Kaley Cuoco - Portrait

American film and television actress. She first came to attention for her role as Bridget Hennessy on the Emmy Award-winning sitcom 8 Simple Rules (2002–2005). She later starred as Billie Jenkins on the final season of the supernatural drama series Charmed (2005–2006). She has gained international acclaim and recognition for her current role as Penny on the Emmy and Golden Globe award-winning comedy series The Big Bang Theory (2007–present), which became the highest rated comedy on US television among adults 18–49 for the 2009–10 season. Cuoco's success within the television industry has launched her film career, appearing in films such as Lucky 13 (2005), The Penthouse (2010), Hop (2011), and The Last Ride (2011).

- 5H-6B, woodless graphite 9B

- Kneaded Eraser, Electric Eraser, Mars Rasor, Mechanical Pen Eraser

- Blending Stump, Makeup Removal Discs

- A4 (21x29'7 cm) (8,25" x 11,7")

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70. CHRISTOPHER McCANDLESS: Into the wild

70. CHRISTOPHER McCANDLESS: Into the wild:

Christopher McCandless (aka Alexander Supertramp, 1968-1992) was a young American adventurer who was so disillusioned with the materialistic society he had grown up in that he tried to find meaning in life through adventure, solitude and surviving in the wild. He began going on extended trips after high school, surviving on little equipment or money. His dream of finding self-discovery and fulfilment culminated when he travelled to the Alaskan wilderness where he foraged for food, read, wrote in a journal and slept in an abandoned bus. After living in the bus for over three months he died of starvation. His story was documented in the book and subsequent film Into the Wild.
McCandless has become a hero to many and the abandoned bus in Alaska is now a tourist attraction and shrine to his many admirers. I definitely admire his ideals and share some of his beliefs about the emptiness of today’s materialistic culture (he says as he types this on a shiny computer and listens to an iPod). And the fact that he had the courage to actually give up on society and live a nomadic life in search for self-discovery is so inspiring and something I would never have the balls to do. But I also agree with those who criticise McCandless for the way he so carelessly threw his life away. He was unprepared, lacked any survival skills, had no knowledge of the area, ignored the advice of locals and didn’t even carry a compass. Think of all the different countries he could have travelled to, the different experiences he might have had and the endlessly changing horizons he has missed. Imagine the new and different suns he could have witnessed if he were alive today. It’s a sad story and a waste of a young man’s life.
As for the comic, I was going to do a straight adaptation and end it without that last panel that kind of changes the whole tone of the piece. But then I figured who the hell am I to preach about living an adventurous life when I’ve been holed up in my bunker drawing comics in my pyjamas for the past six months? That would have been a tad hypocritical of me. Anyway, part of this whole Zen Pencils deal was that it would enable me to travel more since I can work from anywhere and that’s still something I’m trying to make happen.
- What’s your opinion on Christopher McCandless, idealistic hero or reckless fool?

- Thanks to Cole for submitting this quote.

Via: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zenpencils/~3/6ULagF0UKZA/

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71: OSWALD CHAMBERS: Mountains and valleys

71: OSWALD CHAMBERS: Mountains and valleys:

Oswald Chambers (1874-1917) was a Scottish minister and teacher, most well-known for his devotional book My Utmost for His Highest.
This comic is a continuation from my Calvin Coolidge: Never Give Up comic. That was pretty popular and I had so much fun drawing the dragon and little hero that I wanted to revisit them again. And yeah yeah, I know the final dragon looks more like a T-Rex – this magical realm has dragons AND dinosaurs. I thought this was such a great message. I’m always adapting quotes that are about living a big, exciting and adventurous life and while that is all well and good, the simple fact is that life is also filled with lots of little, boring and mundane things that we deal with everyday. This stuff probably takes more dedication and perseverance to get through than the fun parts.
Thank you to Karen for submitting this quote.
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Via: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zenpencils/~3/HEtEdq-viD4/

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66. RICHARD FEYNMAN: A more interesting outlook

