resplendent chaos

Grand Daddy Super Fly Brightens Up The Neighborhood

It was a drab foggy day when I took a shortcut through San Francisco's troubled Tenderloin neighborhood. Home to addicts, meth zombies, drunks, cheap worn out prostitutes, drug dealers, homeless, and crazies of all types, the neighborhood isn't the most cheerful of places to venture through.  Even on sunny days, it appears shrouded in shades of grey and hopelessness.  Walking quickly, I suddenly noticed a vivid spotlight of red across the street. My eyes were thirsty for color and joy, so I crossed the street to get a better look.  Strutting, and I mean STRUTTING down the street was an elderly man dressed in a glaring red-orange zoot suit, complete with matching hat.  His tie matched his impeccably two-point folded pocket square, and his blinding white shoes had nary a scuff mark.  When I asked if I could take his photo, he stopped strutting for a few moments and posed for me.  As I was gushing over how much I loved his suit, he stood up a little prouder and his face filled with pride. I couldn't get a smile out of him though. He was way too cool for that. Medium: Acrylic and colored pencil in moleskine.

Springtime Unfurls and Twists Its Way Out of the Darkness

While tree squirrels keep an eye on the occasional wandering human...

Golden Gate Botanical Garden, San Francisco, March 2010.

Sketch of Lindsay Lohan, Milkaholic

When I heard the Lindsay Lohan "Milkaholic" lawsuit, I grabbed the old sketchbook immediately and scrawled this out late at night.  It's the original sketch used for the post over on Gallery of the Absurd. Medium: Graphite on paper.

Run Along Kid, You Bother Me

She stood outside the jazz bar enjoying a cigarette break one late afternoon. Her commanding dignified presence demanded my full attention as I breezed past her on the sidewalk. Suddenly I stopped in my tracks and realized I had to go back for a photo. She had such an air of detached coolness that I was almost too rattled to approach her. When I asked permission for a photograph, her face reflected slight annoyance tempered with flattered surprise. Remaining silent a few moments, she sized me up before finally muttering "sure" and then struck a pose as I fumbled with my camera.  I thanked her and complimented her style, but she shot me a look as if to say "run along kid, you bother me" - which made me like her even more. Medium: acrylic and colored pencil in moleskine.