The Fox and The Rabbit
I’ve recently come to the realization that I the overwhelming majority of my children’s book illustrations are simple portraits. As an aspiring storybook illustrator this realization was a bit disturbing as illustration is all about storytelling which requires a setting and, most importantly, character interaction. So I have resolved to rework some of my recent work to this end. Here is the first fruit of my labor. So far, so good. I liked my original illustration of the Fox Thief, but I like my revision so much better. The rabbit pictured here is a part of the expanded scene which if printed would is 18 inches wide and about 7 inches tall.
Here is the Full Scene. Of course can also view related images in my Fantasy Gallery.
Trial by Ordeal
It fascinates me to review my web stats and see how visitors are finding my illustrations. In particular I am fascinated by the number of people who find my site searching for images relating to the trial by ordeal. For those not up on their medieval history the trial by ordeal was a test put to the accused to determine their innocence. In some cases the accused was required to reach into boiling water. If their hand burned they were believed to be guilty. If not, then they were believed to be innocent. However, this may sound more barbaric than it truly was.
I recently read an article that suggested that some of these ordeals were contrived to unmask guilt through trickery. For instance, the guilty might flat out refuse the trial knowing that they would be burned while they innocent would suffer the ordeal in the hopes they could prove their innocence and would discover the water to not be quite as hot as it looked. No doubt similar trickery is used regularly in police interrogations, minus the ordeals of course.
As always, you can view this illustration in my Fantasy Gallery. Most illustrations are in that gallery these days.
Jenn
An unexpected break in my current web design project allowed me to put in some time on my portrait of Jenn and so was able to complete it yesterday. This photo is far better, more accurate than photos I had previously posted.
You can view my portrait of Jenn on my Portraits gallery.
I am especially glad I bit the bullet and revised the face and hand this last month. Previously I was very satisfied with my portrayal of Jenn, but after three years of marriage I found that the girl in my portrait was not the same girl to whom I am married. What I mean to say is that when I took the original photos of Jenn we were not yet dating. The girl in those photos was far more reserved than the Jenn I photograph today. That reservation could be seen both in her expression and posture. And so my original rendering was accurate to the photos but not to Jenn who is now my wife and mother of our children.
Not doubt someone is wondering why I needed three years to complete a portrait. Well, I didn’t. Things got off to a very good start, but then I got married, our son was born, and then our daughter was born. All the while many other things were going on and so the portrait got put in a corner for a time-out. Only recently did I have the time to return to it and complete it.
The Hobbit: Dwalin
Here is the first in what I hope to be a long series of illustrations inspired by The Hobbit. Dwalin was the first of thirteen dwarves to appear on Bilbo’s doorstep. Their arrival at his quiet home would change his life forever, and of course set in motion the events that lead into The Lord of the Rings. Anyway, I’m not quite sure if he fits with children’s books or with a more adult collectors genre. Certainly he is for the true LOTR fans out there.
Dwalin can of course be found in my Fantasy Illustration gallery.
Be sure to scroll down when you view the full-size illustration. I have a second version below this one that you might otherwise miss.
Medieval Mouse Archer
No doubt many people would not have know or would not have cared, but my original version of this mouse archer was drawing the arrow in a most impossible way. Only days after I posted this did it dawn on me.
You can find the revised version of this mouse in my Fantasy Illustration gallery.
Mind you, I like to shoot arrows whenever I can, but I just didn’t think it through when I positioned his hands. Now I can rest easy knowing that the little guy his a better chance of hitting his mark. And hopefully I’m not the only one who can picture him in a children’s storybook.
Jenn (work-in-progress)
I took advantage of the beautiful weather and got my portrait of Jenn outside for some photos. Though the lighting was great I think my camera settings were not. I color adjusted as best I could and think this image is as close as I’ll get with a JPG.
You will find Jenn in my Portraits Gallery.
My hope is to have the portrait completed and framed by mid-June. There’s a show at the Howard County Arts Center I hope to get it in. If it does get in I’ll blog about it of course and post the address so that you locals can swing by for a look.
Gotta go. There’s an everything bagel calling my name.
Anyway… about this illustration… lately I’ve been having fun working digitally and this fox is my latest creation. Well, actually the dragon sketch which is the background image of this website is my latest… but anyway?
You will find this fox in my Fantasy Gallery.
Fox Thief in Forest
So when I sat down to draw all I really knew was that I wanted to draw a fox. What he would look like or be doing was, at best, vague in my mind. In the end I was quite pleased. Not only did I like the scene, but also the style. I tried to work a little more loosely than when I use pastel. I’m not very loose with the pastels, to say the least. These digital experiments have been great in that respect because I always know that I can completely rework something without the loss of much time. Not so with pastels.
