Below is my current resume as of August 2017. I have nearly 20 years of experience behind me across many industries and types of projects, and that experience continues to change. I try to update my resume often, not only for different positions but in favor of different aspects of my expertise. My full resume […]
I like to customize my Moleskine sketchbooks before I start using them, and sometimes that can be quite an elaborate process. Partly, I customize them so that they are easier to recognize and find if lost. Instead of just looking for a generic, small sketchbook, I can tell people to look for something more unique. […]
Artists, and creators in general, can be a strange breed. Notwithstanding all of the devious and unusual things we come up with, especially as a horror creator, our actions often seem unusual to the general public. For example, I spent a good amount of yesterday looking for a new pencil. Now, for most people, a […]
I was particularly enamored the other day with the newest trailer for the film Pacific Rim, and it made me think of something other than giant robots and giant monsters. Originally published by Apex Book Company, April 2013 Aren’t these the same giant monsters we’ve seen for years? Now, believe me, I’m not going to […]
I’ve been a published artist for 15 years this week, for both cover art and interior art. I don’t say that to brag, I just want to set the stage for a discussion about the rights that go along with using my artwork. Now, to get the obvious out of the way, I own the […]
Art & Design: Promotional materials to leave behind
It is a good idea, after an interview or portfolio review, to leave behind some manner of promotional material for yourself. That could be as simple as a business card, or as complex as a brochure. The idea is that the person doing the review will have something to refer to later, hopefully to get […]
The process of new cover art and the grand feedback experiment
Last year, I created a cover for author Vincenzo Bilof’s Necropolis Now: Zombie Ascension. So, as is sometimes the case and something I look forward to, he asked if I could create the art for the book’s sequel, the now-released Queen of the Dead: Zombie Ascension II (go get it here). Most of my year […]
Just the other day, Thunderstorm Books posted their newest book, Bryan Smith‘s Grimm Awakening. I was lucky enough to do the cover art for it, which was a great thing for me because I also did the cover for the original version way back in 2004. It’s not often that an artist gets a second […]
I was in a pretty good habit, a couple of years back, of posting the sketches that I do all the time. Posting them is good for me, because I can go back and review the things I’ve done. Posting is good for others, so I’m told by other artists, in that they can get […]
The night is darkest just before the dawn. And I promise you, the dawn is coming.
That quote, for those of you who don’t watch movies, is from the film The Dark Knight. Until now, I just thought it was an interesting statement, but the fact is that I’ve lived like that. Also, until now, there was really no dawn to speak of. But, as these usually do go, a subtle […]
New Ink Art and Walkthrough: The Colossi of Memnon
For a very long time, since way back when I was a college engineering student, I’ve been fascinated with ancient architecture and stonework. Near the top of that list has always been the Egyptian statues known as the Colossi of Memnon, two massive representations of pharaoh Amenhotep III. When I say massive, they are among the […]
It’s been a little while since I’ve posted a new ink, and it’s about time I did. Life gets in the way of art sometimes, but art is still something I need to be building consistently. In this case, I wanted to try another fossil as the base idea for an ink. I have lots […]
Travels of my first booth part 1: The mess of things
So, I went ahead and did it. I signed up for my first ever booth at a major art convention, in this case the Spectrum Fantastic Art Live show in Kansas City in May, 2012. What the hell was I thinking? Now, before we get any further, let me just say that I’m very much […]
Life has ups and downs of course, and I’ve said plenty of times that art is a great catharsis. I used that catharsis this very morning, for a new digital piece. I like digital art, in this case more photomanipulation than full, line by line sort of art. My style(s) of art usually has a […]
In getting ready for my Spectrum booth this coming May (check out the event here), I’ve been working out which pieces of art to bring with me. One of the ideas that came up, which I’ve had before, is to combine three of my smaller inks into one framed set. I had two previous H.P […]
