Alex Lyon

RIP JEFF JONES

2011-05-20T08:35:00.001-07:00

The TaTa Gala: Photos

2011-04-21T13:47:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I may have totally forgotten to share with everyone some pics taken from the opening evening of the TaTa Gala in Soho. It was a fun event and happened to be the first gallery I have ever showen in and for that matter the first gallery I had gone to since moving to NY. I can't wait to participate again next year!

ISOPURE LIVE

2011-04-11T07:52:00.000-07:00

Alright guys! This is the first project to live with a client since my job started in January. Link and screen caps below show a t-shirt building site based off of a questionnaire you answer online. I got to design a lot of the little icons that pop up with each answer, so take a look and enjoy! You can fill out the answers and post your icons on your facebook page. I just ordered my own shirt! If you don't like which icon pops up for your answer, just click back on the last question and re-click your answer to get a different icon. This has been a really great project to get to work on so soon after arriving at Yard, and they are wonderful clients to work with. It's very exciting to see it up and ready to go.

A Little Band Action

2011-04-10T12:19:00.000-07:00

These are some t-shirt designs I did for some friends back home In NKY. The Yugos is a work in progress. I'm Not thinkin the 3D feeling to the hanging letters says "indee band shirt". But I'm still messing with it. Check them Both out below.

HOT FOR ALICE:

FACEBOOK PAGE

THE YUGOS:

EP RELEASE PAGE

Wine, Women & Advertising

2011-04-10T12:03:00.001-07:00

Don't let this header miss lead you. I have been completing an internship with a really great advertising agency in New York called YARD. And although I love my job there it sadly is not to much like MAD MEN. I mean how could it, the number of sexual harassment law suits alone... No company could withstand such a record. So, in sharing this information, I apologize for the lack of posts. It has been a wild ride the past few months with the new job, moving to the city and a freelance gig here and there. BUT I vow to show the blog a little more love. Even if its reposting some of the stellar design and illustration work I am always finding during the week.

Shots of the new apartment from the MOVE:

A New Vibe To Europa Financial

2011-01-14T10:35:00.000-08:00

As a new project for the portfolio I decided to go back and create an addition to a recent branding I did (as well as make some minor tweaks to the color pallet). Europa Financial is an Investment/Wealth Management firm that I was thinking could use some new advertising. It was my thought that this would be something more like a leave behind that could be used as a direct mail piece during optimum times of the year statistically for new business for the company. It is a four page booklet with a fold out info-graphics that I posted in my last post. These are some shots of the booklet assembled.

Info Graphics?

2011-01-11T22:47:00.000-08:00

Info graphics? Really? Yeah, sure why not. It was actually pretty fun. I used a logo design I had worked on a while back as the jumping point for this thing. I also did a bit of a revamp of the logo as well as some letterhead design for it. All will be posted when it's finished and I have a chance to print and mock-up the booklet. If all goes to plan it will be up this week... Stay tuned.

That Went Quick...

2011-01-04T20:29:00.001-08:00

Spectrum worthy?...I think I might send it in with the other and see how it goes.

New Little Project :: Chimp's In Space

2011-01-03T14:21:00.001-08:00

Don't ask me why I felt like doing something as common place as a chimp in space. But I am having fun with it so i don't really care. haha I also need to get on top of fixing the Cracken painting for my Spectrum entry... If I miss the deadline again I will spend another year kicking myself.

From Sarasota to New York, for the "Best Of The Breasts"

2010-12-08T13:33:00.000-08:00

That's right guys, I have gotten the official notice for my admittance into the "Best of the Breasts" show! Only 17 artists were selected to hang at the Sacred Gallery in New York City and I was lucky enough to included in the top selections. Take a look HERE at a sneak peak of the other pieces coming to New York February 5th to the 25th.

Discover A Muse Hits the Shelf!

2010-11-29T21:37:00.001-08:00

That's right guys, the wait is over. Discover A Muse is officially published and on sale. I added a link to the site bellow on the sidebar. So click on over and take a look for yourself. I'm a bit broke at the moment, so maybe i'll ask for it for Christmas haha. May sound sad, but that's my plan... I mean, it IS for a good cause, so lets not forget about that.

First Commercial Gig!

