Getting back into the swing

Well I won't deny it's been a long time since my last post. And now in a bid to stir , phoenix-like from posting inactivity, I'm starting work on a new children's book, as a personal project.

Expect trolls.

Maybe phoenix is too grandiose a beast to aspire too. Let's say a somewhat shaggy bear awakening from hibernation.

Possibly with a hangover.

Charley Harper

Charley Harper was a legend of American illustration. In a painting style he called "minimal realism", he managed to distill the subject matter into so few elements that it became essentially geometric, and yet somehow was still rich with character. Of this, he famously said:

"I don't count the feathers, I just count the wings."

I recently discovered the work of Charley Harper

and right now he's my hero.

It's just a shame that there won't be any more from him.

Beauties, Beasts and Broken things

Seems like it's been an awful long time since I've posted here.

In fact last time I did, I wasn't yet a graduate, but now I am, ha!

The sheer strangeness of the feeling. But having filled myself entirely

with prawn crackers I am invigorated enough to show

you lovely people some things. 

There's a rather good competition going at the moment run by

Waterstone's which will give one lucky fella or fille the chance to illustrate a new edition of Beauty and the Beast.

Here's my offering.

Manliest castle Ever

Feels good to be drawing again, and I'm actually pretty pleased.

Fingers crossed I guess.

I can't draw serious things

Ah haha. Screw it this is my project now.

Until I get bored of it tomorrow, we shall see. 

Also, I think this may be my 100th blog post.

Massive Hurrah!

Potential lack of focus

I wanted to focus on one specific little project but I keep having

ridiculous ideas for other ones. This is one of them. 


Tempted to make a little comic of this. Will hardly be cerebral, but

it will do what it says on the tin.

All quiet

On the western front.

Because I've just spent two weeks or so in America.

Gonna do a little project on it. 

A self portrait

At uni today we got asked to do a self portrait for our year catalog.

Bam. Did this a while ago and forgot about it.

I really do only exist in black and white and it freaks people out.

Tiny Delights

Professional Practice Module,

I am tentatively declaring you to be finished.

 



Three little booklets in their very own envelopes that live inside a Slightly Bigger envelope.

I'm really pushing the-

ugh.

Jumping the gun

Had a first go at drawing the end page of my graphic novel.
Before I've even thought about the front cover. Hmm

I was bored

yesterday. And for some reason when I'm bored it seems like a good idea to make little books out of rubbish. 


Although this one, turned out more like a leaflet.
HAH!

And then one out of newspaper. Think these may actually be the most useless notebooks in the whole world, you can't write on newspaper because there's no room, and you can't write on leaves because...they're leaves.

Good one Jon.

Think this blog needs a new layout too. We shall see.

Have it

This has been floating around the studio for ages and I finally got around to taking a picture of it.

It was quite fun to do, if I recall

To the grind

Been working on my graphic novel project, here, have a couple of (almost) done pages to show I'm alive. Still need to play around with the speechbubbles a bit. And maybe make it a bit less relentlessly sepia. 

The original aim for this project was something from 30-40 pages, currently up to page 55 and counting, hnnngh

(that's the noise I make when I'm productive)

Some Things

I found a little sketchbook I'd made out discarded packaging and had entirely forgotten about. Here's what I found within. The cover had smudged though :(

 

This motto hangs on my workspace at uni, staring reproachfully at me every time I buy a bag of crisps.

Also, I made homemade ketchup, go me. It needs a label.


Frugality is certainly the way forward. The sun's coming out, thinking it might be time to start growing my own herbs or something.

Amigo

Productivity, hnnnghhhh.

Feel like posting something. Been working on my major project, a graphic novel entitled "Wanted Dead or Dead"set in the Old West. Have a prospective page.

It's Better (down where it's wetter)

Seems I haven't posted anything for a while. More than likely because my drawing tablet and I had a bit of a falling out. But we had some makeup sex.


Going to do a series of illustrations for a poem I wrote about sea monsters. Don't know if I like the style of it or not, part of me does at least. But wow that font needs rethinking. 

So many little projects going right now...things are heating up.

Wild about you Baby

One of the dropped ideas for my last project was a hillbilly scarecrow who just wanted to play the blues. I should've been drawing something else, but I ended up drawing this. Thinking I might pick it up again for a self-promotional project we have to do.

I want a super-mega charged electric banjo.

I can't be bothered to buy paper anymore

What I did in the studio today.
I think I should like to do some kind of narrative work entirely
drawn on found objects. It is cheaper than buying sketchbooks after all.

The Fantastic Monster Party is actually something I once doodled on my girlfriend's shoes. There are no other world issues quite as grave and important.

Asteroid Sound

I have an urge to draw guitars recently. And also to draw using just a pen. There's something ironically liberating about the fact that every line you draw is final.  
Here's some nonsense.

 
Starting to think about making some t-shirt designs...

Also, I have a friend who is going to invent the genre of "Space Rock".
This is my opinion on the matter.

Real freaks, ALIVE

Oh man, I just can't hide this anymore but I goddamn love typography. In the olden days (the good old days) I would've been summarily tried and hanged but now it's accepted.

There was/is an exhibition at the British Library about the evolution of the English language (go, goddamn you), and it was reet interesting. I copied a couple of awesome fonts/letters that you can see in the second image from the King James Bible and an old poster for the circus, and now I can't stop thinking about the latter.

I think I shall have to do a project about the circus.

Just want to draw freaks really. There is something interesting about people who celebrate and revel in differences.

Based on a true story

I couldn't sleep, so this happened.

Widget the Space Midget

flies her rocket through the sky,

and she lands right in your pocket cause she's just three inches high.

"Now understand I claim this land

for Mars!" she then declares,

and when she's climbed your head she puts a flag there in your hair.

Did you know you were a port of sorts

for alien invaders?

Well Widget's made her home down in your favourite pair of trainers.

Finally getting there maybe

Well, Happy New Year to all and sundry. Have a video.
Been tentatively coming towards a final piece for my project. Content to a point with it, but criticism's always welcome.

Also, vimeo seems to have made it taller than it should be. Sad face

The Curious Demon from Jon Bliss on Vimeo.