recuperation

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nyc killed me
hanover, be gentle please
starting tomorrow

Joshua Tree pissed on my night

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mini-trip

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i'll be city-hopping for the next two, three weeks and despite not knowing exactly where i'll be on any given day, i will try to keep up to date with dkmons.
ideally, my new site and main blog will be up and running by the weekend; if so, that's where i'll be posting stuff from the journey and...just stuff from now on.
non-dkmon stuff, that is.

links when ready

addicted

Andre 3000 - Millionaire (feat Kelis)

why isn't this a hit single??

i didn't do it

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heated

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waste land indeed

in the spirit of yesterday's post on disgust at humanity's waste of space, here's a piece by Chris Jordan called "Cans Seurat":

this is a visualization of 106,000 aluminum cans, the number used in the US every thirty seconds. wow, pretty!

detail

Jordan says:

My hope is that images representing these quantities might have a different effect than the raw numbers alone, such as we find daily in articles and books. Statistics can feel abstract and anesthetizing, making it difficult to connect with and make meaning of 3.6 million SUV sales in one year, for example, or 2.3 million Americans in prison, or 426,000 cell phones retired every day. This project visually examines these vast and bizarre measures of our society, in large intricately detailed prints assembled from thousands of smaller photographs.

you can see more of his awesome visual manifestations of statistics here.

malls are a disgrace to humanity

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i went to the Discover Mills mall today to buy some sandals, and the violence of my disgust at the whole experience surprised me. it wasn't just the usual aversion i feel toward commercial centers for the distasteful and idle consumption it encourages...i think it was how offensively garish and expansive it was, a sprawling, 1.2 million square foot land of trashy tv ads on repeat.

Menlo Park mall was not so obnoxious, as I remember...probably because it didn't try be a carnival, desperate to keep you transfixed by the b-side rides, poorly maintained outlet stores, gimmicky restaurants (they have a huge Medieval Times attached, gah!), exotic Asian/"nature" trinket stores, etc. Menlo Park was elegant in design, much more compact with two levels and a straightforward linear layout, lots of natural light, and seating amid the trees in the cafeteria. Discover Mills is...just too big. And not tall big, just wide big. It could be half the size if they only built UP! Much more accessible, less stagnant....

That's probably what I take most offense at down here in the south...that man takes up so much SPACE with ugly, unnatural buildings and things. Yeah, I get it, there's more space to work with, but is it necessary to fill it all? The way construction down here spreads its legs is vulgar. How many shopping centers does an area need? None of them are ever at max capacity, there are acres of empty parking lots because there's too much supply, the demand has a hard time keeping up...and with everything spread out, it takes that much longer to GET anywhere you need to go. This might sound like I'm concerned with the detrimental impact of suburban sprawl on the environment, and I guess I am...but perhaps it'd be more accurate to say that it's the inefficiency of everything here that really pisses me off. What a Waste Land.

good vibrations

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fox floats

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the earth is your canvas

wow. the Japanese never cease to amaze with their antics and art. (antartica?)
that's RICE they're coloring with!
from Pink Tentacle:

Each year, farmers in the town of Inakadate in Aomori prefecture create works of crop art by growing a little purple and yellow-leafed kodaimai rice along with their local green-leafed tsugaru-roman variety. This year’s creation — a pair of grassy reproductions of famous woodblock prints from Hokusai’s 36 Views of Mount Fuji — has begun to appear (above). It will be visible until the rice is harvested in September.

and for you skeptics: it's not Photoshopped

elsewhere...
less impressive, more hilarious:
as a publicity stunt for the upcoming Simpsons movie, this 180 ft Homer was painted next to the 17th century chalked outline of the Pagan fertility god in the hillside of Cerne Abbas, Dorset. Pagans were pissed at the disrespect, and as far as creative ad campaigns go, I'd say indignation is a rather rational reaction when compared to...oh, you know, a terrorism scare. (via boingboing)

dkmon to come!

WikiNotables #1

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thought train:
1. that's a pensive look
2. the possibilities of what a pensive looking person might be thinking is infinite
3. god i wish i can read minds
4. wasn't there a story of some malicious woman who read the thoughts of kids?
5. probably a kids' book
6. ooh, something involving an ear...oh gross yeah an extra ear in the back of the head or something strange like that?
7. malicious woman with power over kids, what kind of relationship is that...like, a teacher?
8. AH! WAYSIDE SCHOOL gets a little stranger!
9. duh, should've done a Google search earlier...let's see what kind of Wikilegacy it left behind
10. answer: an inspiring one! (though apparently one of questionable quality)

Louis Sachar, the author, on how he came to write the Wayside School series:

I returned to college, this time to the University of California at Berkeley where I majored in economics. On campus one day, I saw the unlikely sight of an elementary school girl handing out flyers. I took one from her. It said: "Help. We need teachers aides at our school. Earn three units of credit." I thought it over and decided it was a pretty good deal. College credits, no homework, no term papers, no tests, all I had to do was help out in a second/third grade class at Hillside Elementary School. Besides helping out in a classroom, I also became the Noontime Supervisor, or "Louis the Yard Teacher" as I was known to the kids. It became my favorite college class, and a life changing experience. When I graduated in 1976 I decided to try to write a children's book, which eventually became Sideways Stories From Wayside School. All the kids at Wayside School were based on the kids I knew at Hillside. It took me about nine months to write the book. I wrote in the evenings. In the daytime I had a job at a sweater warehouse in Connecticut. After about a year, I was fired (my enthusiasm for sweaters was insufficient), and I decided to go to law school. Sideways Stories from Wayside School was accepted by a publisher during my first week at Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco.

this is the kind of story that reminds me that there is only so much life planning one can do, that so much of our lives are influenced by factors beyond our control and that there's really no need to stress out about the future...you just need to open yourself up to all the possibilities out there and follow those which suit your tastes. it's like those Choose Your Own Adventure books, except for real.

man, it seems like children's books have got it all figured out!
(to do: reread The Little Prince)

catcher

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contemplating

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who me?

