A Sketch a Day...

Party like it's 2012

2012-01-01T10:33:00.000-08:00

This is an oldie, but a goodie. Happy New Year, everyone!

Striking Bearded Man

2011-12-31T10:14:00.000-08:00

I have an amazing cabinet card that I've been trying to do justice to in graphite, but I just can't seem to do it. Inspired by the style in yesterday's post I tried to draw this guy the same way. I think I came close in the second one, but it's still too realistic, and a tad too cartoony, which I realize are conflicting statements.

Attempt #1

Attempt #2

I'm glad that I made it up to 144 posts this year, as the square root of 144 is 12 and there are 12 months in the year. There's a quiet harmony to that that I find pleasing. Anyhow, hope everyone has a good new year's eve tonight!

A Doodle Reworked

2011-12-30T20:37:00.000-08:00

I liked the Karaoke Napkin Doodle I did the other week of my friend Jesse, and I wanted to rework it into a real drawing. I'm even happier with results and want to explore doing more portraits in this style.

Golden Chicks

2011-12-29T10:50:00.000-08:00

What is there I can really say about this?

Tom at Tom's House

2011-12-28T09:33:00.000-08:00

Messing around with blind contour portraits. Tom at Tom's house on craft night.

Scruffy the Wild Cat

2011-12-27T06:00:00.000-08:00

Well I'm at it again. A long time ago, in a season far far away, Stephanie's Mom hired me to draw portraits of three of her cats. I've finally made good on one of those portraits and the others should be close behind.

This is "Scruffy". He's an outdoor cat with a bit of a wild side, so I turned him into a Mountain Man. I also recommend doing a google search for "mountain man" because it yields some interesting results. If only we could get all of those guys in a room together. It might be too much beard and animal pelts for us to handle.

I can never resist the urge to convert my portraits into a sepia tone.

And the lovely model.

You can see some of my previous cat portraits here, here, here, and here.

Skulls

2011-12-23T08:58:00.000-08:00

Stephanie bought this dog skull at a yard sale over the summer and now it sits in our living room. Bones are always great still life subjects. They have so many drops and shadows.

Happy 4th night of Hanukkah tonight!

Karaoke Napkin Doodle

2011-12-20T08:25:00.000-08:00

At the last karaoke night I doodled this blind countour of Jesse. I like the way it came out.

Another Painting of a Fox

2011-12-19T06:23:00.000-08:00

Nothing like a birthday to get the creative juices flowing. Also, animal calenders provide great reference photos.

Foxey card

2011-12-18T10:29:00.000-08:00

A watercolor painting I did that I turned into a card.

Interpretive Album cover

2011-12-17T11:14:00.000-08:00

For Stephanie's birthday, and in honor of the interpretive dance party she's having for it, I bought her this album as a gift. HOWEVER, I was not able to find it in any of the stores around town and had to purchase it online. I wanted to give her a present on her birthday so I drew up a mock cover and put it on a random album we had and wrapped it up. Kind of the same thing, right?

Luckily the album came in the mail the day after her birthday.

New Portrait 1904

2011-12-08T08:18:00.000-08:00

Here's a portrait I've been working on on and off for a few weeks now. I photoshopped it into a vintage cabinet card frame to make it look a bit more official.

I'm really happy with the way it came out, but I've gotta start making bigger work and not just work in my sketch book all the time. Hopefully some bigger work will be hitting the blog soon.

Israel Schraer

2011-12-05T07:41:00.000-08:00

While in San Diego over the holidays I came upon this photo of my great grandfather, Israel Schraer,. In a way it was like seeing him for the first time. This man was my namesake, though I have no memory of him. My parents wanted to name me after him, but as he was still living, and in the Jewish tradition you don't name anyone after a living relative, they chose to use his first initial when choosing my name.

I have no memory of him, he died when I was very young and even then lived across the country, but I also have no image of him. If I think of him no picture comes to mind, though I must have seen a picture of him at some point. This photograph is the only memory I have.

Insect menagerie

2011-12-03T10:56:00.000-08:00

This was my practice sketch for the insect collection of Professor Charles R. Mammoth.

Paging Mr. Herman

2011-12-02T08:40:00.000-08:00

I'm starting a new blog everyone and I want YOU to be a part of it! It's called Project P.W. and if you want more information you should check it out.

