Point of Exquisite Suspension

02 January 2016

Remembering a Surprise Twenty One Pilots TV Concert

I feel lucky that that I caught the TV broadcast of Twenty One Pilots Blurryface concert on Palladia on New Year's Day!

It was HD and perfect viewing on my wide screen. The show was electrifying!

On top of the mesmerizing stage effects (with both digital graphics and conventional dynamics)the video production effects and editing were excellent.

I hope they re-broadcast the show sometime. I found a concert goer who posted an audience-view video of the concert on Youtube. An official video will most likely be posted sometime soon as as they band ramps up promotions for their Emotional Roadshow Tour in the Summer of 2016. Watch this teaser for that tour which shows some clips from the New Year's Day concert.

At right is a good shot of Tyler and Josh during the opening song Heavy Dirty Soul on the Palladia broadcast.

They performed songs from both Blurryface and Vessel albums.

This included Tear in My Heart, Ride, Car Radio, The Judge, and Ride.

Here's the clip of Heavy Dirty Soul (a big fave of mine) from the show:

I'm not alone in feeling a strong connection with the music of Twenty One Pilots.

The crowds show a remarkable devotion to the dense lyrics and energy of the duo.

Lead singer Tyler Joseph and drummer Josh Dunn both perform separately and together on platforms being held up by the crowd at certain points in the performance.

And it wouldn't be a Twenty One Pilots concert without Josh doing a backflip off the piano. Tyler usually climbs scaffolding at concerts. In this show, he climbed onto the ledge of the balcony to finish a song.

Palladia announcement of Twenty One Pilots Live Blurryface Concert Broadcast

The above announcement gives details of the broadcast. If you click on it, you'll link to search results for it.

Vimeo has a good video of an earlier Twenty One Pilots concert HERE

Most of the songs are from their Vessel album.

Great music and lyrics.

One thing is for sure: Tyler and Josh put their all into their performances. And that makes them fun to watch.

Whether or not I'll be able to attend any of their Emotional Roadshow concerts in 2016, I look forward to any videos and reviews that will be posted of what promises to be more terrific performances.

See my previous post about Twenty One Pilots, "Schizoid Pop Stars".

Tyler's home concert clip:

.@tylerrjoseph's rendition of Baby Shark pic.twitter.com/JDsUnUqjBO
— TØP Updates (@TOPUPDATERS) March 11, 2022

28 December 2015

Photos of My Office

Want to see what the office of a Graphic Artist looks like? Just for fun I've included some photos of my office at the publishing company where I work. ^_^

Disclaimer: My company moved to our current facility just this past March. But I've been slow to decorate the walls. It requires a work order etc. to hang anything. :-/

And here's a post about my previous office (2006-2015)

I try my best to keep it tidy :-)

Sometimes a squirrel will stop and watch me (when he's not scurrying past my window).

I keep the blinds drawn most of the time because my window overlooks the parking lot.
It can be distracting to see people walking by.

I use coffee mugs to hold my pens and pencils.

I keep little knick-knacks on my window sill shelf.

A panorama from the corner.

I like masks as decor. I made both of these.

11 December 2015

Did I Ear You Correctly?

I'm not sure if the dialogue order sequence in the above comic is very clear... But, anyway, I took a photo of my ear with my cell phone, emailed it to myself, then cropped/enhanced it in Photoshop before printing it out and drawing on the photo.

I created the original version of this comic for my Tigrikorn 365 Days of Creativity project in 2011.

At that time, in preparation, I also made ear sketches on my gridlined Moleskine sketchbook below.

Although they all have common characteristics, each person's ear is unique. And, although I often make ear sketches in simplified cartooning style, I always appreciate a well-drawn ear.

29 November 2015

Another "Watching Gallery Watchers" Post


Art Institute of Chicago, Summer 2010. Photo © O. Douglas Jennings. All rights reserved.

I love watching people watching art.

They come to the gallery space with a desire to connect; to connect with the past; to connect with the creative mind of the creator of art they admire.

Each person responds in their own way to the fruits of artistic labor lining the walls or on pedestals throughout the museum.

To each soul, in each mind, the images create respective unique stories.

In the gallery of American Art Works (Gallery 262) where I snapped the photo above, there is a small crowd around the painting "Night Hawks" by Edward Hopper. The picture records a glimpse of the connection several people are having with Hopper's masterpiece.

