Piccoli Ritratti

Here are some little portraits of some of the amazing people we had supper with in Lucca:<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjErx2hVSn4lSxRaQzP40rHk-Z4uQkLDl0GA2mtAem51ltLUAg5kbIbrr7l3EMO1NpllGWYg-OPVE0Yo4MZMYxrBf4VBprZ3G_6zzdI_j7dGx9-RaNOv3b2kje0MVjJbw47hWBIasLyUM1O/s1600/Max_Frezzato_sm.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjErx2hVSn4lSxRaQzP40rHk-Z4uQkLDl0GA2mtAem51ltLUAg5kbIbrr7l3EMO1NpllGWYg-OPVE0Yo4MZMYxrBf4VBprZ3G_6zzdI_j7dGx9-RaNOv3b2kje0MVjJbw47hWBIasLyUM1O/s400/Max_Frezzato_sm.jpg" width="351" /></a><br />1. The incomparable comic artist Massimiliano Frezzato, creator of I Custodi del Maser, 2. Terry Brooks, author of Sword of Shannara, 3. Emanuele Vietina, vice-director of Lucca Comics and Games, and 4. Steve Perrin, game designer for Dungeons and Dragons and RuneQuest.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXFPyu3DfLQBfgX1SEkxEnd5GW6nYrWszRhig-4eBFZUwm9Ax6edoh4isCyYQt5RqcebjYZx2s31q8yHew0tV-F-cxaUPzKfuGHM5a5TYc4gI_9YKuHcNVsoKSte169K7jkC-vejkrxE6P/s1600/Skippy.sm.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXFPyu3DfLQBfgX1SEkxEnd5GW6nYrWszRhig-4eBFZUwm9Ax6edoh4isCyYQt5RqcebjYZx2s31q8yHew0tV-F-cxaUPzKfuGHM5a5TYc4gI_9YKuHcNVsoKSte169K7jkC-vejkrxE6P/s400/Skippy.sm.jpg" width="310" /></a><br />Also: 1. Skippy, 2. Mandy, 3. Athos, and 4. Andrea. These sketches were all made with water-soluble colored pencils, and all were drawn around the supper table (except the one of Skippy, which was a workshop demo).<br /><br /><a href="http://www.luccacomicsandgames.com/">Lucca Comics and Games </a>

Piccoli Ritratti

Here are some little portraits of some of the amazing people we had supper with in Lucca: 1. The incomparable comic artist Massimiliano Frez...

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Finishing Lucca Demo

I painted for another two hours on the charity auction demo, here at the festival of comics and games in Lucca, Italy.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsQDSNrXlJKM12zKOCITcdrWToHpqlCARdzW2A8bv0CaVfGvMU_FTTJ4duUFjekH-4Z1cB2WRgvtDLxGxs8Ghe9LBoJWUkyB-ELfcHPKGVdx9iag81Cg3dzmoH-oVkZKdHa_BALrBbs_8C/s1600/Dinosaur_in_Lucca.sm.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsQDSNrXlJKM12zKOCITcdrWToHpqlCARdzW2A8bv0CaVfGvMU_FTTJ4duUFjekH-4Z1cB2WRgvtDLxGxs8Ghe9LBoJWUkyB-ELfcHPKGVdx9iag81Cg3dzmoH-oVkZKdHa_BALrBbs_8C/s400/Dinosaur_in_Lucca.sm.jpg" width="288" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy1Mm2dbHa5wwR9zwWw5mA-94tk-fYiGzEQE_5UHADwmjGbignkK3wJQUNdJ35_Xfxg_Nr9-Sjhj5b1EXPAraWGP2o10tZp-3liR3dDe1fC1Lus2DoM3aN-VRmhYDA5NDWsrmDa9-_lDMV/s1600/Lucca_Arch_pq.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></div><br />The changes are mostly corrections in the drawing: fixing the windows, and tinkering with the placement of the dinosaur’s legs.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy1Mm2dbHa5wwR9zwWw5mA-94tk-fYiGzEQE_5UHADwmjGbignkK3wJQUNdJ35_Xfxg_Nr9-Sjhj5b1EXPAraWGP2o10tZp-3liR3dDe1fC1Lus2DoM3aN-VRmhYDA5NDWsrmDa9-_lDMV/s1600/Lucca_Arch_pq.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy1Mm2dbHa5wwR9zwWw5mA-94tk-fYiGzEQE_5UHADwmjGbignkK3wJQUNdJ35_Xfxg_Nr9-Sjhj5b1EXPAraWGP2o10tZp-3liR3dDe1fC1Lus2DoM3aN-VRmhYDA5NDWsrmDa9-_lDMV/s320/Lucca_Arch_pq.JPG" width="252" /></a><br />My reference was this colored pencil sketch, and I hope to do more of these tomorrow after the rain clears.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfYJq1xx9FZveG3SJoJKkJj7FXWb2yLNGNQUV5ofpnYtErtzRbzp3ECPiW_dV1P95EWxUlkT87RtDRUz4kEqQlIMVWJZs8AyEILG9RS5T3ptJioeaOqMFiUFMQ9PEV-JukUugoSS4J1EIl/s1600/Gurney_Hale.sm.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfYJq1xx9FZveG3SJoJKkJj7FXWb2yLNGNQUV5ofpnYtErtzRbzp3ECPiW_dV1P95EWxUlkT87RtDRUz4kEqQlIMVWJZs8AyEILG9RS5T3ptJioeaOqMFiUFMQ9PEV-JukUugoSS4J1EIl/s400/Gurney_Hale.sm.JPG" width="400" /></a><br />It was a great pleasure to meet and paint next to an artist I’ve admired for many, many years, Phil Hale. He painted a whole series of images based on rubbing out of black oil paint.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.luccacomicsandgames.com/">Lucca Comics and Games </a>

