define('DISALLOW_FILE_EDIT', true); define('DISALLOW_FILE_MODS', true); being creative – Gary Whitley Illustration https://www.gary-whitley.com Creating art that swims, soars and roars. Thu, 12 Sep 2019 17:57:39 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=5.0.3 https://i1.wp.com/www.gary-whitley.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/whitleyWeb-logoT.gif?fit=32%2C32&ssl=1 being creative – Gary Whitley Illustration https://www.gary-whitley.com 32 32 141942431 https://www.gary-whitley.com/wp-content/plugins/squirrly-seo/view/css/feed.css
Four great quotes on aging creatively. https://www.gary-whitley.com/four-great-quotes-on-aging-creatively/ https://www.gary-whitley.com/four-great-quotes-on-aging-creatively/#respond Thu, 01 Nov 2018 18:46:26 +0000 http://www.gary-whitley.com/?p=1050
Old violinist. Pastel. Gary Whitley,
Old violinist.

Here are some of my favorite quotes on getting older as an artist. No matter the age we can live creatively, joyfully and with a sense of humor!

“I have no age when I walk into my studio. Age gets left behind out there, along with the dirty dishes and the dust balls.”

–Cathy Fink

“I’m now at the age where I’ve got to prove

that I’m just as good as I never was. “

–Rex Harrison

“Only uncomfortable chairs become antiques; 

the comfortable ones wear out.”

–Bruce M. Miller

“You can live to be a hundred if you give up all the things that make you want to live to be a hundred. “

–Woody Allen

 

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]]> https://www.gary-whitley.com/four-great-quotes-on-aging-creatively/feed/ 0 1050 Computers And Creativity. https://www.gary-whitley.com/computers-and-creativity/ https://www.gary-whitley.com/computers-and-creativity/#respond Thu, 11 Oct 2018 18:21:35 +0000 http://www.gary-whitley.com/?p=1002 Computers and creativity often go hand in hand but think about this…


Computers and creativity by Gary Whitley


“If automobiles had followed the same development cycle as the computer,

a Rolls-Royce would today cost $100,

get a million miles per gallon,

and explode once a year, killing everyone inside.”

–Robert Cringely


Dead Computer by Gary Whitley

Computers. Sometimes we love them and sometimes we hate them, but they are almost everywhere and mostly unavoidable.

For artists when it comes to computers and creativity, it has made many menial, repetitive tasks easier and opened up a world of possibilities for inspiration and experimentation. We can tweak, manipulate, retouch, colorize, filter, erase, save and delete our creation over and over until we get it just the way we want it. I still do much of my art traditionally with paint and brush, but once scanned I can change many things without repainting the original piece.

If you want a trip down computing memory lane look at this infographic on how they have changed the world at:

https://www.business2community.com/infographics/computers-changed-world-infographic-01612346

Even with their ever-increasing power they are still just a tool that can be used, misused or overused by us all:

“Computers let you make more mistakes faster than any other invention in human history, with the possible exceptions of handguns and tequila.”

–Anonymous

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]]> https://www.gary-whitley.com/computers-and-creativity/feed/ 0 1002 Effort. A big little word. https://www.gary-whitley.com/effort-a-big-little-word/ https://www.gary-whitley.com/effort-a-big-little-word/#comments Wed, 03 Oct 2018 18:26:53 +0000 http://www.gary-whitley.com/?p=986  

Effort in art by Gary Whitley.
How it feels with some projects.

“Effort is a commitment to seeing a task through to the end, not just until you get tired of it.”

—Author unknown

“Effort only fully releases its reward after a person refuses to quit.”

—Napoleon Hill

“Put the uncommon effort into the common task… make it large by doing it in a great way.”

—Orison Swett Marden

I am fortunate to get paid for doing what I love. I learn something new on every piece of art I do. Sometimes it’s a joyful task, other times it’s a difficult grind. But I keep on learning.

