Winston is Sorry...

Winston who featured in one of the earlier puppy profiles is in trouble again. The poor little fella can't help himself. He has developed the talent of escape artist and is now running up to neighbours to say hello. Unfortunately poor lil Winston can be seriously misunderstood and can get himself in some serious trouble with the neighbours.

I did up this little sketch of Winston for Sue and Christian to go on an apology card on Winston's behalf. Fingers crosssed it gets Winston off the hook and back in the good books...

Puppy Poll : Tell me your favourite styles

Worked on some more puppy styles and decided I wanted to get your feedback on what your preferred style. I will then look at implementing that style into some future puppy sketches. I won't however be using the Pawphans or Me Mate styles I developed for Moose as I don't want to leverage off their products and want to distance my personal work from those brands as much as possible.

If I can get you to write in your top 5 preferences in order and i'll then tally the results. Hope you can help me out on this one.

Mucho appreciado! :)

Wha? Who did that?

Today's sketch is inspired by a scene that involve Sam on a regular basis.

I've also been mucking around with some different sketching styles.

I have also include the styles I developed for Moose for the Pawphans and MeMate ranges.

Covorting with the enemy

I've often wondered why it is that some dogs will quite happily live in harmony with cats, others will take not interest in them, and then others will look at a cat like its the greatest remote control chew toy of all time.

I wonder if those dogs think of their doggie brethren as traitors when the see them covorting with the enemy.

Space walk - One small step in slow motion

Was thinking to myslef this morning how funny it is to see an owner chasing their dog that has got off the leash and is chasing something. Take that amusing situation and place it in the low gravity of the moon and we have our very frustrating astronaut calling out in the vacuum of space as he pursues (in low gravity bouncing slow mo) his moon rover. :)

The Family

A few more photos of the 3 most important people in my life. My girlfriend, Alana, and my two dogs Sam and Leela.

Alana's Picture of Sam

I was going through some of my stored images at lunch today when i found this picture that my girlfriend, Alana did of Sam once. I love this pic. It makes me laugh everytime. The individual space helmet for the wagging tail is priceless!

Dogs: Furry Grafitti Artists?

Observing my dog, Sam marking his turf this morning got me thinking about the similarities between dogs and grafitti artists. Both are territorial and mark their territory. Does this mean if you believe in reincarnation that if yopu are a grafitti artist you will come back as a dog? Or is it vice versa?

I wonder what Sam's tag is? :)

Getting the idea down fast

Often when the idea happens you are never at the drawing board or wacom tablet, so i find it necessary to always carry a pen around and hope there is some drawing surface in the vicinity. In the case of yesterdays sketch, once again the idea came at a time when the drawing board was nmany miles away, and so i scibbled down the idea on the cruddiest bit of scrap paper i could find at hand.

I kinda like look back at these images because they have their own individual charm.

Good Idea - Bad Execution

Sometimes drawings just don't turn out as well as you hoped (I'm not gonna admit to just how often that happens! :) ). This one is the perfect example. The idea seemed good in my head but I rushed into it without any real thought to layout and composition...and the rest as they say is history. You can see the result.

Old Family Portrait (Pre-Leela)

Was digging through the image archives and dug up this old image. It was pre-Leela, and we looked a lil different back then, but looking at that image of myself, Alana and Sam still makes me laugh. :)

Bark 0101001 (or Nerd Humour!)

Did this one in my lunch break today after scribbling down the idea on a scrap piece of paper on the way to work. Its pretty nerdy humour, but i guess thats me in a nutshell... :)

Roswell?...or Rex

I love drawing cute lil aliens and cute lil dogs. I guess thats why I like the Lilo and Stitch movie so much!:)

Here we have an accident thats occured when certain interstellar craft are mistaken for other flying objects.

Puppie Profile : Winston and Sadie

My work friend Sue, and her partner Christian own two very mischievious Staffies. Winston is the youngster who likes to be the leader of the pack and Sadie is the aging lady who has to put up with Winston's lil man syndrome. Due to troubles between the the two pups in the past, Christian has had to build a dividing wall down the middle of the yard. its what Sue affectionately calls "The Berlin Wall"
I asked Sue if she had any Winston stories that i might post here. After finding a suitable PG13 rated story to grace this blog here's what she came back with:

"Winston has small dog syndrome. He is the big man behind the fence or on the end of the lead but a scaredy cat when he is out on his own. He dug a big hole under the fence and escaped the front garden last Thursday. Christian got home that night to find a very proud and excited dog sitting on the front door step. If he could speak he would have said “look what I did dad ...I dug the biggest hole ever!” Sadie wasn’t happy and was she is the adventurous dog that would have gone for a 2 day trek around the neighborhood if she wasn’t stuck the other side of the Berlin wall."

