A Feast for the Eyes

Blue Plate Dinners Art Exhibition

I contacted artists near and far to be part of

an art show with the theme of food. The show

was at Blue Plate Dinners, a local meal assembly store.

Since many of their meals come in freezer bags, I asked

that everyones work be able to fit in a bag. All the work

was displayed in those bags.

See photos from the opening reception here.

Sourpuss Series

C'mon, who didn't jam citrus rinds in their mouths in an effort

to generate a laugh or two? These were my contributions to

the "A Feast for the Eyes" exhibition. It was conveyed to me

that watermelons are not sour, so calling it a "sourpuss" is

not accurate. I call that one "Contrarian".

Summer Stuff

ICON5

Among the workshops, studio tours, and presentations

at this years Illustration Conference was "The Wall".

Multiple blank panels waiting to be covered by the

500 illustrators at the event. I wanted to help out

and made my contribution.

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Sketchbook Additions

Have been meaning to add some sketchbook drawings

for some time. Plenty more to come, but in the meantime,

see more here.

Mmmm... Beer.

Boulevard Brewing Company

While we are just starting to deal with the heat of summer,

I had to think cool autumn thoughts while working on this

advertising piece for a great regional microbrewery.

The "47" inside the bottle represents their "Bob's '47"

seasonal release. Check out their tasty libations here

Catching Up On The News

MAY 2008

Playboy Jazz Festival
I love my job. I’ve had the pleasure of working with Art Director Fred Fehlau for many years, painting portraits of famous jazz musicians. This is the latest one - a painting of Poncho Sanchez. The festival is held annually at the Hollywood Bowl, in Los Angeles, California.

APRIL 2008

Tava Wallpaper
Pepsi Co. wanted to use some of my images for their new soft drink
line called Tava. They will have a gallery link on the site where guests
can download images for computer desktop wallpaper.
See more at tava.com.

MARCH 2008

La Luz De Jesus Gallery
I had three paintings selected to be part of the annual group show
“Everything But the Kitschen Sync” show in Hollywood, CA.
See more at www.laluzdejesus.com.

MARCH 2008

Dallas Morning News
My mom told me pushing is rude. But “nudging” in the corporate world
seems to be the way to go. This was for a story about how a growing
number of businesses are making default decisions for employees
about personal choices such as 401K contributions, among others.

FEBRUARY 2008


Kid Rock (as in kid’s rock)
One of my family’s favorite bands is The Terrible Twos.
They are a side project for The New Amsterdams, an amazing
emo-acoustic-ish-rock band. The Twos focus on making music for kids
that parents actually want to listen to. If you have not heard them,
they are worth checking out – even if you don’t have kids.
Really great stuff. This is the front cover and foldout 3-panel cover
for their new CD coming out in July. Check them out here.

JANUARY 2008

Ever Heard of Sunscreen?
This is another Drawergeeks.com contribution.
The topic was “rednecks”.
For those of you unfamiliar with Drawergeeks,
see the June 2007 update.

DECEMBER 2007

1950 Ford
Anthony Easton, a Canadian artist challenged 100 artists to draw
a 1950 Ford from memory for a show at the Art Gallery of Alberta
in Edmonton. It's a riff on a 1977 text painting by U.S. artist
Ed Ruscha, which comprises the words:
"Will 100 Artists Please Draw a 1950 Ford From Memory".
This was my experimental contribution.

NOVEMBER 2007

Middlebury College
I remember looking at an old atlas when I was a kid and drawing
various states and countries. Sometimes, I used a globe. I think
the practice paid off. This was used for various collateral material
for a Capital Campaign for the school.

OCTOBER 2007

University Phone Directory
These four images are studies of the Memorial Campanile tower on the University of Kansas campus. The bottom left image was used for the campus phone directory cover.

SEPTEMBER 2007

New York Times
Like golf, fishing is another sport that I enjoy, but don’t do very often (I’m not very good). Regardless, I had fun working on this (another homage) piece about the “pocket fisherman” fishing pole.

AUGUST 2007

National Golf Course Association
I like to play golf on occasion, but am really bad at it. This was the lead image for an article about compensation for golf course employees. There were two spot images as well.

JULY 2007

Indiana University Alumni Association
I met a girlfriend by taking typing in high school,
so I appreciated working on this piece.
It was a homage to typewriters.

JUNE 2007

DrawerGeeks.com
There is a fun collaborative illustration site that I've been part of for the last couple years called drawergeeks.com. Every 2 to 3
weeks members create their version of a selected topic. Past subjects have included cowboys, batman, Santa Claus, and robots, to name a few. This was my submission for robots.

MAY 2007

Non-Demo Risks
When teaching, I try to lead by example. However, there is always the chance that you don't hit the mark every time. As the previous post explained, on occasion, I will sit down with my students and work with them on various class exercises. This is another example. Done in mixed media, it’s an attempt of a portrait of Antonio Banderas. As it turns out, it's more like a portrait of what I like to refer to as "his cousin" - not quite right, but close. The lesson here is that we can learn from our failures, as much as our successes, just as long as we can recognize and acknowledge our failures.

MAY 2007

Society of Illustrators of Los Angeles
In addition to my illustration work, I teach illustration and other related subjects at the University of Kansas. In some studio classes I will sit down and draw or paint with the students. I'm not a big fan of demos (interest wanes quickly), so instead I sit and work with them. I invite anyone who is interested to feel free to look over my shoulder. This portrait of Jay-Z done was done in class while covering the wonders of acrylic paint. The painting was accepted to this year’s annual juried collection by the Society of Illustrators of Los Angeles.

APRIL 2007

Daily Embellishments
Another series of images for Blue Plate Dinners, a great locally owned meal assembly store here in Lawrence, KS. This series focused on the comforts of home.

MARCH 2007

Table Manners
I love food. So making images related to food is a pleasure. Here is the first series of images for Blue Plate Dinners, a meal assembly store here in Lawrence, KS. If you live in the area, be sure to stop by and check them out. The owners are great, and the food is terrific.

FEBRUARY 2007

Society of Illustrators 49

Portrait of McCoy Tyner for the Playboy Jazz Festival held annually
at the Hollywood Bowl. The work was exhibited at the society's
gallery in New York in April 2007. It will be included in the annual
book coming out in Fall '08.

JANUARY 2007

Kansas Governor’s Inaugural
This work was part of the governor’s juried inaugural art exhibit
held in Topeka. The show was a diverse and eclectic mix of 2D
and 3D work from across the state.

News and Updates Now Found Here

Welcome to my new blog. The news section of my website will now be linked to this site. It is my hope that the news posts will be more frequent than my previous posts, and the news more up to date.