Anatomy of an illustration

Samples of my hand-drawn lettering

A couple weeks ago, when I was still in the midst of my Boxed In project, and my mom was getting ready to move, my son asked me to do an illustration for his band's upcoming CD cover. Normally I would be thrilled to have been asked. I'm his mom, and therefore old and decidedly uncool. This time though, I raised an eyebrow at him.

I thought you had someone doing that for you, I said.
Didn't work out.
When do you need it by?
Friday.

It was Monday, around 10 pm.
Crap.

Any other client, I'd probably say no. Creating something I'm proud of, from concept to print ready art, takes more than a couple days. But this is my kid, and he's been working hard to get this recording done, and I want him to have it for the string of live shows they had lined up for early June. So, ok... I'll do what I can. But as a client in a hurry, decisiveness is key.

1st Rough concept for the album cover.  

We started with concept. The name of the album? Rot. Oh. Goody. They don't want something gross. Ok, so no skulls or bugs or rotting vegetables. Crumbling concrete? No, too cliché. Also struck down... assorted vegetation, and kids sitting in front of a TV set. They finally decided on a crow. Subtle, but the association is there. Crows eat dead things.

Next up, the wordmark. Typeface or handwritten? What impression do you want to give? I did a couple handwriting samples of the band name and album title, just to give them an idea. Hand drawn typefaces are all over Instagram, so it is very current. Current is good when you're young and you're target market is young.

I did a few quick layouts with images I already had... two from my sketchbook, a couple using photos I found online... just to give them the basic idea before I started drawing. That part takes time, and no point in wasting time drawing something that they ultimately don't want. They picked one layout, which I then used to start my drawing.

My initial computer drawing. I kinda like it, but the boy
wasn't sure about the white background... even though that
was what he had asked for... sometimes you can't tell
if something is right until you see it.

When I do illustration work, I usually start out on paper. I know people who go straight to the computer, but I can't seem to work that way. I need a pencil and paper to work through the basic stuff, then I do a final drawing, scan it in, and work from there. I guess I'm old school that way... and being an artist in the traditional sense, I feel like I can be more creative with a pencil than a stylus or mouse. I use Adobe Illustrator at work. I also use Photoshop, but the main part of my job is in Illustrator. I prefer Photoshop for actual illustrations. I could probably get the same effects and a bit more flexibility if I used Illustrator, but I haven't invested the time to be really good at it. Anyway, once that drawing was done I did a little mockup to show the kids.

It wasn't quite the feel they were going for, so I did what I never do... let him sit beside me and go through some possibilities. Having your client sit beside you while you work is like some special form of torture.... anyone who works in a creative/visual field has probably experienced this. It only took a few tries to get what he was after, so ultimately easier than going through them all on my own and letting him choose. We made the printer deadline, and they picked up their CDs the day before their show in Montreal. And I've got a happy kid.

The final CD and cover. All done in a week.

My boy, playing in a Toronto club. Photo by the talented Haley Wheeler. Check out the band on their Facebook page, and their music on Bandcamp.

**********

I won't have a regular post next weekend... my mom is finally moving and I will be otherwise occupied. Have a good one, and I'll see you for the Boxed In opening on June 9th.

Jazz Legends | Dizzy Gillespie

"Legends | Dizzy", 16x20" Acrylic on Canvas

Feels like I've been working on this series forever. I was checking to see how many portraits I've posted so far, and realized this one somehow got missed. It was actually the first one of the series I did, and the one that set me off doing these portraits in the first place. I had intended to post him in between some of the earlier ones I had working photos for, but somehow he got shuffled to the back, and never made it onto the blog. 

Dizzy had so much style... He had a look that wouldn't necessarily be out of place today. In fact, my son has glasses very similar to the ones he wore. It was fun working out this piece. I had a couple photos of him without his cheeks puffed out.... although that is how he is most recognizable, I was pretty sure I would manage to mangle it if I tried to do it that way. I found an old photo with an interesting angle, and drew in the glasses and cap he sometimes wore on stage. The frantic, almost chaotic background that I started with was an attempt to convey some of the energy of the music. I continued on with this type of approach with the other pieces, but somehow I think this one has a unique feel... maybe because his music is different from some of the other performers I've done. 

I've got a couple pieces left in this series, and then that's it. I don't know what's next... I've been working on my little motion abstract pieces that will probably be worked up into a few large pieces, but at some point I know I'll get back to painting people. Maybe I can figure out a way to combine the two. I've got lots of time to figure it out. One piece at a time. 

