Alchemist #3

Alchemist opening illustration

13"x19"

Watercolor 

Here is the third painting in the Alchemist series.

GLAD poster art

Over the past few years my good friend and photographer Tomas Donoso has been working on creating music videos for the enormously talented Chattanooga based band, Strung Like A Horse. Together they are working on releasing a new video for the song Glad, and will be kicking off the video with a Horror Ball at the Honest Pint, in Chattanooga Tennessee on August 10th. I was asked to create a poster for the event as well as some art work for potential T-shirts and stickers. Tomas provided me with amazing reference photos, as well as clear direction to how he wanted the poster to look and feel.  This was a super fun project to work on and the final poster ended up being a composite of numerous watercolor paintings, some of which are featured within this post. Much thanks to Tomas Donoso, Clay Maselle, and the members of Strung Like A Horse!

To check out the video trailer click this link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=KsKHElO9yQ0

To find out more information about the band and the video and the event visit them on facebook at:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Strung-Like-A-Horse/135145146499352

Zombie Slayer

Watercolor 13"x19"

Christine portrait

Watercolor 8"x11"

Final Poster Design

Watercolor and Photoshop 11"x17"

Euro Cyclist

Euro Cyclist

Acrylic on panel

24"x36"

 Since completing my thesis at the Hartford Art School in 2009 I have not had the opportunity to work with acrylic paint all that much. This painting was a lot of fun to do as it offered a chance to re-visit the medium.  Included in a previous post was  the preliminary drawing in which this painting was based upon. 

Ganesh watercolor

Ganesh Character Study

Pen and Ink &Watercolor

6"x9"

This is just a little watercolor that I did for fun. I have also built a 3D model based on this character in which I hope to someday animate.  

Groundhog day

Gantu the Groundhog

Watercolor

6"x9"

Gantu the Groundhog is going to appear in a larger acrylic panel that I am working on. In the meantime I felt like doing a quick watercolor study of him. So here he is...

Tangiers painting

Tangiers

13"x19"

watercolor

This is the second painting in a series of images that I am working on, inspired by the book "The Alchemist".  In efforts to finish this piece for the "Big Characters" show that opened this past saturday at Seven Arts Gallery I had to cut a few corners in my process.  Lately I like to complete a value study as well as a color study before jumping into the painting, but these steps were left out due to limited time. The result was that I ended up with some things that were a bit more spontaneous than if I had gone through my usual preliminary steps. Of course there were also some things that I struggled with by not having a few essential details sorted out in the beginning, but that is par for the course.

The Chieftans

 The Chieftans 

13"x19"

watercolor and acrylic

Here  is a nearly finished version of one of the paintings from the Alchemist series that I have been working on. This piece along with a number of other watercolor, acrylic, and digital paintings will be on display at the Seven Arts Gallery in Ridgefield, CT, as a part the "Big Characters" show. The opening is this saturday April 6th, from 6-8 pm. 

Tangiers edit

Tangiers overview

This is the final layout drawing for one of the pieces in the Alchemist series that I am working on. It has come quite a ways from the initial thumbnail in which I posted a few weeks ago, and at this point I am still unsure if the composition actually works better than the previous drawing. There are things I like about the previous version and there are things I like about this one. Either way I am hoping to have it ready for my show at Seven Arts Gallery on April 6th, guess we will see?

Cyclist rough

Old School Euro Cyclist Climber

Lately I have been posting a lot of rough drawings for paintings that I am working on. Quite a few of them have entered the painting phase and I hope to post some images of them in progress as soon as I can. For now here is another that I am working.

Alchemist layout #3

Tangiers layout

This is the third drawing for a series of paintings I am working on. There remains quite few things I would like to refine and possibly add to this one, but here it is for now.

Alchemist rough layout 2

The Magic Sycamore 

This is the second layout drawing for a series of paintings I am working on based on the Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. This is image depicts the opening scene where the young shepherd and his flock spend the night in the ruins of an old church that has sprouted a gigantic sycamore tree from within its walls.

 As always there are a few things I will go back and refine in this drawing. As time goes by, and the more and more I work on creating illustrations, I realize how important it is to push the design phase as far as you can. In most cases a composition can always be better, a character better designed, a hand better drawn, etc.  This composition was very much influenced by the Sagrada Familia in Spain, as well as the amazing Sycamore trees found growing in the temples of Angkor Wat.

