illustration

Uh Houston...

2009-05-04T16:35:00.002-05:00

More Shirt.Woot designs

2009-02-18T15:29:00.004-06:00

Splatterfly

Gimme S'Mores

The Sound of Silence

Rainbow Serpent

Rainbow Crow

The Watch of Ra

Pride

Khepera

Frank was Always a Bit Peculiar

Fire Dancers

Chasing Windmills

Dalai Mama's

Teeth of the Hydra Upon You

2009-01-24T15:26:00.003-06:00

click on image for larger view

The Ant and the Grasshopper

2008-11-15T19:23:00.001-06:00

click image for full size view

My Illustrator Working Process for Derby 63: Art as Text.

2008-10-05T10:13:00.005-05:00

For those of you interested in working in Adobe Illustrator this is my process for doing a design.

Step 1: Turn on the computer. This may seem like an obvious step but you'd be surprised how many people forget to do this.

Step 2: Load iTunes (or music program of your choice) and get some music playing. Sometimes I'm lucky enough to have plenty of tunes that support the theme I'm working on like the Work Derby, or The Old West but generally i just load whatever band puts me in the proper mood like Rush, REM, Barenaked Ladies, and so on. Sometimes i just hit Shuffle and go with whatever pops up. For this one i went with the soundtrack for Once More with Feeling, the Buffy Musical episode.

Step 3: Load Illustrator. Open a new file. I usually set the page size to 13" x 15" (for horizontal designs) or 12" x 14" (for vertical) because that's the standard size I've worked in at my job for many years. If I'm planning to do a large design I'll bump it up to the woot standard 16" x 20", but 13" x 15" is the maxium area for most of my designs. After doing that grab your trusty tablet and select the pencil tool. In this case i started with the letters I wanted and sketched them out loosely on a layer.

Step 4: Next, i change the color of the "sketch" to blue. Mainly from working with a blue pencil for so many years in the pre-computer days of the 80s. In some cases i apply group to the sketch and try some warping effects. this doesn't always work, but when it does it gives the design a look i can't get drawing something by hand, conforming the lines to an overall shape.

Step 5: After getting the basic layout of the design the way i want it, i lock down the layer and (after switching to the brush tool for a heavier line) i start refining the letters and adding detail. building the characters to their basic shapes based on the letter.

Note: The Brush Tool: easily my most used tool since getting the Wacom, i start with the 3pt calligraphy brush. it simulates a traditional inking brush almost perfectly using pressure from the stylus to get variations in line width. with the added bonus of being able to smooth out a line if it goes all wonky (Option key on Mac) without having to repeatedly redraw the line. for heavier lines or fills you can add or edit other brushes to the size and roundness you want. for really large fill areas the pencil tool is better though.
Step 6: Once all of the letters are sufficiently detailed lock down the layer and create another one for the final inks.
Step 7: Inking the sketch. at this point things get pretty basic. switch the brush tool's color to black and refine and clean up the rough sketch.
Note: I generally set the brush's pressure variation as high as i can get it (i.e. if the brush size is 3pts. i set the variation to 3) to get the appearance of feathering. i find it's best to go from thin to thick with the brush tool which is completely opposite from working with an actual brush.

Step 8: After finishing each letter i grouped it for future editing. which turned out to be a good idea because the arced layout wasn't working for me the way i thought it would. although looking at it now it doesn't look as bad as i thought at the time. oh well.
Step 9: Using the rotate feature on the grouped letters i re-arranged them horizontally, adjusted the spacing and size. now the design is ready for the next step: coloring. first lock down the ink layer and create a new one. put the new layer under the ink layer. by doing this you can fill in the shapes without covering up the line.

Step 10: Coloring. when starting this part of the process i just use basic colors from the Illustrator pallette and apply them without concerning myself with how many colors i'm using or the exact color i want to use in the final design. this step is just to block in the basic color scheme to give me an idea of what the finished design will look like and to make sure the colors are not clumped in one area.

Note: as you can see i originally planned on using an Olive shirt for this design. at this point the shirt color isn't totally set, so it can always be changed later (which it did when i realized i needed one more color i didn't have available on anything besides black).

Step 11: Coloring Part 2. once i've settled on a basic color scheme i start the refining process. consolidating colors, setting the proper PMS shades. this part of the process is time consuming and requires a lot of thought. how can i get the most out of one color? is the main question going through my head at this point. note the brown now has more red in it and the blue changed to a greyish green. the red has more orange in it, and so on.

Step 12: Detailing. at this point the final colors are pretty much set. i find it helpful to go to the swatch pallette and do a "select all unused" and drag them to the trash so i can count the colors and make sure there's 6. doing this eliminates any chance of using a 7th color by mistake.

this is the "bells and whistles" stage where you go back in and add highlights, shadows, and textures to make the design pop. the sad part is most of these aren't visible in the comp, but if the design is printed they're a nice little bonus for the buyer.

