Amish Christmas Musical

Well, I am getting real close to being able to say "there is nothing that I haven't drawn" with this last illustration that I completed today. I got this job through a friend of mine who suggested to his friend that he use me to illustrate a poster for a musical that he was producing. And not just any musical, but an Amish Musical. When I first talked to the gentleman who hired me I thought he was kidding me but turns out thankfully he was for real. I never knew there was such a thing as an Amish Musical. Long story short, I got the call on Sunday afternoon and had the job finished by Thursday afternoon and that even included doing the graphic design for the poster as well. It has been a hectic week finding models, doing photo shoots, and pulling this off but when the client says he needs it by Friday you do what you gotta do.

The Gift of Thanks

Recently my wife and I and our kids were invited to go on vacation with two other families who just happen to be our best friends. It was a fantastic and long overdue getaway for us. What made it even more special is the place we stayed. It was by far the most beautiful beach home I had ever stayed in. To top that off the owners are friends of our friends who we went with and they let us stay there for free. I was overwhelmed with their kindness and generosity and I wanted to give them something special as a thanks. This is one of the best perks of being an artist. I found a pic of their beautiful daughter on Facebook and I painted this to surprise them.

It started with a simple sketch scanned in and then finished in Photoshop. The final art is 8x10. I now have to decide if I want to print it on canvas or watercolor paper.

Viking (final art)

The Making of Viking

I love the TV Show "Vikings" and always thought the characters were so well created. I wanted to create a new portfolio piece so I thought "paint what you love". I have a vision in my head of a collage I wanted to depict. So, I searched the web for the images to combine and I came up with these 3 below. After that it was just a matter of putting them together to bring out the best of the main character. 

I start as usual by doing a rough drawing for placement and to get a general tone for where I want to take it. I scan that sketch into Photoshop and then it is off to the races. As you can see I start by setting my drawing to multiply in Photoshop layers so that it is transparent. I then do a rough layer underneath that drawing mainly to just block in basic colors and shading. After that I add another layer on top of the drawing and start the process of slowly building up opaque colors, strokes, dots, and swashes using about a dozen different brushes for different effects.

Devo (Whippet)

I have always loved Greyhounds and their smaller twin the Whippet. This happens to be a beautiful example of a Whippet. I titled this one "Devo" since that is the name of the 80s punk rock band that had the mega hit "Whippet Good". I think they are beautiful and regal and have such a dignity about them. I decided to do this one just because I thought it was just a beautiful shot and I was intrigued with his gaze. I also was drawn to the beautiful muted colors of his coat so I chose to paint a simple muted background to compliment it.  The final size is 16x16

Pug #2

It never ceases to amaze me the power of advertising on the web. I posted my demo of the other pug I did on my FB page and wouldn't you know it, one of my FB friends saw it and decided to commission me to do this one for him. This poor dog had died so he was giving it to the owner to help with the grief. If you have ever had a dog that has lived with you for years then you know that they are truly a part of the family and the loss of one is devastating. I can tell by his eyes he was a gentle soul.

Pugsy the Pug

I found this pic on a stock photo website and just feel in love with it. I have always loved dogs and love painting them even more. Each one has such great personality and kindness in their eyes. I wanted the final pick to be ultra realistic in this case so I went all out with the details especially in the face. Sometimes especially in Photoshop you can go too far with making it look so real that people don't believe that is is actually a digital painting. That is why a good friend of mine suggested that it might be kinda cool and different if you offered the client a version showing the different steps it took to create it.  On top of that you could even add his or her name to it. I personally love it. Thanks Gina for the suggestion!