Chad Wallace Art

Shamrock

2009-12-04T14:18:00.002-05:00

Digital drawing for a pet portrait I'm working on.

EARTH Feeling The Heat

2009-11-16T23:41:00.005-05:00

My new book, with author Brenda Z. Guiberson will becoming out March, 2010. I am having a show in the Members Gallery at the Society of Illustrators from November 23rd to December 11th featuring the original art. If you're in Manhattan, come check it out.

Opening Reception: Monday, November 23rd 6-8 pm.

Society of Illustrators
128 East 63rd Street
New York, NY

View Evite

Happy Halloween!

2009-10-31T19:00:00.003-04:00

Grew this guy in my backyard. Something was chewing on the leaves, but it managed to survive that attack... Then I brought it to a Lobsterfest party where it wound up getting smashed. The guilty person(s) are still at large... $20,000 for information leading to an arrest. Happy Halloween everybody!

Meadows Farm

2009-10-19T11:30:00.003-04:00

The original sketch was done several years ago, but I have always wondered what this would look like with a little color.

Wingfest

2009-10-16T10:44:00.003-04:00

Every summer we throw a big party at a camp site in Bear Mountain called Wingfest. We lug kegs back there, cook wings, and I sell T-shirts. This is a compilation of the designs for the past ten years... Cartooning is what got me into the arts as a young lad, and it's good to return to it every now and then (or annually as the case may be).

Appliance Store

2009-09-27T16:45:00.004-04:00

While showing around my "Muscoot" drawing, I was approached to do this store front. I am enjoying the combination of line with color.

The Bear, The Worm, and the Crow

2009-08-18T14:00:00.004-04:00

I've enjoyed taking a look back at some of my earlier work. I feel like revisiting some of the concepts I've abandoned and see if they still have legs.

Serenity

2009-07-13T14:08:00.003-04:00

This painting was made into a puzzle by a company named Serendipity. 125 pieces, and I know where they all go.

Spring Daze

2009-07-08T13:45:00.003-04:00

Another from the archive. This one was a follow up to the Autumn Daze painting posted last week. I clearly like painting bears.

Caught In The Rain

2009-07-06T17:33:00.002-04:00

This post may have been more appropriate last week when it rained constantly.

Lone Wolf

2009-07-03T11:40:00.002-04:00

This was a holiday card, and self promotional piece when I was looking at a lot of wildlife art. I took a break from oil and used watercolor and gouache.

Macaw Tree

2009-06-30T21:34:00.003-04:00

As well as being very large and colorful, macaws are also highly intelligent and can live up to 100 years. Also, their facial feathers are unique, like fingerprints.

Republican Party

2009-06-23T13:22:00.002-04:00

Every once in a while I'll lay down my brushes and do a cartoon. Here's one from the archive.

Autumn Daze

2009-06-18T18:17:00.003-04:00

An oldie, but a goody. Not a very good scan. The painting itself is oil on canvas (28"x 32"). This I may want to play with digitally. I can bump up the color and fill in the gaps where the detail is getting lost. But first I will try re-shooting the original.

Cold Shoulder

2009-06-11T17:15:00.004-04:00

Not sure what I would have said to this girl, had she turned around and discovered me drawing her... "I like the way your hair contrasts with your black shirt, and how it falls about your shoulders?" It's the truth! And that's my excuse for drawing such a bad hand.

Mustang Sally's - New York, NY

Salamander

2009-06-10T11:37:00.008-04:00

The mural project I've been going back and forth with the Trailside Zoo - Bear Mt, NY is back on track.

Each animal will be printed on five-foot panels and mounted on a fence near the Bear Mt Bridge. Here's the latest comp for the salamander.

Grand Hall

2009-06-09T16:16:00.003-04:00

The Chuang Yen Monastery - Carmel, NY "Grand Hall". The monastery houses the largest indoor Buddha statue in the western hemisphere. It was not difficult to get excited about drawing there. Amazing energy.

Woodland Valley

2009-06-03T17:57:00.004-04:00

I went camping in Phoenicia, NY recently and found the time to do this sketch. I played with the values digitally after the fact, hopefully just enough to accent what was already there. I especially like the way the trees frame the point of interest.

Author's Day - Somers Intermediate School

2009-05-19T21:26:00.002-04:00

Here I am talking to a bunch of future artists. Author's Day at Somers is always very special because I was a student there. Much of the school has changed, but the art room hasn't. And my fifth grade teacher is still there.

Who is this man?

2009-05-18T20:06:00.002-04:00

What will this discredited celebrity reveal next? Which one of these is the best characterization?

Mars

2009-05-15T12:34:00.006-04:00

I was going through an old sketchbook and found this concept drawing. I thought it was worth revisiting... Mars that is. I think I did this after all those 3D Mars Rover pictures were published in National Geographic.

The original drawing spanned the gutter, so I had to piece them together in Photoshop. I imagined the Mars flood plains had crab-like creatures and slugs.

Mischka

2009-05-11T12:52:00.001-04:00

Tired after a long day of chewing water bottles.

Rabbit Hill

2009-05-09T14:20:00.002-04:00

Here's an oldie, by special request. This was during my, "I'm going to paint every detail equally" stage. I believe this was 1998.

Sad Clown

2009-05-08T13:08:00.003-04:00

Why does this clown look so sad? Maybe it's because it's been raining for two weeks.

Laurel Lake (color study)

2009-05-05T14:11:00.013-04:00

Working digitally allows for a care free working environment. You don't have to worry about messing up because anything can be reversed. So it keeps you loose, and maybe you try something new instead of playing it safe. With that in mind, I am revisiting this landscape drawing from Bear Mountain, NY.

I localized the color in a specific area to create a center of interest. I was careful not to make it directly in the center, rather, slightly to the left. We have a tendency to look at things left to right (like we're reading). When the viewer's eye drifts to the right, it is pulled back to where the color is most intense. If I render color everywhere the eye doesn't know where to look, and all the details cancel each other out.

I plan on painting this traditionally as well for comparison. Perhaps oil paint will provide for more intense color, although I kind of like the softness happening here.

At this stage I am only concerned with establishing values (light and shadow). The hierarchy of detail is key, especially in a landscape drawing. It's really easy to kill the spirit by over rendering, and not having a central focus. Hopefully that is not the case here.

I like leaving a little bit to the imagination of the viewer.

The original drawing is done on site with a burnt umber and sienna oil paint on panel. My biggest concern here is composition - foreground, middle ground, and background. I thin the paint out so I can work quickly. Once I have the big shapes, I move on to the smaller ones. I remove paint for the lighter areas with a paper towel. Then when I feel I have a good base, I take snapshots which will help me fill in the gaps later. I must be careful not to be overly influenced by what the photographs say, and concentrate more on the discoveries that were made while drawing.