A Scratchboard Thriller

2011-12-01T06:30:00.000-08:00

Looks like the rainy day that I prophesied back in August finally came, which means I got around to finishing my scratchboard portrait of Michael Jackson. I find it hard to let any project go unfinished and this one was particularly labor intensive. I wish I had had time to finish it back in June because I'm much more pleased with it than the graphite version I ended up putting into that show. I don't think I'll feel like experimenting with this particular medium for a while now.

This sucker IS for sale, for those of you who are trying to get a head start on your holiday shopping. Let me know in the comment section if you're interested and we can talk prices.

Kite Flying Society

2011-11-30T11:42:00.000-08:00

This is from a picture of my Dad and I that I thought would look good as an art piece. For some reason I came out looking like a zombie though.

Crosshatched Oldies

2011-11-18T10:03:00.000-08:00

Here are a few more sketches from sketchbooks past. The top one is my attempt at comic book style illustration and the bottom is an old sneak a sketch from the MUNI in San Francisco. New sketches coming SOON.

The Humble Insect Collection of Charles R. Mammoth

2011-11-16T12:12:00.000-08:00

My friend Stacie at Notes From Below invited me to contribute a piece for a coloring book she's putting together. I decided to redraw and expand upon an older sketch for it and I'm pretty happy with the results. I'll let you kmnow when the whole coloring book is assembled. Until then feel free to print this guy up and color him in. Send a scan of the finished masterpiece to dailysketch17@gmail.com and I'll put it up for all to see!

Hipprospector

2011-11-14T09:22:00.000-08:00

I've been mining for character ideas lately and this is the hippest I could come up with. What do you think, is it a golden nugget or am I way out west with this one?

How to Frame a Picture for a Present

2011-11-12T09:15:00.000-08:00

Funny story. I was looking up videos on youtube yesterday on how to frame an oil painting and came upon a treasure trove of instructional videos from independently owned retail frame shops. That's where I found this guy, in all his earnest and awkward glory. Within a few seconds into the video I knew I had to draw him.

Before the shading.

A Very Brontops Birthday.

2011-11-11T09:23:00.000-08:00

Probably my favorite prehistoric mammal around .... except for maybe the megatherium.

Chicken's Don't Clap! Show Flier!

2011-11-09T07:18:00.000-08:00

Here's a rough draft and final version of a flier I recently did for a show in San Diego. My old pal Derek Emery (DJ Dirty Rock), author of music blog Chickens Don't Clap, put it together and it's probably going to be pretty awesome.

The keen eye will notice that I got the lineup order wrong in the rough draft. Quality control, people. Quality control.

General Ignacious Porkington III

2011-11-05T10:47:00.000-07:00

Are his muttonchops too subtle?

The Deadly Phorusrhacos!

2011-10-31T08:30:00.000-07:00

I 'm really excited about this new portrait. The Phorusrhacos was a giant flightless predatory bird from the Miocene era, characterized by her massive pointed beak. Although this one may seem a harmless, if you look closely you can see a twinge of mayhem lurking behind her bespectacled eyes.

Happy Halloween everyone!

The Absurd

2011-10-30T10:45:00.000-07:00

Hope everyone is having a good Halloween weekend. Here's another one from the vaults that I found to be fitting. What if I only drew people in silhouettes?

Self Portrait as Walrus vs. Self Portrait as Rhinocerous

2011-10-28T09:27:00.000-07:00

Here are a few more from an old sketchbook. The assignment was to do a self portrait as an animal and these were my preliminary sketches.

I eventually settled on the walrus for the final piece pictured below.

Fanciful Toad and Quail.

2011-10-27T08:32:00.001-07:00

So like I said the other day, I stumbled upon some old sketch books and thought I would post a few of the images here. Ones that I think could inspire future work. Here are a few that I did around 3 years ago.

Macho Halloween

2011-10-26T09:14:00.000-07:00

By popular vote my new Halloween pumpkin tribute issssssssss- MACHO MAN RANDY SAVAGE!

Happy Halloween everybody!

Mammoth Hands

2011-10-25T08:49:00.000-07:00

This mammoth has the horrifying disfigurement of having human hands!

