Sorry for the lack of posts!  I’ve been super busy all year long with projects that I can’t post about yet.  But I can tell you about a charity exhibit I’m participating in this weekend.

The Emerging Artists Exhibit is organized by the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) and will be held at the SomArts Gallery in San Francisco.  Myself and 5 other artists representing different visual mediums will be showcasing our artwork throughout the weekend.

Opening night is Saturday, December 1st at 6pm.  The event is ticketed, $15 at the door, and all proceeds will benefit the Greenhouse Initiative Charity for Armenia.

Drop by if you’re in town and want to help out a great cause!

Just returned last night from a gorgeous trip to Colorado for a friend’s wedding.  My boyfriend and I had some time to go explore the epic mountain ranges over the few days we were there.  We stopped in San Miguel canyon for a breather where the rock walls were saturated a deep crimson from the iron in the earth oxidizing on the surface.  I can’t even begin to show you how crazy beautiful Colorado is.

I’m so sad to hear about Leo Dillon’s death over this past weekend.  One half of the mega-artist team of Leo and Diane Dillon, Leo’s work with his wife Diane has been hugely influential to myself and countless other artists.  With impeccable design, draftmanship, and an acute sense and celebration for cultural diversity, their art has a sensuous quality that resonates and invites your eyes and mind to linger.  My sympathies to Diane, and I hope she will continue to create such gorgeous works without her life partner.

See some more of their work here through the Lines and Colors blog post.

My filing cabinet was in dire need of a good clearing for quite some time and I finally tackled the challenge last week.  I was pleasantly surprised to discover this little old piece from back when I was a student at CCAC in the illustration program.

I believe this is a classmate, Ryan, who sat to pose for me while I drew him in pen.  Looks like I then laid some sepia washes down, along with a couple spots of more saturated orange and highlights.

I honestly can’t remember what the Lumberjacks reference is about.  It shall remain a mystery…

I’m in between phases on a large project, and thought I’d play around with a portrait of Gotye in the meantime.  Click for a larger image.

When I visited Comic Con a few years ago I had snapped this pic of someone dressed up as Bob’s Big Boy.  I had blogged about it at time, wondering what the heck Bob’s Big Boy was doing at Comic Con.

Flash forward years later, and Pablo gets in touch with me after finding the photo of himself on my blog, dressed up as this character.  Pablo was great enough to tell the story of how he started dressing up as Bob’s Big Boy, and why the character really does belong at Comic Con.  Below is his note, along with a link to a mother-lode of Bob’s Big Boy comic covers.  Awesome!  Thanks, Pablo!

Bonus note - Here is Pablo’s super fun tribute song to Bob’s Big Boy on YouTube!

Hi Nadine,

I just happen to stumble upon your page called “Impromptu Gestures” Thoughts and sketches and happen to see a pic of me as Bob’s Big Boy and the question caption at the bottom of the pic says “What is Bob’s Big Boy doing at comic-con?” Well, let me explain. I had been wanting to go Comic con dressed up as a character but I felt I needed to dress for my body type and one day someone suggested I go as Big Boy.  I felt it was not right since Big Boy was not really known in comic… OH BOY was I wrong… VERY WRONG. Turns out Big boy had his own comic book that was given away for free at the restaurant that started in the 1960’s and their two #1 versions, a West coast #1 and an East coast #1. The East Coast #1 was written by Stan Lee. Mr Scott Shaw told me this and why would he lie? Also, here’s something I found on Wiki.

“The chain is best known for its trademark chubby boy in red-and-white checkered overalls holding a Big Boy sandwich (double-decker cheeseburger). The inspiration for Big Boy’s name, as well as the model for its mascot, was Richard Woodruff (1936–1986), of Glendale, California. When he was six years old, he walked into the diner Bob’s Pantry as Bob Wian was attempting to name his new hamburger. Wian said, “Hello, Big Boy” to Woodruff, and the name stuck. Warner Bros. animation artist Ben Washam sketched Richard’s caricature, which became the character seen on the company logo. This character would also eventually be featured in The Adventures of Big Boy comic book, produced as a promotional giveaway for children visiting the restaurant. Since 1997, the comic book has been produced by Craig Yoe’s Yoe! Studio.”

So, that’s is why I show up yearly to Wonder-Con, San Diego Comic-con, Wizard-Con, etc. as Bob’s Big Boy. Check out these comic covers.

A super quick little sketch.  It is the year of the water dragon, I’ve read.  Happiness and health to all!