I am back…with Russell Crowe and Beyonce Knowles. Jealous?

It’s so good to be back:)

2010 feels like home. I can’t tell you how good it is to see automobiles, skyscrapers, and of course, computers once again. I’ll be honest with you. For a while, in the past, I was really happy. It was great to see a world without pollution and its cause (population, of course. What did you think?) But then, I began to miss it all. I began to miss the mad rush of life. I wanted to be back in the thick of things. And believe it or not – I wanted to be back to the peaceful world of 2010. Yes…2010 is a lot more peaceful for the average Joe and Jane, than all those years of the past!

So…

It’s good to be back, and to be sketching people who make our lives colorful and worth living – people from the world of Entertainment!

Coming soon are the caricatures of:

• Russell Crowe in the role of … … …? What’s your guess?
• And Beyonce Knowles!

See you soon:)

(PS: Dr. Who didn’t come to my rescue. His Excuse: He had lost his fig-leaf! On my next trip into the past, I’ll be carrying a chest full of fig-leaves.)

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Caricature/Cartoon – Ben Kingsley as Mahatma Gandhi in Gandhi

This simple caricature necessitates the introduction of two personalities – the great political and spiritual leader of India, Mahatma Gandhi; and the awe-inspiring actor Ben Kingsley.

This is the caricature of Ben Kingsley as Mahatma Gandhi, in the movie Gandhi.

Ben Kingsley as Gandhi

Mahatma Gandhi – Father of the Nation, India.

Mahatma Gandhi was born Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi in Porbandar, Gujarat, India, in 1869. In 1883, when he was 13, he married Kasturba who was slightly older to him. The couple had four children, with Harilal being the eldest. Gandhi studied law at the University College of London , and returned to India after having completed his studies. He tried establishing his practice at Mumbai but failed. Eventually, he joined an Indian firm in South Africa , where for the first time, he faced raw discrimination or Apartheid . For the first time in his life, he consciously began to reflect upon the status of Indians in the world.

The foundations of Satyagraha (Insistence on Truth) were laid in Africa. When Gandhi returned to India in 1915, he came to understand the Indian problems. After his efforts in Gujarat, people began to call him Bapu (Father) and Mahatma (Great Soul/Person). In 1921, he became the leader of the Indian National Congress , and the fight for Swaraj (Our own rule) gained ground. Gandhi continued to evolve the Civil Disobedience Movement through policies such as wearing Khadi (hand-spun fabric) (he himself would hand-spin cotton thread to be used for his clothes.)

In the next three decades, Gandhi became the face of an India that wanted to be free. Eventually, when India was offered independence, it was on the condition that India would be partitioned into India and Pakistan. A reluctant Gandhi gave in and India (also Pakistan) gained its freedom at the midnight of August 15, 1947.

The pioneer of the Satyagraha movement, which was based upon Non-Violence, in India, today Gandhi is known as the Father of Nation.
as his movement helped India win her freedom from the British Raj. On January 30, 1948, Gandhi was assassinated by Nathuram Godse, who held him responsible for partitioning India.

Read about Gandhi’s Life and His Eleven Principles here.

Ben Kingsley – The Actor who played Gandhi

Ben Kingsley’s father Harji Bhanji was born of Indian parents, who had settled in Kenya, but who moved to England when he was 14. Thus, Ben Kingsley was born Krishna Pandit Bhanji – son of a Gujarati Indian Doctor and an English Actress, in the year 1943.

“Sir” Ben Kinglsey (he demanded to be called “Sir” after he was knighted) has won many awards (including a Grammy) and also a star on the Hollywood Walk of fame.
His rise to fame began in 1982, when he starred as Mahatma Gandhi in the movie Gandhi. For this role, he bagged the Academy Award for Best Actor and also the BAFTA award for the Best New Comer.

• Ben Kingsley on Wikipedia
• Ben Kingsley on IMDB

So have you seen the connections yet?

• Both can trace their origins to Gujarat in India.
• Their noses look the same.
• England played a crucial role in the success of both these gentlemen.
• Kingsley popularized Gandhi internationally; Gandhi made Kingsley famous by helping him earn an Academy Award.

(The Caricaturist Wonders – Ben Kingsley was born five years before Gandhi died so it couldn’t have been a case of reincarnation…or…)

Chapter 9 – How to Draw Caricatures – Caricaturing the Forehead, the Hairline, and the Hair – Published.

Some of my readers are closely following the evolution of my Free Online book “How to Draw Caricatures – The Evolution of a Caricaturist”. They would be happy to know that the next chapter of this book, “Chapter 9 – Caricaturing the Forehead, the Hairline, and the Hair” went online today.

