Over the years I've fooled around with photography, watercolors, and music --- those were my "artistic" endeavors. Since retiring I've been able to spend more time on those hobbies and have even added an attempt at sculpting with clay. This section of the website, then, is totally self-indulgent but it's stuff I want to share --- for laughs, mostly. Any and all feedback is welcome.
A New App!
PRISMA opens up new possibilities
The New York Times Business section, August 4th, featured a story about a new app called Prisma with some graphics that made me check it out. Here's what resulted from getting the (free) Prisma app.
(at left, Cody and Bil at CitiField)
(at left, Cody and Bil at CitiField)
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Most of the pictures were originally photographs --- or photos of sketches. Starting top left: a 1989 sketch at a movie theater in NYC, then a "Prisma-ed" version. Two shots of the Grandsons. Row Two: Judge Jay Bryan & "Snake" at the Yale Art Gallery (in front of a Skull painting). Carol Marie at Fire Island, Grace and Lola at play. Row Three: Joel & Linda Kammer, dim sum lunch. Three shots of Joel, Carol and Bil at Bodega Bay, CA. Bottom row -- Diner Art! A Tomato-and-French Fry man and a poached egg on hash browns.
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I have always been a doodler --- something of a cartoonist. What I'm going to present here are small sketches from the tiny composition notebook (pictured --- and drawn --- above) as well as the product of a wonderful weeklong workshop I did in the summer of 2013 with Gary Panter ( artist, musician, and Emmy winning set designer for Pee-Wee's Playhouse ) at the New York Public Library's Cullman Center for Writers and Artists. The notebook was purchased in 1989 and somehow, over lo these many years, I have managed not to lose it --- and periodically enter sketches, which are presented below. The sketch of the notebook itself was done in Panter's workshop (the time/date is noted). The earliest sketch was done in the movie theater on West 84th Street back in 1989. (right) A big THANKS to Del Shortliffe for encouraging me to post this work! |
. Sketches of the Cullman Center workshop in progress. 
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The rest of the sketches here were created between 1989 and 2015, with some dated and some not. They range from silly attempts at using color (a self-portrait and a baseball player -- with a 2015 sketch of the dock at The Pines on Fire Island and a Metro North ride---to riding the M11 bus on the West Side. While done for my own amusement I present them here for yours (I hope).
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From top left, moving l to r:
A self portrait? A baseball player pixilated. A Dali mess-terpiece. An old woman. Guys at a bar. The W. 79th St. Subway Guy on the M11 bus. The M11 Bus. A school bus from the M11. Jay Bryan's court room. The Metro North train ride. The Pines Dock (Fire Island) |
The Cullman Center Notebook
Introducing: Bald Man & Responsible Boy
In July of 2013, as I mentioned, I got to spend a week with a group of NYC area teachers and Gary Panter, a professional artist (you may know his "Jimbo" character from graphic novels --- https://www.google.com/#q=Gary%20Panter%27s%20Jimbo%20images&rct=j) who was a learn-by-doing teacher --- woohoo! We did a series of different exercises and then always had time to work on some "project" that was a result of a direction Gary would point us in. What you will see here is some of the work done that week --- and in some ensuing weeks.
First we did some simple imitation work, to try to get a feel for drawing. I worked on Ben Shahn's well-known "Sacco & Vanzetti" picture.
First we did some simple imitation work, to try to get a feel for drawing. I worked on Ben Shahn's well-known "Sacco & Vanzetti" picture.
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If you can't read the note, it says: Shahn copy attempted from a grid --- Serious proportional errors --- Definitely need to slow down & plan rather than fire away! Fascinating, though, how much of Shan's power and emotion has been lost in "translation . . ." The lack of angle of Vanzetti's head (& the mouth!) -- The failur to get their seating properly --- The elongated foreheads! Ugh --
But -- this was a good learning experience and a later exercise --- to experiment to develop our own "character" for our own comic. This led me to creating my series of 4-panel cartoons about "Bald Man & Responsible Boy," an anti-( non-super) hero and his Boy Friday.
Here is the original scratch work. #'s 1 & 2 are what the character turned out like --- but numbers 3 through 9 were fun to play with.
