SHOP TALK: Rob Schamberger Newsletter 26JAN25
I see you, you see me.
Hi. My name's Rob Schamberger. I'm that guy who paints rasslers. And other stuff. I'm a spy but on your side you see.
WORDS
NEEDS: PRIVACY
Watercolor on 12” x 16” watercolor paper
This is the latest in my Human Needs Collection, a series of paintings I’m doing to explore the ideas of those basic needs that we need to survive and thrive. This is one of the Self-Actualization needs, with my model and friend Joanna.
Here’s the original sketch, where I’d originally thought I’d have her holding the fabric closely around her. But there was a moment during the shoot where Joanna was adjusting and it went over her head a little and Paul and I both said, “Actually, hold it RIGHT THERE.” The true joy of collaboration.
Here’s a tonal 6x9 study I did with some of that new granulating watercolor I’ve been playing around with. It was an exercise in warming up for the main painting along with having fun with this unpredictable type of an already unpredictable medium. Like, this was all one color, aurora blue, so all of those warm touches in there just show up as the pigments in the paint dry. So fun!
And here’s a progress shot where I had the sketch and the study both in my workspace to help guid me through the process. Again, this is all a very different way of working from how I have before and it’s giving me a whole new appreciation to everything that I do.
Here’s a preview of Thursday’s first-ever Toni Storm painting.
(I may stop doing the process videos. I don’t know. Doesn’t seem like the audience digs them anymore and it’s a lot of effort making each one.)
UPCOMING AEW/PWT PAINTINGS
Toni Storm
Kenny Omega
Cope
The Hurt Syndicate
FTR
Card subject to change.
SOME HOUSEKEEPING
I’ve been fortunate to get several new subscribers in the past few days (Hi!), so if you’re unfamiliar with this here newsletter, to quote the immortal bard, “This is how we do it”:
On Thursdays at 11:30AM CST I send out one letting you know about a new AEW/PWT print, sharing the Artist of Champions process video, and normally something I cooked in the past week.
On Sundays at 9:00AM CST I send out one of these Shop Talk newsletters where I share my personal art, talk about stuff I liked in the past week like books, shows, movies and so forth, and finish off with a personal note about life in general.
Rarely there will be a bonus email that goes out if there’s something big going on, but I don’t have much big going on anymore and that’s just fine.
For my own good I’ve severely limited my presence on social media lately, so if there’s someone in your life who may be interested in anything I talk about in these newsletters, feel free to forward to them or share. Or not. You do what’s right for you.
Okay. Onto the food.
Rob’s Art on ShopAEW
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Rob and Jason Arnett's novella Rudow Can't Fail!
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Rob’s prints and shirts at Pro Wrestling Tees
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Bluesky
Cara
YouTube
WHAT I LIKED THIS WEEK
Earlier this week I finished the first season of the Gary Oldman-starring Slow Horses and thoroughly loved it. It’s a show about MI5 agents who have fallen into disfavor and are given the seemingly unimportant and menial jobs. However, they inadvertently find themselves involved in a very important case that puts them at odds with not only domestic terrorists but also their own organization. Solid spy stuff. It’s based on a series of books by Mick Herron that I need to check out.
Katy and I also finished up the first season of Ted Lasso and are now deep into season two. This week especially it feels good to have a show that’s all about helping one another and your community at the same time. Fiction can help one get through reality, I guess.
Dwellings by Jay Stephens was a real surprise for me. I’m not sure how I knew to get it but golly am I glad that I did. It’s a study in dichotomy, with its Harvey Comics-inspired visuals used to tell VERY dark stories. Like, think of something written like Saw or True Detective but looking like Richie Rich or Casper the Friendly Ghost. Instead of the visuals being done for laughs, the lighter cartoony style makes these very oppressive stories not just palatable but entertaining.
Ms Tree: Fallen Tree closes out the collections of Max Allan Collins and Terry Beatty’s iconic 80’s lady detective series with an appropriate bang. It’s overall not the best of the collections, it’s a little dated with the subject matter and some characterizations but in the way that the original Star Trek doesn’t always pass modern sensibilities. Like, it’s behind the times NOW but when this was coming out it was seriously pushing the envelope. I actually argue that it should be viewed among the best of what American comics were putting out in the 80’s, right alongside books like Watchmen and Dark Knight Returns. Beatty’s art especially is, pun intended, bulletproof. Worth tracking these five collections down.
Speaking of bulletproof art, I finally got my hands on Paul Smith’s X-Men Artist Edition. On a craft level, Smith is one of the very best artists to work on the X-Men. Which, yeah, I realize that’s a big statement to make as the book has had a who’s who of the best that American superhero comics has to offer and Smith is in that conversation. Whether it be the iconic fight between Wolverine and Silver Samurai, Storm’s fight with Callisto, or Smith’s redesign of Storm with that iconic punk mohawk look, it’s simply flawless work. Plus, I had completely forgotten about his later collaboration with Lone Wolf & Cub writer Kazuo Koike, which is utterly gorgeous. If you’re unfamiliar with the Artist Edition books, they’re shot directly from the original art, allowing the reader to have the closest experience possible to seeing it all in person.
RAHR
YOU GOOD?
Things are tough. There’s a lot to be upset about. I’m upset about a lot of things. I’m doing my best to not get overwhelmed and to allow good things and moments to exist alongside the rough stuff.
For instance:
Last Sunday I got an email confirming that my imported Catzilla preorder was on its way and friend, I had no memory of ordering a Catzilla. Upon clicking the link to look at Catzilla I was certain that yeah, I had probably preordered a Catzilla. And then…I started to get excited.
I never knew that I not only wanted a Catzilla, but NEEDED a Catzilla. How could I not? How could I not. And then on Wednesday, on a week that had started off so catastrophically, a tiny yet mighty blessing was left at my front door and its name is Catzilla.
As I’ve learned in therapy, one can hold multiple truths without them invalidating one another. For instance, a creature can be both a cat and a Godzilla and it can be named CATZILLA.
Love you more,
Rob