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Random Heads & Stuff 5

2012-01-29T21:10:00.000-06:00

Drawings from January for fun and for various reasons which need no explanation.

Of all the Charlie Browns in the world, you're the Charlie Browniest.

2011-12-26T18:08:00.000-06:00

I wanted to wait a little while before posting to make sure most everyone got their card, I hate to spoil the surprise. I painted the background with watercolor and acrylic. The foreground is the standard inked art, scanned and colored in Photoshop. Have a great holiday everyone!

Screamin' Jay Hawkins

2011-12-16T20:12:00.000-06:00

It's time for the annual Christmas exchange with the other high school teachers in my district. This year our names where swapped and we each had to give a sampling of artists and song titles for the each assigned secret teacher to work from. I was given Vicky Satterwhite who among her choices was Screamin' Jay Hawkins, and who could resist that. Vicky got the inked original art but here it is with little computer color just for fun.

Christmas Girl

2011-12-11T08:30:00.001-06:00

Most every year we go to a Christmas Party that my wife's former employer throws, and one of the highlights is the gift swap. It's kind of a White Elephant thing but with different themes. This year we were to make and bring a card, and of course what says the holidays more than a pinup girl. This piece is 4.5" x 6", ink, watercolor, acrylic, Pitt Pen on illustration board.

Frankie's Squeeze iPhone

2011-11-23T16:55:00.001-06:00

Ok...ok I promise this is the last post with this art, but I just got my new iPhone cover I ordered from Uncommon. You can upload your own art and they have some fancy-pants way of putting it on the case. Miss Anne has had one of their cases for quite a while and the image doesn't even scratch wear! I'm going to make a custom image next time.

The Elusive Toonfish

2011-11-21T22:00:00.001-06:00

The Texas Art Education Association asked Houston area art teachers to create an aquatic creature for a silent auction with the funds going to a scholarship fund. We were given a rectangle of wood, a dowel and a couple of pieces of canvas but after that we were on our own. I cut the base into the wavy shape and made the seaweed out of tin, then cut, stuffed the fish and painted everything in acrylic. It ended up about 18" long and 10" tall. It also peaked my interest in building stuff.

Happy Hallowe'en from Bud & Lou

2011-10-30T15:23:00.002-05:00

Just watched this recently with Sydney and couldn't help but to do a little doodle.

Frankie's Squeeze X30!

2011-10-24T20:57:00.003-05:00

Well this year I went all crazy and decided to screenprint my monster art, so prints will be available at the Austin and Houston Monster Shows! I hadn't printed anything since college so special thanks to Carlos at Burning Bones Press for helping me get it done!

Frankie's Squeeze

2011-10-17T21:22:00.004-05:00

Well it's that time of year again, time for Domy's Annual Monster Show, Houston and Austin on Saturday, October 29 from 7-9 pm! I haven't run out of Univeral Monsters yet, so here is Frankie's girl doing a little domestic engineering.

Dia de los Muertos Doodle

2011-10-11T20:52:00.002-05:00

I was working with my students on our schools entry at the Lawndale Ritablo Show and did this little doodle. 'Nuff said.

Por Favor Nanny, Please Make DInner

2011-09-22T22:01:00.003-05:00

For the past year or so I've been working on a commission for a cookbook cover. It's goal is to bridge the gap between busy families and Spanish speaking caregivers that prepare meals. It was fun to work on and you can buy one here. When you go there you will see the final cover sans kids, but I'm kind of fond of the version with them so I'm going to show it here.

Random Sketchbook

2011-09-03T16:55:00.002-05:00

I can't believe I let two months go by without posting, yikes! Here is just some random sketchbook fun from Sketch Klubb..

Tentacle Attack!

2011-06-30T07:24:00.004-05:00

It's taken me a while but I finally finished my entry for pal Paul Adam's Scanner Darkly Sketchbook. For those not familiar with this, many of the animators had a sketchbook with a theme and we would pass them around to each other. Paul's theme is "Untamed Universe" so of course I had to draw a space girl being attacked by tentacles. To see some of Paul's work just click on the link to the right.

Miss Anne is a Good Egg!

2011-04-25T23:11:00.004-05:00

And now she's in my egg salad sandwich. I especially like the little pieces of blue egg floating around, and people go "what's that blue stuff in your egg salad?"

The Right Tool?

