The Little Match Girl 2

Here are some more images I created for The Little Match Girl theme.

There is the original sketch I did where she was kneeling in the snow as well as two very rough images of her dead. I wanted her to have died with a smile on her face looking peaceful and happy like a beautiful little girl who just fell asleep.

Lastly is a more refined version of the image I had painted last time. I have to get back to some other work so I have to leave the color image where it is for now. Who knows if I will go back to it when I have more time? I think I worked her enough but I would like to finish the box and the matches.

The Little Match Girl

This month's Gum or Mints assignment was the Little Match Girl.

I have always liked this story although it is grim. The concept of her getting lost in the hallucination is what attracted me first with this assignment and subsequently the light from the matches which help to take her there. I felt the need to work in color for this to feel the light best and did a watercolor rough of the first image I drew out. I really was going for an awestruck expression as well. I wanted her to look completely happy and not to care about all that was bad in her life. I have done some changes to the drawing and will probably give it another try in watercolor. I have also done some of her dead the next morning that I have to scan and will post them once I do.

The Zoo

Illustration Friday this week tackles The Zoo.

I have drawn out a menagerie of the animals I would have in MY Zoo. Oh sure....anyone can have a Lion or an Elephant, but how many have a Short Snouted Shuffalo? Hmmmmm?




I rarely show my roughs and I have no idea why. Looking at them they have a certain charm and seeing the way the Shuffalo turned out it is easy to imagine how the others will look. John Quinn recently said in a comment to someone else that seeing the development is interesting and exciting so.......I hope these have some excitement or interest!

Two of them don't have names yet but certainly have a story. This has been a fun topic.

Very Superstitious......

The topic of Illustration Friday this week is Superstition.

In some cultures a lone magpie is a sign of bad luck. In others a bird inside a house is bad luck. I just combined the two for a double whammy!

Nina Simone

American singer, songwriter, pianist, arranger and civil rights activist, not to mention genius. Although she disliked being categorized, Simone is generally classified as a jazz musician and was known as the High Priestess of Soul.

She sang fierce renditions of " I Put a Spell on You", "My Baby Just Cares for Me" and "Feeling Good" with just as much emotion and gusto as when she approached the subject of Civil Rights. Hundreds of recordings exist but her live recordings are legendary.

Often known for being difficult (a charge she took umbrage with) she once shot and wounded her neighbour's son with a pneumatic pistol after his laughing disturbed her concentration.

No one sang the way this woman did.

Does Anyone Still Wear a Hat?

For Illustration Friday.

Charlie in his Bowler...

Lady Sings "The Blues"

This one was obvious for me when I read the topic on Illustration Friday.

Waitress

The theme for September's Gum or Mints was waitress. Please check out the other entries of some of the most talented people I know.

"This is Julia Child, Bon Appétit!"

The wonderful and enormous (she was 6' 2"!) Julia Child.

Jared and I have been watching " The French Chef" on DVD and marveling at the things that Julia was teaching America in the early 60's. It is fascinating to think how little America knew about certain dishes we take completely for granted. Her book "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" is still a steady seller after all of these years.

There would be no Food Network without Julia and she helped to establish a need for stores like Williams Sonoma and Sur La Table. She taught us how to make a Salad Nicoise and the right way to cut a potato all the while in her sing song warble that we have all tried to imitate. If you get a chance to watch the old episodes they are a real treat!

Just a pig on a unicycle.....

Girlfriends got some pipes!

Done quickly in my sketchbook.

Happy Birthday Jared!!

Today is my partner Jared's Birthday.

We have an Easter Bunny and a Tooth Fairy and of course there is Santa Claus, but there is no one to celebrate birthdays specifically and bring us cheer on our special day. I thought I would rectify that and I created Phil the Birthday Platypus just for Jared.

Cafe and Faculty Meetings

OK....these cafe drawings are being posted by request. Two of them I am not so sure about. The drawings from the faculty meetings are just an added bonus.

Edmond redux

Ok, So I am never satisfied...so what ?

While developing my frog book I just felt that something wasn't right with my previous design. He looked too old, too clunky. I wanted a character that was more approachable, maybe a little more energy, sweeter in the face. I tried my hand at it and I think this Edmond is a much better design and certainly a lot more user friendly. There is a vitality that the other design lacked...I immediately wanted to draw this character in different situations.

I also removed the dark brown line that I find too harsh for what I am trying to capture here. I often wonder if I use it too much and don't trust my ability to paint an image without the dependency of line.

Anyway, feel free to share your thoughts, comments or suggestions.

Visitors

For Illustration Friday.....

Sorry folks,been a busy week, so no time for color or even a bit of ink. Maybe before the week is out, but I wanted to at least post the drawing.

Little Princess?

To counter our little pirate captain I had to do a drawing of a little princess. In Walt Disney World they are EVERYWHERE! All shapes, all sizes and the franchise does not seem to be softening! So here is my chubby little princess....

Please help me out if you can...pink or blue?

Captain

For Illustration Friday.....After spending a week in Walt Disney World and seeing all the little Captain Jack Sparrows scurrying around, I wondered why no one was dressed as that OTHER Captain....I think he is much cooler!

I also tried a color version....

First Day of Issue Signing and Ceremony

Here are some snaps from this years first day of issue Art of Disney stamp series. The ceremony is always fun and it is intimidating to see your work towering over you! Why Disney chose to do the release in August is beyond me since it was INCREDIBLY hot, but it all went smoothly and once I was sitting and signing (five hours this year!) it was OK.

I was blessed and thrilled to have my parents with me and my wonderful partner Jared. Jared and I are both in seersucker in that picture, but I am sure he is much cooler than I am!

The gentlemen with me in the signing photo are my Art directors from the USPS and from Disney. My AD from the USPS has told me that the stamps are all in the top ten best selling stamps of all time now and who knows.....there may be more to come!?

The Art of Disney: Magic Stamp Release

Hey everyone- off to Orlando for the new stamp release.....First day of issue is Thursday the 16th so run out and get 'em!

I will post pictures when I get back!

Emergency

I decided to keep with the OZ theme.....for Illustration Friday.

Something's "Missing"

For Illustration Friday....

Something smells fishy!

Here are some fish I have been working on.

The top page is just some little studies I did of fish while the rest are some fun characters I did after associating myself with some more fish anatomy. We all kinda know what fish look like, but there are so many kooky looking ones that I thought it best to brush up! The bottom three are people I drew from life and then immediately turned them into fish. It was a fun exercise to do right there after I did the sketch from life. Anyway.....here they are. I will try some in color next!

"Shhhh, Don't tell......"

I am participating in "Robert's Snow: for Cancer's Cure" this year and here is the image I created. (I now have to cut it out and apply it to the snowflake!-scary.....) I wish I had more time to work on it, but it was the best I could do for now.

It is a great cause so please visit their website and make a contribution.

Here is what it looked like cut out....

Steve Gardner

This is the work of Steve Gardner who just graduated from FIT's Masters Degree program. He posts a new sketch every day and is a brilliant artist, not to mention one of the nicest people you could meet. Please enjoy his blog.

Edmond

Since I got such a positive response from the frog I posted a while back I decided to develop and refine him into more than just a one time post. I named him Edmond and am in the process of illustrating a small story about him.

Cellini, The Old Bridge and Brendan

These drawings were done on the Ponte Vecchio except for the one of Brendan.

That was done in the Loggia of the Piazza Signoria at night while we listened to an orchestra set up in front of the the Palazzo Vecchio. The conductor announced that they were going to play some modern Classical music. Needless to say we were surprised when they started to play the theme song to "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom". This was one of those magical evenings in Italy where anything feels possible.