When I need some characters designed or advice on what my work is lacking, I ask Ash. My wife has untapped talent that boils over every once in a while. Her sketchbook catches some of that spill. I call it "untapped" due to her lifestyle. She has major commitments at her job (set design work and graduate studies) and many other obligations that have her not in a zone that will allow her to focus solely on her ability to draw people.
They aren't those cookie-cutter caricatures you get at the beach or realistic portraits you'd hang in your den, they're truly personalized. A different style on a different day. She never seems to work in a similar way. I love it. I'm more than just jealous as well. Admiration seems to sum it up. If we didn't have lives (hahaha), she might be making a killing with this stuff....
me!
I do a project with my 4th graders each year that involves pictures from magazines. They have to collage them into a new design that involves a background (setting), a main character and a title. They weirder the better! They can't be so weird that they don't seem like the pictures go together though. The project is difficult for students as they can't predict what they will find in the magazines. It is really three collages in one. The setting is a collage. The main character is a collage:
The title is also a collage in which the students can only use two letters from a lettering style that they find.
Most of my students love it though it is labor intensive. I tell them that it is one of the projects I do myself when given some free time. Here is my latest finished product...
I always seem to use Nike stuff. My love of their stuff stems from the early eighties when I was getting serious into athletics and they were becoming a major force in shoe design.
My wife says that the mouth is a little too creepy... It was supposed to make you think "save us". She might be right.
could use some riveting but i like it so far....
latest item up on society6...
hours clicking by at an alarming rate....not enough time to do it all.
It has been some time since the last installment of angry strongo. Between Christmas, illness, birthdays and work, time has been minimal and the few ideas I've had for comics have been tabled due to insufficient time. Most, if any time, has been spent on society6 stuff.
My children are now a year older, 6 and 4, and we're full swing into the mayhem of 2013.
I have spent a considerable amount of my recent free time attempting to build an identity on society6, an online artist community that offers up prints, framed prints, tees, pillows, phone cases and laptop covers of your work. I am attempting to only submit things that define my current state of design preference. I say "design" because I feel strongly that design isn't "Art" with a capital A. Design is an artistic process but with motives different than Art. My work for this blog and society6 has all been based on my design opinions...not true Art.
Live a Life of Learning has been a pet project for the last two years. This design of the honesty policy is the latest in the ongoing series. Being a teacher and all has me considering what kids need to see and hear that will get them through this crazy world...
It took about five to six versions on the lettering style for "BEST". I went with a skinnier and italicized version of what is on money. I scanned in the back of an old photograph to give it that weathered/worn look. It became a royal pain with all the changes it saw before completion.
While driving to the in-laws the other day, Ashley noticed this "sign". I'm not sure where to begin. I'd like to say that it's so bad it's good. But I can't say that. I guess I'll just speak to the font. It has some kerning (spacing) issues. The A is quite a ways from the T and the I is uncomfortably close to the X. The D seems to be sagging from age. The roundness in the R and D fails...probably tape was used to mask the lettering while they went to town with the Rustoleum. It sure is difficult to neatly turn your masking tape. I'm sure that the owners are outstanding at taxidermy.... a very difficult skill. It takes real talent and attention to detail to make a name for yourself in the field of taxidermy. It's very competitive in these parts. This sign just doesn't make me feel as though the details are getting the attention they need. The sign is my first impression. Their business card to public passing through.
If I do need a taxidermist, I can guarantee that I WILL stop into this establishment first. They're out there taking that financial risk. Their spirit is there even though the lettering is struggling. Happy New Year everyone.
I doodled this running to-go coffee the other night. I liked it enough to push it into this design for my society6 site. Not sure where it all came from. Doodles are like that some times...
This gem was captured while in Florida many moons ago. I post them due to their sublime compositions. They are simple in every way yet balanced and allow the eye to easily take in all the info. It is an organized graphic work that sends a message with as little info as possible. If it is not effective, then people get seriously injured or even dead. It is unlike most graphic design in that the majority of print graphics are attempting to move a product or announce an event. Looking at warning stickers (the good ones) should be mandatory for every graphic design student. I guess you could show the bad ones as well to point out their failures.
Be safe boaters!
Hope the new year is amazing!!!! Enjoy.
i've really got nothing new to type concerning my art or design or anything else for that matter...my son did design some lego pieces for Rock-Paper-Scissors:
we put all three behind us and then we show one when you get to the "shoot" part. Not sure what gave him the idea for this stuff. very cool though. Our daughter just turned 4 and our son will be 6 at the end of january. some how we hope to make it thru the holiday season....
i just wanted to wish all a Merry Christmas!
This is my latest project for society6. It was inspired by the blk & wht photo at the bottom of the post. I've written about it previously. I love retro styled design and this was kind of the underlying theme as I was creating sketches. I changed eye positions about 15 times. The hand raising idea came to me when my mind wandered toward boxing the other evening. I really like the whole look and especially the color choices (something I usually dread). "Simplify" was also an overriding theme throughout. Remove waste!!!
Enjoyed the entire process on this one. What makes it even more enjoyable was the fact that several other ideas came to me during the initial brainstorming phase. We'll see how they turn out. Sure do miss this gem below...
