Jul 10, 2010

Illustration Friday: Diary (A Celebration of Genetic Dislexia)

























Back in the 1920's, on Sundays, come hail rain or shine, Gretel, her brother and father would head down to Morris highway junction and set up a strawberry milk shake stand. 

Most days they used the good kitchen table as a base to display their wares. Of course their step-mother Geraldine, had she been present, would have been horrified at the misuse of such a family heirloom.

But, like the wicked old woman in the forest, she was dee-ee-dee.

Dead.

Though they were Sundays, Gretel's father, who had once been a hatter in Mudgee before the revolution, didn't  mind that they weren't at church. " My kids don't need religion," he would say. "We got bush spirits to teach us."

But bush spirits or not, he was always a bit 'iffy' when flocks of White Witch moths, drawn by the smell of fresh strawberries, came fluttering out of the Eucalyptii Dredadora trees lining the road.....





A long time later, when she was on old woman in the Cessnock Home for Hardly Used Catholic Virgins, Gretel would often pull out her ancient leather bound dairy and place it on the altar next to her bed. Inside, next to the fading ink words, were two dried and flattened White Witch moths.

"They were happy days," she would tell herself with a toothless smile as she tapped her wooden leg against the brass bed.  "Happy days full of Thysania agrippina, endless strawberry milkshakes, cornucopic fly swatting, rabbit shooting - and the forbidden pleasure of undiagnosed genetic dislexia."

























Thankyou for everyone who looked at my last two posts and especially for watching the animations. I'll be back tomorrow and come visit. So be curafal ... err I mean 'careful." Watch out for Thysania agrippina in the meantime. :) Oh and thank you for the suggestion WW. It's a beautiful moth.

And most importantly I am not making fun of people with dislexia.
Only myself - and my recently discovered ability to not type English.

Have you seen this work? A Bulgarian artist.  On Rossichka's site.
Maistora Vladimir Dimitrov. Worth a look.

31 comments:

  1. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH! OMG! I was admiring the illustration and all of a sudden I saw the word diary and... HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

    Oh you are too much! This is the best interpretation. I love your F-POT! HAHAHAHAHAH!

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  2. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Okay, I need to stay away from your blog for a while. I am getting weird looks because I can't help myslef form laffing. HAHAHAHHAHAHA!

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  3. BAhahaha...seriously, Hardly Used Catholic Virgins? Bahahaha!This has made my day if you ever get tired of animation you could always try comedy.

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  4. you are so funny, and you know I never thought you were making fun of dyslexia, I think it is "friggin" hilarious! You always make me laugh even when you are giving me a picky critique, LOL, just kidding about that too, I appreciate it and am working on the "remake". Now, some how I have missed a post again and have to go back and see it because I have to look at all of your posts, really I have to! Hmmmmm, I guess that means something,... ;)

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  5. Just one question... how come such a gorgeous creature ended up in the Cessnock Home for Hardly Used Catholic Virgins?
    Now you've got me wondering how she lost that leg...
    Amazing work, Andrew - as always. Simple astounding. Your details are WOW!

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  6. Hi Andrew, well, unfortunately for me, something I understood, and some (a lot) did not understand.
    Yes, the illustration.
    I think, if you let me say, I think you are a Creator of Worlds.

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  7. I want a strawberry milkshake! I really enjoy your story time, and the pictures are always wonderful too.

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  8. Andrew, your works are amazingly perfect
    at all, theme, scene, composition, color and technique!
    when we look, we feel within the scene,
    completely 'taken' ...
    congratulations - always impeccable!
    hugs!

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  9. Oh sighhhhhh... and i do so love a little magical journeying to shake the moths from MY head X:-)

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  10. Hya thankyou everyone for taking the time to read my 'wamblings' and for laughing.

    Ces, I am glad you laughed but don't get arrested :) I will have to send that 100 dollars back to you for bail. :)

    Hello Kylie: The trouble with me is, that I am funny when I am not suppoded to be. You know, doing the silly walk at state funerals, letting the lady in the wheel chair go at the top of the hill - knowing I can catch up to hter before she gets too fast, then finding out that I can't because my shoe laces are undone and someone has vaselined the wheel chair handles anyway....


