day one, season of learning 2006-07

The ducks went off the school today--with a little trepidation and a little more excitement. As usual, it is an anniversary thing they don't even know they are doing, and I get a little sad and happy for them as time moves on. I hope it's the beginning of a fun year that sparks some interests and passions for them beyond the usual fun of friends, and lunch, and recess.

Spent the better part of yesterday suffering through the business plan we need to write for Jim Carson. It's better than counselling as I am finding out stuff that is "in there" that just needed a little painful prodding to see that I really do have ideas on how to grow and dimensionalize this little business. Hopefully, by the end of the week I will have this off my plate. It was good to hear I wasn't the only one stumped with this plan...after a nice chat with Mr. Richard Williams. Richard is also finding out there is a lot in there with this paper...but OUCH.

I would like to do a little research on birds etc. for the fluffier of the aesthetics papers...which I might endulge myself with later today. Endulge away. I might even drink a little coffee while I dive deep.At least the searching will have some pleasure associated with it. I also should get a handle on what the MLA Style and Conventions are before I need to know it.

The Corning Commuhttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifnity College Show is opening on Friday with a few pieces of my work(the Rooster Head, the Black Capped Night Heron eating the Transamerica Building and a Pacific Loon). I enlarged the images to 24" x 36" with white borders around the actual image and they look quite nice. I used Nielsen Bainbridge big poster frames (with nice wooden/black frames) that I got from Dick Blick (and not a bank breaker). Mike Massengale (SU ISDP MA Illustration 2006) did a wonderful job of outputting them...and I think this is the beginning of how the thesis work will be presented. If you need big output, Mike is the MAN. I have these three, and 3 smaller framed avian flu pieces as a start. Looks pretty real. Am planning on doing a couple of eagles (editorial...not just pretty), a dove, a raven, a dodo bird, a goose, Pale Male the NYC falcon, a pileated woodpecker and maybe the wierdly pink spoonbill to complete the mix.

Just got a great book recommended by Steve Ellis, a fantasy illustrator and instructor at Syracuse (here's another one from Steve,too). Steve did a great demonstration for us--showing how he uses photoshop and painter to create the art he does for Magic Cards etc. and recommended we get Digital Character Design and Painting by Don Seegmiller (Charles River Media ©2004)(I got the Photoshop CS Edition) for reference.
Looks pretty key. I got it through Alibris (used and discounted to my delight).
Looks like rain.

The goose is from the Genesee Country Museum, Mumford, NY. He was a very pissed off bird, actively "zipping up" all of his feathers (editorial by Kitty) who really did not like us looking at him and taking his picture. He will just have to get over it.