Junior Champ

This pre-logo/sketch is created for a new porridge being formulated for children below the age of 5. The name was already given & they wanted a boy with outstretched arms & a rainbow somewhere in the mix. Oh, and they wanted something cute... I think our little boy fits the bill. There's wasn't a lot of time. If this project comes to fruition I'd like to work on his boxing gloves some more.

Sketch - the Lord's Prayer

Voi dunque pregate così:
"Padre nostro che sei nei cieli, sia santificato il tuo nome; venga il tuo regno; sia fatta la tua volontà anche in terra come è fatta in cielo. Dacci oggi il nostro pane quotidiano; rimettici i nostri debiti come anche noi li abbiamo rimessi ai nostri debitori; e non ci esporre alla tentazione, ma liberaci dal maligno." (Matteo 6:9-13)

Children at play

I was asked to act as photographer at a children's party, it was such fun.They are a little more of a challenge to shoot 'cause they're not in the habit of taking notice of cameras, they seem to dart in all directions. What I appreciate most about children is their unpretentiousness. One seems to be able to capture their emotion much easier on film than adults.

Bride of Christ

The Bible frequently refers to us, the believers in Christ as His bride. Although I suspect this might be a foreign image for men to associate with it illustrates something beautiful: how we are transformed to become pure in the love Jesus has for us. We need to find our value in that love.
I wanted to illustrate that.
"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God." - Matthew 5:8

She's on fire

I've been asked to design an illustration for a game competition poster and took the inspiration of the classic Bond girl. I'm also taking the scenic route back to basics - making some sketches with graphite.

60 Word Story

I've recently accepted the challenge of writing a story in 65 words or less for LitNet.
Below is the result.

Sal jy my onthou?
Ek hoor jou nie kom - suutjies jy,
maar ek sien jou toring voor my.
Vryf met jou linkervoet in die sand...
ek is ook maar skaam.
Wie sal eerste hallo sê?
Jou oor - die kontinent Afrika.
Mag ek voel hoe loop die plooie oor jou lyf?
Jy proe my met jou slurp
en toe reis ek op jou rug huis toe.

(or you can go directly to http://www.litnet.co.za/cgi-bin/giga.cgi?cmd=cause_dir_custom&cause_id=1270&page=leap)

Change

Wow! 2011 is here!
We're living in this paradox of wanting things in our life to change vs fearing the very same thing.
May this year be the fulfillment of beautiful expectancies.

Below is the body copy of the strip:

Change
When does it happen? And how?
I mean, you wait and wait
for this mythical day when things will change and your whole life will suddenly be better somehow.
As if a new car or a new job or a new boyfriend will be the new leaf in your life… as if it will fix everything somehow.
If only. If only I’ll get that job in the city.
Then I can move out of this sleepy town and my life can finally begin. I’ll start wearing heels to work & dress up as though I walked off the runway.
I’ll meet this attractive stranger in the elevator and it will be love at first sight – we’ll just know we’re meant to spend the rest of our lives together in holy matrimony. We’ll buy a house & a dog, have kids, never argue or be sick and live happily ever after.
If only is a dangerous game to play. Your life will live without you. You’ll wake up one day like Rip van Winkle and wonder where’s it gone.
I’m not even sure it is within our power to instigate change. Some advocate so brilliantly how we are the masters of our own destiny. What happens in our life is the stuff we allowed to happen. Yeah right.
Maybe you can control your emotions; the words you speak and the choices you make.
But what about the things that happen TO you? An accident? An illness?
Or the things that doesn’t, but you wish desperately so?
I guess it’s like that Beach Boys song, God only knows. And only God can really change your life.
I love that scene in Under the Tuscan Sun where they speak about the nature of faith. Francis Mayes wrote, “They built the train tracks over the Alps between Vienna and Venice before there was a train that could make the trip. They built them anyway. They knew the train would come.”
I suppose it’s up to us to build the tracks & wait for God to send the train.

The dog and his shadow

It has been a while since my last post, but this project has taken a little longer than anticipated. I've worked with scraperboard only once before and wanted to get a good feel for the medium. I wanted to explore different markmaking possibilities and whether they would appear different from the more fluid ink lines. I also wanted to see whether it is possible to create your own scraperboard to work on. I think the test went rather well. The lines of the brush to paint the gesso with added to its rugged appeal.

I chose the fable of the Dog and his Shadow to illustrate. There is a lot of truth in this fable for me. The dog was so lucky to come across a juicy steak, but when he left he saw his reflection in the water, and thinking it is another dog with another steak grabbed at it in his greed. The steak in his own mouth fell into the water, which left him with none. There is a lot of value to this fable. We can so easily miss the beauty & blessing already present in our lives. We need to learn gratitude.

Found wanting

I've just always loved this Indian Folk tale and thought it an apt time to illustrate. It sends a beautiful message of the complexity of female identity.

The Date

Ah, the dating game...