    Hello Karen, oh yes dislexia, I am always footing my mouth then putting it in! By that I mean a spoonerism... or was it ananagaram? It's a pleasure to give you a picky critique :)

    Hey Susanna thankyou. I think 'hardly used' are the operative adjectives :) There are plenty of them around, myself for instance!!! (just kidding) But that, along with the wooden leg, is another story . Heh.

    Roberto my friend, I am sorry but this post is very silly, so it must be difficult to understand. (It's difficult for me and I wrote it!)

    Hya Linda, I have one on the way. It should arrive by snail mail in about five days - so be careful when you open it!!!!

    Denise, thankyou again for your kind comments. I really appreciate it. :) :)

    see you I have to make a silly post

    to balance out being serious :)

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  11. Hey Nollyposh :)

    I bet you didn't know we have those eucalypts nor the white witch moths in Oz. Or drop bears - don't tell anyone koala's are haremless .! ;)

    I mean harmless.!

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  12. nah, you didn't put your foot in your mouth, now come on back and check out my revisions and let me know if it's better now, pick away Mr. Finnie! Pretty please:)

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  13. Well, that is just too funny. Great work!

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  14. Hey, hey, hey!! I see I'm quite late for the bash, this time?? Sorry, I had a 'beastly' problem back there. Nasty thing, he gave me the wrong direction.

    :) Heheh.

    Well, what can I say? Other than an offer of congratulation for completely twisting the tale of Hansel and Gretel, and make it more suitable for comedy adaptations! :D :D

    Although I'd be careful if I were you. You still have that lawsuit from Banker Brand Underpants, another one from The Brothers Grimm Foundation will surely draw you to bankruptcy.

    But you have nothing to worry, of course. I'm rich, remember? Hehehe.... :D

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  15. Seriouusssllyy.... Well done once again to you.

    Despite the haggardly vision you put in my head of Gretel's older years, toothless and wooden legged, this pretty picture is remarkable.

    Nice touch with the moths and the very unhygienic mice gallivanting on the table! :D :D

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  16. And I LOVE that sleepy looking cow in the background! Heheh. :)

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  17. I'm always transported when I view your work, Andrew. Your images are so rich and full of drama. I really enjoy them. Love the dairy you've captured! : ) The moths are gorgeous, as well. I can't believe all of the detail you create. Fantastic!

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  18. heheh :D i love this post, you're SO silly!!

    oh look at the moths!!!
    right click -> save image
    :D

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  19. bytheway thank YOU!!!!! ;)
    you just made my day.

    i hope what you hope.

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  20. still loving the moths!!
    you know, when i was moth, i took bulbs form, and my little hatchling cried in vein.

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  21. Hey Karen

    thank you. That revision is amazing, just a twitch here and a twitch there and it made all the difference.

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  22. Maria: thankyou. I must say I learnt somethings from your 'diary' entry. How each character sees their world slightly differently and that can be the source of amusement aand comedy.

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  23. Amalia, thankyou for taking the time to look at the work. Tha cow? Well she was a bull for a while, till I realised she wouldn't sit well in an illustration for 'diary'. So I added some false eyelashes :)

    Oh the wooden leg? Everyone has one now-a-days. It's fashionable. Like my walker.... :!

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  24. Shirley, thank you so much. Coming from such a wonderful artist as yourself I take that as a fine complement. You are very lucky in your critique group.!!

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  25. Greetings Mita :) Thankyou, It was a great suggestion on that Moth. It is so beautiful, it's almost like lace. I should listen to advice more :) You know, as we get older (people who spend too much time in the water) the bones grow across your ears? It's from the cold water. It's nature's way of protecting us from deafness - yet it makes us deaf.

    ! :D

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  26. Thanks for another magical journey to Finnieville! I looked at the word this week and right off saw dairy. Warped minds think alike! I was going to comment about 1/2 hour ago.... but I had a sudden urge for a strawberry milkshake. mmmm it was delicious. Then I checked out your animations. So cool! I can really appreciate it. i am learning 2d animation right now. So much to learn.... I could just imagine 3d! I hate to depart from your mystical/magical world... but I must water the mushrooms! See Ya!

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  27. Oh thanks for stopping by! I always love reading your insightful and intrigueing comments.

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  28. Sorry I beat you to the punch over at Ginger's comment roll. Well not really :o)

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  29. I don't know how you create such magic.... but I'm glad you do!!!

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Hya! Thank you so much for leaving a comment. I appreciate your time and thoughts.