun, and it turned out so well, that I vowed to explore embroidery as soon as school ended. I’ll keep you updated on my progress...

lefties

2011-05-14T12:54:00.009-04:00

I spent some time this semester drawing at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. I decided to try drawing with my left hand (I’m right-handed), and here are the results.

the end

2011-05-13T12:32:00.004-04:00

I’ve wanted to do this for a long time, and now it’s over. I need to pick a new next great adventure...

sneaky peak

2011-04-27T18:40:00.003-04:00

I apologize for the lack of posting lately; I’ve been wrapping up my thesis project and getting ready for the show. It’s been a bit crazy around here to say the least, but I’m finally finished! Please come out to the opening next Thursday (May 5) to see the fruits of everyone’s hard work over the past year.

accordion dance

2011-04-07T11:55:00.003-04:00

I needed some photo reference for one of my paintings, and Joe generously volunteered to help me out...

title page

2011-04-05T13:37:00.005-04:00

I struggled for a long time with a title for my thesis project, but my boss/mentor/friend Rachael gave me the answer.

bus stop

2011-03-31T11:17:00.002-04:00

Another thesis painting—almost done!

minis!

2011-03-24T14:37:00.002-04:00

I just finished my first mini comic, and I made some extras...

two new comics

2011-03-22T16:44:00.004-04:00

I finished two more pages for my mini comic.

more thesis

2011-03-15T21:10:00.002-04:00

I decided I liked painting that still life for Movado, so I did one for my book.

family tree...sort of

2011-03-10T12:58:00.003-05:00

This is another page of my book. (If you think you may be included in this image and it does not look like you, please do not be offended. I did not use photo reference, and I was trying to make it pretty generic...)

more movado

2011-03-02T18:23:00.003-05:00

This is a little snippet of the painting I did for Movado. I had to have it mostly finished before the event since we could only work for three hours there, so this image lacks the small details. They said they were going to have the finished piece professionally photographed, so if I can get a copy of that I’ll post it here.

movado

2011-03-01T20:56:00.004-05:00

I was chosen to do an art event at the Movado store in Rockefeller Center, so yes, this is me painting. The event turned out to be pretty quiet and low key, but it was still good practice for me to paint in public and talk to the few strangers that stopped in. (Photo courtesy the ever lovely Hilary.)

yikes

2011-02-28T21:20:00.003-05:00

The end of my MFA program is nearly in sight. It’s making me nervous!

jazz

2011-02-27T16:05:00.004-05:00

I’m not a fan of improvisational jazz at all, but we had some musicians come into our class and play while we drew them. It was fun.

ryan

2011-02-26T16:50:00.003-05:00

I meant to post this a long time ago, but I forgot. We had to do portraits of each other for our end of the year show. I had the pleasure of drawing my friend Ryan.

Georgia

2011-02-09T10:02:00.000-05:00

I don’t ever post anybody else’s work, but I love this video so much that I had to share. I never really gave Georgia O’Keeffe much thought until I chose her as a subject for my comics, and I’ve never been crazy about her artwork. But after stumbling onto this video yesterday, I have to say, I love her. This is a really beautiful interview at her house in New Mexico. I can’t stop thinking about it.

100th post!

2011-02-08T09:24:00.003-05:00

Today is my 100th post. In order to celebrate, this kid will play the accordion...

more comics

2011-02-07T08:58:00.002-05:00

Here‘s another. This time we had to do a monologue.

collaboration

2011-02-06T10:53:00.003-05:00

This is part of a collaboration I’m doing with some of my school friends. I can’t wait to see what everyone else comes up with!

more drawing in class

2011-02-05T13:33:00.006-05:00

I was drawing my classmates while they were presenting their ideas for an on-location drawing project.

rubin

2011-01-30T22:16:00.003-05:00

For drawing class on Friday we went to the Rubin Museum. This was my most successful venture.

winter adventure

2011-01-26T17:32:00.005-05:00

This was my Christmas present from Joe. BEST EVER.

jack in the pulpit

2011-01-25T22:00:00.003-05:00

This is the second in my series of Georgia O’Keeffe comics. The assignment for this one was to tell a story without showing any people. Making these things is addicting...

first comic

2011-01-19T00:15:00.004-05:00

I decided to go way out of my comfort zone this semester—I signed up for a cartooning class. We were assigned to choose an artist, and then tell a story about him or her. This is my first comic ever.

