Left Field

New illustration for the 20 year anniversary of Queens-based menswear company Left Field. There's a big influence from the coal mining gear and tough workwear worn in the 20th century so I tried to make this look a little gritty by putting some charcoal down and just smudging it all over the coal miner. I feel like my work used to look way dirtier years ago and at first I was a little bummed that it's been looking cleaner but I think I've just learned to restrain myself and try to use certain materials on a piece when it calls for it. Anyways, it was fun to rub some charcoal all over this one. It was also brutally hot the whole week I worked on this and I feel like that really crept into the look of this poster. Every time I look at this illustration now I just feel the oppressive heat of summer days in the city. Be sure to swing by the next time you're in Ridgewood and check out their rad looking store on Woodward Avenue and grab some goods. Thanks to owner, Christian McCann for hitting me up for this project. 

Soul Clap & Dance-Off with Joe Bataan

We have reached chapter 4 in the Elsewhere and Soul Clap & Dance-Off saga. Joe Bataan and his crew will be gracing us with their presence for this one on April 21st. Took a little from the Subway Joe and Gypsy Woman album covers as inspiration on this one. Ya know, I spend a good chunk of time trying to get these likenesses and poses down of the performers but, I've really been diggin these line drawings of the dancers in the background. I don't spend a lot of time on them and I like their loose look and feel. I'm always struggling with my need to control all aspects of the image and attempts to create some loose and wonky parts so, these posters always feel like a step in the direction I want to head.

Had to take this one on the road so here we are spread out on one of my mom's sewing tables. Actually fell right into a groove and was pretty productive outside of my comfort zone.

Soul Clap & Dance-Off at SXSW!

Right after I finished the Soul Clap & Dance-Off 11th anniversary poster I immediately got to work on this one for the 7th annual SXSW Soul Clap & Dance-Off closing party. Woof! Some marathon studio time this past week. Miss Lavelle White gracing this new one and she'll be doing a live performance at the closing party. When I was wrapping this up I almost put some bats carrying off the records on this one but after I ate a whole bag of chips and thought about it, I decided to hold off. Maybe I should have but it's almost comical how many posters for the city of Austin, TX have bats on them. Also, for the fans out there, I hope you'll notice we chose the yellow and brown color scheme from the Duke Records labels.