No, I didn’t misspell that title, it actually is spelled “valravn”. The valravn is my new artwork, and new Alphabeast. From Danish folklore, a valravn is a half-wolf, half-raven creature. From Wikipedia (and a couple of other sites): “The valravns appear in traditional Danish folksongs, where they are described as originating from ravens who consume […]
For some time, I’ve been wanting to create another “loose” piece, using scratchboard, ink, acrylic, and seemingly everything else I can find in my office. Quite a few people like the previous piece like this, last year’s The Lost Nightmare, and I thought today would be a good time to try another. I had picked […]
For this week’s Alphabeast creation, I came across the description of a type of mean faerie, called an “unseelie”. Now, in the many descriptions I’ve come across, sometimes it’s described as the “unseelie court”, and sometimes as the creature itself. In either case, the unseelie is seen as a very mean faerie, one that tends […]
Here’s a new Alphabeast creature, and an interpretation of a scene from one of my very favorite films, John Carpenter’s The Thing. If you haven’t seen the film, go ahead. I’ll wait. Back? Wasn’t that just awesome? To create an ink of the creature isn’t the easiest, considering that it doesn’t really have one single […]
I’ve been a big fan of the film Dark City since I saw in the theater back in the 90’s. For awhile now, I’ve been considering doing some ink art of one of the creatures from the film. They are known as “the strangers’, and our hero (played by Rufus Sewell) has to go up […]
This week for Alphabeasts, which I’m now caught up on, I decided to try something different. With my computer being backed up and doing some maintenance, I thought I would try a larger piece than the others have been. This week’s letter was “R”, and the first thing that popped into my head was “revenant”. […]
Here’s today’s second catch-up Alphabeast art, for the letter Q. This is a qilin, from Chinese mythology, and something I found very interesting. As a creature, a qilin is (from Wikipedia and others) a creature that’s described in a few different ways. Among them is a description of a beast with horns/antlers, more of a dragon’s head, […]
In trying to catch up on life, especially while my computer is a bit busy, I’m finding that I can still work on ink art away from the normal spot. Case in point, today’s first catch-up Alphabeast art. I had a few “P” choices to pick from, but this one stood out quite a bit. […]
For quite awhile now, I’ve wanted to do an ink of a large tortoise. I’ve seen them in various places throughout the years, and they have a great texture in their skin that I’ve wanted to try and work with on an ink. Any time you have an ink idea with texture though, it complicates things. You only […]
The second Alphabeast ink of the day is a Japanese mythological creature known as the onryō. If you’ve seen The Ring (or Ringu), even maybe The Grudge, you probably have a pretty good idea what a onryō is. An onryō is a vengeful ghost, seeking retribution for some wrong that happened to it during life. The most […]
A few different ideas went through my head when it came to the “nightgaunt”, for my latest Alphabeast. For those that don’t know, a nightgaunt is a creature that is present during night terrors. Now, night terrors are the worst thing in all the world. Frightening, to the point that getting a night terror affects […]
I’ve been working on a number of projects, and one of those is to expand the offerings that I’ll have at my Spectrum Live booth this coming May. To that end, I’m trying to create a number of small acrylic paintings to have there. I’ve also wanted, for some time, to try my hand at […]
Quite awhile back, when I was first getting back into inking, I created an ink based on the Im-Ho-Tep/Mummy character from the 1932 film version of The Mummy (see it here). The idea with that one was to work from a photo, something I hadn’t done much (if ever), to recreate the iconic face of […]
Continuing on the mission to make 2012 mine, I completed a second ink today (don’t miss the first one, here). It was a challenge, in more ways than one, but I think it turned out well. The ink is of a Lampade, from Greek mythology. Lampades were companions of the goddess Hecate, and were nymphs […]
The end of the year didn’t go anywhere nearly as well as I thought, art-wise. Of course, the whole year was… yeah. But this is a new year, and I have a lot of catching up to do. Though I’ve been working on art behind the scenes, here’s the first posted one of the new […]
I’m gradually starting to get caught back up, after a disastrous few months. I decided that I didn’t want to end 2011 with nothing completed, so I manged to kick out two pieces of art in the last couple of days. The first was the skatedeck art, The All-Mighty Dollar (see it here), and below […]
For awhile now, I’ve been interested in trying new materials to work with, something other than canvas or paper. A few artists that I know paint on wooden skateboard decks, and I thought that would be something very interesting to try. My friend at the local Rendition Gallery (go check it out folks) ordered a […]
