No it's not, not unless you have a special reason. If you're a realistic animator working on a sequel to "The Lion King" then by all means go and enjoy yourself, but if you're a cartoonist you might find yourself wondering if the trip was really necessary. Artist-friendly zoos are a myth. Zoos used to be a great places to draw. Older zoos like the one above kept exciting animals like lions in horizontal cages where the lions used to pace up and down for half the day (the other half was spent outside). It was hard on the lion but great for artists who got to see repeated side views of dynamic walks only a few feet infront of their sketchbooks. The cages were indoors and the lighting was perfect for drawing. Best of all, there was no wind to blow your paper and you got to hear the lions roar at each other with the sound echoing off the walls.
Modern zoos put the lions into enormous outdoor habitats. It always takes visitors a minute or two to locate the lion who's usually sleeping behind a rock. No roars, no pacing, just...sleep. If you try to draw the parts of the lion that are visible then you encounter the other problem, namely the difficulty of drawing on reflective, snow-white paper under a blazing sun. Contemporary zoos are not really artist-friendly.
Another myth that artists have is that it's fun to draw at baseball games. Is it? From the grandstands the players are tiny figures that seem to be miles away. If you can see to draw those guys then you've got better sight than I have. It might be fun to draw the fans if they'd only turn around but they won't, unless it's to give you a dirty look for drawing them.
Monkeys are the best, though... They can put those anywhere they want, and they'll still move around all the time, and act funny.
ReplyDeleteI like to write scripts for cartoons while at the roller derby. Does that count?
ReplyDeleteDrawing at the Zoo is nothing but a "Hey man" magnet. Hey man, Can i see you drawing? Hey man, can you draw my girlfriend? Hey man, Can draw Spongebob? You are just one of the animals to mess with after a while.
ReplyDeleteDrawing at the ballgame is No No. After drawing all week i need a dog and a beer and nine innings of relaxation. Besides, You might get bean balled by not paying attention.
I did set up shop for a week at Santa Anita when they where getting Universal's animation unit started in the 90's.
Sat in the grandstands, Storyboarded, and made 85 buck profit at the end of the week.
Eddie if you spent the cash for better seats, you might be able to see the players better. Just a suggestion.;0)
ReplyDeleteAh, Uncle Eddie, I love you, but on this theory you're wrong. So, so wrong.
ReplyDeleteThe LA zoo is a great place to draw--people: tired moms, bored dads, frazzled teachers, hyperactive kids, laughing kids, kids getting ice cream all over themselves, strings of tiny kids holding hands while their homemade nametags flutter off their chests, landing in the bushes...kids sighting one of the many skunks and running in delighted terror...and then there's the people working the place.
Forget animals for the "realistic" artists(though you clearly haven't seen the insnae animal drawings my friends do)! The zoo's for people watching.
Plus, it's better than usual that you won't be bothered if you keep your head down and wear a hat & sunglasses because everyone is busy staring at the animals.
Damn animal right activists! Ruining it for everyone else!
ReplyDeleteDrawing outside: True the people at zoos are great. That's what I always end up drawing whenever I go there. Of course I have to draw with the glare of the sun on my paper.
ReplyDeleteUsually I do quick doodles on the spot then go to a hot-dog stand where I can sit down and flesh them out. The hot dog tables are usually covered with melted ice-cream and pesky bees and are half the time in the sun. I always promise myself "Never again!" but I usually get lured back once a year.
Really, it's so much easier to draw people in fast food restaurants. People you want to draw stay in place at their tables, you get lots of weird kid life, there's no sun and your table acts like a desk.
Occassionally I see other artists' sketchbooks that contain really good drawings of zoo animals. How do they do that? All I the animals I see are sleeping. Is there a premium zoo somewhere that feeds the animals caffeine?
One word:
ReplyDelete"TAXIDERMY!"
HEY THAT'S PNC PARK IN PITTSBURGH!
ReplyDeleteLOOK AT THE BEAUTIFUL CITYSCAPE
One word: dedication.
