Growing up I can remember playing  in my imagination. It was an adventure everyday. Adventures that took me places and help me figure out what direction I wanted to go in life. My imagination gives me hope and allows me to dream big… Our imagination is a gift, a very precious gift one that when not used can be lost to us. We forget how powerful a gift it can be.  So maybe playing outside, or with legos, blocks, action figures, is ok. It is a gift that can push us forward and help us solve complex issues and most importantly make life enjoyable. So dream big, embrace your imagination and let the adventure always move you forward.

This piece is also part of a very special project called the sunday’s comic project. You can find more information on this project here… Sunday’s Comic Project on Face Book.

Keep creating

trav

Behind the table at a con-
One of the greatest things I have learned from doing shows is the importance of interaction. Especially with the kids. There is a reason I do FREE “Quick” (that’s the magic word) sketches. Not masterpieces, just sketches and that is because it allows me to take a moment and talk to people. Especially the kids. They are our future fans, our future creators and our future supporters. There is power in the quick sketch… it is a door way into the imagination of others and the ability to foster communication between creator and fan. I find that these moments are incredibly special.

People have said i should charge for my sketches or not do them at all because i take money opportunities away from other pros (yes, really), but i wont. I can’t, because it takes away from the moment, the opportunity to create an incredible connection. Every year i am given ideas from small and old that range from kittens to princess to ponies to zombie robots to dragons to hippos dressed as storm troopers. The sketch is very very simple, nothing more than a quick doodle, yet it is the smile that I enjoy. The eyes that light up, the laughter of joke, or the fact that a pro took a moment to create something special just for them.

That’s what it is all about. I do do commissions at shows, but they are secondary – the quick free sketch will always come first. Always. I have found that over the years, that sketch has made some wonderful friends, created some beautiful memories and have brought me to tears at times as I learn some of their stories.

I have watched more shy, timid little sweet kids come out their shells, when I ask them what they want me to draw, and then follow up with questions directed just to them. About what they like, what they want to do, and that they are important. I have seen it in adults as well. They stand a little taller with a smile a little broader as they leave the table with a little piece of paper that was their idea and that i just drew.

That is why i do it. It’s not about the sale or the money. That comes on it’s own. It’s about creating a connection, building a relationship and strengthening a bond that in many cases has lasted for 15 years.

If more pros understood the value of a quick 3×3 free sketch- and how it builds a nice connection with an audience, which builds up a fanbase, who are very willing to support the creator that takes a moment just for them.

Some people will not get, some people want to rush it, some people wont wait which means they miss the opportunity for the possibility of a little magic. To those that visit the table and ask…. you already know what the magic is all about.

So all those that have stopped and asked for a sketch (I have done about 20,000 in the last 15 years) I say thank you. Thank you for hanging out with me. For sharing a little bit of you and making me realize that there is much more to being an artist and sitting behind a table than i originally thought. To those that support my art thank you as well…. I know many of my supporters have come from the simple question of “hey would you like a Free sketch?”

There is a lot of power in those words.
Keep creating
trav

The warrior princess (11×14)

A new piece- with a video that talks about the process of inking on vellum. A process I have found that I rather enjoy.  More artwork coming soon and I am also going to add a video section to the site since I am working on several new videos – maybe i will put it in shop talk.

Here’s the video

So there has been rumblings, and they are true. I have a decided to put together a couple of artbooks. I have enough prints to do it, so it will not cut into the Bean, though Bean 4 should start this fall. Yet what kind of art book will be. Well for one, I want it to be fun. I don’t want it to be a standard sketch book, so I am going to take a different approach to it. The piece you see above is a sample page. My goal, was to a create a book that represents all my horizontal prints and at the same time use it to inspire others to dream, to create and in my opinion – just enjoy what life has to offer.

There is no way I can fund it myself, so I going to kickstart it as well. This should happen in Mar. I am looking at the book being about 68 to 72 pages. It will be full color, a very limited run, depending on the kickstarter pledge rewards,  and I will throw a bunch of sketches in the back of the book.  I am still working all the details out, especially the reward systems – though I think one of the tiers will involve custom pencil work.

Keep your eyes peeled and look for more info to come in the next few weeks. I’ll post a few pages here and there and another video or two. I can’t do it without you, your support makes all this happen and I thank you for that.

Keep creating

trav

The Dragon Hunter 11×14

Hunting dragons in my opinion is not always the safest profession. When I sketched this out, I realized that this would be one heck of an adventure, yet I wanted to let the reader imagine the beast for themselves. So I just drew a very big tail.

I enjoy doing these pieces in between Bean pages and one day I will do book of all these prints, or most of them. Right now they are a release for me. They allow me to play in stories that I normally do not and I love the artistic freedom that these pieces give me.

Keep creating-

trav-

The Lovers

11×14

I have found that many people that come to my site for the comic, do not realize that I also do fine art and fantasy art. It’s these pieces that give me a break from the world of the bean and allow me to play with color and tell a story in one panel instead of several. Each art piece is a little bit of my own imagination and the adventures that I see or have seen in life, sprinkled with a bit fantasy. I hope you stay for the magic and keep coming back. There is always something to see here.

trav-

The Great Khan by Rudyard Kipling

11×14

I am a huge fan of the original story of the Jungle Book. Which is darker and far more exciting in my opinion than the Disney version, I still enjoy that version as well. I figured though,  I would do my take on great cat as how I see him. Maybe I will have to do a few more of kiplings characters. It’s been nice to break away from my norm.

trav-

The Journal 17×22

In the last 50 years the art of journals has all but disappeared. Our children will never know our histories or our mistakes. We need to correct that and take a moment in our “busy” lives and write down what was important to us and what did in life. So others might realize that they are not so alone.

Anyways- keep creating

trav

The Dragon Tamer 17×22

No beast is too difficult to tame. Sometimes we just need to get creative on how we choose to tame it. Even the greatest of dragons can be soothed.

Anyways- keep creating

trav

Sailing the Stars 17×22

Winken, Blinken and Nod sailed off in a wooden shoe to catch stars. I love this poem, more as an adult than as a kid. There is something very magical about it. I wanted to share my version of it, how I would sail off to catch stars.

Also I am curious should I keep posting these? Do you look at them and enjoy them?  I never hear anything about them so I do not know if I should continue.

Anyways- keep creating

trav

“Tea with Sophia”