Sketchbook 58, June 2010 - March 2011

This sketchbook marked a time of big change. Devilicia & I realized by early July we needed a break from eachother & I moved a lot of my stuff to a basement apartment a 1/2 hour's bike ride away. My cellphone didn't work there, it was no-dogs-allowed, & I was internet-less, but I exercised a lot, ate better, and lost a buncha weight. It was a temporary place to sleep while we figured out whether to stay together or split up after 7 years. I kept my studio in Devilicia's apartment and worked on jobs there on weekdays (and played with the dogs) while she was at work. It was a pretty good arrangement during a tough time. I bought a car & hung out in my hometown with old friends a lot, too. We went to the beach more in 2 months than I'd been in years. Swimming, biking, beach pizza, and fireworks made the end of the summer pretty great.


Sketches for a big tattoo I'd been thinking about, with me in my reaper costume hugging my beloved Boston Terriers, Frankensteiny & Mr. Giles.



I worked on lots of Halloween paintings for an October show at Space 242, as well as Halloween event posters.



Detail sketches of a series still in progress:





unfinished painting in progress:


This old, unfinished "Birth of Venus" canvas

got totally re-painted

and is for sale in my Etsy shop here
(signed prints for sale, too)

random burlesque doodle

and the final painting
for sale in my Etsy shop and as a signed print


Black Cat Burlesque put on a big Spookshow at the Somerville Theatre, sponsored by Something Weird Video; Mike Vraney, Lisa Petrucci, and Frank Henenlotter flew out to film the show for an upcoming SWV documentary, and I got to meet Ghoul-a-Go-Go's Creighton!


final version, available in my Etsy shop here:


Sketches for the Coolidge Corner Theatre's Annual Halloween Horror Movie Marathon:



as an homage to this amazing poster:


final version, available in my Etsy shop:

J. Cannibal requested an image of him breaking free of an x-shaped crucifixion for his 10th Feast of Flesh zombie night poster:

available in my Etsy shop:


Sketches for what was originally a Halloween night tattoo event, but got bumped to November:



and the final version:


Once the Black Cat Burlesque Spookshow was over, Devilicia and I split up amicably, realizing we were a lot happier being apart. We agreed to share custody of the dogs, and I moved to a new apartment in my hometown and started dating Sheila, my good friend of 22 years. Despite my new car dying and needing another engine/ the stress of moving/ Sheila getting laid off and helping her move to a more affordable apartment/ moving for the 3rd time in 6 months, from my new apartment into Sheila's new pad/ Sheila's dad's heart surgery/ her elderly dog Coach passing away/ Giles's eye-removal surgery/ breaking my drawing hand in a stupid accident/ and Frank's 2 surgeries....I have seriously never been happier. Life with Sheila is hilarious and wicked fun, every day! I used the eyedropper tool and white gouache to paint her and Coach while at school:



I posed as Edgar Allan Poe for a 2-hour drawing session @ MassArt in my huge Poe mask, and doodled a quick flyer in my sketchbook to promote it:






quick sketchbook demos for using the eyedropper tool with white gouache for my Media Techniques class:


quick sketchbook acrylics demo for my Media Techniques class:


My friend Sarah modelled in metallic paint for the class 3 times over the semester:



random Lon Chaney as the Phantom watercolor doodles from my head:



sketches for the Mass Market 7 web-banner and poster:






I was commissioned to do a new version of the "Snow Angel" from a late 90s gigposter:

final version, available in my Etsy shop here:


more roughs and digital comps for commissioned paintings:














sketch & painting in progress:



In January 2011 I started teaching a new elective called Illustrative Masks, and students wear their finished projects as life drawing models:



I broke my drawing hand in January, so this 1st batch of 10-minute pose sketches were done with my left hand:












the cast was off by the time I drew these with my right hand:





Lastly, my old MassArt friend Tony Leone hired me for a book project requiring between 200-300 illustrations. These are some of the very early sketches in a different style than the direction I'll be using for the finals: