Some Iowa Sketches

Here are a couple of very quick and loose sketches that I did after visiting the Czech and Slovak Museum in Cedar Rapids, IA. The top is looking northish up the Cedar River and the bottom one is looking southish where the river bends. I had not so fond memories of driving through Iowa as a kid and remembering how flat and boring it was, but I found eastern Iowa to be very beautiful and scenic with hills and farmland. Even in the early November chill I found plenty to look at and appreciate.

Yoda

I am participating in a fundraiser for a little boy named Matthew from northern Michigan who is receiving treatment for a brain tumor, which is being put together by the Cherry Capital Con's very own Rob Humphrey. Matthew is a huge Star Wars fan, so Rob contacted a bunch of us arty types to draw up something Star Wars related that we could give to him to uplift his spirits during his struggle. And from what I have heard, Lucasfilm and the 501st are involved with the assistance of creating a book of the artwork that can be sold to raise further funds for Matthew and his family. I will definitely post further details as I receive them.

Some of the other artists on tap for this project seem to be mostly Michigan based and they include such talents as Jay Jacot, Guy Allen, Jeff Manley, Matthew Minor, among others.

Above is my contribution, an aggressive Yoda fighting the good fight. As usual, click on the image to engorge.

And keep Matthew in your thoughts while he fights the good fight.

Treasure Chest Foundation Sketch cards

Periodically I'll do sketch cards for the Treasure Chest Foundation that raises funds for children's oncology research among other things,  I'm sure. This is the latest batch that I did for them and as you can see, they vary greatly among yesterday and today's pop culture icons. I don't know when these will be available, that depends on when they are put into the chests and purchased, I suppose.

More info can be seen here, as well.

Happy Halloween 2012

Happy Halloween all you pagans! Here is a little sketch whipped up for just the occasion. The tombstone was from a pic I took at a cemetery nearby a couple of years ago and the pumpkin is from one sitting in my backyard with its own guts hanging out courtesy of the local squirrels.

Detroit Fanfare 2012

The 3rd Detroit Fanfare kicks off tonight at 6pm and will run until Sunday. Check out the times on their site. Besides myself (you can find me at table 129 in the Great Lakes Ballroom), there will be a whole bunch of Michigan based artists and creators. Of course, there will be artists and such from out of state, as well. And don't forget the celebrities, such as David Prowse, Sam Jones and Michael Jai White, etc.

Voices From The Deadworld by Gary Reed will premiere at this show, which is an anthology of the characters that have appeared over the last twenty years, or so in the Deadworld comic. I have two pieces in the anthology and they are shown above as they will be seen in the book. I have color prints available for the two, as well. The top character is Tattoo and the bottom one is of my own creation, a zombie obsessed with time. I will have copies of the book and prints at my table, as well as my other books and prints, sketch cards and will be doing commissions as requested.

Don't forget to get your official fanfare print by Bill Pulkovski and get them signed by the actors. He did a great job on this one!

El Arto

El Arto is the studio name of a couple illustrator buddies of mine by the name of John Marroquin and Chris Sanchez and they have taken their mascot and studio image El Arto and turned him/it into a comic book, which will debut this weekend at Detroit Fanfare. I was honored to have been asked to do a pin up for the book, which is the image above. I wasn't sure at first about the background, but after finishing it and letting it sit for awhile, I think I achieved what I was going for in a claustrophobic and cluttered background, something seemingly impossible to escape from. Bullets, Bandito Goblins and death. But, our hero (or is it an anti-hero?), the undead mariachi has his six-shooters  ready to face the improbable.

Make sure to check out the artwork of John and Chris on their websites and be sure to come on by Detroit Fanfare this weekend in Dearborn, MI and check out the El Arto book! Oh, yeah, I'll be there, too.

Cryptids Sketch Cards

A new sketch card company came on the scene this past year by the name of Viceroy Cards and I was asked to be a part of their first set, which is made up of cryptids. Cryptids are the stuff that urban legends are made from, local folklore so to speak. So, you might have creatures like yetis or sasquatch and mermaids to a more uncommon one like fur bearing trouts. An interesting collection of creatures to choose from. And what makes this set more unique from others is that the cards themselves are quite thick and are letterpressed (is that the right way of saying this?), stamped with the Viceroy logo on the front. A lot of care and detail went into making these cards. Fellow artist Ashleigh Popplewell was the designer and consultant for this set and she did a great job. You can check out her work here.

I do have Artist Proofs available for commissions if anyone is interested. Just give me a holler.