Caramel Apple Day as part of the Countdown to Halloween

I'm taking part in the Countdown to Halloween with my October side blog Caramel Apple Day.


(This nice Vincent Price badge is courtesy Countdown to Halloween.)

I'm posting some work there with more specific Halloweenish imagery, mostly stuff like my B movie work, but from monster and horror and sci fi movies exclusively.  Kind of like my own personal Sir Graves Ghastly gallery. Also, for the first time I'm being a little less coy about my sources, so for the most part you'll know what movies I'm using.  London After Midnight, and Carnival of Souls, so far, plus another film I won't name because it predates Caramel Apple Day.

The name is a play on Triple Apple Day, because caramel apples make me think of fall and Halloween.

Speaking of Carnival of Souls, it's a beautiful film, full of really strong images.  Although it's in the public domain, I've never used it as a source before, because its cult status makes it more recognizable than I'd like.  I like my subjects to be more obscure. But as I looked at this film to find an image to use, I also realized that it's almost too damn pretty for me to use. I like my sources sloppier, grottier. Working from Carnival is like working from an Ingres drawing, so delicate, precise and gorgeous.  It gives me a hard time, but I think I may keep at it because it's so damn good looking--trying to pick an image to use is like suffering from your proverbial embarrassment of riches....

Caramel Apple Day

Going to post some Halloween related stuff on a side project blog called Caramel Apple Day all October. Because I like Halloween. There will be a lot of B Movie series type imagery, but from monster movies only, and most will be drawings created for Caramel Apple Day. Enjoy. 

Finally

At least the 2009 season is over. I was watching up till the seventh inning stretch last night, but went to bed after I realized how disheartening it was to be watching a Joba Chamberlain v. Shane Victorino matchup. Those two hot dogs.

Some consolation in knowing lil' Vicky made the last out. I guess.

And another thing: just you wait till next year.

****

In more positive news, a great Halloween weekend. Party in our building on Friday, a full day of scary stuff to do on Saturday, mostly in Prospect Park, with Boo at the Zoo and its Haunted Barn, and the Audobon Center. Then that evening, trick or treating and the parade in Park Slope. This ex-Ohia boy was impressed with the big city trick or treating. And my son, of course, had a blast.

Quick portraits

Boy in Vest, felt tip marker, @16x12in.

The Sunday before Halloween, our building had a little Halloween party out front for both the building's growing kid population and for other kids on the block. I volunteered to draw some Halloween pictures fof kids to color -- vampires, werewolves, skeletons, witches and the like -- but when I sat down one of the older kids asked if I could draw him. Um, sure, I said, and luckily I had some halfway decent drawing chops that day and spent the next couple hours mostly drawing full-length portraits like the one above [sorry about the photo quality, maybe I can reshoot it another day]. It was totally unexpected, and a lot of fun, and the kids were all gracious and serious, and some even took the time to add some pretty serious color to theirs. I wish I'd snapped some more [the one above was left behind, so apparently every kid wasn't so flattered].

I did also end up doing some monster requests, the likes of Chucky and Michael Myers, and one kid asked for a rhino -- and not the Spider-Man badguy. When I used to do drawings for kids at a day camp while I was in college, I'd end up making a couple dozen rainbow unicorns and a few dozen more Rambos. So this was a nice little change of pace, and a challenge.