Author Archives: Marco

In June 2024 I started this new cycle of Sunday doodles about mythical creatures. Today, 52 weeks later, I’ve just filled another paper notebook and dozens of digital files to conclude a year of crazy Sundays.

Just like last year, I’ve done some things I’m happy with, and others not so much, since in my attempt to meet my self-imposed goal of an illustration every Sunday, there are always unforeseen events, and sometimes I fall behind.

But I’m happy to wrap-up one more year of illustrations for fun.

I did creatures from the folklore of South Korea, New Zealand, Democratic Rep of Congo, Gambia, Qatar, Haiti, Myanmar, Kiribati, Denmark, Eswatini, Belize, Philippines, Ethiopia, Costa Rica, Tanzania, Finland, Andorra, Hungary, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Jamaica, Spain, Canada, Scotland, Puerto Rico, Greece, Singapore, the Lakota people in North America, Norway, Australia, Brazil, UK, Iceland, Ireland, Germany, China, Georgia, Egypt, Taiwan, Trinidad and Tobago, Japan, France, Mexico, the Solomon Islands, Indonesia, Albania and Belgium.

Also some from some empires like the Mayas, the Romans and other cultures like Mesopotamia and the Slavic people, just because some of their myths are so popular even today I couldn’t leave them out. Note the ZZ replacing the country iso-codes and numbers. The meaning in the codes above is for each block, first to the left, the country’s iso number and code, the the second half is the week assigned to that particular creature.

This cycle was full of small details that I enjoyed more than the full compositions. I found that I liked these limited versions better and ended up turning them into little nods in each section of my new website.

I was looking at what I did last year, and I found it curious that around this time of year, it’s suffering from the summer temperatures, as I complained about in that post. The theme that time was clearly the arrival of summer. It could not be a higher contrast. Today we are enjoying a super nice weather, almost like autumn.

The wrap-up

This year I’ll like to wrap-up this exercise with a creature that according to wiki, among other things, it’s related to the end of cycle. From the Welsh lands, the spectral hounds, Cŵn Annwn are related to death, but they also mark the end of cycles and the transition to something else. I think it’s the perfect match to close this cycle and move on.

I’ve also started thinking about what’s next; I want to return to the roots that drove this in the first place. I’ll try to add more humor; I’m not saying it’s good humor, but I’ll try.

Stay tune for a new cycle of crazy things, don’t forget life is too short to be serious all the time.

Thanks for reading!

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

안녕하세요!

Welcome to week fifty-one of my weekend hobby. Today I made a mythical creature known as Dokkaebi. These creatures of Korean origin have been described in different ways throughout time. But they could be considered a type of goblin. Here’s my version of the Dokkaebi:

There’s a very popular tale involving a Dokkaebi, I think it’s so funny that I want to share it with you as its in Wiki:

One day, a dokkaebi visited a man’s house. Surprised, the kind old man gave the dokkaebi an alcoholic beverage and they become friends. The dokkaebi visited the old man often and they had long conversations together, but one day, the man took a walk by himself in the woods near the river. He discovered that his reflection looked like the dokkaebi. The old man was afraid as he realized that he was gradually becoming that creature. The man made a plan to prevent himself from becoming a dokkaebi and invited the creature to his house. He asked, “What are you most afraid of?” and the dokkaebi answered, “I’m afraid of blood. What are you afraid of?” The man pretended to be frightened and said, “I’m afraid of money. That’s why I live in the mountains by myself.” The next day, the old man killed a cow and poured its blood all over his house. The dokkaebi, with shock and great anger, ran away and said, “I’ll be back with your greatest fear!” The next day, the dokkaebi brought bags of money and threw it to the old man. After that, dokkaebi never came back and the old man became the richest person in the town.

I hope you’re having a great weekend, see you next week with the last of these post to wrap-up a year visiting the folklore of countries every Sunday!

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Hi there! Thanks for visiting my Sunday Sketchbook hobby project.

This week I’m doing a mythical creature from the Maori folklore. It’s defined as a powerful guardian and accordingly to wiki, the Taniwha has many versions, many shapes and meanings, so it’s perfect for a personal representation.

In some of the many versions of their legend, whose origins are unclear, this creature can warn of approaching enemies and protect the people of their local tribe. However, it seems they were also notoriously monstrous to people of other tribes; in short, the Taniwhas didn’t like tourists.