66. RICHARD FEYNMAN: A more interesting outlook:


FEYNMAN WEEK: Part 2
Richard Feynman (1918-1988) was a legendary American physicist, lecturer and one helluva bongo player. During his Ph.D studies he was selected to work on the Manhattan project to develop the atomic bomb. From there he won the Nobel Prize for Physics and became professor at Caltech where he spent the majority of his career. Later in his life, he served on the committee that investigated the Challenger space shuttle disaster. However, he appeals to many non-scientists for his eccentric personality, zest for life and the beautiful, wonder-inspiring way he shared his love for science to the public.
One of the best things about this site is not only do I share my favourite people with you, but I’ve discovered new and exciting things from your quote submissions. I had never heard of Richard Feynman before I started Zen Pencils, but readers bombarded me with his quotes after I expressed my love for Carl Sagan and soon I was on my way. I watched all his YouTube videos and read his autobiography Surely You’re Joking, Mr Feynman! and now I’m totally obsessed with him. His way of thinking and looking at the world was breathtaking, and he communicated science with so much joy and fun – a truly remarkable man.
This quote was taken from the brilliant Horizon episode The Pleasure of Finding Things Out. You can watch the short clip here but I highly recommend you watch the whole interview.
My favourite Feynman clip is this one where he talks about light waves, or as he puts it ‘the inconceivable nature of nature’. I watch this clip at least once a week and it never fails to put a smile on my face. It’s five minutes of magic. Why couldn’t my science teachers explain things like this?!

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via: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zenpencils/~3/F7dQnkknlgY/

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Drapery studies (Leonardo da Vinci & Albrecht Dürer)

The amazing thing about masters is that they somehow already know how to do great things. You'll surely learn something interesting following their steps.

Drapery Study:

HB, 2B, 4B
White pastel
Kneaded eraser
A4 color paper
References: Leonardo da Vinci & Albrecht Dürer
 

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63. CARL SAGAN: Books are awesome

63. CARL SAGAN: Books are awesome:


Another gem from Carl Sagan (read my first Sagan post on why I love him so much). My initial idea was to set the story in the very near future in a classroom. A teacher would tell the class it was reading time and the students would all take out their iPad 6.0 and open up the iBooks3D app. Each student would select a different book in the app and a 3D hologram of the historic person would project from their screens and the money shot would feature the classroom filled with these 3D projections. I rejected the idea because I didn’t want it to be one big ad for Apple and I also wanted to create a tribute to the printed book. I don’t think the 3D projection idea is too far from actually happening, especially after that Tupac hologram we all gushed over at Coachella.
Thanks to tablets and e-readers, the printed book is fighting a uphill battle to stay alive. How can they hope to survive when I’ve got dozens of books on my iPad (not to mention hundreds of comics, magazines, music, games, photos and movies) that I can carry around with me anywhere I go? So yes, this is my love-letter to printed books – those chunky, faded, smelly and yellow parcels of knowledge and fun I used to check out from my school library that helped shaped the person I am today (those and cartoons, lots and lots of cartoons).
It was really hard picking five books from the history of the written word. What helped me choose was not only how well-known the authors and books were, but also how easily recognisable their costumes and appearance would be to readers. I had to have someone thousands of years old because that’s what Sagan mentioned, which is why I picked Lao Tzu. Also, I had to have Teddy Roosevelt because he’s my guy.
- Now it’s your turn – which five books and/or authors would you have chosen?

- Thanks to Janice and Renee for suggesting this quote. Here’s the clip from Cosmos.

- Coincidently, just yesterday Brain Pickings posted Carl Sagan’s reading list from 1954. Check out what this great man fed his brain with.
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Via:  http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zenpencils/~3/b9LDGmnGAV4/

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Anatomy Studies

I thought that some anatomy studies couldn't do any harm, and sharing them maybe could be useful for others.

4H, HB, 2B, 3B, 4B
Kneaded Eraser, Mechanical Pen Eraser

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