Don’t get me wrong. I love pastels. Staring over my shoulder even as a type is a pastel portrait that I’m very anxious to get back to. There’s a show in June for which I need to complete it.
Medieval Mouse Archer
With the launch of the newly designed site I have sorted my work into six galleries, including: Fantasy, Fables, Classic Tales, Animals, Portraits and Sketchbook.
Naturally I want to add to each gallery, but the Fantasy gallery is likely to get the most attention. After that maybe Fables as I’ve always liked Aesop’s fables if not simply because the so often feature animals. Anyway, the separate galleries seemed like a good step toward clarity. I like clarity.
Naidrau the Dragon
Truly, you can’t go wrong with dragons. This red dragon is called Naidrau. He is one of 18 digital character portraits I created for Kate O’Hegarty’s e-novel, Mieradome. You may view more of these character portraits in my Fantasy Gallery.
Visit the official Mierdome website.
The Snow Queen
This chilly lady is my vision for the Snow Queen in Kate O’Hegarty’s novel, Mieradome. She is one of 18 character portraits I created for Kate this past spring. You may view more of these character portraits in my Fantasy Gallery.
Hodgepodge
Hodgepodge is what you would call a Fussig faery (ain’t got no wings) in the realm of Mieradome. He is something of a clan leader if I recall correctly. And he is just one of eighteen character portraits for which Kate O’Hegarty commissioned me. They do not appear in the recently published book. They were for the official Mieradome website.
View the full image.
Tai Ming Kiels
This gentleman’s name is Tia Ming Kiels. He is a character in a novel written by Kate O’Hegarty. This past spring Kate commissioned me to create 18 character illustrations for her novel. This project was a great opportunity for me to do some experiments with digital illustration.
Kaiser Holstalken
Kaiser Holstalken is, as you might guess, a nasty sort of fellow. I don’t know much about him, but I think the eyes are a hint.
View the full image.
Feig
His name is Feig [feeg] and he’s a character in a novel called Mieradome [meera-doe-may]. The author, Kate O’Hegarty, commissioned 18 character portraits as a part of her promotion of her new book. You can view all the characters portraits I created at the official Mieradome website. Her website was created by Creative Republic which is the same designer who created Tony DiTerlizzi’s website. Toni is the illustrator of the Spiderwick Chronicles, but now I’m getting a bit off topic.
Kate’s characters provided a great opportunity to explore digital illustration. I had messed around a bit before, but not to this extent. Hopefully Kate’s book will do well and maybe my work will get a little exposure. We shall see.
Ami Dar-Ya
Her name is Ami Dar’Ya and she is a mysterious character in Kate O’Hegarty’s e-novel, Mieradome. She is just one of 18 digital character portraits Kate commissioned this past spring. You may view more of these character portraits in my Fantasy Gallery.
Also, you might want to check out the official Mierdome website.
Inocian of the e-novel Mieradome
I recently completed 18 character illustrations for Kate O’Hegarty’s young adult e-novel, Mieradome. I’ve posted my favorites here on my site – see my Fantasy Illustration gallery – and the others may be found on the official Mieradome website.
I’ve just begun working digitally and I’m pretty pleased with how they turned out. There’s no denying the speed and flexibility of the digital world. Still, there is the sadness of having no physical work of art to hold in my hands or to frame and hang. In the future I think the digital will not just be a new medium for me, but also be a help to my pastels. It will be quite handy for working out color schemes and contrast. I’ll never give up my pastels.
Maryland Institute College of Art
The Maryland Institute College of Art has invited me to teach Intro to Illustration next Fall 2010. Originally I was to teach two classes, but some departmental reorganization has taken place since I was first contacted and so I will now teach only one class – Intro to Illustration. I believe it will work out great. To say the least I am honored and excited. These last few weeks I’ve been popping in to observe classes with José Villarrubia and Warren Linn. They’re both great teachers and wonderful mentors.
The Children of Kinsley House. A Tale of Redemption
This beautiful tale of redemption captures the essence of the redemption through Jesus life, death and resurrection. Told in allegory form the story is a fresh new way to impart the grand story of redemption to your children this Easter.
Written by David Sutherland. Illustrated by Jeffrey Brian Fisher. Published by Imagine Kids Company Ltd, 2009. 48 pages hardcover with 24 pastel illustrations.
The book may be purchased through Focus on the Family New Zealand.
