gumball

Superhero!

2007-01-28T18:18:00.000-05:00

Licensing International 2006!

2006-06-13T17:54:00.000-04:00

I know you've been wondering where I've been. Admit it. You've missed me.
I have a good excuse. Really. In 1 week, I'm launching 2 brand new children's brands at Licensing Internationl 2006 (www.licensingshow.com), the big children's property and marketing show here in New York City. It's been 6 months of story and character development, thinking, drawing, sweating, crumpling papers, planning, scheming, daydreaming and preparing. It's time.

happy new year!

2005-12-31T17:15:00.000-05:00

a happy and healthy new year to all you readers out there. it's been a year of ups and downs and roundabouts--thanks for sticking with me. i'm looking forward to a whiz-bang of a 2006 where some of these ideas i've been sharing get taken to the next level.

i'll finish with a favorite, rendered in colored pencil for my Aunt Dorothy:

pop-ability

2005-12-11T15:41:00.000-05:00

there's nothing like the birthday of a relative to help me kick some creativity into high gear. let me clarify. there are really only 2 people i pull out all the stops on birthday cards for: my niece and nephew. so as soon as one of their birthday comes round, i find myself pulling all-nighters so i can outdo last year's creation. unfortunately, that bar is not getting any lower.

this year i decided to break the 2 dimensional barrier for my nephew Sonny's fifth. i have a really cool paper engineering book that shows how to create all the basic pop-up movements. naturally, i disregarded the advice about starting simple and chose to combine 2 pop-ups. i admit this was foolish. i'm a victim of my own competition.

here's the card, emcee'd by Albert the Crab:

re-convening with a Master

2005-11-23T12:17:00.000-05:00

this past weekend, i got to re-visit with author/illustrator Steven Kellogg who was doing a book signing at new york's amazing independent bookstore Books of Wonder. growing up, Kellogg was a huge inspiration and i used spend lots of time examining all the detail and hidden humor in his illustrations. when i was 10 or 11 years old, he visited my elementary school in Upstate New York and gave an assembly to the school. i can still remember him drawing on a giant easel. back then he signed a book for me and i've kept it. and it only seemed fitting he should sign the same book 21 years later.

Kellogg was extremely gracious and even remembered staying upstate for the visit. as i continue my own quest to get published, i realize that Kellogg's school visit is among the strongest influences on me choosing the path to entertain and educate kids through my words and art.

the original signing:

the new signing:

boredom = snakes

2005-11-04T16:36:00.000-05:00

i've been noticed lately, that when i'm bored or restless, i end up drawing snakes. or variations on one snake in particular, Tobey. he's a personal favorite from the "Bludo and Friends" gang and he just seems to pop up more and more. perhaps, i'm on a mission to change the world's view of serpents or maybe he just makes me happy.

next week i'll be working to prepare some drawings to accompany my 2 latest children's book stories.
i've been hard at work all year on "Carla's Crab" and "Jungle Jam!" which have each been through my writing critique group twice now. both are stories i'm really pleased with. i've got a meeting with a few editors coming up in a few weeks as part of my affiliation with CBIG (nyc's Children's Book Illustrator Group).

ssssunday

2005-10-23T18:19:00.000-04:00

working out

2005-10-21T13:42:00.000-04:00

i went to a life drawing session last night held at SVA (School of the Visual Arts) by a local animation group. it's been awhile since i've just drawn in the rawest sense. i've spent so much time recently writing and designing that i forget that drawing like any other skill takes continuous practice. it felt like i was doing push ups at first, tiring, and somewhat awkward but as the evening progressed i loosened up and began to feel the freedom and fluidity that goes hand in hand with good drawing, drawing for pleasure. all the poses the model did were short, 2-5 minutes and that was nice. it gave you enough time to get some form in but not long enough to get caught up in details. i also re-confirmed my preference for working in blue colored pencils. they just flow smoothly and have a great light texture.

here's a sampling of the my workout routine: (you can see how i'm very sketchy in the beginning and tighten up the linework later on)

don't be scared

2005-10-18T22:03:00.000-04:00

despite that fact that the skeleton, the ghost, the monster, and the bat all have scars, they seem like a rather jolly bunch.

who says graveyards have to be scary?

secret projects

2005-10-16T15:19:00.000-04:00

i've been holed up working on a couple of secret projects one involving monsters (i realize that's not quite a stretch) and the other, crustacean pets. after running my latest kid's book story through my writing critique group for the 2nd time it's almost ready to start playing around with some illustrations. the goal is have this one ready to send out to publishers by the beginning of next year. creatively, i feel like i've come a long way this year. that's a good feeling.

i just streamlined the bio section of my website and added a photo: see it here.

doodle

2005-10-04T10:15:00.000-04:00

um, i have no idea what this means

escape!

2005-09-22T13:59:00.000-04:00

illustration friday is a website started by illustrator Penelope Dullaghan to get illustrators to keep on creating when times get slow. someone suggests a weekly topic and illustrators can post their interpretations. (it reminds me of mini editorial assignments.) it really is a great idea. sometimes the most difficult thing to do is to try and figure out what to draw. (i've suffered this affliction since elementary school. in kindergarten, i just cranked out monsters left and right with total confidence and a lack of self consciousness.) artists of all kinds suffer from a lack of deadlines in their daily lives to force them to create. after weeks of seeing the weekly suggestions in my inbox, i finally got on board.

last week's topic was "Escape" and i've certainly had that idea on my mind:

where have i been?

