Galaxian

Back in the very early 80's, you could not play video games at home. Instead, tall machines, that could each play one type of game only, packed video arcades. They had awesome artwork on the sides to make up for the prehistoric graphics. I've always loved the retro-future artwork on Galaxian. (Someone should make a video game NOW, using that illustration. The robot insect aliens, future cities, and a split in half moon would make a great game.)

Coleco had the idea of making small electronic games that were similar to the stand-up full-sized games. Although not the same, they played in a similar enough way that made them quite popular. The TV ad showed a fantastic 'Mr. Arcade' that was (magically?) shrinking the different games for the addicted kids so that they could play them at home.

I made a video that shows a Galaxian arcade game and the (poor quality, yet awesome) TV commercial.

(You can also see this game in my previous sketch of my computer desk.)

Desktop

Old stuff on desktop...

Ngamotu Engine

It's been a while since I'd been to the Taranaki Aviation Technology and Transport Museum. While I was there, they fired up an engine from a ship used to dredge sand from the seaport. The sign said that it ran at about 100rpm on the ship but when I was there, in the museum, it was much slower than that. (Maybe 10-20%?) At that speed, it was making this sound that was like it was breathing. It was so hypnotic that I ended up sitting down and sketching it.

I made a 60-second video, if you want to hear the breathing sound:

I'm looking for a winter sketching venue so maybe I'll be back periodically.

Traffic Lights

I wasn't going to draw this. I planned on taking a few minutes of my day to get out of email debt or maybe network socially. I checked my messages but then put it away. I reached for my sketchbook instead and drew what was in front of me. I guess that is the nature of the process. I don't have a drawing ability that I was born with. Any skill that I have, has been practiced for years. I suppose that I draw as much as some other people use their phones, and that, really could be the secret.

Hard Helmet Diving Suit

New Zealand's had a lot of rain last weekend with quite a few places becoming flooded. Even with the rising levels of the Huatoki Stream beside it, one of the most dry places in Taranaki for sketching was in the museum in New Plymouth. I started to draw this 1950's hard helmet diving suit since I found it interesting and I was amazed that it was still used until the late 1960's. When I finished this drawing, I wondered if the staff might have to use it soon. It's supposed to rain again this weekend.

Braveheart

So I'm in this Irish pub in New Zealand. I've always thought that this place does a pretty good job of being an authentic pub that could be in Britain somewhere. Yes, I know... probably Ireland, but the decor of the inside is for the most part catering to Britain as a whole. When I was there I asked the guy next to me if he was from the UK and he gave me an "Aye'. I asked him, "does this place seem like a pub that could exist on the other side of the world?" He though about it but decided that it didn't. It turns out that even though the look inside isn't bad, it's just the fact that it is in New Zealand that prevents him from accepting the illusion.
When I was having a pint, I kept looking at this poster. It's been a while since the movie came out and it's now regarded as one of the least historically accurate movies out there. Also, it's an Australian actor playing a Scottish character in an American movie on a poster in an Irish pub in New Zealand. Does that make this object tacky and cliche? Now that the Scotland independence vote is about a week away, it's probably more relevant than it's been in years.

Power Pole

When I was younger, I thought that in the future... there wouldn't be any telephone/power poles. All wires would be below ground. It's like that in some cities and newer subdivisions but I don't think they will disappear in my lifetime. A good part of the world is pretty wired up and by this I mean lots of slapdash looking jobs. Way too many wires on some. No design. Unplanned. Just keep adding more and more weird crap to them.

This pole that I drew is near where I live. A big cement-y pole with some wood beams cross-strapped here and there. This one also has some heavy-duty lines on the top that go in all directions before being herded down a tube that runs the length of it. It's not going to win any engineering awards. I also like how the streetlight is just bolted to the side of an old piece of wood that is bolted to the centre. 

The newest addition to the Pole of Shame is the bottom bit. Nationwide, New Zealand is currently being hooked up to fibre-optic broadband internet. That bottom pod thing is what that is. With that of course comes another hefty cable. You can follow that one down, and then up, and then to the right. The funny thing is that even though everyone is around digging holes and laying underground cables everywhere, our pole gets one of these babies. Well, you wouldn't want to ruin the current aesthetic that we already have going on here.

Nasty cabling isn't unique to this country. I know some countries load up their points with even way more wires. However, I think that each place does it their own way and that you can tell what part of the world you're in just by the style of crappy wiring that is around you.

TATATM

TATATM - Taranaki Aviation Transport And Technology Museum
A pretty cool, yet underfunded, museum on the edge of New Plymouth, New Zealand. If you like old things, this has a surprisingly large amount of stuff to browse though. The items are sorted into different zones and all the museum volunteers there are likely experts in at least one area. Lots of things to draw - I did a couple:

A Harvard (T-6 Texan) - I think it crashed locally and they are restoring it. The propellor might look a bit small in this drawing since they don't have a right sized one. (It's also wood! An actual one would be made of metal.) Still, I think it looks better than a display with NO propellor. The rest of it seems in pretty good condition.

This is a general view of a part of the 'Communications' section. Again, so much to see and draw. This is quite a good place if you're into ancient or retro. I suspect that a large percentage of the items on display are restored to a functional state by the volunteers too.

Mr Chips

On my desk, I have a small sculpture of a demented puffer-fish. I have a friend who makes these as well as other larger crazy sea creatures. I helped her make some brochures once and as a gift she sent me a one of her smaller fish. She also gives each of her fish a name but this one arrived to us nameless. We thought that the row of bottom teeth seemed like a carton of french fries, or 'chips'. Down here in New Zealand there is manufacturer of chips that supplies several of the fish & chip shops that goes by the name of 'Mr. Chips'. It seemed perfect for our little guy.