Monsters with Chika!

These are some collaborative paintings I did with my friend Chika for a group show at The Untitled Arts Society called Ampersand 3. All the pieces in the show were done collaboratively. 

I've shown here the paintings, but also some of the sketches that the paintings were based off of. The drawings themselves were done by both of us, with each of us beginning a sketch, and then switching books after random amounts of time until we agreed that they were done. We sketched 20 or so monsters and then chose our favourite six to actually use for the paintings. Which we have even sold already! Neat!

A large collaboration with Chika!

This is a collaborative painting I did with my dear friend Chika!! We painted the address on her neighbor's garage door. And now they are the envy of the block! 

Weekly Sketch Challenge with Chika Part 1: Spring

Soooo, a few weeks ago Chika and I decided to start a weekly sketch challenge where we would choose a theme that related to something that happened to one of us in the past week, and try and use new techniques or media that we wouldn't typically "sketch" with. 

It is so far proving more difficult to keep this as a weekly exercise than we had anticipated! There's just not enough time!!! 

Anyways, this one's just a spring-inspired pattern that I came up with and painted using gouache. 

BLOOD!!!

Ok, wow has it been a while since I've posted something. It's certainly not that I haven't been doing things!!! This is an illustration I did for a local author for whom I did cover art for a few years ago. It's the title for a series of short stories she's posting online. The letters are supposed to look like they're alive and the heart in the D is pumping blood through the veins. It was neat to do a more rendered kind of painting. It's been a while...

Promotional Piece

This is a promotional piece I'm printing in postcard from and sending out to people who will see it, like it, and then hire me! That's the general idea anyways...

My goal is to send one out every fours months-ish. Each one will feature a quote that I find interesting or inspirational and my visual interpretation of the quote. Fun stuff!


Oh yes, and I thought it would be neat to show some process on this one.

I start out with a very rough sketch just to get ideas out. Yup. Pretty amazing drawing skills displayed on the first sketch. Then I do a nice line drawing in pen. Which I then scan and add colours to and play around with in photoshop to get some idea of what I want to do.

In the colour comp for this one, there's a bit too much going on and not enough contrast, so I fixed these things for the actual final painted version which is acrylics for the background, fabric, and gouache for the "drawn" part. And that, is how it's done!

My head is filled with song: Part 2

SMASHING PUMPKINS: 1979

Eesh. Posting every week is tricky. Okay, so here's the second one of the series I'm working on. Man! I love this song! Who doesn't! So good to drive to! Sooooo, yeah. I experimented a bit with using fabrics as a main element and gluing stuff on and whatnot. It's colourful that's for sure.... Keep on the lookout for another in the next couple of weeks!

My head is filled with song: Part 1

FLEET FOXES: Tiger Mountain Peasant Song

I've recently been working for a painting company (yes, houses, walls, solid colours...) to generate some income, and have been finding it tricky to make time anything creative. To get things flowing again, I've started a project for myself. Every two weeks, I'm going to try and make an album sized illustration based upon a song that I really like or has affected me in some way. The first one is inspired by the Fleet Foxes' "Tiger Mountain Peasant Song." It's a neat image, but I think it could reflect the song a bit more. I don't think the illustration quite has the same feeling as the song does... I will do better on the next one!!! AHA!!!

Illustration Friday - Frozen

A silly painting inspired by perhaps my favourite thing to eat. ICE CREAM!!!!!!!!

Collaboration with Chika!

Chika and I were part of the group show "Ampersand" at the Art Life Gallery in Calgary in August. The show featured 14 different pieces, all of which were done collaboratively. It was a blast! What you are seeing here was actually our second attempt at it. The other side of the board, which is about 2 by 4 feet, has our first attempt on it, which we abandoned after deciding we didn't really like the direction it was going... The piece was done without any planning, and I must admit partly under the influnece of delicious rum. Good times!!!

Paintings!

These are some paintings I threw together for a group show at Oolong . Very silly.

This one is just an experiment.