From the Sketchbook

Here are a few pages from the sketchbook from my visit to Nathan Fox and Becky Cloonan's lecture at the Society of Illustrators a few weeks back. First I tried my hand at capturing the likeness of Becky, Nathan and the moderator as they talked back and forth. Sometime after I ended up doodling the creepy dog and the strange cone-head man. I think this must have been post-Coraline.


Then I went upstairs to catch the last bit of life-drawing with some friends. This was my first taste of the SOI sketch/jazz night and I have to say, I liked it very much. Great models, great music and a stocked bar make for a pretty perfect evening if I do say so myself. And I do.

Richard and his Pet

Here is the preliminary drawing for a painting that will be in a massive group show in May. The curator is having about 25 artists paint him as an albino animal hybrid and is exhibiting them 19th century salon style so I thought a 19th century man was in order. I imagined Richard as a sort of Moreau-style professor with one of his creations. I thought the real question should be was Richard's unique condition a product of his own imagination or is it what inspires him to create similarly hybrid beings.

Two Heads are Better?

When given an assignment to illustrate a story about a two headed man, where both heads have completely different personalities and looks, I knew exactly who I wanted to use. Brennan and Griffin are a couple friends, really fun guys and step-brothers. I bribed them over with fried chicken, took photos of them and worked out this composition.




The background is still in flux. Initially I was thinking fire/smoke on one side turning into butterflies ( a significant image in the story) but the paint is telling me this may not work. Also Grif (the one on the right) will be a bit more sinister in the final.