Blue Moon Blog

I’ve returned to the blog a day early to ring in the opening of the new baseball season. A few teams played last night, including the Washington Nationals, who won with a walk-off homer in their new stadium .

Though I rooted for the Cincinnati Reds while growing up in Chicago, I was still a Cubs and Sox fan. And now transplanted in Minnesota, I can’t shake that Cubbie Blue; it seems to be in my blood. The Cubs debut this afternoon if the game isn’t rained out (looks bleak). If they play, though I’m working like crazy, I get to watch while I draw, one of the perks of working from the home studio!

When doing layouts for recent caricature, I began with a quick sketch on screen with the Cintiq. Though I was pleased with the likeness, I realized the ratio between the elements was off. I needed to push the envelope and exaggerate the relative proportions.

His head needed to be larger, not only for easier identification, but also to fill space. I also enlarged the clapboard, so the title for this by-line illustration could be as large as possible for readability, and popped it out beyond the border, to add depth and attract attention. This was all a snap to do digitally in Photoshop, enlarging only the head, then reducing in size the director’s chair on which he sits. I tightened the drawing throughout, drawing anew only the arms, which had to be exaggerated to make it all work.

Lastly, I needed to fill space in the lower right, so added a shark swim toy for fun, alluding (in something of a stretch) to the shark in Jaws, as this weekly feature in a local New Jersey newspaper focuses on Summer DVD recommendations. To me, Jaws, more than any other says “summer movie.”

To view the final color art, visit our Blue Moon Gallery.

The most difficult part of getting through a Minnesota Winter is March. Most folks like the variety or don’t mind the snow and cold, but after an already long Winter, everyone just wants it to be over. We all haven’t seen much of the neighbors in months, and many (especially those of us who work at home) have a bit of Cabin Fever. March gives a hint of sun and warming, but the temps still drop, the snow still falls. Spring is so close, one can taste it, but…not yet! Minnesota Spring is such a tease. The upside is that when Spring does come here Up North, it bursts forth in an instant, and there’s no doubt Spring has arrived. Almost there…!

I should’ve posted this Woodchuck Weatherman on Groundhog’s Day, and I’ve always liked him. Another illustration from when I was using crosshatch more, there’s a nice tonal shift into the shadow and a hairy texture which is pretty effective. I tried to vary the textures from that crosshatch, with a different look for the ground, and the more bold and graphic spots on his tie. Though this works in black and white, it might be fun to color.

Our li’l bedbugs have Gone Green for the holiday, in keeping with the Chicago river in our old hometown, which they still colorize each year on this day.

Here in Minnesota today, the falling snow is white. Happy Paddy’s Day from all of us here at Blue Moon!

I did this one years ago on a whim, and always liked it. I think I sold it as a convention sketch. The figure was inked with a brush, the background crosshatching with a crow quill. I used to crosshatch a lot back then, but don’t find much interest in it now; I don’t want to take the time, and like a more simplified look.

Here’s that Willie Wonka poster I promised last week, my first for the St. Cloud’s Children’s Theater from a few years back when they presented Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. This piece was used as an 11 x 17 promotional poster, as well as for a smaller promo card, and in the programs for the entire theater season.

The challenge for me was to use a different style, find my own slant for Wonka, as the character is so well known. Though the main character is front and center, I wanted to frame him and focus on that moment when Charlie opens the golden ticket, putting the viewer in his shoes. That sense of excitement and anticipation is what I remember most from the Roald Dahl book, and either movie (of which I prefer the former; Depp’s take is just to creepy, in a Michael Jackson kinda way).

Continuing the animal theme from the weekend posts, here’s a cover I did some time back, featuring some unlikely hybrids. This was done with both brush and crow quill.

Another shot from the Blue Moon Illustration Archive, I call this one and more like her Husks, reminded of them as I felt run down and sleepy again yesterday. Haven’t drawn them in years. I always liked how these rambling, shuffling beasts looked, but a story never developed around them. I’ve more, so if anyone likes them, I’ll post additional Husks. Done with a combination of Hunt Crow Quill and brush on bristol board.

I’d done a series of comics/pop art-style illustrations for trade magazine ads and trade show animation for Sylvania bulbs, in this case a type that were used for movie projectors. A year or two later, the agency asked me to follow up with a couple additional illustrations for a lenticular postcard. You know, the kind of card where the image changes when held at a different angle. In this shot, the copy changes as our heroine is thrown in silhouette. I’ve set up an animated GIF here to approximate the effect. Simple, but kind of fun.

In approaching this poster art for St. Cloud’s Children’s Theater, I aimed to keep things simple, bold and bright. Employing a very cartoony style that seemed appropriate for the material and audience, it was fun to take my stab at this classic comic strip and stage characters. I’ve donated my time to this great theater about an hour north of the Twin Cities here in Minnesota, for this show and a couple others. View the poster for The Music Man at our Gallery, and I’ll try and post the illustration for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory next week.