Fun memories from my School days - Avcon Ink #2-

Back in the 1970s, I had a green fibreglass Golden Breed 'slalom' skateboard - the long thin ones that went faster and raced around the cones. I saved up 30 weeks (at $1/week pocket money) to get that skateboard. When I think about my high school days, I remember that skateboard. They were all the rage. There were movies (like surfer movies) and there was the clothing (yeah, I had a Golden Breed  tshirt as well.) We used to go boarding in the shopping centre car park, on Saturday and Sunday afternoons. (The shops weren't open on weekends, after midday on Saturday, back then.) We used to dodge the learner drivers who also used the car park. I still have the scars to prove it! (Still haven't told my mum that one).

Books: They were another thing that I enjoyed at school and they dominated my high school life (and still do).  My high school librarian went out of her way to find new books that the students would enjoy, often introducing us to new genres. She was that kind of person; she had a passion for books and longed for the students to experience that for themselves. She handed me a copy of The Dark is Rising and then more fantasy and SF followed. My lifetime addiction to Lord of the Rings and Agatha Christie are her fault. Thank you! Life would be so dreary without books...

Why the reminiscing?

I had originally planned to do try to design two entries for the Avcon t-shirt/hoodie compeition that closed on Sunday. The first was a cheerleader design, with books. I had wanted a second design with more movement than my first design - my school days were dominated by skateboards and books, so that was my next focus. I forced the perspective for emphasis and to provide the perfect platform for the logo. 

A rough sketch was made to get the bones of the composition. Switch on his skateboard (the shapes have changed since my school days) and Ayvee, the more serious character, reading her book. 

I inked the main drawing but could not make up my mind on how to finally position Ayvee. While I was waiting for the ink to dry on the first part of the image, I draw this separately and used GIMP to marry the images.

 

+  = 

For the first entry design, I spent an hour hand tracing around the image. Since then, I have discovered that GIMP can do this, so I gave in (and the ink took much longer to dry than I had hoped and the deadline was looming)... This was the final image:

Two entried planned. Two entries finished and arrived before the deadline. Had some fun. Got some pratice in a slightly different style. So whatever happens, I am satisfied.

... Next!....