Tag: squirrels

Sketch of the Week: Creep (Nov 14, 2024)

A pencil sketch of a j-horror-style female figure lurching toward teh viewer, long, stringy hair obscuring her face.

This week my son was entirely undecided; he liked everything. I was also pretty pleased, so here’s the full spread for the week:

A sketchbook spread with five sketches: a lake-side landscape with heaped cumulus clouds, an upset young woman sitting with her arms crossed, a meditating fat man, a lurching j-horror zombie-like ghoul woman, and a fleeing man looking over his shoulder.

I did the creep and her victim on different days, and wasn’t as pleased with how he came out, which is why he’s cropped out above. Both of those figures are based on reference photos from The Pose Archives, which I adore.

Tuesday is Yú in a scene from Karuto / Cult.

Monday is a composite of a stretch of beach north of Fisherman’s Island State Park (FUN FACT: most of it isn’t an island; it’s the lakeshore, and may now be entirely inaccessible due to climate change) with some cumulus clouds in my neighborhood. I’m not anywhere near where I want to be with clouds yet.

Wednesday is from a stock photo that’s been kicking around my phone for ages; I used him as a model for a six-limbed samurai squirrel back in June:

A pencil sketch of a squirrel-like warrior monk sitting cross-legged with its large, bushy tail forming a circle behind it.

The squirrel was part of a joke either with my son or with my mom and sisters; I can’t really recall how I got there. A lot of what I do is the result of off-handed jokes gone too far.

Dave, Tell Me the Tale of Tommy Tucker, the Trans Squirrel Pope Beloved by 1940s America!

Not much to tell, really: Lil Tommy Tucker was orphaned as an infant, and then adopted and raised Mrs. Mark Bullis of Washington, D.C.  It’s unclear when Tommy decided they preferred living life as a human female (as opposed to continuing to identify as a male squirrel).  I presume they were ultimately made Squirrel Pope, on account most squirrels were extremely progressive “Liberation” Catholics prior to the Red Scare. Since then, mainline squirrels have largely gravitated toward Lutheranism, and gotten hella racist. Pretty messed up, when you think about it.

(Yes, that is a real live squirrel in the picture.)

To learn more about this remarkable rodent and his contribution to Post-War America, ask your local librarian, or just click this link: LIFE Magazine: “A Squirrel’s Guide to Fashion”