No. 310: 718 Pine, San Francisco

718 Pine St., San Francisco, 2015. India ink rendering by Tom Wills

I wanted to create something that would last, to hang in a home that is rich in history. This india ink rendering, a sort-of watercolor in shades of gray, is an anniversary gift commissioned by a thoughtful and loving husband for his wonderful wife. I am proud to call them both friends. We three got our starts putting out other shades of gray: newspaper ink.

I asked Tim to send me some information about the residence. He writes:

In the upper left corner you can see the original house. Despite being just one room wide, it was among the earlier rebuilds on Nob Hill following the great earthquake and fire of 1906. The home was built in 1913.

The original owner was John Bermingham Jr., general manager of the California Powder Works (dynamite) and a bit of a character according to contemporaneous news reports.

The photo used for the drawing.

The house at 718 Pine St., San Francisco, is a quintessential Nob Hill Edwardian. The original home was three stories tall. A fourth was added much later, bringing the home to about 2,500 square feet. While it looks like it was wedged in between existing buildings, it was among the early structures rebuilt in this part of Nob Hill.  Most everything on Nob Hill had been wiped out by the 1906 earthquake and great fire.

When we bought the home in its centennial year of 2013, we congratulated ourselves that it needed nothing done to it. Then we spent the next 2 1/2 years doing non-stop remodeling. We have been very careful to stay true to the original styles and treatments that honor its Edwardian heritage.

My basic research has made it clear that the home has had many owners over the years.  We bought it from Evan White, a local TV journalist.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MkjB2BiaQLw

As an example of showing respect to its heritage: We gutted the master bath and restored it back to something closer to its Edwardian roots. It's our hobby!

Well, art is (for now) my hobby, and I just love this picture.
Tim and I began working on it Nov. 3 -- election night here in Ohio.  "I am thinking something different than just a straight-on view," he said.

I replied: "I could try a pen and ink rendering of the long view of the house and street and surrounding buildings, no cars.  ... As a pen and ink rendering with gray shades, it would be cool but risky (one screwup and it's toast). I used to be pretty good at it."

There were, indeed, two screw-ups that required an X-acto knife to scrape off errant ink blobs.  But those were the only crises in creating this original.
The ink is guaranteed to be permanent. It will last, like this house, and like our friendships.

Happy anniversary, Tim and Diane Fitzpatrick.  I am so happy for you both.
Thank you for Considering an Original.

Tom

No. 289: Signed by the Living (Dead Heads)

Norman Reedus, left, and Andrew Lincoln of AMC's "The Walking Dead" put ink on No. 289

Somewhere, in or around Atlanta, Norman Reedus woke up with a photo of my "Dead Heads" drawing (No. 289) in his cel phone.
Becky Losey Wyndham, one of the most fanatic fans ever of The Walking Dead,  saw to that.
She made the rounds of the huge Walker Stalker event in Atlanta in late October and early November. She met most of the cast, past and present, including Reedus, who plays Daryl, and Andrew Lincoln, group leader Rick.

No. 289, "Dead Heads" by Tom Wills, June 2015

She brought along this drawing, which she had commissioned and I completed in June.
She wrote:

"Norman took a picture of your drawing. I pointed to your name at the bottom to show him who drew it. He took a picture of it with phone.... He said WOW!!!"

"He loved it Tom!!!! He put it out on the table in front of him and stood up to take the pic of it!!!!"

"Andy said, 'Wow did you do this Becky?' I said heavens no, my friend Tom Wills did it for me.' He said, 'That's amazing!'"

"It is going in the middle of the wall surrounded by all the autographed pics and photos with the cast …"

We've been waiting for months to finish this story.  Read on!



I am somewhat a master of old technology, but not new. I manage to keep old record players, analog tape machines, ancient radios and big old televisions up and mostly running.
Sure I can make CDs but I don't have a DVR for recording television and movies and, frankly, I don't have much tube time anyway.
Except for one show. Everyone in my house knows to leave me alone from 9 to 10 p.m. Sundays when "The Walking Dead" is on.
I love to watch live television about dead people.

The other tenants here call this "Dad's Stupid Zombie Show."
But I like it.  And judging from its massive fan base, I'm right. Again.

"Tom, you should show this in one of those walking dead groups. I think the one I'm in has over 50k people and there are all kinds of people selling artwork about the show. Although some of the work people sell is good, I don't think any are as good as yours."

"I am in a few groups (imagine that) and have shared my new drawing progress and this finished product with them. I love it! Thank you!!"

Recently I was asked to do a drawing of two main show characters for a high school friend, who just happens to be part of a closed group I've also joined (by invitation) called "Walking Dead Rejects."  This should be fun when the new season heats up. But please don't reveal plot secrets! I have friends who DO watch the show later.

I tried to find a really gritty fan photo of Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) and Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus), and worked hard to convey that filth in this drawing. After all, they have been roaming the South for now-six seasons, whacking and hacking their way to what's hopefully left of civilization. Not pretty.

Becky Losey Wyndham, who purchased this drawing, attends a lot of fan conventions and rubs shoulders with many of these actors and actresses -- and she has the photos and autographs to prove it. We specifically made this picture small enough to fit into a suitcase -- and didn't frame it (yet). I sprayed it with a workable fixative -- one that still allowed the actors to affix their signatures.
Now that the drawing has been decorated by the zombie hunters, it's finished!