JULY/AUGUST!

Heyooo, it's ya friendly neighborhood Javi!

Welcome back to another blog post where you can get all the updates on my work, my life, and the treadmill hamster that runs my brain! As always, it's been pretty non-stop and crazy and relentless yet we stay silly in these trying times - at least that’s what the hamster says!

So let's begin, yeah? I started an attempt at daily drawings where I focused a lot on using markers to make traditional sketches over digital sketches. And continued to work on other things alongside that because - again - the hamster told me. That said, let's take a look at the stats: I drew a personal sketch of a corner street sign getting splashed during a sunshower, I drew Spider-Man, Samurai Jack, Hey, Arnold!, OG Megatron, John Stewart Green Lantern, Barry Allen the Flash, Nightwing, Harley Quinn, Geralt, Gon, Goku, Gol D. Roger, and the Sentry! These were all a part of my daily drawings attempt where I took requests from people on IG and TikTok of which character they wanted to see next! I will definitely be returning to this so stay tuned! Other than these sketches, I also finished the design to my next tattoo - a play on the Greek tale of Sisyphus that's referenced in a newer Joyce Manor song I love - and I finished the design/layout to my next print which will be an Absolute Batman print!! I've also continued the design/layout on the same secret project that I allude to every time I post (trust).

AND I DID MY FIRST CONVENTION OF THE YEAR!

I took it easy this year with events and conventions cause I did way too many last year and got a little burnt out. At a certain point, it was hard to distinguish when I was making art for myself or for an event/project/commission/what have you. The time off from pumping out so much art and doing so many events definitely helped me mentally and I feel I’ve gotten back to my deeper creative roots recently! But that came with the caveat of seeing how quickly things change in this scene even when you step away for a minute; stepping away definitely slows the progress down, and this convention definitely showed me that.

For those who follow, I have been a little quiet online since… Partially, yes, I kinda needed to regroup, but I also moved again and started working crazy hours because of the move(again).

August has been… Weird.

It’s been a hell of a summer, especially here in NYC, as you could imagine. From Mamdani constantly being awesome, the big Pride parade coming back, to the Knicks winning, and now we have Spider-Man: Brand New Day reminding us that NYC is and has always been a character in stories.

I missed you, New York.

Being back has felt good, but I’m admittedly struggling with the sense of having to restart my life again and find myself sympathizing with transplants now. Like the convention, my time away from the city gave me plenty of moments of, “they closed the PetCo and put a Uniqlo there??” Construction sites cleared with brand new buildings, and sidewalks and streets closed for brand new construction sites.

It’s been hard re-integrating myself into all of it, again, but it still feels good. August really kicked my ass, and after watching Brand New Day in theatres twice I still cried to the Aunt May scene. It’s what I needed. I’ve been working really hard to pick myself back up and rebuild myself. I’ve always tried to tell myself I am a self-made man, and I will continue to do so regardless of who's watching or not.

I have my brand new day now, and I’m cooking up shit with this hamster - his name is Peter, by the way - and I’m really excited to start showing you guys what I’ll be working on. Just keep this in mind as a sneak peek, an easter egg:

I ♥️ NY.

Until next time.