48. NO GREY AREA: Night Fishing.

The first attempts made by humans at drawing things they saw, at least that we know of, are the cave paintings. And, in all probability, the first time they did it in a realistic manner, somebody or something's shadow was traced on a flattish surface. The cradle of the art of drawing may have been a cave, but its first shoes were silhouettes.

NIGHT FISHING.

Some would claim that an artist just do silhouettes because he or she is to lazy to do details*). I beg to differ.

*)Very few would claim this to Frank Miller's face, though.

 NIGHT FISHING II: SEA TROUT.

The limitations makes me focus on basic shapes instead of, say, drawing the perfect nostril. It enables me to control the detail freak inside - who's usually ruling around here. Enables me to remove things like stars and ripples in the ocean - reduce it all to graphic shapes as clear as possible.

NIGHT FISHING III: MUSSELS.

Sometimes, you'll continue simplifying right up to the edge of abstract. And beyond. For quick exercises in composition, it's perfect. In this particular case, the dim light of a cabin also made silhouettes a logical choice of expression.

NIGHT FISHING IV: CATCHING CRABS.

The original sketches for the drawings included here, were done during a weekend of fishing, eating and partying with good friends, back in the fall of 1999. The names of the involved are kept secret to protect the innocent. I shall not bore you with even more fishing stories than the visual ones - in fact, the whole weekend is kind of blurry, anyway. But one thing I do remember, besides there being a lot of laughing.

NIGHT FISHING V: CATCHING MORE CRABS.

There's this dude, let's call him X. He's one of us who won't admit we need glasses, and find it more convenient to bump into things. He's outside the cabin with a rifle - a '22, I think. Perhaps just a pellet-gun. And he wants to do some target practice. But, since it's nighttime, and as dark as it only gets with zero neighbors, X hangs up a lamp a few feet from the target. Then he walks away ten steps or less, turns, aims carefully, squeezes the trigger--

And shoots out the lamp.