1582 - One Fine Day In Gotham

For some time, I've been doing extensive research on Superman.  This started with my bespoke globe of the planet Krypton (for example, please click here to see JSVB Post #1544), but now I have a broader interest in The Man Of Steel.

The weather has been great lately, so I decided to leave Metropolis and journey across the Bay to sprawling Gotham.  Normally it's stormy and dour over there,  but sometimes you can luck into a crisp, brilliant fall day before thick grey snow chokes the city.  

I took this photo of a statue of Batman brooding atop a cenotaph, which I thought was a little strange since I don't recall ever reading that their City Hall ever laid out funds for such a thing.  I turned away to mention this to my wife, but when I looked back the statue was gone.   

1581 - "In Slippers, Us"

 - with apologies to William Ernest Henley - 

IN SLIPPERS, US

Out of Black Friday that calls to her
Bright as the sun from heel to toes
I look upon what gods may fear
Lo, my wife's new holiday shoes

In the clutch of Christmas cheerings
Meats minced and eggs a-nogged
She bludgeons my eyes with sequins
Her new slippers must now be blogged

Beyond this place of wreaths and balladeers
Loom toes glittering green and red
And yet the ending of the year
Finds me content and well-fed

It matters not how tensile the tinsel
How charged I am to love her full
No matter the glare from her foot-sill
She is the captain of my soul 

1580 - Archangel VIII

When a bell rings, an angel gets his wings.  "It's A Wonderful Life" (1946) is one of my least favourite motion pictures of all time.  I will grant that it is handsomely produced, it's simply not at all to my taste.

Fortunately for me, I was able to complete the wings on my angel without having to screen that film.  

 

1579 - Balls On Trees

My wife and I saw this cartoon drawn on a restaurant chalkboard.  I decided to turn it into holiday clip-art.  

 

1578 - Archangel VII

Continuing to triptych the light fantastic.  Oh, what a rotten pun.  But this angel is taking shape.  The colours aren't right yet, but the basic shapes seem to be correct.

 

1577 - Seven Seconds Of Ungoodness

This is the last Ungood Art Day of 2018, and it can't come too soon.  The thirteenths dfay of every month on JSVB is Ungood Art Day, where I present some of my art that just isn't very good.  

This slice of Ungood Art took me maybe seven seconds to scrawl.  It's a schematic for facial shapes.  It is proof that Ungoodness can be created almost instantly.  

 

1576 - Guess This Bird

I'm not a bird-watcher.  All throughout my art career, I've always had trouble rendering birds.  If I go slowly and follow a good visual source, I can make a bird on paper.  But most birds are flighty, so I sometimes have to draw quickly.

I found a bird I thought was quite unique, so I drew it as fast as I could and filled in what details I could recall when the bird went away.  Can you guess the bird I drew?

Well, my wife, also a non-birder, takes one look at my sketchbook and announces, "It's a whiskeyjack."  Otherwise known as a grey jay, this bird spans all across North America and has an estimated population of at least 21.5 kajillion.  Somehow, I missed seeing them all except this one.  

 

1575 - Big Green Saviour

Here's a religious sketch from my sketchbook.  It's of a larger-than-life statue of Jesus Christ in the evening sun.  Since I used a green pencil, the sunniness doesn't quite come through.  

 

1574 - Skyline Car Sketch

The Skyline Car is the most recognizable car on The Canadian, Canadian Pacific Railway's flagship passenger train.  It's a double-decker car with a small lounge on the bottom and seating on the top under a large glassed-in bubble roof.  The views from the Skyline Car are spectacular!