Vaulting ahead

Getting ahead despite being stuck in the same size box as your coworkers.

An editorial illustration I began some time ago (portfolio pieces sometimes have the luxury of time) and finally got around to finishing recently.

Cape Cod Map- download a free version

If you're heading to Cape Cod this summer, here's a simplified map I just finished illustrating and designing. I did a simpler version (1 color) for a wedding program and then decided to finish the map to a higher degree.

For a free higher resolution PDF of this map to actually use when you visit the Cape, click here to download it.

Following Instructions

This is an illustration of a group of people I created for Flash Kids/Barnes & Noble books. The instructions were much more complex than what I usually get (draw a tree with a squirrel running on a branch, for example) and it took a lot of rechecking to make sure I got everyone right. Here's the description from my client:

Assignment: illustration of a group photo of 3 older men, 1 with short hair, 1 with no hair and 1 with long hair, 1 with glasses, 1 with a hat; 2 older women with short hair; 1 middle-aged man with no hair and glasses; 2 middle-aged women: 1 with a hat and short hair and the other with long hair and glasses; 3 girls, 2 with long hair and 1 with short hair, 1 wearing glasses; 2 boys with short hair 1 with glasses and 1 with a hat; 4 large dogs, 1 spotted black and white, another just black, and 2 golden; 1 small white dog; and 1 small brown dog.

Are you dizzy yet?

Housing market

An editorial piece I completed a few days ago about the housing market and how every house that gets sold is another step out of the recession hole. This could either be a broker or a buyer proudly displaying the house that has just sold.

So everyone, go do your part and buy a house. Or a cup of coffee...

What we read this week

In honor of Children's Book Week, here is a collage of most of the books my wife and I read with our 3 1/2 year old son this past week. By Leo's decree, some books must be read every night (until he gets a new favorite) while others make the occasional appearance, cycling in and out.

The Fish Who Cried Wolf is a favorite book, beautifully illustrated and very engagingly written, but with what is easily the worst name. The original story (The Boy Who Cried Wolf) behind the name doesn't even strictly connect to this story and makes the book seem like just another carbon copy, but it is actually very originally written.

My Truck is Stuck is also nicely written with rhymes you can't get out of your head. Leo is now able to 'read' this book by himself because it flows so cleanly. Lots to see in the artwork.

Free Comic Book Day this year got my son stuck on Pixar's Cars and The Incredibles (which was a back-up feature to Cars). Cars was good and somewhat easy to follow (although he didn't get any of the irony which was a bit too subtle) but The Incredibles (written by the VERY talented Mark Waid) was a little too dense for Leo's age. When we read this one, we basically have to paraphrase the character development pages to keep him interested until the action starts again. Once there's jumping and running again (not much hitting), he loves it!

The last one I want to mention (among all of these great books) is Robert Munsch's Purple, Green and Yellow. Last night was my first time reading this book and I loved it! Although the drawing style is a little dated, the use of color was very appealing and nice to look at. And the story! Munsch has a way of packing so much into one story without overwhelming the reader. This short story could be turned into a movie adaptation making use of the interesting twists/occurrences in the book.

Now, I have to get back to drawing my own children's books!

2 (Cool) Old Guys

I decided to put myself through an exercise today: Design a poster that makes these old guys cool.

My motivation was to keep things fresh while also updating my website (this will go in the 'design' section under 'posters'). Yeah, I used some popular conventions in the design (the style of the photo, edgy type) but I hope you will agree that I made the design my own with the concept.

First, I decided that these guys should be in a band, and what better name for a band than going with exactly what they are? It helps that they are dressed hip (certainly better than I was dressed when I shot the photo in Boston. I recall a pair of flip flops.). Then I gave them a venue and a couple of performance dates. (If you took a few minutes to Google the venue you would find out that it's an assisted living community where the median age is 80. Just having fun!)

I considered putting something about the type of music they play but decided against it- leaving this out suggests that if you were cool you would already know what they play.

Wolverine's secret identity...

In honor of the new Wolverine movie, I was sketching the other day in my book and started playing with the idea: What if Wolverine had a secret identity (old-school style)? So I pretended that he's a normal-looking guy (with glasses and all) with a 9 to 5 as a real estate broker or a lawyer and when he hears the scream of a mugging victim he transforms, Hulk-style, into the feral, hirsute Wolverine!

My favorite part: The familiar 'SNIKT!" that you hear when he pops his claws also occurs when his sideburns pop out.