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If you live in New Zealand or are visiting as a tourist and see one of these, send me a photo! –You won’t believe the number of insect photos I received last year from people all over the world after doing a bugs year. Definitely, seeing representations of these creatures would also be very interesting.

I hope you have a great weekend, see you in a few days with an other mythical creature.

Hello! Thanks for visiting, I know, I know, I’m week late…

Welcome to week 49 of my weekend hobby. Today’s mythical creature comes from the DRC. These creatures known as Eloko are a species of dwarf from the Congo jungle. The website says the Elokos have beards made of grass and clothes made of leaves. They are supposed to carry bells that they use to bewitch unsuspecting humans. There are some versions of the myth claiming that the Elokos are jungle spirits.

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I hope you have a great weekend, see you in a few days with another mythical creature, hopefully on time.

Hi there! Thanks for visiting my doodling blog. Today’s mythical creature come from Africa! It’s described as a owl-headed flying beast similar to a hippogryph.

Googling the name of this Gambian creature, I found that even led to an episode of a TV series called “Destination Truth“; in the episode, which aired on October 15, 2008, the protagonist was searching for Ninki Nanka and Kikiyaon. –I never saw Destination Truth, so I have no idea if the guy actually found something resembling an owl.

Here’s my version of the Kikiyaon:

Happy weekend everyone, see you next week with a new mythical creature!

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Hi there, welcome to week 47 of my second year doodling over the weekends. Today’s mythical creature comes from the middle east countries. Half human, half amphibian, the Bū Daryā hunts those who venture into the sea.

This create comes from the Qatari folklore, but it’s also known all over the Persian gulf region. According to Wiki, the name Bū Daryā is a compound of the Arabic, “bu” or “abu” which translates as “father”, while “darya” comes from the Persian word for “sea”. But locally it’s known as Lord of the Sea.

Have a great weekend and see you in a few days with one more mythical creature from an other corner o the world.

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Welcome to week 45 of this trip through mythical creatures from around the world, today’s myth comes from Myanmar. Accordingly to wiki, this creature imagined by Buddhist monks to protect new-born royal babies to be devoured by sea ogresses.

The creature is described as half human, half lion. There are many versions, from those with long hands angled forward to those that are a bit more human. If you google Manussiha you’ll find some, but here’s my version:

I hope you’re having a great weekend, and don’t forget to come back next week for a new mythical creature from a different country. I’m almost at the end of this edition of mythical creatures and I’m already thinking about what’s next here, so stay tuned.

Today’s myth is about a young redheaded woman in the Pacific. Legend has it that when she died, trees grew from her grave and she then became the goddess of trees.

Known as “Nei Tituaabine“, this myth comes from the Pacific islands, this legend is well known in several territories, particularly in Kiribati.

I hope you have a sensational weekend. See you again in a few days with another legend from another corner of the world.

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Welcome to week 43 of my second year of doodles. Today’s mythical creature is present into my cultures, they appear in the folklore of many cultures worldwide, including Europe, Latin America, Asia, and Africa.

Although their stories can sometimes be benevolent, they are often associated with storms, shipwrecks, and drownings since sailors fall into a trance upon hearing their voices.

Choosing a single location for this myth is difficult, but it is also true that it is very popular in Copenhagen because of the Little Mermaid sculpture found there.

I hope you’re having a great weekend, don’t forget to comeback again in 7 days to see one more illustration of a mythical creature from another corner of the world.

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Today’s mythical creature comes from Africa, I’m not sure how accurate it is but from the references I was able to get, like this one and the old good friend Wiki, I got some interesting things. The creature is described as having claws, moss growing on its skin, and fangs.

Known as Nya-Nya Bulembu, in Eswatini folklore, the legend intertwines a princess and a mythical creature that inhabits the waters in addition to a prince who sees beyond himself, the disguise of a terrifying creature that has been placed on the princess to humiliate her.

According to what I found on the web, the princess seemed to be just in disguise since the waters finally revealed her true appearance.

I hope you have a great weekend. See you in a few days more with a new illo from another corner of the world.

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Welcome to week 41 of my weekend hobby. Today’s creature come from Central America, and it’s famous enough that people in this country dedicated a post stamp to in in 1991.

