Whale of a time

The ocean is inextricably linked to climate change: currents influence continental temperature ranges; evaporation of water vapor forms clouds leading to rain, sleet and snow; oxygen output of phytoplankton is astounding outperforming the forests on the land surface; absorption of atmospheric carbon dioxide keeps this greenhouse gas in check and much much more. I have been deep into the deep blue and loving every breathless minute of it. You might say I am having a whale of a time.

Illustrating underwater

I have just signed two contracts, both for a series of books on climate change. Watch this space for the next year and a half for information and illustrations of the impact of climate change on animals (both on the land and in the sea), plants, insects, and people. The first titles are on the climate change fever in the oceans. The ocean waters are warming as well as acidifying, changing coral reefs, and affecting all marine creatures including whales, dolphins, fish, marine plants, crabs, molluscs and of course the faceful, in your face Maori Wrasse fish (see illustration on this post).

Ludwig Bemelmans

Remember the Madeline books? They were written by Ludwig Bemelmans (1898-1962) who only started writing children's books later in his life. He was a European gourmet and restaurateur. The Madeline books were first published in 1939 and they all began with the same lines (a stroke of genius in itself). "In an old house in Paris, that was covered in vines, lived twelve little girls, in two straight lines. The smallest one was Madeline." According to my sources the books were written out of love for his daughter but this creative genius didn't stop; the books have spun off into plays and movies. It is said of Bemelmans that he felt his art, like food, was to be enjoyed in the making and the eating. As Robert Genn so eloquently puts it in his newsletter "Passion is the coal that becomes the greater part of talent. The locomotive is unstoppable when powered by love."
Bemelmans also became a serious painter and showed in both public and commercial galleries. Check out some of his work at:

http://clicks.robertgenn.com/attention-focus.php

Partly Cloudy

A great new movie trailer from Pixar called Partly Cloudy. Charming.

Himalayan Studio upgrade

Well, finally I finished the renovation on my studio. I created an additional workspace for my laptop as well as a traditional painting station. Now I can actually store all of my gadgets, wires, paints, paper and finished work in the cupboards that were added. You can see the flat files on the right underneath the imac, my Cintiq 1200, laptop with additional 19" Samsung monitor, and (something which I am very happy with - a bulletin board). I could not find cork anywhere here in the Himalayas so I made a board out of masonite backing, dense foam underpadding and a canvas cover. It works like a charm. The sink in the corner is indispensable. I don't think I could ever work in a studio without one anymore...keeps the cadmium out of my food too. The north light is excellent, and you can see a glimpse up the valley towards Rhotang pass into Lahaul Spiti, at about 1300 ft asl. My studio sits at about 4500 ft asl. Hope you enjoy the studio. If you would like to take the tour via video click here

Sketches with Pilot fineliner

I love this pen. Though it has no ability to express the pressure applied by my hand the pen itself is so light that it almost doesn't exist. My hand is free to move on a whim. I am exploring the use of the scratch pen in Painter 11 and will post some work when I feel it worthy of viewing. This image is from a sketch done at a meeting I recently attended, pure whimsy, no intent. I do like her rather delicate, albeit quirky, way of being. Her name is Philomena.

The brush app

I downloaded the brush application for my ipod touch yesterday and since then have been busy finger painting. I am posting an illustration in mid-stage to give an idea of the process while working in this application. There are no layers so the sense of depth has to be achieved through perspective, lighting and the use of transparency in the digital paint.I will post the final illustration as soon as it is completed. The portability of this medium should allow for some great travel illustrations. This one is a trip through my imagination.