This is a video of how I drew a face. The face is colorful and abstract, and was drawn with pens, markers, colored pencils, and paint pens, and painted with watercolors. The image was drawn spontaneously from imagination. There is also a second drawing of a colorful face, which was created in a similar style. Both drawings are 9″x12″ on card stock paper. The video only contains a time lapse clip of the first face drawing below. (Total drawing time was about 10 minutes.)

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This is a series of expressive abstract drawings and paintings of colorful faces. The artworks are 9″x12″ and use a variety of colored mediums to achieve the desired look, including Oil Pastels, Paint Pens, Watercolors, Markers, Pens, and Acrylic Paint. They are drawn from memories and intend to convey the essence of a mood or feeling evoked from people or characters. The layers, expressive lines, and abstract compositions help communicate the complexity of imagination, and represent the emotions that arise from a perceived connection to faces.

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These are drawings and paintings of abstract faces. The 9″x12″ artworks use black and white colors from a variety of mediums, including Pens, Paint Pens, Watercolors, Oil Pastels, Markers, and Acrylic Paint. Each artwork has multiple layers of medium which adds depth to the faces. Alternating patterns of light and dark values resemble highlights and shadows. I drew them based on subtleties in the emotions of anger, despondence, frustration, empathy, and a bit of hope.

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This is a 9″x12″ drawing of a human face created with oil pastels and watercolor. I originally saw a similar face in a dream, but the expression was agitated. Most dreams fade after waking up, but this one didn’t. I couldn’t get the image out of my mind because the face was so vivid, detailed, and there were lingering emotions attached to the piercing stare. So I decided to draw the face and personify what I saw. The process led to some interesting insights about myself.

As I drew I was able to attribute the irritability in the face to events in my life. The more I began to explore my feelings, the further my anxiety dissipated. Simultaneously, the expression on the face lightened as I smeared and smudged the pastel and watercolor around the paper. The entire experience was an interesting exercise in self awareness, and pulling subconscious thoughts to the conscious mind with refreshing results.

People spend roughly a third of their lives sleeping, with a daily transition between the two states of being. In what ways do you relate your dream life to your waking life?

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Halloween is an interesting tradition. Fun and morbidity all rolled into one celebration!

I recently painted some quick decorations for a birthday party, consisting of imaginative vegetable and fruit characters and vibrant fish. They were received very well for their loose, cartoonish and stylized nature. So when some close friends said they would be throwing a Halloween costume party and needed some decorations, I knew I could help.

I decided to pick up some cheap paints, a butcher block of paper (thanks for the tip Vikki!), and spent an hour painting some fun and scary Halloween decorations. The guidelines for the Halloween party decorations were to stick with a blue and green theme with spatters of red. I was also given permission to push the paintings a little further into the horrific realm.

Presented below are the scary Halloween paintings and decorations. Each is roughly 18″x24″, and can be easily taped to a wall or ceiling, or wherever you want to decorate for a party. They consist of, in order, a Pumpkin, Severed Head, Demon Dog, Demon Skull, Spider, Demon Bat, Severed Hand, and Snake.

For more scary drawings visit Macabre Series 1 - Blood, Skulls, and Paranoia.

Pumpkin

Severed Head

Demon Dog

Demon Skull

Spider

Demon Bat

Severed Hand

Snake

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This is a drawing of eyes, created with a combination of mediums, such as pens, markers, paint pens, watercolor, and multiple layers of laminate. A variety of vivid colors were used to build up the eyes and the surrounding facial structure with washes of color and energetic lines. Each layer of laminate allowed for greater depth of features to be added without much blending of color and shapes, allowing for an extremely crisp and vivid final drawing. The eyes are drawn on 3″ x 5″ paper.

For more eye drawings visit the Marker Drawing of an Eye.

The story of Dan Eldon is powerful. I know little, but feel a lot. Most of what I learned is from the Wikipedia entry on Dan Eldon’s life, and scans of his journals at the Creative Visions Foundation.

Daniel Robert Eldon (b. 18 September 1970, Hampstead, England - d. 12 July 1993, Mogadishu, Somalia) was an English photojournalist. He and three colleagues were killed by an angry mob in Mogadishu. He left behind a series of journals, which his family has exhibited on a worldwide tour.

Vikki North proposed a new art challenge a few weeks ago, which focused on the book The Journey is the Destination, by Kathy Eldon, Dan’s mother.

After viewing Dan’s work I was affected very deeply, especially after reading about his death. The fear, confusion, and sadness hit hard in contrast to his enduring altruism. The contradiction of his compassionate life and violent death flashed like the thunder of a night and day all at once.

For example, how many fourteen year old people have started a fund-raising campaign for open-heart surgery to save the life of a friend. Dan helped raise $5,000, but due to the hospital’s neglect, his friend died.

Or during college, Dan spent his summers raising $25,000 for a venture to a refugee camp in Malawi. With friends from six countries, they met in Nairobi and traveled thousands of miles in three vehicles. Then they donated one of their vehicles to the Save the Children Fund, as well as money for three wells, and blankets for a children’s hospital.

These stories are commonplace. Altruistic action seems to have dominated Dan’s life.

And on the day of his death at 22 years old, he was working as a photojournalist in a Mogadishu refugee camp ravaged by war. A mob, confused by erroneous attacks, focused their aggression on Dan and three young colleagues.

