I have been doing a fun thing on Periscope lately (you can go to the ‘periscope’ tab above to read about what that is if you don’t know). I am calling it ‘Guess the Quote’. I start a drawing with just part of a quote. In this case I started it with what you see below. ‘_____is better’ on top and ‘______than’ below.
Here is a recreation of the napkin as I started.
Then, as I draw, my viewers (the Napkin Kin) try to guess the rest of the quote. It’s a lot of fun, very interactive and engaging.
While I draw I also write down the guesses on a napkin. Here are what they guessed. Don’t scroll past the list if you want to guess since the finished drawing is below it.
By the time I am done with the line drawing someone has usually guessed the quote. We then have a great conversation about the quote and it’s meaning. I usually don’t want the scope to end, it’s that much fun.
Here is the final drawing and quote.
So, what do you think of the quote? And don’t forget, if you are on Periscope (Android or iOS) make sure you follow me so you can enjoy the next ‘Guess the Quote’!
Also, if you enjoy this post (and any of my other work) I would love it it if you would be so kind as to share it with others via social media. The buttons on the left and below can be used to share on twitter, Facebook and more. Thanks!
I went to Shades of Brown Coffee House the other day to meet up with one of my favorite models in Tulsa, Meera Kazmi. I needed to get her signature on a model release form so I could submit a photograph I took of her to Getty Images. I’ve known her and her sister Anna for probably 6 years now. They started out simply as teenagers who liked to dress up in 30s and 40s retro clothing. I saw them at an art opening or two, they always made a splash at their arrival. I was able to meet their mother, Karen, as well. She was their driver and #1 fan for all those teenage years. They are very lucky to have such a supportive mom.
The Kazmi Sisters = Manic Pixie Studio Opening, 2012
Modeling as Art
They both slowly transitioned to modeling, becoming professionals. Because their background was in wearing fashion for fun, they had a natural and easy way in front of the camera. They are fantastic artistic collaborators and yes, they are artists.
I helped run a large photo club here in Tulsa for many years and had them as models for many shoots. One of the shoots was ‘Philbrook Museum in Black and White’ and I thought I captured some very nice shots of Meera. I recently sold some images on Getty and have been wanting to add to their collection. Some of the images from that shoot stood out as great candidates.
Waiting
Look
Meera brought Anna with her to the coffee house, which was great. I hadn’t seen either one in a while so it was great fun to reconnect. Here is a photo I took of Anna at a Halloween shoot a few years back.
Halloween
Periscope and Drawing
Even though I am the old one of the bunch, they were the ones that didn’t know anything about Periscope! I showed them the app and then let them talk and connect to my followers. While they did that, I drew them in my sketchbook.
Here is the line drawing I did at the coffee house.
Later, when I got home, I worked on it some more, coloring, rendering and shading.
Video
I wasn’t able to save the Periscope video with the comments and hearts, but here it is without them.
They both are wonderful young women; creative, independent, fun and smart. I was happy to see them again and get a chance to draw them as well.
There are good reasons to not change your mind and good reasons to change it. Solid reliable evidence is a good reason to change your mind. Faux news stories on the internet that claim someone said something about something and is written by someone to get you to click on a headline and is obviously biased is not.
The Blind Spot
I came across a Facebook post yesterday from an old friend. He was promoting a conspiracy theory about 9/11. I argued a bit about it with him and others. Another friend then private messaged me gently giving me the advice that I should let it go. The reason? This was a blind spot the conspiratorial friend had. He was blind to something he was fully aware of in other areas of his life; namely logic, reason, critical thinking. Me arguing using any of those tools wasn’t going to convince him because he had, for whatever reason, purposely blinded himself to them in this area.
The Mystery Spot
There is a funny little tourist attraction in the Santa Cruz mountains of California, not far from where he lives. It’s called ‘The Mystery Spot’ and it promotes the idea that the laws of space, time and gravity don’t apply in that locale. It has funny shaped rooms that make you think someone is small when you know they aren’t. It has other spaces that make you feel like you are defying gravity in some way.