Step 13: Finalizing the design. once the design is the way you want it, next comes the clean up stage. if you're like me i tend to work fast and messy. mainly because i've had to deal with short deadlines for many many years. sometimes i stray outside the lines which leaves little bits of color that make the design look messy.

first, if you haven't already, delete the blue line rough layers. next unlock the remaining layers except for the background layer. select all and "expand appearance" (under the object menu) to convert all of the brushstrokes to shapes. then go to the objects menu/paths/clean up.. and delete all of the uncolored paths. (this is an important step because those paths can cause problems later.)

next, select all and apply a divide (in the pathfinder pallette not the menu). what this does is eleminate any overlapping shapes. doing this will group everything into one object so you'll have to ungroup it at this point. now (and this is the hardest, most boring and tedious part of the process) go through the design and find all the little scraps of color you don't want around the edges and delete them.

when that's done go through the design and select each color and apply the unite pathfinder to them individually. what this does is make the design easier to print (unless you have a really complex design then you can skip this part). having worked in color separation messy art is a pet peeve of mine so i try to make it easy on the separator guy.

i work in a separate file from the woot template and then copy the final design into the template file when i'm finished, but that's just me.

okay, that's pretty much it as far as how i use Illustrator for my woot designs. of course there are other tips and tricks i use which i can explain later if anyone's interested. i hope this is helpful for people wanting to learn and use Illustrator for their designing. Thanks for dropping in!

Halloweek 2 Contest on DBH

2008-09-23T18:26:00.005-05:00

my entry in the Design by Humans Halloweek 2 shirt contest.
click image for larger view

the design as it appears on the shirt.
again, click image for a larger view.

God's Own Drunk

2008-08-16T23:47:00.003-05:00

God's Own Drunk
By: Lord Buckley
as performed by Jimmy Buffett - 1974

"Well, like I explained to y'all before I ain't no drinkin' man. I tried it once, and it got me highly irregular and I swore I'd never do it again. But I promised my brother-in-law that I'd go up and watch his still while he went into town to vote.

It was up there on the mountain where the map said it would be. Friends let me tell you one thing though, it wadn't no ordinary still. It stood up that mountainside like... like a huge golden opal.

God's yellar moon was a' shinin' on the cool clear evenin', God's little lanterns just a' twinklin' on and off in the heavens and, like I explained to you once before, I ain't no drinkin' man, But, temptation got the best of me, and I took a slash... (wshew!... woah...) That yellar whiskey runnin' down my throat like honeydew vine water, and I took another slash. Took another and another and another. 'fore you knew it I'd downed one whole jug o' that shit and commenced to get hot flashes.

Goosepimples was runnin' up and down my body and a feelin' came over me like, somethin' I'd never experienced before, It's like, like I was in love,

In love for the first time, with anything that moved... animate, in-animate it didn't matter. It's like there's a great neon sign flashin' on and off in my brain sayin, "Jimmy Buffett there' a great day a comin'..." 'Cause I was drunk.

Now I wadn't, uh, knee-crawlin', slip-slidin', reggy-youngin', commode-huggin' drunk, I was God's own drunk, and a fearless man; And that's when I first saw the bear.

He was a Kodiak lookin' fella 'bout 19 feet tall he rambled up over the hill 'spectin' me to do one of two things: flip or fly, I didn't do either one. It hung him up. He starts sniffin' 'round my body tryin' to smell fear, but he ain't gonna smell no fear, 'cause I'm God's own drunk and a fearless man. It hung him up. He looked me right in my eyes and my eyes was a lot redder than his was. It hung him up.

So I approached him and I said, "Mr. Bear, I love every hair on your 27 acre body. I know you got a lotta friends over there on the other side of the hill. There's ole' Rear Bear, Tall Bear, Freddy Bear, Kelly Jair, Relly Bear, Smelly the Bear, Smokey the Bear, Pokey the Bear; I want you to go back over there tonight and tell 'em I'm feelin' right. You tell 'em I love each and every one of 'em like a brother and a sister; but if they give me any trouble tonight, I'm gonna run every Goddamned one of 'em off the hill."

He took two steps backwards and didn't know what to think. Neither did I, but, being charitable and cautious, well hell, I approached him again. I said, "Mr. Bear, you know in the eyes of the Lord, we're both beasts when it comes right down to it. So I want you to be my buddy, 'Buddy Bear.'" So I took ole' Buddy Bear by his island sized paw and I led him over to the still. Now he's a' sniffin' around that thing 'cause he's smellin' somethin' good. I gave him one of them jugs of honeydew vine water, he downed it upright, (looked like one of them damn bears in the circus sippin' sasparilly in the moonlight.) I gave him another and another and another 'fore I knew it, he'd downed eight of 'em and commenced to do the "bear dance." Two sniffs, a snort, a fly, a turn and a grunt; and it was so simple like the jitterbug it plumb evaded me.

And we worked ourselves into a tumultuous uproar and I's awful tired, went over to the hillside, and I laid down, went to sleep, slept for four hours, and dreamt me some tremulous dreams And when I woke up, Oh, there was God's yellar moon a' shinin' on the clear cool evenin'. And God's little lanterns just a' twinklin' on and off in the heavens, And my buddy the bear was a' missin'... yeah, you want to know somethin' else friends and neighbors, so was that still.

Derby 54: The Old West

2008-07-31T12:00:00.001-05:00

Billy the Kid
Buffalo Bob
High Noon
Navajo Beads
I Shot the Sheriff

Shirt Woot Derby Entries for Join the Revolution

2008-05-08T13:53:00.002-05:00

Give Peace a Chance: In a time of war peace is revolution. The Idea here was a dove (representing peace) rising from the ashes of war like a phoenix.