One more nice fact bout today’s creature is that its name is a mix of the Yucatec Maya word “Tata” meaning Grandfather/old and “Duende” from the Spanish word for goblin. Having a Maya word is awesome, but even just the Spanish side is super interesting too. Wiki says, “duende” originated from the Spanish phrase “dueño de casa” or “duen de casa”, (a house owner), originally conceptualized as a mischievous spirit inhabiting a house.

The origin of the myth is unclear, but some say it could be a Mayan story that originated after indigenous encounters with spider monkeys. The story says Tata Duende (Nukuch Tat in Mayan) or Dueño del Monte, as know in other countries, has a special interest in children, the only way to escape him would be if you hide your thumbs and show only your four fingers. Tata Duende would think you are like him and would let you go.

Watch out for the Duende as you walk through the woods, hide your thumbs, and have a happy weekend!

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Hello and welcome to another week of mythical creatures through my doodles. This week is a quick visit to a country I had heard about since I was a child. During my first days in Hong Kong I remember hearing someone speak Tagalog for the first time, and I was very surprised when I recognized some words because they were similar to Spanish.

Today’s mythical creature comes from the Philippines and is known as “Aswang”. Sites across the web describes them as a group of creatures that can shapeshift into witches, vampires, ghouls, and more…

I hope you have a great weekend, see you in seven more days to visit the folklore of another country with a new mythical creature.

Meanwhile, if you go to the Philippines, be careful of the Aswangs.

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The Holawaka is legendary bird of the Oromo people of Ethiopia.

Accordingly to the legends, Oxford says, this mythical bird was sent by the gods with a message of hope to become young again like a snake that changes its skin, but the bird altered the message giving this ability to the snakes instead. When the gods found out what Holawaka had done, they punished her with a disease that makes her cry in pain forever.

It is certainly a vengeful message. Some other versions I found said that by changing skin, humanity would not only rejuvenate, but would also leave behind their illnesses. Instead, they were condemned by the bird to be mortal, to decay and die. So, was it fair?

I hope you have a great weekend, it was for me since just yesterday I completed my 41st lap of the sun on board of this spaceship we call earth… That’s one way of putting it, most people just say: it was my birthday – boring, huh?

That’s one way of putting it, most people just say: it was my birthday – boring, huh?

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The legends and myths can show the pride of a rich culture, they also can reflect the fears and vulnerabilities of societies. In Costa Rica, there are many legends and myths, some are shared throughout Latin America as is perhaps the case of La Llorona. Other more local ones, like the one I want to show you today, have a clear objective. In this case, it is to keep men away from lust and go over the limits with alcohol.

There are many versions of the Tulevieja, but they almost always agree that she is an old woman, disheveled, with large breasts, wearing a hat and sometimes with bird parts. This creature who sought out babies to nurse, could also punish the lustful drunks who tried to take her dancing.

My land has many folklore stories, its nature is as diverse as it is impressive. But it’ it’s curious to find so many myths that refer to semi-human creatures, usually women like, seeking to punish men who wander around the streets drunk at night.

I hope you have a great weekend, see you in a few days with a new mythical creature from another corner of the world, thanks for visiting!

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¡Pura vida!

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Hello and welcome to week 37 of my weekend hobby. Today is Presidents Day here in the US, which means today was a federal holiday with a long weekend, however several projects at work kept me busy on Sunday and I was only able to catch up on this personal project today. Anyway, thanks for visiting my blog, today I celebrate a myth from Tanzania.

Known in Swahili as Popobawa, its name refers to a large bat, in a little more detail, this creature is considered a shape-shifter in Tanzania and the surrounding region.

If you’re in the US, I hope you enjoyed the long weekend, and if not, happy Monday! –I know is not as fun as Happy Friday!

See you in a few days with another mythological creature, my list says that in 7 days we’ll see a creature from my homeland, see you then!

I have always been a big fan of Christmas, I always look forward to those days where we dust off the decorations, untangle the lights and put up the Christmas tree. So I’ve been enjoying this weekend’s mythical creature a lot, maybe too much to be honest since I was a bit late today and I’m still drawing after the sun has already set.

From Finland, this week’s mythical creature is the “Haltija“, They are something like an elf, but what stands out most internationally is that they served as inspiration for Santa’s elves.

I hope you had a fun weekend, see you in seven days with another mythical creature. Thanks for visiting my blog.

