On the Subject of ART

Art is my Joie de Vivre.

Dioramas

HBD Chloe

Post author By Jim Doran
Post date June 23, 2026

Tags altoids, diorama, paper cuts

Dioramas

Lucky Pearl

Post author By Jim Doran
Post date June 8, 2026

I’m still working on my new film, Fishwife. I found some fake pearls on my walk (discussed in this post), and brought some home. One is in this diorama! This is just more character exploration.

Tags altoids, diorama, fishwife, paper cuts

Dioramas

Pool Tables

Post author By Jim Doran
Post date March 29, 2026

Tags altoids, diorama, paper cuts, smalls

Dioramas

N.E.W.S. 4 Horsemen

Post author By Jim Doran
Post date February 22, 2026

My friend brought me this old compass enclosure, and I made him a diorama of the four horsemen. When I was a kid, my dad told me that the horsemen would ride out in the four directions, NEWS and that’s where the term news originated. While it’s a clever bit of wordplay, the idea that “news” is an acronym for North, East, West, and South is actually a popular folk etymology. It’s just a myth.

Tags four horsemen, land of the dead, paper cuts

Dioramas

ART

Making comics with Lynda Barry

Post author By Jim Doran
Post date February 20, 2026

I had the honor to attend a workshop by Lynda Barry today. I’ve been a fan since reading her strip in the Baltimore City Paper, and I love her books on making comics, and creativity.

I volunteered at the workshop, and had some time to talk and ask questions. Lynda has a fabulous sense of humor, and is generous with her teaching. She shared many anecdotes, and demonstrated just how effective her approach is as she ran us through exercise after exercise.

I’m not going to recount the entire day here, but I will say that talking with her sharpened one of my ideas about imagination, and I have a new insight into the practical value of art (even my modest art).