Rock On: Rock & Roll, the music that never dies, the soundtrack of rebellion, seemed like a natural choice for a revolution derby.

Rebel Yell: Being from the South this one was pretty much a natural and had to be done.

Hack the Planet: This one was inspired by a friend of mine.

and last by not least Born Rebel: Just because I love dragons, tattoos, and black shirts.

Illustration Friday: Geeky

2007-07-07T19:36:00.001-05:00

click on image for a larger view

the root word "Geek" of the this week's topic dates back to 19th century Germany. it's basic meaning has remained unchanged, but how it is viewed by society has changed. yes, geek is chic these days, but even as late as the 1980s it was not something most people wanted to be referred to as.
then a little movie called "Revenge of the Nerds" came out and things began to change, at about the same time personal computers came on the scene along with Bill Gates (who is, let's face it, the world's biggest geek). over time it became not only cool to be a geek but it was something to be proud of.
today's geek owes a lot to his or her predecessors. men and women who, as kids, were picked on, put down, and more or less tortured for being different, smart, socially outcast, or weak. for it was those proto-geeks, those neander-nerds, who carried the torch, who bore the cross of shame so that they might enjoy the riches and reap the rewards of geekdom.

yes, i was a geek before being a geek was cool, and i'm proud to wear that badge with honor!

thanks for last week's comments. it was especially good to hear from my buddy Digital Scott.
as always have a groovy week ahead and enjoy the show.

illustration friday: twist

2007-07-01T08:40:00.000-05:00

click image for larger view

i had a couple of ideas for this one, another illustrated classics version of Oliver Twist being my second choice, but i went for a more contemporary pop culture reference. the younger crowd probably won't get it, but i'm sure those of us born before the computer age recall the sheer excitement of doing "the twist". okay, maybe not excitement.

the dance craze swept the nation spawning at least two movies and making Chubby Checker a permanent icon in American Pop Culture.

we interrupt this post for a special announcement...

it's voting time at greenlabelart.com. the links to my designs are on the "rejection" post from 2 weeks ago. i would greatly appreciate your vote. thank you.

we now return to our regularly scheduled post, already in progress...

...as always this illustration was created specifically for this IF challenge. thanks to everyone for last week's comments, and thanks for dropping by. have a groovy week ahead and (for those in the states) a Happy and Safe 4th of July.

Illustration Friday: Camouflage

2007-06-22T20:20:00.001-05:00

click on image for larger view

this week's topic was easy peasy. as soon as i saw it i knew what i wanted to do. if the guy in the foreground looks familiar it's because it's Charlie Sheen from Platoon. it's been a long day and i didn't feel like inking so i did a quicky photoshop version. it works, so who cares.

anyway, i've been a fan of Stan Ridgway since his early days with Wall of VooDoo. when the band broke up and he went solo i think he got even better. with songs like Calling Out for Carol, I wanna Be a Boss, The Roadblock, and Camouflage Ridgway established himself as one of music's great story tellers.

from the first time i heard Camouflage i loved this song. it would be perfect for Weird War Tales or The Twilight Zone. so as an added treat for music lovers (and a diversionary ploy to distract you from the fact that there's no actual camouflage in the illustration) i've linked the video i found on YouTube below. Enjoy.

this illustration was created using adobe illustrator and photoshop specifically for this IF challenge. everyone who answered last week's noprize question wins a sparklely brand spankin' new noprize! yay, won't mama be proud! as always, thanks for popping in and have a groovy week ahead!

Illustration Friday: Rejection

2007-06-16T10:26:00.000-05:00

click on image for larger view

how many times did i hear this line in my younger, single days? more often than i care to remember. surfice it to say that for an only child i had more "sisters" than i can count.

as artists it's something we have to deal with nearly every day. usually from people who know less about art than a turnip. "i don't know art, but i know what i like." or "i don't know what i want, but i'll know it when i see it." or my personal favorite "just draw me something."

i still have a hard time dealing with rejection, which has prevented my pursuit of many of my more personal projects. the ones i've invested a lot of personal emotion in would be devestating if they were rejected.

no prize department:
a special science fiction nerd no prize to the people who can tell me what movie the name "Klaatu" is from. bonus points for the famous phrase associated with the name. (spelling counts. just ask Ashe from Army of Darkness)

shameless self promotion department:
Mountain Dew is having a "Design your Own Bottle" contest, which i've entered. if you're interested in viewing my entries, click on the links below. also, feel free to enter yourself for a chance to win $10,000 at www.greenlabelart.com. the contest runs till the end of June, still plenty of time to enter. warning: the site is Flash intensive and runs fairly slow.

GlugGlug
ElectricDew
TickTock
HeavenlyDew
GratefulDew
DewBomb

meanwhile, back on IF:
this cover for the IF topic "rejection" was done completely in Adobe Illustrator specifically for this IF challenge.

thanks for last weeks comments and have a groovy week.

PS: Arkonbey,
i remember one of the first pieces of art of yours i saw. the one for Sprout. it was excellent and just the kind of thing i'm talking about, so i know you're capable of doing it.