2010-11-22T11:38:00.001-08:00

This is my first Published Illustration job that paid! Although I have been fortunate enough to do well with recent charity events such as "Discover A Muse" and the 2010 "TaTa Gala", This has been the first PAYING gig I have gotten published. So if you really love me drop by a Hot Topic this Christmas and pick up a Copy of Wonderland by Sea Of Treachery! Also the Discover A Muse book will be out and on sale soon, so go pitch in and support the cause!

Ambush: Final

2010-11-11T22:28:00.001-08:00

It is finished! Finally! I really drug that one out big time... and yes some of you may have noticed that a party member is missing. So what, It's my painting, I can do what I want. And that character was just rubbing me the wrong way the whole time I worked on it. So out she went. Just in time for Illuxcon 2010. Which I am driving to in the morning. 5hrs! by myself...It's gonna feel like days I'm sure.

Ready For The TA TA GALA

2010-11-07T14:19:00.001-08:00

Well, after sending it off to be printed on canvas, stretching the print onto a frame than staining the slats and nailing them to the sides of the canvas, I am ready to express ship this sucker to the gallery opening later this week. Talk about a rush job, but the printing of the piece took longer then I was expecting. I would so do it again though. I am really happy with the results. Makes me feel more like a real artist to have it on canvas in my hands that size. Very exciting.

Random Little Logo

2010-10-19T19:23:00.000-07:00

A Tasty Concept...

2010-10-16T17:06:00.001-07:00

Who has heard of Jovoto? I hadn't till recently. I guess it has only been recently that I have gotten into more graphic design stuff, so that may have something to do with it. They are a corporate design contest host. So you go there sign-up and start competing. All of them are for monetary prizes of varying amounts so there is always an incentive. These are my entry slides for the first one I have taken part in. The end goal is to design a concept for a new line of snacks for Kit Kat brand. The entry for this one closes in the next day or so then there is an extra week of voting by peers. It's always fun if you can do something that could make money in your spare time, right?

A Brief Segue into Design

2010-10-11T22:39:00.000-07:00

Well after three days of working on my ambush painting I kind of needed a break. SO I decided to re-brand the company Smoothie King instead. Don't ask me how that is a "break" but it was fun. Took me about four days to finish from beginning to end. Sketches for all this started Thursday evening and I finished everything up this evening. Do I still need a break? Nah...well maybe haha. But who doesn't. These shots are only a taste of the full project. Take a HOP over to my site to take a look at the full thing.

A Midnight Ambush: Work In Progress UPDATE

2010-10-07T00:32:00.001-07:00

A Midnight Ambush: Work In Progress

2010-10-02T23:06:00.000-07:00

Just a little progress shot. I am still unsure as to how much I really wanna light the third party member BUT I'm pretty sure that there is going to be someone on the ground that has noticed them. The best way to play with the shushing motion from the guy int he dark. I have sketches for a character but I am waiting to put them in. There wouldn't be much to them due to the size, but the contrast from the fire should allow for some well established characteristics.

A Little Taste of Everything...

2010-09-30T15:49:00.001-07:00

Ok, I said I would post up the new paint but I haven't gotten to far into it just yet. So here is the rough(very rough) sketch I do have done. To follow up with that is a logo "re-design" as a personal project of Lambesis Studios. I thought it would be fun to rework the look of what they had, but since this is something I did for myself you can look up their current logo yourself if your that curious.

Bacon + Eggs 24hr Diner

2010-09-29T11:36:00.000-07:00

ALPHADOG HABERDASHERY

2010-09-27T14:46:00.001-07:00

More Graphic Design! I have been adding more graphics stuff to my portfolio like a mad man. And I think I need a break. Here is another project I just finished. It's a fictional haberdashery that I thought would be fun to work with. The store concept with revolve around hats and accessories mainly, with a few exceptions for shoes some jackets and bags. I would shop there. But I think I may have actually just created a store I can' afford. There is a few more parts to this collection on the side so if your curious click on over.

Package Design: Savanna Pale Ale

2010-09-23T12:32:00.000-07:00

For the past few weeks I have been trying to really invest myself more into the updating of my graphic design portfolio. And for the most part doing so has been a lot of fun. I just finished this as well as a few t-shirt designs and a few other things that are now officially added to my portfolio. Not to mention the list of more things I plan on adding in the coming weeks. This sort of work tends to go quite a bit faster for me then illustration so even though I have sketches for a new piece or two, I am choosing to wait until after I have added all the things I have already planned for. I should get around to cleaning up some rough sketches for those new pieces though.

