Wisps in the Shadows

I just finished doing some digital work over this next piece in the series I've been working on.  This mix of medium is a ton of fun.
[Pen, Copic Marker, Gouche, Illustration Board, Digital]

Sorceress

I got around to scanning this drawing I did a while ago.  I'd never used graphite on mylar before this.  It was a little hard to control and the graphite gets real reflective on the mylar, but I guess that's what photoshop is for.  It's always a little strange using yourself as reference for these types of drawings, but we won't talk about that...

[Graphite on Mylar, 16'' x 24'']

Friends Along the Way

Whenever I sketch and draw for myself, I really enjoy that part of the process of starting with a vague story or idea that then develops into the drawing itself.  Maybe I just like creating strange and bizarre images,  but I do think it's fun to see how other people interpret what's going on in a piece.  

All I know about this one is that this girl is on some kind of grand journey and she met this guy along the way.  She's the more down-to-earth and rational one, while he, despite his intimidating appearance, is venerable and clumsy.  I'm pretty sure he has some kind of magical power though.

[Pen and ink, Grey Copic/Prismacolor Markers, Digital, Grey Illustration Board, 11''x17'']

Original Sketch

Rendezvous

Just did this pice this week.  An encounter between two shady characters and a mysterious envelope.  [Pen and graphite]

More Kid Character

Added some color to this kid character for a project I'm working on.  Yes, more big-headed children.

Recent Tweaks

A while back, I did a turnaround of this kid genius character and his giant sucking machine, but I never did post the final illustration I did of it in action.  Recently I did a few tweaks on what I had and since autumn is upon us, and thought I'd make a post of it.

Also, here's the original turnarounds:

Teaching a Kid's Drawing Class

This summer, I had the pleasure of teaching a small drawing class for elementary kids over at the Salvation Army community center here in the area.  It's not the first time I've worked there as a camp counselor for their day camp program they offer every summer.  The class wasn't terribly intensive, but I was able to touch on some basic fundamentals.

It was certainly an interesting process gauging exactly what easily distracted kids who come and go from week to week can handle in a 45 minute block.  I brought in my guinea pig to sketch, which was a huge hit.  They also liked drawing characters from cartoons and designing their own from simple shapes.  Who doesn't love simple shapes and designing characters?  No one.

Near the end of the summer, I thought it would be cool to do a final larger piece that everyone could have a part in while still being able to draw their own thing.  So I gave each small group of kids a sheet of 8.5 x 11 white paper (that I had defined the areas they couldn't draw within) then told them to go crazy.

The camp is run by The Salvation Army, hence "The Salvation Army".

Of course, I had to draw some things too.  And since this is MY art blog...

I'm proud of my minions.  I think they did a great job.

This generation is clearly raised by the internet.
Both terrifying and kind of hilarious.

Hey that globe face thing
 looks familiar...

Upcoming Project Concepts

Here are a few concept sketches for a children's book I've been working on with a local author here in Troy.  More details to come!

Big Bad Triptych

So last Christmas I decided to paint a piece to go with the family guest room as a gift for my Mom.  The main color in the room is red, so I did a Little Red Riding Hood Illustration.  I went with a simple and cute style, which reflects the design of the room it now resides.  It was one of my first (and perhaps last (not really)) experiences with acrylics, but working on a somewhat large scale was slightly more forgiving.

Three panel triptych.  Acrylic on wood. 12'' x 36'' each.

I'm sure everyone is very familiar with the story, but this illustrates the moment when the devious wolf sneaks off after convincing Little Red to stop and pick flowers for her grandmother, whom he is about to devour.  Which, by the way, is a terribly conceived plan on his part.  He tricks Little Red Riding Hood with the end goal of eating both her and her grandmother.  Why doesn't he just eat her now, and proceed on to the grandmother's cottage (where he was about to go anyway)?  It would be a huge time saver.

Background color is the color of the
 walls in the room