Oh, and those forehead lines are inspired by Art Adams (for those of you who remember his kick-ass Wolverine from The Asgardian Wars).

Hope you enjoy this make-fun piece...

Art Shmooze

This is a logo I created recently for a non-profit artists advocacy group called the Graphic Artists Guild. I became president of the Boston chapter a few months back and have been working on building up membership and attendance to our events. One of our recurring events is an Art Shmooze: members and non-members get together to discuss current events in our industries, get help with hard/software issues, discuss social networking and drink some beer.

Really, I wanted to call the events "Shoot the Sh*t" but didn't think that some of our older members would appreciate that. Plus the imagery would have been visually quite unappealing.

The text is hand lettered and I created the icon to show exactly what the events are about: food goes in, words come out.

Logo Design- What to consider when it's time to hire a designer

Congratulations on your new business.
You've done the research, made a business plan and now you're finally ready to get your business off the ground. So now you need a logo to convey to everyone that yours is a serious venture with four sturdy walls and a leak-proof roof. Here are some things to consider before you hire a designer to create your new identity/branding system, and then a few while your designer is designing away.

1) What is the name of your business? You've probably given this quite a lot of thought and spent some time researching the name. Also be sure to secure a domain for the business before you spend money on a logo for a name that is already taken.

2) What do you want the logo to convey (who is your target audience)? Should it be serious, edgy, fun, conservative professional, corporate, young...?

3) What information do you want in your logo? Do you have a tag line? Do you want/need an illustration or icon?

4) Who is your competition? Provide your designer a list of competitors so s/he can get an idea of who you're up against. How do you differ from them?

5) Do some research. See what logos are out there and come up with an opinion on what you like and what you don't. I don't mean just trolling the web for an hour. I mean you should also be looking around when you go to the mall, when you flip through a magazine and when you go food shopping. Logos are everywhere and you can get an idea of what you think works and what does not work (icon or no? What color(s)? What shape?). Make a list. The more you immerse yourself in existing logos, the more you will know what will look good for your business (much like knowing about fashion before going into the store to buy an entire new wardrobe). Of course, you don't need to dictate to your designer every little thing- your research will help you to be more discerning when it comes time to look at his/her concepts.

6) See what others in your industry have on their letterhead. If you're in, say, the furniture business, do a Google search: Furniture, logo.

7) Avoid fads. Pink and chocolate-brown look great together. Will you still think so in a year? In 5 years?

8) Avoid lettering that will become dated. That funky font may have a 'best if used by' date.

9) Do not let/make the logo become too overcomplicated. It does not need to tell the whole story about your business, it just needs to be an identifier. And memorable.

10) Hire a designer with a body of work that is diverse (with logos that are fun, serious, edgy etc...) so you don't get stuck with options that look like the rest of his/her work.

11) Avoid overused icons. But if your new company is "Light Up My Room" and you feel you must have, say, a lightbulb, then it should be used in an innovative way. (Lightbulb logos. Some are innovative and some are less so)

12) Communicate with your designer. Make sure s/he understands your business (as you're the one who knows it best!), your views on what you do and do not like (see #5 above), your competition and your expectations. But also be open to your designer's suggestions- s/he has been doing this for a while!

13) Sign a contract. A contract is the only way to be certain that you will be getting what you need for the agreed-upon price. There should be a time line for the sketch phase and for finalizing the chosen logo. A number of rounds of sketches and sketch options per round should also be negotiated ahead of time (see #14 below). Also negotiate a kill-fee based on the % of work completed in case you or the designer needs to stop the work.

14) Request 2-3 different logo directions for each round of concepts. From there you can choose what is working and what is not. The designer should then take your input and make changes accordingly to one or two of the original directions. Or if the original concepts weren't hitting the mark then s/he should offer up 2-3 new concepts. I also recommend that you see the concepts on a simple white background so you don't get thrown off by whatever cool design or simulated effect is going on behind the logo.

15) Don't rush approval. Get feedback from friends, associates and family before giving your feedback to the designer on sketches or on finals. It's all about fresh eyes (You MUST look at this link to know what I mean- and for a laugh). Be clear in your feedback.

16) Logo versions. Other versions you may need:

• PMS or 4-color process version: For printing
• RGB version: For online use
  
• One color version: A simplified logo using one of your logo colors. For use on a fax cover page or if you're sponsoring a charity run, for example, they'll want to put a 1-color logo on their shirts to thank you.
• Black and white and gray: If you want to put the logo on a flier you're printing on your laser printer or photocopier.