So illustration aside, what do you think of the Savanna branding/packaging? I kinda love the whole pakaderm family so I like to through them in when I can haha.

TATA GALA: FIN

2010-09-13T11:20:00.000-07:00

I just finished this last night, where I stayed up later then I want to admit because I was in the "zone". It's a bad habit that needs to stop. But a question for anyone that feels like answering. How do you feel about the type? Is it good? Bad? Would you like to see me submit it to the gallery with the type on it? Or is it more appropriate to have it typeless? I can't make up my mind.

TATA GALA: 2010

2010-09-10T00:18:00.000-07:00

Hey! New project to get crackin on. This is an annual event on its fourth year running called the TATA Gala. A fun and unique gallery show for breasts and about breasts and includes just painting, design and photography. This was brought to my attention last week when Jon Schindehette did a post on ArtOrder about it. Sounds like a fun thing to be apart of so I pulled out the sketchbook and got to work. So far so good, but I am still finding my way through this one.

TATA GALA

Armored Adventurer: FIN

2010-09-08T17:02:00.000-07:00

Armored Adventurer: UPDATE 2

2010-09-02T21:21:00.000-07:00

So far so good. You may have noticed this one is a tad different haha. I had flipped it while I was working, as is usually a good idea once you reach a certain point, and now I'm thinking it's a stronger composition with him facing this direction. I am still thinking I may try to make its armor a bit more interesting as I continue to flesh things out, but there is always that classic fantasy feeling with that more historic feeling armor.

Armored Adventurer: UPDATE

2010-09-02T01:18:00.000-07:00

The Next New Thing

2010-09-01T21:43:00.000-07:00

Just a new character shot I am working on. It's really just an opportunity to work on some strong lighting. I'm still messing a but with the shaping of that lighting through the trees in the back, but all the major things are nailed down so I figured I would throw it up.

This Past Week...

2010-08-28T07:55:00.001-07:00

This past week I had decided to try to divide my time a bit, by updating and applying to a lengthy list of graphic design studios in the city. Before doing so I needed to really update my GD portfolio a bit. Nothing major, just a few new projects and an updated intro page to my website. Since I had nothing major illustration wise to post from all the work this week, I figured I would go ahead and post these. All three are paintings some of you may remember, they were all school assignments that were intended as use for book covers. Although I know that It isn't my job to add type as an illustrator when working on these sorts of projects in the real world, it doesn't hurt to throw some on and drop these bad boys into my GD portfolio. I still have more GD stuff I want to work add to the book, but after a week of cranking stuff out I'm gonna chill out and sketch over the weekend.

Surviving The Storm: Photo Reference

2010-08-20T12:56:00.000-07:00

I'v never bothered posting the photo ref. I'll take for the paintings I work on. Sometimes they'll just be snapshots of arms and hands light however you need them and other times either I or some friends of mine are in costumes head to toe and holding props and well basically acting out the scene in fragments. I'm sure a lot of you already know what I'm talking about, but like I said I never bother posting it. This time I figured I would go ahead and share some shots from one of my most recent pieces. Just if you were curious, just need a laugh. If there are any other pieces of mine you would like to see a reference shot from let me know.

Another great artist that is always posting great original referance is Paolo Rivera. If you don't already know him, check 'em out.

Promotional Work

2010-08-16T22:49:00.001-07:00

I really need to get on top of this stuff. And once it starts, it will never stop. If I'm lucky...by the way, if you read this, cross your fingers for me. Or better yet, hire me! Need an illustrator? Let me know what you think.

Current Challenge2: Hook Horror

2010-08-07T15:52:00.000-07:00

Just finished this thing this morning. Let me know what you think. It is a tad more "animated" then my typical composition but all in all I feel pretty happy with the outcome. As far as the character of the dwarf and his movement and expressions go I think its working. The toughest part though is that feeling that your looking at a single shot of a much larger story. The deadline for this is tomorrow August 8th. And we shall see how I measure up against my friends over at ArtOrder. Wish me luck!

Discover A Muse: Top 43

2010-08-02T19:39:00.000-07:00

I have made it into the top 43 for the Discover A Muse competition! We will see what all come out of this there is talk about gallery shows, posters and books so we will have to wait and see. Regardless of the outcome I would like to give a special thanks to Jon Schindehette and Veronika Kotlajic for organizing the event as well as Irene Gallo (Art Director for Tor/Forge books), Claire Howlett (Editor of ImagineFX Magazine), and Robh Ruppel (Art Director for Naughty Dog Studios) for being the jury for the competition.

Another Wide Angle Shots?

2010-07-30T23:26:00.000-07:00

Alright! So I have no idea how many of you out there are on or keep up with Jon Schindehette's ArtOrder blog ( host of recent Discover a Muse challenge) but they have a current illustration challenge that has been going on for a while. Although I missed the first submission deadline, I was chatting my friend Bernadette over how hers was going when she mentioned that it was still alright to jump in and participate. So here it is! Or here is a shot of where I am so far (still a few scale and value tweaking needed). I got into some serious color comps this evening, but after working all day I figured I would take a break and post a "production shot". More to come once the ball has rolled a little further. If anyone would like to see a step by step post let me know! I'll put one together.

Whats been up?

2010-07-22T18:03:00.001-07:00

Ok, so I may have given in and reworked "Surviving The Storm" a little bit. Nothing big, just alot of refining and lighting tweaks. Did it need it? I think so. I'm much happier with it now. But thats the great thing about a personal piece. I can jump in with just a little sketch and see how it goes. Don't get me wrong there is that feeling of confidence that I love when you nail that final sketch and scan it/transfer it to board, that I would never trade for anything. But when your feeling burnt out and you just wanna have fun, sometimes taking a little sketch to finish is the better way to go.

Work In Progress: Surviving The Storm

2010-07-21T17:43:00.001-07:00

Well, I'm pretty sure it's all finished But I'm not quite sure yet. I hope you like it. You know that mode your brain gets in where you don't think about anything else then the moment you step away you think, geez I am hungry...and i really need to go to the bathroom. Needless to say there is still a lot of work that needs to get finished still so I better get that other stuff out of the way.

Work In Progress: Surviving The Storm

2010-07-14T00:13:00.000-07:00

Ok! So the boat is back...It was just to empty with all that action weighted to the left. Don't worry if those guys look a bit rough though, they are just sketched in right now. I also tried to make the octopus look a bit more "exotic" with some patterning and texture. Make him special! and stuff. Get the final up soon I hope. Stay tuned!

UPDATE: Surviving the Storm

2010-07-09T23:56:00.001-07:00

Ok, there has been a few changes. The monster went from a squid to an octopus, and the boat got much closer (much slimmer chance of survival). I also decided to ditch the magic being used in the boat. I had originally thought I would have a member of the crew yelling a protection spell, then decided against it. I had magic in the last one so I figured I would try something else. So far I'm pretty happy with it. But there is so much left to do! those "survivors" are just place holders right now. I need to get some reference shots to work from.

A New Post! Surviving the Storm

2010-07-08T20:38:00.000-07:00

Hey guys, I am finally all moved in and ready to start some new pieces. Sorry it has taken so long to post something new and get going. This thumb/color study is a bit rough but its one of three i'm starting. I need to get those up as well. Let me know what you all think. I really need to get back on the job. I was going nuts not working on anything!

Discover A Muse: Final

2010-06-01T14:34:00.001-07:00

Discover a Muse

2010-05-23T14:32:00.001-07:00

Alright. Here it is. My submission for the Discover A Muse challenge over at ArtOrder. I'm pretty positive this thing is finished. But when you have more time you usually find little things to tweak before you have to turn it in for good. We shall see haha, it's not due till June 1st.

In the end I decided to do a picture of an Elf Warlock. The Picture I used is from Veronika's portfolio site HERE called perfectmuse.com from a set shot by Huit Photography. Veronika as a muse is all part of the challenge, so everyone got the opportunity to work from her modeling portfolio as reference.

Pin-Up Challange

2010-05-16T09:32:00.000-07:00

This was my ArtOrder Pin-Up Challenge piece that I just entered the other day. Over all I'm pretty happy with it. But after dwelling on it I think a different vignette shape would have worked with the figure better. I had really liked how it had worked with the Assassin so I used it again. But I think this character needed something all her own. Maybe I'll go back into it later.

Clark Lightning: Arctic Assassin

2010-05-06T00:45:00.000-07:00

This is the result of a random Action hero name generator. And freedom to do what ever pops into my head. Fun assignment! I think I'm gonna do a few more and add a few character designs to my portfolio.

Collecting The Fallen

2010-04-27T22:57:00.000-07:00

Finally it's finished. I'm really happy with this one. I still have another assignment before the year finishes but regardless I need to start sending work to every fantasy anything I can get a hold of...

