Drawings

I don’t know why I painted Obama this way.  I guess it’s an expression that comes with being president.  With all the tough decisions, domestic and foreign, the pressure must wear on even the coolest of heads.  Most drawings of Obama have him smile, confident, or even confused, but this one perhaps puts him in another light.  Either way, I’ll be trying another attempt at capturing this very compelling person.

Here’s a sketch I do before I “ink” my final cartoon.  Most of my work is done digitally…meaning that I draw it entirely in the computer using photoshop and a digital tablet.  I still scan in drawings from time to time as I still enjoy the analog process.

click here to see the final cartoon…

Michelle Obama has a certain look…and to some it can portray strength and determination and to others a stern and bitter scorn.  I like her for the fact that she had put herself through college and worked very hard to get where she is now.  You can’t say that about many of the trust fund brats who have their entitlements and legacies to pave their way.  Michelle had to take out student loans and open doors through blood sweat and tears.  That said, I am still struggling to draw her.

I drew these sketches during Obama’s victory speech in Iowa after the primaries were done.  He’s such an interesting character to draw.  He’s very lean and long which makes great gestures.  His features though are not entirely afro centric.  I’ve seen many cartoonist error on this side and he tends to look less like a mixture of races and more African decent.  Actually I think his looks favor more of an Ethiopian decent.  Anyways, it’s his attitude that you are trying to convey and that’s a powerful trait.  There is an Obama “smirk”, that some interpret a snobbery or elitist.  I just think it’s a funny perplexed look…like “why do I have to pander to this crowd”.  Obama is not perfect, but for the first time in our generation, we have a charismatic leader…let’s just hope some peace and order can come of it!

Hillary Clinton is a challenge no doubt! I try and try and try to make her look nice, but when I do, it doesn’t look like her. As with any person, the more you draw, the better you get to know them and thus the caricature departs from a distortion and evolves into a “true” caricature that enhances personality not simply exaggerates for pure comedic purposes. I am no means a master at this art form, just a practitioner that hopes one day to capture Hillary’s true nature!