I’ve been busy for some time now, and I haven’t been able to post the newest ebook cover that I created a couple of months back. I thought it was time to show it off, so here it is. For those that follow this blog (both of you), a few months back I was in […]
This is my latest ink for the Alphabeasts project, and hopefully the last one I need to catch up on. I started with “C” (here), coming in a little late, so this one catches me up to the current letter. An algul is a mythical/legendary vampire woman, in Arabian mythology, and I thought it would […]
For my Alphabeasts entry this week, being still in an “experimental” mood after that last painting (here), I went with a different effect than I normally have. Usually, I have quite a lot of crosshatch marks on my inks. I decided this time to try something with far less lines, but with just as much […]
Being an artist, to me anyway, involves taking chances. Though I value consistency, there’s something to be said for experimentation. Experimenting with techniques and styles gives me a chance to explore areas I haven’t tried before, and really challenge the concepts of art. Not just in how I make things look, but the difference in […]
For this week’s Alphabeasts entry, I decided to stick with Valve’s games, albeit a slightly older one. From the Half Life series, there are these little creatures called “headcrabs”, which I thought would be fun. Headcrabs like to throw themselves at you, and can be pretty annoying. With the trusty crowbar they aren’t too hard […]
For many years, coming from both illustration and graphic design, I’ve heard different discussions about what people charge to do their work. Sometimes it even sounds like a big, secret mystery, as if you aren’t supposed to talk about it in front of anyone. Which, as all of you who are consumers would be quick […]
Here’s my new entry for Alphabeasts, G is for Gremlin. It’s one of those films I grew up with, and now my own children have seen it and are growing up with it. In fact, it’s on my daughter’s suggestion that I’ve created this ink art, of the vicious Stripe. She, of course, didn’t want […]
I missed the opening couple of rounds of Alphabeasts this time, so I’m gradually catching up with “A” and “B”. Today, I managed to get “B” out of the way, with an ink I’ve wanted to do for some time. One of the films that has always inspired me (from a twisted direction at least) […]
Once again, I’ve created a new ink for the Alphabeasts project (alphabeasts.tumblr.com). This time, I had a bit of a quandary, since there are a few creatures that start with “F” that I thought might be interesting. Of course, there’s the faun from El laberinto del fauno (Pan’s Labyrinth). But I have an interesting ink […]
A few months ago, a former graphic design client of mine asked me to do a traditional painting for her, something she could give away as a present. She had been on a long trip to the Mediterranean, and wanted to repay her hosts with something more than just a “thank you” card. I thought […]
I’m having fun with the Alphabeasts project (visit http://alphabeasts.tumblr.com/ for more info), it’s making me really think about what I want to do for it. The creatures are all different as well, so it’s a good challenge to come up with different textures and ideas. On top of that, getting away from working with photos, while a […]
My second entry into the great Alphabeasts project (visit http://alphabeasts.tumblr.com/ for more info) is based on the race of beings called “The Deep Ones”, from H.P. Lovecraft’s Cthulhu mythos. I’m getting more comfortable working on inks without photo reference, and this one didn’t have any at all (other than a quick google search for “frog eyes”. Make […]
A great new collaborative project is online, called “Alphabeasts”. The idea is that artists each week have a letter, and they must create a piece of art of a fictional creature starting with that letter. I’ve been looking for a nice, regular sketch sort of thing to do each week, and I think this will […]
My children tell me that they love that I’m an artist, and that I have a vast knowledge of how to pull things off for Halloween. Now, of course, they just tell me that so I’ll let them stay up late to watch movies. But I have to admit, I think that their excitement with […]
My good friend Patrick Douglas has a new book coming soon, and I created a new art piece for him to use as a signature sheet. The book itself is great, and tells the story of an outcast girl who has stumbled into a lost tribe in a cave system. Signature sheets, at their base […]
A good friend of mine, Weston Ochse, just released a fantastic collection of stories, called Multiplex Fandango. Published by Dark Regions Press, Multiplex Fandango is filled with great stories, and I highly recommend picking one up as soon as you possibly can. Go here to do so. Now, you might be asking, why am I […]
