Wisdom Wednesday-Perspective Tool

Here's a nifty and free Perspective tool for Photoshop users. As well as a great little video tutorial that tells you how to use it.

The tool is presented by Freddie Williams, the author of The Dc Comics Guide to Drawing Comics Digitally. As you will see the tool can be used for 1 point, 2 point and 3 point perspective. The tool is available on his website for free here. Enjoy the tool!!!

Stevie Wonder Saturday-They Won't Go When I Go

Stevie Wonder Saturday
They Won't Go When I Go
From the Album, "Fulfillingness" released 1974



And the version done by George Michael from his, "Listen Without Prejudice" Album, released in 1990

This Just In.....Wisdom Wednesday

I just got this email below from 3X3 Magazine. With a prognosis for how the market will be this coming year. As we celebrate the Holidays and New Year, let's keep a positive outlook for next year.

Let's use our imaginations and talents to propel ourselves to the next level. Let's use that energy to push our artwork and talents higher and higher. Seek out your peers, grow from their wisdom and insight. Do the same for others. If you don't see a place for yourself in the industry, create your own. All of us have unique perspectives and approaches that have a home out there.

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year to everybody!


"Dear Wilson,

The results of our recent survey shows illustrators see a brighter future for 2011. Based on 469 respondents from the US, Canada, United Kingdom, Europe and Asia, 45% see themselves as better off financially in 2011, 24% will be about the same and only 7% say they will be worse off. This compares nicely to the AIGA Designers Confidence Index that had 42.7% of graphic designers saying it would be better off, 47% about the same and only 10.1% worse. A major difference was 24% of illustrators answered that they didn't know if they would be better off, worse off or the same.

Asked about fees, 10% responded that fees had gone up, 29% that fees had gone down and the majority, 46%, saying fees remained the same.

Asked about the number of projects, 32% saw an increase in the past twelve months, 31% saw the number drop off and 28% saw the number of assignments remain the same; 9% were unsure.

Participants included 53% from the US, 11% each from Canada and the UK, 18% from Europe and 7% from Asia. 53% were full-time illustrators, 34% were part-time. 52% had a bachelor's degree, 31% had a graduate degree; 58% were male, 42% female, 59% were between the ages of 25-44.

We will be able to break down the research in more specific areas of age, years in the industry and education in an upcoming announcement but for now we wanted to share these top-line results. Find out the latest updates on our blog, blog.3x3mag.com

Wishing you the happiest of holidays and a wonderful new year."

Wisdom Wednesday-If Only You Knew

If you only knew how many times I have had to have this conversation with someone. Yikes!!
Very funny little video shared with me by Jack Foster by way of Will Terry!

Cardinal Luv Fest!-Worksheet Sketch

This is a comp for the worksheet. There are still big issues with the kerning and whatnot of the actual puzzle. (Add some letters take some out to fill the space better.) Gonna be lots of fun fixing that! LOL!
I'm thinking of having a full color scene behind all the hearts. Maybe grass and some trees or something to give it more depth. All of that would be masked inside that amoeba shape that is going around everything. While that would probably translate well in color, I doubt the same would be true of the B/W version. We'll see. Suggestions are welcome!

And Oh Yeah! The puzzle is complete! So please check to make sure you can find all the words! Thanks!

As always Click for bigger image! Then Use Ctrl/+ to enlarge the image!
(Can be done multiple times.)

Cardinal Luv Fest!

Sketch for a Vector Spot image! I think his expression could be amped a bit. Maybe make him smiling a bit more? You know, he's cute but the emotion isn't really reading as anything specific to me. What do ya think?

As always Click for bigger image! Then Use Ctrl/+ to enlarge the image!
(Can be done multiple times.)

Also, yes, this will also be going up for "Mail" on Illustration Friday! I want to have it done by Wednesday! Which also means that it needs to be a worksheet. (Worksheet Wednesday you know!) I'm thinking a crossword puzzle will work. Anybody got some clues and words that will go with the theme of this sketch??

Wish me luck!

