Day 340

In order to complete this self-portrait, I had to enlist some help. Throughout this project, I've made numerous drawings drawings with voice balloons (usually depicting a statement made by a bird). This time, however, I completely drew a blank at what the bird should be saying.

So I went to class and asked the opinion of my students. Essentially, I asked "What is the bird saying?" And I got so many great answers in return, I decided to present a Top 10 of my favorites!

10. "Why so serious?"

9. "...got nothing? That's what I thought. Just keep laughing!"

8. "R A W W W W R! . . . peep?"

7. "Are you my mother?"
(With this one, it occurred to me that the bird I drew did bear a slight resemblance to the one in a book by P.D. Eastman...)

6. "Looking good today, jim."

5. "Never more."
(I can certainly appreciate the Edgar Allan Poe reference...)

4. "Furthermore..."
(When I first read this, I did NOT really see it as a Poe reference; I just thought it applied because the bird could appear to be lecturing...)

3. "I am not a bird."
(I really like where this one comes from. In my Art Appreciation class, we spoke about Rene Magritte's painting The Treachery of Images, which is a painting of what looks like a pipe and the words "This is not a pipe." The point is that it really is NOT a pipe: it's an IMAGE of a pipe. I guess this really isn't a bird either...)

2. "Hey man, I just shit on your car."
(This one just made me laugh...)

And the number one answer - which made it onto the actual drawing - reminded me of a Will Ferrell sketch on Saturday Night Live...

#340 September 25, 2011,  Ink wash and pen on wood panel