A bit of insider info on this one: The bike in the painting is one I had as a kid. It was called an "Open Road" (at least that was what it said on the pads). Even though it was yellow and blue and has a really lame name it was the coolest thing on the block. It had two speeds. (That's right two speeds.) I would race other kids on the block and shift to the second speed like I was hitting a "Turbo Boost" button. I loved that bike.
A bit of insider info on me: Until I was about 13-14 years old, I believed I would be visited by an alien. NEWS FLASH: I was a nerd. Yes - I was brainwashed by E.T. and The Greatest American Hero. (I know I'm dating myself here.) Something inside me said, "One day they're going to choose you!" I think somewhere deep inside that kid still exists and relives those dreams through my art. Ok...I'm still a nerd.
First of all...sorry it's been so long since I've posted. I did a full color painting of the image below and never felt like it was finished. I got caught up with a side project and this is the first opportunity I've had to revisit it. With fresh eyes on it, I realized that I'd been trying to turn a mediocre image into a good painting. So I'm going to try this one instead. It's closer to the idea I had in my head and tells more of the story. Maybe too much, I don't know, but I'm going to start painting it and see what emerges.
Possible illustration entry for a gallery show here at work. The basic idea and composition is here. I'm not sure how much evolution is going to happen in the color phase. Here's a sneak peak.
Last night I did a "stream of consciousness" drawing. That's where I don't think about it and just draw whatever flows off the pencil. When I'm completely blocked this is a good way to loosen up. It's also much easier to draw after a day of storyboarding. I like it when my day job serves as a warm up session:)