Commercials I Can't Stand!!!

Just Wrong on Sooo Many Levels!

Blustery Day Worksheet Colors

Here ya go! Final Colors. I have one with type and the other without. I couldn't decide which I liked better. I am leaning towards without type. The idea should be self explanatory enough that the little dialogue isn't necessary. But that depends on the age of your audience. (Not that the younger ones could read it anyway.) So I have both options.

As always Click for bigger image! Then Use Ctrl/+ to enlarge the image!
(Can be done multiple times.)

Commercials I Love!!

Stevie Wonder Saturday-Doo Doo Wop!

I've been listening to a lot of Stevie while working lately and I think he is deserving of tribute for as long as his music lasts me. Then I'll move on to someone else!

Songs like the following are proof positive how powerful and timeless his music can be. This song is just as relevant today as it was the day he wrote and produced it. And it JAMS just as hard today as it did back then! I, sadly, feel confident that it will remain relevant for a long time to come.

Enjoy Stevie Wonder Saturday!

Blustery Day Worksheet Black and White

This is where I am on this at the time. For future purposes I need to have a black and white version and a full color one. I'm still shaky on the type, so look for that to get added in later! Thanks so much for everyone's suggestions! I'll try to integrate them even more as I move forward with this!

As always Click for bigger image! Then Use Ctrl/+ to enlarge the image!
(Can be done multiple times.)

Soul Holiday!

Some holiday celebrating!! Love this song!!

Blustery Day Worksheet Roughs

This is a color rough for a worksheet I'm working on. I'm still deciding if I will finish it in Photoshop or Illustrator. I'm thinking Illustrator. I need to expand the vector portion of my portfolio. Plus this will probably look good in bright colors on the little boy.
There's still some design things that need to be worked out. I think the wind from left to right and then up to down can be integrated better. I think the purplish sky areas can be limited to the upper portion of the image and the bottom purple stuff can be combined with the already existing snow border. I'll probably jack up the size of the hat to give it more weight. The type should be a bit plainer and easier to read. I'm still not very satisfied with some of my color choices. But we'll see how things go as I transition to finals. Enjoy till then!!

Wisdom Wednesday

Growing up my family was lower income. Money was not growing on trees. Things like going to the movies and tons of toys weren't frequent visitors to our home. (Though that did change some later in my adolescence.) I didn't see any of the Star Wars movies until I was in college. Star Wars was released theatrically when I was in kindergarten.



Luckily, I did have those little mini picture books that came with a 45 record. You played the record and it would recite the story. Usually with a storyteller as well as characters from the story reading the words and a distinct sound from the story notifying you to turn the page. (In the case of the Star Wars story it was a series of R2-D2's bleeps and whistles that signaled you to turn the page.) Needless to say, without these little inexpensive books, I wouldn't have known the first thing about the plot of the Star Wars movies. I'm not sure if this type of option is needed nowadays for children but I was always thankful for these little books when I was little. A lot of the scenes from the movie, my imagination had to fill in for me. Which I'm sure has been a benefit for me now!



Anyways, I am happy to say that I was watching The View the other day and as part of an, "It's Free" segment they talked about a website called, Kiddie Records Weekly. This website is offering up the audio files of a number of those little books from my youth and even before for FREE. You go on the website, pick from their roster of available books and download the audio and image files. For Free! Very neat!



So for parents who adore these classic stories, these are a great option for you! For the artists this opens a door to the classic and amazing illustrations that were available and produced at this time! These images are a Master class on classic Children's Book Illustration. The stories also serve as a great resource for Illustrators looking for classic stories to illustrate and add to their portfolios.



Another aspect of these stories is that they also open up a door to the kind of racism and stereotyping that was typical of that time period. Some of the images are awful, but also inspiring for how far we have come since then.

This site is full of wonderful lessons and content for parents as well as Illustrators to enjoy! So stop by and get to downloading! There's something there for everyone!! Follow this link to their archives for easy visual access to their catalogues. They are categorized by year of release on the site as well as a section solely for Christmas selections!