Finishing Lucca Demo

I painted for another two hours on the charity auction demo, here at the festival of comics and games in Lucca, Italy. The changes are mostl...

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Cafe Culture

Jeanette and I have been mooching Wi-Fi from coffee shops like everyone else does. <br />She did this sketch of a cafe patron using a Micron brush pen. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnqyZQc8RMVMsfZPoAGUo1wFCwEkGD56QqLEfXkQdhipAHLcL2mkVWHBm71_GDIOYCwZ0m9vGd6tdBtlg0wn4GBkMONjBT7SZUaY-IMcEFfvCqI3pPVl9QYLcNX5CQx0ThX3dsv3VEly9L/s1600/Starbucks_Customer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnqyZQc8RMVMsfZPoAGUo1wFCwEkGD56QqLEfXkQdhipAHLcL2mkVWHBm71_GDIOYCwZ0m9vGd6tdBtlg0wn4GBkMONjBT7SZUaY-IMcEFfvCqI3pPVl9QYLcNX5CQx0ThX3dsv3VEly9L/s320/Starbucks_Customer.jpg" width="305" /></a><br />I guess we’re part of an alarming trend. In one Starbucks, we noticed 14 patrons. Eleven of them were busy with laptops, two were interested in hand-held devices, and one was a kid playing quietly with an empty coffee cup.<br /><br />Nobody spoke, except to say, “Do you mind if I plug this in?”

Cafe Culture

Jeanette and I have been mooching Wi-Fi from coffee shops like everyone else does. She did this sketch of a cafe patron using a Micron brush...

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Bob’s Big Boy

What better place for a double-deck hamburger than Bob’s Big Boy family restaurant in Burbank? <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQusph0hfHLcM23EpYSo7BROeHt3blfu5qXO9CHVJRwiIq5Fg48dI9iK7YFo-pSzHJcCYTs4LDu8fASj60StCnWd1N5-y6YjiZHaYSjE9wX_CawDWF34WyHVcpu2Fh5MO5wxNos_FnW9zo/s1600/Mark.Frauenfelder.James.Gurney.sm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQusph0hfHLcM23EpYSo7BROeHt3blfu5qXO9CHVJRwiIq5Fg48dI9iK7YFo-pSzHJcCYTs4LDu8fASj60StCnWd1N5-y6YjiZHaYSjE9wX_CawDWF34WyHVcpu2Fh5MO5wxNos_FnW9zo/s400/Mark.Frauenfelder.James.Gurney.sm.jpg" width="345" /></a><br />And what better person to enjoy it with, than Mark Frauenfelder, the guy who launched BoingBoing and Make magazine.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYtQtJHI9BbMB0Lp1acFOksXfqe_LY_g7Yt2wsdIpx_dUyiJestXoUSXAI6GgMXmA6nZqo87bOeCCWgUjcZ6g12n6V4dRX0UuUMEvgSEjivu_oWxxLc24jdmlKT418JbxwzlUHVRagHn9X/s1600/Bobs+sign.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYtQtJHI9BbMB0Lp1acFOksXfqe_LY_g7Yt2wsdIpx_dUyiJestXoUSXAI6GgMXmA6nZqo87bOeCCWgUjcZ6g12n6V4dRX0UuUMEvgSEjivu_oWxxLc24jdmlKT418JbxwzlUHVRagHn9X/s320/Bobs+sign.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />Built in 1949, this is the oldest Bob’s still standing. According to a bronze plaque out front, “it was designed by respected architect Wayne McAllister, incorporating the 1940s transitional design of streamline modern style while anticipating the freeform 50s coffee shop architecture.”<br />--------<br />More about Mark Frauenfelder at <a href="http://boingboing.net/">BoingBoing</a>, <a href="http://makezine.com/">Make Magazine</a>. His new book is <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Made-Hand-Searching-Meaning-Throwaway/dp/1591843324/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1286900183&sr=8-2">Made by Hand</a>.<br /><a href="http://www.bobs.net/">More about the history of Bob’s Big Boy.</a> and on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Boy_%28restaurant%29">Wikipedia</a><br /><br />Tomorrow we’ll return to sea monsters.