Illustration Friday: Suit

2007-06-09T10:21:00.001-05:00

click on image for larger view

what a challenge this was! to take such a mundane word as "suit" and do something interesting and creative with it. not an easy task, especially making it into a comicbook cover.

i considered doing it in a retro style, but after much thought dicided it was better suited (no pun intended) to illustrate a point that came up in a discussion earlier this week. and that is: comics have changed. not only in style and format, but at a basic level.

i remember as a kid being able to pick up comics just about anywhere from the grocery store to a gas station. actual comicbook stores were virtually unheard of. now the comicbook racks of yesteryear are gone, and comicbook publishers have become corporate giants run by "the suits". comics have gone up in price from 20¢ when i was a kid to $3.00 and up. i remember being able to walk out with 10 or more comics for less than my $5 allowance with money left over. now $5.00 barely pays for one.

but isn't this the way of the world? i think a line from The Crow (a movie adapted from a comic, interestingly enough) expresses the concept best.

Top Dollar: A man has an idea. The idea attracts others, like-minded. The idea expands. The idea becomes an institution. The idea has become the institution, boys.

comics, once looked down on by "cultured" society, have come into their own.

'nuff said.

as always, this illustration was created specifically for this IF challenge in Adobe Illustrator.

and thanks for last week's comments. enjoy the ride and have a groovy week.

Illustration Friday: Paradise

2007-06-01T17:13:00.000-05:00

click entry title for an indepth definition of the word Paradise from www.answers.com.

after some discussion i've decided to ignore the personal pronoun "your" in this week's IF topic. mainly (as a friend pointed out) because it's redundant, since everyone has their own concept of what paradise is.

the common definition of paradise these days is vastly altered from its original meaning. as you'll discover if you click on the title link. however, i'll go with the intended meaning of the term rather than try to justify something to fit into the topic.

seeking inspiration for this illustration i tried to think of as many song titles with paradise in them as i could. namely:

Paradise by the Dashboard Light by Meatloaf
Cheeseburger in Paradise by Jimmy Buffett
Another Day in Paradise by Phil Collins
Paradise City by Guns and Roses
Gangstah's Paradise by Coolio
Fool's Paradise by Buddy Holly
May the Bird of Paradise Fly Up Your Nose by Little Jimmy Dickens
Stranger in Paradise by Tony Bennett
Two Tickets to Paradise by Eddie Money
Trouble in Paradise by Loretta Lynn

and many, many more are now yours on this 2-CD set... oh wait, sorry.. forgot what i was doing for a second. anyway, i'm sure there are plenty more i've left out (Styx comes to mind), but that's enough for example's sake.

as of writing this i still haven't come up with an idea, but it might interest you to know that the name of the company i work for is Paradise Printing, and oddly enough, one of my co-workers names is Jesus. coincidence? you tell me...

nearly 24 hours later...

after a bit more surfing and taking a break to watch From Dusk till Dawn and The Professional on cable (two of my favorite movies) inspiration hit me around 11:00 PM central time. this time it led me back to the 1960s and the world of underground comics. two of the biggest publishers to arise from that era were Rip Off Press and Last Gasp. one of the greatest titles put out by the latter was a comic called Weirdo, and it's that comic to which this week's entry owes its debt of inspiration.

so there you have it. a hippy artist's dream of paradise. head nestled on the pillows of a big breasted woman with piles of comics to read and plenty of dubage.

created in Adobe Illustrator specifically for this IF challenge.

many grateful thanks to the two people who commented on last week's popemobile entry (you know who you are). may the bird of paradise fly over you without dropping a load, seeking instead the head and shoulders of others (who shall remain nameless). thanks to those who drop by and have a groovy week ahead.

Illustration Friday: Cars

2007-05-26T15:22:00.000-05:00

Since the word this week is "Cars" (plural) i'm gonna spice up this entry with a bit of historic hero hyperbole!

Nearly every hero in comics has some mode of transportation for situations where long distance travel is needed. perhaps the most famous vehicle in comicdom is the Batmobile. over the years it has evolved in comics, television and films, but my favorite has always been the customized Lincoln Futura from the classic campy TV series from the 1960s.

Another classic car from that era, Green Hornet's Black Beauty (a 59 Cadillac) with its green headlights was a rolling arsenal. driven by the Hornet's faithful sidekick (played by the martial arts legend Bruce Lee) Kato.

Another "car" which has only now made its way from the comic page to the big screen is the Fantastic Four's classic Fantasticar. the original design had it looking like a flying bathtub, but thankfully the design was later changed.

the Fantasticar will make its big sreen debut in Rise of the Silver Surfer.

possibly the least likely and most useless vehicle in the garage of the superheroes (with the exception of Superman's vehicle, which we won't go into) would have to be the short lived Spidermobile. basically a dunebuggy it served no useful purpose for a hero who could sling webs.

those are but a few of the many superhero cars, but for some groups a car was not enough. the Xmen, for example have the Blackbird, and the Avengers have the Quinjet when they need to be on the other side of the world in a hurry.

now on to this week's entry...

