Graduation

Gradual Graduates, digital (click to zoom)

Stepping In, pencil drawing, colored digitally (click to zoom)

Here are my two sketches for New Yorker covers for this week's theme: Graduation.

The bottom one was my first idea based on a recent article I read where the latest jobs report numbers were favorable and some analysts attribute that to Baby Boomers beginning to retire and not necessarily because new jobs were created. So, here's a recent graduate stepping into the retiree's position.

The top idea came just as I was finishing the graduate/retiree drawing. I was thinking about a graduate and someway to convey invisibility. The fact is that the job outlook today is still pretty bleak. Sure, we will acknowledge our family and friends who are graduating by attending ceremonies and offering our congratulations. The job market today, on the other hand, can only perceive the graduating class as imperceptible.

May the Fourth be with you

Books

Books, pencil sketch

Here's my New Yorker cover sketch for this week's theme: Books.

The theme is very general. Are we talking about the joy of reading or the conversion of readers from physical books to digital books or something else?

In this graveyard scene, the tombstones are actually books themselves. I wanted to incorporate the ghosts or souls of these books as glowing kindles or iPads but it seemed too complicated and I ran out of time before the Thursday noon submission deadline.

Digital

I did, however, submit two ideas this week. This image is an adaptation to a larger version seen here. In this concept, I'm paying homage to Johannes Gutenberg, the father of the printing press and the individual attributed with changing the world by enabling the printed word to be placed in anyone's hands. I wondered if in his day, the latest craze, caused people to walk through the street's with their noses in books just as today everyone is captivated by smart phones, iPads, e-readers, etc.

Historic Final Flight of the Enterprise

I have the good fortune to work not far from the Hudson River and was able to capture this fantastic shot of the Enterprise on her final flight. 

The Rich and the Poor

Here's my New Yorker cover submission for the theme of the week: The Rich and the Poor.


Is he homeless? tired? a protester? part of the 1%?


The theme for this week is: The Rich and the Poor. The figure is placed against the famous backdrop of Federal Hall with it's imposing statue of George Washington on the site of his inauguration and facing The New York Stock Exchange. 


Is the figure homeless or is the figure representative of a people who are poor financially?
Is the statue representative of the wealth of an institution? 
Is the figure a representation of a movement rich with ideas of protest? 
Is the statue a representation of an institution poor in listening to the people?


I suppose this image can have different meaning depending on your own perspective of the 99/1% debate.

Up!

Spiraled House, watercolor in moleskine

This guy needs an elevator. This is what happens when you begin exploring the oblong shape of an opened moleskine watercolor book.

Guidance

Guidance, ink, pencil and watercolor pencil (click to zoom)

I'm certain that people can find all sorts of meaning behind the visuals here. I worked left to right with no plan in mind and this was the result.

What does it mean to you?

Virtually Spring

Virtually Spring, pencil drawing/digital

Here's my New Yorker cover submission for the theme of the week: Spring.

I'm conveying a very common scene on the streets of NYC these days. Everyone is wrapped up in their electronic devices and living and experiencing things through social media, the internet and email. They don't fully realize their surroundings.

These people are experiencing spring but only through their devices which is why they are glowing with pastel colors. The young girl represents innocence and simplicity and she is in full color with a huge smile on her face because she is living in that moment and not virtually. I've put them in vintage clothing to maximize the contrast of life at a simpler time and life woven with today's technology.

Figure Drawing

Pets make great models. Especially ones who move around a lot. They provide constant inspiration and help to get you to think about shape and gesture.

Tax Maze

Tax Maze, digital (click to zoom)

Here's my idea to mark April 15th, Tax Day for The New Yorker magazine.

March MADness

MAD MAN, digital (click to zoom)

"We're going to sit at our desks and keep typing while the walls fall down around us because we're creative - the least important, most important thing there is."                    —Don Draper

MAD MEN Season 5 Premiere on Sun., Mar. 25 at 9pm ET/PT on AMC. 

Preparing for MADness

MAD MEN concept. Graphite on paper (click to zoom)

It's been some seventeen months since we've seen them, but things are shaping up.

MAD MEN Season 5 Premiere on Sun., Mar. 25 at 9pm ET/PT on AMC.

Color version coming soon.

BEWARE: The Ides of March

BEWARE: The Ides of March

Caesar:
Who is it in the press that calls on me?
I hear a tongue shriller than all the music
Cry "Caesar!" Speak, Caesar is turn'd to hear.

Soothsayer: Beware the ides of March.

Caesar: What man is that?

Brutus:A soothsayer bids you beware the ides of March.
Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare Act 1, scene 2, 15–19

I thought I'd mark the day with my depiction of Julius Caesar, who, on this day, tragically met his end, when his closest colleagues betrayed him. A lose impression of a calendar is used as my background and the fateful day is marked. The English language has been enriched with colloquial terms by a lot of William Shakespeare's work and from Julius Caesar besides "Beware the ides of March" we get 'Et tu, Brute?' as well as common terms like 'backstabbing.'

Spring Training

Spring Training, digital sketch (click to zoom)

Above is my sketch for this week's Blown Covers contest: Spring Training. The bobbleheads seemed a perfect match for a play on the 'spring' training theme. Is the Mets player being poked by fans? the trustees for the Bernie Madoff Ponzi scheme victims? or MLB who granted the loans the team took in order to cover their debt?
-------

Françoise Mouly, the art editor for The New Yorker magazine has launched her personal blog, Blown Covers.
Each Monday, she posts the theme of a contest for the week, which mirrors closely what she has suggested to the magazine artists she is already working with. On Friday, she reveals the winner of the blog contest and on Monday, the current New Yorker cover.
You can visit her blog to see all the ideas submitted as well as Françoise's pick.

The Exquisite Corpse Project

I launched a new blog today to display the results of our creative exercise game: The Exquisite Corpse Project. We are a group of creative professionals who complete these drawings through the course of our day.

Our is a take on the old parlor game popularized by Surrealists in the early 20th century. Players draw each panel in turn and fold the page to conceal their contribution before passing it along to the next player. Once completed, the entire drawing is revealed and more often than not, the independently drawn panels remarkably relate to one another.

Down with Downton

Mr. Carson, digital (click to zoom)

MR CARSON: We may have to have a maid in the dining room. 

ROBERT CRAWLEY, EARL OF GRANTHAM: Cheer up, Carson. There are worse things happening in the world. 

MR CARSON: Not worse than a maid serving a duke.

Season 2 of Downton Abbey has just concluded and the third season is reportedly due out in September of 2012.

Jim Carter portrays the butler, Mr. Carson. I was initially interested in depicting the Mr. Carson character for his appearance. As I watched the show, I realized that of the entire cast, this character was my favorite. As the butler, he IS the estate of Downton Abbey and its smooth operation rests solely on his shoulders. He is the epitome of properness.

He has great pride for his role in service for Earl Grantham's estate. As the social classes begin to question their differences, Mr. Carson's character is the one that I felt for the most as he struggles to validate his purpose.

March is In Like a Lion, Out Like a Lamb

My sketch for the Blown Covers contest, digital

Françoise Mouly, the art editor for The New Yorker magazine has launched her personal blog, Blown Covers, where she offer a glimpse behind the scenes.

Each Monday, she posts the theme of a contest for the week, which mirrors closely what she has suggested to the magazine artists she is already working with. On Friday, she reveals the winner of the blog contest and on Monday, the current New Yorker cover.

Above is my sketch for this week's theme: In Like a Lion, Out Like a Lamb, where I've replaced one of the New York Public Library's lions with a lamb. In the 1930's, the lions were nicknamed "Patience" and "Foritude" by Mayor Fiorello H. LaGuardia for the qualities he felt New Yorkers would need to survive the economic depression.

You can visit her blog to see all the ideas submitted as well as Françoise's pick.

Fire!

Fire Safety Training

Long meetings go by faster with a pen and paper in hand.

Chop-chop!

Artists produce thousands of drawings. Most of them are conceptual or drawings needed for refinement prior to beginning the "final" for a particular project. Most artists don't sign everything they draw. I gave a drawing to a friend and they asked me why I hadn't signed it. I didn't know how to answer. Truthfully, I felt that signing a quick sketch was pretentious. Shortly after, I saw some really beautiful drawings by Marc Davis which he had drawn at the Los Angeles Zoo on Andreas Dejas' blog. I noticed a wonderful monogram stamp. I was inspired!

I created my own monogram which you may have seen on the concept drawings I did for Six Wives of Henry VIII and William.

