Robert

This is my friend Robert from a photo taken on his birthday at the Skidmore Bluffs.

You can see him dance in Culture Machine, October 14-17 at Disjecta in N. Portland. I know I'll be there.

Swifting the Night Away

Every September the Vaux's Swifts roost in the chimney of the Chapman Elementary School in NW Portland on their way south for the fall. At sunset thousands of them gather and spiral down the chimney swaying and pulsing with all the elegance of a firework display or a ballet.

I went last week and made this drawing. Enjoy!

Alexis

We visited with our friend Alexis while down in Oakland who was very busy with schoolwork at the time. She was sitting still in front of the computer so long that I took it as an opportunity to do a quick portrait. Consequently concentration face = kind of angry looking face. Cheer up Alexis, it's only library science!

The Many Sordid Affairs of Rabbi Herschel Rabbitovski

Hershel Rabbitovski - the name alone conjures images of loose women, fast cars, and cheap moonshine. Not much is known about the infamous bootlegger's early years, other than that he was born in a small village outside of Odessa to Esther and Dimitri Rabbitovski, poor carrot farmers, in the closing years of the nineteenth century. Young Hershel, it seems, always had a cute, whiskered nose for trouble and was quickly spirited away to Kiev where his parents enrolled him in a rabbinical seminary.

He was ordained as a rabbi in 1914 but, after persistent allegations of money laundering, Rabbitovski fled to America where, through his cousin Harvey Harewood, he quickly found work in a poor Brooklyn synagogue. With the advent of Prohibition, Rabbitovski turned the congregation into a front for a bootlegging operation extending as far west as Missouri and as far south as the Carolinas. Taking a leaf from his upbringing, Rabbitovski's outfit specialized in a unique brand of single malt carrot whiskey colloquially known as "Warren-Tooth Rotgut." At first, life was good and money was easy but, during the later half of the 1920s, Rabbitovski was constantly on the run from Feds and hired guns alike, culminating in a deadly subway shootout in 1933. His funeral was held at B'nai Abraham Cemetery in Newark, New Jersey, though persistent sightings of his distinctive beard and floppy ears have led conspiracy theorists to believe he survived the hit to live out his days somewhere along the Brazilian coast.

Drawing by Ilan Schraer
Story by Aaron Greyson and Ilan Schraer
Written by Aaron Greyson

Page

The reason for my post hiatus is because I was in Oakland all weekend for a wedding, far away from a scanner. Here's a page out of my sketchbook when I was down there. The bottom scene is from Lake Merritt. I think I'd like to do more architectural sketches or "urban landscapes," if you will.

Catch it!

"The Fever" - Episode 17 of the Twilight Zone (January 29, 1960)

Tight-fisted Franklin Gibbs is not pleased when his wife wins a trip for two to Las Vegas. But things change when he falls under the spell of a slot machine that calls his name!

I watched this episode almost a year ago and I've been meaning to draw this screen shot ever since. Look at those eyebrows! This guy is obviously not pleased with anything that is happening. Twilight Zone, you're the best!

An unlikely visit.

One morning a pickup truck clacked and crashed its way into the alley behind our house, making a great ruckus. It stopped for a moment and then went on its way. Curious and puzzled, Stephanie and I went to investigate the scene but were stopped in our tracks when we heard a great roar! Frightened as we were, our curiosity got the best of us and we pushed on. Lo and Behold, when we unlatched our back gate what did we see? A baby triceratops staring right back at us! Realizing she was a friendly triceratops, we quickly brought her in for a bowl of oats and a side of pterodactyl bacon. She thanked us but explained that she had to be on her way, as she was searching for the rest of her kind. Her visit was brief, but I managed to make this sketch as a memento of our morning together. Stephanie and her still write to each other every now and then and we're hoping to pay her and her family a visit soon.

I ain't bluffin'

Okay, maybe a little bit. Here's a quick drawing of the sunset at the Skidmore Bluffs here in N. Portland. Definitely one of my favorite things about this town.

Bad Dream Redux

Here's my new and improved version of yesterday's sketch. I wanted to preserve a little of the sketchiness of the original which I think I have, even though it's a much more complete idea here. And yes that is an Imperial Shuttle on the right. Awesome.

Speaking of awesome, I have some big news. I proudly present to you the grand unveiling of my new website, complete with cleaned up scans, art bios, and contact information. Feel free to spread it around to your friends and family like a virus. Just pretend it's one of those youtube videos with a cat fighting a baby. (Have you seen that video? It's pretty hilarious)

The address is: http://ilanschraer.weebly.com

One day when I get big I'll buy my own domain name. When I get REALLY big.

Bad Dreams

I was going through some old sketch books the other day and came upon a few drawings that I really liked. This is one of them. It's just a sketch but the concept is one that we can all identify with. I spent the last few days creating a more fleshed out version which I'll post tomorrow, along with a BIG surprise.