A friend just turned me onto Don Kenn Gallery, a blog featuring the monster doodles of Danish children’s television writer/director John Kenn Mortenson. The imagery is a bit macabre, but has an innocence that adds a bit of fantasy. I like it. I especially like that these are all done on Post-It notes, my own canvas of choice.
Brad’s been planning to sell his t-shirts (http://www.asabranca.net) at the First Friday artwalk in San Antonio for a while now. After getting the proper licensing and paperwork done, he’ll finally be able to set up shop tomorrow.
But since his license includes the sale of artwork as well, I decided to add a few of my own pieces to the pile. I am going to sell copies of “Kelpie” and “Songbirds” — a collage-style reduction print that my friend Kyra and I collaborated on, and the latest print “Rhino Lino” (that’s a working title).
Rhino Lino is a linoleum-carved relief print, done in the style of woodcuts. The basis of this piece is the famous rhinoceros woodcut by Albrecht Durer with some added elements of water flowing from its horn and jaw. I’ve played with the line quality to achieve a blend of lights and darks. I really enjoyed making it, even if it doesn’t achieve the amount of dimensionality I’d hoped for. It’s my first woodcut, and I hope to improve on these over time.
The price on each piece of this limited edition of 8 is $20.
Songbirds will be $40.
Kelpie will be $25.
The “I [edit] Wikipedia” campaign was a school project for Holly Shields art direction 2 class in the Spring of 2008. In this campaign, Jacob Brubaker, Mark Decker and I came up with the concept to show how everyday people can be experts in their fields, thus making them qualified to edit Wikipedia entries.
Because Wiki entries rely entirely on public edits, Wikipedia has long been viewed as inaccurate or prone to abuse. With our campaign, we are showing that most entries have been edited by people well-versed in the that topic.
Happily, this project not only earned our group an A, but it has been selected for the 2008 Art Directors Club of Houston show, and the t-shirt design design was featured at the 2008 international design bienalle EXPERIMENTADESIGN in Amerstam. The entire project has received high praise, especially among the numerous Wikipedia contributors, and even the official Wikimedia Blog.
The campaign consists of two posters, one t-shirt and three print ads.
Art Direction by Jacob Brubaker, Mark Decker and Mike E. Perez
Photography by Mark Decker
Design by Mike E. Perez
Illustration by Mark Decker, Mike E. Perez and Jacob Brubaker
Models: Linsey Metcalf, Darryl Patrick, Nathaniel Arreola, Jacob Brubaker and Tom
A kelpie, in Scottish lore, is a water-horse fairy creature who disguises itself as a beautiful wild stallion. When a traveler approaches the beast, it allows the person to ride it. Immediately, it heads for the nearest loch or sea, drowning and devouring the rider. Sometimes the beast rips its prey to shreds. No one knows the true nature of the kelpie, but it is known as a fierce creature.
I chose this subject for my screenprinting assignment, in which we were to create a print of a mythical beast. It coincides with my independent illustration course, where my theme is also mythical beasts. This is my second-ever screen print, and the first of 5 beasts that I will illustrate for independent study.
Well, I’ve decided to start this blog in order to update the world on my professional status as a designer and illustrator. Also, I wanted to start out by posting work that I’ve done so far in order to get some feedback. As I prepare for graduation, I’d like to know how my work can be improved. I appreciate any feedback. I’ll try to post as often as I can, and will gladly take any design advice into consideration. I hope to hear from you soon!