I’ve been trying lately to get on a schedule of having regular, smaller works completed. The last month has proven instead to confound that plan, but I’m still hoping to get that worked out. Case in point, my new painting for today. It’s meant to be a smaller, less involved painting, and for the overall […]
For a long while (for those who haven’t followed me for that long), I would do weekly art blogs about paintings that I was inspired by. Works by artists who are now among my favorites, like Caspar David Friedrich, Arnold Bocklin, Thomas Cole, and many others. You can see the original set gathered here. Between […]
I’m fascinated by creatures of all sorts, especially those that are a bit on the creepy side. Case in point, “The Mouth of Sauron”, featured in the extended edition of the film The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. In case you haven’t seen the extended versions of the LOTR trilogy (which […]
The Mouth of Sauron; Ink, color ink wash on 140 lb. Cold Press, 9″ x 12″; based on the character from the film The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King;
While working on a far larger painting, one that’s taking much longer, I decided to do a smaller painting. I had to wait for the larger one to dry anyway, so slipping in a small one was something I could work out. I’ve been thinking of doing continual, small paintings of different ideas that I’ve […]
New Ink Art and working with reference: Cthulhucraft
I’ve been itching to do more ink work lately, and I decided over the weekend that H.P. Lovecraft’s birthday was a great chance to work something in. The trick, of course, in doing art of a recognizable character (or person) is that you just have to get it right. Sure, there is some leeway here […]
In the last few years, I’ve done something regularly that I hadn’t in the previous years. I’ve started to complete full sketchbooks, with some kind of art on every page. I’ve noticed that it’s a good time to go back and look through it, to see how things went over time. In this case, this […]
Sure, most of the time I’m a happy-go-lucky person with a cherub-like demeanor. But once in awhile I let the world get to me, as I’ve mentioned plenty of times on the site here. I’ve found one thing, that I love to do anyway, that gets rid of the depression usually. Chiclets. Ok, that’s not […]
Designing Foil Stamps for Covers: Maelstrom Set #2
Previously on my site here (well, here), I talked about foil stamp designs. I posted examples of designs from one of the books by Brian Keene, A Gathering of Crows. Earlier this summer I had the opportunity to create the foil stamp designs for the second Maelstrom set of books from Thunderstorm Books as well. […]
I’ve been considering doing an ink work of something from the film District 9 for some time, and I finally decided to fit it in here. I managed to fit it in between two other commissioned pieces (call it a “break”). I also decided that, instead of just an ink work, I’d have fun with […]
Creating a cover from scratch: Ray Garton’s Vortex
Despite the bad way that my year is going, I still manage to get some great projects by some wonderful authors. Case in point, I was given the chance to work on author Ray Garton‘s new book, Vortex, out soon from Cemetery Dance. It’s a great honor not only to work with one of Ray’s […]
Peter Cushing from the first Star Wars, as Grand Moff Tarkin, who’s in control of the Death Star. Ink and ink wash on 140 lb. Cold Press, about 9″ x 12″.
In The Wrong World; Digital, story illustration for Peter Straub’s story Variations on a theme from Seinfeld Published in Cemetery Dance Magazine, 2009
On Thursday, I posted my newest ink/digital artwork, of Peter Cushing’s Grand Moff Tarkin character from Star Wars. I decided today, while taking a break between art pieces (and while my internet is working) to upload this article about how it was created. I like to post these kinds of articles for a couple of […]
This is the character Tomas from the film El Orfanato (The Orphanage). It is a digital color version of my original ink, 5″ x 7″ on 140 lb. Cold Press.
I’ve been wanting to try and do art for one of the special days that come up. Certain birthdays of actors, or film release dates, anniversaries, that sort of thing. So I took a little time away from finishing up some publishing work and gave it a go. Today would have been actor Peter Cushing’s […]
Rising After Dark; Digital, based on the book The Rising: Deliverance by Brian Keene; Published in the book as the signature sheet; by the Maelstrom imprint of Thunderstorm Books, 2010
This is a digital color version of my ink work of the Pale Man creature in the film El Laberinto del Fauno (Pan’s Labyrinth). The ink is 8 1/2″ x 12″, 140 lb. Cold Press, scanned in and colored in Photoshop.