It's not a new concept and I'm assuming Davis was inspired by Asian artists who have applied their seals on prints and drawings.

Asian Seals and Chops
East Asian cultures have been using a seal in the place of a signature for centuries. Usually, the mark is made using a red paste-like ink. The common term for these seals is 'chop' and basically has the equivalent meaning of a stamp. Shapes are usually circular or square. The square shape denotes stability and is usually reserved for contracts and legally binding business documents and the circular shape used by businesses generally since the circle denotes the flow of money.

This is the seal on the label of my Chinese brush set.

People might have three different chops: one for bank transactions, one for documents and legal matters and one for invitations and cards. Chops are usually carved in stone, wood or sometimes even metal.

A Chinese brush set that's too nice for me to use! The small porcelain container on the left contains the red paste for applying the seal and the uncarved chop is propped up on the right side of the set.

A Japanese calligrapher I met told me that signatures are not common practice and that even if all the parties are present, a business deal will not be completed if all chops are not present as well.

William (final)

William
digital (click to zoom)

"...I will wear my heart upon my sleeve..." or my name upon my collar.

Where's William?

William concept sketch, graphite (Click to zoom in)

Continuing the series. A final color version is in the works.

Armed but Unable to Use

Arms & Armor section at The Metropolitan Museum of Art

I visited the Met, one of my most favorite places, and although I traveled equipped with a mechanical pencil loaded with 2H lead, an Alvin Penstix marker, my

Niji Yasutomo Niji Waterbrush and my homemade palette of watercolor pencil (described here). 

On the way in, I noticed a sign saying that ink pens and markers were not allowed in the galleries, so I was left with my mechanical pencil and not able to achieve a wide range of value. I use a hard lead normally so my pencil lines don't interfere with watercolor washes.

The Six Wives of Henry VIII (final)

The Six Wives of Henry VIII
digital (Click on the image to zoom)

Divorced, beheaded, died; Divorced beheaded survived

We all carry the weight of our burdens on our shoulders. We'd all like to be remembered for the strength and heroism with which we persevere through these difficulties.  Unfortunately, some are only remembered for those burdens.

The Six Wives of Henry VIII

Concept sketch for The Six Wives of Henry VIII
Graphite on paper 

A final color version is in the works.

From the mouths of babes: LOGOS

Before my kids could read, they always knew what store we were outside of based on the logo. It's amazing the impression a strong brand makes.

Christmas Speed Paint

Lighthouse Mural

Enjoy a time-lapse video of my work on this mural.

Some time ago, I teased at a project I was busy with and as I'm near completion and watching the varnish dry, I thought I'd share. This mural, painted in oils on canvas, measures over 8 feet tall and almost 4 feet wide. It's been designed to fit the wall at the end of a hallway in the home of the patron who commissioned it—floor to ceiling, wall to wall.

The height of my canvas exceeded my actual height in my studio and the 12 inches actually lays on the floor, bringing the figure's feet at the bending point and further creating the illusion of someone standing in my studio.

The canvas hangs, tacked to a strip of wood I installed at the top of my wall, just beneath the crown moulding. When planning the layout of my workspace, I intentionally left that wall bare for exactly this type of large-scale work, where I can make use of my track-lighting normally aimed at my easel.

My First Hunting Trip

Schuman Farms, oil on canvas 9x12

Deer season opened this past weekend in New York State and I was a part of it. While the majority in our group hunted for white-tail deer, I hunted for a place to paint. I had concerns of being outdoors in a wooded area on a day where most people sharing this day would be armed with a rifle. The scene played out several times in my head for a few days leading up to this trip and in each scene I was outfitted like a convict in an orange jumpsuit-an effort aimed at preserving my life.

After many years of declined invitations, I gave in this year when my brother-in-law asked again. On Friday evening, I picked up my 18 year old nephew and headed out for our 4-hour car ride into upstate New York. Our destination was a house my wife's family owns in Delaware County which is used primarily during hunting season and throughout the year as a retreat from the routine of everyday life. A location so remote, there is no cell phone service from at least the town over to where we'll be. We arrived by midnight to find a quiet house and found our way to the beds that had been set aside for us.

The next morning (4:30 am), the hunters began stirring and getting ready for the day ahead. They all assembled around the kitchen table for their morning breakfast and as I joined them, I saw the group for the first time. We totaled 17 people and 1 dog and just as quickly as they gathered to eat, they ran in different directions in flashes of camouflage and bright orange as they began completing their outfits. They ranged from traditional Elmer Fudd plaid to the prison-orange jumpsuits from my earlier premonitions.