"Sunny" Sunday Brunch

These weekends go too quickly! Especially the good ones.

Had a really nice brunch on Sunday morn at our cafe hang out down at Mountain Gate. I love it down there as there are usually a couple of puppies down there with their owners.

This weekend was no exception. We met the cutest lil 4 month old staffy/jack russell cross (trust me, its adorable). His name was Sunny - named so by his owners for his sunny disposition. He was a real crowd favourite.

And so as we sat there devouring our breakfast foccacias i managed to get in a bit of good sketch time...

Another day older - Chase that Ball

Well, its the day after and I must say I'm feeling pretty good. It was a great birthday and i'm feeling pretty good about things. So its back to reality and back to chasing the ball!

Birthday!!! - what do puppies dream of

Its that mixture of excitement and dread that makes up any birthday of mine these days today. The excitement of presents and nice dinners, mixed with the dread of being yet another year older.

I was unwrapping a present this morning with my dogs staring happily up at me. They didn't know what was going on but to them it seemed pretty exciting. I wondered if they knew when they got a year older, and if so what did they wish for as birthday presents.

And so hence this lil illustration that i startedas i was waiting for the car to warm up...lil dog, big present!

My Muses : Sam and Leela

May I introduce you to some of the most special people in my life.
Apart from my girlfriend Alana who I consider my soulmate, there are my two little fluffy buddies, Sam and Leela.
Sam is a 10 year old black and tan kelpie cross, who's a massive mummy's boy. He loves long walks along the beach (ha, actually any walks in general!) and believe there's nothing better in life than a good bone, unless of course that's two good bones (If he can manage to steal Leela's when she's not looking). He's a gentle soul and has the most fascinating characteristic of being the only dog I have ever met who doesn't lick.
Leela is a 4 year old kelpie / border collie cross wh ois definietly daddy's lil girl. There is absolutely nothing she like better than attention, cuddles and lots of em. She has the curious trait of having no bone structure whatsoever, or that's my theory at least. She can collapse down on any surface, in any position and be instantly comfortable!

Puppy Profile: Bella

Meet Bella.
She's a young and energetic boxer with a serious underbite when she smiles and a penchant to act a lil more human than any dog has a right to :). Bella belongs to my mate Jemma and the two share a very close bond. Bella went in a a bit of an operation today and I'm glad to say came through with flying colors.
I did this pick a while ago for Jem when Bella was very sick. Whilst I got the underbite I somehow think the picture doesn't do justice to the personality that Bella seems to exhibit in the many tales I've heard of her (mis)adventures.
My favourite story of Bella consists of the time that Bella decided that droopy boxer jowels could do with a bit of botox - the solution - try and eat a bee, suffer an alergic reaction and presto, no more droopy jowels. Don't ry that one at home pups.
I've been told there is a photo of this. Hopefully one day I'll get the chance to post it here.

Big dog / Little Dog

What is it with little dogs? Why are they so angry? As an owner of two mid sized dogs i often find myself perplexed by the situation as some hyper volatile maltese or terrier runs rings around a somewhat sedate but very bemused Sam.
My dogs are both big babies. Sam has gotta be the most passive dog i've ever met. I often find myself struggling with the mental picture of Sam sitting there wagging his tail as some pint sized ball of furry fury chews of his nose and carves up his ankles.
Don't get me wrong. I love all dogs - i just smile in confusion at the scenes I am sometimes presented with during intercanine exchanges. :)
What is it those pocket monsters are saying that is so heated?

The walk... or is it a social event?

The walk. Dogs love it more than life itself I think. The chance to get out into your neighbourhood, check your messages and leave a few of your own. I can only be so grateful that humans do not feel the urge to check where other humans have peed. That could certainly make for some very uncomfortable social events!
We humans like the walk because its a chance to give us and the dogs some much needed exercise. Mind you Alana walks the dogs a heck of a lot more than me, but I still feel expert enough to comment on this! My pet hate however, is how many times the dogs feel they need to stop to sniff things!...and seriously don't get me started on how much pee one dog can possibly hold on to! They must have bionic bladders.
Do you reckon that dogs in medieval times did the same when they went outdoors with their owners. What about natives in the deepest jungles? Do they take their dogs for a walk? Do they find themself standing there tapping their foot and scratching their top knot as lil rover marks his territory?

