Latest Posts by robtfirefly - Page 2

Today’s daily doodle is the Dreadful Flying Glove from the film Yellow Submarine, my favorite thing with which the Beatles were ever tangentially involved.

Even if, like me, you’re not all that much of a Beatles fan, see this movie at least once.  It’s beautiful.

Started as sort of Rorschach of Watchmen, but I don’t know I’m tired.  Around seven minutes.

Texted one friend asking for a profession, and another asking for animals.  I got back secretary, chipmunk, and ball python.  This is the result, done in ten minutes on my lunch break.

In today’s daily doodle, President William McKinley wishes he had a Nintendo Game Boy.

Five-minute doodle of Woodstock, from Charles Schulz’s Peanuts.

I always loved that comic as a kid, I used to trace it out of the newspaper, and Woodstock was my favorite.

Daily doodle number four is a quick sketch of the main character from La Linea (”The Line”), an Italian cartoon which as a child I thought was the greatest thing ever.  Now, as an adult, I still think it’s the greatest thing ever; this little long-suffering gibberish-spouting cartoonist-pestering guy is just as wonderful to watch today as he was when I was a toddler.

Search for “La Linea” on your video site of choice to watch any of his excellent shorts.

Leeloo from The Fifth Element wearing a pith helmet.  I’m not sorry.

For today’s daily doodle I played a self-administered drawing game a teacher taught me ages ago which is perfect for getting over doodler’s block, so I decided to share the game here as well.

The original game used a paper encyclopedia or dictionary (which were things people had back then) flipped to a random page, I updated it for the Wikipedia era.

Once you master doing this in ten minutes, try for five!

I’ve long tried to do something creative every day if possible, whether it be something huge and refined or a small sketch I throw out and never think of again.

For 2016, as I focus on getting myself back into a good creative place after a very difficult 2015, I’ve decided to try and make a project out of daily doodles.  Here’s Day One, a 10-minute MyPaint self-portrait.  I hate doing self-portraits and timed drawing, so what better way to push myself out of my comfort zone a bit?

Not afraid to say Happy Solstice! 🌝🌞

Tim Berners-Lee (b. June 8, 1955)

Sir Timothy Berners-Lee, also known as TimBL, is an English computer scientist who invented an information management system which we know as the World Wide Web. He serves on several organizations dedicated to developing and maintaining the Web as the resource most visible to Internet users today.

Acrylic on canvas, 5x7″.  From my September 2015 set Luminaries of the Hacker World.

Steve Wozniak (b. August 11, 1950)

The old-school hacker and phone phreak known as "Woz" is celebrated worldwide for his co-founding of Apple Computer, his pioneering achievements in the hardware field, his work with the EFF, his love of pranks and good humor, his enduring hacker spirit, and - in some circles - his dancing ability.

Acrylic on canvas, 5x7″.  From my September 2015 set Luminaries of the Hacker World.

Nikola Tesla (July 10, 1856-January 7, 1943)

Tesla, a Serbian-American inventor never fully appreciated in his own lifetime, has in retrospect become known as one of the most important inventors on record. Much of our 21st -century technological environment has its roots in Tesla's work with electricity, radio, and more.

Acrylic on canvas, 5x7″.  From my September 2015 set Luminaries of the Hacker World.

Linus Torvalds (b. December 28, 1969)

Finnish-American software engineer Linus Torvalds is the founding developer of Linux, a free and open-source operating system kernel which led to countless implementations and derivatives and grew into the system driving an ever-increasing amount of public, professional, and private computing work.

Acrylic on canvas, 5x7″.  From my September 2015 set Luminaries of the Hacker World.

Jude "St. Jude" Milhon (March 12, 1939-July 19, 2003)

Jude Milhon, generally known as St. Jude, was an author and hacker whose achievements span many corners of hacker culture. Her work with seminal cyberpunk showcases Mondo 2000 and Boing Boing, her work in cypherpunk (a term she coined, and movement she founded), and her righteous and mischievous persona continue to inspire.

Acrylic on canvas, 5x7″.  From my September 2015 set Luminaries of the Hacker World.

Joybubbles (May 25, 1949-August 8, 2007)

Joybubbles (born Josef Engressia) was an early phone phreak.

With perfect pitch he was able to control the phone system by simply whistling the tones normally generated by Bell's systems, an ability he accidentally discovered at age seven.