Did someone call Hazmat?

Thankfully, I was spared the prison uniform but I'm not sure crossing guard is my look either.

I was loaned a vest in case I found myself in a wooded area and was spared the jumpsuit. I painted the above painting in the morning. Although I received a good reaction from anyone who has seen it, I was not pleased with it. I almost abandoned it but I remembered what Greg Manchess once told me: It gets ugly before it gets better. So I kept going despite setting up with harsh light on my canvas making it hard to determine paint coverage due to the enhanced texture of the canvas. I also couldn't open my bottle of painting medium. After I was confident I did the best I could, I packed up and headed to the house for some lunch. On the way, I found another spot that I could come back to in the afternoon.

Field Stream, oil on board, 12 x 12

My second session of painting of the day seemed to go better. For starters, I went back to my usual masonite instead of canvas and after breaking the cap of my bottle of medium I felt comfortable with the consistency of my colors.

The evening was filled with all hands helping to prepare the feast that would be dinner amid stories of each hunter's experience. Afterward, dessert was the highlight. My nephews decided to surprise their father for his birthday (which was actually that day) and ordered a special cake for him from Carlo's Bakery in Hoboken, NJ, the bakery made famous by TLC's Cake Boss. The detail was incredible and the cake was delicious.

The Cake Boss cake with a figure which looks exactly like my brother-in-law.

Pizza boxes make fantastic wet-painting carriers. Some double-sided tape or tape loops help to secure the painting.

By the time I hit the road for the long drive home on Sunday morning, the totals were 2 deer, 1 bear, a coyote and 2 paintings.

Old Sketchbook

Flipping through my old sketchbooks, I came across this drawing I did from the rooftop swimming pool of the St George Lycabettus Hotel in Athens, Greece. The view was pretty incredible as the hotel is situated on the base of Mount Lycabettus and provides views of the Acropolis in one direction and the top of Lycabettus in the other. The small detail on the bottom left is the hilltop chapel of Saint George which sits on top of Lycabettus.

Mount Lycabettus is the highest point in the city of Athens and is covered with pine trees. It is traditionally believed that the hill was home to wolves as its name literally means 'place where wolves walk.' Its summit can be reached by a path for those adventurous travelers who don't mind a steep uphill walk or alternatively by funicular. If you are ever in Athens, it should be on your must-see list as it provides incredible views of the Acropolis, particularly at night when the ruins are lit.

TRIBUTE: Bil Keane

Sadly, I learned the news that Family Circus creator Bil Keane passed away yesterday at the age of 89. Reading The Family Circus comic strip in the newspaper was a Sunday highlight growing up.

I keep an interesting book in my office called The Artist Within which features more than 200 artists photographed in their studios along with a small description and drawing. Below is the spread dedicated to Bil Keane.

Years before I ever realized that Bil Keane was the father of Disney animator Glen Keane, I had written to Bil Keane at the urging of a friend and mentor who had various cartoonist contacts. I don't recall what my letter said but I did receive an answer and a nice little sketch.

Earlier this year, I discovered the art and blog of Claire Keane (Glen's daughter and Bil's granddaughter) and was lucky enough to work with Claire on a project.

While Bil's legacy will live on through his Family Circus work, I thought it would be a fitting tribute to his life and work by sharing the other legacy he leaves behind in the talented family he has inspired as a father and grandfather and artist.

Below is the work of three generations of Keanes.

The Family Circus' Billy greets me in a Bil Keane sketch.

Glen Keane's drawing in my copy of The Art of Tangled.

Claire Keane's cover art for Anne of Green Gables.

Brush Pen from Faber Castell

A brush pen and control over thick and thin lines delivers stunning results.

"I can't find my ear-muffins!"

"I can't find my ear-muffins!"

This past weekend, one of my children couldn't find their 'ear-muffins.' I couldn't resist.

Experience Monet

A fantastic interactive website designed to coincide with the Claude Monet exhibit at the Grand Palais in Paris invites users to interact with his art. You begin by toppling an ink well and then through mouse moves, webcam and microphone directions cause magpies to come to life and winter to become spring.

Enjoy!

Monet Journey