Also I thought I would try a "step by step" of this project, mostly because I actually remembered to screen cap the project as I go. I would like to say that this was by request haha, but that hasn't happened yet. So if anyone was interested to see it in process, check it out! If anyone has any questions feel free to ask and I'll do my best to answer.

Alexander The Great is just alright in person...

2010-04-25T12:55:00.000-07:00

One down, one to go! I am right on schedule I'm pretty sure so I am feeling alright. It's just a matter of time getting everything printed and assembled. I'm also trying to get this latest piece laid out in a set-by-step for anyone interested. It will most likely be 12 steps when it's all finished. Stay tuned!

Final Piece for the Year!

2010-04-19T23:06:00.000-07:00

Ok, I guess I should say that this better be the last piece this year, Or at least until after Directions(not counting the Alexander the great painting). This sucker is getting in my portfolio or else! it needs to be done by Tuesday night to get that gold sticker i have been saving so we will see. If you see me wish me luck this is more then I was planning on having on my plate by now. Final Line and Value study. Next stop color...

Ready for Directions?

2010-04-17T09:29:00.001-07:00

No! But I'll still show up and see how I do...Directions is a networking event that Columbus College of Art & Design plans each year for the graduating seniors. And although I only post the fun and exciting illustration side to my life, I have an entire graphic design portfolio to assemble! I need to get to work...

Random Sketch Post:

2010-04-16T17:23:00.001-07:00

Let's get all caught up!

2010-04-12T08:37:00.001-07:00

These are two new assignments that are certainly in progress. Keep an eye out for the final pieces! This first one is for the assignment for Eric Fortunes class. I have class tonight, so we will see how much thing will change by the next time you see it. The second item on the post is my half finished portrait assignment of Alexander The Great. It's my final? piece for C.F. Payne. He may give us another before the end of the year. We will see.

Gladiator Glory: Update Final

2010-04-12T08:31:00.001-07:00

UPDATE: Gladiator Glory

2010-04-02T22:24:00.000-07:00

It's been a bit since I posted last, so I thought I would Drop everyone a line and post where this thing is at so far. I have two other projects that need to be started and finished this week so ill post again when I get a chance. Stay tuned in.

Gladiator Glory:

2010-03-18T21:36:00.000-07:00

After that black and white Gladiator character i did for the mailer last week, I thought it would be really fun to actually push the idea and really get something large and full color out of it. I'll be getting started on this over spring break, but for now it's just the thumbnails.

Web Portfolio Update:

2010-03-18T21:24:00.001-07:00

After trying to figure out how to update the website that i built while in a class, I realized that I would never update the work because of how much work it was. So after really thinking about it, I decided to switch to a website called Squarespace.com. It's a hosting site with templates you can alter and it has made the maintenance of the site piratically effortless. Take a peak! it's attached the website link on the side bar.

Who wants a Promo Mailer !?

2010-03-16T01:49:00.001-07:00

If your seriously interested, then fair warning, these are not yet in production. But if you leave me a message ill be sure to get one to you. This first color one is the replacement color idea for my failed "color postcard" attempt. The lower card is the final B&W postcard design. The back was a simple and clean enough layout that I figured it wasn't really necessary to post it. This one will most likely not make it to production at all... Next stop, online portfolio redesign! I'm pretty sure my to-do list is growing not shrinking...

Battle Royal!

2010-03-11T20:35:00.000-08:00

Alright guys, here is the finish on my most recent assignment for Payne's class. Over all I'm pretty happy with it, but I am gonna try to get things more dynamic... I'm thinking Gladiators...

A Vampire Just Passing Through Town

2010-03-10T21:39:00.000-08:00

It's not to often that you catch a vampire traveler in it's natural habitat... feeding on...well some random girl he happened to come across. Unfortunate? maybe, but that is the food chain.

"...And I'm a PC..."

2010-03-10T00:18:00.000-08:00

It is official I guess, I have finally made a full and complete switch to Windows 7 from Snow Leopard. After getting back from my vacation to NY over winter break, I went to turn on my computer...and nothing happened. My iMac, after three and a half years died. The hard drive had decided that life wasn't worth living and decided to throw in the towel. Once this had happened I decided what the hell, lets replace it with a computer I could afford to fix if it something like this happens again. So far I really like it, but mostly because its so much like snow Leopard. That and I scored this amazing hand-me-down 30" monitor. Love it.