2011-04-14T20:46:00.004-05:00

On April 21 I'm participating in the Mentor Show, works by Houston area art instructors and their students. It's going to be at the Art Alliance Center at Clear Lake and will run until May 19. I'm participating with my AP Studio student Kyle Dittmann, and our theme is superheroes doing mundane activities, kind of an ongoing subject of mine that Kyle also wanted to explore.

Lunch Bags x2!

2011-04-12T22:53:00.004-05:00

This particular week there was a need for two lunch bags, one for a field trip and one for Field Days. And once again these never make it home. My daughter said she really tried to hang on to them this time but they still disappeared.

Art Day with Sydney

2011-03-18T14:06:00.005-05:00

For our Spring Break week my daughter and I came up with an activity for every day, and Thursday was "Make Art All Day" day. I cut up a bunch of cardboard for us to paint on and to build with. In fact it was so much fun that we decided to continue it but alternate with Sketch Klubb for an every other Saturday schedule. Here are a few of the things I made: Two small acrylic paintings on cardboard and a small bungalow house also from cardboard.

Center for Cartoon Studies Awareness Week

2011-03-11T23:04:00.004-06:00

I want to encourage everyone interested in cartooning to check out the Center for Cartoon Studies. In case you weren't reading my blog last summer I took an awesome workshop there and wish like the Dickens I could go back (maybe someday). If you want to take cartooning to the next level that's the place to go, and you can get an MFA and draw on the experience of the best in the business. There is still time to apply for the fall semester so I encourage you to check it out!

St. Valentine's Day!

2011-02-21T20:26:00.003-06:00

Here is this years card to my lovely wife. The idea is based on something I saw in an old Disney Golden Book from the 50's.

Random Heads & Stuff 4

2011-02-04T00:49:00.003-06:00

More odds and ends from my sketch books. The Lobster Johnson was based on an old pulp cover I saw. I need to expand on that one.

Snow Angels

2010-12-26T09:12:00.002-06:00

The commissioned work from the fall that was designed to fit in a number 10 envelope made me think it would be fun to make our card that format this year too. The only drawback is we had to buy a box of 500 envelopes! Sheesh. I also like to dabble in that "no outline" style every once and a while for fun. Happy Holidays everyone!

SK Christmas Swap

2010-12-24T14:09:00.004-06:00

Last year we did a White Elephant for our Christmas Party, but to avoid having to get stuff we don't want or need this year we each brought a piece of art instead. We just put all our names in a hat and each got another SK artwork. I did a little Christmas dame based on an old pinup magazine cover. This is the G version, the original is a little more PG-13 (just contact me if you would like to see it). Eric Pearce was the recipient of mine which is pretty lucky since he's a big Dan DeCarlo fan. This one is ink and Prismacolor Pencil on chipboard.

T. E. Lawrence

2010-12-18T15:35:00.004-06:00

As played by Peter O'Toole in the film "Lawrence of Arabia". For my art teacher holiday gift exchange this year we gave the name of a celebrity we wanted to receive art of, but we didn't know who the art was going to be for. After checking out all the possibilities online and changing my mind a few times I chose this image mostly because he was young and it was also his most sexy role. It was also more challenging for me because it's always harder to draw attractive people that craggily old faces with lots of character. Every little subtle stroke can make a huge difference in capturing the likeness.

I also used one of my vintage frames for this project.

Painted this sketchbook cover

2010-11-20T15:58:00.005-06:00

I'm trying to paint them all. Not all the sketchbooks in the world, just mine. And why am I always drawing myself I'm often asked? I have no good answer for that one.

Andre Delambre walking Diptera

2010-10-20T22:46:00.005-05:00

The time has come once again for DOMY Books annual Monster Show. I had this idea for the Human Fly to continue my mundane classic monster series last year, but was too swamped with school to knock it out. Better a year later than never!

This Just In! Infamous Cat Burglar Apprehended Attempting to Swipe Stovepipe Artwork! More Details as They Become Available!

Bat Mitzvah

2010-10-02T18:40:00.005-05:00

I recently got a commission for a bat mitzvah illustration and invitation design. Luckily the client is a professional photographer and he got a great shot of her in a grove of live oaks hanging onto one of those long low branches. The ceremony is at 10:30 am and the party is at 7 pm, so my idea was to make it two sided with a day side that has with her and the tree and a night side with her gone (presumably at the party).

Let's Swing!