Disclaimer: the following illustration may be offensive to some Catholics. it was not intended to be and if you are offended i humbly apologize.

further let me say that if Pope John Paul II were still the pope i would have gone a different direction. i have nothing but respect for him and his many accomplishments as a spiritual leader. there was even a comic put out by Marvel Comics which chronicled his life.

with that being said, the first idea to come to mind when i heard of this week's topic was the "popemobile", and yes, it really exists. at first i considered going all out and doing an actual comic page just so i could use the phrase "quickly, to the popemobile!" but i didn't feel like putting that much time and effort into the piece. i was, however, able to work in the "popesignal" on the cover, which was another reason i had considered doing an actual page.

one thing i did do beyond the usual was attempt another "aged" look to this cover, which i think turned out pretty well. so without any further ado, i present for your viewing pleasure (hopefully)

Popeman and his ponterrific Popemobile:

click on image for larger view

created mostly in Adobe Illustrator specifically for this IF challenge.

as always, thanks to everyone who posted comments last week, enjoy the show and have a groovy week ahead.

Illustration Friday: Signs

2007-05-19T08:14:00.000-05:00

click image for larger view

this week's entry strays outside what might be strictly labeled "comic book", however MAD Magazine is still an icon of american pop culture and has its roots in the comic world. published in 1952 by EC comics, Mad survived the CCA blitz to clean up comics. over the years an army of talent has worked under the "gang of idiots" banner, namely Wally Wood, Jack Davis, Harvey Kurtzman, Basil Wolverton, Don Martin, Sergio Aragones and Mort Drucker, just to name a few.

no subject was safe from satire or parody from wars and religion to movies and television. in december of 2002 Mad (issue #424) did a parody of the movie Signs called "Designs", however they went with the more commercially popular "Harry Plodder" cover for the issue. this is my my idea of what the cover might have been. the price is wrong (it's what it would have cost back in the mid 70s when it really was cheap) and the logo is also from a bygone era, but the stuff across the top is what was actually in the issue in question. (special thanks to http://www.collectmad.com/ for the information. the site also has an amazing cover gallery).

No Prize Dept: last week's No-Prize goes to andrezero for correctly naming Hellcat as Ruby Red's model (although the cover pose i used was from the avengers, not the west coast branch.) but, congratulations Andre for winning no prize. i'm sure your parents will be proud!

this week's illustration was done in Photoshop specifically for this IF challenge.

as always thanks to everyone who commented. (Tart: i worked in dallas for 25 years as an artist... that's about all there is to tell.) everyone enjoy the show and have a groovy week ahead.

Illustration Friday: Citrus

2007-05-13T07:51:00.000-05:00

click on image for larger view

with a general term like "citrus" to work with it seemed only natural to explore another aspect of the superhero genre: the super team. Justice League of America, the Teen Titans, the Avengers, Defenders, the X-men, the Fantastic Four (to name but a few). heroes that have banned together to fight a common foe.

comic fans won't have any problem recognizing the Hulk masquerading as the "prodigious Pulp", or seeing that Captain Cumquat is really Iron Man, but if you can guess who posed for Ruby Red there'll be a special "No-Prize" in it for ya. i didn't put a lot of effort into designing the characters. i actually spent more time on the background, and the logos. but what the heck, it's not like i'm getting paid to do this.

created entirely in Adobe Illustrator specically for this week's challenge.

Special thanks for all the comments last week. a personal high mark with 13 total! also: Happy Mother's Day to all the mums out there! enjoy the show, thanks for dropping by and have a groovy week!

Illustration Friday: Neighbor

2007-05-05T08:41:00.000-05:00

click on image for larger view

Neighbors. we've all had them. they come in all shapes and sizes. they're nosey, wacky, creepy, and sometimes they're our best friends. from Gladys Kravits to Ned Flanders, Howard Borden to Cosmo Kramer, they've been enemies and advisors to some of our favorite TV characters. villianized in such movies as Rear Window (and the recent Disturbia), Arlington Road, The Burbs, and the aptly named (but utterly forgettable) Neighbors with John Belushi. we're told to "Love our neighbor as ourself" in the Bible. not always an easy thing to do.

this cover features four of my favorite TV neighbors. Sadly, with the passing of Tom Poston this week, they are all no longer with us. though he was better known as the handy-man on the Bob Newhart Show (the second one) i will always remember him as Mork's cranky neighbor Mr. Binkley. i preferred watching Captain Kangaroo personally, but Fred Rogers left an indelible mark on the childhood of more than one generation of children. no one will ever replace him. Mr. Wilson Wilson (his first and last name) Tim Taylor's sage advisor next door, who was never seen below his nose, has to be one of my all-time favorite neighbors. wise and witty, he always knew just what to say to set Tim or any member of the Taylor clan back on their path. and last but by no means least there's the quintessential nosey neighbor Gladys Kravits and her loving husband Abner.

created in Adobe Illustrator specifically for this IF challenge.

as always, thanks for last week's comments, and have a groovy week.

Illustration Friday: Remember

2007-04-28T09:55:00.000-05:00

click on image for larger view.

The SPLASH PAGE!

i had been planning to do this eventually, but Matt's comment last week spurred me to action. So here's a look INSIDE the cover. the "splash page" is generally the first page of a comic book (though they can be used anywhere inside the book) and consist of a single panel. they can be as large as two pages elsewhere in the book. typically they are used for dramatic effect or to show a scene too detailed to fit in a smaller panel.

originally i had considered doing something humorous by mixing two movie titles for "Remember the Clash of the Titans". maybe with Denzel fighting the medusa or something, but decided to take a more serious approach this week.