Acrylic on canvas, 5x7″.  From my September 2015 set Luminaries of the Hacker World.

Grace Hopper (December 9, 1906-January 1, 1992)

Rear Admiral Grace Hopper, USN, Ph.D., or "Amazing Grace" as she is often known to her admirers, was a computer scientist and programmer whose pioneering work on early computers as well as her amiably no-nonsense attitude when teaching continues to inspire.

She is known for distributing "nanoseconds," lengths of wire spanning the distance light travels in that amount of time, at her speaking engagements.

Acrylic on canvas, 7x5″.  From my September 2015 set Luminaries of the Hacker World.

Edward Snowden (b. June 21, 1983)

Technical expert Edward Snowden once felt something to which he had access contained evidence of something he felt was deeply wrong, in a way the public had a right to know about.  The echoes of his actions continue on the world stage, and have left him exiled with no current possibility of fair trial.

Acrylic on canvas, 5x7″.  From my September 2015 set Luminaries of the Hacker World.

Edward Barnett

In 1971, Purdue University undergraduate student Edward Barnett co-founded the Purdue University Black Society of Engineers to encourage his fellow black students to pursue engineering in a dedicated and supportive environment. The organization succeeded and grew, and continues its work today as the National Society of Black Engineers.

Acrylic on canvas, 5x7″.  From my September 2015 set Luminaries of the Hacker World.

Delia Derbyshire (May 5, 1937-July 3, 2001)

Delia Derbyshire was an English musician, composer, and pioneer in the early days of electronic music. Her developments in and use of musique concrète and other innovative methods of early synthesis led to soundscapes like none heard before, including the iconic Doctor Who theme.

Acrylic on canvas, 7x5″.  From my September 2015 set Luminaries of the Hacker World.

Carmen "humdog" Hermosillo (d. August 10, 2008)

Artist, writer, researcher, and poet Carmen Hermosillo was a participant in online communities, from BBSes, the WELL, and other early electronic forums to modern social networks and virtual worlds, and studied their place in our lives.

Hermosillo is portrayed here with one of her many virtual avatars.

Acrylic on canvas, 7x5″.  From my September 2015 set Luminaries of the Hacker World.

Benjamin Banneker (November 9, 1731-October 9, 1806)

A free African-American in the 18th century, Banneker was a primarily self-taught student of multiple sciences.

Using only a borrowed pocket watch as reference, Banneker once carved a wooden clock by hand which kept perfect time until the day of his death.

Acrylic on canvas, 5x7″.  From my September 2015 set Luminaries of the Hacker World.

Alan Turing (June 23, 1912-June 7, 1954)

Turing was a pioneering scientist in the fields of mathematics, logic, cryptography, and more. His work was fundamental in the development of computer science and artificial intelligence.

Prosecuted and ostracized for his homosexuality, then a criminal act, he has been posthumously pardoned.

Acrylic on canvas, 5x7″.  From my September 2015 set Luminaries of the Hacker World.

Ada Lovelace (December 10, 1815-November 27, 1852)

Augusta Ada King, Countess of Lovelace was a writer and mathematician who worked on Charles Babbage's early mechanical computer.  Her work in what she called "poetical science" led her to a legacy as the first computer programmer, and continues to inspire generations of hackers today.

Acrylic on canvas, 5x7″.  From my September 2015 set Luminaries of the Hacker World.

Callie and Izzy is an upcoming webseries it’s been my pleasure to be part of.  The show is by Nicola Rose, with whom I’ve previously worked on The Media Show and the musical Aisle Six.

More info coming soon, keep an eye on it!

There are only so many combinations available.

My standup set from last night’s “Say Everything,” the talk-show-esque pub comedy show where I’m a regular performer.  We talked about my hometown, Hurricane Joaquin, funerals, and more.

More info about the show on its Facebook.

A Joseph Ducreux-inspired painting I did because Christian Slater is awesome in Mr. Robot.

EDIT: Added an alternate caption suggested by spectralconfetti on reddit.

Painted with a Wacom Bamboo tablet in MyPaint, lettered in GIMP.

Leaked Doctor Who production material reveals plans for the Doctor’s hairstyle.

One thing I've been coming back to a lot recently is a song by Information Society called "Where the I Divides."

This is me getting some emotional stuff through my system by singing it to myself, accompanied only by a soft drizzle and some late-night/early-morning city traffic outside my apartment window.