1/30 Zion drawing- spying on deer

One of the first evenings I was in Zion park, my wife and I were heading out to hike some nearby trail when we noticed a family all crouched behind a fallen log. They were wildly taking pictures of these deer in the woods as though the deer were Hollywood movie stars. I could help but wonder if this was thier first time seeing wildlife up this close. It was funny to see thier excitement and watch then connecting with the park this way. 

...well that didn't last very long....

Not even a week into this challenge and I'm already unmotivated. I know that getting into a habit takes effort and pushing through those times you don't want to do it but here's the thing.  The underlining reason I was doing this challenge was to get myself into the habit of drawing everyday. As I started drawing from the prompts I found I kept asking myself "is this helping me get to where I want to go?" No was my daily response. Yes it was helping me sketch everyday but my biggest pressing project is the Zion residency coming up in March 2015. 

That got me thinking that maybe I should switch gears and focus on drawing my images for that project instead of just random sketches. So now here is my new challenge to myself, 30 drawings in 30 days for my Zion residency. Each day (hopefully) I will post a new drawing for my project, jump-starting me into the carving phase sooner, so that hopefully I can reach my goal of having all my prints printed before January 2015. That gives me 3 months! 

So here I go! I got up this morning and cut all of my Sintra for my prints so that I had the boards all ready to go. And here they are...

10- 8x10

10- 11x14

5- 16x20

5- 18x24

A total of 30 images for my residency show. So let the 30 day Zion residency challenge begin! 

Oh p.s. If your following me or happen to see what I'm working on, leave a comment or share this with others. I like to think that you all are enjoying what I'm doing but it's nice to get some interaction. It will also hold me more accountable if I knew others were watching me and expecting me to get a drawing done everyday. Thanks! 

Day 3/30 drawing challenge

Day 3: an evil monster. 

I thought that after creating a monster from my head one day it would be easier the next. Not really true. But here it is, my evil brain-sucking monster. 

2/30 drawing challenge

Day 2's challenge: a good monster. 

After not drawing out of my head for some time, this drawing was a challenge. 

I don't know the name of this monter but if the Wicked Witch of the West should of had him. He looks more loyal then flying monkeys. 

Day 1/30. Drawing challenge

To get started I just googled "30 day drawing challenge" to find a list of 30 drawing ideas. Some of them seemed pretty boring and unimaginative but soon I found one that seemed to be overall interesting. 

I'm not sure who created this list, but if it was you, thanks for the inspiration. 

Day 1: self portrait. 

The summer slump and my new resolve!

School starts up in a week. Even though I graduated my body clock still runs on the 3 month segments of time between semesters and summer. I look back on the summer and realize I have done nothing. No progress was made to move my art career forward and I am disappointed with myself. 

While I've been at work this summer, I've been able to listen to podcasts that I found on iTunes. Two podcasts in particular have been very helpful and motivating for me and I would recomend then to everyone. The first is "Achive your goals podcast with Hal Elrod" Each podcast Hal talks about principals and action steps to setting and reaching your goals. I have learned a ton of stuff and have been overly inspired from what he has taught and something that he constantly emphasizes is doing the daily little things. Taking consistent daily actions to achieve your goals. This constant reminder helped me realize that I wasn't working on my goals of being a productive working artist as often as I should, and in order to take my art to the next level I need to be working every day on something. 

The other podcast I listen to is "Artist helping artist podcast." This podcast is pretty great because it really goes in depth with a lot of the marketing and promoting side of the art business. Each episode covers different topics from getting a website, blogging, email lists, promoting your artwork on social media and so much more. I have really found this podcast helpful and inspiring. 

Like I said, these two podcasts are fantastic and if anyone out there is looking for some inspiration or motivation, these are great resources. 

Now my for my action. Inspiration is only good if there is action taken so after having been inspired to do more for my art career I have decided to commit myself to a 30 day drawing challenge to push myself into drawing and sketching more. One thing that Hal talks about in his podcast is accountability. He says to make your goals public and let others know about then. The reason for doing this is if other people are depending on you, you are more likely to follow through. So here it is my public declaration that for the next 30 days I am committing myself to drawing everyday.