http://search.deviantart.com/?q=by:virgiliArt&section=today deviantART RSS for by:virgiliArt en-us Copyright 2010, deviantART.com Fri, 01 Jan 2010 09:07:58 PST deviantART.com http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss http://s.deviantart.com/minish/widgets/apple-touch-icon-precomposed.png http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/27516322/ http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/27516322/ Thu, 01 Oct 2009 06:18:32 PDT
Stumped on what to paint, I started doodling a Tyrannosaurus, but it turned into a dragon. Still in progress as I write this, but it may be finished by the time YOU read it. That’s the beautiful time-travel of writing. I am speaking to you from the past.

In nerdy news, I learned that Icecrown Citadel will be a five man fight. This makes me happy, since getting a swipe at Arthas was kind of my reason to start playing the darn game. I used to go as far north in Winterspring or Eastern Plaguelands as I could and look mournfully at the hills, gripping my mace in frustration. “Someday,” I’d mutter under my breath, “you’re going DOWN.”

Since I have had crap luck with raids in the past, learning the Lich King is a five man fight was a good day.

Pandora.com is going to get real tired of me. I’ve kept a browser window open for about three days straight. When I first typed that last sentence, I wrote “I kept a window open for three days” and I realized someone might think I was talking about a real window. But did you? Have computers become so second nature that when you hear or read the word “window” you think of a screen, or the traditional hole in a wall?

I have a lot more to add, but I’m trying to keep these entries down from novel size. Today, I drew WRITE and DRAW. I’ll be working on Tales of Auli, the new revision.

]]> ~virgiliArt http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/27480832/ http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/27480832/ Tue, 29 Sep 2009 05:56:34 PDT
So I returned from my trip to Iowa, where the horizon is visible in every direction, shook off the effects of a long drive, and sat at my workstation with new images floating in my skull. Ready for action. My computer was not ready. It made a halfhearted meep sound when I turned it on and died. I guess it missed me.

Long story short, it cost less to buy a new computer than it would have to repair it, so I did. I lost all my work-in-progress files, my music library, my novel writings. Also all my bookmarked websites (I save these like some people save napkins and little ketchup packets).

On top of the lack of momentum from being bitten by Charlie, this seemed tailor made to crush my creative impulses. I needed a recharge, after a week long cross-country drive.

A few things got me out of my funk. First, I read some books (something that always gives me more energy). I got an email from an Italian asking for advice about what software to use! I saw an inspirational film. But mostly it was the email from out of the blue. If someone in another country values my opinion, I have a duty to keep creating!

Toady's card was DRAW.

]]> ~virgiliArt http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/27463751/ http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/27463751/ Mon, 28 Sep 2009 08:44:05 PDT
You may remember I was bitten by a dog a while ago. He got me again! I was walking around the side of the house to go to work and there he was, with his owner. He was on a leash, but she had her hands full with her kid and stuff from the car, so when he took off after me he just pulled away from her. Something inside you goes all primal when a dog almost as big as you are comes running at you, and I’m betting its the same primal instinct that makes him want to chomp me. No matter how civilized, how rational I try to be, I’m keenly aware that underneath is a caveman who makes split second decisions about whether to run or fight. This time he wanted to run.

The EMT told me that was a bad idea. He said when you start to run from a dog that’s charging you, he (or she) and no longer control the impulse to chase and bite. It wasn’t fair of me to abandon reason and flee, that puts all the responsibility on the dog to be an adult. For those of you with a sarcasm deficiency, I’m not serious. It’s not too much to expect people to control their animals, much like their children.

But what could I expect my neighbor to do? She’s a little lady with a big beast on a leash. Anyways, when Danielle returned home from work she saw a crowd of people in our street. She asked them what was up.

“Some guy got bitten by a dog!”
“He ran FAST! Nearly cleared that fence before he got ‘im.”

This was a relief. It couldn’t have been me, since I run SLOW. However, once she entered the apartment and saw an untouched cup of coffee sitting alone on the counter, she knew something terrible had happened. I never leave coffee un-drunk.

I learned that they don’t stitch dog-bites in the ER. It traps the bacteria I suppose. Instead they scrub the wound and squirt some sterile solution in there to clean it out and prescribe the strongest antibiotics they can. I’m nearly whole again. My leg has a purple scar about 2 inches long on either side, and the flesh on either side of it is stiff and puffy. Gross.

But Sal, you’re an ARTIST. You don’t need your legs for that! Why no update?

