GO, BIG JOE!

YES! He looks awesome! Here's Big Joe; I really want to do a comic book-y piece...

Any tips for digital inking? I did Joe up in Illustrator, which was easy due to his geometric nature, but what do I do when I ink something more organic?

Take care.

Orange bomb!

Whatever.

Take care.

NANODRAWMO 2010

Hi all. My NaNoDrawMo attempt can be found here: Jannison vs. NaNoDrawMo.

I'm taking on the challenge with my friend Jann. LET'S DO THIS!

Take care.

Model Friends...

I have really beautiful friends. Unfortunately, I made the mistake of trying to sketch with the Uni-ball roller. The ink flow is nice and smooth.

Too nice and smooth.

With cheap pens, I'm usually able to turn the nib on its side to better control the flow of ink, but these pens don't let me do it, so these sketches really lack subtlety and anything vaguely redeeming. Jann doesn't wear make-up; it's hard for me to draw how pretty she is without implying that maybe she does. Josh is very good-looking too, despite (or because of) being the Face of Evil.

Take care.

That's when I stole you...

...I'm curious to see where I'm going with this.

Take care.

Failure?

Yeah, maybe. I didn't mean for it to look this...morbid and scary, but I still like it.

:)

Take care.

Influence Map

I should make at least one more of these; I didn't get everyone that I wanted in there. Obviously, there's no way I can put in absolutely everyone, but I think I didn't even finish some of the big ones.

1. Samuli Ponismaa - He's actually a guitar player, but he also does all the art work for the band Finntroll. I love his smooth, fuzzy shading and the way he renders his mythological creatures. I also love how unabashedly strong the folk/Scandinavian influence is in his work.

2. Edward Gorey - His line control is unparalleled and I love his gruesome tales. He really brings in an antiquated feel, despite being a rather modern illustrator. He is able to convey some pretty complicated shading and texture with just the use of ink.

3. Salvador Dali - I love it when things get a little strange...

4. Space Coyote aka Nina Matsumoto - I will admit that she is among one of the first artists that I tried super fucking hard to ape. Until I had seen her comic stuff, I had been watching shoujo stuff and I got tired of all the fluffy roundness that has to offer. Her angular, somewhat sketchy work blew me away.

5. Quentin Blake - The first illustrator whose work I recognized. I grew up reading the books he illustrated and there's such a friendly, fun quality about his work.

6. Arborwin - Arborwin was another early influence, on par with Space Coyote. I love the flow of her digital work; it's almost impressionistic and it's so emotional and ethereal. Gorgeous.

7. Leonardo Da Vinci - He's an Illustration Hero. The poetry of line, the flow, the sensitivity, the accuracy, the dedication, the love...it all shows through his brilliant work. He was a workaholic and a vegetarian and insatiably curious.

8. Ralph Steadman - Never have I seen more beautiful work. When I think of rock 'n roll, I think of him. No one is better.

9. H.R. Giger - I think we're all familiar with him. I really love how tightly rendered everything is and I do love the gloom. When I look at his stuff, I get this "skin and bones" feeling, like all my flesh and organs suddenly disappeared. It's stark and screams of impending doom. Gorgeous.

Look out for more.

Make your own: http://fox-orian.deviantart.com/art/Influence-Map-Template-174550753

Take care.

Again?

Better? I kind of like it; needs a bit more. Don't know what.

Take care.

Booze 'n booze...

This is just me messing around; I'm doing work for my voice teacher and I threw this together. He hasn't seen it yet, so I don't know if he likes it or not. But, I really like it, so I took the screencap with lines and my name all over it to discourage stealing.

I will gladly design your band's logo.

Take care.

I wanna be sedated...

1. Sir Steinfranken of the Suits by my good friend MC Griffin. Expect more Suits stuff; I really love this little series and I hope there will be more. Still trying to get used to digital coloring. Obviously, this wasn't meant to be a masterpiece; I think I spent maybe 15 minutes on the color.