I’ve been busy as of late, with commissions, local art sales and creation, job searching, various levels of depression. Coupled with those things, I’ve also had a terrible internet connection, which has caused a number of things to fall behind. In the process of trying to get caught back up, I did manage to squeeze […]
I’ve always loved the image of the female robot from the film Metropolis. It’s a very streamlined, very cool design, and well ahead of it’s time for when the film was made. I’m not sure I captured it as well as other ink works I’ve done, but I’m still happy with it. I think it […]
While I was in Austin, Texas, for the World Horror Convention, I had a bit of time to kill before checking in. I decided to sketch some things first for projects that I have in play, and after that I decided to create another ink card. Now, the main motivation for it was that I […]
The Devil’s Backbone, ink and color ink, 5″ x 7″ on 140 lb. Cold Press. Based on the character Santi from the film El espinazo del diablo (The Devil’s Backbone).
Since last night’s ink card (see it here!) was a bit on the dark side, both figuratively and literally, I thought I’d something different with today’s ink card. Today’s ink is of “The Spaniard”, the temporary nickname for the character of Maximus in the film Gladiator. I chose it not only because I really like […]
As I’m jumping back in on the art thing this week (see the previous article), I wanted to try something, well, harsh. I wanted to try and create an ink card that was very dark, and really only show the barest of highlights. It’s tricky for sure, and to be perfectly honest I’m not sure […]
It’s not really a well-kept secret that I like the scary stuff. So, when I was looking to create a new ink work for the end of the week, I ended up with a scary figure. Now, in this case, it may or may not look that scary. The character is Tomas, from the film […]
Since yesterday’s art was more on the horror side of things, and I’m working on a horror book cover, I think my brain wanted to play nice with this new ink card. This one is back to what I have been doing, 5″ x 7″ ink on 140 lb. Cold Press. I also added just […]
I decided I was getting too comfortable with my new inks, and I thought I’d try a new experiment. I think it’s important as an artist not to get too comfortable with what you are doing, as complacency can often lead to boring art. So, what I would tell all artists is to try something […]
Sometimes when I’m thinking of doing some art, I get a good idea going. Some concept, or some particular scene grabs me and I want to get art made of it. Today was no different, as I’d had an idea for another ink work based on some old noir films. I thought that not only […]
Death From Below; Digital; published as the second endpaper for the novella Scratch by Brian Keene (Cemetery Dance, 2009); Companion piece to “Death From on High”, also on this site.
Death From On High; Digital; published as the first endpaper for the novella Scratch by Brian Keene (Cemetery Dance, 2009); Companion piece to “Death From Below”, also on this site.
I decided that it might not be a bad idea to take a step back and look at the inks I’ve been working on. For those that haven’t been following (I know, I know, no one has been), I started doing ink cards and ink works late last year as a way to learn more […]
I decided that I should take a break from inking monsters, and try something that has less texture to it. Texture is fun with characters, but I want to challenge myself by working with images that don’t necessarily have a lot of texture in the important areas. Case in point, this new ink that I’ve […]
Last year, when I was working on the cover for author Brian Keene’s A Gathering of Crows for Thunderstorm Books, I was asked if I could do a design for the foil imprint that was to go on the cover. Easy enough. It’s a point at which my graphic design production background and my art […]
I had fun digitally coloring The Pale Man ink that I did (see it here!), and I thought I’d try it again. I’ve been away from inking for a couple of weeks, due both to the job search and some paying gigs, but I created a new one today for sale. I have numerous ink […]
This is sort of an old story, since the three Maelstrom books, two by Brian Keene and one by Kelli Owen, have been out for a few months now. But, as with many things, life managed to get in the way of posting the art that I did for the run. I decided to post […]
Today has been an experiment in not only a larger format for an ink work, but also in the idea of not letting a problem in the art end the day. When I started doing art today, I just grabbed my 12″ x 18″ watercolor stock and went to work. I had a decent idea […]
