Pickup Process

Well, I intended to do this post a bit sooner, but life sometimes gets in the way. Sorry to anyone that's been waiting.

As I mentioned last time, many of my project go through a variety of iterations, from start to finish. Revisions are a huge part of the illustration and design process, and virtually every assignment I get goes through many stages to get the end result. I sometimes have to revisit an image up to 15 to 20 times! In this particular case, there were probably about twelve, but I'm going to just post a sample, for the sake of clarity. Some of the revisions were so slight, it's tough to even detect the change. So, here are the truck images:

I began with a pretty straightforward shot of a 1956 Ford pickup, above.

My client thought it was a good start, but wanted something a bit more cartoony. I added a warp to the drawing to give it a soft roundness, and made the grill a bit more "friendly" with the upturned look to it. Picture it as an abstract smile.

The client was happy with the warp, but wanted me to show a bit more of the side of the truck. She asked me to turn it just a little. Also, she wanted to carry the split on the hood up to the windshield, and change the grill. So, I got a chance to customize the truck a little, and suddenly my '56 Ford transformed into a '53 Chevy!

Next, I was asked to shorten the height of the windshield a bit. It's subtle, but if you look at the previous version, you can see the change.

Another minor change: I was asked to lengthen the hood, just a bit; stretch it a little. Again, a subtle change.

Finally, the sketch was approved, and I inked the final rendering. Here is the end result!

The illustration was used in an interactive kiosk at a children's museum in Texas. I'm not sure exactly where it is, so if anyone out there has seen this work, please let me know! Sometimes, work gets sent out into the ether, and I never know where it ends up!

Thanks for checking this out. tune in next time, when I go to the dogs!

Best,
Rich

With 100% More Apes...

...than my last post.

I've had a t-shirt idea rolling around my brain for the past few weeks, and did a little sketch last night to try it out on paper. I won't say what I have in mind for now, but I was thinking about the idea when I just happened to read my buddy Matt Wieringo's recent post, featuring his OUTSTANDING Planet of the Apes illustration. So, I was definitely more than a little inspired when I drew this.



I hope you like it. I also hope my idea is as clever as it first seemed to me when I came up with it. If it is, you'll see more of it here soon.

Best,
Rich

Free Comic Book Day Pictures!

So another Free Comic Book Day has come and gone, and once again, Captain Blue Hen Comics turned in an incredible performance! From what I understand, roughly 1400 people came through the doors, most of them families with kids. And again, we artists spent the entire time sketching for kids and not-quite-kids-anymore-but-that's-OK. It was nonstop lines of people, and everyone seemed to have a great time. The CBH folks had their yearly food drive, and did very well for the community. This store and its people do so many great things that go far beyond just selling comic books, and that's only one of the many reasons I return every year. Thanks to Joe Murray, and his entire crew for inviting me to once again be a part of the festivities! Also, thanks to all the fans who came by to say hi, asked for my humble drawings, and who contributed to a terrific cause (or two or three!)!

Now, onto some art. I did a pretty good job of photographically chronicling the sketches I did. I recently got a new camera for myself, and am very happy with the clarity of the photos. This is a fantastic alternative to having to buy a portable scanner! It's also nice to finally have some new art to post, even if they're "just" sketches. So, here are some of the day's pieces:


A kind of sneaky looking Roboy Red. My first Roboy of the day.


This guy's name is Rico, and I was asked to draw him with a stick of dynamite. I'm not sure why, but I complied. I like the way it turned out, and had a good time drawing it. I should also mention that the pose was totally swiped from the reference provided (with apologies to the original artist).



OK, so this guy comes up to me, and says, "I have this sketchbook of characters jumping over stuff. Can you do something for it?" Uh, ok... So I ask him if I can see what others have done so far... "Um, well, you're the first artist I've asked!" Oh boy, talk about pressure! Well, I think it's a respectable effort, and it was cool to be able to draw a car in the shot! Please bear in mind that I drew this with a line waiting for me, so I didn't take as much time as I would have liked. I think the sketch has some issues, but I might revisit the pose another time, as I like the concept. It would be neat to see what I could do with it, if I had the amount of time I'd normally spend on an image. I'm grateful that the recipient thought it was cool!



Rich does manga! Of course, I have no clue who this character is, but it was fun to do the style.



This guy is an actor on some popular TV show, I'm told. I wish I could remember his name, or the show's name, but I suffer from television awareness deficiency these days... unless it involves Thomas the Tank Engine, Curious George, or the like, I'm ignorant. Maybe you readers can identify him from the photo reference under the sketch, and make a game of it! See? I now have an interactive, fun blog! In any event, I was asked to do a more realistic looking sketch, and this is what I came up with for the her. It was kind of fun to do a likeness in this venue. Not typical, as I'm normally asked to draw comic book characters on Free Comic Book Day... go figure!



I really like the way this chunky/clunky Roboy sketch came out. A little different than the way I usually draw him.



An oldie but a goodie. Steel was my first comics gig, back in 1993. Mike Clarke, who wrote this terrific piece about the day at CBH, requested this from me at the end of the day. I was happy to be able to stroll down Memory Lane with this one.



Jamar is ALWAYS camera aware. I swear, he looked up from drawing for just a fraction of a second, just as I took this shot, then looked right down at his sketch again. There was no way he could have known I was about to snap it. I'm going to begin calling him "Radar!"



My setup at the end of the day. The cup was actually used as a circle template on one of the early sketches of the day. I'd be foolish to keep a filled cup near my drawing area... ahem... moving on...

So, that's my wrap. It was such a fun time, and again, many thanks to everyone involved. This really helped gear me up for convention season, which is almost upon me. I'm looking forward to some wonderful shows this summer, all of which I'll alert everyone to here, in the coming weeks. In the meantime, I'll have another art post coming up shortly, so please stop back soon! Thanks!

Best,
Rich

Portfolio Showcase: Sketchy creatures

Another week already, wow! I'll have some new work to post next week, as I've completed the newest Roboy Red story, and I'm also working on another comic book right now. More on that in a future post, but while I'm on the subject, I realized I post a lot of comic book work, as well as finished illustrations, but I don't think I've posted any of my sketches. Sketching is an important part of the process for me, and while I certainly don't do it as much as I'd like, I do have a lot of sketch work that most people never see. To that end, below are a few "creatures" I've sketched. My favorite is the Frankenstein monster:



I also enjoy sketching my cat. He's usually sleeping, so he makes for an easy subject:





Below is the preliminary sketch I did of a polar bear, trying to get the feel right for the Golden Compass job.



Next week, look for some new comics stuff, and then I'll be back Friday with a new Portfolio Showcase. Have a great weekend!

Best,
Rich