How Are Things Looking For Children's Books

The Sun May Still Shine On the Children's Book Market! Check out this article from the Publisher's Weekly called, "Don't Write the Obit for Children's Books Yet." Check it out!

"Children's book publishers are still reeling from the New York Times front-page story back in October called "Picture Books No Longer a Staple for Children." Was the venerable newspaper right? Or do publishers consider the article and its alarming title the kid-lit equivalent of "Dewey Defeats Truman"?"

Sesame Street PinballSong

When I was coming up watching Sesame Street, I loved this little song!! How many of you are old enough to remember it? As an adult I was surprised to learn that this is actually performed by the Pointer Sisters! That just makes it that much cooler!



The Pointer Sisters are highly underrated! The deserve way more accolades! They had a ton of hits in the 70's and 80's. I put up a performance of a medley of their hits as well! Enjoy and be wary of these outfits, it was the eighties!! LOL!

"Automatic" was my favorite song from them! For the longest I didn't even know this was them. I thought this song was sung by a guy! Ruth is my favorite in the group. She sings those deep leads on this one! And June needed to run a check on her skirt! I know the guys below her got quite a show! Anita is on the left.

Holli Conger-Holiday Gift of Advice!

Image is © Holli Conger 2011

All this month, Childrens Illustrator Holli Conger is writing numerous articles about various aspects of getting started in the Industry. For this month she'll be posting a question everyday and then she'll answer further questions about that post over on her Facebook Fan page! We're already 6 days in so get on over there and catch up and soak in all the great information!

Day One Post-How do you find clients??
Day Two-Balancing Work and Family
Day Three-Find Your Style
Day Four-Process-Working Start to Finish
Day Five-Paying Your Dues
Day Six-Going Out On Your Own

Inside Illustration Competitions E-Book

A friend of mine suggested that I start participating in more contests as an alternative form of self promotion. Granted, the promotion works best if you win! But what a good idea and what a great vehicle for promotion that could be!

Most Illustrators that I am aware of are from seeing them in Society of Illustrators Annuals, Communication Arts, Spectrum and so on. The first time I saw Kadir Nelson's work, he was being awarded in the Student portion of The Society of Illustrators Annual. I'm sure that's how a lot of AD's saw him for the first time as well.

So when I saw Thomas James of Escape from Illustration Island, promoting his latest e-book, Inside Illustration Competitions. It seemed right up my alley! So I think there is a good chance that I may splurge and pick this puppy up! If I do, I'll give a review afterwards to let you guys know what I think!!

"The 4th book by Thomas James of Escape from Illustration Island features a behind-the-scenes look at the way Illustration competitions are run, with the help of contest organizers and jurors such as Charles Hively, Mark Heflin, Luke Stoffel, Scott Hull, SooJin Buzelli, Stephanie Glaros, Edel Rodriguez, Anita Kunz, and others.

If you’re curious about how the jury is selected, what criteria they use for choosing the best of the best, how the winners are promoted, and a lot more, be sure to pick up your copy right here on Monday, Dec. 13th!"

Questions/Answers with Art Rep Nicole Tugeau

Recently Nicole Tugeau of Team Tugeau2 Art Representatives answered a series of questions from some of her followers on Facebook and Twitter.

Nicole is a Children's Art Rep who represents such great talents as Don Tate, Dani Jones and Orlando Ramirez. Nicole is the wife of Jeremy Tugeau, an accomplished Illustrator. Jeremy happens to be the son of Chris Tugeau, who is also a Children's Art Rep(CATugeau Art Representative). Talk about keeping it in the family!

I was lucky enough to have two of my questions answered. Lots of great information for those who may be interested in getting an agent at some point in the future! It's great to know how they think, feel and approach their craft! Follow this link to the article!

Nicole also offers a Portfolio critique service. It costs $65 for a portfolio of up to 24 images. Check out her site for info!

