... at least all my 65 million year old ones.
Ever since I can remember, I've always loved dinosaurs. There's just something amazing about these great creatures that once ruled our world; creatures we still know so little about. You can tell a child there are no monsters hiding in their closets and under beds, but you'd be lying if you said that they never existed. And that's what's so amazing:
Dinosaurs were REAL.
I mean, think about it: creatures as tall as a five story building, eight inch long teeth and a ferocious appetite, faster and stronger than most present day land animals! The world was a very different and wild place.
I spent last saturday in the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, sketching and studying bone structure for a solid five hours. Several people would come up and compliment or ask me about my work. I met a lot of people from all over the globe, and it was awesome to share my love of dinosaurs and art with them publicly.
The memories of my first visit to the museum when I was about six years old are still quite vivid. I couldn't quite read an entire book yet, but I could say "Pachycephalosaurus" without blinking an eye. Like every kid, I was absoluetly blown away by the size of these monsters I had only previously seen in illustrations.
Before my family and I left the museum that day I remember stopping at the gift shop. I was allowed to get one item, but somehow I ended up walking out with three things: a Carnegie Collection Allosaurus and Stegosaurus toy; and a giant, landscape-print Dinosaur Encylopedia. What attracted me to the book were the illustrations from the amazing paleoartists Gregory S. Paul, Doug Henderson, Eleanor M. Kish, and Brian Fraczak. I owe a lot to that book for giving me the inspiration to draw dinosaurs. To this day, Allosaurus and Stegosaurus are still my most favorite dinosaurs, and I still own the now tattered and coverless encylopedia.
Check back soon, more dinosaur sketches on the way!
Matt, great work!
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