Caricature Fun and Mixican Mints

I thought I'd bring a little bit of my work life over to my updates blog.
As you may or may not know, I do caricatures for a living.
The other day I got a chance to snap a photo or two of some work I did out at the park. Both groups really dug their picture, which is always a nice reward in itself.



















I went a little easy on the second one because I was starting to get burnt out from the heavy work load that day. Otherwise, I would have totally taken advantage of the woman's funny eye.

Besides that, I put up a bunch of samples lately. I have a Tyra Banks and a Little Wayne up at one booth, and I have a Sammy Davis Jr (first year sample) a Marylin Manson, and a Jonas Brothers at the other booths. I took some photos of Manson and the brothers today with my cellphone. Not very good quality photos, but they'll probably do for now until I can get better copies of them.














If you're wondering why Marylin Manson is holding a meatball, then know that it's kind of a personal joke. Me and my sister first heard one of his songs a while back and were convinced for years that he was saying (or at least it sounded like) 'beautiful meatball'. So in honor of the misunderstood lyrics, I drew Manson with what supposedly is a beautiful meatball. And if you're wondering why the Jonas Brothers are just a collective mass of hair, then you haven't actually SEEN those boys. I almost tried for a sample were they where all sharing one giant eyebrow, but this seemed funnier.

All in all, I seem to be getting a little better with my airbrush work. Practicing on small illustrations is helpful for details. I struggled a bit last summer when I started doing caricatures for the first time because of my tendonitis, and the fact I can't seem to use two hands to airbrush like I probably should. Plus I'm more then twice as fast then I was last year, which has been a good thing as far as getting money for Florida goes. It seems that when you're having a tough time and life isn't as good to you anymore, it's something to throw yourself in your work so you can be the best you can at what you do. I guess if I want to be a better artist, I need to go through some more life-altering drama. So, ya know, I'm sure I can work something out.

Story of the night:

Tonight I stopped by my favorite mexican place for food and drink. All the televisions had spanish channel soaps and kareoke programs on them. There was live singing, and little hispanic children giggling and running around all over the place. After dinner I got my check with 2 mint candies. As I smiled to the children running passed my table, one of them came over to me. A girl about 7 years old with a facial abnormality looked me in the eye and then looked at my mints and asked if she could have a candy. I gladly gave on to her. Another little girl in pigtails, even younger, came over to me after she saw the other girl with candy. She just peered up at me with her hands on the table and her big eyes fixed on the last mint candy. She didn't say anything, but just stared at me and the candy for a while. I smiled and gave her my last candy. There was a victory candy dance in the other room by the table the girl's family where sitting, and I payed my check and left, grabbing another candy from the bucket on the way out.

Something about that made me really happy. The older girl reminded me of myself when I was young, and how torn I was when it came from asking strangers for something I wanted. I remember all the times I saw some adult with candy at a game or a park and how badly I wanted to have some too. I used to come up with ways I could guilt them into sharing their goods, or how to look really really sad so they'd want to give some to me. But I almost never had the balls to just go up and ask, and none of my crazy schemes ever really worked. I admired the young hispanic girls attitude. She knew exactly what she wanted and how to try to get it. You can't beat that kind of confidence, and I think it left a bit of an impression on me.

-CBC