my dog sleeping

2011-01-05T12:11:00.003-05:00

curses, foiled again

2010-12-30T13:23:00.004-05:00

I was supposed to get home on the 27th, but due to the monster blizzard in New York (and after hours of frustration at the airport) I couldn’t rebook until tomorrow, the 31st. Now there’s a snowstorm in Denver, and they’re predicting 8–10 inches. If my flight tomorrow is canceled, some drastic measures may be in order... I just want to go home.

famous players

2010-12-17T11:41:00.005-05:00

These people all played (or play) the accordion. The real test is if you can tell who they are...

turban

2010-12-12T20:59:00.004-05:00

I saw this turban at a store I like, and I decided I absolutely needed it. However, not having an extra $150 laying around, I found a vintage pattern and enlisted the help of my expert-at-knitting friend Hilary. I’m pretty happy with my results, and I did it for 1/5 of the price. Woot!

grand central

2010-12-11T17:58:00.003-05:00

missed you

2010-11-28T12:38:00.001-05:00

I’m glad you’re back old girl.

drawing in class

2010-11-27T18:43:00.003-05:00

Gary Panter (of Pee-wee’s Playhouse/comics fame) came to our class to give a guest lecture and critique. I was trying my hand at shading (which I never do), and I drew him while he was talking. I was also taking notes on his lecture, and the words to the right of the drawing are direct quotes. I think I’ll draw with a pencil more often.

a new project

2010-11-22T19:25:00.004-05:00

My lovely friend Dasha started a new blog called “What I Ate Today”, and she invited me to contribute. This is my first entry, and I will hopefully be posting often. Go look!

old lady

2010-11-16T16:11:00.003-05:00

future paleontologist

2010-11-14T16:59:00.004-05:00

Last Friday we went to Gleason’s boxing gym for drawing class. It was pretty tough to draw boxers as they are in constant motion, but I stopped to talk to Richard Rodriguez who is 13 and loves dinosaurs.

accordion cat

2010-11-10T20:17:00.004-05:00

I’m going to try my hand at actionscripting. This is a preview of the animation I propose to make. But don’t hold your breath; it will take me a while to work it out...

first finished (i think) painting

2010-11-07T19:08:00.004-05:00

This is the first painting I’ve finished for my thesis project. Well, at least I think it’s done. I’ll need to stare at it a bit before I make the final decision. On this one I decided to work larger than normal (22" x 30") just to try it out. I do like working larger, but it takes far too long to make it practical for this project. I’ll definitely do more in the future though.

cold cat

2010-11-03T20:20:00.003-04:00

Sorry about the gratuitous cat post, but it’s starting to get cold here in Brooklyn, and Velcro must have been feeling chilly because he climbed into these blankets by himself. I thought it was cute...

location, location, location

2010-10-31T22:56:00.009-04:00

I’m still hammering out some of the details of my thesis project, so in the meantime, here are some drawings from my location class. It’s a bit scary, but I really like drawing on location. The top is the Brooklyn Botanical Garden, the middle is Chelsea Market, and the bottom is Governor’s Island.

accordion capers

2010-10-14T14:59:00.003-04:00

I must apologize to my diehard readers (all 3 of you) for my extended blogging absence. Now that I'm getting settled into a school routine, I should be able to update more regularly.

I wanted to post today about my idea for my thesis project. I’ve decided to make a book about my accordion. It’s going to be part reference (history, famous players, manufacturing, etc.) and part diary of my experiences learning to play. I think this will give me a pretty wide range of images to create, while keeping a focused narrative. I'm pretty excited about it. And if anyone knows someone in the area willing to give affordable lessons, please let me know...

first art show

2010-09-29T15:54:00.004-04:00

Last night was the opening of the SVA MFA illustration Book Show. I think it went pretty well (it was very crowded and everyone was so nice), but I've never been in a show before, so I have nothing to compare it with. Here is a photo of my stuff on the wall, and some of my lovely friends that came out to support me.

new website!

2010-09-28T13:26:00.003-04:00

In preparation for my show tonight, I've updated my website. Please head over and take a look!

flock of sheep

2010-09-05T20:59:00.002-04:00

Final page spread—almost there!

family dinner

2010-09-03T17:36:00.003-04:00

Lest you think I’ve been neglecting my book, here is my latest page spread—the Polish family dinner. I have one more spread to do, along with the title page, and then I am D-O-N-E with this thing. Then it’s time to bind and set up for the show. I can't wait!

tartin’ it up

2010-08-29T21:07:00.005-04:00

Today my mom and I made these mini peach galettes. The final result was so pretty (and delicious!) that I felt obligated to show off our handiwork.

colorado time

2010-08-29T11:11:00.006-04:00

I must apologize for seriously lagging on my summertime posting. I have been in Colorado for nearly 2 weeks now. And while I will be glad to get back to the city tomorrow, it has been awfully nice to go outside...

two in one

2010-08-02T19:17:00.002-04:00

Here is another in my series of pioneer portraits. These are the sisters, Sedalia and Regalia.

another

2010-07-16T11:10:00.004-04:00

Here is another of the more successful portraits I’ve been working on. I have a hard time with eyes, but I think it will get easier the more I do...

oh pioneers!