2010-09-18T09:19:00.004-05:00

Miss Anne volunteered to create the marketing materials for Harvard Elementary's Winter Auction when she heard the theme was swing dancing. The committee had seen and really liked my work, and thought I would be perfect for making the illustrations (for reasons obvious to readers of this blog). It was hard to decide on a pose since most of what pops up in a search is people flying though the air, and really a function like this is more swing music than swing dancing.

The Center for Cartoon Studies

2010-08-28T07:54:00.005-05:00

Over the Summer I went up to Vermont for a summer workshop on cartooning at CCS in White River Junction. It was an intensive, one week program to help you get a kick-start into cartooning with classes, help from the pros and lots of studio time. It really helps you get past the old "what should I do next" syndrome. I also wanted to others teaching cartooning so I could maybe improve my cartooning classes. The goal of the week was determined by each student, but most were able to complete an entire mini-comic. My project was to work on a story my friend Shannon Rasberry has been writing. I wont get into too much detail on the story, but I was able to storyboard the first chapter, tight pencil and ink the first five pages, which was about a page finished a day which they told me was a very solid rate. So enough words...time for pictures.

Lobster Johnson in a Rat Rod?

2010-07-19T00:09:00.005-05:00

Of course, why not!?! This was a sketch for the Austin Sketch Squad blog, the theme being hot rods this time. I recently finished reading "The Satan Factory" (a Lobster Johnson novel) and it was still fresh in my mind and I'm always looking for an excuse to draw him. I'm going to try and make the time to ink and color this before the end of the summer. Heck I should just do an entire comic, right!

9th Annual Luck Of The Draw

2010-06-17T11:44:00.003-05:00

Time again for the Luck Of The Draw Art Auction Fundraiser at Diverse Works Art Space. I couldn't squeeze it in last year so I made it a point to start early. This year the theme is "The Musical", so I thought I would make the proverbial fat lady, but I think she just turned out mostly super curvey. I couldn't get over there last night but I hope the show was a success!

Pinup for Kyle

2010-05-17T19:42:00.005-05:00

One of my students has been working on a comic for Cartooning class in which he has a character who looks very much like me (a lot of them seem to do this for some reason). Anyway, one of our assignments was to work on pinup art and how it is not specifically cheesecake but really just one artists take on another artists character. So, long story short my student Kyle asked me to make a pinup of his two main characters and here is the result. Since the character based on myself is the “sidekick” to the main one I decided to make him the overzealous, gung-ho, annoying type.

Ferdinand the Bull

2010-05-16T18:49:00.003-05:00

Here is the latest illustration in my long history of working with Stages Repertory Theatre's kid programming. This spring they are putting on a production of Ferdinand the Bull so I was glad to help. I've been experimenting a lot more with different brushes and textures, and I also decided to just go with the tight pencil this time instead of inking it for a change (I very rarely do that).

Combo Supreme Please!

2010-05-05T20:53:00.005-05:00

This little mash-up is for the Austin Sketch Squad gang which I hope and plan on being a little more regular contributing to, especially now that school is almost out. I missed a few themes so to catch up I combined "Gangster", "Disguise", "Robot" and "It Came From Outer Space". I actually think it's fun when I combine themes like that, maybe we should randomly combine topics every time.

St. Valentine's Day

2010-03-16T00:19:00.002-05:00

My lovely wife told me this year that she didn't want any flowers because of the harmful way they are grown, and that she didn't want any chocolate either because she's trying to cut down on certain foods. So I thought this year her card will have at least show the banned items if nothing else. She did asked why I put her in a baseball jersey, I don't know. Anyone interested in psychoanalyzing that one?

Who Arted?

2010-02-19T17:46:00.002-06:00

This is just a little 'ol t-shirt design I made for my art department at the high school where I teach. Our department head Lisa S. came up with the tag, I made the art, Drew and Meghan had the shirts made (and of course a shout out to Vickie for team spirit!) They are a school approved shirt so we hope to have every kid in one of these babies. Sketch Klubb fans will probably recognize the "Brap" cloud.

The Idea Fund

2010-02-12T16:35:00.003-06:00

This year Sketch Klubb was awarded an Idea Fund Grant. Here is the official spiel: Through the Warhol Foundation Initiative, Aurora Picture Show, DiverseWorks and Project Row Houses have come together to support art at its source by providing direct grants to artists. The Idea Fund provides cash awards to artist-generated or artist-centered projects that exemplify the unconventional, interventionist, conceptual, entrepreneurial, participatory, or guerrilla artistic practices that occur outside of the traditional frameworks of support. Basically they are giving up a nice amount of cash, and we are going to put on a more elaborate Nerd Garage Sale this summer. A kind of Flea Market meets Sideshow Freak Carnival show. More details to come on that. Here are some photos from the reception on January 21 at Diversworks Artspace.

