Happy New Year!

I hope everyone had a safe and wonderful New Year! Last year was an amazing journey! From attending the 13th Annual SCBWI Winter Conference in New York City in January to spending time at the NESCBWI regional conference in Springfield, MA, I had the opportunity to meet so many incredibly talented writers, illustrators, agents, editors, and art directors.
With 2013 already upon us, I have a lot of big changes and announcements in store. One of the biggest is the update of The AP Sabourin Studio website. With an expanding portfolio of work, the need to add some new features and sections to the site, and the importance of updating the design, coding, and responsiveness of the site, I've found it necessary to begin work on a new website.  As the new site develops, I'll post updates.
Last year, I began taking classes in web design. So, I'll also be putting up some more design related work as well.
May everyone have an exciting (and lucky) 2013!

Portrait of a Dog...as Raphael's Angelo Doni, Complete!

As usual, it's been a busy past few months. Between web design classes, freelance work, and my own illustration projects, my creative plate has been quite full!
I'll be posting some of my web and graphic design work in the coming weeks. Because my portfolio is rapidly expanding and evolving, I'm also working on a major overhaul of my website. I'm hoping to add an online store to the new site as well, through which prints, posters, etc. of my illustrations can be purchased. I'll post updates as the site develops.
A few months back, I put up some process work behind one of my pen and ink illustrations, Portrait of a Dog...as Raphael's Angelo Doni!, but never posted the finished version. Well, the wait is over! Here it is in all of its black & white glory!

Portrait of a Dog...as Raphael's Angelo Doni!

I did several quick pen and ink studies for a spot illustration I worked on about a month ago.  Before posting up the finished piece, I thought it would be fun to show some of the process work behind it.  I always enjoy looking through other artists' sketchbooks.  There's something about the rawness and unedited qualities of a sketch that just can't be replaced.  

It's also fun to see who artists are studying and referencing as they create their artwork.  When I first got the idea for the spot, Raphael's Angelo Doni jumped right into my head as the portrait that I wanted to include in the illustration. Immediately after, I did some quick pen and ink studies of different types of dog heads to put onto the body.  In the final illustration, I chose the Afghan Hound because of his hair and elongated muzzle, both of which resemble Doni's hair and long nose.  Any time I have the opportunity to peruse my art books for an illustration project, I eagerly embrace it!

Farewell, "king of all wild things"

On Tuesday, the picture book world lost one of its greatest talents, Maurice Sendak.  His career spanned several decades, stimulating and influencing the imaginations of so many people, young and old alike. While best known for writing and illustrating Where the Wild Things Are, his work also included In the Night Kitchen, Outside Over There, and illustrations for the Little Bear series, just to name a few.  It's difficult to imagine the world of picture books without Sendak's work.  Like so many, I grew up reading and re-reading Where the Wild Things Are, losing myself in the world Sendak created and joining the wild things as Max cried, "let the wild rumpus start!" 

Indeed, as I got older and was being trained in the art of picture books, I gained a new found appreciation for the design, layout, and pacing of so much of his work.  As a great storyteller, Sendak incorporated so many complex storytelling devices while making the process seem so effortless. His unique, palpable characters and utilization of Winsor McCay's technique of correlating panel size to its corresponding events were just a few tools he used from his creative bag.  While as a child I loved to journey through his worlds of fantasy, now I enjoy studying those places and the genius behind them. 

So while we say goodbye to the "king of all wild things," countless generations to come will join Max in his private boat, help Mickey investigate the racket going on in the night kitchen, and celebrate a birthday for Little Bear with his friends.

If Elephants Could Fly...

After going through Winsor McCay's Little Nemo in Slumberland series, I really wanted to practice some of his page design techniques. His comic strips, from both a creative and design perspective, are absolutely stunning! In this case, to exaggerate the distance the elephant is travelling in the sky, I elongated the panel and incorporated some dramatic perspective. I gotta say, it was a nice break from my current workload and a fun little exercise!