Jazz Legends | Billie Holiday

"Jazz Legends | Billie Holiday", 16x20" Acrylic on Canvas.
Giclée prints available from Global Vernissage

I had to make a few copies of my original drawing to use as
masks... I would love to be able to just paint the details
right on the canvas instead of doing all this extra work,
but somehow it never looks quite right.

I'm getting near the end of this project, so I'm going to be posting a piece every few weeks as I add my finishing touches. I was going to do a video for this one, but as I looked through my working pics I realized it wasn't going to work. I had taken a bunch of close up shots rather than full canvas images. Don't know what I was thinking.

When I first heard Billie Holiday sing, what struck me was the emotion she was able to convey with her voice. I was young and just realizing there was more to music than the top 40 played on the radio, or the prog rock loved by my older siblings. This was different... she sounded so sad. Certainly not what you got from your average teeny-bopper pop. I got a bunch of records (yes, records) out of the library and taped it onto a cheap cassette tape, which were listened to over and over when I was a mopy teenager.

Just starting to build up the interior forms...

Starting on this series I knew she had to be included. She was of the right era, sang with Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington, performed at the popular night clubs in Harlem. Deciding on a photo to work from posed a bit of a challenge… there are many great photos of her floating around, but very little video footage exists. I didn't want to just copy a photo, although I ended up choosing an iconic image, and altering it to include the signature white gardenias she wore in her hair.

Years ago, for my birthday, my now-husband gave me a box set of her "hits". I don't think until then that I realized her song "Strange Fruit" was about racism. She didn't write it (it was originally a poem written by Abel Meeropol) , but she sings it with such intense emotion, I remember feeling slightly ill the first time I listened carefully to the lyrics. I still can't listen to it without it affecting me... and I don't know of too many singers who can wrench that kind of emotion out of a song. Especially these days.

Art in the City

The band was taking a break...  

A few weeks ago I was contacted by Toronto artist Kristen Hamilton, who had seen my work on Twitter, and she invited me to participate in a charity art show/music event at a church in the Davisville area of the city. The concept sounded interesting, the charity was certainly worthwhile (SKETCH... a non-profit whose mandate is to help create opportunities for young people living on the margins to create, collaborate and lead), and it would get new eyes on my work, so of course I said yes.

I have never participated in an art event at a church. In fact, I've never been to or heard about art events being held in church, at least in Canada. I know they do that kind of thing in Europe, and there are a few churches in Toronto that have will have concerts. The acoustics in this church were amazing, and the organizers made some adjustments to the lighting so the art looked wonderful. They had wine and cheese, the band was great, and lots of people showed up. It was a great event and I'm happy to have been included. 

My paintings, interspersed with Kristen's, along one wall of the church.

Me, checking out some of the other art. I believe these
ones were done by Gene Tempelmeyer. And looking at this
photo... man, I really need a haircut.

The paintings were hung between these fantastic stained glass windows. Unfortunately by the time we got there it was already too dark outside to get a great view of them... I bet the room looked wonderful this morning. There were a few sales, which was great... I think the one with the tree (between mine, by Toronto artist Kristen Hamilton) was one of them. There are some great photos on the Facebook events page, if you are interested in seeing more.

David Rubel Trio... great performance from these guys. I'm going to watch their website so I can catch them again.
I got some great working photos... not fantastic as photos really, because I'm focusing on certain things
I need to work from. Photographer William Ye was also there... He got some much better shots.
Check them out on his smugmug page.

Oh, and by the way... the winner of last week's draw is Cecile Sheff. I'd like to thank everyone who left a comment. It was brought to my attention that some people were having trouble with the commenting function on the blog, so in light of that I shall be doing this again in the future, but including Facebook, twitter and google+ comments as valid entries. Sorry to anyone who tried to comment and couldn't.

Musical Interlude...

Did you realize there's only 4 and a bit weeks left until Christmas? I think I clued in around Wednesday... I'm usually REALLY organized when it comes to Christmas, 1. because I seriously hate crowds, and shopping in the malls around here in December vaguely resembles roller derby, and 2. it's a month that is usually insanely busy at my day job. This year I'm not so organized... somehow the time has managed to slip by without me noticing, and here it is one week till December. Yikes.

What have I been doing? Well... painting. I did my class with Gwen Tooth, worked on a couple decent sized abstract pieces, and finished off a large musician piece that's been hanging around my studio for a few months now. I got an amazing book out of the library, "the Jazz Loft Project"...  Its based on the photographs and tapes of W. Eugene Smith, from 1957 to1965. There are some fantastic photos in this book, and I used one of Thelonious Monk  as a jumping off point for this piece. I try to alter my drawings so they don't actually look like the photos... I will draw from the photo, put the book away and draw it again a couple times, and each time it gets further away from the original, and I learn enough about my subject to be able to paint it with minimal detail and get the "feel". With this one, I was going for the atmosphere of the smoky bar, with the jazz band in the spotlight, completely into the music.