I have to chuckle when people come to me and say “just do me a quick little drawing or painting. It won’t take you very long because you are so good.” I’m good at it because I have put in the effort most of my life to get there. The decades of continuous learning and sketching and painting may make it seem easy to most people but it hasn’t been. The words of my old friend Mike say it best:

“If people knew how hard I worked to achieve my mastery, it wouldn’t seem so wonderful after all.”

—Michelangelo

Mike was always a sourpuss, maybe partly because he hated his full name—Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni. He was a bit of a recluse, usually forgot to eat, and often slept in his clothes and boots, but I think he did pretty well for himself.

 

Effort becomes success.

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]]> https://www.gary-whitley.com/effort-a-big-little-word/feed/ 1 986 The portrait creatively done. https://www.gary-whitley.com/the-portrait-creatively-done/ https://www.gary-whitley.com/the-portrait-creatively-done/#comments Wed, 19 Sep 2018 20:16:15 +0000 http://www.gary-whitley.com/?p=954

Beaver family portrait by Gary Whitley

“I tell my customers, ‘If it’s a photographic likeness you want, you need to go to a photographer.’ I’ve never had a customer walk away when I say these words.”

—Brenda Behr

This is a portrait I did of my daughter and her family a couple of years ago. They wanted something different for a family portrait so they are all painted as greek gods and goddesses. Well, except for the dog—he’s just a knucklehead.

The funny thing is the process started with a frame. They had a really nice picture frame but didn’t like the print that was in it so I painted this.

On top left is my daughter as Aphrodite – Roman name: Venus. Top right is my son-in-law as Ares – Roman name: Mars. Bottom right is my granddaughter as Artemis – Roman name: Diana. Bottom middle is their dog Rat as Ratticus Prime. Bottom left is my granddaughter as Athena –  Roman name: Minerva.

Portraits can be tricky sometimes. Like listening to our own recorded voices and thinking it doesn’t sound like us, occasionally the subject thinks it doesn’t capture them. But everyone who knows them sees the painting and recognizes them immediately. That’s where these quotes come from:

-to a sitter’s complaint that his portrait was not a great work of art…
“Perhaps not, but then you can’t call yourself a great work of nature.”

—James Abbott McNeill Whistler

-said while being asked by a woman to do some ‘improvements’ here and there…

“Madam, I am a painter, not a plastic surgeon.”

—Alan Wylie

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]]> https://www.gary-whitley.com/the-portrait-creatively-done/feed/ 4 954 Geeks, nerds and world domination illustrated. https://www.gary-whitley.com/geeks-nerds-and-world-domination-illustrated/ https://www.gary-whitley.com/geeks-nerds-and-world-domination-illustrated/#comments Wed, 05 Sep 2018 17:46:55 +0000 http://www.gary-whitley.com/?p=946 nerds and daredevils illustrated by Gary Whitley.

Dork, dweeb, poindexter, nimrod, geek, techie, nerd. We’ve all probably been called one of those names at some point in our lives. I know I have. I illustrated these geeky nerds for an ad a while ago–before the smart phone by the looks of it. But it still shows quintessential nerdiness. The promotion was for Mentor Graphics and their physical verification system. (only a computer nerd would know what that is.) Some of the text inside read: “It’s an industry filled with technology hellcats, software stunt pilots, silicon soldiers of fortune. The real superheros need to work faster and smarter.” That’s some nerdy nerd stuff alright.

But nerds and geeks run the world. Here is an excerpt from a great article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette entitled Geeks and nerds have taken over the world:

“Bwaahahahaha! That is my sinister world domination laugh. I have been practicing it for over 40 years just waiting for this moment.

The moment when we, the geeks and nerds, would take over the world!

The moment is nigh, as in Bill Nye. At last, it’s the revenge of the … oh, you get the point.