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Welcome to another week of mythical creatures around the world. Each week I doodle a mythological creature that appears in the folklore of a particular country. This week on my list was the Vibria, this type of dragon that accompanies the festivities in Andorra and some other neighboring regions of France and Spain.

Thanks for visiting my nonsense blog, I hope you have a great weekend! The cold in New York these days doesn’t encourage me to go out much, especially, I’m feeling a little down because the flu.

But I DO can spend some time making drawings to share with the world just for fun, so I’ll see you in a few days with another creature from somewhere in the world.

Hello! and welcome to week thirty-four of my journey through mythical creatures from all corners of the world.

On my list, today’s country was Hungary, a place the unfortunately, I’ve never been, but trough the the web and its people, I do have heard wonderful things.

The creature I chose from folklore is the Ördög, a type of evil Hungarian mythical creature. However, my interpretation intersects with the famous Hungarian dish, goulash. I mean, there’s no one who can resist a delicious goulash… and I mean no one and nothing!

If you’re somewhere like New York where we’re seeing a cold winter right now, you might be craving some good goulash. But you don’t need an excuse to try it anyway!

I hope you have a wonderful weekend, and I’ll see you in 7 days with another mythical creature.

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Today’s mythical creature take us to South America to reveal the masters of weather. These are small fairies that are rarely seen by people according to Bolivian folklore.

Here’s my version of the Acalicas, the little fairies that control the elements of the weather. And if this were our reality, by the extreme weather of recent years, we could deduce that these little people are very unhappy with us.

I hope you have a great weekend, don’t forget to stop by here next week to see another mythical creature from some corner of the world through the interpretation of my hands.

Hello and welcome to week 32 of the mythical creatures project. Today I was ridding to Kazakhstan to sketch a Tulpar.

The Tupar is a version of what we know as a Pegasus, but in its Turkic version, this creature is used in emblems in Kazakhstan, its one of the main motifs of Kazakh folklore and is linked to the traditions of Central Asia.

Thank you for visiting my blog, see you next week to explore another mythical creature in another country. Just remember to hold on tight to your horse in the meantime.

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I always start these illustrations on paper, however I waited for a little before using any digital brush, that means the illo you are seeing here was made months ago on paper. That’s funny because today’s illo comes from Jamaica, by coincidence I just returned from there after spending some days in the marvelous Montego Bay… Perfect timing!

The Rolling Calf is a ghost that roams the rural areas of Jamaica with chains on its body, some of the versions I found include shape of bull, cow and even a goat. I’m not sure which one is correct but I found many references to bulls so here is a version of this myth in my style:

Life has a different rhythm in Jamaica. If I learned anything, it’s that things are taken calmly there, life is contemplated and celebrated. Which is a challenge for someone as obsessed with almost everything as I am.

I love spending time on illustrations and maps, even if they are not the best and I still have a lot to learn, it is something I enjoy.

“Love the life you live. Live the life you love.”
– Bob Marley

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As a teenager I spent a few days walking the trails of Cantabria, memories of wonderful views, delicious food and friendly people still live with me after all these years. I have sometimes visited nearby regions and I will always treasure those memories.

And why all this melancholic introduction? Well, this week’s creature is precisely from Spain, in the north they know it as Ojáncanu, a kind of cyclops that is the embodiment of brutality.

I guess the Ojáncanu is so barbaric, so brutal, that I imagine him walking barefoot on piles of Lego without saying a word… that’s brutal!

Have a happy weekend, happy holidays, and see you next year!

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Hi, welcome to week #28 of my weekend hobby. Today I’m taking a quick look at the rich folklore of Native North-Americans. Accordingly to wiki, today’s legend can be found across many indigenous cultures in the region, but I opted for the name “Anukite” as know by the Lakota People.

Maybe my references are a little crossed over with other cultural depictions, but mostly, the Deer Lady/Woman is described as a young woman. Wiki cites Paula Gunn’s book “Grandmothers of the Light: a Medicine Woman’s Sourcebook” which describes the intention of natives inserting this legend into society as a way of keeping men in line by discouraging promiscuity and infidelity.

If men have sex with the Deer Lady they go crazy; however if women dream about her, they will gain powers if they make a wise decision in the near future. –Citing a different book by Suzanne Crawford and Dennis Kelley “American Indian Religious Traditions”.

And that’s all for this week, I hope you have a wonderful weekend and see you next week with a new mythical creature from another corner of the world.