This chapter discusses the different types of foreheads, hairline, and hair (or the absence of it.) It also enables you to identify the elements that should be exaggerated in this higher (hairier?) arena of the human anatomy.

 

If this book is new to you, the following links could help you explore it.

Dear Readers: Please note that the KNOL Platform stopped functioning in 2012, so the following links won’t work. An enriched and expanded “Evolution of a Caricaturist – How to Draw Caricatures” is now available as a Kindle eBook from Amazon. ‘

 

 

It has about 150 pages, more than 70 illustrations, and discusses about 3 dozen celebrity faces. The Content Outline of Evolution of a Caricaturist can be downloaded as a FREE pdf here.

The Evolution of a Caricaturist

• Chapter 1 – How to Draw Caricatures – Getting Down to the Basics
• Chapter 2 – Why Caricaturists Love Celebrities?
• Chapter 3 – The Human Face – Observing it from the Caricaturist’s Perspective
  
• Chapter 4 – The Psychology of Face Recognition – The Caricaturist’s Secret Weapon!
• Chapter 5 – Caricaturing the Shape of the Face
• Chapter 6 – Caricaturing the Eyes
• Chapter 7 – Caricaturing the Brows and the Brow-ridge
• Chapter 8 – Caricaturing the Lips and the Mouth
• Chapter 9 – Caricaturing the Forehead, the Hairline, and the Hair

This book has been witnessing a growth in its readership. With more than 10,000 views for a topic of such selective interest, I couldn’t have asked for more:) Thanks!

I hope to soon post Ben Kingsley’s Caricature in his avatar of Gandhi:) And the “soon” could be as early as tomorrow morning. I’ve also created a very interesting caricature that you might want to write a story about…

– Shafali

Caricature/Cartoon – Adolf Hitler, the Nazi Dictator, the Devil & the Devil!

Who is more evil – Adolf Hitler or the Devil?

The Devil Abdicates…

Adolf Hitler’s Biography

Adolf Hitler, the Nazi Dictator and the chief perpetrator of the Holocaust, was born on April 20th, 1889 (a black day that year) in Austria. Hitler didn’t do well in school and while his father dreamed of his becoming a government employee, he wanted to be an artist. He tried getting into the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts, but the selectors out there weren’t much impressed by his drawings. They did suggest that he could try becoming an architect (his architectural drawings were indeed better than the other stuff he did.) Unfortunately, his qualifications fell short of what was required for studying architecture.

To cut a long story short, Hitler worked on some menial jobs for a while and then he joined the German Army. It was in 1919, when a 32-year-old Hitler discovered that he has the gift of gab. Hitler’ audience often comprised rowdy thugs, but they gave him the confidence to launch the National Socialist German Workers or NAZI Party in 1920. In 1932, the NAZI party was democratically elected as the largest party, and in 1933, Hitler gained complete control of the party.

Then began the worst nightmare the world had ever seen. By 1945, the Nazis had systematically murdered 17 Million Civilians including 6 Million Jews. Other communities that were targeted by the hatred-driven Nazis were Poles, Russians, Romanis, and even people who were disabled. The atrocities that were committed by Hitler’s satanic army remain unparalleled in history. If there truly were a devil, he would bow to Hitler and abdicate in his favor!

Adolf Hitler’s Hatred for the Jews:

It’s often argued that Hitler had Jewish blood in his veins. His grandmother worked in a rich Jewish household and conceived Alois, Hitler’s father, through the one of the male members of this family. Five years after giving birth to Alois, she married Johann Georg Hiedler (or Hitler) who gave Alois his name. There’s a possibility that Hitler’s hatred for Jews was a lot personal than he ever accepted it to be.

Adolf Hitler’s Love Life:

Hitler fell in love with an Army Officer’s daughter when he was young, but her never had the nerve to speak to her. He did follow her around for a long time. In 1929, he met Eva Braun, a 17-year old starry-eyed teenager. Hitler didn’t marry Eva until two days before they committed suicide together in 1945.

Adolf Hitler’s Art:

Going by what sells in the name of art today, Hitler was a better artist than most. Unfortunately for the world, he was a better orator. In addition to being a great orator, Hitler was a man with no conscience nor empathy for his fellow beings – yet he was passionate about whatever he did – even when he killed – he killed with passion. You can see Hitler’s artwork here. (Do you notice the irony? Had this man become an artist and had been able to sell his drawings, he probably wouldn’t have become a butcher; yet, because he became the dirtiest butcher in the world, his drawings now sell!)