"Night Hawks" and its admirers was my focus when I took the picture. But I didn't notice, until recently, another gallery watcher connection taking place: on the lower right side of the photo, there is shown a young patron with a less-than-rapturous expression while looking at something off-panel.

I know that gallery and, without checking, I realized what caused the little girl's reaction. I hope it did not cause any bad dreams. I found another of my photos from that same gallery (below) that reveals the painting that hangs in the corner where the child's gaze rests.

It is the famous painting by Alvin Albright depicting the depraved Dorian Gray whose debauchery-caused disfigurement is magically confined to the uncanny canvas.

The painting was featured in the Oscar-winning 1945 movie The Picture of Dorian Gray. Looking like he could be a cast member on the set of The Walking Dead, the painting's subject is quite horrific.

I wonder how long that image lingered in the mind of the young gallery watcher.

22 November 2015

Nature Man

Photo by Doug Jennings 2006

After being inundated with our first snow of the season (breaking a 100 y.o. record), I'm visiting recollections of a warmer time.

Chacha and I came upon this sculpture at a little park while riding our bikes near our home a few years back. We found our selves in the neighboring hamlet of Sleepy Hollow Illinois.

"It is somewhat frightening!!" remarked a friend who saw this photo.

It actually seems less so in person. The colors are very pretty. And it stands about 5ft, 9 inches tall. So it is not too imposing.

Photo by Doug Jennings 2006

I don't know if it is still there. The sign says it was placed there by "Artistic Bits Arts Center & Gallery" along with local corporate sponsors. I had not heard of that Arts Center even though it is cited (through my Google search sources) as being in my town, West Dundee, IL.

At any rate, I admire the mosaic work of the sculpture. It still holds some inspiration for me.

20 November 2015

80s Style Sketch on the Train

On the way back from downtown Chicago on the train one afternoon I took a few sketches of fellow passengers. The guy dozing next to me was a perfect subject.

So, as I am viewing this 80s era drawing from one of my sketchbooks (this must be "80s Week" on my blog, right?), it occurs to me that my sketching this dude as he was sleeping on the train is a bit creepy.

In my defense, this was actually a crowded upper level of the train... and, um.. how could I resist capturing the image of those Reeboks! Anyway, I don't regret preserving the moment for posterity in the interest of recording some of the era's fashion sense. Not shown: The guy had a mullet. Not exactly clear: he also had a tie and suspenders so he must have worked retail or in some such business.

So there you have it. This will be classified as a fashion sketch --which may still seem a bit creepy. But whatever.

17 November 2015

Late 80s Character Sketch Bears Fruit in Making Teaching Aid

The drawing below was of a character to used to introduce comic art lessons in a workbook. A tongue-in-cheek take on the Marvel Character, the Punisher. I created the sketch in '88:

At that time, I couldn't figure out what kind of gun he'd have. I considered a Wacom Pen. But the idea languised for many years.

But then recently, on a Post-it Note, I made a more complete drawing of the dude. I just fabricated a pen-like weapon/blaster with an inkwell on top:

This recent version is one that I used on a Cartooning Worksheet:

Notice how I modified the logo for the worksheet and added a close-up of the character. It's not an entire book. But I'm glad that I finally could use the idea. ^_^

16 November 2015

Elephant in the room during war time...


"He had grown up in a country run by politicians who sent the pilots to man the bombers to kill the babies to make the world safer for children to grow up in." --Ursula K. LeGuin, The Lathe of Heaven, 1971. Art © O. Douglas Jennings

09 November 2015

Observing the little things

07 November 2015

Earthworm Jacques

NOTE: This comic is meant as a compliment! Earthworms are awesome! :-D

UPDATE: An article of relevancy:

"Our experiences of being and having a body are ‘controlled hallucinations’ of a very distinctive kind." - Aeon - Pocket https://t.co/Q51QD6Af5M
— O. Douglas Jennings (@odouglasj) April 3, 2020

23 October 2015

Microbial Man

I sketched this after listening to an interview of a scientist who said the cells in our bodies are 90 percent microbial and only 10 percent human.

So I guess that means our consciousness is riding along on the backs of "plankton". Figuratively speaking, of course. But not by much.

15 October 2015

Illustrating Yoda from 1981 to 2025: Analog to AI

I had gotten an airbrush as a H.S. graduation present and one of my first projects was this Yoda portrait which was a learning experience. It was created by spraying the paint on the illustration board that had been masked with a frisket shape of Yoda. Each section of shading had to have it's own frisket mask. It was so time intensive that in order to make the deadline for the illustration, I decided to do the body as a pencil drawing. And you can see the difference in material between the top of his head and the bottom half. On top I used gouache and on the bottom half of the face I used ink.