IF: Savour

Illustration Friday: SAVOUR

Lesson learned

These are some sketches and a color rough I did up for a possible book job that I didn't get. :(

But enjoy these images anyway! I guess you have to Savour both the victories and the defeats! Lessons to be learned everywhere! Enjoy!

Banjo Pig-Sizzlin Bacon Proc. Part C

At this stage it's time to start laying in some base color. Now is when we try to get a lock on what the foundation colors of your image parts will be. You can start with whatever part of your image you like. For this I start with the background wave. I create a layer behind my wave linework and pick a color.



I use the lasso tool to trace the area. After you have made an initial lasso tool selection, you can hold down Alt while using the lasso tool to subtract or Shift to add. Use Alt/Backspace to fill with the primary selected color. Ctrl/Backspace to fill with the secondary color.



For these waves I chose to use a gradient that went from a medium blue to a lighter blue. Top to bottom. I want the line work to go on top. All the base colors will go beneath the linework and when I do final paints those will go on top of the linework. But that comes later!



If I want to adjust these colors, I generally use the Hue/Saturation Tool. Ctrl/U or Image/Adjustments/Hue-Saturation. The top slide bar(Hue) adjusts your color from one end of the spectrum to the next. The middle slide bar(Saturation) affects the intensity of the color. Left removes color to the point of being grey, while to the right intensifies the brightness of the color. The bottom slide bar(Lightness) adds white or black to the color. Left adds black and right adds white.



I create a new layer behind the pig linework and fill in the colors here. Adjusting using the hue/saturation tool. These are only flat tones. No shading should be done at this time. I repeat and do the same for the banjo. If any of these colors feels off, have no fear as you progress and add more flats you can adjust again using your Photoshop tools.



At this stage we start to figure out a light source and start to add in shadows to the flats. Once again these are done on a different layer. I play with the layer opacity to adjust for darkness and see which tones work best for my image. You should definitely take your time figuring out these portions. It's best to get these elements as solid as possible before moving on to the next stage. A solid foundation makes for a solid image!

Next up is painting those waves! Hope this all makes sense, if not let me know! Or if you know any shortcuts from what I currently do, let me know!

PART D is COMING SOON!! As always CLICK for bigger images!!!
Use Ctrl + to REALLY up the size!

PART A-sketch/final lines
PART B-Brushes
Sneak Peek Final Art

Visual Storytellers Studio

I was recently asked to become a member and contributor to the Visual Storytellers Studio. How cool is that? So you can find me posting images from my portfolio over there as well as my continued content here. Hopefully this will lead to even more connections with fellow Illustrators, prospective clients and enthusiasts!

Drop on by and check out the other Children's Illustrators who display their work there.

Enjoy!

GI Joe Renegades

More G.I. Joe Renegades Videos

G.I. Joe Renegades! Looks neat. I was never a big Joe fan when I was younger. (Much more of a He-man and She-Ra type of guy!) Stop LAUGHIN! But the last GI Joe TV series was pretty decent! This looks like it may be ok. I'm hoping they don't go anywhere near that horrid movie they just did. But the black skinny character sounds a lot like a Wayans Brother! Give me strength!

Final Image-Banjo Pig-Sizzlin' Bacon

This is the final image of the Dueling Banjo Pig, titled Sizzlin' Bacon. I'll continue the process stuff next week so that everyone can see how I end up with the final image! I've submitted it to the Dueling Banjo Pigs blog. Let's hope it's accepted! I have a SNEAKY suspicion it will!

As always Click for bigger image! Then Use Ctrl/+ to enlarge the image!
(Can be done multiple times.)

Tricycle Press Closes

Trcycle Press is a publisher that develops off the beaten path children's books. Ones' that cater to multiple family types, characters and ethnicities. They are hardly what you would call safe. They catered to a very special and sometimes small portion of the population. But every part of the population deserves to have their stories told. Unfortunately it appears that they will be closing relatively soon.



The landscape is changing within the publishing industry.

Please follow the link to see a more detailed article about the closing of Tricycle Press by Literary Agent, Jennifer Laughran over on her blog.

Young Justice!!!!!