…

My response to the challenge, and Dan Eldon’s journals, is a series of sketches that I worked on over the past few weeks as I thought about his story.

At first, frustration set in. I struggled to get past angry feelings, drawing numerous dark sketches driven by fear and confusion. I couldn’t see Dan clearly. But as I sketched, forgiveness and amnesty trickled in slowly. The first two drawings below are from that period. They are approximately 11″ x 14″, drawn and painted with markers, colored pencils, paint pens, acrylic paint, watercolor, charcoal and chalk.

Eventually I stumbled across feelings of inadequacy as an artist for this challenge, and guilt about the less than altruistic aspects of my own life. Thankfully with support from friends and family, I began to focus on the Journey rather than the Destination. It was a wonderful feeling, to see clearly again. All that time, right in front of me, it was the essence of this challenge! All I could do was cry a little and laugh.

A few days later I re-approached the artwork with a portrait of Dan. I left the color and emotion behind and around him, and was inspired by his own self-portrait with a red eye. Many more sketches followed, but I’ve only posted a few. The two below are also 11″ x 14″, drawn with pen, markers, paint pen, watercolor, and gloss varnish (not visible in the digital reproductions). The two at the very bottom are 3″ x 5″ drawings, sketched with pen, markers, watercolor, and paint pens.

Now that I am running in this space, I’m reminded of a quote that Vikki sent me from one of Dan’s Journals:

“What’s the difference between exploring and being lost? The journey is the destination.”

The journey is the destination, and I’m comfortable knowing that I’m not done working with Dan’s legacy yet.

Visit Vikki’s Red Chair Gallery Blog to see her contribution to the Journey. Also, check out Martha Marshall’s Blog, she’s an amazing professional artist who is also contributing to the challenge.

And thank you Vikki, for a challenge that lived up to its name.

~Michael

P.S. I read on Wikipedia that Daniel Radcliffe, of Harry Potter fame, will be playing the role of Dan Eldon in the upcoming biopic movie entitled Journey. And with Kathy Eldon working on the project, I hope for its truth to be uplifting for many more people for years to come.

There is a beautiful painting of a face under there. It’s vibrant, vital, and has a lot of interesting colors and shapes to share. But the spark, albeit the tiniest glimmer in the eyes, has been covered up. Muddied and spray painted with opaqueness, it’s frustrating to look at what could be a joyful being, swallowed by apathy. Sinking into the cold coppery abyss without any care for saving oneself. It’s difficult to see the face clearly. You may want to, but just can’t. And the painting can barely see you. Sort of sums up sadness and depression to me.

This abstract painting of a sad or depressed face was painted with acrylics and spray paint on a masonite board. The painting is approximately 12″x16″.

P.S. So as not to alarm concerned viewers, I’m not depressed, but might have been when I painted this image. People, being the social creatures we are, are naturally inclined to assume art reflects personality or state of mind. And while that may be partly true, I give more credit to people’s ability to overcome obstacles after giving amnesty to fears.

Special thanks to the unspoken viewers who’ve given me the attention I needed to heal. Push for joy.

~Michael

Vikki North is an amazing artist who’s artwork can be seen in the Red Chair Gallery, and often deals with the ‘human condition’. In July 2008, she visited my art blog, and enthusiastically offered a challenge entitled “Jealousy, The Green Eyed Monster“. The experience was fantastic spontaneous FUN.

A few months later a new challenge was proposed… “The Red Balloon”. The Red Balloon was one of my favorite childhood movies. Minimal dialogue, as it transcends language, and contains visuals that both children and adults can enjoy. And it stars a boy and his big shiny red balloon!

From Inquirer Movie Columnist and Critic Steven Rea:

“”The Red Balloon” is a beautiful little meditation on childhood, on imagination literally taking flight. The story of Pascal and his balloon represents the longings of the young - and the not so young - to escape the mundane business of daily life, and find a way to transcend, transcend.”

My response to the movie and this challenge is a reflection on sharing creativity.

There is a scene in the movie where the little boy, Pascal, and his red balloon stroll by a little girl, who also has a balloon. A bright blue one. The balloons play together briefly, a passing moment, but one that struck me, and seemed to fit this challenge.

It reminded me that when I see someone else with their own ‘balloon’ of imagination, it’s beautiful and wonderful and a joy to share. And in that regard the final scene in the movie becomes particularly overwhelming and memorable.

I think we all have unique creativity. And sharing it and working with others often takes me to new heights. I’m particularly intrigued by the online presentation of this challenge, and the exchange of viewers that are a part of the experience. Vikki and I are posting our finished artworks on the same day, without having seen each others’ work, and I encourage you to visit her Art Blog to see what she has created!

So without further ado, “Blue’n Red” is a 9″x 12″ paint/drawing created with colored pencils, pen, marker, paint pen, and watercolor mediums. The artwork is comprised of two children’s faces in a sea of creativity, surrounded by the balloons of all the people in their world, swirling around, and enjoying the fun. A multitude of colors and affect, coming together to form something bigger than one can do alone.

Thank you Vikki!

This is a minimalistic drawing of an old man face with a red pen. A brush and water was used to add subtle shadows around the eyes, nose, and mouth. The commentary is similarly sparse… lost in thought like the old man’s gaze.