Z is for Zebra

Alas, all good things must come to an end. This is the final entry for Ben Towle's Animal Alphabet. Sob!

I have a feeling these red envelopes are also an endangered species. (See more Netflix doodles here... while they last.)

Black rollerball & white gel pen on Netflix return envelope.

p.s. It helps if you pronounce the "Z" in British fashion, i.e. "zed."

p.p.s. Can you find the hidden message? (Click if you need a closer view.)

Y is for Yellow-Bellied Water Skink

This week's entry for Ben Towle's Animal Alphabet is a super-quickie, because it's my husband's birthday & we spent last night doing some advance celebrating.

Interesting how many yellow-bellied whatsits are represented in nature's alphabet. I don't recall so many other belly-color names showing up. And I don't think there are any lily-livered skinks, &c., so it's not that they were all named by B Western characters. Which just reminded me of that lovely oath from Zorro, "meal mush & goat's milk!"

Enough tangents! And sorry, skink, for putting you through such contortions to simulate a "Y". You may stretch out now.

Ball-point, marker & white gouache on brown paper, with some Photoshop tweaking.

Oops, one more tangent: today is the day when my Curiotype alphabet finally overtakes Animal Alphabet (assuming I can get that one finished along with birthday doings). Feels a bit sad to have both of them drawing to a close...

X is for Xerus

This week's entry for Ben Towle's Animal Alphabet.

I have a soft spot for squirrels-- they may steal my tomatoes, bury pecans in my potted plants, & generally get up to all sorts of mischief, but it's so much fun to watch their antics! The xerus was a new one to me, but I love their super-upright posture. They look like they've been taking ballet for years.

Ball-point, marker & white gouache on brown paper, recolored & otherwise tinkered with in Photoshop.

W is for Widgeon

This week's entry for Ben Towle's Animal Alphabet.

Ball-point, marker & white gouache on brown paper, recolored & otherwise tinkered with in Photoshop.

V is for Virginia Opossum

Between that crazy earthquake & Hurricane Irene, Virginians have endured more than their share of our planet's little tantrums lately. I hope there are no more unpleasant surprises in store any time soon for our neighbor state (or its eponymous 'possums).

For Ben Towle's Animal Alphabet.

Ball-point, marker & white gouache on brown paper, recolored, raindropped & otherwise fooled with in Photoshop.

p.s. Speak not of opossums at the table. -Lynda Barry

T is for Tahr

This week's entry for Ben Towle's Animal Alphabet.

Ball-point, marker & white gel-pen on brown paper, fooled with in Photoshop.


(Pssst! By the way, if you're looking for the missing "S" you'll find it on my Oddments blog.)

R is for Robin

This week's entry for Ben Towle's Animal Alphabet goes out to my niece, Robin.

Ball-point, marker & white gouache on brown paper, recolored & otherwise fooled with in Photoshop.

Q is for Quindio Glass Frog

This week's entry for Ben Towle'sAnimal Alphabet is the Quindio Glass Frog.

Ball-point, marker & white gouache on brown paper, recolored* & fiddled with in Photoshop.

*With PS it is easy being green.

O is for Octopus

... & obvious. I admit I cheated a bit on this weeks entry for Ben Towle's Animal Alphabet, by using an old drawing, white gouache on black paper, retweaked a bit in Photoshop.

N is for Numbat

This week's entry for Ben Towle's Animal Alphabet is the numbat. Thanks to Isaac Cates for suggesting this odd & elegant marsupial!

Sketched in ball-point pen, marker & white gouache on brown paper, then a bit of Photoshop fiddling.

K is for Kiwi

I'm friends with several lovely New Zealanders (none of whom I've met in person, but I still feel as though I know them!) so my choice for K in Ben Towle's Animal Alphabet was a natural.

Ball-point pen, marker & white gouache on brown paper, fiddled in Photoshop.

p.s. Ben has a great interview out on Comics Reporter

J is for Jaguarundi

Ben Towle, the creator of the wonderful web comic Oyster War, also runs a weekly challenge called The Animal Alphabet Project. I'm a bit late to the party, but I do love drawing beasties, so here's my first contribution.

J is for jaguarundi.

Ball-point pen, marker & white gouache on brown paper, with a bit of Photoshop fiddling. ~6x7"

Warmheart

I've been experimenting with sketching quick little characters (who may eventually be animated!!) & this one seemed appropriate for today. I always liked the saying "cold hands, warm heart" (maybe because my hands are often cold), so this week's IF prompt made me think of dressing a little heart guy up in a nice warm sweater.

Brush marker, ball-point pen, & white gouache on cut-out brown paper, about 3x4"

Happy Valentine's Day!

Zoorobotany

For quite a while now I've had this word in my head... describing some of the creatures that inhabit my sketchbooks, part animal, part vegetable, part mechanical. I'm working on a piece right now that I hope will be the first in a series of paintings based on this theme.

Here's my initial sketch of a fellow I call Goodly Creature after the Shakespeare quote from the Tempest:

O wonder!
How many goodly creatures are there here!
How beauteous mankind is!
O brave new world,
That has such people in it!

Please click the image for details. To see all the posts in this process, please click the "Goodly Creature" label below.

p.s. This is the very first time I've shared my personal sketchbook with the world! It's a bit scary.