Shambhala, Baby! (PART I)

A few weeks ago I was asked to do a mural for the 2008 Shambhala Music Festival, and if you haven’t heard about this 15 000 person, week-long party then you should really check out their site. It’s a Canadian Burning Man. If you don’t know what Burning Man is, there is no help for you.

The awesome staff at Shambhala gave me a blank 8’x 8’ wooden canvas to do with what I would. That’s a lot of space to fill, and a little overwhelming, so I thought “What does Shambhala mean to me?” Having gone to the 2007 festival, I had a fresh recollection of the fiesta; killer DJs from across the country, crazy crowds dancing from dawn ‘til dawn and dawn again, costumes, body paint, nudity, and an overall freeing zest for life. Easy. lol

Without further ado, here’s the progression from rough sketch to finished product. My only hope is that you might feel 1/100^th of the excitement Shambhala brings to everyone who walks onto her ranch and through her forests.

Click on the above pics to see the various stages of the piece.

Hours and days later, the beast is finally finished and ready to find its place in the woods amongst the pumpin’ beats, screams, and lights!

Preview for PART II:

After the show, I’ll be sure to post people’s reactions and get some great shots of the mural partyin’ away at the festival. Peace, om, and all that jazz. - j

Life in Nelson

So I promised myself I would post once every two weeks this summer, but clearly that goal is a little out of reach at the moment. In an attempt to make regular posts a habit, regardless of my fears of the work being seen, here are some random life drawings from open classes in Nelson. Now, when I presented the idea of three minute gestures to this group they looked at me like I had three heads; so these are 10 - 30 minutes. At least I got a chance to try some rendering.


Also, I took a baseball to my right thumb a couple of weeks ago ending a stellar season. (Anyone who knows me well knows the previous sentence is loaded with sarcasm.) Not wanting to give up drawing, I started drawing with my left hand. I've wanted to develop my ambidextrus abilities for a while and activate the creative side of my brain, so below is a caricature that came out of this new lefty freedom.