Aaron Renier

I decided in order to update my website more... just to get SOMETHING new up more often, I would start putting my sketchbook up... just random drawings from here and there. Partly, I think the importance in showing my sketchbook is that a lot of the time my pages are really rough, and really sloppy, and just not worthy of showing people... so... that's exactly why I should show them. All the drawings in my "illustrations" and "comics" are so labored... penciled and then inked and then erased, then colored on the computer.
One of the most important things to me is my sketchbook, and the mistakes I make inside of it. Getting used to mistakes, liking my mistakes. I'm not sure if that makes sense.
I've been really into my pentel pocket brush pen lately... if you like to draw you'd be wise to get one. You can buy them here. They are sort of expensive... but you can refill them with your own ink... and they really last forever. The one I use the most, I've been using for about a year... and it is awesome. I'm just starting to use them on my final pages for Walker Bean (my new graphic novel). I also really like the pentel water brush. I use it with my water color compact and I have a little portable art studio on the go. All three tools and a good pad of paper is all you need to make the world your studio.
I guess what I'm saying is, if there is anybody out there who likes to draw and wants to try something new, I say put away your pencils, and just use ink... go permanent with your sketchbook, don't second guess your sketches. These tools will give you really pleasurable doodles and mistakes.

Hello. I've been really neglecting my website lately... no new images... no news. Nothing. I've been drawing my book "The Unsinkable Walker Bean" (which I think is going well, but we'll see...) and working on some random other projects. I recently finished illustrating the first book in a series written by Gerald Morris that will be published soon by my Houghton Mifflin, and I just finished three monster illustrations for nickelodeon magazine. I just put them up in my gallery section if you want to check them out.

I also just got back from White River Junction teaching with Robyn Chapman and Alec Longstreth at the Center for Cartoon Studies. Alec and I traveled up there last year, and were invited back to teach the summer workshop. It was pretty amazing and a breath of fresh air compaired to Bushwick. For a very detailed description of what we did look at Alec's Blog. I guess that's it from me. I will try yo do this weekly, it's just hard because I feel like drawing takes up my brain energy. Although I did just finish the Deathly Hallows... and that took up a day and a half of brain energy.
I am sort of tired as I write this, so for those of you who check my site regularly (crickets chirping) I hope to at least get SOMETHING up weekly. Really I'm goin gto try harder. Ideas are already flowing. Have a good night or day, dear reader.