Sunday, October 31, 2010
Friday, October 22, 2010
Monster Mayhem 2
In the spirit of October and Halloween stop whatever you are doing and pick up a pen or pencil and some paper and draw yourself a monster. Below is what I got. What kind of Monster do you got?
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Thoughts on Blocks
The problem with the creative process is; it is never predictable. At least not for me. There are times when drawing comes easy and I feel as if angels are guiding my hand. . . and then there are those times when I get completely blocked, and descend into limbo. Currently, I am wrestling with a comic book project that was supposed to be quick. Ha! Boy was I wrong. Luckly I am collaborating with a great writer friend of mine James. James wrote up a nice little script, and then I started illustrating with great momentum and before I knew it I was blocked.
The good news is I think I am starting to come around. I can feel it happening. The creative juices are beginning to seep into my brain again, and soon there will be no stopping me from making magical drawings.
I have a couple of thoughts about why I get myself into such a creative stupor. The main problem is I am not used to working in solitude. In college I spent most of my time creating artwork with and around other fabulously creative people. I fed off of that group think energy. Now that I am outside the protective bubble of school things are different. I only have my pet dog to call on for company. It takes serious motivation to sit down and draw for hours with no one prodding you to keep going (My pet dog doesn't get the whole drawing thing, he'd rather just hang out and chew stuff and thinks I should get a life). However, everyday I get a little more used to working on my own.
Unfortunately, I can't give too many details about the comic because I don't want to let the cat out of the bag, in fact, James probably isn't stoked on the idea of me blogging about the project.
I think It's okay though, because I'm pretty sure he doesn't read my blog, so I can talk about it a little. . .
I will say this: Drawing comics is a tough business, and the more I try it the more respect I have for the people who do it for a living. I am learning a lot about the nature of sequential art, it takes a lot of research and planning. You can't just draw a comic willy nilly, well maybe you can, if you're Jack Kirby or something.
Okay, enough babbling. Below are some rough images for the comic we're working on, mostly penciling and character concepts. Most of this stuff will never show up in the finished product, but I am trying to be extra thorough on this project. I have been doing more research, and rough work on this than anything previous. Just trying to explore every possibility, so I can get to the creative gold. I am excited about this comic, and I really want to put out something nice.
I think blogging about the comic is helping me break the block, I am starting to get excited about getting back to work! Look for more updates about my progress in the future!
The good news is I think I am starting to come around. I can feel it happening. The creative juices are beginning to seep into my brain again, and soon there will be no stopping me from making magical drawings.
I have a couple of thoughts about why I get myself into such a creative stupor. The main problem is I am not used to working in solitude. In college I spent most of my time creating artwork with and around other fabulously creative people. I fed off of that group think energy. Now that I am outside the protective bubble of school things are different. I only have my pet dog to call on for company. It takes serious motivation to sit down and draw for hours with no one prodding you to keep going (My pet dog doesn't get the whole drawing thing, he'd rather just hang out and chew stuff and thinks I should get a life). However, everyday I get a little more used to working on my own.
Unfortunately, I can't give too many details about the comic because I don't want to let the cat out of the bag, in fact, James probably isn't stoked on the idea of me blogging about the project.
I think It's okay though, because I'm pretty sure he doesn't read my blog, so I can talk about it a little. . .
I will say this: Drawing comics is a tough business, and the more I try it the more respect I have for the people who do it for a living. I am learning a lot about the nature of sequential art, it takes a lot of research and planning. You can't just draw a comic willy nilly, well maybe you can, if you're Jack Kirby or something.
Okay, enough babbling. Below are some rough images for the comic we're working on, mostly penciling and character concepts. Most of this stuff will never show up in the finished product, but I am trying to be extra thorough on this project. I have been doing more research, and rough work on this than anything previous. Just trying to explore every possibility, so I can get to the creative gold. I am excited about this comic, and I really want to put out something nice.
