Spring is here after what seemed like a very long winter! As I sketched ideas for a Spring inspired illustration I began to wonder what Spring actually means to me and why I love it? Then I realised, it's hiking season! Time to get outside and adventure, time to pack my backpack and dust off the tent. It's the perfect season for the outdoors, not too hot and not too wet. I also used Spring as my Mandarin Word of the Day.
Collaborative projects are always tough work and lead to some sort of conflict...this is what I've always thought until I collaborated with musician and long time friend, Alnitak_Kid. We met in high school and now, nearly 13 years later, we still hang out together. In the past 13 years we've had a lot of collaborative ideas, most of which we just lost enthusiasm for, but not this time. Alnitak_Kid wanted a cover for his new release beat tape, Daymares&Nightdreams. After weeks of throwing around many good and bad ideas we came up with this one, a collection of his instruments and equipment that made up the tape, including samplers, mixers and records.
We tried a few styles and found that brush and ink suited the flow of the illustration best and discovered that we wanted the equipment to be recognizable but not too realistic. We also created a sticker to accompany the tape which is below. This has been my favorite collaborative project to date and has restored my hope in the collaborative process.
(detailed closeup of line and texture)
(sticker)
This is a promo of my artwork that Alnitak_Kid made especially for this post...THANKS!
Check out some of Alnitak-Kid's tracks below and if you like what you hear, make sure you check out some of his other releases on Bandcamp.
I've been doing a lot of sketching and ink drawings, living in a world of black and white and last week I got tired of it. I wanted to create 80's style, super saturated, colour washed eye candy. I started scribbling some ideas and came up with Spacegirl. I wanted a nostalgic VHS style, Saturday morning cartoon feel that could be a comic cover aswell. Such a fun illustration to colour and I'm real happy with it.
If there was ever an award for most underrated animated series, Fillmore would take the prize and then some! It's a show filled with the most creative chase scenes around and manages to poke fun at adult crime shows in such a way that is both funny and true. But the thing I love most about it is that it's real! It's what being a detective in school would really be like. No gadgets and outrageous scenarios of world domination, just two kids being kids. So this is my tribute to you Fillmore!
I was recently approached by Glory Road Motorcycles to design their business card. They approached me with a solid idea of the text "Find the Glory Road" and the rest was up to me. The card is designed to promote curiosity in the reader, to make them turn the card over and find out what exactly the Glory Road is. I really liked the idea of a portrait business card because there are so many landscape ones out there.
I was at the library last week and found a book on old propaganda posters. I loved the strong and simplistic nature of them and the portrait they painted of their ideas. I wanted to create a similar kind of feel with this illustration but with less force and a warmer feeling. It gave me a chance to play around with a different style and use some brushes which taught me a few things.
Well, I have been talking about it for a while now but here is the first sneak peak at my minicomic comig out next month, It is titled Trademark The Pencil and this cover for the first (maybe only) issue and is inspired by my love of patent drawings. Stay tuned for the release coming out real soon!
I recently illustrated a poster for The Piccadilly Kitchen to advertise a fundraiser for the CFS (Country Fire Service). A group of cafes around the Adelaide hills hosted free breakfasts for all CFS volunteers in recognition of the days they spent fighting the fires that swept through last month. Thanks to all members of the CFS for all your hard work.
Sometimes I create an illustration that develops a backstory in my head as I draw...this is one of those illustrations. The backstory usually begins and ends in my head but this time I wrote it down and I'm slowly putting it together which means it may end up as a comic. So for now I'll claim this as a teaser for whats to come...maybe?
I was recently approached by the band manager of Adelaide's Bearded Gypsy Band, who asked me to design a poster to promote their upcoming gigs. I was pretty familiar with the band having gone to many of their shows, which gave me the advantage of taking a few notes on how they played their instruments and interacted on stage. Their gypsy, jazz, folk styling inspired the sepia earth tones, and vinyl shaped centre. If you dig bands that are better live than on CD, check out the Bearded Gypsy Band.
