Category: Gist of Art

I’ve been a professional landscape and wildlife artist and photographer for many years. I’ve also drawn comic strips for newspapers and create cover art for my books. Join me here where I share my favorites.

Louie and Bruce 002-2023-0526

This comic page is from September 1981. The top 4 panels tell a complete story that I could have used as a short strip. But they tie into the story’s gag at the end. That’s all for now. Thanks for reading. And as always, peace and love. Steve, 5/26/2023 This post “Louie and Bruce 002-2023-0526” … Continue reading Louie and Bruce 002-2023-0526

A Look Back at Louie and Bruce

Louie and Bruce 001-2022-1020, posted Oct. 20, 2022 I was 9 when I fell in love with drawing cartoons. I copied my favorite TV, newspaper, and comic book characters as best I could. At 13, I drew my own “toons,” putting on silly plays between the characters I created. No other form of storytelling allowed … Continue reading A Look Back at Louie and Bruce

Painting and Fixing the First Draft, Part 2

Previously, I wrote about ways I develop first drafts of paintings, then transfer elements I like from the first draft and create a better second draft painting. This time, I want to show how I correct the first draft without making a new painting. The oil painting above shows a whitetail buck drinking at a … Continue reading Painting and Fixing the First Draft, Part 2

Painting and Fixing the First Draft, part 1

As a writer and an artist, I see similarities of writing stories and poetry, and painting paintings. For this post, I’m including double photos of some of my paintings, showing the “first draft” of an idea, and the final draft of the painting. I almost always begin the construction of my paintings from a series … Continue reading Painting and Fixing the First Draft, part 1

Fantasy

I write a lot of fantasy fiction. It began when I was in high school. I like fantasy because it’s about what’s not possible. My journey into fantasy didn’t begin with writing, but with art. Fantasy allowed me to explore my imagination—there was no limit to what I could draw. It could get silly at … Continue reading Fantasy

Painting from Memory

This week, I found an old mind-to-hand exercise painting from 1986. I occasionally did mind-to-hand exercise paintings to keep my coordination and reflexes sharp. Instead of painting something in front of me—a still-life, for example—I painted from memory, which is what mind-to-hand exercise painting is. I used acrylic paints because of their quick drying time … Continue reading Painting from Memory

Reminiscing, part 3

I’m still peeking at old photos and reminiscing about the past. (You can read Part 1 here and Part 2 here.) I plan to wrap this up today so I can get other jobs done. Pictures are time machines that can whisk us immediately to earlier times. I have photos of my childhood that includes … Continue reading Reminiscing, part 3