Young Justice-One Hour Premier
Next Friday!!!!
6 Minute Teaser Below!

Movie Trailers - Movies Blog

Banjo Pig-Sizzlin Bacon Proc. Part B

Banjo Pig Sizzlin Bacon Proc. Part A

The Brushes

Let's go ahead and get the Brush thing out of the way. I know that seems to be very important to folks. (Me included) So for Part B, I'll go into which brushes I use in Photoshop. You can download my brushes at the end of this post!

I primarily work with two brushes in Photoshop. The brush that I use when I sketch and the brush that I use when I paint.


The brush used when I sketch is the #2 Pencil Brush. An artist on deviant art posted it and I downloaded it, among others, and loaded it into Photoshop in addition to the brushes that came standard. I like to work with the brush set to a light blue to replicate the color of pencil I like to use when I sketch. Non photo blue! But other light tones work just as well. Again this aids me in the non permanent feel and helps working with the tablet feel familiar by reproducing the look and feel of the tools that I use when sketching traditionally.

Ok, I figured out the ORIGINAL name of the brush that I use to do most of my painting in Photoshop. I use the 50 pixel Spatter Brush. The settings I use are the standard ones set when they arrive with the Program. I like that it can give a rough and painted feel if wanted. Though I have yet to get that to my satisfaction! So more experimentation is warranted!


I get the most variance in texture and application from the brushes by varying the Opacity. My go to settings are 5, 15, 25, 50, 75 and 100 percent Opacity. 50, 75 and 100 when I am blocking in the colors. 5, 10, 15 and 25 when I am blending them together. This works out best for me in conjunction with varied layer effects and whatnot.

To get good blends I pick one color to blend with and eye drop it. Then with the Opacity set to 25 or 50 percent I paint slightly over the color I want to blend to. Then I eyedrop the color created and repeat the process lightening the Opacity as I progress. If I really want the transitions smooth I'll go all the way down to 5 percent, but I rarely need to go below 15. The chunkier you want the color transitions, the higher the opacity you use. The eyedrop tool is your friend, well it's mine anyways! As is Quick-Keys, learn em!!!



To the left is the first image I freestyle painted in Photoshop. Before that I used a system of curves and channels that is common in the T-Shirt and print industry. So experiment, learn and repeat over and over again. The one thing you can't do is get worse!

I've uploaded my brush set and it is here to be downloaded! This set includes the standard brushes that come with Photoshop. So I advise saving your Brushes before you load new ones in! Enjoy!

Back to painting in Banjo Pig-Sizzlin Bacon Proc. Part C, coming soon!

OOoo Weeee!!!!

I'm gonna shetup and let the video do the talking! Some of my favorite soul singers!
MY NAME IS PEACHES!!!!
You could catch the Holy Ghost off this!

BET Videos

Had to replace the video with another source, it got yanked from Youtube! This song was originally done by Nina Simone and is called,Four Women. The lyrics are below.

Four Women
by Nina Simone

My skin is black
My arms are long
My hair is woolly
My back is strong
Strong enough to take the pain
inflicted again and again
What do they call me
My name is AUNT SARAH
Aunt Sarah

My skin is yellow
My hair is long
Between two worlds
I do belong
My father was rich and white
He forced my mother late one night
What do they call me
My name is SAFFRONIA
Saffronia

My skin is tan
My hair is fine
My hips invite you daddy
and my mouth is like wine
Whose little girl am I?
anyone who has money to buy
What do they call me
My name is SWEET THING
they call me Sweet Thing

My skin is brown
and my manner is tough
I'll kill the first mother I see
'cause my life has to been too rough
I'm awfully bitter these days
because my parents were slaves
What do they call me
My name is PEACHES

Banjo Pig-Sizzlin Bacon Proc. Part A

I have been asked by a few folks what my process is for working digitally. So I'll be posting it here in parts! If you need more details or are confused about anything then let me know and I'll try to explain better as an addendum or in my next post. So, let's get started!!!

First of all the sketch can come at any place or any time. Especially since we artists can be inspired at the strangest time by even stranger things!