Adolf Hitler’s Dogs:

Hitler loved dogs – especially German Shepherds. Eva Braun once commented upon Hitler being more in love with his dogs than with her.

Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf:

Mein Kampf or My Struggle is Hitler’s autobiography. When you read this book, you experience the madness setting in. The first volume makes some sense while the second, none.
Mein Kampf is available here.

The Holocaust:

The mass extermination of Jews and other non-Germans by the State of Germany is called the Holocaust (it is also called the Final Solution). The extermination was carried out in phases. Men, women, and children were put into gas-chambers under the pretext of a shower, and were gassed. Children were often used as guinea-pigs for devilish experiments. People who were identified were dispatched to the Nazi concentration camps that had the motto “Work will set you free” on their gates. Auschwitz is said to be the worst of all the concentration camps.

When Hitler arrived in Hell, he must’ve put the Devil in a gas-chamber (or at least on a leash) and ruled Hell…after all, who could be more evil than Adolf Hitler?

What other Bloggers are saying about Adolf Hitler?

• Pictures of Hitler practicing his speech.
• Hitler used to receive love-notes from his women fans.
• How was Hitler’s blood-line eradicated?
• Was Hitler an Atheist?
• What if…things had gone differently for Hitler?

Time-faxing this note from Circa. 1945…

Hi Folks, including the few who care, and most who don’t…but who cares…so the message goes out to anyone around a time-fax machine.

I am still here…in the past. Dr. Who promised that he’d come back when he’s perfected the design of his time-machine, but he hasn’t arrived yet. In fact, I have heard from reliable sources who have heard from other reliable sources (BBC?) that Dr. Who’s lost his fig leaf. This might be the reason behind the delay, but if Dr. Who is tuned in – I’d like to tell him that I found a discarded Nazi uniform…and though it isn’t the in thing right now, it might be better than a fluttering fig leaf.

The good news is – I’ve not whiled away my time doing nothing. The caricatures of Adolf Hitler and Mahatma Gandhi are ready to be faxed home.

I shall be time-faxing Hitler’s caricature to my blog sometime this evening. It’s straight from hell and…believe it or not, it was the poor innocent devil who tipped me off on this one!

I hear a strange whirring sound…could it be Dr. Who? Who else? Who?…oh…oh…there’s a problem with this time-fax machine…

…clink…clunk…whirrr…BLAST!

The Time Machine’s Stuck – I am trapped in 1942!

Dear Readers, Viewers, Commentators, and Blurkers,

I am writing from 1942! You’d recall that I was returning from the past (with mementos for all of you, of course,) when I was just 70 years away, the machine began to grunt in a pig-like fashion. It then coughed and spluttered to a stop. It was a matter of piston seizure. I had its oil changed in 200 AD and I guess the oil film broke!

I was in the times of D-Evil Hitler!

I will get the time-machine repaired, but would take me about 5 years…and so I will also be here in the past, during the times of Gandhi.

I should be back into the present by next week…but before I do, I’ll time-fax the caricatures of Hitler and Gandhi to the blog.

PS: Lady Gaga was not an aberration – I met her in the past. In one of her previous lives, Lady Gaga was a gypsy dancer. More on that later.

Until I return…then:)

Shafali, The Caricaturist.

Some date, Some month, 1942!

How to Draw the Caricature of Dr. Albert Einstein – the Greatest Scientist of the Twentieth Century

Dr. Albert Einstein’s caricature is among the easiest to draw. He has features that hanker for the caricaturist’s eyeballs. His hair, his nose, and his quirked-up eyebrows that push the skin of his forehead into those innumerable furrows and lines – all demand your attention. They leap out of his face and grab hold of your hand to make you draw them!

Why? I wonder.

Excellent. So his face isn’t like Jack Nicholson’s (with a signboard that says, “everything you see, you can caricature for 99 cents”,) nor is it like George Clooney’s (a treasure hunt in a Martian desert.) Einstein’s face is somewhere between that of these two. It tempts you to fetch your pencil and your drawing pad as the three prominent features in his face are really, madly prominent!

I discussed the folly of trying to caricature “everything” in the previous tutorial, “How to Draw the Caricature of Jack Nicholson – The Wolf.” Listening to my own advice (yes, unlike many, I trust my own advice,) I decided to exaggerate the following features.

• The Hair
• The forehead with one brow quirked-up
• The Nose

The first step in creating any drawing is to…begin, and so I began. When I draw faces, I draw the eyes first, and those eyes watch me draw. This can be an especially unnerving experience when the person watching you draw is Dr. Albert Einstein! I kept my cool, avoided his assessing glare, and continued to sketch. After drawing in the eyes, I moved to the nose, and then to the lips…his eyes continued to follow my pencil, everywhere.

