Dinan

I found a little corner shop in Dinan, France that I wanted to illustrate. My friend Jean-Christophe has drawn the entire town over the years. That’s right, he’s sketched every building. I was inspired to paint one in the style that he does. This crazy structure seemed to make a good victim. I surprised myself a bit by how well it turned out. Only a few minor blunders here and there which are easy to hide in plain sight, being the magician I am.

Tigers

I started this by drawing tigers at the Museum of Natural History in New York with Steve Petronis and Kanaka Rajan (who was drawing in public for the first time). A few weeks later, I was in a tiny Natural History museum in the outskirts of Charlotte, North Carolina while visiting family. I found a few cats to add to my drawing. At one point, I was strolling down a hallway when someone approached me with a shocked look on his face and said, ”are you Tommy Kane?” Turns out I am. His name was Aldo and he was a big fan of my work. He just couldn’t fathom meeting me in Gastonia, North Carolina. We had a lot of laughs about how small the world is. I gave him some Tommy Kane swag. As he walked away, other people approached me and asked who I was, wondering if I was some minor celebrity in their midst. I answered honestly and said, “I was nobody in particular.”

Boar's Head Recall

Boar’s Head recalled 750,000 pounds of processed meat. A deadly food poisoning outbreak of the bacteria listeria was found in the popular deli cold cuts. A week later they recalled an additional 200,000 pounds. Now they announced that they are recalling another 7 million pounds of this garbage. You read that correctly, 7 million. 2 deaths and 33 hospitalizations in the first week. That’s an awful lot of animals who were raised and killed for no reason. Plus, the American Institute of Cancer recommends avoiding processed meats anyway. They are considered carcinogens and eating them increases your cancer risk. No vegans were affected.

Domestika

Recently, DOMESTIKA approached me to teach an online art class. They are the dominant juggernaut in the world of digital art classes. I was totally shocked, never thinking I’d be on their radar. The artists on their roster are way out of my league. Carlo Stranga, Marco Mazzoni, and Don Kilpatrick to name a few. Unfortunately, I had to turn them down. I’ve dealt with a lifetime of anxiety and panic attacks which thankfully I now have under control. I just can’t do things out of my comfort zone. Flying to Madrid, getting up in front of strangers with a camera rolling and trying to explain what I do is a major problem for me. No matter how much I really do want to do it, I just can’t. So, for health reasons, I had to say no. They were very understanding and supportive. I don’t dwell on the down side. I’ll look on the positive aspect, which is how great my ego felt when they asked me. I was able to come away with a smile on my face and not beat myself up over my limitations. Plus, I can brag a little.

Dinard Hotel

For the first time in my life I’m reading biographies about famous artists. Bernini, Van Eyck, Monet, Titian, Holbein, Caravaggio, Raphael, Velazquez and Bacon. Even though I’m jamming all this knowledge into my cranium, my recent drawings seem exactly the same. Take this quaint hotel in Dinard that caught my eye. This painting looks like every other picturesque structure I’ve drawn. I gotta figure out how to get all my new found art comprehension from my brain to my wrist.

JC Defline

My artist friend, Jean-Christophe Defline possesses many magical traits. Other artists are mystically drawn to him. He’s a walking encyclopedia. Generosity is in his DNA. A patron of the arts. I, being a mere mortal, felt it my duty to illustrate him. I approached it the way Hans Holbein painted Sir Thomas Moore and Thomas Cromwell. I draped Defline in his finest attire looking ever so regal. I surrounded him with allegorical symbols of his stature. I believe Defline will be gifting this work of art to The Frick Collection in New York City. It will be hung in the same room as the Holbeins I mentioned. Then I can visit him whenever I like.

Gay Paris

I happened to walk by Rue de’l Université in Paris. I snapped a few photos. I did this drawing from one of my shots when I got back home. I’ll draw from a photo when I want to add a little extra mustard to my painting.

Paris Again

This is a drawing I did in Paris. I’d do a little bit and then go eat. Then Scribble again before another trip across town. After a few afternoons of here and there sketching, this is what I got to show. My favorite part is how I handled the smoke coming out of the chimneys.

Paris Street Sketch

There is nothing like being retired and waking up in Paris. I strolled to the boulevard, slumped in my chair, and drew some magical architecture. Not a care in the world. The locals chatted me up. The only hiccup of my day is finding something vegan to eat in France. Plus my bones ache a wee bit.

St. Malo

After Nantes, we spent some time in St. Malo, France. The artist, Jean-Christophe Defline and his wife Valerie hosted us. They took us to all the medieval towns and markets in the area. It was a glorious holiday. I even spent some time in Valerie’s garden drawing her flowers. One morning, they took us to their local farmer’s market. Jean-Christophe was explaining to one of the farmers that I was vegan. He pointed to me and replied in French. “You are a bad tourist for the farmers who grow pigs.” That summed me up in a single poetic sentence.

France Collage

Time management. It’s my top priority when I draw with other people. When my pals chose something for us to sketch in Nantes, I had to judge quickly what I could accomplish in my three friend’s allotted time frame. Frequently, I just draw details instead of the big picture knowing they are going to finish in a flash. Over a few days, my details page filled up nicely. This made for a real conversation piece for the locals and other artists looking over my shoulder. Didn’t seem like anyone else was moved to try it themselves though. Can’t say I blame them. It’s quite tedious.

French Crane

My cohorts chose this crane to draw which is not something I would have picked. It’s a famous landmark in Nantes, France. Such a tall structure could never fit onto my sketchbook page. Yet there I was having to draw it. I had to squish and distort it so much in order to fake it onto the paper. Somehow, I succeeded. The other sketchers were quite amazed at my nifty trick. I admit there was a bit of luck involved. The guys I was with drew so fast. This forced me to sketch at lightning speed. Exhausting to say the least at my age. All were impressed, so it was worth it for my ego. We moved to another location when we were done. I sketched that locale into this crane scene too. My pals admired my two scenes in a single drawing routine. Plus, they appreciated that I made everything look like a Mad Magazine cartoon.