This sketch was done while I was waiting outside in the car for my Mother to get some bloodwork done. I'm sure I am like many of us that we keep a notepad, paper, and pen or pencil in our vehicles at all times. No? Well you should!

Afterwards, I scan the quick little doodle into the computer. Since I know that I am going to be redrawing the image, I don't need to scan it at a high resolution. 100 dpi works just fine thank you!


In Photoshop, I put the sketch on it's own layer in a file that is still around 100-150 dpi. I drop the opacity of my sketch to 20-25%. Then I create another layer on top of that. On this layer I go in with my #2 pencil brush and redraw the image. Fairly quickly tightening up the idea and solidifying some of the elements I wasn't sure of in the initial scribble. (Like getting rid of the pig wiping out in the background.)

If I am satisfied with the new drawing and I am ready to move to a tight pencil, I up the resolution of the image to 300dpi and continue with the next steps.

I repeat the process again. I hide the first doodle layer and drop the opacity of the pencil sketch layer to 20-25%. I will now be drawing components on multiple layers. This helps me change and reorganize things for the purpose of composition and size.



So my layers will be as follows: Layer 1:Surfin Pig, Layer 2: Banjo Surf board, Layer 3: Waves in background. At minimum I almost always do foreground, mid and background layers for my images. Be forewarned, I am a layer piggy! Luv my layers!

I create a new layer on top of that and draw an even tighter final line of the parts in their own layers.

For this stage I use a standard brush that comes with Photoshop, at some point I managed to erase the name of it, so I can't say what it's called! I'll post an image of it later! Because it's the same one that I use to paint the image!

I use the Hue/Saturation filter to change the color of the linework to what I feel is suited. I rarely if ever work on black line art, be it in physical or electronic mediums. I then play with the sizes, angles and composition of the individual elements before moving on to the next stage! Which we'll do next time!

Hope this all makes sense, if not let me know! Or if you know any shortcuts from what I currently do, let me know!

PART B is COMING SOON!! As always CLICK for bigger images!!!
Use Ctrl + to REALLY up the size!

Eric Canete

ELECTRIC MAYHEM_commission by *KAH-reload on deviantART

WOW!

Eric Canete rocks my socks! His fluid and majestic sense of line and space is amazing. So organic and filled with energy! It also doesn't hurt that he seems to always take on some of my FAVORITE characters and interprets them in ways that makes them fresh and new without having to re-interpret their costumes or personalities! Great stuff!

HELLBOY and WONDERWOMAN by *KAH-reload on deviantART


TONY STARK_commission by *KAH-reload on deviantART

Michael-Kadir Nelson

I have been a long time fan of Kadir Nelson. This is a great new piece of artwork that is an inspiration! Kadir was commissioned to do the new Michael Jackson album cover. Which releases all the newest material completed by Michael. Kadir is a great example of the many places that Illustration can take you. We just have to keep improving our game.

I only want to get better and better so that more and more opportunities will open themselves up to me! So congrats again to Kadir! I always anticipate more work from him!



Album artwork is yet another avenue that many Illustrators may have forgotten about where potential work exists. A friend of mine, Derek Gores, did many GREAT album covers for rock bands for years! Great business and a great way to promote yourself in venues across the globe! How many of us had posters of the album covers we liked when we were younger?

Really get to know the industry and see the potential avenues that exist within it. Then set your sights! All of the venues have their own sets of rules and obstacles. But in the end the more you explore the more likely it is you'll find a niche that you can stand out and shine!

New Books!!

I just got two of my latest books/workbooks. They are for the educational company, Curriculum Associates. I was not the only Illustrator on these, so it's neat to see how other artists visualized similar materials.



Getting published work is a great time for me! I've had enough time between completing the work and seeing the finished published work to get a decent amount of separation from the artwork. This allows me to be much more subjective about it. What was done well, what could be improved and what I will never do again! Ha! As artists this is integral to us improving and becoming better at what we do. Every opportunity to learn and grow must be taken! Our skills need to always be honed and advanced!