Thirty years later, I had abandoned the airburst for color pencil (now one of my favorite art mediums). In that illustration, I depicted Yoda on his native planet Dehgobah standing near his swamp hut.

Yoda on Dehgobah, Color pencil on color paper, 2011.

No, over a decade later, I am experimenting with AI augmentation and generation as I revisit my 1981 Yoda portrait using FOTOR app AI enhancement and Adobe Photoshop AI generation tools to help add color and background.

Digital Enhancement and Colorization of 1981 Airbrush illustration using
FOTOR app and (mostly) Adobe Photoshop.

11 October 2015

Sketchbook spread from days past

Another Meeting Doodle. © O. Douglas Jennings

Believe it or not, I actually can pay attention very well--perhaps even better--at meetings when I sketch or doodle. Faces are my favorite subject. Sometimes I'll make sketches based on people in the meeting. Or, as in the case of the right-hand sketch, I'll create characters. As you can see, I imagined a Star Wars-esque hero with a fro.

05 October 2015

The Waiting Imagination

Ink sketch on color paper with white color pencil highlights and some later shading in Photoshop.
© O. Douglas Jennings. All rights reserved.

Sometimes an image will appear in my mind and I'll try to make a sketch based on that image.

The above sketch, that I made in 2011, is of an image that also came to me with the words "The Waiting Imagination". I can't remember what was going on in my life at the time. But in the back of my consciousness I could sense this, for lack of a better word, entity. Silent, intelligent, amused, it was watching and waiting for me to call it into activity.

Maybe I was feeling tired of my day-to-day routine. Maybe I was wanting an excuse to unleash my creativity. in any case, I feel that this image and drawing was my mind's way of saying, "Your creativity is here. It's ready when you are. Your imagination is on hand to help you in your life."

Notice there are mushrooms in the picture. Since I've never used any hallucinogenics of any kind, I think the mushrooms are symbols to me of ideas and solutions that spring up when one is not looking. It's like the way that mushrooms often grow while we're sleeping, overnight; in the dark.

Have you ever had a problem or puzzle that was unsolvable as you think and think to solve it. Then you tell your self, "l'll just sleep on it." Or, "l'll just put it on the back burner" only to, later, have the solution come to you with little or no effort?

That is the power of the waiting imagination.

01 October 2015

Wet Blanket Disclaimer

Original caption: "This is to no one in particular. I sometimes just get tired of social media glibness."
© O. Douglas Jennings

I posted the above photo on my Instagram because, as I stated, the glibness and snarkiness of so many social media posts --across all platforms-- was wearing on me. That is to say, I was suffering from "Snark Overload".

But, in the interests of not being a "wet blanket", I have to admit I enjoy snappy comebacks and wisecracks in general. I love Groucho Marx, Don Rickles, Oscar Wilde, Mark Twain and all the clever geniuses of the snarky remark. But, to butcher the maxim (Lord, forgive me), "Man does not live by Snark alone..."

Every now and then I tire of "gotcha" moments, witty attacks and jabs which, if we're honest, are too often just an excuse to show off one's wit at the expense of another.

I just realize that I need to balance my diet of snark with plenty of helpings of honest conversation, perceptiveness and good will.

22 September 2015

Sketch Studies: Human Dimorphism

The human form holds for me a non-ending fascination. A particular aspect of my intrigue is that of humanity's gender dimorphism. The differences between male and female humans is much more apparent than many creatures. Bone structure, muscle mass, proportions are all unique to each respective gender.

Sometime you should Google Image search "SETI plaque" to see the illustration of human forms we sent into space to show this unique feature of our species.

15 September 2015

#BackToBasics

Feeling nostalgic for my childhood fascination with a small slate chalkboard (hours of drawing play), I picked up this slate placecard holder and soapstone chalk pencil at Crate and Barrel.

The little slate "pad" is a bit smaller than my iPhone. And the chalk pencil has a simple, almost primal elegance. In these high-tech days of smart devices and social connectivity overload, I relish the tools that made use of my brain as the smart device of choice.

