"God hates divorce"

I painted a billboard in this page from Dwell magazine to talk about the biblical book of Malachi, written during a time when not much "dramatic" was happening in the kingdom of Israel.  In the book, God calls people back to relationship through a series of leading questions, like someone reaching out to an estranged lover, or like an enormous billboard planted in the middle of the American dream.  (*pic is a little warped, the top right of the billboard actually recedes rather than juste out.)

Channeling Agnes Martin

Working on a project for class, can't help but think of the grid master herself....(I think she used rulers instead of tape, though...)

Watercolor Quickie

A quick sketch I did of a rainy day on the farm a while back...had to dig this one out of the archives for a portfolio review.  It didn't stop pouring that day, the pond overflowed at the dike wall and came rushing down the hill.

Bixby Bridge Memory

Finished this piece for my friend Bryan, who loves to rumble highway 1 around Big Sur.  This painting will serve his nostalgia until his next visit...

Acrylic & Oil on window pane.

Who was this guy?

Playing with drawings from some old photographs of my family over maps for an upcoming show - trying to get a sense of how I got here....

grandpa Clarence Shininger

Easter Paintings

Oil and gold leaf on board - 4' x 2'

A series of four 'movements' of the story of Easter, illustrates a series of stories and songs by Bill Wolf.

Class Notes / Context

I teach a class on thursday nights in downtown Knoxville on "How to Draw Caricatures."  It's going OK.  I've got 10 highschoolers of varying abilities and interest levels, but on Thursdays we come together to study the human face and figure out how to exaggerate it.  I've learned a ton; hopefully it's not a complete loss to the kids.  More pictures from class artwork to come!  (Tips appreciated - like the wisdom kind of tips this time.)

What I've Been Staring At

SO for the past three days I've been designing a logo for one of my favorite companies - here is the process I went through for one of my designs:

PART 1: thumbnail drawing

PART 2: acrylic painting

PART 3: Finished in photoshop

 

 

Play Architect

Rendering in watercolor for a contractor friend who needed to communicate an idea for a bid. I took the entryway below and modified it so that it wouldn't look like death (with emphasis on the canopy), then completed the rendering. Never done a rendering like this before in watercolor. Perspective is a little whack on the upper lefthand corner but yougettheidea.

Feelin Palmy

Drew some caricatures in West Palm Beach for a week. I had a wacky itinerary that put me in Chicago for five hours, so I took advantage of public transport and hopped the L to the Art Institute to check out the new modern art wing. After West Palm I stayed with some dear friends in Tampa to hold their new baby boy Asher and change his diaper a couple times. I also shot some pictures of my friend Rob's family in a fun makeshift home studio we made in an hour. Then I flew home.

MCO MMX

So it's that time of year again. What time?

The time when all the celebrations of the old year are done, and a new one begins cold with expectation. The time when we've put on a few pounds to insulate us from the chill, or we sleep in to conserve our bodies' fuel to keep moving during dreary days. This is the time of year when ponds freeze over, bears go into hiding, and the land itself becomes as hard as stone.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, that's right, it's time for MANCAMP VI. See you Monday, have a good weekend.....

I'm back...where?

So more than sixteen months after my last post, I begin by saying I'm slightly adjusting the purpose of this site to include whatever i'm working on at the time, be it art, travel, phtogoraphy, or whathaveyou. By "whatever" I really do mean a potpourri of images ranging from what I'm renovating around the house, sketches from recent drawings or paintings from my studio, pseudo-photography from around the farm where I live (above), or photostories from my travels across the country and beyond. Who knows which of YOU may show up in these stories....

IF YOU HAVEN'T READ ANYTHING SO FAR OR DON'T PLAN ON READING ANYTHING AFTER, HERE'S THE GIST: i recommend you visit this blog as often and as soon as you have this question: "What the heck is Tony up to these days?" Your questions may not be fully resolved, but you will get the general idea. (If you're looking for my artwork, it's best from here on out to go straight to www.tonysobota.com.)

To commemorate this event, here's a silly haiku (Basho parody) to explain the photo above, a little something that comments on, as we are oft to think this time of year--the experience of "launching into the unknown" (hopefully with a better ending....)

Ice pond,
Log toss
Thud.

Bloomsburg

We had a great time in Bloomsburg. Good short show, good people, great little town (the only town in PA to be precise).

Rich & Amy in Rich's Jeep. Yaaay!

Yes, I draw from photos. Yes, I draw dogs.

I also draw men in tutus.

Sometimes I draw kids who don't smile playing rock band.

I draw people drinking beer after a 4-wheeler ride through coal fields.
I draw kids on go-carts.
I even draw key ninjas. Yes, this kid really really loved locks and keys. So this is what I came up with.

Last but not least, I draw this guy too. This guy reenacts civil war battles and was interesting to talk to, even if we was just listening to Rush on his headphones at a fair. This sketch makes good evidence for the argument that I draw portraits.
I DRAW!

Some more photos, this time from THE GREAT NEW YORK STATE FAIR....
This kid liked to cook. I asked him what he liked to cook and he said: "I dunno." Note the mouse.

Our first sketch of the day was usually a mentally/physically challenged person with a helper wheeling them around. It just became routine - the people were always nice.
This girl really really really loved pigs. Her and her mom really really really loved the sketch.
When asked what body they would like their kids in their parents said: "They like to go swimming." The multiple swimming sketch can be a baffler to caricaturists. I was proud of how well this one came out - and quick!
Even though it's blurry this was one of my favorite body/situations, they wanted tennis and basketball. They loved it and bought a mat, their friends were rolling because it looked just like them.
These guys own a farm and so naturally I drew them tractor racing each other. The woman always wins.
This kid wanted to be drawn "in baseball" as a pitcher, specifically. When prodded, he neither played, watched, or cared anything about baseball and it's a mystery why he wanted it, but he and his parents loved it, bought a mat and gave a tip.
This was a demo drawing of a kid I couldnm't resist drawing when he walked by.
I colored the sketch when he left and later in the day his parents came back and bought it.
I like this likeness.

Parents, please, please, please do not ask your caricature artist to put names on the sketch. I hate doing this but this parent was insistent so I caved. (And got paid.)

Caricature Circuit

So, pictures from the road. I'm posting for two purposes: to begin charting my progress in caricatures and to let you know what I'm doing. This will also be a test of how many pictures I'm able to upload in one post.....along these lines, feel free to post feedback, especially if you think your criticism might be helpful. Click on any image to make it larger. I'm working on the file size so it might be awkward the first time...








I hate the golf sketch......