"Straight, No Chaser"  
30x36" Acrylic on Canvas

This is the largest piece I've done in a while. I love painting large, but storage can be an issue... my house is small and I've got art up on pretty much every available wall (not all my own... I have a small but growing collection of works by artists I admire). If you are interested in the various stages one of my paintings will go through, I sometimes post working photos on my facebook page. You can check it out there.

In other events, last weekend was the opening reception for the Colour and Form Society's annual juried show. I hadn't entered many juried shows over the past few years. Time has been limited and I really thought my energies were best spent elsewhere. This year I've been in a few, but they have all had specific size requirements. This show was open, and apparently I had forgotten something i had previously learned about juried shows... if I enter a small piece, I might just have a hard time finding it when the show is hung. That's my little one on the end... the far, far left... actually the end of the hallway. See where all the people are? Yeah. That.

Summer is Shuffling Along

Terry "Harmonica" Bean from
Mississippi

In my neck of the woods, the signal that summer is pretty much over is, for music fans, the Southside Shuffle. Held in Port Credit, Ontario, this awesome 3-day music festival is celebrating it's 15th anniversary, and it gets bigger every year. It's usually my last chance to get out there with my camera and get some photos to work with over the winter (there is lots of live music here over the winter, but outside shots turn out better with my crappy point and shoot camera). I got out all 3 days this year... and the lineup was awesome. Highlights included acoustic sets from Suzie Vinnick and Steve Strongman, and a great group of performers from Mississippi, most of whom I had never heard of but now have a little collection of their CDs.

As usual, I took a load of pictures. There are a few I'm going to work up right away... I've been focusing on painting these miniatures and the last few days I've been itching to work on something big enough that I can really get my hands dirty (this is not just a figure of speech... i usually end up covered in paint up to my elbows). This morning I started a 24x36 canvas for my New York busker in the rain, and I've got two more lined up for a couple of Shuffle photos.

D'Mar...  by far the most entertaining drummer I've ever had the pleasure of seeing perform. He had so much energy... kinda made me wonder what he was like as a kid....

This bass player was with the Mississippi guys...
he so LOOKS the part of a blues man that he
is surely going to be in a painting at some point

Steve Strongman... I've seen him live
many times, and it's always a great set.

Back on Track

The "Streetfest"... at 7pm Queen Street closed to traffic and bands lined the streets. It was pretty busy, even given the less than perfect weather.

This week was interesting. With no goal in mind but getting myself back into the right head-space, I took on a couple projects a little different for me. Right now I'm elbow deep in an illustration project for an album cover, and I've got little drawings for stencils taped up all over my studio walls, which will eventually end up etched on wine glasses and decanters. It's been fun, and got me in the right frame of mind for an outing. Lucky for me, the Beaches Jazz Festival was on this weekend... so with extra batteries and an empty SD card for my camera, I headed on down to the east end of the city.

Swing dancers having a blast.

I got there early... before the main stage acts started. I knew there was other stuff going on, so I wandered down to the park by the water, where there were two other stages set up. One was dedicated to Latin Jazz, the other to Swing. One guess as to where my butt was parked for the next two hours...

One thing that sometimes comes along with a swing band... the dancers! This couple was fantastic... no serious acrobatics but obviously very comfortable dancing together in front of an audience. I took a load of photos of them, at least 2 or 3 I'm sure will become larger scale paintings. I thought about going up to them and getting their contact info... they were so good... but I didn't do it. I kinda regret it now. Who know if or when I might bump into them again.

Weather is one variable that can totally screw up an outdoor festival. Of course the only day I was free to go was the day it poured buckets. Intense, but over quickly, the rain delayed things a bit, but didn't put an end to it.  :)

Yiannis Kapoulas on the ...uh... guitar?
ok, what the heck is that?

After a wonderful Thai dinner with old friends, we wondered down Queen Street and took in the "Street-fest". I was totally captivated, but I was assured by my friend who lives there that the residents of the area are not quite as enthusiastic. Noise, traffic problems and drunken, rowdy behaviour were the norm for the week. But still..  all that music...

I now have well over 100 photos to sift through for inspiration. I'm sure a few will make it onto canvas, painted while listening to one of the CDs I purchased from the vendors at the festival.