Over the years comics have occationally set aside their usual fantasy and focused on real problems. after 9-11 there was a comic (graphic novel) produced celebrating the real life heroes of that tragedy with many talented people contributing to the effort.

for this illustration i used photoshop (for a change) and composited some images to create this faux splash page. comics are no longer produced like this (with white-out, rubber cement and cut and paste blocks of text). the original image i used as a template was from 1973.

and to answer Arkonbey's question from last week: there are numerous websites with comicbook cover galleries. most of them with high res scans. generally, i scavenge poses and other blurbs and related graphics from those and reproduce them.

created entirely in Adobe Photoshop specifically for this IF challenge. Thanks to everyone for the comments last week. sorry i wasn't able to return the favor but it's been a busy week and i just didn't have the time. Have a groovy week ahead and enjoy the show!

Illustration Friday: Polar

2007-04-21T08:07:00.000-05:00

click on image for larger view

i didn't put a lot of thought into this one, just went with the basics. using the definition "occupying or characterized by opposite extremes" and also managing to work in " of or relating to a pole" (though it's really more of a rod) i kept it simple.

a couple of shout outs to my buds Mattman (for his excellent commentary on selling your artwork in his blog last week) and Arkonbey (for mentioning me in his blog a couple of weeks ago)! special thanks to everyone who left comments last week also.

created entirely in Adobe Illustrator specifically for this IF challenge. Have a groovy week!

Illustration Friday: Fortune

2007-04-14T08:18:00.000-05:00

click on image for larger view

for this week's entry i went for a different look and a different era in comic bookdom. sometime back in the 1980s would-be comic creators discovered the world of Self Publishing. largely thanks to the advent of personal computers and Desktop Publishing. for artists and writers with the drive and the bankroll to pursue this path to fame and... uh, fortune (ahem) it became much easier to just D.I.Y. than get a job with the Big Dogs of Comics (DC, Marvel, etc.)

comic book shops were flooded with dozens of titles from unknown publushers, artists & writers. most of them lacking the experience and skills of professional layout artists and letterers. again, computers to the rescue. with a glut of fonts to choose from, hand drawn lettering was no longer an issue.

it was the beginning of a change to the look of comics that has become prevolent today. no longer content with flat color and ink most comic covers are highly produced, computer generated paintings with stylish graphics and fonts. personally i feel comics have become over produced, which is why i prefer the "golden age" style of covers with their dynamic action scenes and colorful hyperbole, but i also love the fact that i can create an entire comic without ever picking up a brush, ink or buying bristol board.

created mostly in Adobe Illustrator (with a helping hand from Photoshop).

thanks for last weeks comments, have a groovy week ahead!

Illustration Friday: Green

2007-04-07T09:55:00.000-05:00

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when i mentioned this week's topic to a friend of mine this week the "green-eyed monster" was suggested. which begged the question of origin. where did this oft-used metaphor for jealousy originate?

from what i could discover it was The Great Bard himself who originated the phrase in his play Othello, though it's possible its true origin preceeds his useage.

anyway, as so often happens, one thing led to another and somehow ended up here. Classics Illustrated has had several incarnations over the years (at least 2 since i started collecting comics and one before), but one of my favorites was this one from the 1970s.

Marvel never actually did any of Shakespeare's plays in this series, and (chances are) they never would have desecrated classic english literature in this manner. still, if they had this is how i believe they might have done it.

the character in the background is actually Red Skull taken from a Captain America cover (i got lazy, so sue me). created entirely in Adobe Illustrator specifically for this IF challenge.

As always thanks to everyone for the comments last week, enjoy the view and have a groovy week ahead.

Illustration Friday: Snap

2007-03-31T08:40:00.000-05:00

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comic fans, mavins & aficionados will recognize the cover i ripped off.. i mean, i'm paying homage to with this week's cover, but for those uninitiated it's the first issue of The Incredible Hulk drawn by comics legend Jack "King" Kirby.

Snap, of Kellogg's Rice Krispies fame, was introduced in 1933 (along with Crackle and Pop pictured lower right) by illustrator Vernon Grant.

created entirely in Adobe Illustrator specifically for this week's IF challenge.

thanks to everyone for last week's comments, enjoy the show, and have a groovy week ahead!

and don't forget to eat your breakfast! the most important meal of the day!

Illustration Friday: I Spy...

2007-03-23T23:13:00.000-05:00

Click on Image for Larger View

there's something about the spy movies and TV show of the 60s that i've always loved. Matt Helm, James Bond, Man from U.N.C.L.E., In Like Flint, even Wild, Wild, West and Get Smart, and of course this one: I Spy. pure camp by today's standard, they had something modern spy movies don't have. not even Austin Powers was able to capture the "vibe" properly and i doubt it can ever be recreated.

I Spy starred Robert Culp and Bill Cosby, and i'm sorry Owen and Eddie your half assed remake didn't come close to the original. Bill and Bob did make a reunion picture (I Spy Returns) but i never saw it and i doubt it was much good.

