IF - swept

Of course the obvious choice for this topic would have been something to do with a broom. Or some association to wind. A dancer sweeping the floor with her dress also came to my mind. But nothing really appealed to me.

What I really wanted to show was the dynamic movement of sweeping. In the end I thought of this little paper ship that's swept into the drain of a bath tub.

By the way,  I just saw 'Billy Elliot' and I was clearly swept by the colour scheme of set and costumes: such vibrant shades of blue, green and red, contrasting the drab environment  the film is taking place in.

IF - shadows

With this topic I had to think of the story of Peter Schlemihl who sold his shadow for a bag of gold to the devil. To make his lack of a shadow visible, I drew things with a strong shadow. I hope that my intention shows in the illustration.

IF - asleep

Hi everyone. I know I am extremely late with this post, but this is not because I was 'asleep'. It is rather due to my having been 'soaked' (one of the topics I have missed in the meantime) in problems, not the least of which was a complete breakdown of my computer and some of the adjoined hardware.

In the above illustration I want to show a cereal grain where the germ is still asleep. I also tried out a different technique from my usual colour pencils.

Of course the illustration for the approriate topic 'shadows' is on its way. I hope to publish it tomorrow at the latest.

IF - lesson

With this weeks topic I feel a bit philosophic, because I have to think of the lessons life wants to teach.
Sometimes I find them so hard that I feel like crying. But I have learned that it's no use to avoid learning a certain lesson because it will come back to me sooner or later and might be even more painful then. So it's better to face lessons the very first time.

IF - journey

For this weeks topic 'journey' I had to think very hard: I did not just want to draw some kind of vehicle to travel with. Of course I could have done a nice picture of a wonderful place in the sun or something like that. But all this seemed too simple. I like my drawings to have some kind of twist in them.

You could travel just in your imagination by reading a book or creating your own little fantasy of a journey. Then I considered the beginning of a journey. Which is of course the first step. Again no real response. But as I am still doing my Easter special which is circling about every conceivable kind of egg, I suddenly knew what I wanted to show: an ovum to be met with a sperm. Because this is the beginning of all journeys on earth, the creation of a new life. (And of course the sperm has to travel first to start creation...)

IF - bottled

All the ingredients necessary for creativity have been bottled, but unfortunately at the moment there doesn't seem to be much left... Let's hope for new supplies as soon as possible.

IF - Duet

For duet I chose these two elephants I did some time ago. They are like two different voices singing the same song.