ReplyDelete"Eddie if you spent the cash for better seats, you might be able to see the players better. Just a suggestion.;0)"
ReplyDeleteThen Eddie will have to sell his computer and there'll be no more blog. ;)
It sucks when the monkeys fling their poo!
ReplyDeleteI've actually never gone to draw- but we have an animal drawing class here at otis that always goes first semester, and I hear that they really like drawing at the Aquarium of the Pacific- no poo flinging!
I enjoy zoos but I do agree with Eddie...it is real difficult to draw animals in the zoo. With the large number of zoology books and museums available, it isn't as necessary to visit a zoo. Museum specimens are great to work with...the specimens can be rotated, fine details can be examined, museums often have great equipment for drawing specimens (ex. microscopes, ocular micrometers, camera lucidas) and there are often many replicates for each species.
ReplyDeleteI personally prefer to draw people at bars (vs. the zoo). Drawings are a great way to meet people and a good way to start a conversation.
ReplyDeletegoin' to the zoo, zoo, zoo
ReplyDeletehow about you, you, you
goin' to the zoo, zoo, zoo
you can come too, too, too
lol at Vincent. True though
ReplyDeleteAs far as the zoo, it's real tough. You spend a maximum effort for a few great poses in a day. Monkeys are terrific simply based on their movement though. You can really do some great gestures and capture their flexibility. Also, they're so ugly sometimes you can get some really cool designs.
But drawing a zebra standing there, a giraffe. Not really. I mean, it's good to see it an appreciate the animal in its full glory. You get a sense to put into your drawings of them that you didn't have before. It's not ideal though to head back again and again to draw them standing straight up.
Still, I wouldn't change the zoo. If there's anything beside the actual drawing that I came to appreciate visiting the zoo, it's the animals themselves. I'm glad they have bigger habitats and see it as a bit of a privilege I can go check them out and draw them. Even if they're far away and sleeping.
Also agree on the "hey man" of the zoo. They always think you're doing something important. I just want to be left alone. Gets easier though once you learn to focus your body language skills to say "go away" without saying it.
it's like learning to edit film on a flatbed -there was a time when it was a good idea, but that time has passed.now with the internet,cable,dvd's from national geographic,discovery and others,you can target the animals-movements-and angles,and replay them over and over.......on the side of content,well that's a call that the artist has got to make for hiself, even on the most cartoony stuff it can be great,just don't break shit down frame by frame and try duplicate it - use it to your advantage(or don't) it's up to you.....but yeah,there's alot of stuff out there that people pay lip service to,without really understanding or questioning (in all areas of life)-and so it goes
ReplyDeleteVincent: Aaaargh! I left myself open for that one!
ReplyDeleteHas anyone actually seen any one sketching at a sports event? I haven't seen any evidence of such since Robert Ripley started his career. I think it is theoretically viable as any life study, but these days, if people want to capture sports images, they use a camera first. I would think the crowd way more interesting than the players.
ReplyDeleteSchool was the best place to draw, I never knew I was doing it really, Well, that is, it was never my intent to draw, it just happened, it was just my mind wandering as there was a lull in any notes I was taking during the lecture.
I have spontaneously doodled in bars, and I have taken dates that may like to draw, to places like Macaroni grill, where the table cloths are paper, and the staff gives you crayons.
A piece of advice that Woolie Reitherman gave me in 1978: "It's ok to go out and draw, but the best thing you can do is stay in and draw from the television. Draw from a football or a baseball game: on a tv you are close enough to see what's going on..."
ReplyDeleteAnon, Adam: Good advice!
ReplyDeleteHans: Ha! Good to know that Woolie had the same theory. I wish I could put out these thoughts on baseball-type cards, the kind that come with bubble gum. The series would be called "Artists' Myths." Drawing at the zoo and the baseball game would have made a nice card #1 and 2.
My favorite place to draw is a skating rink. Beginning skaters get into lots of funny positions, and they ain't movin' too fast.
ReplyDeleteAs for ball games, go to a local club game where you can sit up close in empty stands. The action is good for drawing.