But -- this was a good learning experience and a later exercise --- to experiment to develop our own "character" for our own comic. This led me to creating my series of 4-panel cartoons about "Bald Man & Responsible Boy," an anti-( non-super) hero and his Boy Friday.
Here is the original scratch work. #'s 1 & 2 are what the character turned out like --- but numbers 3 through 9 were fun to play with.
The Adventures
Bald Man & Responsible Boy
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Based on those sketches, the following comics were created (six four-panel works) with some "themes" that were prevalent in NYC when I was living there in 2013-2014 (like Bloomberg's proposed "soda tax," like "Stop & Frisk," like bicyclists running amok on the streets). I hope they are legible enough to read. If you need "translations" let me know at estreetbil71@gmail.com
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Colorburn
Colorburn is an app I picked up within the past two months or so and have had fun playing with. It allows you to play with iPhone photographs by adding colors in unique ways. Below are some experiments with Colorburn that have been fun to play with.
This was a black and white foto in the New York Times --- an ad for some museum show, I believe. With Colorburn, I tried to make it Warhol-esque.
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The foto on the left is of the side door of our 2015 Honda Accord, with a bird's "signature' on it. On the right, the Colorburn transformation!
If you didn't know it was bird poop, you might think it was some kind of expressionist art?
If you didn't know it was bird poop, you might think it was some kind of expressionist art?
Diner Art
Latest Post Road Diner Creation
So, as you'll see, this was a very conscious creation of a character, rendered 3 ways via Colorburn.
He starts out as a simple French Fry Man with a face in a mayo/ketchup dip bowl, and a knife/ fork as "weapons" or eating utensils (viewer interpretation encouraged).
After Colorburning, however, we get three stages of characters from:
Bottom left: a sunny, happy man.
Bottom center: A "blue" man, maybe getting angry
Bottom right: a burned out soul, still hoping for redemption.
He starts out as a simple French Fry Man with a face in a mayo/ketchup dip bowl, and a knife/ fork as "weapons" or eating utensils (viewer interpretation encouraged).
After Colorburning, however, we get three stages of characters from:
Bottom left: a sunny, happy man.
Bottom center: A "blue" man, maybe getting angry
Bottom right: a burned out soul, still hoping for redemption.
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I know you're not supposed to play with your food, but we spend a lot of time in diners (one of the pure joys of retirement) and I've started working on "Diner Art."
The remnants of a meal are shown at left, converted into a French Fry Samurai figure on the right! |
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Here are two other Colorburned French Fry creations. On the left, is "French Fries and the City" and on the right, a simple yawning maw of fries.
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Homage to Burning Man!
French Fry Burning Man, created at the Post Road Diner in Norwalk, CT.
April 16, 2016
French Fry Burning Man, created at the Post Road Diner in Norwalk, CT.
April 16, 2016
So, here's an insect like french fry "model" turned into two Colorburn creations:
The "Electrified" Fries( below left) and the "X-ray" Fries (below right).
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Golgotha at Orem's
Working on the premise of "found" objects, this "sculpture" was created around Easter time at Orem's Diner in Wilton, CT, depicting the crucifixion scene.
Colorburn fotos & portraits (?)
(click on individual fotos to see complete picture)
Photos over the Years
Photography has always been a hobby of mine, going back to the early 1970's, when we used single-lens reflex cameras. Here's a random selection of photographs that I like for any variety of reasons.
Note: Click on the photo for full view and caption.
Note: Click on the photo for full view and caption.
Panoramas
Discovering the PANO setting on the iPhone led to these.
Potpourri
A little of this, a little of that
Playing with Food
Some Cake Sculpture
Christmas Clay
Wilbur's stocking had kid's clay
(so this is what he made-click foto to see entire pic)
Bottom Right: Original Sculpture in Steadman Gallery (by Jud Bergeron of San Francisco) was the inspiration for working with 32 sticks of childrens' modeling clay that I bought at a Target in Stamford, CT as we shopped for stocking stuffers for the grandchildren.
Top Left is the enshrined, finished, acrylic sprayed version, with colored-in Steadman cartoon.
Top Right and Bottom Left are my Dr. Gonzo in front of the cartoon for comparative purposes.
Top Left is the enshrined, finished, acrylic sprayed version, with colored-in Steadman cartoon.
Top Right and Bottom Left are my Dr. Gonzo in front of the cartoon for comparative purposes.