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w00t

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i've been listening to podcasts lately, specifically NPR Fresh Air and The Sound of Young America. listening to interesting people enthuses, it's great. you should try it.

you can subscribe to both for free on Itunes. the latest feature interviews with Ricky Gervais and Patton Oswalt (comedian, voice of Remy from Ratatouille), respectively: both hilarious and probably inspiring for those seeking creative careers. that's right, do what you love because you love it!

on bended knee

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i used to smoke five packs of cigarettes a day

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i spent forty minutes going through myTunes trying to find this song, the only bit of which looping in my head was the trumpet break at the beginning...no helpful lyrics, just that opening melody. i wasn't even sure if there was any singing involved, though i had a vague idea that there was possibly a throaty vocal tossed in the mix. i tried my luck at Songtapper.com, but knew for sure it wasn't Sunday Bloody Sunday (U2), Playmate of the Year (Zebrahead), or Gay Bar (Electric Six), so i resigned myself to playing songs going back from May 07 (my library is ordered by Date Added) and literally yelped when i finally heard that trumpet opener, blaring all the way from Jan 2:

Otis Clay - Trying to Live My Life Without You
*this is supposed to be the whole song, but i keep hearing only segments at this link...i don't know whether that's just my computer/unbearably slow internet speed, or what, but hopefully you'll be able to hear at least the first bit.

man, i really need to redirect this kind of persistence towards less trivial pursuits.

keep your back straight

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in living color

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purple and yellow are so...what, early 90s?
that era was just saturated with complementary colors.
what are the colors of the 2000s? pink and green were in for one bit, i recall...that was fun.

death and cowboy boots

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caffca

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rounder, cuter, but not it.

un cafe, s'il vous plait

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This guy was rejected for the Awesome Creatures "Caffeinated Cat" but he's still a winner here!

halftime report

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Now that it's day 187, I figure it's about time to do a slightly belated halftime report.

Clearly, I've been less than regular in keeping up with this project (I don't think I've been updating daily since February) and I wonder whether massive updates like those of this past week defeat the entire purpose: to be more diligent about drawing.
So for the second half of the year, I want to come up with ways to vary up the pace so that I'd be forced to post at least a few times every week. Maybe certain days will be assigned themed dkmon, for example on Sketch Sundays, one could always expect to see life-like characters. And after spending an hour perusing through Overheard in NY today, I definitely want to devote a day to dkmon inspired by quotes pulled from the site...I mean, don't you automatically start visualizing those people who say the darndest things?

I also want to start writing more substantial posts on art-related topics, though I've been playing with the idea of starting another blog to keep track of other art projects and wonder whether discussions on the creative process, etc. might be more relevant there.

Anyway, you'll be seeing some changes in the next few weeks while I play with new ideas on how to trick myself into being disciplined, so bear with me!

Here's to a fitter, happier, more productive second half!

single sketchy/squiggly stroke, minus prop

aaaand we're finally caught up again!
Which marks the beginning of a new era, the details of which I will outline in tomorrow's post. For now, bedtiiiime!

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butthead?

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say cheese damnit$@#*!

the theme is sitting

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i love inchworms and the way they inch along, and how they sometimes waver in the air for lack of hands to throw in the air in exasperated bewilderment and ask, "what is the meaning of all this inching?" and how they always keep going after that.

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mind nags, boobs sag.

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king of the hill

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the stars are out tonight

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if you need a cane, why bother dying your hair?

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now what?

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puffin

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what-the-dillo

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i wanted to see if the creepy old "you like popsicles?" man from Family Guy had a name and got as far as "creepy old man" typed in my Google search toolbar before they omnisciently suggested "creepy old man family guy"
which i guess means the creepy old man from Family Guy (or Herbert The Creepy Old Man) wins the Creepy Old Man popularity contest.
and...Google for God?

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best seat in the house

maybe the next set will be themed

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so i've been staying away from facebook as much as possible for all the obvious reasons, trying to use it only when replying to wall posts or messages, but i couldn't help going through the photos of one peculiarly provocative friend whose demands for attention a la newsfeed could not be ignored any longer. i don't know this person too well, having shared only a brief time together, but there was one particular picture that so precisely captured the bewildered agitation that this character seems to enjoy provoking that i felt compelled to draw it.
i don't think i really got the look down, but all the same, i feel this exercise completely justifies facebook time...so from now on, anytime i find myself browsing through someone's fb photos, i must create a dkmon from one of them...or deactivate my account. (gasp!)
i wonder if people would be able to recognize any? preferably not, for the sake of my stalking privacy...though i'd be pretty impressed. if impressed is the right word.

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photographer Mark Story archives old folks.
this guy's not so old, relatively speaking, but check that pout!
(via Drawn!)

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"we're all stardust"

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shifty line weight

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i want someone to have to look up at ME!
(especially wid 'em puppy eyes, aw)

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your shadow's getting restless

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must love dogs

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wobbly wobot