Elephant Haiku - 1.25.20

Not something that I dabble with lately, but in college and a little beyond even handstands and handstand walking were a good way to pass the time. And so it goes with elephants. Onward and upward, February awaits!

Elephant Haiku 1.20.20

I got a little behind on my #3perweek attempt, but I do like doing these when I get the chance. This one, completed late on MLK Day, is a good place to begin the week. We need some leadership these days - someone who is looking out for the greater prospects of humanity at large. And so it goes...

Harts Pass No. 468

A little at a loss for this one. I, for one, am happy about the depths of winter. It gets a bad rap. That being said I guess the wolverines and I are expressing just a little winter optimism as we head into the midst of the snowy season. Cheers!

Elephant Haiku 1.12.20

A little more light hearted, this one :) 3-4 more inches of snow here on the eastern slope of the Cascades. No elephants skiing - at least none that I've seen - but lots of other happy folk. Three cheers for a steady adding to the winter snow pack -- both for skiing and the summer season ahead.

Elephant Haiku 1.7.20

With similar inspirations to this week's Harts Pass... alas, the world is often on fire these days and none of the people in power seem to care to do anything about it. 

Harts Pass No. 467

Our hearts go out to the wildlife in Australia... Safe refuge to one and all wherever it can be found.

Elephant Haiku 1.4.20

Three drawings in. Still having fun. It will get harder in another few days.

Elephant Haiku 1.3.20

I like this one. Promises to stay away from constantly sad and somber poses will be forthcoming.

Elephant Haiku: A drawing challenge for the New Year!

SO many artists start in on drawing challenges for the New Year -- admirable efforts for pushing the envelope of their work through non-contracted assignments and many times some excellent vehicles for creative growth and/or just simply trying fun, short, satisfying stuff :) 

Anyway, the internets are BURSTING with it right now. With my teaching and and coaching and clawing my way back to making things of my own (not to mention living and sleeping) there is pretty much ZERO chance that I will do something like this on a daily basis -- there are just too many other things to do and not enough hours in the day. That being said, goals are good and some kind of drawing challenge sounded like a good idea (plus I got wistful and a wee bit jealous just looking at too many January 1st "daily drawing" beginnings.)

On January 2nd I drew an elephant. Kind of a "wait for me" moment for the daily drawing crowd. The next day (posts to follow) I drew another elephant... and decided that the elephant - at least for now - is a good totem creature for the effort (since an elephant never forgets.) Added to that moment I decided to write a bit with each illustration. I will break rules for sure and push the envelope for syllable counts etc. but the goal for now is a collection of elephant haiku. Spur of the moment - ideas drafted on the spot - probably not spending much more than an hour on each piece (TBD). I will definitely NOT do seven per week. If I get #3perweek it will be AMAZING. 

Stay tuned and thanks for taking a look. I'll post here and to Instagram @erikbrooksbooks 

Enjoy!

PS I would LOVE to do these all in watercolor. In the spirit of trying new things I'll be using the procreate app and an iPad Pro. I'm good with that on the inking side, but more of a watercolor / painterly feel will be good to practice.