So I have discovered that I cannot wait until three days before the end of the month and then reasonably expect to have a completed project for that month. Gee, it's almost like a month-long project takes a month to do, or something. Who knew? With that said, I actually might have gotten it done were it not for the assorted technical difficulties I was experiencing with my airbrush. They say it's a poor worker who blames his tools, but it's also the sign of a poor craftsman to expect to do a good job with inadequate tools. Lately, every time I break out the airbrush, it refuses to cooperate for some unspecified reason. I never know quite what that reason actually is. Do I not have enough spray propellant? Is the nozzle clogged? Is there not enough paint in the jar? Am I holding it wrong? Is it a day that ends in "y"? I can never be sure of the precise problem. At this point I've chalked it up to "sometimes the damn thing works and sometimes it doesn't." But, here's a sneak preview of what I've been working on this weekend. They're not quite where I want them to be, but they're getting close. (If you recognize them, congratulations. You might be a fan of Final Fantasy IV.) In the meantime, I need new paints, a new airbrush, and maybe a new hobby. Something that doesn't cause this much frustration and anguish. Like domesticating an alligator, perhaps, or learning to juggle chainsaws.
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I don't quite have my February projects ready yet. Do I try to make excuses about working the early shift messing me up for a whole week, and having to clean my house to get ready for a television interview? Or do I just accept that I didn't hit the goal and move on? Hmm, decisions, decisions...
Anyway, here's a photo of what I'm currently working on. These guys are fairly close to completion. Probably just a few more days' worth of work. I'm so close. Here's a peek behind the scenes here at the ZMFTS!, partly intended as an apology for the lack of new content this month, but also partly as a demonstration of my commitment towards building a complete collection of Final Fantasy IV enemies. This is a partial assembly of some of the toys and collectibles I've amassed with the intent of transforming them into Final Fantasy IV monsters. Obviously, this isn't the entire bunch (there are some pieces I have yet to acquire, and still some projects I have no idea how I'm going to bring to life in three dimensions). Feel free to guess which of these toys are going to become which Final Fantasy IV creatures. Of course, I may change my mind about using some of these before it comes time to actually build them! That's just how it goes sometimes! I also invested in an electrical air compressor for my airbrush. Previously I'd just been buying cannisters of compressed air here and there, but it seems like I've been using the airbrush more and more lately, so I figured investing in the air compressor made sense (and is better for the environment). It just hasn't been a productive month. I did catch a nasty case of bronchitis which knocked me down for over a week, and that kind of derailed my intentions. I think that, going forward, I'm just going to have to accept that some projects may take longer than a month to complete. I feel like I rushed to get the Gargoyle and Hooligan done, just for the sake of unveiling them before the end of June, and that does a major disservice to these projects. Nobody else is showing the monsters of Final Fantasy IV any love, so these need to be the best representation of these creatures that I'm capable of putting together. If that means they're occasionally going to take more than 30 calendar days to complete, then so be it. I don't answer to publishers or editors who demand monthly content. Just rest assured that even if I don't have something ready to unveil every single month, I'm always working on something behind the scenes. |
DAVID GRAHAM EDWARDS
Illustrator, writer, painter, sculptor, collector of toys and cats, observer of things. Categories
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