After a while, I gave up, and looked straight into his eyes, and then I realized that there was more to Einstein than his face. I began to remember what I had read of his life. Einstein was known for his brain. He was thought to have been born with a bigger brain.

Lo and Behold! If the expression sounds archaic, please excuse me – for I am (archaic) too.

So…once again…

Lo and Behold! I decided to exaggerate the size of his forehead!

Here is how the caricature was created.

Caricaturing Einstein’s Eyes and Brows

Check out any picture of Einstein, he’s got a bemused look on his face. He seems to be looking at world and saying, “It can all be explained through the General Principle of Relativity.” So I pushed up his quirky eyebrow a tad more to exaggerate the look.

Caricaturing Einstein’s Nose

Einstein’s nose isn’t one of those razor-sharp, slice-n-dice kind of nose. It’s a soft, round, and bulbous nose – a little longer than the normal. All this makes the nose-bulb(?) look like it’s experiencing the full force of gravity!

(Dear Sir Isaac Newton, I hope that you and Dr. Einstein get along well in heaven, and both of you along with Dr. John Wheeler, use the quantum foam to stay in touch with the scientists of our time. I assure you, they need your help to clean up the BP Oil Spill Mess!)

Oh, the nose! As you can surmise, I wanted the nose to become longer, and its bulb to become more bulbous; so I pulled the lower anchor points out of the feature frame, until the nose overshot the lips. (To understand anchor points and feature frame, read “The Evolution of a Caricaturist“.)

Caricaturing Einstein’s Hair

Einstein’s hair is magnificent. It’s white, long, and fluffy (he used a shampoo that he invented himself – right?) I added the effect of the electric hair blower on the white, long, and fluffy, to make them more prominent.

I also fluffed up Einstein’s mustache and tweaked it a little at the ends:)

Caricaturing Einstein’s Forehead

Inspired by Dr. Einstein’s supervising eyes, I made his forehead and also his head, bigger. Remember that the head is almost hemispherical. I decided to exaggerate not the size of the hemisphere, but its shape! Look at the forehead closely and try to visualize the head – you’ll “see” that the shape tends to be a sphere more than a hemisphere.

Einstein’s forehead has a lot of prominent lines. I exaggerated the lines. Look at the right edge of the forehead – you can even see the folds. When your exaggeration moves out of the facial space (at the edges) it becomes stronger.

That was all I did – and Einstein’s caricature winked at me:) My job was done!

If you are interested in exploring the techniques involved in drawing caricatures further, I recommend the following:

• “How to Draw Caricatures – The Evolution of a Caricaturist”, a Free Online Book on Google Knol.
• “Tuto-tweets by @theCaricaturist

Have fun caricaturing:-) Spread the Smile!

Do you see God in this Picture? Calling Believers, Atheists, and Agnostics – Now!

Today I replace a caricature post about the Devil (Hitler) with a post about God.

You know why?

Because…

I am speechless.
I am an agnostic who never bothered – but this photograph shot a couple of days ago in France, bothers me!
And I am wondering whether it’s God’s Image that I see in this photograph!

• Should I believe, is what I ask?
• Do you believe, you should ask!

If you believe you know who is there in this picture.
If you don’t tell me why you still don’t?

Resting the words…Here’s the picture, that Vivienne Tuffnell, the author of Strangers and Pilgrims shot at Mont Saint Michel.

Is that God's Image?

Vivienne has experienced benevolent presences before. Her interpretations have kept me swinging between being a believer and remaining where I am…until now!

Read her post “Miracle at Mont Saint Michel” here.

Is this a sign from God – to her, to all of us, to the world that’s headed towards doom?

(The short link for this post is http://wp.me/pJgyP-eF , if you want to tweet it.)

Learn to Draw on Twitter – Tutorial 1 – How to Draw an Angry Face!

If you are interested in learning how to draw while you are on the move, follow
TheCaricaturist on Twitter!

This tutorial shall comprise about a dozen or more tweets (which we will call tuto-tweets). It will outline a step-wise process to draw an angry face. Serious students of drawing should read each tuto-tweet and do what it asks:-) You might want to share this with your friends and do it together – drawing is often more fun when done with friends.

You are also welcome to leave links to your drawings in the comment section of this page:)

So, if you are ready, let’s begin. I’ll tweet whenever I can, but to get you started I’ll make the preparatory tweets in quick succession. If you miss any of the tuto-tweets, you’ll be able to check them out at http://twitter.com/thecaricaturist

Spread the Smile:)