'No Snapchat filter' can do this: Our resident caricature artist walks you through life at the Boardwalk

I felt a little rush of terror my first day back at the Boardwalk this summer. Would I remember how to do it after more than a year of dormancy? I wasn’t hawking aloe for toasted tourists or deep-frying questionable foods — I was back drawing live caricatures for Cali Caricature in our stand at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. My friend and sometimes co-worker there, the phenomenal comic book and caricature artist Christian “Meesimo” Meesey (who answers to Meesey, Meesimo or just Chris) described live caricature as “the pressure-cooker-gauntlet of drawing.”Unlike a portrait that can take hours or even months to complete, live caricature is a skillful summary of someone’s essence drawn on the fly in a matter of minutes. It’s jazz soloist vs. concert pianist — and it requires immense skill, practice and confidence to do well. Emma Tipping worked as an artist at the Boardwalk before taking over the business.(Kevin Painchaud / Lookout Santa Cruz) My boss and the owner of Cali Caricature, Emma Tipping, compared it to live comedy or tattooing: “It’s an interactive experience that the artist, customer and spectators all enjoy and create together.”There’s definitely an element of stage fright every time I draw…
Read More