I should point out there are differences between geeks and nerds. Geeks are fanboys and girls; they have a vast knowledge of pop culture and obscure facts related to their particular genres or areas of expertise. There are all kinds of geeks: movie geeks, technology geeks, even food and wine geeks.

Nerds are, well, nerds. The word “nerd” was first used in 1954 and was created by a geek doctor with the name of Seuss. They tend to be brilliant and focused on more academic pursuits, such as math and science, and less focused on social interactions. The word nerd often is described as a four-letter word with a six-figure income.

While geeks and nerds have many differences, they also share many traits and are of the same genus, if not species.

Geeks and nerds have long dominated technology. Nerds build it, and geeks use it. We all use it.

That cellphone you use every minute of every day, your TV, DVD player, computer, Facebook and Twitter, all were nerd-designed. These inventions have created nerd kings living in tech-filled houses built on top of mountains of cash. In each of these houses, a replica of Captain Kirk’s chair sits in the entertainment room, because that is the very first thing rich and powerful nerds do.

Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerberg all likely survived the slings and arrows of outrageous wedgies only to rise up and crush the jocks who mocked and ridiculed them in high school! Because that is the second thing nerds do when they become rich and powerful.“

You can read the rest HERE.

And now to all you nerds out there:

“So you’re a little weird? Work it!

A little different? Own it!

Better to be a nerd than one of the herd!”    

—Mandy Hale

 

“If you like nerds, raise your hand. If you don’t, raise your standards.”     

—Violet Haberdasher

 

While you’re here, check out the rest of my nerdy website. Then please like, comment, follow and share this post!

 

]]> https://www.gary-whitley.com/geeks-nerds-and-world-domination-illustrated/feed/ 2 946 Adventures in Portrait Art; John Wayne. https://www.gary-whitley.com/adventures-in-portrait-art-john-wayne/ https://www.gary-whitley.com/adventures-in-portrait-art-john-wayne/#respond Wed, 22 Aug 2018 19:35:22 +0000 http://www.gary-whitley.com/?p=926  

Portrait art of John Wayne. Pastels on board by Gary Whitley.
The Duke

 

“Life is tough, but it’s tougher if you’re stupid.”

― John Wayne

It’s hard for me to believe The Duke has been gone for almost forty years. He passed on June 11, 1979, but he lives on in his films and his words. I did this pastel portrait art of him a while ago and had forgotten about it until I found a scan of it in on my computer. John Wayne always spoke his mind and the resulting quotes were truly words to live by. These are just a few of them.

“A goal, a love and a dream give you total control over your body and your life.”

― John Wayne

And…

“I never trust a man that doesn’t drink.”

― John Wayne

When he was asked how he wanted to be remembered after such a remarkable career, he said:

“I would like to be remembered, well … the Mexicans have a phrase, “Feo fuerte y formal”. Which means he was ugly, strong and had dignity.”

― John Wayne

Click here for a great article about that phrase and more about John Wayne.

Various public locations are named in honor of Wayne, including the John Wayne Airport in Orange County, California, where a nine-foot bronze statue of him stands at the entrance; the John Wayne Marina for which Wayne bequeathed the land, near Sequim, Washington; John Wayne Elementary School in Brooklyn, New York, which boasts a 38-foot mosaic mural commission by New York artist Knox Martin entitled “John Wayne and the American Frontier”; and a 100-plus-mile trail named the “John Wayne Pioneer Trail” in Washington’s Iron Horse State Park. A larger than life-size bronze statue of Wayne atop a horse was erected at the corner of La Cienega Boulevard and Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills, California, at the former offices of the Great Western Savings and Loan Corporation, for which Wayne had made a number of commercials. In the city of Maricopa, Arizona, part of Arizona State Route 347 is named John Wayne Parkway, which runs through the center of town.

John Wayne was one of a kind; as an actor and as a man. He was larger than life and still is today almost 40 years after his death. I wish I still had the painting but I happen to know an artist who can do another one for me…!