While I’m working on these ink cards, I’m trying a few different ideas out. Of course, one idea is purely commerce driven, I’m unemployed and selling things keeps food on the table. But artistically, there are a few things at play here. First, I’m trying to relearn what I knew about inks so many years […]
Now, I’m not sure how many will know who Aknot is, but let’s just say I enjoyed making the ink card (5″ x 7″, ink on 140 lb. Cold Press as usual) and leave it at that. Ok, I guess I can let you know. Aknot is a warrior/creature that appears in the wildly underrated […]
Ok, technically I’m not breaking a book. But I am being rude to it. Some time ago, I started getting an idea that it might be fun to take one of my contributor copies, of some of the books I’ve created art for, and add new ink art throughout. The idea came about because one […]
While I was at the con, I was able to complete one ink card and two ink sketches. It was very interesting, working on art in front of people. I don’t get to do that very often, and it was interesting to see how people reacted while I was creating the works. The first one […]
Much of the time, I get an idea for a piece of art and I start in on it. But every so often, I have the start of an idea, and I let it take off from there and it ends up wherever it feels like. This is one of those paintings. Now, to be […]
Second star on the right, and straight on ’til morning
At the end of this week, I’ll be a guest at VisionCon in Springfield, Missouri. This is only the second time I’ve been a guest at a convention (though I’d love to be in more of them), but after the first time I realized how great it can be. We’ll set aside the part for […]
I’ll be a guest at VisionCon next week in Springfield, Missouri, and I’m trying to create more art to show (and sell there). I’m also having fun doing these ink cards, it gives me more confidence going into larger pieces. I’m also getting good practice working from a photograph (or a series of them), which […]
I’ve been thinking of doing more monsters in ink, for sale while I’m a guest at VisionCon 2011. Here’s the newest one, one of the ghosts from The Devil’s Backbone. It’s like the previous ones, 5″ x 7″, ink, on 140 lb,. Cold Press. It has just a hint of red too near the top, […]
Though I’ll try and get better pictures of it once it’s dry, I decided to go ahead and add my newest acrylic painting to the site. I call it, Consequences: I’m really having fun with acrylics (and inks for that matter), but they are far different from my digital pieces. I sort of just let […]
Last year, I offered up a post on the small Moleskine sketchbook that I picked up (last July, check it out here). Since then, I’ve managed to fill it completely up, and move onto a new one. As an artist that likes to share (just catch me in real life, I never shut up), I […]
Most years, when I can spare a little extra money, I try to enter a couple of competitions. First on the list is always the annual Spectrum competition, for the best of the current year’s fantasy/genre art. I was lucky enough to have been chosen for Spectrum 9 many years ago, and I’ve always wanted […]
Now, before we begin, let’s just say that my years of being an engineering student are way, WAY behind me. But I was looking at a couple of sites today that discussed the Golden Ratio or the Fibonacci Spiral, a quasi-magical scientific idea (let that roll around in your head for a minute) by which […]
Over the busy weekend, I’ve still managed to create two new ink cards, both based on ancient stone sculptures. They are also both ink on 5″ x 7″ 140 lb. Cold Press paper. The first is a gargoyle, based on one that I have here in my office. I’m having fun toying with the close-up […]
I’ve had quite a few ideas lately, but between my last trip for the day job, looking for a new day job, and family concerns, I haven’t had much time to do artwork. I have a few things I’ll need to do for deadlines, especially a new ink piece and a new contest-oriented piece, but […]
I have an unfortunate tendency to abandon works of art, as I’m creating them, if they start going off track. I’m working on not doing that, but it’s built-in that if it starts looking like the piece won’t work as planned, I just give up and go do something else. It’s something that only applies […]
I decided that, for the gallery, I was going to take three famous “monster” actors and put an ink card for each in a frame, to sell at the gallery. I already have the Dr. Phibes that I did, and I wasn’t convinced that the Phantom of the Opera was going to work in it. […]
I needed to get my new painting, The Apotheosis of War, ready for the upcoming First Friday Gallery Walk. So, I set aside some time tonight to finish framing it.
