What’s Happening.

Haven’t been posting on here as much as I usually like to.  Part of the reason is that I’ve been busy, but hey, aren’t we all?  I’ve also had nothing much to say, which is likely an odd thing to read, especially if you know me well.  This post, however, I figured I’d just give a few updates, let you know what’s going on, and what I’ve got coming up.

Insivity.com is a new site that is designed to offer inspiration to artists and creatives.  The brainchild of Joe Sliger from Wacom, Colby Brown, Jeremy Cowart and others, it’s still very new but will no doubt gain momentum in the next few weeks.  A large number of creatives are represented and I was pleased to be asked to be a part of the site.  As of yesterday, my first article for Insivity went live.  ‘Fear’ was written as a ‘misery loves company’ effort, basically to illuminate the fact that being afraid of not measuring up is part and parcel of being an artist for a living.  To quote from the article, “You’re always going to feel fear.  Before every single painting I create, there are moments where I wonder if my best work is behind me.  Is this the painting where the personality doesn’t show up?  Is this the one where somebody says, “What happened?  You used to be good.”

And honestly, it happens with every painting I create, without question.  To read the full piece and check out all that the Insivity site has to offer, here’s the link.

Speaking of paintings that scare the hell out of me, I’m currently working on a painting of Martin Sheen as his character ‘Tom’ from the movie, “The Way.”  This piece is purely for my own enjoyment and it is doing the trick.  It’s the most fun I’ve had on a painting in quite awhile.  The reason is probably because there is no deadline, it will not be for sale, and there is a bit of a story behind it.  I’ll share that when the painting is done, likely sometime this weekend.  This is also a bit of a dry run for my upcoming portrait painting DVD from PhotoshopCAFE.

Incidentally, PhotoshopCAFE is having a big sale right now for everything in their library, including my DVDs, until the end of the year!  20% Off!  Just use the Promo Code PSNL1212

My wife and I own a townhouse condo here in Canmore and since we never wanted kids, it’s the perfect size for us and we never felt the need to get a big house.  The downside is that even though we’re on an end unit, we still share a wall with the neighbours beside us.  In our 11 years in this home, we’ve had both good and bad neighbours.  Just recently, a couple of good ones for the past three years moved away and we were sad to see them go, as they were friendly, considerate and most of all, quiet.  Even though the new neighbours appear to be the same, it’s a rental unit, so you never know how long they’ll be around, and we decided to have some soundproofing installed.  That’s kind of a misnomer, as you can’t really soundproof a home, but we did our best to install some noise dampening measures to our living room and bedroom walls.  Call it noise insurance, if you’d like.  Although the drywallers were professional and only in the house for 3 days, it’s incredibly inconvenient when you work at home.  I didn’t get much done this week as each morning was spent putting drop cloths on the furniture we couldn’t move, wrangling the cat into my office, then cleaning up at the end of the day.  Not to mention that during the day, it was noisy.  Daily routine and keeping the same hours is what keeps me on track and focused while working at home.  That routine went out the window this week.

Still, it’s all done but the painting, something my wife starts today, because she’s good at it and enjoys it.  Despite my skill with digital paint, I would just turn our new walls into a sloppy mess with real paint and a roller.  I’m not very handy that way.

Christmas is upon us and while many are stressing out over shopping and having to be elsewhere, it’s actually a quiet time of year for me.  We don’t decorate or exchange gifts and haven’t for years, simply because we lost interest and didn’t see the point of spending money on things we don’t need just because a calendar tells us to.  It’s an unpopular choice with many people, but one that works well for us.  Our parents got on board with it a few years ago and now enjoy the fact that they don’t have to shop during the craziest time of the year.  It’s a lot less stressful and while we still enjoy going to parties and visiting friends, the holiday season is pretty peaceful for us.

With that in mind, I had a former client approach me with an illustration gig this week, but he needs it by the end of the year.  With few newspapers actually working the Christmas week, I won’t be drawing editorial cartoons, so I figured I could squeeze in one more job for 2012.  It’ll be a pretty fun job involving cartoon animals.  I’ll share it when it’s done.  I’ll also have one more commission painting to share, sometime next week.  It’s been done for a little while, but the client hasn’t given the gift yet, so I have to wait.  It’s one of my best pet portraits, I think.

And finally, I’m preparing to be away from January 7th-11th as I’ll be attending the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this year, doing demonstration work for Wacom at their booth.  Hadn’t planned on heading back to Vegas so soon, but the opportunity came up, and it sounds like a fun experience.  It’s the largest conference Vegas sees each year, with over 150,000 people attending in 2012!  I do enjoy teaching, so I’m looking forward to it.

Big plans for 2013, but that will wait for another post.  Have a great weekend!