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Sam Brownback sketch 2

I think this is actually further away from a good likeness, just moving in another direction I guess, around him rather than getting closer. But I liked where this sketch was going and worked on it as a character study as much as a Brownback likeness. I think I need to go back to my reference and work up some new quick sketches though. This is my second attempt (not including my first set of quick studies) and still it's missing something. But again, I like this as a character study, a bit of a Tales from the Crypt reaction (maybe the blood-red tie?), shows some buried influence from Alex Toth's line work. I really enjoyed his comic art in the 70's Warren magazines I collected as a teenager, Creepy and Eerie. Here's a link to one of his Eerie stories, from 1975. What I like about his line work is his use of short direct strokes that quickly, succinctly state details, referring to representation in a short expressive manner; abstraction of details that allow us to recognize and complete them.

Sam Brownback sketch

Here is a sketch for Sam Brownback with some quick color and texture tossed in. His eyes have a slight bulbous shape to them, a little too big but squinty at the same time. And he has an approachable serious look to his brow. Other than that, no other characteristics that stand out, any that I've noticed anyway. I think this is close but needs something, maybe more work in the eyes. The mouth looks a little low as well.

(I've added additional sketches, some of these investigative scribbles are horrid, but their purpose is just to get a grasp, an understanding of the reference.)

A JibJab movie

Having a spare moment, John McCain sketch and I, along with Tommy Thompson sketch, Barack Obama sketch, Clarisse art, Anger art, Texas Steer art, and GI Joe starred in a JibJab film called Night of the Living Republicans.

Sam Brownback is out.

Sam Brownback will be dropping out of the race according to CNN and The New York Times. The official announcement will be tomorrow. So if I go back to my previous plan, working on them as they drop out, he would be the next to sketch.

I'm going to get as much sketching in as I can before our Pasadena contact session. So far I have a good beginning for three of the candidates and will add Sam Brownback to that list. I should arrive in Pasadena with final sketches for at least four images then which I think will be healthy progress although I had hoped to have one final image finished by then.

I'm not quite sure how I want the final images to look though yet. McCain's sketch feels closer than Obama's to where I hope to be, a better merging of my style with my reference.

And another...

Steven Colbert has entered the race, I think. His response to John Stewart's question (actually written for John Stewart by Colbert) was a long announcement to announce and then mentioning South Carolina. And then he said he would hope to officially announce on "a more prestigious show," I guess he meant his own.

A new candidate?

Robert Haines, don't know too much about him yet but would make for an interesting portrait, unfortunately another Republican/ 50-something/white/male candidate, nice beard though. Here is his announcement video.

John McCain sketch

Here is an initial sketch study for the John McCain portrait. He has this
intense yet perplexed look to him often, hunched shoulders. My sense from him during this campaign is that he's a bit lost, not quite as focused as he was in his 2004 campaign. This is just a sketch study that may progress into the image, just tossing down lines and some initial color although the red and blue will likely change. I plan to add more lines to his face like the smile lines off his eye on the right. His other unique features that I've focused on are his small brushy eyebrows and his jowly cheeks (or cheek, his left one on our right seems bigger than his other one).