reworked poster

that last lotus poster didn't completely fly with the band, so i was asked to change some things and since the first show had sold out even before the completion of this thing, they added another date the day after. my own group that i'm involved with has a gig coming up in the next few weeks as well, so i put together a quick flyer for that from some sketches that i had around. bing!

lotus poster.

this is another poster that i recently completed for opus one productions, who represent the well-known electronic/jam band lotus. i wasn't entirely familiar with their music before this, but while i was working on my conceptual ideas for it, i began listening to them and enjoyed what i heard. so here's what happened. the idea of a philly skyline was mentioned to me along with the desire for bright colors.

posters, posters, posters...

here are a few posters that i did for opus one productions, here in pittsburgh. didn't know much about any of these guys, but i did take a liking to medeski, martin & wood. i think these turned out fairly well despite the short time i had to do them up. i'm doing working on a new one now for the band lotus. its for a new years eve show in philly. i was also recently in a group show with some of my co workers at excel sportswear. the turn out was surprisingly well the whole way through and i was fortunate enough to sell a few prints.

some stuff.

these two portraits i did for the online magazine, urchicago.com. they are both to accompany interviews with the artists. they are both quite impressive at what they do in my opinion and i surely do enjoy their music. the adulture piece i did first, but i feel that the mayer hawthorne one has a somewhat better look about it. and then i gots a preview of something i'm working on now of lil' wayne.

flyer

this is another flyer for the band meeting of important people. i think that this one actually turned out the best from the others that i have done for them in the past.

more drawrings.

drawings and some from life at the panza gallery down in millvale. one of the coolest places to engage in figure drawing for a good two hours and a few cocktails.

day of new sketches

i need to certainly start drawing more besides just at work, so i decided to just go at it by scrolling through some of my random reference that i have on my computer. and the lovely st. vincent from who i did quick sketches of turned out the best i feel. i surely did not make her as attractive as she really is, but i like the line and shapes.

bookcase for the kids.

This is a bookcase that was originally going to be auctioned off at a gala event for the Beginning With Books organization. Unfortunately, the event was cancelled, but they are planning on exhibiting these works at a venue, which is yet to be announced. I finally got around to finishing it up for them and this is the result. I was planning on writing, 'Catch the Reading Bug' along the front of the bookcase, but I ran out of time to add it before they came to pick it up. The idea was for the animals to be distracted by these bugs near them during the act of reading and storytelling, hinting the animals would catch (eat) them. I painted it in oils and had some good results. Had I worked longer on this with a few more detailed layers, I think the result would have been extraordinary for my few attempts at oils.

shoes... for your feets.

a friend of mine that i worked with asked me if i could paint a pair of canvas slip-ons for her. i told her that i would and so she was quick to go and purchase them soon after this discussion; back in the fall of this past year. happens i finally got around to finishing them for her as she was becoming slightly disgruntled that she was not able to wear them since the season has begun to turn fair. in any event, here is the outcome.

napkin doddles and lazy bones magee.

my boy lyle recently paid another visit here, where we did our best to meander all over the city. we spent most of our time and money on food and beer, which is always a good investment during these sorts of occasions. during our escapades, i was scribbling on those square white coaster napkins that are typically intended to soak up the perspiration of your drink. here are a few that i thought were rather interesting.

for anyone here.

well, i suppose that these posts are indirectly written to myself, but here it is. i recently noticed that Bittersweet Harvest has featured my recent Meeting of Important People poster on there blog, with some kind words about my drawings (which i do greatly appreciate). also, i recently accepted a position with Excel Sportswear, an apparel design company close to where i live. i'm only four days in and it has certainly been slightly frustrating tinkering with digital manipulation of line and such, but today i feel i started making headway. the art director, dan mcmanus is a savannah college of art and design alum, who has put his faith in me and i am doing my best to not let him down. my first assignment there was to create a sketch for a jetski rental business that portrayed a voluptuous hard nippled blonde carving the waters on a yamaha skidoo. since then, i have been battling corel draw x3 and adobe illustrator to trace mechanical objects, such as buildings and cars. i do feel extremely fortunate that this company has asked me to be apart of their success and am doing my best to adapt and produce at a quick pace. all of the artists there have been very pleasant to be around and are very good at what they do; i hope they keep me aboard. anyhow, i am way behind on finishing the bookcase for Beginning with Books, here is an update on my painting thus far. that should be enough for now.

meeting of important people poster

this is another poster i threw together for meeting of important people. took this old clown sketch and added some other elements to it with the hat and hair. i wanted to make it look more polished and simple than chaotic.

face marks.

