Get your Ox off

 I prefer to base my New Year's Resolution around the Chinese Lunar Calendar, the Gregorian New Year is really no time to be making grandiose announcements regarding dramatic and/or inconsequential lifestyle changes... besides everyone is recovering from hangovers and the holidays are in full swing.

Since it's the Year of the Ox and me fortunate enough to live in Australia (yes it really is the actual lucky country) I figured it'd be perfect timing for me to post a new year's selfie.

  

DRAW-SOMETHING

Alan Rickman is one of those actors who can steal every scene he's in.

The theme was "princesses" 

Any opportunity for fan art ^_____^

Superman from the Sketchbook Sessions 2011

It's been a while since I posted as this week has been punctuated with building a new studio, it's amazing how much stuff you actually have until you begin to move it around, the late George Carlin put it perfectly as: "a house is just a place to keep your stuff while you go out and buy more stuff".

In this piece I wanted Supes emerging from a smoking crater scratched up and powdered with debris after being unceremoniously hurled into a condemned building from a great height, Clint Eastwood inspired the expression.

More to come soon once the studio is up and running along with footage new concept work and the Pop Culture Pin Up Princess Miss August! 

Hell Boy Ron Perlman 2012

I've honestly up until today been calling him Ron Pearlman- face palm with the Right hand of DOOM!

Stinky Chicken soccer

Not that literal

Last days of the old Freaky Tiki 2011

My live art show was drawing large scale cartoons with pop culture based themes.

Before I commenced my work the stage the light and the paper.

My supplies.

Some meme base.

THE AVENGERS

The big group shot before the final piece... it's coming soon. ;)

Iron Man the Avengers movie

The casting of Robert Downey Jr as smooth, fast talking, sarcastic but kind hearted billionaire gadfly with a drinking problem Tony Stark in the Iron Man movies and the Avenger's movie was, to say the least flawless! There really is no other actor who matches the description of not just physicality but persona as Downey and he played the role in the super hero team like he owned it, on top of nearly every scene he was in which still maintained the harmony with his less veteran acting cohorts. Seriously how can you not love this guy. 

Also the character of Iron man is more relatable to us, to be encased in a sweet flying robotic suit of armour that makes even the coolest sports car look redundant and as there is the fact this kind of power is actually attainable, with a decent lottery win of course ;) 

This is the third caricature of Iron Man I've done, much like Spider Man he's a perennial and fun to draw and basically he's like the Marvel version of Batman billionaire playboy philanthropist who fights crime with all kinds of awesome high tech gadgets- he just looks like he has more fun doing it.

Captain AMERICA, the Avengers movie

Chris Evans as Captain America in the Avengers movie was the consummate leader, diligent, hard working and due to his super solider serum imbued body able to survive being frozen since the 1940's; out of touch in many ways with the modern world. There's a great scene where he's playing the game Asteroids on the S.H.I.E.L.D ship's computer which is priceless. lol. 

Evan's is no stranger to playing heroes, having been the Human Torch in the Fantastic 4 movies, which had their moments but suffered from poor handling. Captain America however does not meet a similar fate however seeing as the tie in movie and the Avengers are deftly crafted and well orchestrated. 

As a kid I always thought the little wings on the side of his head were kind of WTF, but the character has definitely grown on me. Lots of fun to watch, comic book movies are fun again, as they should be.

THE HULK, The Avengers movie

THE INCREDIBLE HULK, HULK PART OF AVENGERS HULK BIGGEST HULK STRONGEST HULK is one of the more interesting characters in the Marvel pantheon. The embodiment of the raging savage id of mankind, the perennial Jeykll and Hyde, a "made flesh" metaphor of the almighty American dollar- it's been said before. Let's face it if we had his power we'd SMASH!!!

Loki and Thor, the Avengers movie

Loki and Thor, the two sons of the All Father Odin. Thor the god of thunder and Loki the god of mischief (and no I'm not making that up) Thor lucked out with his signature powers, Loki albeit more fun, not so much.

Loki was played in the movie by Tom Hiddleston and put in a magnificent performance as the conniving, dark, brooding if somewhat flamboyant second banana of Asgard.  

Thor is one of those characters who transcended the origins in Norse mythology (mythology being like the "public domain" of story ideas) into a far more modern contemporary ethos. He's your classic spoilt rich kid that get's taught a lesson in humility. Chris Hemsworth plays him and does a pretty fine job too, in the hands of a lesser actor and creative team this character would and has been, in the past embarrassingly camp to downright stupid. In this movie, it is not the case. 

If anything the chemistry between these two is reminiscent of the Hamletesqe relationship between Scar and Mufasa from the Lion King.

Black Widow and Hawk Eye, The Avengers movie caricatures

The Avengers was everything I was looking for in a comic book epic move. Great casting, talent and story with fantastic pacing and strong characters. It is, at least to my fanboy purist sensibilities not a perfect adaptation however it is as close as it's been for quite some time.

Black Widow and Hawk Eye as portrayed by Scarlett Johansson and Jeremy Renner, though only more supporting characters to the big 4 of Captain America, Iron Man, Thor and the Hulk (coming soon) still played their roles in the movie with finesse and with respect to their comic book counterparts. 

TEERECKS

Currently I'm working on a series of dinosaur based cartoons as nice little portfolio stuffers for potential up coming work, well that's the rationale behind just wanting to draw dinosaurs again because after the age of about 12 finding an excuse actually becomes more of a challenge. I was initially inspired by googling The Art of Crash a series of concept sketches on collector cards that came out with the tie in for the original Jurassic Park movie. Most of these cards where just stills from the movie but the art cards were something else. I was 10 when the first movie came out and at the time it solidified an at times on again off again love of dinosaurs.

Every once in a while you'd come across a card like this amongst film stills of Sam Neil, Jeff Goldblum and Laura Dern, it was, to my 10 year old self epic! To this day, it still is.

Parklife 31st and the 1st