In Your Own Sweet Way

In Your Own Sweet Way
24x30" Acrylic on Canvas

I love jazz guitar. My son has started playing, which could be part of it, but I had already explored a bit  before he ventured into the world of jazz. "In Your Own Sweet Way" is a piece of music done by many musicians, but the one that caught me was by Joe Pass, on the recording "Chops". 

Around Christmas I went to an art opening where London guitarist, David Jolly, was playing, and he was kind enough to let me take some photos while he played. I'm sure this is just the first of the paintings I'll do using the photos from that evening. He seemed completely comfortable with me walking around him taking pictures while he played, so I took a lot. 

I've got a few months before the festivals start up again, so I'm going through last years pile of pics, along with video stills from some DVDs I got from the library, and trying to see what I can come up with. I've got a few pieces started.... but I still haven't begun the huge 4x6 foot canvas I have sitting here. Something that big is a bit intimidating. It's been many years since I've painted really large. I think Ill need a good chunk of time for that one. When a piece hits the ugly stage, and they all do, it seems to last longer the bigger it is. I have to be mentally prepared for that.

The Brass

The Brass
24x36" Acrylic on Canvas

I'm a sucker for a band with a horn section. I'll watch them for hours. Could be blues, jazz or swing, right down to a ska band... I love them all.

Next...

"Stomp"
30x30" Acrylic on Canvas

In my quest to fill up THE BIG WALL (which is what I've taken to calling it), I've managed to transform myself from a painter of small images to one who does fairly large ones. This is the largest I've done to date, at 30x30". I'm finding it fun working large... I can use those big brushes I've had for ages but haven't had much use for, and I've got a 3" silicone color pusher that I'm really beginning to love. I might actually have a problem going back to smaller sizes.

I was thinking about what I'd like to do next, and I think I'd like to do a big band... like a Benny Goodman or Count Basie style big band. I can't imagine how I can do that any smaller than a four foot canvas... there would be so many figures to fit in. Six feet would be better. And it would take me a while... a few weeks at least, probably closer to a month. Something I'm obviously going to have to put off for a while. Hopefully in 2013 I'll have a bit more free time to tackle so large a project.

It's Gotta Swing!

the main exhibit wall
in the Meadowvale Theatere...
there are also many
other walls to be filled.

A couple days before Christmas I was notified I was accepted to exhibit in the lobby of a popular local theater. I had applied in the spring of last year, not really sure what to expect but figuring it was worth applying for, even if it didn't amount to much. 

When I got the notification I was excited and a little panicky... I have been painting like crazy this past year but my work has also been selling, so my inventory is a bit on the low side. But there was no point in panicking until I knew what I was in for, so I put it on the back burner and got to work. Well, this week I went by and took a look at the space. It's huge! As the curator walked me around and showed me all the spots to be filled I was trying picture how what i had available would fill the walls and how much white space could possibly be acceptable. I figured I had better spend every available minute from now until March with a paintbrush in hand. And I'd better go buy a few pre-stretched canvases in sizes bigger than what I've done to date. The bigger they are, the more space they fill.

It's Gotta Swing!
Acrylic on Canvas 24x30"

So, I'm back to the dancers. I'm sure I'm not finished with the musicians just yet, but the dancers are calling to me so that's what's going on the canvas. I really don't have time to question my instincts. I found a great photo of swing dancers online and figured I could use it for reference, using the music as a guide to the feeling. I think I got it down pretty well... the music has so much energy my foot was tapping the entire time I was painting (actually, I was dancing around in my studio, as much as is possible in such a small space). My goal is at least 1 painting/week until my hanging date at the end of Feb. It might not work out quite like that, but I've got to start somewhere.

Music, Dance and Expression

My recent fascination with jazz, musicians and music in general have led me to discover all kinds of new things. I've been visiting the library regularly and checking out CDs from musicians and bands I had never heard of... looking on the liner notes for names of who is playing on what track and then looking them up... and on and on it goes.

A little while ago I got my hands on a dvd documentary on the history of swing, called "This Joint is Jumpin". What a fun movie. Along with the fantastic old footage of performers from the 20s up to the the present, there is footage and interviews with the swing dancers of the time. The dancing is amazing. There is so much energy and life, and it expresses the joy of the music so perfectly. It got me thinking...

The Dance
9x12" acrylic on paper

I did a couple little pieces on paper first to see if I could get something I was happy with. It helps me to work out issues with the drawing, composition, anatomy... one thing I've noticed is that because I don't put in a lot of detail in the figures, if my anatomy is off at all it stands out like a sore thumb.

