Portfolio Showcase: Orpheus Club Caricature

Ha! I'll bet you thought that my being in New York today would preclude me from keeping my Friday appointment here. Well, through the magic of a new feature on Blogger called "Blogger in Draft," I can create a new post, store it, and have it uploaded to my blog whenever I'd like.

So, here I am with a brand new Portfolio Showcase!

First I need to say that caricatures are difficult. I give all due respect to those who do it for a living, including my friends Stephen Silver, Ted Tucker, and Keelan Parham. I don't know him, but Tom Richmond, of Mad Magazine fame, is also a master. These guys REALLY know what they're doing. I'm a novice. that being said, I was hired a few years ago by Philadelphia's Orpheus Club, a prestigious and historical singing organization, to create a caricature of one of their members, as a tribute. This piece went through several revisions to get it right. the client wanted something along the lines of an Al Hirschfeld (speaking of MASTERS)design. I did my best, and I think I was able to capture the style a bit, as well as the essence of the subject, a man named Syd. I'll let others be the judge, but here is the illustration:



This isn't the actual final version, but I like this one just a little better than what was displayed. by the way, I'm told the image was displayed on a huge banner flanked by two enormous Maxfield Parrish pieces! A friend of mine has pictures, which I still haven't seen, but if he ever gets them to me, I'll be sure to post them. Parrish is a favorite of mine, so that was a real honor!

I'll be back next week with more. Have a nice weekend!

Best,
Rich