In stark contrast to previous Atomic Christmases (See the previous three: #1, #2 and #3) I decided this year to go with a very limited palette of silver, white and blue. I wanted a cool, minty feeling to this piece. *TING!*

The inspiration (and title) for this piece came from the Fleetwood Mac song “Storms.”

This is the actual bare canvas - one of the few times I drew directly on it with no sketch. I decided the figures should be closer together for the final for two reasons: It’s more emotionally charged that way, and I’ll always take an off-center composition to a symmertical one.

This one changed a lot from sketch to final. It was a situation where the sketches served more to just get my pencil moving so ideas would start popping rather than as a complete layout.

Lately, I’ve become very interested in greens. I notice them more than I used to. I even find myself seeking them out when buying clothes now. It’s a color that layers very beautifully. It can be a warm avocado or a cool emerald, taking after its father blue one minute, and its mother yellow the next.

As Spring unfolds around us, I thought it was a good time to do a piece that attempted to pay tribute to the quiet, smooth versaility of green.

The very first panda sighting in Doodle Park. This was painted for Illustrationfriday.com. The word this week was ‘Total.’ My usual association with this word is when trying to figure out a bill at a restaurant. I’m not sure where the panda came into this, but there he is.