There are so many different directions I could take this. I talked to my niece, who has been dancing since she could walk, and happily she agreed to pose for some photos. Until then, I found some old photos, a few pics online, and some video stills I can use for reference. I decided to start with a flamenco dancer, since I've always been somewhat fascinated with it, and the poses can be very dramatic.  Next up? Not sure yet...

The Red Flame
16x20" Acrylic on Canvas

Take Five

"Take Five"
Acrylic on Canvas
24x30"

New Painting, New Gallery

Chasing the Gypsy
Acrylic on Canvas
16x20"

My little world is expanding. As of next week, my work will also be at the TAG Art Gallery in downtown St. Catherines, Ontario.

A little different

"Quiet Nights"
Acrylic on Canvas
16x20"

This piece I painted over an old painting that I didn't like. I had used molding paste to give it some texture, and since that was the only part of the original that I liked, I just painted over it without sanding it down or smoothing it out in any way. It's hard to tell in the photo, but there is a lot going on here.

Here's a close up of one area to show the texture. I quite like the way it worked out... I'm thinking there could be lots of ways to use this to emphasize areas or add in some interest without needing much else. It's definitely something I'll be experimenting with in the future.

Getting back to work

So, what now? I've had the "Escaping" show opening and it's still hanging, managed to sell a couple and even had a photo in the paper. I took a bit of time to unwind and clean up... you would not believe the mess my studio was in. I got a cold that knocked me down for a bit, but some sleep and a couple days off took care of that. Then I decided to get back to work. But apparently, I wasn't ready for that. Nothing, and I mean NOTHING, was working. I painted a canvas. I painted over it. And I painted over it again. I started another one, and then painted over that one. Everything looked awful. Kinda hard to take, after the last few months of having everything just flow. Well, I suppose that's how it goes... everyone has good and bad days, but too many bad ones in a row can really shake your confidence. I was beginning to wonder if that was it... maybe that was all I had in me, and now that it's done... well, I was done.

I've been down this road before. It's difficult. I usually just stop for a while, thinking it will get better. That hasn't worked for me. Last time I stopped it was nearly 2 years before I got back to it. So i've decided to persevere. Just keep going, and eventually, something will happen. This week I went back to an older photo that is very similar to one I've worked with before. The lines are simple and shapes clear, and I figured even if the painting ended up resembling the last one, I could live with that... as long as I didn't hate it.  Here's what I came up with:

"Syncopate"
Acrylic on Canvas, 16x20"

While it is similar to the other one, it has a different feel altogether. I make my colour choices intuitively and without any advance planning, depending on my mood. My choice of music also definitely makes a difference. For this one I was listening to James Carter, a recent discovery for me that I absolutely love. I've been listening to "Chasing the Gypsy" continually for the better part of the week.

I've started a couple other musician paintings, but I'm really feeling that this series is coming close to an end. Maybe it's time for me to move on, do some exploration and find the next thing.

And maybe I should start on that Sketchbook Project I signed up for in April. I got my book in the mail and put it on the shelf, and haven't looked at it since. This might be the perfect opportunity.

Two New Musician Paintings

I decided to do a couple small pieces, to round out this collection. Both of these are based on photos I took at the Southside Shuffle festival a couple weeks ago. The change in colour scheme I blame on the influx of new music. I think these will be the last paintings I will have time to complete before the upcoming show at the Art Gallery of Lambeth. The opening is October 5th. I'm curious to see how they hang everything.... better not forget my camera this time!

Acrylic on Canvas
11x14" 

Acrylic on Canvas
11x14"

Large Painting = Lots of Time

Trio
Acrylic on Canvas
24"x30"

Finally got this large piece finished... it's the largest thing I've done in a long time, even if it's still not huge. It's just big enough to hang over my piano without looking lost. Thought I was done a couple times... then I'd catch a glimpse of it while I was walking past and see something else that bothered me. Two weeks later.... now I remember why I don't usually paint any larger that 16x20. Apart from the fact that it took every second of my painting time for two solid weeks, it also made it difficult to move around in my very tiny studio. I had to clear the easel and the space around it, and I still really couldn't get back far enough to get a good look. I think if I am going to do more large pieces, which I'd like to, I'm going to have to do a little rearranging in there. And maybe keep the door closed, because every time I turned around I was tripping over a dog.

Twelve-Bar Blues

Acrylic on canvas
16x24"

Another Painting Completed

I had to do another pianist... the other one is smaller and on paper, but also has a totally different feel.

Acrylic on canvas
16x20"