SKNY

2010-02-12T16:16:00.003-06:00

My art collective had a show at the Texas Firehouse Gallery in New York City on November 21, 2009. I know I posted a sketch earlier about this but I've been uber busy with school, that's my only excuse. You can read more about Sketch Klubb here. 2009 was kind of the year of gallery shows for Sketch Klubb with the Houston, Austin and NYC shows, but we are going to stop those for a while. The best thing about the New York show was just being there with the guys. Here are a few photos from the trip. Good times.

Robot Petrushka

2009-12-23T21:24:00.003-06:00

The art teachers in the Alvin ISD High Schools got together and had a secret Santa exchange this year, with everyone picking a theme ahead of time. I got Meghan Anderson and her theme was Robots (very cool!) I have always wanted to do a petrushka doll set and this seemed like the perfect opportunity, so after doing a few little thumbnails in my sketchbook I primed and painted the wooden dolls with that chrome spray paint. Then I painted on the details with a Pitt Brush pen and then sealed it with Crystal Clear. Now I want to make some more!

Happy Holidays!

2009-12-22T08:15:00.004-06:00

Here is this years card, and as a first I'm also going to include the process by popular request. First I did a little blue pencil sketch about 3 inches tall, then did a tighter graphite pencil over the top. Scanned that in and enlarged to 8"x10" and tweaked it a little. Printed that out and then inked on hot press Bristol Board and Pitt Pens. Scanned that in and then did all the color in Photoshop (you'll notice that I even changed a few things on the inked art in Photoshop even at that stage). I'm really in to trying to simulate a watercolor look these days, although I still like to do the real thing.

NYC Placemat

2009-11-23T14:26:00.003-06:00

Just got back from NYC (more on that later). Here is a little sketch I made on a placemat at a diner close to our gallery. We were right on the East River and I could see the Chrysler Building peeking over the other buildings from where I was sitting.

Evolve Group Show

2009-10-25T08:09:00.005-05:00

On Friday and Saturday I was a part of a group show called Evolve at Winter Street Studios here in Houston. It was mostly a bunch of old friends from the long gone Houston Society of Illustrators. It was great seeing everyone again after so many years, and I even made a little cash to boot. That's Sydney in the lower top photo. All photos by Miss Anne.

Drawing At School

2009-09-11T22:49:00.005-05:00

I apologize for the lack of posts, but for those who don't know I just started teaching High School Art so I've been rather über busy. I'm teaching mostly Cartooning and Digital Graphics and Animation. It's amazing that they offer stuff like this for kids now days, they really don't have any idea how lucky they are. Every once in a while I'll sit down with them and draw the same project (hopefully more in the future), and here is a little something I did today. Pencil on paper.

Elephant for Lunch

2009-07-20T17:39:00.003-05:00

Sydney had a field trip to the Zoo which called for a little art for the lunch. No bag this time though, it had to be in a clear, zip-lock bag (so they can throw them all in the cooler I guess). So option two is a napkin drawing. I think I was channeling a little Suess on this one.

Sketch Klubb: Houston's hardest crew

2009-06-21T12:36:00.003-05:00

Our opening last night was covered by the online arts people at the Houston Chronicle. There's even a video interview with Russell and Rene and a shot of a spread that shows a page of my drawings, pretty cool! Check it out quick!

Random Heads & Stuff 3

2009-06-19T08:30:00.006-05:00

Odds and ends from Sketch Klubb. Our show is this Saturday, June 20th at The Joanna. If you are in Houston come by between 7pm and whenever to see what a bunch of weenies we are.

Peter & The Wolf

2009-05-23T00:59:00.004-05:00

Another illustration for Stages Repertory Theatre. This production is modernized a little I think (the duck doesn't die in this one). These are always a lot of fun. Inked, scanned then colored in Photoshop.

Days Long Past, No. 21

2009-05-23T00:53:00.003-05:00

This is the latest for the DLP sketchbook, drawn while at ComicPalooza (see previous post). This image was found in a stock photo book. Pitt Brush pen and green Copic marker on paper.