Shamless Self Promotion!

2010-03-07T20:11:00.000-08:00

Well, It's been longer then I would like since i posted last, but hang tight! More is coming your way. These are some concept designs for some Self Promotional postcards for my big dramatic send off as soon as possible. This first card will be in color and the second one will be finished in black and white. The back of each card will just be finished off with a simple black and white graphic treatment with my current branding. Stay tuned for more finished work posted and the follow up on the postcards.

Also, These are fairly nailed down mock-ups but suggested tweaks for better compositions for each of the 6 sections are always welcome. Thanks.

Figure Post:

2010-02-24T16:00:00.000-08:00

If your wondering why I have nothing but female figures from my current class, I have no idea. Don't get me wrong I'm not complaining, I really need the practice with drawing women, that is hard stuff when it comes to sketching it out of your head, but good news! I think I'm getting better...I hope.

This was also our first two session drawing, so thats why its a bit more rendered then the last few I've posted.

The Big Lebowski VS. The Maltese Falcon:

2010-02-18T20:10:00.000-08:00

The assignment was to design a new movie poster based on the "Mash-up" of two movies from a list A and B. After a few days hours of thumbnailing things out I decided to go with The Big Lebowski and The Maltese Falcon. For the record I am just glad that I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. And now I can move on haha.

Sketch Dump:

2010-02-16T20:43:00.001-08:00

UPDATE: Kobolds Revised

2010-02-11T23:16:00.000-08:00

UPDATE: Do Kobolds have temples??

2010-02-08T23:09:00.000-08:00

Well, here it is. The update of my assignment for C.F. Payne's class. The final? I don't know yet. It's not due until Friday class and I have yet to post it on Oondu so I may have some corrections in my not so distant future. Regardless it is just about, if not totally finished. This is probably the largest scale piece i have yet to do, as far as composition complexity goes. I hope you guys like it. This is a standard that I am holding myself to this semester and hopefully that will lead to some promising freelance work in the months to come.

Some Figure Sketches

2010-02-02T21:30:00.001-08:00

Revised Winter Project

2010-02-01T21:15:00.001-08:00

After My hard drive crashed at the tail end of break, I have finished revising my vacation project and posting it. Sorry it took so long to get the suggested revisions up. Thanks for the comments!

What's Been Up?

2010-02-01T20:48:00.000-08:00

Well, incase anyone has been curious what I have been up to in my leave of absence, I have been bustin my A$$ gettin stuff goin this semester. After going over everything over break and really assessing what will need to be done in these next few months, I decided that I need more of the kind of illustration that I love to collect. For some reason I have managed to go this long and still not really have anything sci-fi/fantasy related in my portfolio. So...as a new personal goal to myself, I have a goal of 5 Genre illustrations for my senior portfolio in hopes of snaggin up some sweet freelance work. This is piece number two. Ill be posting follow ups on this new one plus a few other things i have goin. School may very well kill me this semester...

That Crazy Van Buren: Final

2010-01-31T20:48:00.001-08:00

I scanned it. Finally! Sorry it took so long. When I upgraded to Snow Leopard I found out that the company that made my large format scanner decided not to upgrade their drivers... So it took me a bit to get around to installing the drivers on my girlfriends laptop. I got new things cookin though, so keep an eye out!

First Finished Winter Project

2009-12-30T21:50:00.000-08:00

This is my first and maybe my only Winter break project. It's a D&D adventurer Using a belt of "Bull Strength". I have really started to fall behind on my posts. I had meant to post a few things when break started but my scanner was acting like a jerk, thanks Snow Leopard. Untill i get around to that, enjoy the new post.

I don't know if you can recognize him or not but Jordan Merchant was my reference model. Thanks man. I hope I made you angry enough.

Love Potion No. 9: Final

2009-12-05T10:36:00.000-08:00

That Crazy Van Buren: Follow Up

2009-11-05T19:07:00.000-08:00

The Final composition for the Presidential portrait for Payne's class. It's gonna be fairly limited pallet so I figured I would go ahead and post the rough with out color.

The icons at the bottom of the frame symbolize different things about Van Buren's life. The first is a windmill to show what I believe to be the embodiment of Holland (where his parents where from), the second is my homemade icon for his time in office, and the third icon is a new democratic emblem to represent his party. In case you were wondering...