07 September 2015

Vivid Dreams Can Inspire Artists

I've been awake too long to remember my entire dream from last night. But the one image from it that sticks in my mind is of a red car, a convertible, passing me as I drove down the highway. The car was filled, in fact tightly packed, with dogs in the front and back seats. I couldn't even see the driver, there were so many dogs. They were all dark, if not black, and of the greyhound breed. Their thin snouts, legs, tails and feet were sticking out all over. There was more of a narrative to the dream and other things going on but I can't remember them now.

A few years ago I sketched some pictures of dream imagery that I include in this post. They are self explanatory. As I couldn't recall the entire dreams at those times either. But I'm glad I made sketches of those images. Otherwise I probably would have forgotten them. They might provide fodder for stories or comics in the future.


© O. Douglas Jennings. All rights reserved.

2021 UPDATE of my first vivid dream of the New Year:

Dream Character #sketch - Last night I dreamed I was on a kind of immense steel highway disappearing in the distance and THIS guy told me we must hurry to skate along on it for some mission. He looked a bit like Batman. I was his sidekick I think. #flickr https://t.co/C23NNeMBpI pic.twitter.com/2fUlZHpnnQ
— O. Douglas Jennings (@odouglasj) January 2, 2021

Another connection between dreams and art at the Salvador Dali Museum's Dream Tapestry Experience:

31 August 2015

The Joys of Creativity

Don't you hate it when something interrupts your creative flow? But if you like doing art as much as I do, you won't be sidelined for long.

Years ago, I created a little comic strip series I called "Arthur's Pad" (Later I renamed it "Artie's Pad") about a young artist and his imaginary connection to his drawings. Take a look at a sampling of those comic strips HERE.

Another Artie's Pad Comic Strip Sample ^_^

screenshot png file of boy drawing on sidewalk

MORE INFO about Young Adult Novel DRAGON CAMP! - Illustrated by O. Douglas Jennings

24 July 2015

Little Tho'ts on Ant-Man

Caught the latest Marvel Cinematic Universe flick, Ant-Man the other day. Terrifically entertaining movie experience overall. It inspired me to do the sketch, above. Although I'm not going to do a full analysis of the movie here, I will mention how it provoked some thoughts and observations. No spoilers.

It seems to me that the concept of Ant-Man is a version of the age-old wish-fulfillment fantasy of having the power of invisibility. In some of the archival film footage of the original Ant-Man shown in the movie, it appears that an unseen force is beating up enemy soldiers. It's not until the camera zooms in on a tiny figure that the entity is seen to be Ant-Man. Yet to the soldiers who engage the character in battle, it seems like an invisible foe.

Being literally able to fly "under the radar" of perception is a basic feature of the Ant-Man's powers and it was fun for me to vicariously live out that ability as I watched the movie.

The added power of commanding all ants is a bonus. It's ironic that the ants, who from ancient times have been noted for carrying out their duties with no leader (see the Biblical verse, Proverbs 6:6) are being harnessed to fulfill the wishes of Ant-Man. This facet of the character has come under some ridicule --much like Aquaman's ability to communicate with fish. But the Ant-Man film makes good use of his skill over the tiny legions of social insects. I can see how the pseudo-scientific aspects of the use of ants might incite a host of Science Fair projects about ants across the country.

The movie was as well-crafted as I have come to expect from Marvel/Disney films. Themes of super-powers entangled with the military arms race were repeated. I enjoyed the performance of the actors in general. Michael Douglas as Hank Pym was totally engaged in the character and did a great deal to carry the film. I give it two antennae up!

19 June 2015

Counting Crows on a Sticky Note!

A family of crows came to visit my yard yesterday. They spent a lot of time walking around and enjoying the grassy, tree-shaded environs. There were two adults and two "adolescent" crows. I surmised this because the younger crows, although nearly the same size as the adults, were making infantile "feed me" noises and offered wide-open mouths as they badgered the two slightly larger crows to feed them with edible items they found.

One of my fave Twitter feeds about crows

Vienna's #crow personalities

Max Wingholes makes a choice. pic.twitter.com/AO1pVQTjhm
— Vienna City Crows (@city_crows) December 9, 2020

UPDATE 2022 - I saw this sign decor at a Michaels Art Supply Store and can't resist posting it!

"One's Bad, Two's Luck...."

Crows having an evening chat:

Before going to sleep at the roost Crows will hang out and talk. pic.twitter.com/Q7OEElJSGX
— Zero State Reflex (@ZeroStateReflex) December 23, 2024