This weekend I've been in bed sick. It's just a cold, but it's really wiped me out.

So I finished on this comic that I started like a year ago.

I saw something like this on the internet once, and of course, I can't find it now, but I wanted to recreate it, based on different poses that Brianne and I have done while reading. Yes, real poses.

It's a simple comic, but it feels nice to be drawing with my tablet again.

Sometimes during class, Brother Brown would disappear. He would return a minute later, with a poster in hand.

The running joke is that he hates those corny motivational posters that hang in classrooms. He encourages the students to take them down, "but only when he isn't looking."

He made me draw on them, and sometimes it was difficult to be funny or clever. But we liked these ones. And as far as I know, they're still hanging in various classrooms in the Smith building.

(The Star Wars one is my favorite.)

I drew this for one of my illustration projects, and I was waiting to make some changes to it before I posted.

Pen, watercolor, and some enhancements in photoshop. 

Last sunday, Brianne wanted to share something with me that she had been reading about in Joseph Smith History. She talked about how Joseph would not be given the plates if he was going to pursue them selfish interests (verse 46).

Then she applied it to her life.

She talked about different things -mentioning guitar specifically- that she was trying  to improve upon, but found herself becoming discouraged. She felt like no matter how much she practiced, she was not getting any better at guitar. 

She read this verse while reading JSH and it hit her; she was not getting any better because she was not using this to glorify God and build His kingdom. She shared this idea with me, and I felt conflicted.

I tried to think about my own life. I thought about my hobbies and talents, and if I was utilizing my skills to glorify God and build the kingdom. But with some things, like drawing, I didn't know how to do that. 

I was troubled because, often, we are given gifts and talents that seem irrelevant to these things that we've been asked to do - "build the kingdom". Things like drawing, soccer, or crafting. They aren't bad things, by any means, but I failed to see the connection.

And then I started to wonder: well, where do we draw the line?

Should we set aside the things that we enjoy doing just because it doesn't glorify God in an obvious way?

I asked Brianne about that, and she didn't have an answer. She only knew how it impacted her life, and she couldn't really give me counsel for these newfound discoveries.

This remained in my mind for the next few days, but I could not for the life of me figure out what the solution might be. I didn't feel like I was pursuing my hobbies to elevate myself above others. There are the things that I honestly enjoy doing, and I didn't want to feel bad about that.

I feel like my answer came on tuesday, when I went to my illustration class.

We discuss gospel topics as far as the subject matter permits, but it doesn't happen all that often.

My professor was giving us a discussion on ethics, and how we are to handle ourselves as businesspeople (if we try our hand as artists after we graduate). He told us about when he was newly graduated, and miserable at his job. It had seemed so appealing at first, but then they asked him to work on projects that he did not feel comfortable with as a Latter-Day Saint.

He was about to quit when he got some advice: "What are you, an idiot? Don't quit your job."

This came from his father-in-law, who proceeded to tell him that as long as this job wasn't harming his testimony, the most important thing here was for him to work to support his family. (He kept his job, but prayed about it, and within two weeks, he had a new job.)

This is getting a little off topic, but the point is that my teacher said that we don't always have to use our talents to address gospel themes explicitly. Every thing I draw doesn't have to be a picture of Christ. Every song I play on the guitar or piano doesn't need to "testify" of Him, in so many words. 

This isn't to say that we disregard the Savior completely when we use our talents. I feel like trying to improve ourselves in the different ways that He has blessed us is a good way to honor him, so long as we are not doing it for selfish gain.

It was such a beautiful moment when my question was inadvertently answered through the words and experiences of my teacher. 

Later on, Brianne and I found this talk by Dallin H. Oaks, and we discussed it.

We hadn't taken into account that there are both spiritual gifts, and normal gifts. They are different for everyone. 

Obviously, drawing is not a spiritual gift for me. I am no Carl Bloch, and I'm ok with that. But as long as I still remain faithful and true to covenants that I've made, then I don't need to feel bad about drawing Disney characters all the time. I don't need to play hymns every time I sit down to play the guitar, but I can use it to encourage bonding and reach out to others, which is another form of "building the kingdom".

Whatever your talents are, you can decide what to do with them. You don't need to feel like a failure because you enjoy doing something that God gave you the skill set for. Just remember that some are meant to be spiritual gifts that uplift others and bring us closer to our Heavenly Father. 

It's up to you.

In Illustration class, my teacher pulled a fast one on us and introduced an "Art Test". We thought we were only going to have one more project before the end of semester, and I was relieved.

We can choose our project, so I planned it out carefully. I would have plenty of time to work on it without getting stressed or overwhelmed. Sounds great, right?

Nope.

He told us about this Art Test last tuesday, and it was due yesterday, so it really threw my plans for a loop. 

We had to pretend like we were applying to a studio and we had to choose from three different assignments: character design, environment design, or user interface design.

This test was for a game called Agent 8. We were given a brief description for each character, and our teacher told us that he wasn't going to help us at all. We were on our own. Agent 8 is an octopus, apparently. He has a communications officer named Kaylie, and I wanted to draw her.

This was my first time working with a texture, and I thought it was fun. It can get busy though, so I'll have to be mindful of that for the future. 

I don't know why, I just really wanted her to have purple hair. 

I'm in an Intro to Illustration class this semester and I'm really enjoying it.

I think my school has an...interesting way of going about things, but I'm not required to have a minor for my major. I think it's because I have an emphasis? I don't know, and I'm not going to ask for a minor.

I had been working towards a minor (which is really two "clusters", at my school. See what I mean? Don't ask.) in art, and now that I don't have to formally take these classes, it is so nice.

I often overhear other people in my class talk about how much they dislike it because it's time consuming or whatever they choose to complain about, and I have never felt that way. 