Sorry for the break in posting, but I've been hard at work on some more in depth drawings than usual as well pondering the meaning of my own existence. As you can see, it's been rough! I recently looked through some old sketch books from 4-5 years ago and rediscovered some stuff that I think it pretty neat so I'll be posting some of those drawings here to fill in the gaps.

Has everyone settled on a Halloween costume yet? If not you better get crackin'. Hopefully tomorrow I'll have a new carved pumpkin tribute to post on here. It's going to be quite savage.

The Great Bill Murray

2011-10-20T09:27:00.000-07:00

He's always been one of my favorite guys, so I thought I'd take a stab at a portrait. It was also good watercolor practice!

Dispraportionate

2011-10-15T13:06:00.000-07:00

This is the drawing that I spent the majority of the session on last Sunday. Aside from the head being way to big for the body I think it was a successful study. Though I think I prefer the looser ones to this approach.

Footsy

2011-10-13T08:56:00.000-07:00

I had about ten minutes left at the end of the figure drawing session so I decided to zero in on the foot and see what happens. Aside from hands and ears, feet are probably the weirdest part of our bodies.

Sunday Painter

2011-10-12T07:58:00.000-07:00

I made it to another figure drawing session at PNCA this past Sunday. It was my first time there in a while. On sundays it's just one pose for three hours so it really gives you time to figure a few things out. This one I did pretty quickly though.

Abraham Lincoln - BEYOND THUNDERDOME

2011-10-11T08:12:00.000-07:00

It's never too early to start thinking about your Halloween costume.

Scuffz reads

2011-10-10T09:24:00.000-07:00

On Memorial Day it was hot, we went to the river, and we had a BBQ with friends. I also drew this picture!

Well summer is over, but here's to apple cider, fireplaces, scrabble, winter squash, and all things autumn.

The Boys

2011-10-07T09:01:00.000-07:00

When I was in San Diego last I "borrowed" this photograph from my Dad of him and his three brothers when they were kids. It was too classic for me to not recreate. You can really see their individual personalities shining through.

(My Dad is the youngest)

In Tandem

2011-10-05T09:27:00.000-07:00

This drawing was for my friend's editing and web design company, Tandem Web and Reels. Check em out on that one social networking site too.

Garfield the Destroyer

2011-10-04T06:38:00.000-07:00

In one of the special features of the Garfield: The Movie dvd Jim Davis teaches you how to draw the different incarnations of Garfield. Though I still think it was weird that he drew him on a pile of skulls, but oh well. Go figure, right?

I wish Garfield forever looked like this. He was so awesome in his original incarnation. I'm gonna start a fan strip where Garfield looks like this instead. Anybody want to write them?

Long May You Run

2011-10-03T11:01:00.000-07:00

Sometimes you just feel like drawing Neil Young.

Dragon Mail

2011-09-30T07:47:00.000-07:00

The only way to address an envelope, in my opinion.

Rosh Hashanah Jamboree

2011-09-29T08:09:00.000-07:00

L'shana Tova, everybody! Wishing you a sweet new year filled with good times, prosperity, and animatronic singing bears.

"Big Al!"

Portrait of a Tauntaun

2011-09-28T07:48:00.000-07:00

What people don't know is that Tauntauns were a very dignified species before being enslaved by the Rebellion.

If you like this guy and want to see more like him please leave a comment and let me know what you think!

Concert Feet

2011-09-27T09:29:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend I went to see a concert in a grassy field. I was sitting down for part of it and this is what I saw.

Ned Kelly : The Bold and the Beautiful

2011-09-23T06:24:00.000-07:00

Now this is much closer to what I was actually going for with this portrait. Simple. Bold. Quick. The only problem is I think the likeness isn't as good as the previous pen portrait. Also, he looks sad. I guess if my bones were being dug up and put on display nationally I'd be a little sad too.

Read the inspirational article HERE.

Ned Kelly : One Sketchy Fellow

2011-09-22T06:21:00.000-07:00

The original sketch I did of Australia's premier outlaw with a dull pencil before moving on to pen. It wasn't quite what I wanted it to be.