Love Potion No.9: Updated

2009-11-03T23:20:00.000-08:00

Ok, this isn't an official sketch, though I will say I got a bit carried away with this one and worked on it longer then I should have. The project is to design an illustration to capture the words of a song released in the 1960's (that is the love potion spilling out behind him). We also have to have an influence in mind when working on the piece. Can you guess who mine is? No guessing if you know already. That's cheating...

I still need to find another song to do roughs for by this Thursday. Tomorrow will be a late night.

That Crazy Van Buren...

2009-10-29T20:59:00.000-07:00

This is a little character study for a Presidential porterait I have been given as one of my new projects. The goal with this is just to secure a strong likness of which ever President I decided to do. After choosing Van Buren, I figured a sketch to try to capture his "look" would be the best place to start.

History Cover Finalized

2009-10-25T19:52:00.000-07:00

New Things Here and There

2009-10-24T14:36:00.000-07:00

These are just a couple of things that I have been working on for classes. The pie was a painting technique exercise and the second was an in class assignment we had a list of words to combine and about 2.5 hours to do it in.

Ode To Bernie Fuchs

2009-10-07T15:47:00.000-07:00

This was a "mini" assignment from C.F. Payne's class as a study of Bernie Fuchs technique. All I had to do was take a segment of one of his earlier pieces (right) and copy it as best I can (left) I used acrylics and guache, so it isn't quite his way of working... But I was still happy with how it turned out. It's due tomorrow, along with everything else under the sun. Thursday's are stress monsters.

The Final Dentist + Sketch-a-Day 9 and 10

2009-10-07T09:13:00.000-07:00

The page layout had to have hand drawn type in it so the headline on that was all drawn and inked by hand.
Coming up probably this weekend will be a watercolor dump. I have been in a Watercolor Studio class all semester and have yet to post anything. Not all of it is good enough to make it up but I have a few favorites that I'll share.

Historical Cover Ideas...

2009-10-05T22:04:00.000-07:00

My money is on the bottom Rasputin cover I think. It's a bit dark showing him drowning...BUT when nothing else will work. I am really feeling like the type is still kinda weak on all of them. Tweaking is a must, but I feel like they are going in a strong direction.

Official Sketch-a-Day: 7 and 8

2009-10-04T12:32:00.001-07:00

Sketch-a-Day?

2009-10-03T22:08:00.000-07:00

Well now that I am finally like, 80-100 somethin days behind everyone else, I think I'm gonna go ahead and commit to a sketch-a-day. Counting just the posts on this front page I'm gonna say I'm on day 7. Hey! week one down, I'm off to a good start. Haha. Keep an eye out.

Concepts and Sketches

2009-10-03T16:14:00.000-07:00

Have you ever eaten calamari? Well what if the tables turned...That wasn't really the thought behind this first idea, but i guess you could take it there. I got a few planks of wood and have been trying to think of something good to put on them. Finally I decided to do a collection of things similar to this one here. I'll post them when I finish them.

Sketch Dump

2009-09-30T12:07:00.001-07:00

Black Beard: The Legend of a Pirate

2009-09-23T21:23:00.000-07:00

Behold my finished assignment for C.F. Payne. It's due tomorrow and I will be so glad to move on to the next project. I'm actually happy with this one though. For now.

On a worse note, I discovered what Payne really meant by "bad board" tonight. While doing his technique demo last Friday he talked about how the oil wash can horribly wrong when you have a board that will soak up and absorb the oils to the point that you can't pull it back up. Now that you understand the situation, lets say that I have a lot more work to do on my dentist piece for my other studio class. Wish me luck.

A Sketch or Two

2009-09-21T21:03:00.000-07:00

The Dentist

2009-09-20T11:57:00.000-07:00

Here is an update on the other stuff I've got going on. This is just the color study for the editorial project we got for professional practice. It will be traditional in the end done 11x14. I really need to get cracking on this one.

ALSO: A little Sketch page for you. Just a few sketches from last week from the Liberal Arts classes I'm in.

Work Space: Pirates in process

2009-09-20T11:49:00.000-07:00

I thought I would take a snapshot in case anyone wondered what my "studio space" looked like. I know I always love seeing where others work. If you take a closer look that is the Pirate book cover in the works it's coming together nicely I have already done a bit more since the photo was taken. This thing should be finished and posted this evening or tomorrow.

For the record, I need to buy an easel... my printers aren't cutting it.

