mike brennan 11/24/22 mike brennan 11/24/22

Capturing Priceless Moments in Time - The 2022 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade!

The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade for me, like many, is a tradition that ushers in not only Thanksgiving day, but the Christmas season. I’ve been watching the iconic parade for as long as I remember. It’s both nostalgic and new, every year.

The parade means “family.” And in recent years with the holidays looking a lot different (due to Covid and personal circumstances) having the normalcy and dependability of the Macy’s parade has been all the more important and special.

I was even fortunate enough one year (in the 90’s) to join some friends to participate as balloon handlers in the parade. We were in charge of Harold the Firefighter. It’s much more difficult than it looks, especially on a windy day when walking through the cross streets. That year we got to be behind the scenes with the likes of Debbie Gibson, John Tesh, and Al Roker as they got into their positions. I was so thankful to have had that once-in-a-lifetime opportunity of being in the parade!

So this year, I decided to employ my illustration skills (and live event sketching) to sketch my way through the 2022 parade. All while sitting on my couch (Thanks NBC & Peacock!)

It was a fast and furious 3-hour (ish) sprint of sketching select participants. The programming is kept tight, so I didn’t have much time to spend on each sketch (maybe 10-15 minutes tops, and the app I was using on my iPad crashed a few times, leaving me to start over on about 5 of them!)

As I worked my way through, sketching helped me to freeze each moment in my mind. Capturing a drawing is a lot different than snapping a photo. Drawing forces you to not just look, but to really see. And when you see, the memories and images are stored deeper.

So please enjoy the following sketches that I created in real-time as the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade aired on Peacock and NBC. Special thanks to all who were involved in a variety of ways (including Ram Trucks & Remo)! You made my 2022 Thanksgiving like a much-needed, warm hug from an old friend.

Hoda Kotb & Savannah Guthrie hosting this year’s parade.

Hoda Kotb & Jeff Gennette (Chief Executive Officer, Macy’s) cutting the ribbon at this year’s parade.

The Lion King is always a crowd-pleaser!

No NYC Macy’s Thanksgiving day parade is complete without the Radio City Music Hall Rockettes! I’ve seen them many times over the years and appreciate their hard work, dedication, and creativity!

My personal favorite, Grogu, from Star Wars / Disney Plus show, the Mandalorian.

There were so many talented marching bands in the parade. Captured here is University of Central Missouri marching band.

Ho, ho, ho.. Green Giant! A brand I have grown up with.

It’s always great to see the Sesame Street crew!

Mickey, Minnie, Goofy - all about the Disney Wish - a dream come true!

Only you can prevent forest fires! Smokey the Bear.

Jimmy Fallon & the Roots rocking the float!

There’s nothing Despicable about Minion Kevin!

Besides Santa himself, nothing ushers in Christmas like Mariah Carey singing “All I want for Christmas is You!”

And to close out the parade every year - the big man himself - Santa Claus! ( I know him!)

Shout out to Carpenter Collective on their stellar design & branding job for this year.

Enjoy this wrap-up video too. See you next year Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade!

Interested in hiring me to live sketch your event or conference? Check out more work here.

mike brennan 9/21/17 mike brennan 9/21/17

3 Life Changing Insights the Tribe Conference Revealed

I had the privilege of attending this years Tribe Conference hosted by Jeff Goins.

Now, I've been to my fair share of conferences, but this one lives up to it's name, literally. It is more than speakers on a stage turning on a firehouse of information. It's a community, a real "tribe".

The whole conference is an environment of encouragement, that I believe that stems directly from Jeff. He hasn't set up a conference to sell you more courses and books (although they are made available if you desire them). It's designed to be a real help for the attendees to take their next step in their journey as an author (or artist).

Besides the incredible opportunity I had to live sketch this event as it unfolded (for more information about my event sketching service click here) I had 3 big take aways:

I had the privilege of attending this years Tribe Conference hosted by Jeff Goins.

Now, I've been to my fair share of conferences, but this one lives up to it's name, literally. It is more than speakers on a stage turning on a firehose of information. It's a community, a real "tribe".

