My secret passion, Biology!

I have a fascination with biology and how things work. Maybe that is what drove my interest in animation. One of my most favorite classes in High School (besides art class) was Biology class. Where most students went "Eeeeeewww! Gross" I was endlessly fascinated with the body and it's inner workings. I still watch a lot of nature programs today. Where most folks watch the thousands of boring Crime Dramas and "Spoiled Yappy Housewives of Some California Rich Place I Don't Give a Shit About", I sit and watch a nature video about Lions or Hyenas or whales. Oh, of course I still like my Project Runway, but even that still has some tiny bit of educational value to it. I love biology and I even went to that traveling exhibit "Bodies" that was around once. That was cool!

I found this show that is apparently on in the UK and aired on PBS. I watched it on YouTube cause I didn't even know it was on till I stumbled on it. I guess it might be sort of graphic for most Americans to stomach, with our notoriously weak viewing stomachs and all. But it is very educational and I found it awesome! It is a show that documents dissections of various large animals - all the way up to a couple of huge whales! Now before all the animal people start screaming, these animals all died BEFORE they started their dissections and they where given permission to film. Often veterinary scientists are allowed to preform autopsy not only to determine cause of death in the deceased animal, but also for educational value so we can better understand the animals. Especially when a dead whale washes up on a beach, or a rare species of shark is caught in a net or washes up. These kinds of things go on all the time. Yes it is sad that the individual animal died, but it is better to learn from it so perhaps we can aide their species in the future.

It is fascinating to learn about the biology of these animals, and how it also relates to our own bodies. Most mammals are not that far off from us. It is also great to learn about the evolutionary chain, whether your a Creationist or a Darwin fan either way. I'm a Darwin fan btw ... but enough of that. I will say, it is really a cool show I didn't even know was on. And I learned some neat stuff. Like Hippos are actually related to Whales. So I picked out some of my favorite vids. I do have to give a disclaimer tho for the folks who don't like to see dead things or dissection. It can be considered "Gross" to those type of people, so consider yourself forewarned, if you don't like that sort of thing, it would be best not to view it. But please! Do NOT go bleating & crying to the YouTube authorities and try to get these pulled down.We need more knowledge in this world, not more ignorance.

SPERM WHALE

LION & TIGER

GREAT WHITE SHARK

RACEHORCE

CASSOWARY BIRD

Why is this important to art and animation? Well I will tell you, it is critical for an artist to have some sense of anatomy and basic biology in order to be an effective artist. One that does not have realistic concepts of anatomy and biology will never be as successful as one that does. Now in the world of animation cartoonists twist and contort anatomy in every impossible way, so why does a cartoonist need to know biology and anatomy? Because in order to be able to twist and contort the real into the unreal, you must first have an understanding of the real. Animators need to know what a very basic skeleton consists of, and where the joints should be. You should be able to visualize what the musculature of your creature (cartoon or not) should be. What is's physics are and how basic physics apply into it's world. All that boring stuff you needed to learn in high school (and/or college), you should have stayed awake for because it is important whether you know it or not.

These days you don't have to spend hours upon hours in classes or digging thru books like we did in the old days. Turn on your TV (if you have one) and watch a nature show, or watch clips on Youtube. Better yet, go to your local zoo! If you can find time to go during the off-hours and during weekdays they usually aren't so crowded with visitors and kids. Study the creatures, make lots of sketches, realistic ones, as real as you can make them. I had to do similar exercises in Art College. And you know what, I learned a lot from those lessons - so yeh, art college was not a waste.

So my art lesson is; pick your most favorite animal. And it has to be one that is not extinct (no dinosaurs). Learn everything you can about it. Learn about it's insides, it's bones it's muscles. it's guts. Learn about how it relates to the natural world, is it a predator or is it prey? (If it's a human we are classified as predators btw....) How does it effect the food chain?

Disney and Warner Bros both favor artists how know their biology and anatomy well. While they are in the business of making the unreal out of the real world, they like to see someone who understands the real world. So, study your biology and anatomy and you will become a much better artist overall.

Back to this blog - and DeviantArt page link here

Wow it's been ages since I posted in here.

I've been very bust at work taking classes to move up a pat grade or too. And on the side I have been working on other various projects. I guess my webcomic kind of fell by the wayside a bit. Oh well, it is kind of a for fun thing anyway.

My tax return came in for this year and I got enough to purchase the tool I have always wanted for a very long time - a Wacom Cintiq 12WX! Now I will probably find it easier to create things digitally, work on my webcomics faster, colorize them and stuff. I will like this very much! Hopefully it might put me back in the drawing mood again and I'll re-pick up my web-comic and various projects.

I'm also working on other various things here and there. Like I got this brilliant spark of inspiration to build a fancy dress. I am multi-talented that way - althought I am not a tailor nor a seemstress, I am teaching myself how to modify a dress to make this costume/dress thing. It will be intended to be a costume as well as an elegant dress you could wear on a night out. We will see how it goes.

I find it odd that a lot of artists in my bracket - Cartoon Illustrators / Animators don't take on such projects, nor seek work as airplane mechanics as an alternative career course in their lives. I can also sculpt things - I have done a major project for the City of Seattle. In this hellachious job market and shitty economy, I would hope that my fellow artists and animator people have found work. Often work becomes super scarce to nill in these times. And the only types who have jobs are the "old dogs" who created their own jobs. And most "work" is temp positions, contract work, or Intern work. Beware of internship work! There are a lot of companies and places exploiting that right now! Make sure when they decide to take you on as an Intern there is an end-date or a possibility of hire-on at a solid date. Many, many companies right now are gobbling up "free" workers by taking them on as permanent Interns. You don't want to work for free for years and still have that boss lead you on with a carrot-on-a-stick telling you, "It's for the experience...." It's a highly competitive world, and sometimes a shift in career path is what is needed to survive.

So - find yourself an alternative profession is the advice I give to art students and other animators. There is absolutely nothing wrong with an animator or cartoon illustrator putting their main profession on the back burner for a while and taking up an alternative full-time job in a total different field. Open up and learn new things! I never dreamed I would work at Boeing ... but I am and I love it and count my lucky stars every day that I go to work. I am training to work up to a higher grade - a Grade 5 position: which can net $30.00 per hour - Full Time. And I have full benefits, 401 K, retirement plan, EVERYTHING. Try finding that in one of those fly by night art shops or animation houses. Most Animation houses only offer contract work, so your only an employee there as long as the project lasts - and no benefits, nothing. The length of the work could last from as little as 1-3 months to a year or 2 (movies take longer). Other places I have been - the work only lasts till they run out of projects for you to work on and then your out the door. Unemployment benefits are not anything to live on and they run out fast! I got so sick and tired of that!!

So now I am at Boeing and I love it. I learn new things - I adjusted to a big corporate environment which teaches me how big business is conducted, and I build things like airplanes. I was a participant at the First Flight of the 787 - I was freezing out on the tarmac on Flight Line in a bright yellow reflective vest directing the crowd where to go. Watching the plane take off, hearing the roar of it's engines was truly out of this world. And that was a world wide breaking event.

I still have my artwork, my cartooning illustration knack in me. And a knack for animation. But it's just a hobby now. I make good money at Boeing - which is a career job. I still have yet to be proven that animation is a career. I haven't seen it yet ... Besides - I'm more of an illustrator than an animator anyway.

Here's a picture I drew just to add some artwork to this blog. It's a lich character I made up - Lich from World of Warcraft: