A somewhat tired looking Wonder Woman, with lines and all. Watercolor and ink brush over pencil.

The nice folks at the University of Indianapolis are holding an exhibition featuring my work, and the lovely work of my friend Kristal Melson.

If you are in town, do drop by the check it out. The show features (from me) pieces from the start of my career in Singapore, to more recent pieces done for the North American market.

Show details:

February 20 – March 16, 2012

Gallery Hours: Monday – Friday
9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Christel DeHaan Fine Arts Center
1400 East Hanna Avenue
Indianapolis, Indiana 46227-3697

Better late than never. As a side, I really do like her, even if she is sketchy and not finished.

She, on the other hand, is interesting. I’m not quite sure what to make of her. I was drawing loosely when I did this and this was the result. It is closer to the way I do my roughs, and the comics I draw when I do draw them these days. There is always a quirkiness and energy to things I do fast that I am never sure if I like or not; part of my likes the spontaneity of quick pieces. But another part of me thinks that one should be careful to not fall in love with speed because it can be an easy crutch to fall back on. It’s an ongoing debate as to whether I should loosen up and be more abstract, or tighten up and be more formal. Maybe one day I will be able to honestly settle for one side or the other and move on.

Did this some time ago for Kayak’s ‘Shopping History’ cover. Kayak is a Canadian kids history magazine. It was a fun cover to work on, though I do think the historical family over extended their credit…

There is actually a poem thing in the center, but no, I will not subject you to reading my bad poetry.

Sophia Lauren, watercolor, acrylic ink, color pencil.

Mostly traditional… I ended up having to fix a lean in Photoshop and touched up some details.

So, it’s 2012 and I’ve been feeling like something has been missing from my art life. Things are going well in illustration, but perhaps there has been too much in the way of work and not enough left for me.

Sitting at the computer working, day after day, is bad not only for the body but for the soul. While I do still draw in sketchbooks for myself, it is sometimes soradic – sometimes I will do several sketches a night, other times I may not pick up a pencil for a week or longer.

I feel like I have to at least try to get back to doing something with traditional materials, on a semi-regular basis. So I’m thinking of trying to do something called Traditional Thursday. I will try to put up a new piece on Thursdays that is not done digitally.

So here’s my first (ok, I’m cheating a bit, I have a head start since I have maybe 3 others done too).  Enjoy.

Yes, well that’s as good an excuse as any right?

cintiq 24 vs cintiq 21 box size (with cat for scale comparison)

cintiq 24hd box vs me

I do like my older 21in model, really I do. Every Wacom product I have ever owned has been a great piece of kit, and the 21 was worth every cent.

The new 24HD is an upgrade, not as huge as going from an Intuous to a Cintiq, but still an interesting one nontheless. It is massive and heavy, and looks a bit like a panel that should be on a spaceship rather than an illustrator’s desk.

cintiq 24 on desk with 23in LED monitor behind, propped up so I can see it

It seems quite comfortable so far. I managed to set it up to hang off the table but I had to prop some stuff on the base to keep the height up a little (the arms only seem to lock up when adjusted to their maximum height, presumably for transport purposes or if you want to use the Cintiq as a stand-up monitor). Wacom should consider adding a functionality to allow people to lock the arms into place at the angle they desire.

propped up screen with books on base

It’s that time of the year again! Happy holidays, season’s greetings and here’s hoping for a 2012 that doesn’t suck!

Many thanks to Paul Pert Smith for including me in this new book. It’s an honor to be included in a collection of art that includes some really artists, most of all Chris Achilleos. While he is not one of my artistic influences, his beautiful fantasy illustrations adorned many of the books I liked to read as a kid, and at one point led me to draw dragons and other neat monsters. (I also realized quite quick I would never be a good fantasy illustrator since I simply hated doing the rocks or trees or ice that dominate fantasy backgrounds).

The book is now available through Amazon and (probably) can be ordered at your favourite bookstore.