ComicPalooza 09

2009-05-23T00:02:00.003-05:00

Comicpalooza is the free comic festival held each year here in Houston. I'd never actually been myself because it involves leaving the safety of the "inner loop", but a bud of mine from Scanner Darkly days (Kennon James) asked if I would share a table with him on Artist's Row. Now I've never done something like this before so I didn't know what to expect but it was a lot of fun, and I actually made back my investment too. When I do something like this again I'll be more prepared by having more things to sell. As it was I just put together a couple of Ash Cans to sell. One with monster art and the other with the old photos I like to copy. It was fun just to sit there and draw all day too, but people do have a lot of strange questions.

Stone Soup

2009-05-22T23:43:00.002-05:00

Sydney's first grade class put on a production based on the Stone Soup story. I did this quick illustration for the program cover.

Deiselpunk Factory

2009-04-18T11:51:00.004-05:00

At least that's what it reminds me of. I especially love the giant analog gauges on the giant wall instrument panel. Can't remember where I found this photo though. Pitt pens and Copic markers on paper.

Two Ladies and a Beach

2009-04-15T13:44:00.003-05:00

I haven't been working in my Days Long Past sketchbook lately, trying to remedy that. Pitt pen and watercolor on paper.

ClothesPin-Up

2009-03-24T20:30:00.001-05:00

Another weekly challenge at Austin Sketch Squad. Theme: Pinup.

Rabbit Challenge

2009-03-21T23:17:00.003-05:00

Weekly challenge at the Austin Sketch Squad blog. Rabbit, bunny, same difference...right?

Lucy & Amelia

2009-03-14T07:28:00.005-05:00

A friend commissioned me to make a portrait of her daughters for her husband's birthday. I've never really done that before so I freaked out for a couple of weeks about how I was going to do it, but they were super happy with the results and I am too!

R2-D2

2009-03-03T00:01:00.005-06:00

Well it's field trip time again so that means a new paper bag drawing. This time I asked my daughter Sydney (female, age 7), what she wanted on her bag and she said R2-D2. 'Nuff said!

A Picnic At The Park

2009-02-19T22:22:00.003-06:00

Here's a fun project I just wrapped up, illustration and design for the annual fundraiser for First Steps Montessori School. It's a picnic themed function being held down at Minute Maid Park in April. I was going for a "Golden Book Vibe" on this one.

Kennon's Collaborative Sketchbook

2009-02-05T14:20:00.002-06:00

A bud of mine from "A Scanner Darkly" days started a collaborative sketchbook back in 2006, and I was privileged enough to get a crack at it. The story goes one page at a time in Exquisite Corpse style with each new artist having full reign on what they get to add. Go check out the other participants at Kennon's blog to see the story so far, and also check out his own work while you're there (especially the TMNT work), he's got some awesome stuff!

QFF

2009-01-30T14:34:00.009-06:00

This is one of those things that I'm always doing here at work that I'm not supposed to show. I'm not going to name the project or the client, cause last time I did I got "Google Busted" and had to take it down. I was going for a pseudo Dragon Ball kind of look, but I have a hard time escaping my style sometimes. I will say it's for a project to get teens to stop smoking...if that help make a little sense of it.

The Most Important Element

2009-01-08T09:33:00.004-06:00

This client wanted an approachable "indie comic" look for the front page of their site. It's an offshoot project from a company that specializes in employment and retention as an extra resource for employees, but with a more fun look than the corporate site. I had to also make the word bubbles and boxes big enough so they could periodically change the copy (so that's why it doesn't fit perfectly). See if you can find my cameo! To check out the live site go to The Most Important Element

A Bright and Happy Christmas

2008-12-30T17:41:00.002-06:00

Miss Anne has a small collection of vintage Christmas post cards she's building, so we thought it would be fun to make our own this year. I actually drew the main parts of the card in black ink as separations, then layered and colored it in Photoshop. It was kind of a nutty way to go about it, and to be perfectly honest I'm not sure why I did it that way. Happy New Year!

White Elephant

2008-12-22T18:05:00.004-06:00

Every year some friends of ours have a Christmas party with a White Elephant exchange. They always change the theme and this year the task was to bring a work of art either purchased or created, and what says Christmas more than a naked girl? Anyway the art was voted on by poker chips and the highest score got to go first, and I won...which was cool. This piece is about 3" x 4", India Ink on Bristol, and about two hours of work (which if you know me is pretty fast for "anal" me).

Rooby Rooby Roo!