Now a little kid might think this Mystery Spot really does defy those laws, that is the fun of it for parents and adults, to see their kids wonder about these tricks without understanding them. It’s a way to teach them actually. But it would be very disturbing if a full grown rational adult went to the Mystery Spot and actually believed those laws were suspended. We would think they had something go wrong in their brain because it would be obvious to all that it was just an amusing slight of hand trick and it would not be believable that a grown adult would fall for it.
The Emotional Spot
But that is what happens in life all the time. We have blind spots where we don’t change our mind in the face of evidence. It might be emotional, a person just has to believe their dog is coming back after being lost 25 years ago. We all know the dog is dead by now, but that person emotionally needs to keep hope and so suspends rationality for their emotional need.
The Mind Spot
But emotional, intellectual and physical health actually are better served in the long run by our ability to face truths, to face reality. That sometimes means changing our minds about something. If we can’t do that, we can’t change ourselves and we can’t change anything else.
What are some examples of this from your life and the life of the world around you?
I went to London and Paris in June of this year (2015) and went to a number of museums. When I am going through a museum I am not looking to take pictures of the art work. That’s pretty much a complete bore to me. What I like is doing street photography in a museum setting. I look for composition and juxtaposition. Some are taken with my 2008 Panasonic Lumix G1, others with my iPhone. Neither is great in low light so the grain is often apparent. I don’t mind that.
Some are finely arranged, with my spending quite a long time waiting or maneuvering to get just the right shot.
Some are hip-high blind shots I take as I am moving.
Some are about seeing an art piece without the distraction of the crowd.
Some are all about the crowd and the feeling of the human space.
Some are funny.
Some are beautiful.
It’s one of my favorite things in the world to walk through a museum finding these images. I hope you like them.
British Museum
Atrium, British Museum
Composition with Gun Chair and Boy
Composition with Leather and Dog
Composition with Nude and Suit
Composition with Nude and Stares
Running in the Circle of Books
Composition with Hidden Lego on the Elgin Marbles
Tate Modern
Composition with Grate, LIne and Yellow
Composition with Selfie and Marilyn
Composition with Painting and Bra Strap
Composition with Witty, Sexy, Gimmicky and Walking Woman
’tis a rare day when I go to hang out at a coffee shop. Friday I had to leave my house for 2 hours because we fogged the attic for spiders. My wife has had spider bites a number of times this year and so we have started having the house sprayed. We have had quite a few spiders this spring and summer, in particular the dreaded brown recluse (probably not what bit her, but we aren’t sure), one of the nastiest spiders there is. If it bites you it can have your flesh start to die. I’ve seen it in action on an ex-girlfriend’s daughter’s leg and it’s BAD.
Because of that I went to the new Starbucks in our quaint little hamlet here in Oklahoma to draw, periscope and drink some coffee. A young woman, styled impeccably, walked in right before me and I knew, if she was staying, I would want to draw her. Luckily she did. Below is the drawing I did on a Starbucks napkin.
Asking Permission
Most of the time I don’t ask permission to draw someone. But in this case the tables were arranged so I would have to sit very close to her and I was going to be periscoping my drawing, which meant I would be talking to my iPad and picking up my drawing and turning it around to show my viewers. It was going to be obvious what I was doing and so I wanted to ask her in advance, which I did. She graciously allowed me to proceed. You can see a photo of her with the drawing below.
Periscope
I periscoped the entire time I was drawing. The app quit about 20 minutes in and I had to restart. I was able to get part 1 of the video processed so both the comments and ‘hearts’ are showing. Part 2 had expired by the time I tried to process it (Periscope only keeps videos available for 24 hours). However, I was able to save it without the comments and hearts. You can find me on Periscope at @thenapkindad (same handle as I have on twitter and instagram).
Part 1
Put the video on full screen to be able to read the comments.
Part 2 – this one does not have any comments or hearts, sorry about that. I am still learning how to integrate Periscope into everything else!
Jennie
Here is Jennie with the drawing after I finished. She was very kind and sweet as well as stylish. I really appreciated her allowing me to draw and periscope her. I gave her my card and hope she sees this. Thank you Jennie!
