SF Street Style Sketch 12/14/10

A new street style sketch. This lady caught my eye because with her all black outfit and her bright green tights she looked like a chic version of the Wicked Witch of the West. 

SF Street Style Sketch 12/08/10

Every day when I walk to work I pass through a bustling area in downtown San Francisco. Everyone is always so put together and I regularly spot such interesting and fabulous outfits that I decided I needed to start recording them somehow. Street style blogs are kind of a guilty pleasure of mine, but I'm not the kind of person that can just go up to someone and ask to take their picture out of the blue. But sketching is another matter! This person in particular caught my attention because of her clear/polka dot umbrella and her quilted fabric boots. 

As seen at: Howard walking towards 2nd 

Recorded: From memory once I got to work

Rosie

Working on a new project - more to come!

Kitty Comic!

 

It has been quite some time since I've last updated my blog. Things have been pretty busy around here and I haven't had a chance to do much artwork just for myself. But things are starting to settle into a good routine, and I'm hoping to start back up with my own illustration practice more regularly. 

One of the things that happened since my last post is that I got a kitten! Now he and the older cat amuck together all over the apartment. This little comic represents just a fraction of the things they try to eat (I just stopped them from ripping apart our Robots! planning notebook!). More coming soon!

Goodbyes are always awkward - Issue 2 Page 3

As Leonard prepares to see his son off to school, we've had a new kitty addition to the Robots! in 3D household.  So as we work on planning out the next chunk of pages in our buffer we've got two fuzzy beings running pell-mell all over the apartment. It has been hectic (to say the least), but the comic must continue! So tune in next week to see Leo Jr. off and to witness the conclusion of that pigeon's dastardly plan.

Robots! in 3D concept art

Robots! in 3D Issue #2 will begin next Friday, but until then enjoy some brand new concept art! This sketch features a character that will be introduced next issue and will become a major player in the Robots! in 3D universe. I am very much looking forward to drawing him into the storyline.

Cross-posted on the Robots! in 3D blog

Art update!

Lots of exciting news over at Robots! in 3D! Adam and I just finished the first issue of the comic and we're cranking away at issue #2. You can read it through from the very beginning here. In my spare time I've also been working on some side painting projects/ commissions. Click through the jump to see some close-ups of the new finished pieces

DIY Dress Form

Things have been a bit silent here on the blog lately, but that doesn't mean I haven't been working on any projects. I've been taking a little break from my picture book illustration project (a break but not abandoned!) to spend some time really focusing on building a page buffer for Robots! in 3D.  We're now about a quarter of an issue ahead of what you see live online and I hope that we can gain even more ground in the next few weeks despite the fact that Adam and I will both be busier than we've been all year (wishful thinking, I know). If  you haven't been keeping up with the comic, check out the newest page! We're very close to finishing Issue #1 and I'm very excited about the coming issues. Aside from Robots! there's one other project that's taken up the rest of my free time these past few months and I finally finished last week! Click through the jump to read more!

A Wrinkle in Time - WIP

A Wrinkle in Time illustration: inked! I'm getting really excited about this one though I still need to do the text on the banner. Anyone have any lettering ideas?

A Wrinkle in Time- WIP

Starting to sketch out my next illustration. Since this one is going to be much more complex than the last two I opted to sketch it out in Photoshop first. Next I'll print out the sketch and use my lightbox to refine and enlarge it. I'm looking forward to this one - A Wrinkle in Time is one of those books that has always stuck with me ever since I first read it and this was always one of my favorite scenes. Hopefully I can do it justice!

Ozma and Tip Final!

Growing up, my mom obtained a collection of almost all (if not completely all) of the sequels to the Wizard of Oz. For those not in the know, after The Wizard of Oz, L. Frank Baum went on to write 13 novel sequels that introduced new characters and locations that expanded upon the Oz universe. After Baum, a number of other writers wrote sequels as well (but they really just were never as good). Over the course of a couple of years, my parents managed to read her entire collection to my sister and I as bedtime stories (click through the jump to read more). 

