Molotov Cocktease

I can't resist Cold War double entendre's any more than you can.

Duma Key (finished illustration)

Here's how the finished art came out on that Stephen king book review illustration. The art director and editor made some changes and additions, so I added in the things they asked me for. The tone is quite different from what I normally am assigned. I usually do light and humorous pieces, so it was a challenge to do a moody and creepy illustration for a change. Hope it looks like a good fit. I'll find out from the art director in the morning I guess.

Sketch for "Duma Key" Review

I just did a sketch for an illustration to go with the review for Stephen King's new book "Duma Key". The client is New York Newsday and the finish will be in color. I thought it'd be fun to blog about something as I was doing it. I just turned in this sketch and am waiting to see if it's a go. But, this is what my sketches look like for my clients. I don't like to show more than one unless there's a lot of time and money. Plus, I believe that the more you show a client, the more they want to explore. Although, with this particular client, time is always of the essence and they like directness and promptness. I'll post the finish in the next day or so.

Yeti: Giant of The 20th Century!

This is a slight change of subject, but hey...I wanted to blog about the stuff that inspires me. Right? Well, I went down to The Silent Movie Theatre here in my neighborhood to see the 1970's classic Yeti: Giant of The 20th Century with my friends Mark and luke. (I almost called my friend Matt to come with us but then I realized we'd be Matthew, Mark, Luke and Joe...virtual Apostles) The Silent Movie Theatre has started this Cinefamily thing where they show all kinds of fun movies. Not just the great silent movies there. They are focusing on all this Great/Bad/weird Italian stuff from the 70's. Yeti did not disappoint. I cannot tell you enough how brilliantly funny this movie was. I laughed almost all through the movie. See the short clip here from YouTube just for a taste of Yeti. Ewwwww! It's one of those..."You have to see it to believe it" movies. A classic '70's romp with an Italian sensibility. And yes, that's The Yeti's nipple getting aroused as the girl touches it. There's even a scene where a bad guy is almost stepped on by Yeti, but then he thinks for a second and raises his foot...only to kill the baddie between his giant hairy toes. Thank God this wasn't in Smell-o-rama! The soundtrack was a ripoff of Carmina Burana. There was even a slight disco version in the middle when Yeti terrorizes Toronto. This was pure cinema gold, I tell you!



See the incredible range of emotion from the actor who played Yeti. He was seriously robbed of an Oscar...or at least the Italian equivalent of one. Check out The Silent Movie Theatre for their schedule and information. The Silent Movie Theatre/Cinefamliy

Sympathy for The Cyclops

I'm trying to do a few paintings about The Cyclops. Here's a sketch I did yesterday in my sketchbook as a study for what I may do. poor old Cyclops. I think he's been terribly misunderstood. I'd like to buy him a beer.

David Sandlin at Billy Shire Fine Arts

I just got back from 2 very busy art openings. The first was for the opening at Billy Shire Fine Arts of David Sandlin and Helen Garber's new work. I'm such a long time fan of David Sandlin's work that I'm just commenting on his show there for this post entry. It was a tough night to have an opening because so many people were going over to the "Some Paintings" show at Track 16 (Bergamot Station in Santa Monica). That place was a madhouse. More of a partylike atmosphere, but good strong work and celebs filling the place. Matt Groening and Matt Dillon were there. Apparently a lot of famous men named Matt. Anyway, I'm just glad I made it to Billy Shire first to see David Sandlin's work. I will add more to this post in a day so I can get the name of the paintings that I found really impressive. Here are a couple of images from the show though. The work was big....BIG!!!! They were all oil on canvas (for the most part) and the colors were strong and vibrant. I've always loved how Sandlin rides this fine line between cartoonish and abstract. It's a dreamworld of distorted characters and genitalia. (Lord knows I love to paint the female breast.) He tends to draw on his life experiences and his 2 favorite topics are sex and religion. We have this in common for sure. He grew up in Belfast and also Alabama. His mother was from Ireland and the first painting here is an homage to her.

Golden Globes/Writers Strike Illustration

I just did a rush illustration about how The Writers Strike is affecting The Golden Globes Ceremony. Apparently there isn't anyone to write the patter for the ceremony. Is that a bad thing?

Martha Rich Goes "Nutrageous" at La Luz de Jesus

Martha Rich just had an opening at La Luz de Jesus Gallery (here in Los Angeles) with David Sandlin on the 4th of January. If you have been following Martha's work and her blog you may know that she had been doing a painting a day over the past year. She's been documenting it through her website at Freedomwig. I could never do a painting a day. That is true commitment. I can relate to Martha's work so much because she paints all the things that make her happy. What more do you need in life? Support bras, cherry pie, beehives, afro puffs and beavers are the muses to Martha's imagery. Hope you all check out the work at the gallery or through the website at La luz de Jesus.