2010-07-07T17:25:00.004-04:00

My summer posting has slowed down somewhat, but it’s not due to lack of work. I’ve been working like crazy painting people, which for me is incredibly difficult, and I haven’t made anything that I feel brave enough to show. The face above is the first one I’ve done that I can fairly confidently say I’m happy with. I’m working on a series of portraits based on the letters of a pioneer woman. You can read them here if you’re interested.

scottish

2010-06-24T16:50:00.004-04:00

Lest you think I’ve abandoned my book project, here are some friends from the Scotland page.

summer adventure #2

2010-06-12T13:04:00.008-04:00

Joe and I are determined not to let our lack of a car stop us from having some nature-y, out-of-the-city adventures. So yesterday we hopped on a bus and traveled to Rockland State Park. The park itself was okay, but we managed to find a hiking trail just outside of it that went through the woods and ended on top of a (very steep and very scary) cliff face overlooking the Hudson. The view made my head explode.

tiger paws

2010-06-07T17:04:00.003-04:00

I decided to audit the Illustration Hothouse class that SVA offers over the summer. It will be a ton of work, but I’m pretty excited about it. Above is my first assignment from class; it’s an illustration for a short story by T. C. Boyle called “Question 62”.

summer adventure

2010-05-29T18:59:00.006-04:00

Yesterday a couple of school pals and I packed a picnic and took a trip upstate to visit the Storm King sculpture garden. It’s sort of like a golf course filled with enormous contemporary sculptures, and it was amazing. Everything was so green, it was filled with wildlife, the weather was beautiful, and the park was practically empty. It was a lovely, refreshing day.

doors galore

2010-05-24T21:00:00.004-04:00

I'm not sure if this will be the final layout, but I had something like this in mind for my page about Ireland...

woman, fire, and the sea

2010-05-19T16:57:00.004-04:00

I guess every year Playboy magazine has a fiction contest, and then our department at school has a contest to illustrate the winning story. The chosen piece this year is entitled “Woman, Fire, and the Sea”, and this is my entry. Fingers crossed!

big bugs

2010-05-10T14:20:00.001-04:00

Here is my Thailand spread...

cat hat

2010-05-07T16:28:00.005-04:00

School is officially over, but I still have a lot of work to do for my book. I had high hopes of getting a lot accomplished in my first free week of the summer, but after a series of failed attempts I am feeling pretty disheartened. So instead of work, here is a picture of MurryPurry with a cut up sock on his head. He hates us.

india

2010-05-06T11:12:00.004-04:00

Here are some paintings from the India page of my book. School is over, but I have 4 spreads to go! My goal is to be finished by the end of May. This project has been fun, but I’m eager to start on something new.

robot love

2010-04-29T09:45:00.006-04:00

In school we are required to take a creative writing class in our first year. Our teacher has slowly been breaking us down by making us read aloud all the personal essays, stories, and poetry we’ve written over the course of the semester. I can only imagine it was in preparation for this final moment of ultimate humiliation—we were required to partner up with a classmate to write a play and then perform it in front of the class. My pal Philip and I joined forces under the requisites that we each had to play a member of the opposite sex, and the play had to be at least 10 minutes long. The two of us are rather bashful when it comes to performing in front of an audience so we came to the only logical conclusion we could think of—wear boxes over our heads so no one could see our faces and have the computer read our lines. He played a lady-bot looking for love through online dating, and I played her suitor, with the whole thing ending in a rather steamy robot love scene. I must admit, however, that as apprehensive as I was, the two of us had a really fun time. And yes, I am in graduate school.

This photo is courtesy of my lovely friend Lisa.

on the train

2010-04-25T22:04:00.006-04:00

I'm trying to overcome my fear of drawing people while I'm on the subway. I hate having people look over my shoulder, judging everything I'm doing, and I feel uncomfortable staring at people as I draw them. But I need to get over it if I'm going to improve my skills. Here are some of my first attempts.