But then again, no one is making me take this class. It's fun being the only non-art major in there, and I have this great group of friends. We all sit at the same table and on some weekends, we draw while we watch movies.

This is how learning should be, and I feel bad for the other people in my class who feel like this is just another stupid obligation. 

I love love love our professor. I've signed up to take Entertainment Illustration in the fall, and then he will be teaching an Animation class in the winter. I'm trying to make plans so I can stay over the break and take that class from him, because yes please.

He'll probably be so tired of seeing me three semesters in a row, haha.

We've had some cool assignments, and I realized that I haven't posted any of them.

The first two were for this "Master Copy" assignment, where we had to copy an original piece by a famous artist. I chose JC Leyendecker.

An advantage that almost all of the art major have is that they've taken a media experimentation class, so they've had much more exposure to different mediums. 

This was my first time working with charcoal, and I was extremely nervous about it, but I'm actually proud of how it turned out.

The last piece is for a book cover project. I did mine on Everything is Illuminated because it is wonderful.

We just finished another project, which I will post soon. I just wanted to add one more thing that my teacher suggested to me.

I don't even know where to start to explain the last few weeks, so I took these pictures off of instagram and I'll just go from there.

1. The weather has been very strange. A few weeks ago it was so lovely and everyone was happy, but we've had some thunder storms and humidity and power outages. And a LOT of wind. I never know how to get dressed for the day.

2. This Mario background is painted on a local game store, and I've always wanted to take a picture in front of it. Check that off my list.

3. This was my finished charcoal piece for my illustration project, where we had to copy an original illustration. Mine was by JC Leyendecker. I'm really happy with it, considering I am not familiar with charcoal at all.

4. One time when I taught, my boss let me borrow one of his bowties. The class really enjoyed it. Also they are so difficult to tie!!!

5. Constantly in awe of the gorgeous scenery here wowowow.

6. Last friday was a bad bad day, so Chris, Brianne, and I all went to Mesa Falls. It was beautiful, but the mosquitos were a nightmare, and we left sooner than we wanted to. I'm still scratching.

7. Our manager's dog had puppies and we go over to play with them sometimes. They're so saccharine, it makes me melt inside.

Brianne, sick on my grandma's bathroom on moving day.

An unexpected hailstorm.

Our friends and local heroes, Midas Whale.

Brianne doing yoga to stay awake while reading scriptures.

We live across the street from the Park and it's lovely.

A replication of an original piece for an upcoming illustration assignment.

Wow, has the first week of school been crazy! I was talking to Brianne and Chris about how it feels like we've been here for so long. Usually it takes a few days to adjust to Idaho again, but there was something different about this time.

I hardly know where to begin. There's so much, so I'll have to condense it all. But I will say that I'm really excited and eagerly anticipating this semester's events. 

I really really like my professors. I think I'm about done with foundation courses, (give or take a religion class) so I'm in the big leagues. It's scary. But fun. Really fun, because naturally, it's more focused on my interests. 

My grammar teacher looks like Gregory Peck, with the diction of Tim Gunn. He's so great, and he has a lot of feelings about language. I often feel like I'm in a Mandarin class, because I understand the discussion about 28% of the time. I'm nervous about that, but I still have a good time.

My head drawing teacher is an interesting guy. I think he's one of those people who has a crazy thought train going in his mind, at all times, and it gets us on some unrelated topics during class. He has a lot of feelings in general. This has to be my least favorite class out of the semester, but only because figure drawing chair/"desks" are the most uncomfortable thing in this world.

I really really like my illustration teacher. He's got a lot of feelings about art too, and has got this great energy. He's so entertaining, but I feel like he will be a good resource and you won't be afraid to ask him for help. I've really enjoyed our time in there so far, and am excited about our assignments.

My last teacher is for lit. analysis and interpretation. He's a soft spoken older guy, but he's got a very interesting outlook on teaching, and I really have appreciated what he's done. He wants to make our class a safe place where we feel like we can contribute any comment, and just go with it. He also wants us to question everything - even the things that he says and does - so we can understand things for ourselves. And not live according to the "Ophelia Syndrome", if you will.

Our ward seems really great and the leadership is energetic and sincere. In past wards, people often talk about how they wanted to approach something a different way, but from what I can tell, these people are going to put it into action. I love that. 

I just got called to be piano player, and found out that two friends from my softball team last year are in my ward. We're all going to be buddies. I think I'm going to softball tryouts later this week, and hopefully yoga classes start up again soon. The farmer's market comes back early May, and the weather has slowly been getting warmer. I'm just really excited about a lot of things. 

You know when your friends are getting into serious relationships and you're just sitting there watching Disney movies? That's the stage of life I'm in right now.

I drew this yesterday after I took Oliver for a walk. I like taking him - scratch that - I like the thought of taking Oliver for a walk.
I imagine us strutting down the pathway and him curiously observing the ducks in the stream as a gentle breeze causes my hair to dance. Then I throw my head back and chuckle to myself. Birds overhead whistle a sanguine rendition of "You Make My Dreams" by Hall & Oates. Life is delightful.

But instead, I came home and made a list of all the annoying crap he does that makes these walks such chore for me. Among them, is the fact that he's got this hidden strength that defies  physics and all other reason. He's an 11 pound Paris Hilton purse dog, for crying out loud. But I spend a good part of my time dragging and tugging because he wants to smell every living organism on this planet. And yet, I love him so much. I don't know why.

Sacrament sketch - 3/3/13

Sometimes I draw the congregation in the 30-40ish minutes that I have during sacrament meeting at church.
I've been thinking of posting these as like, a series or something. I like to do them but I feel like it could get repetitive for everyone else. I dunno. I'll think about it.
Man I need to work on lines.