The House of Dirigibles: The Queen of Dirigibles

The Queen of Dirigibles is the embodiment of what could be… what might be. Ever reaching forward towards the perceived destiny of the House and herself, she sees the challenges of existence merely as obstacles in the way of the next clue on The Path. At certain times this philosophy can be a driving force of power that when spread to the masses, is difficult to match. If there are too many unknowns however, those may be overlooked for the call of The Path may be so strong as to shadow over pitfalls and warning signs, thus causing casualties, or catastrophy.

The House of Derbies: The Ace of Derbies

The Ace of Derbies has found his true calling, being the leader of battle this House. For it is this that he excels in, lives for, and is when he is complete. It is here where he knows he can finally release all that is inside without holding back. Victory is what is at stake, and must be claimed for the House of Derby. Being the Battle Lord is not what the Ace of Derbies does, it is what the Ace of Derbies is, it is all that he is. Without the fight, without the foe to conquer, he is lost.

King of Dirigibles

The King of Dirigibles (also the suicide King of this deck: normally the suicide king is depicted with a knife behind his head. Being the King of Dirigibles, knives would not be very welcome, but tie-down ropes are of abundance.) This King is one who seeks out high adventure, and sees his role as leading by example on living life to the fullest. He is not afraid to get his hands dirty by shirking responsibilities when duties become risky, or difficult. In fact, he almost thrives upon it.

The Jack of Derbies

The House of Derbies:
The Jack of Derbies-
The Jack of Derbies is the one to watch out for. His embodiment of freedom tests the boundaries of the term in every way. Of all the entities in this house, it is the Jack of Derbies that causes the most worry on the battlefield… for both sides.

Steamdeck- the cardback

This is the back of the card deck design.

House of Derbies: Queen of Derbies

The House of Derbies:
The Queen of Derbies:
The Queen of the House of Derbies is one of determination and accomplishing whatever tasks that she believes important enough to be addressed. This Queen has an innate skill for filtering out what must be done from what others believe should be done. This ability starts to filter out into what some may call influence. Whether it is a tether to the other members of the House, or an influence of those seen as a threat to the House this remains yet to be fully explored.

House of Windows: Queen of Windows

The House of Windows: The Queen of Windows

King of Windows

House of Windows:
The house of Windows deals with visions. Visions of the future tense, the present and the past all at the same time. Perceptions, possibilities, mysteries of what is, what was, and what might be are all kept and pursued by the House of Windows.
The King of Windows
The King of Windows is the mapper of possibilities. By passing though to see what has been and what might be, He observes, makes updates, and notations to the Paths of Existence. A history of the universe that is constructed in such a way that the Past and Future interlink in a construct of fantastic proportions to where it is almost... alive.

House of Gears: the numbers

The House of Gears:
the numbers cards

Ace of Gears

The House of Gears:

The Ace of Gears

The Ace of Gears is not a whom but a what. The Ace of Gears was forged from the mind and hands of the King of Gears long ago when the Houses numbered in dozens and the threat of siege was present at every turn. The Ace of Gears is the perfect protecting Knight that the House of Gears has ever produced. Its power is unrivaled; it protects the members of the Royal family as well as those of the entire House, even to the extent of sacrificing itself if necessary. It will never bend; it will never tire, never yield, and never surrender.

The Jack of Gears

The Jack of Gears is a Jack in the truest of terms, relying upon his wits at least as much as upon his knowledge and attention to details to carve out his path. The Jack of Gears is perhaps the only member of the House of Gears to not only recognize chance but welcomes it and at times will embrace it over the known. This may be his way of stepping out from the shadow of the King and defining his own identity. At this time it does not appear to be as much a defection as much as the exploration of abilities and style.

The Queen of Gears

The House of Gears:

The Queen of Gears

Ever noble and steadfast at her true loves side, the Queen of Gears is a vision of honesty, of knowledge, valiance, and confidence. She knows who she is, as much as who she is not. She knows what she has the ability to change, and how far that ability can reach. The Queen of Gears, though ruling at her Kings side, is at no means a step down in power, in the eyes of the House of Gears, or any other House. She is Queen.

The King of Gears

To keep myself busy in the lonely of the night, I have started a project of designing and illustrating a deck of cards. These will be a Steampunk deck of playing cards.

The House of Gears

The King of Gears

The master of the construct; whether it is through sculpture, or through schematic drawings. It is the thrill of the build, the unlocking of the world’s mysteries through the assembly of what his hands and mind can provide that have made him a wise and knowledgeable king. He rules through balance, law, order, and justice. There are those who say that he sees with his hands, that the elements of the build themselves can speak to him.

Sketchbook Project 2011

click on the title of this post and it will take you to my sketchbook entries for SKETCHBOOK PROJECT 2011. You can also check other artists, other artists with my topic, ... you'd be home by now, and lots of other topics. Wonderful and wondrous works by a lot of great people.

Red Door Drawing Group January 1st, 2011

January 1st, 2011... What a fun way to spend an evening. Red Door Drawing group. You should come and sit in on some sessions if you are in the area.

more pages from the drawing book done while at my parents house for Christmas. I am trading drawings with my cousin... and I am behind. I got his in the mail yesterday. So these will be in the mail this weekend off to Ben. Thanks bunches Ben, I love what you sent me. Way cool stuff!!!

drawings done while I was off on Holiday at my parents house.

My True Love Gave To Me

Lee Ann and her Mother Ann Duckett the Summer/ fall of 98?