these are some stylized drawings of some notable people. i managed to first make heidi klum look ugly, followed by a michael j. fox that has downs, and then threw together a sean penn that is somewhat resembles the hard look he typically wears. i also contributed two drawings of musicians, kurt cobain and jimi hendrix for articles written on their legacies by my friend craig mcnair. i think that these two are somewhat interesting in the use of shape and line, but still believe certain features can be better manipulated and exaggerated. the final two portraits at the bottom are depicting a motown singer and the very important composer steven foster. i am about to start taking classes to do caricature work at a theme park and am struggling on the fast pace that i need to work at. i certainly spent too long on most of these sketches, but thought that there were good aspects to each of them as i try to understand the craft of cartoonish drawing.

new promotional postcard

i haven't really been doing much promotional stuff lately and felt inclined to do something about that. i would say that the hardest thing in doing this was to pick a piece that best exemplifies the kind of work i am planning on doing. i suppose i that by my selection, i am looking to grab some attention with my sketches and the digital color/texture complements. the layout of this piece was already perfect for a 5x7 inch postcard and so i decided to design something around it. i'm going to await printing it until i get some feedback from my peers and before i go and throw money into them. your opinions are greatly appreciated. i have also been working on a bookcase that i need to start painting very soon.

here is a shot of the drawing thus far on the one side.

my boy l to the yle.

my dear good friend was kind enough to spare some of his valuable time to visit me here in pittsburgh, for the past few days. we explored some good times in the city, played some pick-up ice hockey, and gave a shot to outdoor painting down in oakmont where i work. but, through all of that and the depressants laying heavy on the day, we were still able to do some sketching. i took him down to king's restaurant to introduce him to the delightful taste of cinnamon ice cream along with some apple pie; he didn't seem too impressed by it. here is a sketch i did real quick after an initial sketch that was quite poor and overworked. i put some coffee stains on it with a dab of my finger to give some darker value without hatching it out. i look lost in this picture.

for the kids.

this is an illustration that i recently did based on a weekly blog post that my dear friend craig mcnair jr. does for a journalism class that he is currently enrolled in at penn state university. he is pursuing the idea of music journalism and writes his posts on music relating to events in the world and the music of today and our past. the article was written about the devastating earthquake in haiti and the way pop culture collaborated to create their own sad rendition of Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie's We Are The World. i am going to start illustrating his posts as editorial works by collaborating on ideas for future post. i think this will be the a really interesting idea to try out. if it does as well as our melody making, then it should be too easy. we also write and play tunes together with our good friend, mick kelly. i'll try and get something updated on their sometime in the next week or so.

the haiti poster project.

this here is a poster that i am donating as a limited edition print to the haiti poster project. you can view my submission along with plenty of other great contributions by an array of other great designers. they will be auctioned off online to raise money for the doctors without borders. this poster is somewhere between being conceptually driven and aesthetically pleasing. i really went with this composition because i liked the way the boy looked and then tried to play the idea of healing haiti's wounds with the crack like gash in the boy's chest. the blood stained band-aid is suppose to represent the red cross and its part in healing as well. i may tweak it before i send it off to be printed, but otherwise i feel that i succeeded in certain areas pertaining to the overall design. i recently threw together another tee shirt idea from an old sketch. it still needs to be worked out more, but i just wanted to lay it out to see the possibilities. i like the way these loose expressive lines read on garments. i will be looking to submit my ideas to a sister company of urban outfitters here in the near future. that should be good for now.

in a jiffy.

these first two images are recent works from life sketches that i have done over the past few months. the old man at the table is a combination of sketches with color and textures applied. in the end, it seems that the image is a depiction of an older man trying to get by in his out-of-order life after the passing of his wife. the second visual is two sketches done from my experience in miami recently and is executed in a similar fashion as the previous work (i'm still playing with some ideas on it). the giraffe is yet another sketch designed and manipulated for a tee shirt. i plan on cleaning it up along with a few other drawings and submitting them for consideration at designbyhumans. i've been rather happy with the way these digital works have been coming about, especially the short amount of time that i am able to work them. i am planning on applying for an artist-residence at a place called hub-bub in south carolina. i'm hoping that i can get in there and finally immerse myself in the world of paint by studying the lifestyles of the impressionists, while also focusing on composing music that relates to the themes of work that i conjure up. it would certainly be an elaborate process of art and music making, but i feel that this idea will help me acknowledge my progression as an artist and individual... or perhaps that's all just bullshit.

quick sketch of lennon

i did this sketch of lennon at 3.30 this morning while i was letting my car warm up before leaving for work. i like how it turned out for how quick i did it, i may do another one later. just wanted to throw this up.