17) Logo file formats: You will need your final logo saved as an EPS and (optionally) an AI file. These are files you can send to any other designer to fulfill whatever printing or online needs you might have. Get all versions of these on a CD and back them up. Other files:

• TIF: If you would like to slip your file into a Word document or Powerpoint.
• JPEG: If you want to put your logo on your Facebook page or Twitter or Flickr.
  

18) Final logo checklist:

• Is the logo recognizable or forgettable?
• Does it properly target your desired demographic?
• Does it stand on its own?
• Is it legible (kind of obvious, but not for some)?
• If there is a tagline, what happens if the logo is used small?

19) What else do you need designed? Here's a brief list of items you may need to complete your branding:

• Letterhead (both offset printed and a Word version to print from your computer)
  
• Envelopes (of varying sizes)
• Business cards (for all employees)
• Email signature set up
  
• Signage (if you have a store front or for trade shows)
  
• Thank you cards
• Announcement cards
  
• Brochure

All told, the design process should not be too painful, but be prepared to make decisions and to be involved in most aspects of it since, as I said before, you're the one who knows your business best!

What I'm working on- Sudoku

I've been (slowly) working on this story about a dad doing a Sudoku and his daughter thinking that just because she read online about the secret to doing the puzzles she can cruise through. Ultimately, she messes it up.

The final piece will be more of a comic page with panels but I wanted to show how I was drawing over my scanned sketches. You'll also notice just how much I'm revising from the sketch phase (that is, when I'm not working on a gig for a client. For clients, my sketches are much tighter so they know what they're gonna get when the piece is finished).

Since I'm working on real (paying) jobs, I'm just fitting this piece in whenever I have a chance so we'll see how soon I can get it done.

Portrait for Twitter and Facebook

Cindy Bernat is a successful real estate agent in NYC who decided she wanted to shake things up a little bit, which, during a down economy and terrible housing market, isn't such a bad idea. So she contacted me to illustrate her portrait for use on her Twitter and Facebook accounts (with a revamp to her email signature).

I worked from a photo she supplied me to create the portrait, then we discussed what the background might look like. My first pass (see below) was a background comprised of random New York buildings.
Cindy felt that the buildings were too non-specific and the feel was of an area of NY that she doesn't represent. She also wanted to be wearing a white shirt with a collar and a more straight-forward necklace. She provided me with some thoughts of what she wanted in her background and I began to work on it.

And then I pulled it all together, adding color but keeping the buildings a gray tone so they wouldn't compete with the portrait.
Finally, as you'll see in the final image at the top of this post, we added the 'SOLD' sign and pulled her collar out to overlap her jacket (she knows fashion much better than I do!). And the image is complete.

If you want to see her new image in action, Cindy can be found at www.twitter.com/cindybernat

Children's Musician CD

Vanessa is a wonderfully talented musician/singer/songwriter whose newest album, Carnival Day, has just debuted and has already won an iParenting Media Award. I was fortunate enough to work with Vanessa on the illustration and design of her CD, including the creation of a Vanessa character and plenty of other characters from her songs.

This was a very fun, multifaceted job and I'm thrilled with how it all turned out.

The bottom image shows a few fully illustrated pages from the CD booklet, again incorporating the characters from the songs.

French Windows

A bit of a departure from my usual 'ED' (cartoon-y) stuff, this photo-realistic 'FRED' image based on a photo I took in Paris is one I've been working on for quite some time. I'll open up the file from time to time and just work on bits until I get distracted and put it away for another time.

I really like the yellow-ish color of the building and how the areas where the sun hits get bleached of any color. Someday I'll finish it up...

Snowman wants coffee. And no more winter.

Okay, I've had enough of this winter already. I'm not usually a cold weather complainer but enough is enough. I mean we're halfway through March and I should be able to leave my coat at home when I run to the store. Or leave a window open while I sleep without freezing the leg I habitually leave outside the covers. Sigh.

So I got to thinking I probably wasn't the only one- in fact I could probably name 127,354 others who feel the same way, but the snowman is a very poignant extreme and that's why I chose him for this book/editorial illustration... 'cause if HE'S sick of winter then there's a problem!

To Spring!

Another mash-up of unrelated objects & people

More random sketches to fit together like a sketch puzzle. It almost looks like a "Can You Find..." search game.

New Composite sketch

A gathering of faces, an arm and an eye.