Bob’s Big Boy

What better place for a double-deck hamburger than Bob’s Big Boy family restaurant in Burbank? And what better person to enjoy it with, than...

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Arrested by the Art Police

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNGxiwKOktrrGrjwJ065EPcKGTyzzg3gkuJVeHPjbKb-YDKP4ZLylmrnbUocIkMLx0FHBx7XeusdaFh5SwqRRlC_MYaSTdVSYF29ImPMuva9aeJtJTpxvtNpLZmv9QVJrb-3ru8Ay0AbQq/s400/Art-Police-Gurney2.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm keeping one step ahead of the art police.</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNGxiwKOktrrGrjwJ065EPcKGTyzzg3gkuJVeHPjbKb-YDKP4ZLylmrnbUocIkMLx0FHBx7XeusdaFh5SwqRRlC_MYaSTdVSYF29ImPMuva9aeJtJTpxvtNpLZmv9QVJrb-3ru8Ay0AbQq/s1600/Art-Police-Gurney2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDS_63l577iFVw7xy6fh4xCitf1IrOXZDrOiHrYn9gxXa_1tqXLSx4v8Did3AnlwBGz_pqHBIKlrvPV2uuf8WDy7IB-aWe9a7rh2ZUB3PHjtQXD8JAuIRHz7O5-weumXbFKDv8_URmPEVh/s1600/IMG_2055.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDS_63l577iFVw7xy6fh4xCitf1IrOXZDrOiHrYn9gxXa_1tqXLSx4v8Did3AnlwBGz_pqHBIKlrvPV2uuf8WDy7IB-aWe9a7rh2ZUB3PHjtQXD8JAuIRHz7O5-weumXbFKDv8_URmPEVh/s320/IMG_2055.jpg" width="256" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Arrested for bad perspective, poor value organization, tangencies and hard edges.</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table>

Arrested by the Art Police

I'm keeping one step ahead of the art police. Arrested for bad perspective, poor value organization, tangencies and hard edges.

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October 18 Lecture in Phoenix

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8wzMnd8WusOtN9d2HTMkayuUkoBTXrnUxxTIrw4SkBllpLv-moXQ7RWOVngQJSVttw8asMqaqPGHLFVLhGKicwGc_hpPtnpASZdj6jSmccvrpp62eOmP2XkMyh9F-_kLmKC-j-Bsd_ap8/s1600/AI_Phoenix-Gurney.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5522770547984307122" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8wzMnd8WusOtN9d2HTMkayuUkoBTXrnUxxTIrw4SkBllpLv-moXQ7RWOVngQJSVttw8asMqaqPGHLFVLhGKicwGc_hpPtnpASZdj6jSmccvrpp62eOmP2XkMyh9F-_kLmKC-j-Bsd_ap8/s400/AI_Phoenix-Gurney.jpg" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" /></a>Here's an announcement for an upcoming lecture at the Art Institute in Phoenix, Arizona. It's open to all at no cost. Click on the image to enlarge.

October 18 Lecture in Phoenix

Here's an announcement for an upcoming lecture at the Art Institute in Phoenix, Arizona. It's open to all at no cost. Click on the i...