Gold Key Comics actually did publish an I Spy comic which ran for 6 issues between '66 and '68.

i took Arkonbey's suggestion (see last week's comments) and distressed the cover, plus added a halftone effect to the color. for the majority of their titles Gold Key used photos and painted covers. this image was created entirely in Adobe Illustrator for this week's "I Spy..." challenge.

thanks to everyone who commented last week. enjoy the show and have a groovy week.

Correction: in last week's rank i mentioned a Chocolate Total cereal. for anyone who actually read that and went looking for it, I apologize. there's no such creature. the cereal in question is actually Special K.

also to all Buffy the Vampire Slayer fans: the first issue of BtVS: Season 8 is now on sale. this is a comic book adaptation of the series written by Joss Whedon himself. the story picks up somewhere after the Angel series ends (events in some Angel episodes are referenced). it's worth checking out.

Illustration Friday: Total

2007-03-17T10:36:00.000-05:00

Click on image for larger view

the path of inspiration is sometimes a long and winding road. how i ended up here is still somewhat of a mystery to me, but I'm happy with the results.

my (along with my wife's) first thought yesterday morning was of cereal, having recently tried the new chocolate Total (which isn't half bad. at the end you're left with a dozen or so tiny chocolate bars in your bowl). from there i cycled through ideas such as Calculator Man, Check-Out Guy, even considered an Ah-nold movie adaptation cover for Total Recall, a Heroes adaptation with its total ecplipse logo, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. nothing seemed right.

i wanted to do something with "total destruction" i was sure of that much, but i wasn't sure what. then last night while my wife and I were watching an episode of Charmed (season 1, episode 4 "Dead Man Dating") they had a character in the show named Yama (the Chinese god of death and ruler of hell), which seemed to be a perfect candidate for my total destruction theme. But, i wasn't able to come up with a decent pose. frustrated and despondent i blew it off and watched TV.

Later, as I lay in bed searching compulsively for an idea I recalled the popular use of "totally" back in the eighties era of the valley girls, and from there everything fell into place. celebrating Image Comics' contribution to the medium of pop culture: the "sexy heroine", meet Total E.

created spcifically for this IF challenge in Adobe Illustrator.

special thanks to those who commented on last week's illustration and have a groovy week.

Illustration Friday: Wired

2007-03-10T07:22:00.000-06:00

click on image for larger view

continuing with our look at "Giant Size" comics for this week's topic "wired". my original plan was to go with an android themed cover with wires shooting out of its head covering the page, but then i remembered the marvel mini-series Machine Man (drawn by comic book legend Barry Windsor Smith) already did pretty much the same thing. so i went with Ah-nold as The Caffeinator expressing the more common slang useage of the term.

created in Adobe Illustrator specifically for this IF challenge.

thanks to those who commented on last week's entry. they're always appreciated, and have a groovy week ahead.

MMIF! (Make Mine Illustration Friday)

Illustration Friday: Hide

2007-03-03T13:07:00.000-06:00

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one of the big event in the comic collecting days of my youth was the much anticipated "Giant Sized Annuals". generally 64 pages in most cases it was like getting 3 comics in one issue. often the back up stories were reprints of old stories, but that didn't matter if i hadn't read them before.

thanks for last weeks comments. have a groovy week and keep facing front!

Illustration Friday: Communication

2007-02-23T23:41:00.000-06:00

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Lt. Uhura, Communications Officer aboard the starship Enterprise, played by the beautiful Nichelle Nichols. probably the most useless job on the bridge. so useless in fact that the position was dropped in later series (excluding the Enterprise series), but who cares?

other than Yeoman Rand, Kirk's personal.. (oh, what's a good title for her? secretary? assistant? concubine?) Uhura was the only female senior officer on the bridge. with such memorable lines as "hailing frequencies open, captain" and "they're not responding, sir" it's pretty obvious her main purpose on the show was eye candy for adolescent geeks, with her sexy red miniskirt uniform and go-go boots (and i know we all miss those in the later movies and tv shows).

i also couldn't resist a pop culture reference to the classic rock hit of the phenomenal band Led Zepplin "Communication Breakdown". along with a tip o' the hat to Image Comics, some of the people who defied the CCA and actually made a living without bowing to the censorship of that outdated institution.

as usual this illustration was created exclusively for this IF challenge in Adobe Illustrator. thanks for stopping by and have a groovy week ahead. and thanks for last week's comments.

Illustration Friday: Gravity

2007-02-17T10:06:00.000-06:00

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when you think of gravity who do you think of? Sir Isaac Newton, of course! before he came along people had no idea what to call it, most believed the world was flat! so who better to personify this week's word challenge than he?

yet another homage, this time to the Golden Age of Marvel and the man most responsible for making Marvel Comics great (along with his cohort in comic goodness Stan "the man" Lee), the legendary Jack Kirby!

created specifically for this week's IF challenge in Adobe Illustrator. as always, true believers, thanks for the complimentary comments last week, and have a groovy week ahead!

Excelsior!