Stay tuned. I will be posting more portrait art in future posts.

While you’re here, check out the rest of my website and my art on the homepage. Then please like, comment, follow and share this post!

#TheDuke

#PortraitArt

]]> https://www.gary-whitley.com/adventures-in-portrait-art-john-wayne/feed/ 0 926 Illustration explained. https://www.gary-whitley.com/illustration-explained/ https://www.gary-whitley.com/illustration-explained/#comments Wed, 15 Aug 2018 18:00:09 +0000 http://www.gary-whitley.com/?p=905 My old shoes. Photo illustration by Gary Whitley
My old shoes

“Illustrators are word people who happen to draw. We work with one foot in a book, the other stuck in a paint pot. Our shoes are a disgrace.”

—Wallace Tripp

Illustration is art. An illustrator is an artist but not all artists are illustrators. Technically, an illustrator specializes in enhancing writing or illuminating concepts by providing a visual image that corresponds to the content of the related text or idea. Illustrations are used in advertisements, greeting cards, posters, books, storyboards, manuals, architectural rendering, business, magazines, shirts, video games, newspapers and billboards.

But in a blog post on Illustration Art there is another well stated opinion I share:

“In my view, there is no inherent difference between art and illustration except the way in which payment to the artist is processed.”

Why did I turn to illustration? I like to get paid. Those art supplies can get expensive! And I need some new shoes…

 

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]]> https://www.gary-whitley.com/illustration-explained/feed/ 1 905 Serendipity. When the magic happens. https://www.gary-whitley.com/serendipity-when-the-magic-happens/ https://www.gary-whitley.com/serendipity-when-the-magic-happens/#respond Wed, 01 Aug 2018 17:17:59 +0000 http://www.gary-whitley.com/?p=893 Serendipity. Being creative.

“We don’t make mistakes, just happy little accidents.”

—Bob Ross

This statement could apply to things as varied as cooking or science or pregnancy.

What Bob is referring to is serendipity. I love that word.

Here’s the Merriam Webster definition of the word:

The occurrence and development of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way.

According to Wikipedia:

Serendipity means an unplanned, fortuitous discovery.

Where did such a great word come from? Wikipedia states:

The term was coined by Horace Walpole in 1754. In a letter he wrote to his friend Horace Mann, Walpole explained an unexpected discovery he had made about a (lost) painting of Bianca Cappello by Giorgio Vasari by reference to a Persian fairy tale, The Three Princes of Serendip. The princes, he told his correspondent, were “always making discoveries, by accidents and sagacity, of things which they were not in quest of”.

The notion of serendipity is a common occurrence throughout the history of scientific innovation. Examples are Alexander Fleming’s accidental discovery of penicillin in 1928, the invention of the microwave oven by Percy Spencer in 1945, and the invention of the Post-it note by Spencer Silver in 1968.

 

i notice you have cheese. Being creative.

Now think about this: Who was the first person curious enough about the solidified yellow mass left in that cow’s stomach bota bag to take a bite and discover cheese?  That’s Serendipity! What would the world be like today without cheese? No cheeseburgers. No pizza. No grilled cheese sandwiches. No mac and cheese. No Brie, or Cheddar or Provolone. It would be a darker world indeed.

 

It shows up in art too.

“The more I draw and write, the more I realize that accidents are a necessary part of any creative act, much more so than logic or wisdom. Sometimes a mistake is the only way of arriving at an original concept, and the history of successful inventions is full of mishaps, serendipity and unintended results.”

—Shaun Tan

Sometimes you have to loosen up, take chances with your work and allow those fantastic boo-boos to happen. I appreciate when some error in a painting turns out to be a brilliant addition to it. The colors blend in a different way; the brush strokes work a special magic; the paint dries in an unexpected texture. There is that moment of wonder with wide eyes and open mouth, thinking “wow, how did that happen?” That’s serendipity.

Serendipity doesn’t show up very often, but if we wait patiently and allow for it to happen we will see it around us in our lives.