Illustration Friday-Rescue

Just a quick fun illustration for this week's Illustration Friday topic. I really like the creepy, smiling elephant. Papa Buns does not seem happy about his assistance.

WIP - Ozma & Tip

Roughing in colors...

WIP - Ozma & Tip

Next up in my series of book character illustrations - one of my favorite characters from the Oz books: Ozma (and her male form, Tip). Not familiar with her story? Read the whole book here: The Marvelous Land of Oz

Lyra Illustration - Final

I wanted to start my illustration series with Lyra from the Golden Compass because it was such an important book for me growing up. I remember my bought me the book on a whim one day, and after I actually got around to reading it I couldn't stop. I blew through the first and the second in a weekend and then had to wait two painful years for the final book in the trilogy to be published (and during that waiting period I read the first two over and over again). This is one of those books that I encourage everyone I meet to read (much to their annoyance I'm sure). It's a story with an epic scope told from a fairly small perspective that lives within the realm of sci fi/ fantasy without being overtly so. All of the characters are enjoyable (and terrifying - I had a teacher named Mrs. Coulter who shared a remarkable number of traits with the villain of the same name from the book) and flawed, and it's great to read about a main girl character who's more nasty and mischievous than sweet and curious. This book is best read within the comfort of a warm room while a huge snowstorm goes on outside. I don't talk about the movie.

Lyra - WIP

Roughing in the colors. Probably going to go a few more layers before I call it quits!

Lyra Belacqua - WIP

Today I started a set of illustrations that I'm incredibly excited about. I'm going to be creating a series of illustrations featuring characters from books that I read (or had read to me) as a kid/teen that were in some way incredibly important to me. These will all be characters that hold a very special place in my heart - characters that are so good that they make me excited to go back and read their books even though I know exactly what's going to happen in the story. I'll go into more detail once I post the finished version of this piece, but I wanted to start with Lyra because of the profound impact that The Golden Compass (and the two sequels) had on both my childhood imagination and my creative process. She is just such a great heroic character and I've wanted to try and depict her for a long time. 


Read more below the jump!

Robots Page 7 is up!

Page 7 of Robots! in 3D is now online! I'm excited that we've been able to keep our update schedule going at a steady page. This page was incredibly complex because I had to draw all of the overlapping cornstalks in their entirety. That's the one interesting thing about making a 3D comic - you can't fudge something in the scene by covering it up with something else. To complete the full 3D effect every object that is going to have some depth to it must be drawn completely. But really - it was worth it this time. If you have a pair of 3D glasses around (or you made your own) this is a page you should really check out. I'm looking forward to later points in the story where we'll be able to create some really extravagant 3D landscapes!

Sneak peek!

Sorry I haven't posted new content in a little while! I was suddenly swamped with two large freelance jobs that have been taking most of my time and energy (but the projects are super cool and I'm excited to share the work I did for both once they are released). On top of that, I've been working away trying to keep up the Robots! buffer. I've also got some plans in the works for a new watercolor series that I am INCREDIBLY excited to start (more on that soon). But until then enjoy a sneak peak at the page I'm currently working on now for Robots! You can get a feel for my process (I sketch everything out digitally in blue first and then go back and ink once I get everything just right) and get a special peek at a new character!

Illustration Friday-Perspective

This week's Illustration Friday topic was a particularly appropriate one for me given the work I've been doing over the past few months. In mid February Adam and I launched our once weekly webcomic Robots! in 3D. 