Mars Fungi Attack: In Color

2009-09-14T16:28:00.000-07:00

This is just another sketch that I finally scanned and decided to try and spice it up a bit.

Sketchbook Dump & Project Update

2009-09-14T11:59:00.000-07:00

Here is a little update of my Current project in Paynes Class the Blackbeard Book cover. This is just the value study but the painting is currently in the works.

Time for Some Pirate History:

2009-08-31T21:20:00.000-07:00

Alright guys here are some Thumbs for my first assignment in C.F. Paynes class. He told me to do a historically accurate pirate book cover for any Real pirate in history. I picked Black beard! These are the thumbs that made the cut out of 23 total. Let me know which gets your vote. I think I am favoring the one with everyone in the captains quarters...That one would have moon light to the left and lamp light on the right. Sounds like fun to me...Those other two would be Black beard being epic up on the deck, and the fourth is the crew coming back from burying the loot. I may change that to being them leaving the ship to go to the island, I have yet to decide.

Little Doodle...

2009-08-25T22:21:00.001-07:00

This is just something I drew and thought I would throw some color on. Normally when I work with paint it is Acrylics, so it would seem I got a bit trigger happy with the water. Some where along the line i thought this needed a wash over the whole thing and I ended up making the whole thing blurry... The good news is that I am in Watercolor class now so i should get the practice i need to not make any more stupid last minute mistakes. haha.

I really need some assignments from school to get things going again. I have been waiting for the homework to kick in so I have been holding off on starting anything for fun, so now I am just feeling bored. I need to get things started here! and I really need to start sketching more again.

Finished Knight

2009-08-23T12:31:00.000-07:00

I will be the first to say that this is not really one of my best pieces. BUT I will say that I learned a bit about the technique I was attempting. I figured I would go ahead and post it anyway. A special thanks to Justin Gerard. I did this piece for fun after seeing an amazing piece he worked on last year. Though I totally failed haha. I feel like i have learned something.

A Knight and His Steed

2009-08-11T19:03:00.000-07:00

This is something that I have hatched after poring through my collection of pieces by my favorite illustrators. Something of a traveling knight trudging through the woods. If this ever gets developed further, It would be N.C. Wyeth influenced. One of my favorite artists of all the greats.

Foolish Monkey

2009-08-06T19:37:00.000-07:00

This is just something done for fun. I got somethin cookin with thing little monkey, so that will most likely be comin up soon. Don't ask me what is sitting on, I don't know.

Lady of the Lake: The Final

2009-08-03T22:44:00.000-07:00

Alright boys and girls, after all your patience It is finally finished haha. This took a bit longer then it would ever normally, but with no deadline sometimes its hard to make yourself get through something personal. I'm sure you guys know what I'm talking about. In the end this went into the digital realm, but I got the result i wanted so i'm not unhappy. I'v more cooking so I'll be sure to get on them tomorrow.

Lady of the Lake: Update of FInal

2009-07-26T14:12:00.001-07:00

This is just an update of the piece so far. Although it's taking a bit longer then I would like, I am really happy with how it's looking so far. I plan to finish her skin and add some "wetness" to her clothing. It's almost there!

Lady of the Lake: The Underpainting

2009-07-15T11:13:00.000-07:00

Update! This is just the underpainting. I still have a lot more to do but I rearly post progress so I figured I would go ahead, although I wish I had thought of it sooner and got a few more to post. Maybe next time.

Lady of the Lake: The Pencil

2009-07-13T10:11:00.000-07:00

Behold! A Lady of the Lake true to the area and rough time of the story. I know you don't usually see a Celtic one-handed sword as Excalibur, but hey that's what makes it a bit more interesting.

Right now it is pencil on Reeves BFK, but it will be painted in acrylic. Updates will SOON follow!

Some Sketches

2009-07-07T20:49:00.000-07:00

Just a little sketch dump. The Portrait is a thumbnail for a piece that should be started this week. Keep on checkin.

The Sad Little Rhino

2009-06-13T21:56:00.000-07:00

The newest addition to my collection. Let me know what you guys think. It's continuing in my random direction I have been heading in.

Job Hunt Continues...

2009-06-04T22:49:00.000-07:00

Ok, so this may not really be my usual kinda thing. But I haven't really had time yet to really get goin this summer, so i thought I would just throw a little something together today for something to post up. I don't want to much time slippin by with nothin at all. Hope you like.