Sam...

Quick scribble interpretation of my dog Sam as a pup.

Bears and Puppies

Did this sketch for a friend last week.

She had requested the inclusion of some bears. I like it,

I think the bears and puppies play well together :)

Need coffeeee....

Just a really quick scribble this morning...Badly need coffeeeeeeeee.....

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.

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. :)

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.

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... :)

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!

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.