“In reality, serendipity accounts for one percent of the blessings we receive in life, work and love. The other 99 percent is due to our efforts.”

—Peter McWilliams

That just makes serendipity more remarkable. Watch it show up for you when you least expect it.

(Bob Ross Fun Fact: Ross spent 20 years in the Air Force and rose to the rank of master sergeant. He held military positions that required him to be, in his own words, “tough” and “mean”, “the guy who makes you scrub the latrine, the guy who makes you make your bed, the guy who screams at you”. Ross decided that if he ever left the military, he would never yell or raise his voice again.)

Please like, share, comment and forward this post to anyone who might enjoy it. Thanks!

 

P.S: I’m once again calling on all Grammar Police and Spelling Wizards to comment on any errors or omissions you may find in any of my posts. It will help make me a better writer, give me a thicker skin and bring a bright smile to your face knowing you have once again rescued the english language from certain annihilation.

]]> https://www.gary-whitley.com/serendipity-when-the-magic-happens/feed/ 0 893 Fear, panic and deadlines. The creative life. https://www.gary-whitley.com/fear-panic-and-deadlines-the-creative-life/ https://www.gary-whitley.com/fear-panic-and-deadlines-the-creative-life/#comments Wed, 25 Jul 2018 17:27:40 +0000 http://www.gary-whitley.com/?p=876 Putting out fires. The creative life. Gary Whitley

Ah, the creative life! What would it be without deadlines, a little fear and some panic? Here are some quotes:

My normal routine is pretty much putting out fires all day.

–Vera Wang

Really, most of us just focus on what’s in front of us. We’re too busy putting out the fires of everyday life.

–Aidan Quinn

Thinking will not overcome fear but action will.

–W. Clement Stone

Fear is stupid. So are regrets.

–Marilyn Monroe

I work best after the deadline has passed, when I’m in a panic.

–Tony Kushner

I don’t like to get too complacent. I like to give myself five panic attacks per project.

–Jessie Buckley

I almost always meet project deadlines. Sometimes the client throws in last minute changes, but that isn’t my fault. I usually ask for more time when that happens so I can do it right and not get sloppy just to meet a deadline. (Where did the term deadline originate? According to Wikipedia: “There is only indirect evidence that the term deadline in the sense of “due date” may be connected with the use of the term in prison camps during the American Civil War, when it referred to a physical line or boundary beyond which prisoners were shot. In fact, the term is no longer found in print by the end of the 19th century, but it soon resurfaces in writing in 1917 as a printing term for “a guideline on the bed of a printing press beyond which text will not print”.  Three years later, the term is found in print in the sense of “time limit” in the closely connected publishing industry, indicating the time after which material would not make it into a newspaper or periodical.”)

I have panicked on a few jobs through the years but I lived to tell about it. Now I have Mister Fire Mouse to do it for me.

And finally:

There cannot be a crisis next week. My schedule is already full.

–Henry Kissinger

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P.S. I’m calling on all Grammar Police and Spelling Wizards to comment on any errors or omissions you may find in any of my posts. It will help make me a better writer, give me a thicker skin and bring a bright smile to your face knowing you have once again rescued the english language from certain annihilation.

]]> https://www.gary-whitley.com/fear-panic-and-deadlines-the-creative-life/feed/ 2 876 What does this have to do with art? About being creative. https://www.gary-whitley.com/what-does-this-have-to-do-with-art-about-being-creative/ https://www.gary-whitley.com/what-does-this-have-to-do-with-art-about-being-creative/#respond Wed, 11 Jul 2018 16:27:41 +0000 http://www.gary-whitley.com/?p=862 Trouble. Gary Whitley. # OhCrap
I should have been painting

“Anytime you see a turtle up on top of a fence post, you know he had some help.”

–Alex Haley

“I not only use all the brains I have, but all that I can borrow.”