2008-12-22T17:52:00.004-06:00

Right now Sydney is really into Scooby Doo, so the theme of her seventh birthday party had to be Scoob and the gang. For the invitation I made her a sixth member of Mystery Inc. The party was back in October and was a blast! She was also Scooby Doo for Halloween!

Rejected Drawings No. 2

2008-11-04T12:40:00.004-06:00

The canine mascot for this mystery company was developed in a Hanna-Barbera style (which I'm always dying to do). They were into the idea but the final dog ended up taking a more "Muttley" direction (you know...Wacky Races...snickering dog). I still liked this original version myself.

Rejected Drawings No. 1

2008-10-30T17:51:00.004-05:00

And now for something completely different. I'm starting a new subject: client rejected drawings that I like. This little hummingbird fellow didn't make the cut.

Night of the Living Dead, Monster Show 3

2008-10-27T10:35:00.004-05:00

I actually created this more than a year ago. I was contacted by some people that were doing a comic adaptation of the movie and wanted me to do a pin-up for it. I don't think the thing ever got off the ground, I'm tired of waiting and I've never posted it on the blog before (although I did bury it into my portfolio site). Since I was completely swamped with work along with the chunk of time Hurricane Ike stole I didn't have any time to make something new for the Monster Show at DOMY this year...so here it is with some color. It's Pitt pen on paper, and I added the red using Dr. Martin's concentrated water color.

The Final Frontier

2008-09-05T01:38:00.004-05:00

Here's a little project that I actually finished up over the summer, but just got down to Space Center Houston to take some photos. The Zero G Dinner is the food court area, and they had this giant blank wall, so I talked them into a psuedo-anime style mural to jazz up the place. I inked the original, then colored it in Photoshop at full size and 40 dpi as per the printers instructions. It was still a gig file! The mural is about 23 feet tall and 140 feet wide. The top image is the finished illustration, and the bottom three is the installed work. They are still going to put in some special theater style lighting that will make it pop more. It's not nearly as dark in person as it looks from my digital camera shots.

Days Long Past, No. 14

2008-08-27T23:23:00.001-05:00

Based on a photo by Robert Capa of President Harry Truman in an old Life Magazine compilation that was my grandparents. Whenever I would look through that book I was always drawn to this image. Pitt Brush pen and Copic marker.

Days Long Past, No. 13

2008-08-27T22:50:00.005-05:00

I like finding images to draw from those sites about abandoned and decaying spaces, and this was inspired by one of those.

Random Heads & Stuff 2

2008-08-27T22:35:00.002-05:00

I have been drawing, just not posting...I swear! The end of Summer kicked my rear but I didn't miss a SketchKlubb until last week. These are some random sketch book doodles, I picked up a couple of high school yearbooks from the 30's that are pretty fun to draw from.

Escape With Your Life!

2008-07-03T13:52:00.002-05:00

At long last (about one and a half years in the making from initial concepts to actual construction of the box)....our big multimedia health intervention video game for MD Anderson Health Science Center is ready to go. Actually some of you may have seen this post last year for just a day, but the client saw it and asked that I take it down until the project was officially announced. Pretty cool looking, eh? It's called "Escape With Your Life" and it's a real damn video game! That's right folks, we made the entire thing: created the characters, wrote the scripts, animated everything, did all the programming, recorded all the voice-overs in our studio's recording booth (you may recognize such voice talents...me) and built the kiosk (actually three of them). I did all the backgrounds and character design and art, and some of the animation (when I had time). I built the kiosk from scratch out of MDF, it has a real arcade joystick, a touch screen, and a MacMini running on the inside. I created the art for the case and had it output on vinyl and applied it to the case after painting it black. Of course the folks at MD Anderson Health Science Center were involved in all aspects of the project. And even though I wanted to toot our horn, it's all their baby! I'll post some grabs from the game next time.

The Force is Strong in This One

2008-06-20T11:23:00.003-05:00

Here is a quick 20 minute (that's quick for me) Luke Skywalker for my nephew Ben's birthday card (he'll be seven). It's also funny but I don't think I've ever drawn Luke before, mostly Stormtroopers. It's about 4"x 5", Pitt pen and blue Copic marker for the Light saber.