Peace Treaty - breaking the language barrier

I sometimes wonder if my dogs understand anything I say. Other times I think they understand far too much. We can all admit that once in awhile we've also seen that quizzical look from our four pawed comapnion that seems just that little too intelligent.
And then I thought...What is a language that both dog and human could both understand? Simple - food! I know for certain that both myself and Alana, and Sam and Leela are all governed by the all consuming nature of our stomachs!

Sick it boys! - I am a petty petty man!

I post regularly on illustration forums and you get your fair share of criticism. Recently I have copped some flack for my puppy illustrations! C'mon folks, leave the dogs alone. Its fine to pick on my warriors and monsters but my pups don't hurt anyone.
Anyway, apparently all my dogs look the same and just stand still all the time. Such was the comment from a very Pokemon influenced artist. And so, what was my very petty comeback? what new height of maturity could I reach with my retort.
I took a certain yellow rabbit looking plush critter and chucked him in a pic with some of my more cheeky and disobedient pups. The result is total carnage as you can see. I particularly like the little puppy playing "stacks on" as he comes over the top to lay the "smackdown".
Ahhh... I'm such a child!

Car pooling - a good chance to sketch

After a hospital visit on Monday, it meant that Tuesday I wan't allowed to drive. So I got a lift to work from my mate Scooter and got to play passenger. I am normally the worst car passenger in the world but I must say that scoot is a pretty good driver. In fact he drove so smoothly i was able to do a bit of sketching on the way into work!

Robopal - Terminator 3 inspiration?

And here, I guess is what we see being the Terminator movie inspiration as I did my sketches. I find myself asking what would a dog terminator be sent back in time for? I like to think this lil robofella has been sent back to try and steal Fido's dinner. Good luck Robomutt!

Comittee Meeting - dogs are smart and stinky!

Watching Sam and Leela in action really makes it hit home exactly how special dog's are, and even more so how smart they are. I sometimes think that the way they are looking at me conveys the thoughts that they are the smart ones and they are just humoring us humans.
I will say one thing though as i sit in my study writing this with Sam keeping me company...dogs are definitelt the smelly ones "struth!" (dying here - thanks Sam!).
This pic here is my little dog society, convening a commitee meeting to discuss the shortage and allocation of bones and toys.

A pleasant distraction - Puppy Force

Terminator 3 was on the other nite so I sat down with the pen and paper. It was an easy enough movie to watch and draw at the same time. Never any fear of missing any crucial plot twists or story elements means you can quite easily focus on some sketching.
I must say I've felt quite motivated of late to churn out some puppy sketches, and this motivation has in turn inspired this blog.
First off that nite I toyed with the idea of a team of puppy superheroes, or Puppy Force as I call them...

The heatwave breaks and the power comes on...

As the Melbourne heatwave started to relent and we got our first evening in 3 nites with some power, I sat down and watched the cricket with a pen and paper in hand.
Sam and Leela were both curled up the couch with my girlfriend, Alana, and everybody sported expressions of relief and the early stages of relaxation.

Inspiration for this blog...

As I've started to accumulate a growing collection of sketches that i've done of puppy characters, I've decided to start a blog dedicated to it. Here i'll post my latest puppy scribbles with some descriptions and stories that may relate.
I'll also probably feature photos of my two muses, Sam and Leela. Sam is a ten year old kelpie cross, and Leela is a four year old short haired border collie/kelpie cross. They are my inspiration for what transpires in most of these sketches and my motivation to draw dogs.
This love of drawing dogs has also been able to assist my in my career as a toy designer, where I have been responsible for doing the dog character designs and branding aesthetics for toys such as Pawphans, and dog brands such as Me Mate and Paw Talk. I have worked on these brands as the senior illustrator for Australian toy company, Moose Enterprise.
I hope any of you dog lovers who may read this will enjoy the pics as much as I enjoyed drawing them.
What you will see in this blog is a collection of sketches that i do in my free time at home, outside of my day job.