Why is this blog called Lord of the Marbles?

Point blank - because the image at the top is one of the first LARGE charcoal exercises I've done since collage, and I like two dimentional cats :)

The setup for this still life was actually taken from a painting exercise intending to teach the style of Venetian Painting (the values are painted first in shades of red and the colors are built on top). Not only did I love the example paintings provided in the book, I thought the subject matter was not only dirt cheap to set up, but also a great practice in reflective objects. Personally, I feel if you detest drawing/painting something, it probably means you need to practice it and I detest reflective objects.

The focal point of this sketch is a shiny green lucky cat that stands about three inches tall that I picked up in Philly's chinatown about two years ago. And yes, his eyes really are painted on lopsided on the lucky cat in question.

^ The set up

The book mentioned earlier is Diane Edison's Dynamic Color Painting for the Beginner and honestly, I think it is a great read even if you have painted before. I actually checked this book out from the library while trying to research color theory, a subject I never got to take in my short stint in school. I remember older students talking about the class with a zeal I'd never heard before from...well college students.

http://www.amazon.com/Dynamic-Color-Painting-Beginner-Edison/dp/0810970902