If I'm lucky I will never have a job come to me that I am completely satisfied with.

Never Say No to A Panda

I'm still not sure what the association is between a Panda and a Cow, but Hey!

How To Work with an Illustrator!

Cool little video that takes a new client on a basic tour of the process of working with an Illustrator! Enjoy!

Banjo Pig Sketches-2

Some more sketches for Dueling Banjo and some other stuff!

Art Techniques from Frank Quitely

I posted this video on Facebook a while ago. So now I am posting it here too! I'll continue to post art videos and tutorials from other professional artists. If you run across any good ones send me an e-mail. Here's a link to the original article.

Frank Quitely - Digital Drafting from Gavin Lees on Vimeo.

Eventually I plan on doing some of my own!! :)

Minority Kwest

Minority Kwest

This will be a series of links to articles, authors, artists, organizations and blogs that specifically deal with the issue of race and minority representation within our media. Hopefully these articles will not only illuminate the problems but also deal with the potential solutions to addressing the issues presented. Enjoy and please comment and share not only with me but also the contributing sources. Thanks!

WHITE MIND ARTICLE SERIES

Anne Sibley O-Brien

A wonderful series of informative and insightful articles written by Anne Sibley O-Brien. They address the lack of minority characters in childrens' literature and the potential reasons why.

Anne's articles are unique since they are written from a caucasian perspective. Venturing into the many reasons ,be they purposeful or not, that minorities are relegated to the background or removed completely from current literature.



These articles were published in three parts in the last three Bulletin SCBWI Magazines. They appeared in the column, The Illustrators Perspective.

White Mind-1

White Mind-2

White Mind-3


Anne has a blog, Coloring Between the Lines, where she addresses the issue of race in an ongoing fashion. A number of great articles that also explore this issue can be found there!

Natural Beauty

Sesame Street recently posted a video showing a little black muppet girl singing the joys of her natural hair!!! What a wonderful thing. It's about time that the media that permeates our children's lives took note of all the variety of children who watch and learn from it.



All children need messages that tell them they are beautiful and wonderful just the way they are. It's not always enough to get it only from your parents. I'm sure many parents will tell you how impact-ful the words and images from peers and media can be on children. I can attest to that myself!!

So to Sesame Street I say Bravo! Hopefully our increased awareness and sensitivity can help promote self love within all children! Enjoy!

A link to an NPR article in regards to how and why this video was made!

Banjo Pig Submission!

Here's the colored version of my first potential submission to Dueling Banjo Pigs! I may wait to submit it though. Since it's Halloween it looks like they are wanting some Spooky stuff! So I'll have to come up with something else for October and then submit this one later! I have a small idea in my head for the Spooky. I'll post sketches!

Click for Bigger!

This little guy though feel like he needs a whole illustration though. He's having too good a time to be all on his lonesome. So I'll be expanding his scene to a whole hoe-down at some point as well!! HA!

Banjo Pig Sketches

Heya Folks! Here are a couple of sketches I did tonight that I intend to color up and submit to Dueling Banjo Pigs! If you aren't familiar with it then go and check it out!!! Which do you think I should finish first??

Dave Gibbons Demo

Dave Gibbons gives a short and informative look at the tools he uses to draw, ink and color comic book panels and pages! Enjoy!

Digital Artist 2009 Masterclass #1 - Dave Gibbons from Intel Digital Artist 2009 on Vimeo.

Kuwali-Sketch

A sketch from a project I am working on. At this time it is called Kuwali. I am still very much in the process of fleshing out the world and characters for the story. It will be based primarily in African/African-American folklore. It's much more of a fantasy/quest type story.

I am still not sure if I will go the route of doing an online comic or sticking to a graphic novel format. We'll see how things develop. I'll put up images and sketches as the process continues and the characters become more developed!

Jesus is my friend!-Cover

This is the cover for a coloring book I just completed called, Jesus is my friend. It should be coming out in January 2011 from Warner Press! As well as a couple of interior pages.