"Bone to Pick" starring Ned Kelly

2011-09-21T06:11:00.000-07:00

I recently read this article by Damon Poeter about Australian outlaw Ned Kelly, who was apparently THE scourge and scoundrel of the Australian frontier. Through the magic of DNA matching scientists believe they have identified the remains of said outlaw in a mass prison grave in Melbourne, originally buried 131 years ago! Kelly's skeleton is intact save for his skull which is still missing and believed to have been taken as a trophy by an Aussie Police Officer when the bones were originally moved to their would-be final resting place.

I saw the picture in the article and thought "Wow! What a dapper looking fellow with a scraggly beard!" and I knew I was going to draw him. True story.

Vacation Finds #2.5 : Awl or Nothing

2011-09-20T06:08:00.000-07:00

I've been really into doing multiple drawings of the same subject in different styles lately. After drawing something once it just gets easier and easier.

Vacation Finds #2: Awl of Me

2011-09-19T06:05:00.000-07:00

Also found at the Santa Cruz flea market. Awl's can prove surprisingly useful when you least expect it, and I love the durability of old tools that you can now only find second hand.

Vacation Finds #1: Dino belt buckle

2011-09-16T07:21:00.000-07:00

This is why the Santa Cruz Flea Market is awesome. Will I ever find a cooler belt buckle? The answer, of course, is no.

Dylan in the Movies

2011-09-15T09:27:00.000-07:00

I know I'm a day late on this one, but as promised here's the further worked on Dylan. I think my favorite part is his right hand.

Don't Look Back

2011-09-13T06:08:00.000-07:00

We watched this classic Dylan documentary the other night, or rather I should say that we tried watching it. I fell asleep during the second half, but I DO plan on finishing it. It's interesting to see first hand footage of what he was like during that time and contrasting it with the Dylan that we've all made up in our minds. Kinda surprised to see how bratty and full of himself he was back then, but I guess he was just a kid.

I always like the idea of doing really simple line drawings like this, but I can never fight off the compulsion to keep working on it.

Kind of like this.

Though if you want to see what I did to it afterwards you're going to have to check back in tomorrow. Happy mid-September, guys. Let's put out good vibes for a few more weeks of summer.

Get well soon, Lottie

2011-09-07T06:24:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago my grandmother fell and broke her hip. She's 92, but seems to be doing very well and on the road to recovery.

Did I mention that she has a fondness for owls?

Brotherly Doodle

2011-09-06T07:32:00.000-07:00

My brother Jacob and I collaborated on this little drawing one day, with each of us drawing a tiny bit at a time and elaborating on the other's. Fun times.

Action Jackson

2011-09-05T06:14:00.000-07:00

I guess I forgot to post my final piece for the Michael Jackson group show that took place at the Emerson Space Case in July. Well here it is, folks! I was also working on a scratchboard version of this that I'm more excited about but I never did get a chance to finish it up. Maybe on some rainy day I'll get around to finishing it, but for the moment let's enjoy summer while it's still here.

And speaking of enjoying Summer, check out the Emerson Space Case blog to find out how you can take part in the BEST SUMMER EVER! Events are happening at the space every Saturday for the next two weeks. This Saturday is a bake sale/swap. See you guys there?

YAWN

2011-09-04T06:41:00.000-07:00

Still not great at drawing things from my head.

Cooper Penrose

2011-09-03T08:00:00.000-07:00

While in San Diego we stopped at the Timken Art Museum in Balboa Park to check out their small but impressive collection. I was pretty amused by this portrait of Cooper Penrose by famous French painter Jacques-Louis David and wanted to sketch it out. This deposit slip was all I had on me to draw on at the moment. Think of it as more bank for your buck!

Or would more blog for your buck be more appropriate?

IT'S A TRAP!

2011-09-02T07:06:00.000-07:00

While waiting in line for the new and "improved" Star Tours ride at Disneyland I did my best to sketch out Admiral Ackbar working in his little booth.

If you're going on this ride I recommend getting a fast pass. The wait is simply not worth it.

VVhat??

2011-08-25T07:24:00.000-07:00

I made a short comic for my friend Ben's birthday card using characters that he uses in the comics that he writes. These are just two panels from the epic saga. Read on as we follow the drama of W=VV Man (He has no concept of the letter W). Read some of Ben's original comics and check out his art at summer2005comics.blogspot.com

All is not well in the world of summer 2005 comics!

The thief revealed!

Of Mermaids and Greeting Cards

2011-08-24T07:36:00.000-07:00

And here's what I promise will be the very last post related to my installation. This was the final sketch of the mermaid centerpiece before I made a giant version. I'm hoping to turn it into a greeting card.

At Long Last : Window Installation at Tender Loving Empire

2011-08-22T15:31:00.000-07:00

I know I'm about a month late on this one but I finally got around to editing the photos from my window installation at Tender Loving Empire which is STILL UP in downtown Portland and available to be viewed.

For those of you who don't live here or are just too lazy to go down there here are some pictures of the whole shebang.

The scene from the sidewalk.

Figure one: SEA CREATURE

Figure Two: Mermaid

Figure Three : Ship

Base Detail 1

Base Detail 2

Base Detail 3

Part of the purpose of the art is to help sell their locally made merchandise, so Stephanie and I picked out as many nautical themed pieces as we could find. This treasure box worked perfectly.

As did this creature.

Close up of the Sea Creature. I really wanted there to be 4 tentacles, but time only allowed for 3. The detail in his mouth nearly killed me.

Definitely the most difficult one to cut out.

What map is complete without a compass?

And of course a friendly greeting.

This was one of my favorites.

Some more of the merch we're hawking.

And that's it! I think it's going to be up for a few more weeks so make sure to head down to Tender Loving Empire at 412 Southwest 10th Avenue, just a block and a half south of Powell's!

Bushy Browed Mermaids

2011-08-20T07:40:00.000-07:00

Here's the second to last sketch I did for the center piece in my installation at Tender Loving Empire. It's pretty much there, but just a tad too realistic.

I know I've been neglecting my blog recently, but only because the circus that is my life recently has been putting on daily shows and I haven't had the time to get away. I do have some drawings stored up, so once I get around to scanning them it'll be smooth sailing all the way. Stay with me, my friends!

Whatever.

2011-08-09T06:59:00.000-07:00

The overseer of the Wednesday night figure drawing sessions at PNCA on top of a tree.

Strongman

2011-08-08T07:57:00.000-07:00

This will eternally be my backup Halloween costume.

Mapping it Out

2011-08-06T07:40:00.000-07:00

So this is a bit of a strange post, again. I know I've been stringing you along for 3 weeks with talks of my installation at Tender Loving Empire in downtown Portland (have you looked at it in person yet??), but I'm still on vacation and haven't had the time to post actual pictures from it. Here's a concept sketch I did for the platform that everything lies on.

Now imagine it 9 feet long and me staying up till 3 the night before installation to work on it. Yeah.

Old Blue Eyes

2011-08-04T09:52:00.000-07:00

Oh, you know. Just sketchin' around.

Birds in a Nest

2011-08-01T08:47:00.000-07:00

This is a drawing of my brothers and I hanging out when we were younger. I'm the one in the middle. It's funny how alike we all looked at that age.

Destroy All Humans!

2011-07-22T09:00:00.000-07:00

I kind of feel like this guy is shaking his "fist" and yelling at some young whipper-snappers for messing up his lawn. This is yet another concept sketch I did for the window installation at Tender Loving Empire.

I'm on vacation so I still haven't had a chance to upload photographs from the finished piece, but I will soon. I promise.

Breaking news: Blowfish Blows

2011-07-20T09:33:00.000-07:00

Well the installation is finally finished, but I don't have the photos of it ready to post at the moment. In the meantime, here's a source sketch for one of the elements! The whole installation is based off the crosshatched style of old nautical maps and displayed diorama style in the window.

You can see the complete installation in downtown Portland in the window of Tender Loving Empire, located at 412 Southwest 10th Avenue. (Just south of Burnside between Powell's and the foodcarts).

Seated Man Sits

2011-07-15T06:51:00.000-07:00

Here's a new sneak-a-sketch from the Albina Press. He never knew what hit him.

Now to get back to working on this installation.

Leaf Dragon

2011-07-14T07:05:00.000-07:00

The leaves on the tree branch outside of my house look like a dragon sometimes, so I drew it.

Sketchbook Swoops

2011-07-13T06:50:00.000-07:00

I really want to post drawings from my upcoming installation, but I don't want to spoil it before it's up! So for now here's one from the sketchbook. This was drawn after a delicious Thai dinner before seeing The Sandwitches, Calvin Johnson, and Sonny and the Sunsets at Cherry Sprout Produce. Now THAT'S a summer day.

Gullible Fish

2011-07-11T06:32:00.000-07:00

While working on the submarine man piece for my last show I did this little diddy to test the watercolor and decide on a style. Most of the fish are going to take the bait I think, but the one in the left corner looks pissed.

Tender Loving Window Installation

2011-07-10T09:10:00.000-07:00

Sorry about the long blogging hiatus folks, but with the opening of my last show, out of town guests, summer fun, bbq's, bike rides, day jobs, my birthday, vacation planning, and an upcoming window installation at Tender Loving Empire I've been pretty busy!

I don't want to divulge the whole thing just yet, but here's a concept sketch I did a while ago for some elements of the window installation. I'm installing this Saturday and then two days later it's vacation time. Awwwwwww Yeaaaaaaaah.

Michael Jackson is a Dead Man

2011-07-03T07:35:00.000-07:00

Here's another sketch I did for the Michael Jackson inspired group show at the Emerson Space Case. Why is it that I always end up liking my preliminary sketches more than my final pieces?

Spider-man Unmasked!

2011-06-30T08:40:00.000-07:00

Here's a warm up I did for the Michael Jackson inspired group show we're having at the Emerson Space Case. (Opening Tonight)

Family Portraits art show is UP

2011-06-28T12:18:00.000-07:00

Well, a lot of work went into the art show last weekend, but it was all well worth it. Thanks to everyone who came out and made the opening what it was.

And if you weren't able to make it the show will be up till the end of July, so get your butt down there and buy a mango.

Cherry Sprout is located at 722 N. Sumner St. Portland, OR 97217
(Directly off Albina between N. Alberta and N. Killingsworth )

Art show at Cherry Sprout!

2011-06-23T06:00:00.000-07:00

"J. Titus Bloemkamp and his trusty sidekick Mr. Marvelous first met on the transoceanic ship, the "Bellerophon," where they spent a choppy winter stowing away below decks beneath sacks of potatoes . . ."

Come out to Cherry Sprout to see the opening of my new show "Family Portraits" featuring work from the last year as well as stories by myself and Aaron Greyson of San Diego.

This event is in conjunction with Cherry Sprout's "Celebration of Love" in the park next door featuring the musical stylings of

The J.E. Love Company
The Original Duke of Hominy
Alan Singley
Pillow Fight
Larry Yes and the Tangled Mess
and Blake the Singing Sensation.

Music, art, sun, fruit, drinks, and anthropomorphized characters. What more could you want?

Cherry Sprout is located at 722 N. Sumner St., Portland, OR 97217. Right off Albina between N. Killingsworth and N. Alberta St.

Cafe Amor

2011-06-21T07:36:00.000-07:00

These two gentlemen were actually sitting on opposite sides of the coffee shop I was at, but I thought they should meet in a drawing. Now they're in love.

Askewed Likenesses

2011-06-15T05:50:00.000-07:00

And another one from last week's session. I wish this pose had lasted longer because I really would have liked to render it further. Sometimes 25 minutes can really race by. This model had a really interesting face so I focused more attention on trying to get her features right, but I don't think I quite got it. It definitely looks like somebody, but who? Suggestions are welcome in the comments section.

Foreshortened

2011-06-14T09:05:00.000-07:00

Last week I finally made it back to PNCA for the last Wednesday night figure drawing session. I was about an hour late, so I didn't get to warm up with the short poses, but I eventually got into a groove. Here's one of the ones that I don't mind showing to you.

I realized that I love doing drawings of people in foreshortened angles and contorted poses. It just makes for a much more interesting composition and even hints of a narrative.

Dangerous Art Show

2011-06-13T06:03:00.000-07:00

I helped Stephanie put together this flyer for a group art show we're putting on at the Emerson Space Case. We're looking for all kinds of art so please submit if you can! If you live in a different city there's still plenty of time to mail your art to us. Inquire for address via email please.

For more information as to WHY? we're putting a Michael Jackson inspired art show check out the Emerson Space Case blog.

ALSO there's a few new things to share with you. A Sketch A Day is now more technologically friendly! It has been optimized for maximum viewing on the mobile device of your choice, and it now has it's very own facebook page. Search for "A Sketch A Day: Art by Ilan Schraer" on facebook or click the LIKE button in the column to the right of the screen! I'll be posting updates, photos, and links to all the projects I'm working on right now, as well as links to other cool art blogs and things of interest.

Ezra Part Deux

2011-06-07T05:41:00.000-07:00

I was so bummed about losing my original drawing of this in my last sketch book that I decided to do a new one. Again, this is my late grandfather Ezra Masliah, now in technicolor!

Uncle Arnold

2011-06-03T10:26:00.000-07:00

Here's a portrait of my Uncle Arnold from a picture that was probably taken in the mid-80s. He was an awesome painter and ceramicist, and sadly was lost to skin cancer about 20 years ago. Although I was very young at the time, I have fond memories of visiting his art studio/converted warehouse in Berkeley,CA and seeing his art. His work was gestural and figurative, serious and funny at the same time, and I still think of him as an inspirational figure in my life and in my work. He's missed by many.

Just a sketch

2011-06-02T14:44:00.000-07:00

Here is one of the ideas I had for my book cover before I decided to do the whole thing on the computer. It was fun but it's a bit crowded and hard to get a clean drawing with colored pencils. This'll be the last one of these you see for a while.

Book Cover #2

2011-05-30T08:45:00.000-07:00

This was actually my first design for the book cover, but it felt more like a poster than a book illustration and the class liked the other one better. So there you go. I debated for a long time whether to keep it like this or more simple like the one below.

20,000 Illustrations Under the Sea

2011-05-29T11:59:00.000-07:00

I recently finished an illustration fundamentals course taught at PNCA by local artist Ryan Bubnis. We were given many options for our final project and after much deliberation I decided to go with designing a cover for a classic novel. Curiously I decided to do 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne. Curious because I've never read the book. I decided that this was to my advantage, recalling Eastern European film posters for American movies that I've seen. You know, the ones where it's obvious that the artist has never seen the film? These often yield spectacular results, so I thought the same could be true for mine.

Part of my reason for taking this class was to push myself to think about art and illustration in different ways. To get out of my comfort zone a bit. Having always loved the simplicity of mid-century book covers I decided that I wanted to take a stab at it for myself. This really forced me to boil down the plot of the book to it's core elements, and play with those to maximum effect. Below is my final piece:

There are a few different incarnations that I'll post in the coming days, but ultimately this is the design I settled on. If I had more time I would have liked to play around with rendering it in more traditional media, but for now this is what I have. What do you guys think? Would YOU buy this book?

"Raphael is Cool but Rude"

2011-05-20T06:09:00.000-07:00

So THIS is happening tonight and I'm feeling pretty good about it. I think I did this once before (about 8 years ago) and it was a smash hit, so we're doing it again. THE TIME HAS COME! I even looked up a recipe for vegetarian "toytle" soup but decided we should probably just stick with pizza. Special thanks goes to Ben and Amber for loaning us their projector to project the shit out of this movie. Man, I love being a turtle.

Ilan Schraer Illustration

2011-05-19T06:27:00.000-07:00

For the last 7 weeks I've been taking an Illustration Fundamentals coarse at PNCA, as part of their continuing education program. The class turned out to be much more focused on the business side of illustration than I anticipated, but I've still been learning some good tips about the illustration world and how to better present myself as a professional. One project we've been working on is developing a "brand logo" for our illustration business.; an iconic image that we can put on business cards, letters, merchendise, etc.. I've already created something like this for my etsy store, but I thought it would be good to have another one for freelance work. Here's an idea that I've been tinkering around with:

I've used the walrus several times in my work so I thought it was a fitting icon, but I'm curious to see what it would look like in watercolor or an ink wash. I'll probably mess around with that a bit later, when I'm not swamped with work. Keep the faith dear readers. Summer WILL come!

Mercury is in the Toilet

2011-05-13T18:12:00.000-07:00

I got to do another illustration for The Portland Mercury this week! The article is about new bathroom construction in public parks so a toilet in the park seemed the best way to go. Black and white for the printed version and color for the internet.

I was asked to revise my original design because it didn't look enough like a toilet, but I miss the charming eyes and smile of the toilet in the design below. Oh well, that's the illustration business I guess.

Hope everyone enjoyed the splash of nice weather we've been enjoying the past two days, because it looks like it's going to rain again tonight. When is summer coming??

Last Roundup

2011-05-11T07:05:00.000-07:00

Here's the final flier for the show. I'm pretty happy with the way it turned out, though if I had more time I would have liked to throw some more details in there and really fine tune some things. Maybe mess around with some water color on the original drawing. Check out the band on their myspace page (which is apparently Myspace's only function now) and then check out the show on May 21st!

If you notice the lettering is reminiscent of the Muppet Show Logo. This was completely unintentional. Please do not expect Muppets to be performing at this show.

Last Concept

2011-05-10T07:07:00.000-07:00

This is the rough drawing that we eventually went with for the final version. I'll post that up tomorrow. Happy Tuesday, everyone!

The Old West : NOW IN 3D!

2011-05-07T13:07:00.000-07:00

Here's concept sketch #2 for the show flier I'm working on. I started working on the final one yesterday and will hopefully be putting the finishing touches on it today. Keep your eyes peeled, dear readers.

Hipster Cowboy: Part 1

2011-05-06T11:23:00.000-07:00

I'm working on a show flier for James Dean Kindle and the Eastern Oregon Playboys and before I settled on a final concept I drew up a few different ones to have the band pick from. Here's the first one I did, using a portrait of Wyatt Earp as inspiration. This is what he would have looked like in 1986 if he was a Daytona Beach police officer on a sitcom. Can't you just picture him in a jet-ski chase wearing blindingly white short shorts?

Thievery!

2011-05-04T09:00:00.000-07:00

This wasn't the face that I made when I found out my backpack had been stolen out of my car last Thursday, but it sure could have been. As some of you know I've been in a bit of a funk the last week due to this theft which included both of my primary sketchbooks, art materials, one of a kind reference photos, post cards, my ipod and headphones, and a library book of the adventures of Baron Munchausen. I'm feeling a bit better than I did and making a real effort to stay on the positive side of things. Here's a list of positive things to come out of this situation:

1. While my stuff was being stolen I was seeing an awesome concert. The thief did not get to see this concert, therefore is eternally bummed.
2. Since I post everything on this blog there's only a handful of drawings I hadn't scanned yet, so at least I still have a record of the images lost. (though I am sad I won't get to share the ones I was working on with you folks)
3. I'll have to get a new ipod which will most likely be infinitely superior to my old one. Joke's on you thief!
4. Maybe the thief will be turned on to some awesome music from my ipod which will change him forever.
5. It's always nice to be reminded the uncertainty of life and to not put too much importance on possessions, even artwork. There will be many more drawings in my lifetime no doubt, even better than the ones I lost.

The worst part is just that feeling of violation. The feeling you get in the pit of your stomach, and all those lingering questions. When exactly did he take it? Where is my stuff now? If I had parked on a different street would it still have happened?

Well, enough dwelling on it. Time to move on to BIGGER and BETTER things!

Chicken's Don't Clap!

2011-04-29T18:03:00.001-07:00

I had the honor of designing another header for music blog "Chickens Don't Clap!" this year. Derek just got around to posting his year end list so head over there and check it out.

This is a painting in our house that we got at a thrift store, and the tiles I found at SCRAP.

Oh dear, what a colorful mustache!

2011-04-27T05:52:00.000-07:00

Here's a first pass with color. For this one I just set some values down in a burnt sienna to "set the stage" for what's to come in the future. I'm having fun with this one so far and it's nice working with a new medium. Especially one that's so hard to control. I'd still like to get looser and more spontaneous with my work. Maybe I'll do another version of this once I'm done with this one without the pen marks.

Self Portrait with Mustache

2011-04-26T06:35:00.000-07:00

Here's the bare bones of what will become a watercolor painting I'm doing of myself. Right now I'm too tired to post any more. More to come tomorrow.

Federation of the Rings

2011-04-25T09:11:00.000-07:00

Commander Frodo reporting to duty. I'm pretty sure he's part Vulcan.

And in color.

Doodle turned Salesman

2011-04-22T09:34:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I sat down without knowing what I was going to draw. I decided to try and do this more. This guy started with a doodle that turned out to be his nose and the rest was history.