The special thing about this comic however, is that is is presented to our readers in anaglyph 3D. After I draw each page in Photoshop Adam takes it through a special process (read more about his process here and here) that outputs the final anaglyph image. The whole process is unique to both of our working methods (you can't hide any poorly drawn object behind another object because it will be seen once it is in 3D) and it has really changed the way I approach creating the comic pages. 3D comics in general are kind a weird niche thing (we went and bought up pretty much all the ones we could find at our local comic shop which amounted a whopping total of three books!) but there's something very elegant about them that I really enjoy. In many of the ways that comics in general differ in their storytelling methods in relation to movies or tv, 3D comics really enhance that immersive experience. The reader controls the pace and flow of the story while reading a comic, but when the images you are seeing exist on different overlapping planes and move about your field of vision depending on how you move your head that completely alters the experience. The effect is even more impressive when you're turning the pages in a 3D printed book and the perspective changes as the page warps and folds!
The image that I chose to represent the topic is the first page (technically 2 pages as it's a double page spread) of book #1 of Robots! in 3D. It was a particularly challenging image to draw since landscapes are always something I have trouble creating convincingly. And if you don't have 3D glasses, do not fret! You can learn how to  make you own here or check out the image in 2D here.
Anyone else have any favorite 3D comics? Adam says he remembers reading a Donald Duck or Uncle Scrooge one when he was a kid. As a diehard Ducks fan I would kill to find that issue!

Adam Explains Stereoscopy

Are you curious about how we make our 3D webcomic? Check out the series of posts that Adam made over on his blog. You'll get a brief rundown of how anaglyph technology works and what we actually do to make our comic 3D. Enjoy!

Illustration Friday- Propagate

I wanted to do something different for this week's Illustration Friday entry. I don't have a lot of free time this week, so I wanted something kind of quick and kind of messy. I was inspired by the patterns that illustrator Nicole Duquette has been making recently and I wanted to play around with repetition. Of course this pattern doesn't actually repeat, but I like the idea and want to experiment more. I have an affinity for this weird little monster guy. He first appeared when I was coming up with logo idea for a friend and quickly morphed into the different versions that you see here.

Robots! Update

The newest page of Robots! in 3D is up! We're only on page 4 right now, but I'm up to page 10/11 in my buffer. I can't wait to show off those pages! I've had some pretty interesting technical challenges as the story starts to take off and I'm quite proud of my final efforts. Maybe I'll post some sneak peaks here soon...

Illustration Friday- Adrift

Ever get that feeling when your mind is adrift and your ideas can just float about with ease? This painting was somewhat inspired by two pictures books, Sayonara, Mrs. Kackelman  by Maria Kalman, and A Day with Wilbur Robinson by William Joyce. These were two of my favorite books as a kid and I loved, loved, loved the costumes that the characters wore in each. Again (ugh) my scanner just isn't accurately capturing the colors of this painting. I tried messing around with it in Photoshop after the fact, but it never really comes out right.  I guess I'll have to keep trying!

Robots! in 3D!

The day has finally arrived! The anaglyph 3D webcomic that Adam and I have been working on is finally up and running. We have three pages of Robots! in 3D online now and a buffer of pages ready to go for the next few weeks. We'll be updating the comic every Friday along with little blog posts during the week relating to 3D comics and other things that we find interesting.

You can follow along with Robots! in a number of different ways. I've been posting updates about the comic on Twitter (along with other tidbits about different projects that I'm working on). You can also become a fan of Robots! on Facebook. Or you can follow our production blog. We'll be posting information about our process, ideas to make your own 3D glasses (3Diy), goals, and little sneak peeks at storylines to come. I hope you enjoy the comic and I'd love to hear your feedback! You can leave a comment here or any of the aforementioned places, or you can send us an e-mail at robotsin3d(a)rewiredpictures.com

Illustration Friday-Muddy

I finished my little pig painting for Illustration Friday. My scanner is working again but now I'm having trouble getting the scan to match the original artwork. Ah well, one step at a time!

Most pigs love playing in the mud, but not this guy. At least he has his boots.

WIP - Muddy

I want to try and do my Illustration Friday entires for the next few weeks using traditional media. This week the theme is "muddy" so I came up with a sad little pig that hates walking in the rain (again sorry for the pictures - the scanner is still out of commission!):

I start by sketching out the drawing in my notebook. At this stage I do probably 20 or so quick doodles exploring the pose or feeling that I'm trying to create before I settle on one that I feel most accurately captures my original idea...

