Day 8 – Frail
This picture looks a lot darker than I originally thought it was. I swear I’m not depressed or anything. What I really was thinking of at the time was the classic Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. I read the book for my Advanced Placement Literature class I took in high school (AKA English 102).
Frankenstein was probably my favorite book we read for that class. Not because it was good–because it was just plain absurd. I’m not saying Frankenstein isn’t worthy of the classic title; I love the story of the mad scientist who makes a monster out of human parts. It’s near and dear to my heart. But Mary had Victor do and say some . . . questionable things in the book. My personal favorite was when Victor thought it was better to lie in bed for three months than go get his wandering monster. Three months! I can’t imagine lying in bed that long. Perhaps long ago, in the time Frankenstein was set, it was common to do that. I know after reading The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman (again, another great story) that they thought some mental illnesses were best treated by lying in bed for long periods of time. But Victor did it willingly, not like the narrator in The Yellow Wallpaper. Really, to me it just felt like an excuse not to do anything about the monster he set loose upon the world. Doesn’t he like, I don’t know, worry that the creature is out there somewhere, probably causing havoc upon some poor town?? I would think (or hope) it would be better to try and get rid of the monster right away if he was that disgusted by it. But I liked Victor because of how absurd he was.
Day 9 – Swing
My parents called me Monkey Face when I was little. Maybe that’s what inspired this one.
I only realize now it would have been better if I gave the monkey a baseball bat. Missed a good pun ):
Day 10 – Pattern
Once upon a time, in a high school art class long ago, we did a project on Zentangles. Zentangles are certain patterns you can follow (they range from stupid easy to seriously hard) to make anything look fancy. I really liked doing it so much. And they came in handy.
For my Pre-AP Language class I took at the same time, we had to make a picture book based on the ever-famous Julius Caesar by Shakespeare. This isn’t the first time a teacher had wanted us to make a picture book for a Shakespeare story (first time it was Romeo and Juliet). Being the overachiever I unfortunately am, I went a little above and beyond with the picture book. While most kids just drew one picture, simple text pages, I crafted this entire picture book that required hours at home that I didn’t have, yet somehow I got it done barely. And Zentangles were my main weapon of choice. And, if you’ve ever done Zentangles, you know they take a lot of time.
I mostly used Zentangles for Julius Peacock; you know, the dictator that rules all the birds of the Kingdom. Julius Peacock was my little book. I’ve attached a picture of the cover below.
I still think it looks good. So, when I saw the prompt ‘Pattern,’ I thought back to that project and decided to go back to my Zentangle days and do a representation of my old character Julius Peacock. Probably not my best choice. I was busy that day and Zentangles take a long, long time. It’s not perfect, nor is it perfectly centered on the page, but it looks good enough.
Day 11 – Snow
In contrast with my Pattern drawing, this picture probably took me two minutes.
Day 12 – Dragon
Ever since the beginning of Inktober and I reviewed the prompts, I worried the most about this one.
Dragons are really hard to draw. At least for me. I have some friends that can whip out these super detailed dragon drawings without even blinking an eye. I even have one friend who sculpted my mom a little dragon sculpture, which we still have at our house. I’ awed at their ability. I have no such talent. I love dragons, but they might just be one of my least favorite monsters to draw.
I wanted to draw a detailed dragon anyway, but decided against it. I know I draw better cartoons–so I decided to go with what I was comfortable drawing. Some day I’ll be able to draw the realistic dragon of my dreams–just watch.
Day 13 – Ash
My mom said Mount Saint Helens. So I drew a volcano. Not my best, but I was watching Halloween Wars at the same time. We’ll blame that.
Day 14 – Overgrown
Halloween was on my mind this day. So we drew something Halloween-y.
See you on the 21st!
- Bailey