I started out to make a new sketchcard (same size and specs as the others, 5″x7″ inked), with the idea of doing one of Lon Chaney Sr.’s famous monsters. I chose his Phantom of the Opera, basing it off of a couple of photos. As I worked though, for some reason a certain softness, a […]
I was hoping to do quite a few more small inked cards (I’ve been calling them “sketchcards”), but I haven’t had as much time as I’d hoped. But, tonight, I managed to get one finished. I call it Phibes, and it’s based on the character from the “Dr. Phibes” movies. Since it’s Vincent Price Day, […]
Now that I have the camera back (it took the family on a vacation this week), I can post a few shots of my work in progress. It doesn’t have an official name yet, but “futility” might have something to do with it. Here it is on my desk, and below it are a few […]
I’ve been lucky over the past few weeks to get to work with the fantastic Thunderstorm Books. I’ve been working on three books for their Maelstrom imprint, beginning with tonight’s showcase, the cover for author Kelli Owen’s Six Days. For me, this first book is special because it’s Kelli’s first novel. As she and others […]
Last weekend I was able to finish a painting that I’d wanted to do for some time. Not a digital image, but an acrylic painting. Here’s what it looked like in the gallery on Friday night: If anyone read the previous blog entry (not betting on it) about the original “infection” piece (here), you’ll recognize […]
Being a graphic designer as well as an artist can lead to some fun projects. When I’m working with authors, I tend to try to help them with what they need to push the books I’m doing the covers or other artwork for. After all, if they do well then hopefully I’ll get noticed as […]
I’ve been working on three covers for Maelstrom/Thunderstorm Books for the last few weeks, the third of which I’m working on right after I get done typing this. The two that are complete have now shown up, titles and all, on author Brian Keene’s site here. Two of the covers, for A Gathering of Crows […]
While I was at the booth at the Gallery Underground (Ft. Collins, CO) this evening, I created another sketchcard. After a failed attempt at an Iron Giant sketch (let us never speak of it again), I created this one below. I call it “Rough Times”. Like the other two, it’s 5″ x 7″, ink, on […]
Here’s the second of the sketchcards that I’ll have at the gallery, starting tomorrow night. They are fun, and they are also helping me get back into the swing of things with inkwork. This one is of a mask/sculpture of Pacal, the Mayan ruler of Palenque. I think inks are fun to do, and years […]
I’ve seen several artists online talk about doing original sketchcards, either at local galleries or at conventions. It’s something I’ve been considering for awhile as well, and with the new gallery I thought I’d give it a try. Here’s the first one, an ink sketch based on a gargoyle I have. It’s 5″ x 7″, […]
I decided, since I had a few old frames left over from another project, that the best thing to do would be to destroy the ever-loving hell out of one of them.
From start to finish: The Cover of Brian Keene’s Scratch
I like seeing how art evolves, from the beginning of the thumbnail sketches all the way through the final product. I think you can literally see an artist’s though processes as they work through issues, try new things, and complete what their vision is. In my case, it might be more like watching chaos unfold […]
I never just charge into a piece for the sake of doing art, I always let it mull around in my head some first. Sometimes I have a pretty good idea and I just need to smooth things out. Other times, there’s a lot of thought in what the scene portrays, who’s in it, what’s […]
I’ve been very anxious to show everyone this, and now, upon the release of the novella, I can do just that. Below I’ve attached a number of pieces of art that I did for author Brian Keene’s book Scratch, just released from Cemetery Dance Publications. Scratch, if you don’t follow Keene’s work (and his followers […]
I’ve been a part of a local gallery for several months now, and it’s been a great experience. Having been an illustrator for so many years, it’s been interesting to explore the prints and fine art side of things. Luckily, the On Display Gallery in Fort Collins, Colorado (just up the road from home) specializes […]
Sometimes, I shudder to post new ideas or new techniques that I try. I never know if they really work out, if they are ok but just need work, or if they are so awful that the sun will shrivel up and we’ll all die. But, I also think that as an artist I always […]
I dabble a bit in photography, something I’ve always found to be fun. I don’t (yet) have the fancy cameras, but I still like to do it. I think, especially being an artist and a graphic designer, I have a decent eye for composition. I also like dabbling with duotones when I’m working with photos. […]
I was asked while at a gallery over the weekend what my artist’s studio/office looks like, and if I’m comfortable in it. It’s an interesting question, the environment in which we create the things that we do. I love seeing other artist’s studios, it gives me a sense of where someone’s coming from. They run […]
I happened to be in the local Barnes and Noble earlier, and the latest issue of Cemetery Dance (#63) was on the shelf. I did art in that issue for the great Peter Crowther’s story “Memories”, which was a nice story and visually fun to work with. Here’s what that art looks like, comments always […]
I don’t do recaps too often, since, really, you could probably just scroll down and see it all anyway. But there are a few things happening away from this site, so I thought I’d highlight them. My Flickr “sketch every day” project, which is at least getting an OK start. I don’t think my Teddy […]
I have an odd brain (you don’t say…), and the way it works with art has always been interesting. One of those oddities is in working with grayscale vs. color. I know plenty of artists who start with a grayscale piece and then go and color everything to make it a full color image. For […]
I’ve been trying to get back into art as strongly as I can, especially with my being a guest at VisionCon in January. It’s been tough, between family life, day job, being out of town for said job, and so on. But I managed to squeeze in some time this afternoon, and I created an […]
I still get the occasional question from folks who want to buy a print of my work. So, I thought I'd ask if any of the below pieces would be good print choices.