On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me… yeah, that one really stings a bit. Christmas songs, especially the “Seasonal” songs, the ones about sipping hot cocoa nestled by the fire, walking down the lane together, stealing that winter kiss, giggling like young first loves. It brings back so many wonderful memories.

Our first kiss, that evening there was just magic in the air. I could just feel something special was floating around. I got showered and cleaned up. I got shaved, without slashing myself to ribbons, and even got my hair to rest just perfectly after a brushing. Well, I wasn’t about to let this opportunity go unrecognized. This called for some hairspray to set the mood. Set it in perfected stillness, with just a slight bit of bounce and laughing body… you know, that devil may care hold that all the folks on those Mid 20ish fashion ads talk about. That’s what I needed, and I needed it bad. So with all the fashion plate-dom I could muster, I reached for the hairspray and let fly with a whimsical release of atomized hair hold. Oh, the aroma of fresh lemons, a couple of limes, and the ability to kill 99.9% of all household germs on contact, do your magic…

Wait a minute… since when does hairspray reveal a fresh lemony scent? Like an idiot I validate the process with another blast. Hairspray only smells that way one time and one time only, and that my friends is when it isn’t hairspray at all, but good old disinfecting tub and tile bathroom killer Lysol. Oh grand, I have 25 minutes to go and pick up my beloved and I now am a 3D scratch and sniff version of a Scrubbing Bubble. And my hair looks as if it was daintily airbrushed with Turtlewax.

What do I do? Will she notice? WILL SHE NOTICE??? Are you nuts? This is the girl who takes Mensa tests for fun. Will she notice… Why I ought-a… Well what could I do is jump in for a quick and extremely vigorous shampoo. Actually one might describe what occurred as the Viet-Kong caning of all shampoos, with profanity to match. By the time I got out, my hair stood every way but where it was supposed to, I had one red eye from shampoo running into it. Well, I had to keep checking the clock. I resembled the young pro wrestler after his first ever match with the new Chosen TV champ villain, right after the referee wakes back up from a chair to the back of the head.

Needless to say I did not use any hair products this time prior to leaving the house. I picked her up at her house. She looked stunning, she always did. I gave her some flowers; she gave me a hug.

“Well, you certainly smell, clean”, she said with a genuine smile.

“Yeah, well… it’s a new spray I am trying out.”

“Oh.” And she gets in the car.

Great first impression… Nothing weaves a bridge of confidence in a man like exuding the great romantic scent of really clean bathroom grout.

We had a really great dinner out. I honestly don’t remember where we went… Lee Ann would know. Lee Ann would know what we had for dinner. My head is telling me that we went to the Mexican Froo Froo restaurant on the plaza next near the Paper Source. The restaurant is gone now. But it had good food when we were there, and it was fun to go and just look around while you dined. My memory isn’t so good; maybe it was the Lysol to the head that wiped out my long term… um, what was I talking about?

It was late summer. I do remember that. As I dropped her off at the front door to her house, we stood by the front door and talked for what seemed like a few minutes. But it ended up being almost fourty-five minutes. As we said our good nights she leaned forward, I leaned forward and the TV guys are right. I did see fireworks. That girl flat out took my breath away. I think my voice even changed. I tried to say something cool and failed miserably, she giggled and gave me another kiss. I tried to walk away effortlessly; heck I was just trying to walk in a straight line when I fell over the drainpipe. Yep, I Dick Van Dyked it right in the middle of their front yard. I jumped up so fast that she couldn’t even get out an “are you all right?” I had already dusted myself off, waved and was in the car. I didn’t feel what I had landed on until the next morning when I found that my shins and hip, and elbow were all bruised up from the rock garden. I didn’t notice all that night. I didn’t even care the next day.

Months later Lee Ann told me how much that night really meant to her. Twelve and a half years later, I hold that memory so close, so tight that sometimes I can feel a lump in my emotions. Some days it feels like it has been an eternity, some times it feels like she is just out to the Art School and I am waiting for her to come in the door to show me what she has created.

red Door Studio Drawing Session December 4th 2010

The Arctic Luau

"We're Havin' a Heat Wave... A Tropical Heat Wave"

This image came about from some volunteering that I did this Holiday season for the Children's Mercy Hospital. Every year a group from work goes down and helps to decorate the Hospital for the Holidays. This year there was an added challenge. No fire restrictions; no paper, no lights, no hangy downies from the ceiling, no paper snow flakes, and NO KIDDING. So, a lot of hospitals just gave up and didn't decorate this year due to the stringent restrictions. Somehow our leaders found nonflammable decorations, and window markers.

I was asked if I would help decorate by painting window scenes for the Holidays. I agreed.

I asked what should I use as subject matter or stay away from?

1. No Angels... this is a children's hospital, (the whole death thing would be bad)

2. they would like a snow scene.

3. if you do children, or people, you have to do every race/ type/ creed/ handicapped/ etc... so try to steer clear of that.

4. Try to steer clear of specific "religious" iconography. Keep it light. The kids are away from home at the holidays.

5. Animals are always nice.

6. If you can tie in one of the tree decoration themes, that would be great.

Ok, Snow scene, Animals, (make them cute) and tie in the theme of the tree that the windows are near... This is a piece of cake.

What are the tree themes: Luau, and Independence Day. Those were the ones that were fire retardant that were in the volunteer budget..... Snow scene and Luau? Snow scene and Luau! Arctic Luau... why not? So at first I didn't have the penguins because they were south pole and the polar bear was north pole, but... Hey, maybe everybody was on vacation, or as somebody else pointed out... if the bear can wear a hawaiian shirt, then the penguins can be in the picture. Fantasy is fantasy.