tessellation

A mock TCAF poster illustration for class, focusing on the changes happening as traditional and digital print mediums continue to change and merge, something that is becoming more and more relevant for comic artists and image-makers right now. I like it with and without the text so I posted both. Done with acrylic and gouache on 300 lb Arches Hotpress Watercolour paper, with adjustments in Photoshop. Definitely want to do more work on this theme as well, I already have a few ideas.

More schoolwork to show soon as the semester wraps up!

cracked

This was an assignment for my Illustration class, an op-ed illustration for this article about bullying, and how the only way we can stop it is by teaching kids how to take care of each other. The hairline cracks represent the subtle damage that bullying causes, and how if not handled with care they could easily shatter. I used graphite and scratch-board and combined the two surfaces in Photoshop with some minor touch-ups.

I'm updating progress work over on my sketch tumblr if anyone is interested. So many assignments, so little time.

wind-up birds

These were a couple of paintings I made for the Edmonton Artwalk. I'd had the sketches sitting around for so long I finally decided to paint them. They're done with gouache with some small coloured pencil touch-ups, all on watercolour paper. There's still a couple more hanging around here half finished, so there may be more wind-up birds in the future.

Thanks to everyone who came out to the Artwalk, I had an amazing time! There were even some people who knew me solely from this blog, which was pretty cool. It was great talking to everyone, and hopefully I'll be able to make it out again next year.

slips and tangles...

Slips and Tangles, Graphite on Stonehenge

A bit of schoolwork I touched up, finally finished! No particular concept, interpret as you will. I have a bunch of pieces on the go, I'll update again soon, trying to get as much finished as possible before the Art Walk. If anyone's around Whyte Ave in Edmonton from the 15th to the 17th, check it out, drop by my table and say hi!

Tumblr

So I started a couple things on Tumblr, particularly a kind of sketchbook where I'll be posting a bunch of my sketches and progress work, in an effort to keep myself especially motivated to draw this summer. You can find it HERE. I also put together a somewhat professional website, you can find it HERE. Other than that, working on too many projects and keeping busy, more things to see soon!

These were both projects from my media class using a gouache resistance technique. Basically you take some illustration board and paint the image out with white gouache. Once that dries you evenly brush india ink over it (I used black in the case, but you could use any colour). Once that dries, you run water over the whole piece in the sink and the white gouache washes away, leaving an almost woodblock-print-like image behind. It's so much fun to work with and you can get some really interesting spontaneous textures out of it.

illustration part 2

For this assignment we were trying to create a kind of infograph to accompany an article, and I chose "How to Escape from a Giant Octopus" from The Absolute Worst-Case Scenario Handbook, which can be read here just a little ways down the page. It ended up being a very large piece (13"x18")and quite challenging trying to get each part to read as well as work together as a whole, but I think it came together in the end. I used brush ink and watered-down gouache on illustration board.

This was an in-class assignment where we had to start and finish a portrait of Muammar Gaddafi within a few hours. He has very intense facial features which were really great to work with.

Pencil, pen and brush ink on Stonehenge.