I’m working on a Flash book trailer for a client (you’ll see soon enough, it’s not a small client), and for testing with converting Flash animation to video I decided to create a promo for my own art. After a number of unique issues (I’m looking at you, Kaspersky), I was finally able to upload […]
The new issue of Cemetery Dance Magazine (#61) has a new piece of art by yours truly, for a story by Peter Straub. I've been anxious to post it for quite awhile.
I’m still getting settled into our new house, but I thought I’d best post something (just so no one thinks I died or anything). These photos were taken on our trip to New Mexico in May, and I thought they turned out pretty well. These in particular are from Santa Fe, though we went a […]
I’ve been picking away at a color sketch in Photoshop, and I think it’s finally done. I try to do pencil sketching, ink and crosshatching practice and Photoshop/digital sketching and manipulation each week just to get new ideas rolling around in my head. Sometimes they work, other times not so much. I’m also trying to […]
I’ve been trying to sketch quite a bit more lately, I agree with the mantra “Draw! Draw! Draw!”. It’s been difficult in the past to make time for sketching, especially when I have other (paying) projects going on. I think it’s an important step to learning though, and I want to be a far better […]
Since the graphic design/logo blog went over like a lead balloon, and I wanted to try the new camera out some more, here are a few closeups of an old sculpture that I did years ago. Maybe it will help me get cracking on that next sculpture too…
I think where art can be a good thing is the ability to get the feelings and emotions out on the table, without necessarily having to explain all the things you are really feeling. I’ve always felt that art comes down more to what I want something to look like than any emotional release for […]
Sometimes you reach a point in life where the proverbial crossroads happen, and I think I’ve reached that point. There is a definite feeling of where I’ve been, and now where I choose to go. The paths are unclear, but there are definite choices coming. Art. No art. Design. No design. Keeping the status quo […]
It’s more like Gorgon sculpture: Hour #2, but close enough. This is always the difficult stage, where everything gets tweaked. For awhile too it all looks sort of… lumpy. The general shape is beginning to show, but unlike two-dimensional art you don’t start with a skeleton or even a rough sketch of circles and lines. […]
Before I actually mention the sculpture, I just wanted to touch base on what it’s like to have family around when you are working on various projects. This is a possible "Uberchimp", which might become a "something" in the near future. He’s what I picked up for reference since I don’t draw chimps all that […]
While I was helping my daughter with my homework, I decided to work out some Monday sort of frustrations with new artwork. I don’t think it turned out too bad actually. I call it, “Asylum Days”.
I don’t always get to just experiment and have fun with Photoshop, and tonight I had a chance to so I ran with it. This takes the place for tonight’s sketching, something I’ve been trying to do every day. The images below are for possible use with the great site The Big Adios (or at […]
Someone asked me the other day which art technique books I would recommend, and it’s not necessarily an easy answer. I’m very picky with those kinds of books, and there are so many out there that what works for you might not work for me. But I thought I’d at least throw out a few […]
Last year I completed my first comic work, a short story by Horror Express owner/author Marc Shemmans. It’s a nice little story, and I learned alot working on it. I decided to post it here on the site, it’s in the right column over there. Or, I guess, you can click here . For comments, […]
My good friend Kirk Alberts suggested making my blog partly about design and art techniques, so I thought I’d give it a try. This one’s on Photoshop’s Warp abilities. One thing I missed from using Corel PhotoPaint all the time was the warp abilities that Photopaint had. There were certainly ways around that in Photoshop, […]
This week we’re back to a piece of art, in this case Franklin Booth’s War on the Tiger (ink, 1908). I’m a huge fan of ink and engraved works, and Booth was a master of the pen. He is one of the most influential ink artists ever, and his techniques and styles can easily be […]
