Another Cold Day

It's cold and snowy outside, as it has been for the last month. When that's the case, I just wrap myself in a blanket, curl up, and draw.

The Russians Are Coming!

With the Olympics starting this weekend in Sochi, I thought I'd post a few designs I did recently. They were actually more inspired by reading The Brothers Karamazov, an excellent (and oh, so Russian) book full of intense themes like the nature of evil, the existence of God, the temptations of sensuality, and the folly of pride and hedonism. But it also speaks to that time when Russia was living the high life before World War I, deeply inspired by the West (wearing the fashions of Paris, importing German governesses for their children, discussing the Europeans' experiments with socialism) but still very much its own culture. The czar was an autocrat, the people were passionate, the champagne was flowing while the peasants toiled, the church was sacrosanct and inviolable, the communists were whispering and waiting...it's all such a crazy and fascinating world to dive into.

I've heard it said that there's Africa, the East, the Middle East, the West, and Russia. It's in a category all to its own, which seems true even today.

Anyway, happy Olympics! Go enjoy some Trepak, a bit of vodka, or a prayer service in an Orthodox church.

Happy Trees

Redwoods are happy trees.

Disney's Castles

Cool graphic of all the castles in Disney animated films. So much variety of style and character in these buildings!

Mulan, The Emperor's New Groove

Tangled

Brave

Frozen

Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs

Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, and ??? (not sure what the orange one is)

Sword in the Stone (I think)

Black Cauldron (?), Little Mermaid

Hercules

Beauty & The Beast, Aladdin

What a Ham!

Orcas. When they aren't busy savaging seals or drowning baby whales, they're hamming it up for photographers.

Jaguar

Been a while since I did a big cat design.  In that vein, following up on the Amazon folks, here is the only American big cat: the mighty jaguar.

Ever wonder how you tell the difference between a jaguar and a leopard? Here's a handy chart explaining it, though, if you're seeing it in the wild, the first question you should ask is "Am I in the Americas?" If your answer is yes, then it's a jaguar. If not, it's a leopard.

The actual easiest way to tell is that a leopard has black-edged spots with a light center. Jaguars have larger black-edged spots with a darker center and little dots inside the big spot. Also, jaguars are thicker and stockier. Leopards are more lithe.

Best not to go check it out anywhere outside of a zoo, though, lest you find yourself unwitting prey.