Saturday 21 September 2013

Sak Pase friends and citizens of Shambhala!

Today I was thinking about the fun and eye opening time I had in Haiti.  One of the fun things that happened was that we were living in a little place which had a number of families living in very close quarters nearby, and as I couldn't speak much Creole, I decided to draw a few pictures for the children there.


I drew pictures of fairies, dancers, children riding animals and birds (see right - I will perhaps colour this in and post it on my blog some time), gardens, and mermaids - among other things.  Oh, and a whole lot of Dora the Explorers on request!  (Got pretty good at drawing her by the end.)

They all loved the pictures I drew for them, and I loved drawing the pictures for them.  But what I loved more was watching them play with drawings and create conversations with the drawings, as if they were dolls.  Only one of the little girls had a doll I learned later.

They also had someone else write below the drawings (as they were not old enough to write) that it was them that drew the pictures!

If I am the next Picasso, that may have just devalued the pictures substantially!  I kid of course.  Because there is nothing worth more than the fun of a child.

Anyway, in honour of those kids, and all the fantastic people and places I had the pleasure of knowing, I have done a quick art piece below.

That is all for today.  Just wanted to share.  Hope you are having a great day too!  Feel free to post this on your Facebook wall if you like.  Sak pase is a greeting in Haitian Creole.


Tuesday 17 September 2013

Great Ideas Spread Like Mating Rabbits ... Just saying.



So today has been just awesome.  I've really been seeing "power to the independents" ... whether they are independent writers, artists, comic book creators, musicians, etc!

The Internet has facilitated artists of all types with different things to say, and different ways to say it.  So big it up people.

No more do we need to buy the same old stuff produced by the big corporations.  Now we can choose to digest work with the highest creative merit from every corner of the world, and not necessarily just the work with supposed 'commercial viability'.

In fact, the world is so big that talented independents who would previously die unnoticed with their awesome work can now be commercial viable.  So cheers to that!

I am sure Van Gogh would not have died today with selling just one piece of artwork and having only one ear.

Anyway, I created an artwork above to celebrate this!  And to celebrate you, my favourite people, who support me and make my dreams of being an artist, comic book creator and writer real!

Peace and long live the Kings of Shambhala.

Daniel



Wednesday 11 September 2013

Art piece a day review by Daniel Grant Newton: the first week and a bit

Hey there Shambhalan,

Oh ... my ... goodness.

I have now completed week one and a bit of my art piece a day, and I can tell you, it is harder than I imagined.  Sure, the 'just do a quick drawing, Dan, nobody will notice' excuse has been in my head, but I want to deliver you - one of my favourite people because you follow my blog - the best possible work, and so I can't cheat with a 'that's good enough' drawing.  It's like doing a walk-through cheat in God mode.  That just would not be Zelda of me.

Anyway, here are three digital pieces from my first week and a bit: one spiritual guardian protecting a family from bad spirits, one band rocking the suburbs like Michael Jackson did except that he was talented, and one Goddess of the Ocean overturning a ship like a boss.  You'll notice the Mami Wata piece is a pic I drew back in Haiti, but I coloured it in to look cool and so included it for your visual ecstasy.

All artwork done by Daniel Grant Newton, naturally.  That's me, for those playing at home!