Besides the incredible opportunity I had to live sketch this event as it unfolded (for more information about my event sketching service click here) I had 3 big take aways:

1. Embrace struggle.

Jeff posed a question to the audience in the beginning of an interview with Natalie Brenner (who just released her first incredible book). He asked "Why doesn't your definition of success include struggle?" I have to be honest, that stopped me in my tracks. So often I feel the struggle of my own journey so deeply. I long for those places of breakthrough (and relief). It never occurred to me that my successes were not being held back by struggle, but perhaps struggle was the vehicle to help me get there.

2. Make your mess your message.

Ishita Gupta shared this from the stage in her talk. And it resinated immediately. I am messy. I finally embraced this in my artistic style years ago. Now, I'm challenged to embrace it in how I live out my life before others. In a world of curated Instagram feeds, it's tough to reveal your mess. But that just might be the very thing someone needs from you. The thing that makes you more approachable and human.

3. Tell more stories.

Through my sketching and interactions with the speakers and fellow attendees, I realized I need to tell even more stories with my art. I need to make more art where I invite others in, so my art isn't just about me, but it becomes a place for community and connection. This rings true to my core and my "why". I'm looking forward to how that expression will take shape in new art I create.

What about you? Are you chewing on any insights lately that are altering the course of your work and life? Id love to hear them!

Live Sketch during Jeff's interview of Natalie Brenner.

Making messy art while listening to Ishita's message.

mike brennan 11/16/16 mike brennan 11/16/16

When an Idea Won't Let You Go

Have you ever gotten caught in the tractor beam of an idea that just won't let you go?

I had such an experience at a recent conference I was attending. But more on that in a minute...

It's no secret that I love to draw. I always have.

A digital sketch of tourists seated in Times Square, NYC. 11/30/14

Have you ever gotten caught in the tractor beam of an idea that just won't let you go?

I had such an experience at a recent conference I was attending. But more on that in a minute...

It's no secret that I love to draw. I always have. And in recent years, I have been know to carry a sketchbook around with me. Waiting in line at a six flags theme park? No problem. Sketch. Stuck in an airport? Sketch. Out at a museum? Sketch.

It's more than passing the time. It's capturing it. I can recall ordinary moments with clarity when I've taken the time to look – really see – and sketch. Whether or not the moment may be worthy, isn't the point, but rather to be fully present and find inspiration all around.

Sketches of my Daughter's cheerleading competition, my other daughter's Tae Kwon Do competition and my mom's belly dancing recital.

I've even sketched during my mothers belly dancing recital (yes, you read that right…another story for another time.) and my daughters Tae Kwon Do completion. I sketched during a clean water missions trip to Nicaragua. Moments and feelings get interpreted into art made live in the moment. And now I have a visual record that penetrates so much more than snapshot photos.

Ironically, there are times we’re so close to things that we just don't see them. We can't recognize the value in something we “just do" – something that comes naturally to us, but others are amazed at. It's at this intersection that an idea started to beckon.

“We can’t recognize the value in something we “just do” – something that comes naturally to us, but others are amazed at. It’s at this intersection that an idea started to beckon.”

And here is where we come back to that conference I mentioned. During the conference, someone posed the question to me: "What would it look like to take that thing you "just do" and offer it as a valuable service to others?" The more we spoke, and I spoke with others, the more apparent it became to me that none of us had ever seen anything like this before.

I started to ask a few questions of my own.

What if there was a unique way to capture the events and special moments of your conference or special event?

A way that made you stand out from other events?

Drumroll please... I'm proud to say that’s exactly what you get when you book me to live sketch your event. As a Visual Artist, I'll create live digital sketches of your conference or event in real time. These are not mass produced images, but rather, Art that is created from carefully curated moments that tell stories from your event in a one-of-a-kind way.

The professional term for this is Reportage Illustration, or sometimes Urban Sketching. Think of it as a form of storytelling and journalism, only with digital sketches (in my case). There’s actually a term for it called “Reportage Art”. Artist Veronica Lawlor defines it as “..Reportage [art] or documentary drawing… means to go out into the world and carry back what we experience behind our pen or brush.”

Do you host events or know people who would benefit from my service?

Visit my Event Sketches page for more info and examples.