Illustration Friday - Focused

I finished my painting this weekend and if definitely fits within the Illustration Friday theme this week! Unfortunately my scanner is broken so I had to take a photo and the colors just aren't as vivid as they are in life. Hopefully I'll get that fixed soon!

Anyone who's seen my animated Div III will recognize the little girl character here as Margot. I've been thinking of starting an all-ages comic featuring Margot and her adventures (including a retelling of her encounter with the Goblin featured in the original film). This would be a long way off (I still have Robots! to get to first!) but I've been having a good time thinking of situations that she'd have to find her way out of. I imagine the comic as somewhat similar to Uncle Scrooge comics by Carl Barks and Don Rosa. Each issue would be a stand-alone story. We'll see what happens. But until then, look forward to more of my experiments in painting!

WIP - Roadblock

One of my goals for this year is to really start experimenting with a watercolor painting style. I've never really done it before and I think it's a medium that works really well for picture book illustration. I don't actually have watercolor paints, but I remembered that I have these really nice calligraphy inks that my aunt gave me one year for my birthday (probably back in high school) that I never really used. They ended up working wonderfully!

I only have one sized paint brush that works with watercolors, so things are starting to get a little muddy, but I'm happy with the direction this is going - especially for a first attempt with the medium! I still have a little more work to do before I'll feel like it's really finished. Pictures coming soon!

Winter - Final

Here's the final version of the second print in my seasons Glicee print series: Winter. The biggest change from my original sketches was to make the foggy breath curl into an ice crystal/icicle formation. I've been limiting myself to 6 colors in each design which gives me a nice design challenge to work with. I really loved the rough shading that I had in the original sketches, but to keep it visually similar to the first in the series, I went with a flatter coloring method. I'm going to wait to have this printed until I have the other two images in the series complete, but hopefully that will be pretty soon!

Winter WIP - Color blocking

Trying to figure out some quick color blocking on my Winter illustration. I think I'm going to go with the middle option.

"Winter" print -WIP

I've finally started to finish up the series of Mucha-inspired prints that I started with this illustration!

This is my initial rough sketch for "Winter." I wanted her to have a 1920's sort of style to offset the very nymph-y look of the original drawing (I also wanter her to feel very cold, while Autumn was very earthy). My inspiration for her outfit comes from all of the really creative street fashion blogs that I've been browsing lately. I'm still planning on doing a small run of Glicee prints for this illustration once I finish, and once I finish the entire series I'll do a collection of all of the four images together.

Viking Cat

My kitty loves to chew on my legs. I can only imagine why....

Drawn as a warm-up exercise in Photoshop. I realized that I've actually drawn a number of Vikings in the past 6 months. Strange...

Robots! Preview - Possum edition

I've been a busy little doodler this past week working on cranking out pages for the 3d web comic that Adam and I are preparing to launch in early February. I wanted to give a preview of the work I've been doing without showing off too much of the pages, so for now, enjoy this fine selection of possum drawings (taken from page 2 and 3 of the comic)!


I love drawing ugly little critters

Illustration Friday- Renewal

This week's Illustration Friday theme is "Renewal." Because I was home last week for Christmas, I thought it would be fun to "renew" an illustration that I did when I was a kid. During pretty much all of my elementary school years I was obsessed with hamsters. I had them as pets, I played make-believe that I was one, and I would draw them all the time. Strangely enough, the hamsters that I would draw all had a few common features: they had giant heads, incredibly blood-shot eyes, and they all wore propellor beanies (I chalk this up to watching too many Looney Toons). I tried to find an example of an old hamster drawing, but the only one around the house appears sans beanie. The color scheme is a bit atypical as well since this particular hamster was drawn for an art class assignment where we had to use magic doodle markers, but you get the idea. So we have:

Creepy polka-dot hamster circa mid 90's

And my new, beanie bearing (and still incredibly creepy) hamster from January 5th, 2010