There's a Donkey in the Tree!

An illustration I just finished for a book that my agent is hocking. It's based on a story that my father loves to tell us (and his father told it to him and his siblings) about the Jewish holiday Tu B'Shevat. The holiday is the new year for the trees and as the story goes, all trees, bushes and plants bow down to God at midnight on Tu B'Shevat. Well, it's at this time that a traveler ties his donkey to a tree and goes to sleep at an Inn. He wakes to find his donkey is now at the top of the tree...

Pizza in 4 parts

Last night I decided to make some interesting pizzas for dinner. I can make pizza in my sleep (it's a fall-back meal when I've got no other ideas) so sometimes I like to be creative.

-On the first I put oil on the dough, some basil, sliced tomatoes, salt and fresh mozzarella.
-On the second I put chopped tomatoes over sauce, with shredded mozzarella and cheddar and Romano and Parmesan. After it was almost done baking I added baby spinach and fresh roasted pepper (which finished cooking JUST in time for me to use).
-On the third I did a simple (turkey) pepperoni pizza with Romano and Parmesan because that's the one the wife likes best.
-The fourth was a regular pizza with part of it folded over to create a stuffed-pizza for my son who was so hungry he wouldn't wait for me to photograph his section.

Yum.

Quick Sketches

I was in Austin with the fam to meet my new niece but the three of us got sick and couldn't hang around her too much (there were moments when I would run to another room mid-sentence so I could sneeze). These were just a few of the sketches I did while Leo was napping- I didn't have much attention span to do anything more interesting or more involved... 'Scuse me, I have to go sneeze.

Math Map

Here's an interesting map I illustrated for a math book. In order to find the proper route from Start to End, you have to finish 10 math problems correctly and match the answers with the streets. Click on the picture to enlarge.

Sketch to finish

Here's an illustration I'm working on for a book. I thought I'd show the before (sketch) and after (finish) to give an idea of how a spot illustration starts.


As I worked on the finish, I decided that the boy's head needs to be larger to help balance him (then again- who wouldn't fall over with a head so big?). It also helps to keep him looking young (it's like an illustrator's beauty secret!).

HAPPY GROUNDHOG DAY 2009!

I've been creating these cards for years and years, took a break and now I'm restarting it. Here's a compilation of parts of past favorites:


You can check out a bunch more Groundhog Day illustrations on this blog by clicking HERE.

Map illustration

This is an illustration I was working on yesterday. It's for a very large 4th grade math book. I have a couple of other maps in this book which I may post another time...

Crocodile and Goldfish finished illustration

Here's the finished version of the sketch I uploaded a few days ago. I realize now that I have to change the name of this illustration since I colored the fish in a non-goldfishy way.

Crocodile and Goldfish

A quick sketch for a promo book illustration. I was really trying to show the care with which the crocodile is carrying the fishbowl.

And here's a picture I took in Tanzania of a decidedly less friendly crocodile trying to take a bite out of a wildebeest it had sneaked up on. Somehow, the wildebeest got away unscathed, but probably had a heart attack an hour later.

On the cell phone. Or is she...

Y'know, it's getting to the point where cell phones are just too small. I mean, I'm trying to sketch someone talking on the phone and the phone just doesn't even show. Instead, the person comes across looking like someone who has Crazy Glued her hand to her ear. Which was not the case here. Unless she was trying to throw me off by pretending to talk to someone on her teeny tiny phone while looking for some turpentine and pliers.

Bird fountain

I was in Jerusalem and I found this bird sitting on top of a large sculpture topped with a bird spitting water. From time to time the real bird would reach down and drink some of the water coming out of the fake bird's mouth. There was another photographer at the fountain but I don't think he noticed what was happening at the top of the fountain. Perhaps he is writing in his own blog that the other photographer near the fountain did not notice the two-headed yak with a tattoo of Isaac Mizrahi on his neck that had just jumped over the walls of the Old City, but I still think I got a cooler shot.

Graphic Artists Guild Meeting

A collage of sketches of attendees of the Graphic Artists Guild Annual Meeting in Carefree, Arizona. And no, the guy in the middle isn't actually evil despite his cool eyebrows and deadly stare...

Boys and their cars

Peeling sign in Vermont

I found this sign while traveling through Vermont. Although it is in a state of disrepair and conveys a message that is not very enticing (dirty, old, out of date- probably like the kitchen used to make breakfast) it is still employed by the restaurant to attract (!) customers. Buyer beware!