The Lions Project is something I started for myself back in 1992. It was drawn in a lined sketchbook on purpose, because there are writings (bad ones, by me) that accompany the pieces. It is old, but still a good example of the sort of projects I like to do for myself that involve symbolism, mythology, stylization, and, of course, lions. I would like to re-do it (and most certainly change some things and fix some mistakes), or even just add to it someday. Click on an image for the full view.

Each piece was drawn in pencil first, then inked over in Micron pen. Special attention was paid to working with the lines of the paper. Different ways of writing related to each culture were included.

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	Here is my version of a "Celtic Lion". Obviously there are no lions in the Celtic Lands now (except in zoos), but in the past many roamed those lands. I love knotwork as well, and was inspired by the work of George Bain and the Book of Kells. The "lines" to the left are my name in Ogham (sort of), and the lines at the bottom (not actually in a Gaelic language, but the best I could do at the time) mean "Change the name and the tale is about you", which I thought was fitting for the frontspiece of a book of stories. Three dots in a triangle mean "sacred", according to some sources.
	This is my version of the ancient Egyptian goddess, Sekhmet. Guess why I find her fascinating! I'd wanted to try my hand at hieroglyphics and more "traditional" ancient Egyptian art, and this is my own version; of course, I'm certain there are errors now, but it was fun then. The hieroglyphics say something like "guardian" and "she is as furious as a lioness and contented as a cat" - though again, I'd do more research before re-doing this (and probably use Adobe Illustrator to do it in nice, crisp lines).
	Here is my version of a Shishi / Foo Dog / Fo-Lion (or whatever you prefer to call it). I've always loved them (and "monster" versions like King Seesar), and have quite a collection of them, so it was fun to try this. The letters were my sad attempt at "Sun Lion"; of course, nowadays when information is just a click away, I'd do more research into translations first.
	This is inspired by a church door carving I found in a book of dragons; I found the image very moving and wanted to try my own version. The rune-like writing is supposed to say "Here lies the mighty king whom the dragon killed" - well, some of it, anyway. The rest are fake runes that spell out a song title.
Though not specifically for the Lions Project, I loved the idea of Celtic-styled lions so much that I did several variations on that theme over the years. Someday I hope to have my technical skill match the images I have in my head; I'm not there yet, but I'll keep trying. Two more versions follow. Please note these were not meant to be exact re-draws of the original, nor were any of these meant to be photorealistic; I was purposely going for a stylized, iconic look.
	Celtic Lion II - I painted this one after not having painted at all for a few years, so I was a bit rusty. Still, it was fun! Pencil, watercolor, gouache, colored pencil. 2002.
	Celtic Lion III - Lions are so relaxing and soothing to draw; this is not my best, but it was a lot of fun to do (and isn't art supposed to be fun sometimes?) RSVP pen, color added in Photoshop, knotwork border imported from Illustrator. 2004.