7th Annual Luck Of The Draw

2008-06-17T10:03:00.008-05:00

Well it's here again, the Luck Of The Draw Art Auction Fundraiser at Diverse Works Art Space. Last year the gallery space was so packed you could barely breathe. It happens tomorrow night so if you are close enough come on down! All the work is smaller than 8.5" x 11" and on paper, you pay for a chance and are given a number (and you could buy more than one number), and when the number is called you have 30 seconds to go get the one you want (unless someone already beat you to it). With 200+ pieces from local artists it's a great opportunity, and a lot of fun!

The Red Bird of Happiness

2008-05-19T23:22:00.004-05:00

Whenever Sydney (my 6 year old daughter) can't use her Hello Kitty lunch bag because they have a field trip or something I will do a little drawing for her. This was actually the first time I thought to take a photo before it's gone forever (they never seem to make it back home).

Matt Deckard

2008-05-09T11:20:00.004-05:00

A friend is going to write a column for a pub out in LA and asked me to do a portrait for him that will run with his story. And if you hadn't guessed it already he is also a fellow retrophile.

The Giver

2008-04-22T22:50:00.005-05:00

This illustration is for Stages Repertory Threatre and their EarlyStages program. The EarlyStages series introduces young audiences to live theatre. I've made probably about eight or so illustrations for them over the past several years, and they are always a blast. This play is adapted from the novel The Giver by Lois Lowry. The story has a little Logans Run idea behind it, but it's a great read from anyone twelve and up.

Cash II

2008-04-21T16:41:00.006-05:00

Here's another Johnny Cash drawing. I don't have a thing for him, honest! It's just I found a cool photo in an old Rolling Stone while at Antidote Coffee Bar for Sketch Klubb is all. I was really trying to be fast and loose with this one and not overwork it (which is my tendency). And I actually did two drawings in one meet-up, which is also pretty rare for me. Black Pitt Pen on paper.

Roller Girl

2008-04-21T16:31:00.004-05:00

Quicky rollergirl at Sketch Klubb on Saturday. Black and blue pitt pens on paper. It is the start of rollerderby season after all!

Mister X

2008-04-05T18:10:00.005-05:00

I've always wanted to do a Mister X drawing from the self-titled, watershed '80's comic. It's deco-retro future must have been a big influence on Tim Burton's Batman and Batman the Animated Series. And for some reason I seem to be doing a lot of "search light" drawings lately. Completed in Sketch Club, Pitt Pen on paper.

Days Long Past, No. 12

2008-03-28T16:20:00.004-05:00

The reference for this came from my old college textbook the History of Photography by Beaumont Newhall, always a good source of sketching fun. The photo is by Lewis Hine entitled Young Russian Jewess, Ellis Island New York 1905.

Days Long Past, No. 11

2008-03-12T14:03:00.004-05:00

This is the latest for the Days Long Past sketchbook. I was referencing an old, publicity still I found online with no title. The file was named Tracy (I don't think it's Spencer Tracy, maybe Dick Tracy?). If you know drop me a line. I drew this at the last Sketch Klubb with ye ol' trusty black and blue Pitt Brush pens.

Happy St. Valentine's Day!

2008-02-14T09:58:00.007-06:00

This years card for my extraordinary wife Miss Anne. She made me a great present this year, and as soon as she is done "tweaking" it I'll post some pictures (she's just like me in that regard too).

Merry Christmas

2007-12-20T10:02:00.000-06:00

For this years card we decided to take one of the vintage photo interpretations I did and add color to it. Different than what I had been doing for past cards, but I always wanted to add some limited color to these (and you can't get any more limited than one). Have a great Holiday Season everyone!

Good 'ol Mom and Apple Pie

2007-11-09T11:20:00.001-06:00

This is an illustration for a company called The Grateful Palate an awesome boutique, high end, mail order store that specializes in all kinds of bacon (yummm), plus coffee and a lot more. They also use a really talented graphic designer that puts together the catalogs every year named Beth Elliot. They are more like high end paper samples than any type of catalog I've ever seen! The illustration is going to be used for a special new promotion, but like many of my other projects lately I can't really talk about it right now. Rats. But still go check out the site and if you are a graphic designer request a catalog, you won't be sorry.

Monster Show 2

2007-10-25T12:01:00.004-05:00

It's that time of year again for Monster Show 2 at Domy Books here in Houston. My piece this year continues my classic monsters in everyday settings with a female Creature From The Black Lagoon. The show opens Friday, October 26 at 7pm and runs until November 30. Come check it out! I'll be making an appearance in my Lobster Johnson costume of course.

"Beware my claw, for I've come to inflict justice!"

