In my post, What I should have done with my art degree, I described how I was trying to find myself as an artist, and how I resorted to a process of throwing a lot of stuff at the wall to see what would stick.

Recently I went through a stack of sketchbooks from my post-art school period, and in them you can see what this process looks like. I have to say, I was a bit too critical of this approach in the blog post. The sketchbooks are random, but not nearly as much as I’d remembered. There are a number of recurring motifs, visual gags, Easter eggs, lots of word fun, and even some good old academic drawing in there.

But I’ll let you be the judge. Here are the first three of fifteen, done between 1998 and 2008. I was living in Japan for almost all of that time and did the majority of them in 1999.

Not to tell you how to look at them, but here’s how you should look at them. Zoom in and examine a few different areas, then zoom out and look at the whole page. Or do whatever you want! I’m just happy you’re looking. Also—great holiday gift idea—print them out as coloring books for the kiddies!

I hope you enjoy this glimpse inside my demented head. Stay tuned for more.