2005-09-14T22:51:00.000-04:00

good question. i'm not sure. guess i've been going through a creative slump/hiatus. that little thing called "my day job" has lately become something of a big thing and has subsequently been siphoning off my energy. i'll also admit that new york city has been doing some siphoning as well. it takes a simple visit outside the confines of the mega-opolis to realize the foolish financial, mental, and physical burdens we put up with to call ourselves New Yorkers. maybe it's all the bad news out there lately too.

i have been spending more time writing though. sometimes i find it easier to throw down the pencil and start typing. well not the blog maybe but a couple of children's book stories i've been working on are finally starting to take some solid shape. picture books may be the world's most difficult medium besides maybe poetry. less is more. every word must be essential. the monthly writing critique group i've been going to has been invaluable. it amazing what others can see that you're blind to. it also rams home the point how subjective everything is when it comes to creating. another person = another opinion.

i picked up some of those expensive markers i bought for my toy design class last year and did some coloring. i don't have the patience to use them the painstakingly slow way we were taught but they are good for throwing is some quick bright colors. this is a color study of a sketch i did awhile back:

go back to your roots and dig

2005-07-28T07:34:00.000-04:00

the more you change the more you stay the same. and buried under the years of trying to find a "style," experimentation, and artistic stops and starts is the true visual self. when ever i'm stuck, my mom always seems to find another artistic gem from from youth before everything got so self-concious. a note to parents: save everything your kids draw when they're young. someday they'll thank you.

in case anyone is interested, here are instructions for building a Monster Costume: (after extra consideration, i decided the "spiked club" was maybe not such a good idea.)

Thanks Mom!

Press on!

2005-07-18T21:31:00.000-04:00

Well, it's official. The Stem Cell Transplant Coloring Book has been released. I received a box of samples from The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) last week and it looks really nice. It's very cool to hold in my hand about 5 months worth of work that started with an initial meeting at the beginning of January. The initial print run was 25,000 copies to be distributed to hospitals and national chapters of the LLS. In certain ways it's bittersweet. I love the idea of people seeing my work yet I hope they never have to request a copy of the book for their own child. And for all those who are fighting cancer, I hope the book helps, in whatever way it can.

To read the official press release on the LLS website click here.

(Download a copy as a Word document(40KB) here.)

I also got my local hometown paper, The Brighton-Pittsford Post to do a little article on me.

Here are a few snapshots:
Cover

Foldout Poster

Back Cover with detachable door hanger

time in the garden

2005-07-17T13:39:00.000-04:00

i went to see a play with my friend Chris in a community park on 104th street this weekend. i honestly have no idea what the play was about. but it was nice to be outside sitting on a bench and have my feet in the grass. the performance yielded the following sketch: (note: there were no oxen in the play buy i believe several actors were sock clad.)

crawdiddies

2005-06-29T11:05:00.000-04:00

my niece Meena and nephew Sonny are going camping this weekend and they'll be catching crayfish. this is a favorite memory of mine as well. standing barefoot in a cool, rocky stream and bending over to gently lift large stones in the hopes of spying those brown miniature lobsters.

thanks for inspiring me Meena!

blog guilt

2005-06-16T12:17:00.000-04:00

i feel a tad guilty for not posting in awhile. but a large part of my brain has the "Gone Fishin'" sign still tacked to its squishy exterior. i've been spending time going through files, chucking papers, trying to get rid of old stuff, and organizing my head space for new projects.

the coloring book is off to the printers, so we'll have to wait and see how it looks.

another final cut-out postcard:

2005-05-25T10:07:00.000-04:00

i'm starting to finally relax after this project. i'm giving myself a creative hiatus for a few weeks so i can re-charge the batteries. in the meantime, i'll keep posting pages from the coloring book.

Here's one of the detachable postcards kids can cut out and send to friends:

door hanger - side A

2005-05-22T23:18:00.000-04:00

door hanger: side B

2005-05-19T14:02:00.000-04:00

2005-05-18T15:03:00.000-04:00

FREEDOM. now i have no idea what to do with myself.

2005-05-16T21:16:00.000-04:00

the saga is complete. after consecutive 20 hour work weekends, i sent off the final illustrations for the "Stem Cell Transplant Coloring Book," i started meeting about in January. it's been a long, hard road. and now i rest.

i'll try a post a few of my favorite pages throughout this week and next as i put my life back in order. and don't say you didn't miss me 'cause you know you did.

here's the cover:

T-minus 8 or my fingers hurt

2005-05-08T10:24:00.000-04:00

one week and it will be over. i'm in the final push to finish all the illustrations for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's "Stem Cell Transplant Coloring Book." the project which began with meetings in December will be completed in a week and my body, in particular my fingers and my brain will thank me. this has been the toughest project i've ever done and trying to get it done outside of a full-time job has been a challenge. i'm not young enough to pull all-nighters and function normally the next day.

as i work this weekend and next in a full-force sprint to ink (outline in black ink) 20 illustrations, here's an insight into the glamourous world of illustration:
- i'm wearing bandaids on my thumb and middle finger from holding the inking brush
- i haven't talked to a real person in 72 hours
- shaving? yeah right
- daylight is for sissies
- bad television makes good breaks

alas. these are the times that try men's souls.

still working, won't be long now

2005-04-18T21:19:00.000-04:00