Alchemist roughs

Tangiers concept sketch

Chieftan sketch

Santiago the shepherd character study

The Chieftans

  Many years ago on a flight from Connecticut to Denver I had the chance to read The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho, a beautiful story about a young Spanish Shepherd that embarks on a journey to unlock the significance of his recurring dreams. The story is filled with captivating imagery, beautiful landscapes, and magical characters in which have inspired me to create a series of illustrations. This post contains an assortment of rough drawings in which I hope will result in finished watercolor paintings. The scene containing multiple figures is furthest along in its development, while the others are tiny thumbnails taken from my moleskin sketch book.

Stanley Photos

Stanley in Fiji

Stanley in Argentina

Stanley in Thailand

Stanley in Mongolia

Stanley in UK with celebrtiy

Jessica-Jane Clement

In Kenya with Celebrity

Eric Omondi

Stanley in Maldives

Stanley in Democratic Republic

of the Congo

 Creating pictures is something I have been doing for as long as I can remember. For me it is something that has just always been there, something that I have always felt the need to do. In the past ten years my illustrations have been used for a variety of purposes, personally, as well as commercially. Work as an illustrator certainly has its ups and downs, and some projects are far more rewarding than others.

 At this time, the Shark Stanley campaign, has been by far the most satisfying project I have ever been involved with. Personally I see creating pictures as a way to express an idea, a vehicle in which to tell a story, a process that may end up in an image in which will spark the viewers imagination. If I can do any of the three things listed above then I see the illustration as a success. Although I have always dreamed of using my art in a way that could not only satisfy me, or an art director, but as a way of bettering the world. Shark Stanley for me has added a whole new element to what is possible through picture making, it has shown me that my Illustrations have the potential to reach a global audience,  and can help to make positive impacts in our world.

 I have been very lucky to be a part of an awesome team on this project, who without, I do not think that campaign would have been  nearly as successful. Hats off to everyone that has been involved! In this post I have included various photos that have been taken world wide with Shark Stanley and Friends. Every time I see photos being added to the Shark Stanley page, filled with smiling faces, it brightens up my day. Seeing these photos makes me feel great about choosing the path, although rather difficult at times,  to be a picture maker.

A big thank you to everyone that has been participating in the Shark Stanley campaign and for posting photos on the web. I am not sure who the photographers were for each of the shots included int his post, but if you would like to be credited please drop me a line with your info and I will be happy to include it with the photo!

Thanks again everyone!

To learn more about Shark Stanley and Friends visit them on Face Book:

https://www.facebook.com/SharkStanley?fref=ts

As well as at the Shark Defenders web site:

http://www.sharkdefenders.com/p/shark-stanley.html

At the Crossroads

 Robert Johnson Thumbnail 1.5"x 3"

Value Study

Digital

Robert Johnson at the Crossroads

Watercolor 11"x 15"

It is said that the blues musician Robert Johnson made a pact with the devil, exchanging his sole for  musical  talents. This legend that has been retold in many shapes and forms since Johnson's untimely death in 1938. Obviously the story inspired me to create this painting, and in this post I am sharing a bit about the process of creating the final image. The first image is one of many small thumbnail drawings that I always do when starting an illustration. The second image is a digital value study, and at this point in the process I lay out the large shapes within the composition. The final painting was done with Yarka watercolors on Arches cold pressed paper. The painting was scanned and I made a few finishing  tweaks in photoshop.


For more information about the legend of Robert Johnson check out this link:
http://www.vagablogging.net/robert-johnson-sold-his-soul-to-the-devil-in-rosedale-mississippi.html

Shark Stanley Art

Shark Stanley Cutout

Stanley and friends going on a journey

The  Dreadful Degraded Reef

Pierre Le Porbeagle in Trouble

Happy Turtles

The paintings in this post are taken from the pages of a recently launched children's book titled " Shark Stanley and friends". This  book along with the four shark character cutouts that I created are part of a  campaign to raise awareness about endangered sharks and rays, as well as to provide sanctuaries for them.  Shark Stanley and Friends is now offered as a free PDF download and hard copies will be made available after Feb 7th. I will follow up with some information as soon as I have it to where you can go about getting a copy of the book.

For now here are the links to download the free PDF version:

http://www.sharkdefenders.com/2013/01/the-adventures-of-shark-stanley-and.html

http://sagemagazine.org/the-adventures-of-shark-stanley-and-friends-official-book-release/

To learn more about Shark Stanley and Friends have a look at these following links:

http://www.sharkdefenders.com/p/shark-stanley.html

https://www.facebook.com/SharkStanley