Monday, October 18, 2010
Monster Mayhem
I've been in a rotten mood all day and I'm not sure why. Maybe it's the gloomy weather. To cheer myself up, and for the sake of Halloween I started drawing monsters. Below are some of my favorites. After drawing them I felt better, and I have no idea why.
Now all they need are some cool names.
Now all they need are some cool names.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Rosarito to Ensenada Ride
A couple of weeks ago I was lucky enough to be invited to go on the Rosarito to Ensenada ride by a couple of friends of mine. It was fantastic. I made this image to commemorate the event, and as a special thank you to my friend. Thanks guys for taking this gringo south of the border. . .and not leaving him there.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Bauhaus Effect
Below are some posters I did for Sir Speedy Printing that were inspired by the Bauhaus school of design. My goal was to see how I could combine the Sir Speedy logo with fresh textures, and stay true to the Bauhaus style. Ultimately I cheated, and abandoned Sir Speedy's typical font for the Bauhaus 93 font.
As a design theme the Bauhaus style might be a little played out, but I still like what I came up with. Since I love drawing so much I'm a little bummed that the designs didn't include more illustrative features. I had other design ideas I wanted to do that included drawing, but unfortunately I ran out of steam.
If you look closely you'll notice that I did still manage to sneak some pencil marks in there for texture, which is funny because Sir Speedy is a printing company that has little to do with drawing.
So far all my posters have been coming out pretty dark. Maybe the next time I should lighten it up a bit.
Whatever it's my blog and I can do whatever I want.
And again, I hope Sir Speedy digs the designs.
As a design theme the Bauhaus style might be a little played out, but I still like what I came up with. Since I love drawing so much I'm a little bummed that the designs didn't include more illustrative features. I had other design ideas I wanted to do that included drawing, but unfortunately I ran out of steam.
If you look closely you'll notice that I did still manage to sneak some pencil marks in there for texture, which is funny because Sir Speedy is a printing company that has little to do with drawing.
So far all my posters have been coming out pretty dark. Maybe the next time I should lighten it up a bit.
Whatever it's my blog and I can do whatever I want.
And again, I hope Sir Speedy digs the designs.
Here is a second version without the large red text. I love the beauty of just the pencil marks.
Sunday, October 3, 2010
My Dad's Business
My Dad is a semi-retired professional photographer. But back in the 80s his business was going full blast, and he was simply known as the Photographer. Back then you could look him up in the yellow pages and you would find a quarter page ad.
So I decided to reboot his advertising campaign with the design below. I'm not sure if a hand drawn illustration is appropriate for a photography business, but who cares? It looks rad. And I hope he likes it. Who knows? Maybe he will come out of retirement to take pictures full time again.
So I decided to reboot his advertising campaign with the design below. I'm not sure if a hand drawn illustration is appropriate for a photography business, but who cares? It looks rad. And I hope he likes it. Who knows? Maybe he will come out of retirement to take pictures full time again.
Fan Art: The Terrapin
Here is my latest design, a poster for The Terrapin. A friend's band that plays in the Long Beach area. I hope they like it. You can get to their website here. They describe themselves as post-punk, space age heavy pop. I say rock on.
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Fan Art: Antique Toys
I'm trying to develop my design skills by making posters. Here is a poster design I came up with for a friend's band. You can get to their website here.
My friend Annabel is a health nut so I should mention I was eating a quesadilla with spam, washed down with a sugar free rock star while making this. I think she would a approve.
My friend Annabel is a health nut so I should mention I was eating a quesadilla with spam, washed down with a sugar free rock star while making this. I think she would a approve.
New Age Fun with a Vintage Feel!
My girlfriend Nicole says my watercolors look "vintagy" so I've been scanning some of my work and shopping them up on the computer. It's kinda fun to explore different effects. I really like those old 1930s vacation destination posters, so maybe I will make a series based off of that idea.
Below is my first effort.
Below is my first effort.
Friday, October 1, 2010
Party Girl
Teaching can be very rewarding, and today was especially great. Yet when I get home I only want to focus on my own work, and I hardly have the energy.
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