Finished this over a week ago and just forgot to post until now. The latest entry in my “dialogue” with friend and fellow artist Peter Cusack. Peter’s last entry was of a farmer with some cows, so I answered with this little Halloween cow (my daughter in her first trick-or-treating costume).

The sketchbook project with Peter Cusack moves along, albeit at a snail’s pace, and it’s my fault it’s taking so long—I had a busy February and finally got to work on it just in the last few days. I know I keep saying this, but I’ll get to it quicker next time, Pete!

Last time, I riffed off of Peter’s walking couple and came up with a different kind of walk. Peter took that idea and came up with a different idea for a leash. So for my turn, I decided to riff off of his man with a fedora, and in honor of the Watchmen movie finally coming out, painted a portrait of someone else well known for wearing fedoras, the vigilante Rorschach. This was painted with acrylics, which I am slowly getting more comfortable with.

For those just tuning in, Dialogue is a pretentiously-titled moleskine sketchbook that Peter and I are passing back and forth, each of us doing a two-page spread painting that is informed by the one preceding it. I started with a self-portrait, and Pete responded with a painting of himself taking a walk. I decided to riff off of his theme by showing someone else out for a walk. Your move, Cusey.

Dialogue is a moleskine sketchbook that I’m working on with my good friend and illustrator Peter Cusack. The plan is for each of us to paint or draw a two-page spread, then send it to the other guy, hopefully building a “dialogue” of sorts in the process. To give credit where credit is due, we were inspired to do this by the awesome book Intersections by Sean Phillips and Duncan Fegredo, which I highly recommend. Peter and I are aiming to do the same thing, although I don’t think either of us has any illusions about it getting published. Most of my painting is done in oils these days, so I’m seeing this sketchbook as an opportunity to hone my skills in acrylic and gouache. The above image is the very first spread in the book, a self-portrait. Peter just told me that he’s completed his spread and that the book is in the mail, so I’m looking forward to seeing the next part of the artistic conversation we’ve started.