Advice I'd Give My 24-Year-Old Self

 

Jeanette and me, age 24

The part of my recent YouTube video that attracted the most interest was my answer to Andrew’s question about what advice I'd give myself when I was 24.

If I could give my 24-year-old self advice, I’d say: Maintain your independence of vision and work for yourself.

But honestly, I didn’t need that advice back then—I was already on a solid path. I had worked as a background painter for Ralph Bakshi’s renegade animation studio, published my first book, and was about to turn down a job offer from Disney.

I was getting married, moving east, and starting a freelance illustration career. I was still essentially broke, but I was learning a lot, and I would have said to my older self, "Yeah, yeah, I'm already doing what you're saying."

Age 20, with Paul Chadwick and Tom Kinkade, posing for reference

Age 36, working on Dinotopia: The World Beneath

What would have caught my attention at 24 was a glimpse into how dramatically the world would change for artists over the next 40 years because of digital technology. Read the rest at Substack.

What I Learned from Painting this Boat

This blue boat catches my eye as I explore an island in Maine. It's beached at an odd angle above the high tide line. Not far away, a flock of birds gathers on the wires. 

As I paint the picture, I answer your questions about the gouache technique, the overcast light, and the composition. 

But I still wonder about the story of the sailboat, so I ask my friend Clayton Bright, who lives nearby, to explain. He says the boat was used to teach kids to sail. It became obsolete, but the valuable lesson of slowing down and appreciating the present moment—a lesson he learned from his grandmother—remains true.

Read the Q and As on Substack

Which Colors Are Primaries?

Which of these colors are primaries? One of the most basic art questions turns out to be not so simple.

Full story on Substack today.