2007-10-25T01:08:00.002-05:00

Here is my uber nerd project of all time. I decided about two months ago to put together a Lobster Johnson costume based on Mike Mignola's character from the Hellboy comics for Hallowe'en this year. Here is a photo my wife shot of me in Austin at the Monster Mash show with the Austin Sketch Squad. I've also convinced a photographer friend of mine to do some professional shots that I'll post later.

Fiction?

Monster Mash

2007-10-08T22:59:00.002-05:00

Here is the piece I did for the Lowbrow MonsterMash: an Art Extravaganza. The show opens in Austin, Texas on Saturday, October 13th at 7pm and will hang until November 30th. Plenty of beer and a live art event! Surely to be the social event of the season! So come on down to the Lowbrow Emporium at 2708 South Lamar this weekend!

Everyone Needs a Little Cash

2007-10-04T13:29:00.001-05:00

Drawing from last weeks Sketch Klubb. I may have to do a series of some of my favorite musicians...in my spare time.

Secret Project # 22

2007-09-04T11:11:00.001-05:00

I have so many "Secret Projects" lately it's really hampering my blog updating. Here is something to show that I'll go into more detail later. That's about all I can say.

6th Annual Luck Of The Draw

2007-08-23T23:42:00.003-05:00

This was my second year to contribute to Luck Of The Draw at Diverse Works Art Space. More than 200 people crammed the gallery space to vie for a chance to pick a piece of art. All the works had to be smaller than 8.5" x 11" and on paper, you would pay for a chance and be given a number (and you could buy more than one number), and when the number was called you would have 30 seconds to go get the one you want. 207 or so artists contributed at least one piece of art each for this great fundraiser!

J. M. Simpson

2007-06-27T18:10:00.000-05:00

Fellow Sketch Klubber David Wang found that you can make yourself a Simpsons character on the movies web site. It got pretty close, but I did have to do a screen grab and tweak it a little more in Photoshop. Doh! www.simpsonsmovie.com

Na na na na na na Batgirl

2007-06-07T10:59:00.003-05:00

Latest drawing for Austin Sketch Squad covering the topics of Bats and Heroes.

Days Long Past, No. 10

2007-06-02T13:27:00.003-05:00

I haven't done one of these in a while, too busy with other things. It's a hot day in Houston today, maybe this will cool things down a little (at least in my mind).

Iron Man

2007-06-01T12:08:00.002-05:00

OK, I'm making up for not drawing all this stuff when I was a kid. Sorry. I cleverly did this drawing for my Austin Sketch Squad blogs cyborg theme and to submit to Michael Cho's Iron Man fan blog at the same time. I hope it gets on!

Foxy Turkey

2007-05-10T23:03:00.002-05:00

This is for the weekly Austin Sketch Squad challenge...Hand Turkey.

I think I may have veered away from the spirit on this one a little bit more than normal, but it was the first thing to pop into my head. And that's my modus operandi for Austin Sketch Squad.

Nerd Flea Market & Swap Meet!

2007-05-10T21:52:00.002-05:00

Ya'll come now, ya hear!

Atlanta Magazine

2007-04-19T20:48:00.000-05:00

Here's an illustration I just finished for Atlanta Magazine. It's for a story on the first woman sports reporters, and this piece is based on an incident with the New England Patriots in 1990. It's hard to believe that these ladies had to put up with this kind of stuff so recently.

Who Said Police Work is Exciting?

2007-04-02T15:41:00.002-05:00

Miss Anne and I went to Austin last weekend to visit friends and hang out. On Saturday morning I met up with a few "Scanner" Alum and fellow Austin Sketch Squad members for a little drawing session. So special thanks and in no particular order to Jason, Kennon and Kevin! Here is the dragon contribution I (almost) finished Saturday. Too bad we forgot to take some photos.

No. 12 with Chicken

2007-03-25T00:28:00.001-05:00

Latest for Austin Sketch Squad, completed during Sketch Klubb. Is that legal?

Random Heads & Stuff

2007-03-12T16:14:00.001-05:00

These are just Sketch Klubb doodles, you can never draw too may heads-right? And no not every guy in hat is me (although at least one of these guys could be). These were drawn from live people, photos and such.

She Hung the Moon & Plugged In All the Stars

2007-02-14T09:30:00.001-06:00

Here is my St. Valentine's day card for Miss Anne. I've set the bar pretty high for these, but she's worth it!