–Woodrow Wilson

While on the farm throughout the 1990’s we had cattle, horses and about 40 acres of timber to take care of. We built fences, mowed fields, thinned trees and cut firewood. I also cleared land to make more pasture for rotation. My tractor could do some of it but not all of it. Oftentimes when I needed some extra muscle, my neighbors would loan me some of their heavy equipment. Larger tractors, dozers, backhoes and loaders–Big Boy Toys. I loved running them and seeing the quick results.

Then I was loaned an excavator.

From Wikipedia:

“Excavators (hydraulic) are heavy construction equipment consisting of a boom, dipper (or stick), bucket and cab on a rotating platform known as the “house”. The house sits atop an undercarriage with tracks or wheels. All movement and functions of a hydraulic excavator are accomplished through the use of hydraulic fluid, with hydraulic cylinders and hydraulic motors. Excavators are also called diggers, mechanical shovels, or 360-degree excavators (sometimes abbreviated simply to “360”). Tracked excavators are sometimes called “trackhoes” by analogy to the backhoe.”

However they do not perform well while under water.

 

Track hoe. Gary Whitley
What It should look like in the upright position

It was a Summer Sunday and I was working near a creek filling in a dip from where it used to run before it changed course years before. There were some old downed trees and brush to clear as well.

The vibration of the excavator started to liquify the ground under it. By the time I noticed the earth shaking like a bowl of jello, it was too late. I tried to maneuver my way out and it just made it worse. I reached the bucket out several times and buried it in the still good dirt 30 feet away to pull myself out but that didn’t work either. When I looked down behind me I saw I was now in water. #OhCrap.

I thought I might soon become the reluctant owner of a drowned 20 ton $150,000 paper weight.

By this time some of my friends that had shown up at the house drove out to check on me. I didn’t have to say anything about my dilemma; it was obvious.

They hauled out all the railroad ties and beams and unused fence posts that were in the barn to throw under the tracks as I would rock the machine up. We thought we could build a sort of platform to get it level enough to drive out. When I rocked back it sank right back where it was before. #SinkingFeeling.

I turned the excavator off. We had no more ideas. None except to call King Crane Company on Monday and see if they could lift it out. From the road 200 feet away. I didn’t want to know how much that would cost.

Then someone heard a rumbling up on the hill above us. I knew some neighbors who happened to be loggers had been working up there. But it was Sunday. One of my friends hopped on a quad and drove up to investigate. A half hour went by before he came racing down the hill. About that time I could hear the noise getting louder and louder. Just as he drove up there was a beautiful sight–a D7 Cat crawling through the trees toward us.

They pulled up and sized up the situation. I had to dig out the part of the undercarriage that had a tow loop so they could attach a cable to it. If you look at the first picture you can see a green shirt sleeve, a hand and a shovel handle on the right. That’s me digging it out.

Rescued. D7When we went to pull it out I still had to use the bucket clawing into the ground for more power, but we did it. Thanks to all those friends and that D7 Cat.

I drove the excavator straight up near the barn yard where I could get a water hose to it and washed and scrubbed and hosed it as clean as I could. I never borrowed that excavator again.

I think I should have been painting instead of digging that day.

What does this have to do with being creative or illustration or art again?

As artists (or life in general) we can get stuck on a painting or project or assignment but if we do we can call on our friends to help pull us out of it. They may lend a fresh eye, a new perspective, a creative idea or even a D7 Cat. You just never know.

“I don’t need a friend who changes when I change and who nods when I nod; my shadow does that much better.”

–Plutarch

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P.S. I’m calling on all Grammar Police and Spelling Wizards to comment on any errors or omissions you may find in any of my posts. It will help make me a better writer, give me a thicker skin and bring a bright smile to your face knowing you have once again rescued the english language from certain annihilation.

]]> https://www.gary-whitley.com/what-does-this-have-to-do-with-art-about-being-creative/feed/ 0 862