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Heading Out to Pennsylvania and Ohio

Today we leave for another junket, starting with the elementary school of<a href="http://andrewwales.blogspot.com/2009/03/abc-challenge-lights-out.html"> Andy Wales,</a> frequent blog commentator and Art-By-Committe contributor. He has been teaching his students how to draw dinosaurs and design fantasy worlds. Link for his <a href="http://lbartroom.blogspot.com/2009/03/drawing-light-shadow.html">art teaching blog.<br /></a><br />On Monday, April 6 I'll give a digital slide presentation <a href="http://www.dinotopia.com/tour.html">"Dinotopia: Behind the Scenes" </a>at the Columbus College of Art and Design. The event is open to the public is sponsored by the illustration department, and it runs from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 pm in the Joseph Canzani Auditorium.<a href="http://www.ccad.edu/about-ccad/events-and-news/"> Link for more info.</a>

Heading Out to Pennsylvania and Ohio

Today we leave for another junket, starting with the elementary school of Andy Wales, frequent blog commentator and Art-By-Committe contri...

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Unicorns

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi21P9aoTv7el5ZcMn1wi2jU0nVyv2IYCJURJEeE02oYn8bYxZpNgVwmp0T9OrmuWYIAIzpTGYPr8LVrpJD6NEn-N5EekMfupWKpjdpUtYduJGezO5eaj2gQA3Xg5J7xE27ElYpOLr-FII/s1600-h/Unicorn.sm.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317708299411691682" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi21P9aoTv7el5ZcMn1wi2jU0nVyv2IYCJURJEeE02oYn8bYxZpNgVwmp0T9OrmuWYIAIzpTGYPr8LVrpJD6NEn-N5EekMfupWKpjdpUtYduJGezO5eaj2gQA3Xg5J7xE27ElYpOLr-FII/s400/Unicorn.sm.JPG" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 234px; height: 400px;" /></a> Unicorns have been spotted in Toronto.

Unicorns

Unicorns have been spotted in Toronto.

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Coming to Philadelphia PA and Rockville MD

<span style="font-weight:bold;">Saturday, February 14, Paleopalooza Event, Philadelphia<br /></span>I'm thrilled to be part of the program this weekend for <a href="http://www.ansp.org/paleopalooza/schedule.php">Paleopalooza,</a> a family event at the Academy of Natural Sciences, which will include live reptile shows, screenings of dinosaur movies, dinosaur drawing workshops, and me, talking about how I came up with Dinotopia and what goes into making the pictures. The event goes on all weekend, but my illustrated talk in the auditorium starts at 1 pm and is called Dinotopia: Fact and Fantasy. A Dinotopia book signing will follow the talk. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHxNeL_s1L3JTckNZv_Ff1XDC7C5M2Kn2TG-SK3sn_prKgOUoPsdz3JEngNT95SDbgwOIUW_gYBxzUjb2oVUyBHZzxkWfnGq4-oVizuIcT7g9Bf4z-ZyqdkPm-gd1trLfiCt9QCGNc-kg/s1600-h/Speaking_At_Ithaca2.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5301149448247946002" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHxNeL_s1L3JTckNZv_Ff1XDC7C5M2Kn2TG-SK3sn_prKgOUoPsdz3JEngNT95SDbgwOIUW_gYBxzUjb2oVUyBHZzxkWfnGq4-oVizuIcT7g9Bf4z-ZyqdkPm-gd1trLfiCt9QCGNc-kg/s320/Speaking_At_Ithaca2.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 213px;" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Monday, February 16, Rockville, Maryland</span><br />The <a href="http://artsinstitute.montgomerycollege.edu/VisualArtsatMC.html">Montgomery College Arts Institute</a> in Rockville, Maryland will be hosting me on Monday, February 16 at 12:00 noon in the Theatre Arts Building, Arena. I'll give a digital slide lecture showing how to make a realistic picture of something that doesn't exist, like a fantasy subject or a historical scene. I'll cover topics like research, maquettes, perspective, color keying, and costumes. The talk is open to the public, and there will be a book signing and some original paintings to look at afterward. For more information, contact Ed Ahlstrom in the Art Department at 240.567.7639.<br /><br />The little listing on the left called "Upcoming Appearances" has some of the other events this spring. I'm sorry, the botanical illustration workshop in Denver in March is sold out. I'm tentatively coming to Toronto later in March. If you live nearby, I hope to meet you at one of them.

Coming to Philadelphia PA and Rockville MD

Saturday, February 14, Paleopalooza Event, Philadelphia I'm thrilled to be part of the program this weekend for Paleopalooza, a family ...

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