Illustration Friday: Crash

2007-02-10T09:28:00.000-06:00

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good news, true believers! i am no longer unemployed! which is why from now on i will be posting my IF illustrations on saturday.

this week's cover (though not an exact representation) is another homage, this time to those wacky underground comix of the 60s & 70s. the underground scene brought us some great artists such as Robert Crumb, Rick Griffin, & Gilbert Shelton to name a few, and inspired an entire generation of artists that fueled the independent comics boom that surged in the 80s and has evolved, thanks to the internet, and grown to this day.

as usual this illustration ws created specifically for this IF challenge. it was created in Adobe Illustrator. as always, thanks to everyone who posted comments last week and have a groovy week to come. enjoy the show!

Illustration Friday: Sprout

2007-02-02T10:44:00.000-06:00

click on image for larger view

this week's illustration is an homage to the classic horror comics such as Tales from the Crypt and Vault of Horror that spawned the dreaded CCA (comics code authority). the CCA was founded in 1954 in responce to public concern over graphic violence, sexual innuendo and gore in comic books. however, the majority of what was considered inappropriate at the time is, by today's standard, relatively tame.

in the 1960s the Underground Comic scene emerged with artists creating comics that delved into subject matter explicitly banned by the Code. however, these comics were distributed largely through unconventional channels, such as head shops, making CCA approval unnecessary for their success.

in case you haven't noticed i've included a parody of their logo on this and all my previous comic cover illustrations in its traditional location in the upper right-hand corner. this illustration was created entirely in Adobe Illustrator exclusively for this IF challenge. since no one commented last week there's no one to thank. still, have a groovy week and enjoy the show.

Illustration Friday: Red

2007-01-26T10:30:00.000-06:00

click on image for larger view

i've decided to move my posts to my illustration blog page from now on to give my main blog a rest. also, it just seems more appropriate.

to further challenge myself i've decided (at least for the time being) to only create comic book covers for the IF challenge. finding some way, no matter what the word is, to create a cover that exemplifies the theme. hopefully this will prove fun and rewarding.

this week's cover was inspired by the Peter Gabriel song Red Rain (which was the first thing that came to mind) though it has developed its own meaning. the song goes like this:

Red rain is coming down
Red rain
Red rain is pouring down
Pouring down all over me

I am standing up at the waters edge in my dream
I cannot make a single sound as you scream
It cant be that cold, the ground is still warm to touch
This place is so quiet, sensing that storm

Red rain is coming down
Red rain
Red rain is pouring down
Pouring down all over me

Well Ive seen them buried in a sheltered place in this town
They tell you that this rain can sting, and look down
There is no blood around see no sign of pain
Hay ay ay no pain
Seeing no red at all, see no rain

Red rain is coming down
Red rain
Red rain is pouring down
Pouring down all over me

Red rain-
Putting the pressure on much harder now
To return again and again
Just let the red rain splash you
Let the rain fall on your skin
I come to you defences down
With the trust of a child

Red rain is coming down
Red rain
Red rain is pouring down
Pouring down all over me
And I cant watch any more
No more denial
Its so hard to lay down in all of this
Red rain is coming down
Red rain is pouring down
Red rain is coming down all over me
I see it
Red rain is coming down
Red rain is pouring down
Red rain is coming down all over me
Im bathing in it
Red rain coming down
Red rain is coming down
Red rain is coming down all over me
Im begging you
Red rain coming down
Red rain coming down
Red rain coming down
Red rain coming down
Over me in the red red sea
Over me
Over me
Red rain

as always this illustration was created specifically for this IF challenge, and thanks for all the comments last week. thanks for popping by and have a great week.

Jonni Future-Inking Sample

2006-10-18T10:03:00.000-05:00

Pencils by Arthur Adams, inked by me in Adobe Illustrator.

Ninja Turtles Inks

2006-10-09T10:52:00.000-05:00

Spidey Inks & Colors

2006-10-09T10:49:00.000-05:00

Xmen Pin Up - Inking Sample

2006-10-03T12:39:00.000-05:00

inking samples

2006-09-25T22:18:00.000-05:00

more inking samples

2006-09-25T22:13:00.000-05:00

Illustration Friday Entries

2006-09-19T06:11:00.000-05:00

Pete Sperm: Take 2

2006-09-04T16:30:00.000-05:00

i'm making progress learning flash, but unfortunately blogger doesn't support flash. so i'll have to stick with animated gifs. at any rate, the more i learn the better the images will get. i'm going to try doing something besides just moving stuff around on the stage next. it shouldn't be much different than other animation programs i've used.

Little Ho

2006-09-03T15:15:00.000-05:00

Little Ho is a character i came up with about 6 years ago. obviously she's a send up of little ophan annie, albeit grown up and now a Ho.

Fudgems Parody

2006-08-30T23:19:00.000-05:00

if you've seen the Domino's Pizza Commercial promoting their new fudge squares then you'll probably find this parody much funnier than if you haven't. this comic is solely for entertainment purposes. it is not an endorsement of drugs or their useage.

2006-08-12T20:53:00.000-05:00

Mom was right

2006-08-05T23:14:00.000-05:00

Comicbook Inking Samples

2006-08-01T09:19:00.000-05:00

Dark Mage was done for Dark Elf Designs

a few more designs

2006-07-27T05:01:00.000-05:00

more designs

2006-07-27T04:57:00.000-05:00

Conceptual Illustrations

2006-07-26T13:23:00.000-05:00

color illustrations

2006-07-26T13:20:00.000-05:00

Black & White

2006-07-26T13:08:00.000-05:00