Steinfranken is my favorite because he's mad all the time. I love him!

2. John.

3. Take care.

He's too young...

Oh, Optimus.

Take care.

Hey Piggy...

This was fun to work on, but...the person that inked this really didn't...I don't know; a lot of the digital ink looks so abstract. FYI, I did NOT draw Optimus that poorly.

Take care.

I care a lot...

...about Transformers cuz it's more than meets the eye.

I didn't ink this. I sketched it and I'm starting work on the color. It's the beginnings of a vehicle wrap.

I wanna work on Johnny. >:(

Ah, but money is so nice...

Take care.

Jai Guru Deva De Los Muertos

I had my doubts...but this is looking ok.

Take care.

I'm in pieces...

Since you left me and you said 'goodbye'
(I'm in pieces, bits and pieces)
All I do is sit and cry...

I felt bad about not updating. I am making this now. It's not just anyone, but I don't think it looks like him.

Take care.

Apologies

I realize that neither this blog nor the website updates very often.

I'm sorry. I hate this.

Full time employment + confidentiality agreements = not a lot of art.

I'm sorry.

Please take care.

Secret shows...

Ok, he's looking good, but he's also looking like a twelve year old. How do I fix this?

Take care.

Day-Glow

So, nerimon comes to life. I think the pictures don't do the drawing justice; the contrast is ridiculous. I really should take these photos during the day time, when there's light.

As you can see, a lot of progress has been made; I've been working on this for about...maybe 30 hours? I know you can't tell, but I've done his eyes...at least eight times. I'm proud that I've brought him around to looking sort of like a real person from a fucked up version of Peter Pan. I need to make his hair fluffier.

But, I need to speak about the piece, thematically. During the summer months, I don't know what comes over me, but I always want to draw celebrities. Usually, it's a singer of some sort (Stiv was one of these; I've also done Sly Stone, Jimmy Page, Grace Slick, and Sammy Yaffa). But, this time, I did an internet celebrity; someone whose work I truly admire. Right now, nerimon is in Zambia, doing work for World Vision. Way cool!

Take care.

Low brow...

Here are some doodles I did with my students (5-8 years) this summer.

Take care.

It seems like years...

HOW DID I EVEN MANAGE TO DO THIS???!!

I really fucking hope I get that job...

Take care.

I can see what you want...

The interview process for this job has been a bit rough. My assignment is to design some sample pages of the upcoming catalog.

The big challenge here is organizing the information; there is a LOT of text. I've done catalog work before, but the most I had to type were sizes and rag numbers. As you can see, these uniforms have a lot to them and all that info must be included. It clutters the page, which is the standard 8.5 x 11. The sheer amount of text makes space very difficult to organize and navigate; it's hard to keep the eye interested.

I want to bust out a few more designs by Monday. Wish me luck?

Take care.

Another road block...

I have sustained a rather serious injury to my drawing hand so, I'll be out of the game for some time yet.

Thanks for all your support.

Take care.

I once was a king...

So, that update never really came and for that I apologize. I've been extremely busy house-hunting, packing, singing, and entertaining our foreign exchange student.

The GOOD news is that I've got 4 new illustrations for you to look at. Well, they're new in the sense that they're new to the website; they are actually 4 of the 6 pieces I did for my senior thesis. The 4 that I actually feel comfortable showing off.

Take a look in the illustrations section.

And I am, once again, teaching youth art summer camps. First up is introduction to anime and manga drawing. I'm always excited to see what the kids draw; they're so great!

Take care.

Ugh, waking up...

Hi everyone. I just graduated. I will post the final pieces soon.

Sleep now.

Take care.

No rewards for the wicked...

Even now, these are slightly outdated; absolutely everything must be turned in by May 4th at 10:00 AM. I have to sharpen everything up, add text. Did I mention I haven't even started on the sixth piece?

Oh boy.

Take care.

Crappy piano music...

Well, one day, that green blob on her head will read as a hat.

Take care.