So, let me just say this about my lovely city of Memphis, it is freaking hot here. I can smell myself cooking like a piece of meat when I'm outside. Lately, I've been getting to the studio in the afternoon after being in a hot kitchen all day, and honestly, the idea of standing in my poorly air conditioned studio and painting in oil has not been on the top of my afterwork agenda. I've been finding myself fairly content to just sit at the drawing table next to my box fan (the drawing room is about 10 degrees cooler due to it's placement above the kitchen in the restaurant underneath me). I feel a bit of a change coming to my work, but I couldn't tell you what that is or means.
I'm about to change jobs, again, and I have had a lot of things on my mind. Sometimes, I find that I thin clearer when I let myself throughout the subconscious and just draw anything anywhere. So, I've been playing around with inks, and markers, and watercolor etc. and just letting myself have some fun. My cousin and self proclaimed shop assistant turned Sheriff of Spillmanville has been hanging out with me in the studio for a while now (what a free art education the boy is getting), and I think he has been observing my work habits. He told me last night that he enjoys being the drawing room with me a bit more than when I am in the oil painting studio. He told me that the painting side is bizzness. He told me that is where I make money and try to act all professional with my work. Apparently, he believes that act more like the kid he grew up with when I am drawing. He told me I act more youthful when we are in the drawing room. That would probably make sense, as painting came much later in my life, but I have been an avid draftsman since I could carry a sketchbook everywhere I went. Whatever the case, it is our job as an artist to be honest with ourselves, our mediums, our ideas, and overall with our audience, so do what you do. Just make sure you do it right.
Lately, I've started drawing on my other cousin's (David Comstock) left over paper paintings. David is profound when he is working on paper, and he turns out a bunch of these, and then he edits them down to the ones that hit his mark. He gave me several of the ones he wasn't into as much. I've always loved drawing on found grounds, so it has been rather fun drawing imagery over someone's abstract paintings.
This is a sketch for an idea that has been reoccurring in my imagination lately. It is a boat made of pencils with notebook paper sails. I think it speaks of my childhood love of simple materials and the adventures of drawing your own world. This may turn into a piece over the next week. I definitely would like to draw this bigger so that I can get into some details and add a bit more scenery.
Well, that is the Spillmanville world at a current glance. Stay tuned as new opportunities have popped up, and life is about to change for us around here yet again.
Enjoy,
Spillmanville loves big husky pencils and bad color markers
