Saturday, October 29, 2011

Happy Halloween!


Happy Halloween! As a child, Halloween night is always an exciting time.  All of the preparation, from choosing a costume and setting up the festive decorations to carving a face on your pumpkin, leads up to that one night.  And when it comes, we can't wait for the school bell to ring and for classes to end so we may finally dress up and embark on our quest to trick or treat throughout the neighborhood! As an artist, I was always tried to think of new, creative faces to carve on my next Halloween pumpkin.  Once my designs were ready, my father and I would lay out the newspaper, gather the carving tools, and begin the facelift.  Looking back, whether it's carving out the pumpkin or trick or treating, Halloween can be quite the bonding experience between parents and children.  Hopefully the snow won't dampen the festivities too much up here in the northeast.  So, for all those kids young and old alike, be safe, have a fun time, and make those costumes good!    

Saturday, October 15, 2011

An Art Show and Character Studies (What This Illustrator Does in His Free Time!)

The opening reception for the Hartford Art School Alumni Juried Exhibition went very well! There was a nice turnout.  The show contains a wide variety of styles and media.  For anyone interested, there is a exhibition catalog available for purchase at the following link:
2011 Hartford Art School Alumni Juried Exhibition Catalog

I'm placing a few more character studies / model sheets that I used as part of the Graduation series.  Seeing that one of the illustrations in the series, Graduation Celebration, is up in the alumni show, I thought it fitting to include a few more sketches that contributed to the development of both the characters and the story.


The rabbit was a fun character to design.  He is one of three teachers (the owl and the turtle are the other two), that the child dreams up.  While both scholarly and wise, he also has a good sense of humor and enjoys having a little fun.


When working on character studies, the challenge is to successfully create a personality that can be associated with your creations.  Poise, emotions, proportions, clothing, and so on all play an important role in creating a unique individual whom one can see living and interacting in his or her respective environment.


Wednesday, October 5, 2011

The 2011 Hartford Art School Alumni Juried Exhibition


The 2011 Hartford Art School Alumni Juried Exhibition opens next week! One of my illustrations, Graduation Celebration, will be on display, along with the artwork of many talented artists who used to walk the halls of the art school.  The show will be on view from October 10 to October 25, with the opening reception on Wednesday, October 12 from 5:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.  The awards ceremony will take place at 7 p.m, during the opening reception.  Below is the address for the exhibition.  Please stop by and take a look. You won't be disappointed!

The Silpe Gallery
Hartford Art School / University of Hartford
200 Bloomfield Avenue
West Hartford, CT