Travel Tools for the Artist

I’m back from another week in Texas, where I spoke with big groups of kids about art and storytelling, met some great librarians, and ate more Texas BBQ (and Bluebell Creamery ice cream!). Here’s my favorite picture from the trip:

Slowly and steadily I’ve been getting better about organizing my art stuff for traveling. One of the best gifts I received this Christmas was this great leather wrap that holds all my micron pens, 4H pencils, erasers and sharpies. Have a look:

This wrap was made by my wife and it’s steeped in memory. The leather came from my grandpa’s farm, from a batch that was tanned years ago when I was just a wee lad. The material on top is raw silk that Anna and I picked up at a festival when we were newlyweds. I dyed the raw silk with a home brewed walnut dye that I made in our first apartment (with Walnuts gathered from Christendom College). The owl, Anna tells me, is for wisdom. Something I’m still chasing after.

And to think, I used to just toss all my micron pens, 4H pencils, erasers and sharpies into my bag, willy-nilly.

I know I've posted this picture before, but here’s the wrap in action:

Girl Power

Woo! I'm back on the Superhero Train! Here's my take on Supergirl, a young version and a growed up version, along with my particular idea for what I would do if I had my own shot at a Supergirl miniseries:

There’s one in every family.

Kara Zor-El was the daughter of Jor-El’s wealthy-yet-disreputable brother, making her the cousin of the infant Kal-El. On Krypton, Kara was doted on and spoiled, and she loved nothing better than sneaking into places where she wasn’t supposed to go.

That’s why she was in Jor-El’s laboratory on Krypton’s last day, watching her father and his brother, the eminent scientist and the sleazy politician, having their last fraternal argument. To avoid being caught, she hid herself in a prototype ship, a ship very much like the one she watched her little cousin being placed inside. And as the tremors began, Kara fell against the control panel activating the prototype ship’s launch sequence.

Due to the mysterious tricks of space travel, relativity and stasis, Kara’s ship arrived on earth 25 years behind Kal-El’s ship.

If I were writing a Supergirl miniseries it would begin with Clark Kent being about 25, a young superhero just starting his career, when suddenly he finds himself responsible for a very spoiled, very powerful 9-year-old.

Since she doesn’t arrive on earth as an infant, Kara would start out being much more of an alien, and having a harder time adjusting to life on Earth. And due to the mysterious tricks of Kryptonian biology, her powers develop much more quickly, but to a lesser extent than Superman’s.

The series would cover 10 years, up to the point when Kara is 19 and Clark is 35. It would end with the arrival of Brainiac, which threatens the whole Earth, and is the impetus for Kara to finally learn the self-sacrifice that marks a true hero.

.........

Finally here's a very different take on Supergirl from a few year ago (2007, I think):

Anthony Van Arsdale

...doesn’t update his blog enough!

But he’s a fantastic artist. His character designs have a lot of life and his skill as a painter... well, it’s enviable. Check it out. A few months ago, when I finished Zita 3, I purchased this study by Anthony of a Polish Calvalryman:

Anthony had also bailed me out by flatting some of the pages for the book and he just recently sent me this fantastic sculpt of Zita:

Here are the two together in my little studio:

Bright Ideas

Do you ever wonder where all your ideas wander off to? I do. I’m pretty sure most of my better ideas sneak off and have pizza parties and don’t invite me.

I’m working on a picture book these days. It’s called Julia’s House and it’s about a little girl who opens her house up to all the creatures that no one believes in. Dragons, fairies, mermaids, trolls ...and what happens when they all show up.

The story is written (kinda, sorta, mostly) and I’m now making the first tentative steps into the art. This one’s all ink and watercolor. Here’s a color test I did of Julia, the central character of this tale:

Bandwagon

(larger version here).

Johnny Grey was stuck in a mind-numbing job as a junior insurance underwriter for the most crooked casinos in Nevada, until the day he discovered that the company was embezzling from the casinos and Johnny’s bosses had set him up to take the fall.

Johnny finds himself dragged by thugs to Las Vegas’ notorious Thieves Cemetery, beaten and left for dead in an open grave. Staring up from his grave into the night sky, Johnny sees curious ghostly faces staring down at him. The blow that should have killed him has left Johnny with the ability to see and talk to the inhabitants of the graveyard.

Now, with the aid of the ghosts of 50 of the greatest thieves of ages past, Johnny plans to strike back at the casinos, drawing up plans for the greatest caper in this life, or the next...

But falling in love was never part of the plan.

Ah, bandwagons and cash grabs. How I love our world.

UPDATE: I swapped out the original book cover image with a new version, and made a few changes to the text. The original picture is here.

Home From the Lone Star State

Well, my long journey through Texas has come to an end. I visited four schools in Round Rock (plus an awesome book store) and four schools in Frisco. I did quite a few backflips, drew heaps of pictures, spoke to over a thousand kids, ate Texas Barbeque, went on a mini road trip, discovered the delectable joy of Czech pastries, signed a crate of books, visited some circus people, was stalked by a cool homeschool family and finally returned home to my girls who I missed so much.

So kind of a lot happened.

Here are a few pictures...

Chandler Oaks Elementary, Round Rock Texas

Mooneyham Elementary, Frisco Texas

After hours signing! (there were more waiting at Sparks Elementary the next day).

Circus Mode.

Airport Book Signing! The Williams family even drove me to the airport checkin place.

And this, of course, was the best part of the trip. (not pictured is Julia, 5, who was the photographer).