I have no excuses. I was a bum. I sat around feeling sorry for myself for a while, then I helped my little brother move into college in freakin’ Iowa. And now I’m back. I have an experiment I’m trying. I wrote tasks on a deck of cards and I’m drawing one every day and doing the task written on the card. Until the task is done, I do nothing else that could distract me. The tasks fall into fall into several categories, including:

WRITE, DRAW, PAINT, BLOG, BUSINESS, and ORGANIZE

Today I pulled BLOG. So I did. That doesn’t mean I’ll update blogs only when I pull the BLOG card, just that when I pull it I HAVE to. I like this system. It puts responsibility on my shoulders without asking me to make decisions. Maybe this way I can circumvent my procrastination or excessive cogitation and cut to the chase. Now that I’m done blogging, it’s time to pull anther card.

WRITE. I’ll see you guys later.

]]> ~virgiliArt http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/26351399/ http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/26351399/ Mon, 03 Aug 2009 04:06:04 PDT
My favorite moment of the con was after the “X-Files” video won “Best Concept” and was screened at the masquerade, a bunch of fans screamed “I WANT TO BELIEVE” in unison. It really made my weekend. I was also amazed at the amount of energy and enthusiasm the presenters and performers had. I found the whole event pretty inspiring.

]]> ~virgiliArt http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/25962715/ http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/25962715/ Wed, 15 Jul 2009 11:44:02 PDT
But when it comes to drawing on the tablet, to recreating the fluid motion of sketching and doodling… I’m in love. Seriously. Check it out if you’re into digital drawing and you have a tablet. It’s really something.

]]> ~virgiliArt http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/25772325/ http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/25772325/ Mon, 06 Jul 2009 11:08:02 PDT While I was there I did some sketches of more goblin/pixie/gnome creatures. Once I finish the con illustrations and "Mister Butterfly", and the storyboard for "Dinosaur War", I should do a series of images of them. It'd be neat to depict a fantastic creature that doesn't have horns or scales.

]]> ~virgiliArt http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/25632957/ http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/25632957/ Mon, 29 Jun 2009 15:46:14 PDT
I got a new commission for nine character poses for a scifi convention, so that's exciting. Although I wanted to focus on "Dinosaur War" storyboards this week, I'm working on the commission first. Fear not, I will complete the storyboards before Friday so I can get the actual comic under way. The To-Do list demands it.

]]> ~virgiliArt http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/25533151/ http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/25533151/ Thu, 25 Jun 2009 06:59:49 PDT
]]> ~virgiliArt http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/25510246/ http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/25510246/ Wed, 24 Jun 2009 05:43:29 PDT
Alien Versus Predator got a nice response. This week I’m doing an original work, so I’m not just a fan-art kind of guy. Next week is going to be very exciting! My to-do list has storyboards for “Dinosaur War”, as well as another finished work.

The weather is really uninspiring! Maybe I should try to get inspiration from it… draw a rainy scene or a mud monster. I didn’t get a lot of sleep last night, so I may be loopy. Still, a mud monster sounds fun.

]]> ~virgiliArt http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/25345745/ http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/25345745/ Tue, 16 Jun 2009 07:09:09 PDT
This work week is half-done already. I set my criteria at “one finished image” and had a client request a piece of art for Tuesday. That work got sent out last night, so now I’m just looking at thirty pages of writing on my to-do list. Most of that is going toward the short story “Suken Anisaria and the Army of a Thousand Eyes”. Since “Suken” is set in the Auli world, I’ve begun a retooling of the Tales of Auli logo, but don’t expect illustrations just yet. Also in the works are scifi comic vignettes, and sketchwork for a miniseries about forest animals.

It looks pretty daunting when I write it out, but never fear readers. I gave myself a deadline, and every week I intend to use the great powers of procrastination to my advantage in the “Salvatore Hat Trick”. It’s a method I learned in high school, where I give myself a deadline in the near future, put off the work, and then use adrenaline to zoom through what I want done. Then the ACTUAL deadline is still a week away and I can fix what needs to be fixed.

]]> ~virgiliArt http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/25108996/ http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/25108996/ Wed, 03 Jun 2009 14:44:23 PDT
I plan on creating character and location reference tools, so be on the lookout for updates in the weeks to come. My goal for this week involves writing 15 pages worth of script and assembling the references I’ll need, be it costumes, expressions, weaponry or props.

]]> ~virgiliArt http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/25050885/ http://virgiliArt.deviantart.com/journal/25050885/ Sun, 31 May 2009 12:27:17 PDT
In the past I’ve hesitated because I didn’t want to relinquish control of my artwork’s presence on the internet to a third party like dA, but maybe I need to be less of a control freak. I spend a lot of time worrying about the legal and business ramifications of my work and less time actually making it, so here’s hoping this new development marks the beginning of a new Golden Age of Artistic Productivity!

In other news, go see Pixar’s new “Up” in theaters. I didn’t spring for the 3D because, well, I’m broke, but the film was terrific.

]]> ~virgiliArt