Sunday Soul Scream!

Recently whipped up some stuff for Jonathan Toubin's Sunday Soul Scream party that takes place every Sunday from May 26th - September 1st at Our Wicked Lady in Brooklyn. First up here we've got the illustrations for the first ever t-shirt I've had the chance to create for Jonathan and then a colorized version of the calendar graphic that will be the poster. 

There's a couple pics below of the shirts. They're available in a variety of sizes at Our Wicked Lady for $20 and they are super soft, super comfy and the perfect weight for those warm summer days. Hopefully everyone will wear them til they're covered in holes and tearing apart at the seams, then donate them to their local Salvation Army and in 30 years some kid in middle America will find one and wonder what this weird, cool thing is and wear it with no idea as to what the Sunday Soul Scream is. But, they'll be stoked they've found this bizarre shirt that no one has any clue about. 

\

Ikebe Shakedown Record Release Poster

I recently completed this illustration for the Brooklyn-based band, IKEBE SHAKEDOWN, who is having a record release show in JUNE at ROUGH TRADE NYC. This piece was one of those freak times where everything just moves so smooth from sketch to finish, maybe a little too smooth? The gang gave me a few pics for reference and a song for a sample of the album's sound and I just immediately went for these sketches of this skeleton cowboy in a neon desert. I know it doesn't seem hard to translate your sketches into a finished piece that completely mimics the look of the sketch but I guarantee almost every artist you talk to will say something is lost in the process and they almost always love their sketches more. This was one of those really rare times where I feel like I got as close as possible to getting the piece right where I wanted it from sketch to finish. I will enjoy that feeling for a second and acknowledge this may not happen again for a very long time. Thanks again to Vince and the band. Process pics below.

American Illustration 38

Happy to announce that my Kool Keith/Soul Clap & Dance-Off poster has been selected to appear in the American Illustration 38 book. Big THANK YOU to all the judges! And Jonathan Toubin! 

PRINTS AVAILABLE HERE! 

Soul Clap & Dance-Off with Sheer Mag

Painting it black this month for thee Soul Clap & Dance-Off at Brooklyn Bazaar featuring Sheer Mag. Sometimes coloring can become so daunting to me that it's nice when something like this comes along. Back in my early RISD days I was so apprehensive about coloring my work because I felt like I was just going to ruin the piece and I still somewhat feel like that, even though I try to just charge ahead in an attempt to keep learning. But, pieces like this can be a nice reminder that I can pump the brakes a little and don't need to force myself to color every piece.

Soul Clap & Dance-Off 12 Year Anniversary/Kid Congo Powers Birthday Bash!

Another March means another year that Jonathan Toubin's Soul Clap & Dance-Off party keeps chugging along! This is the 12th year and this baby keeps getting better and better. It's also music icon Kid Congo Powers' 60th Birthday bash so it's going to be a night of maximum celebrations. Link to tickets are HERE.

This anniversary party also marks the 5th year that Jonathan and I have been working on these posters together. I've included the first ever poster I did for him below. There was definitely a lack of Jonathan's aesthetic in the piece but I think it still managed to capture the fun spirit of the party. 

Mister Rogers and his Disciples

I've been working on this commission for the past 3 months, mostly straight through, excluding Christmas and a few freelance projects sprinkled here and there and I'm psyched to finally have the chance to show it to the world. I tend to complete most pieces within a week or two. It's very hard for me to sit with something too long because I just get antsy and start thinking of all the other things I want to get working on but having a few things to work on on the side helped me from getting restless and actually showed me I am able to juggle 2-3 pieces at a time. I think having so many different characters to draw that I had never drawn before also kept me very engaged. And, I always look forward to a chance to draw ol' Sly Stallone. Dude seriously has one of the best faces to draw out of anyone. 

Originally, it was planned that after I laid the ink and paint down that would be where I crossed the finishing line. But, a friend mentioned they thought the original idea was that gold leaf was going to be added, which the client and I hadn't planned on, and I honestly can't believe we didn't. So, that being a total no-brainer, I got busy testing out how to lay down gold leaf. This was a totally new technique for me and I had a great time learning how to use it and I'm hoping to continue to apply it to my work in the future. 

Now having the piece finished and after a few days of looking at it, I'm really happy we continued past just using fluid acrylic for the halos. They seem a tad too bright with the cad yellow and the gold leaf really calms them down and adds a bit of seriousness to the silly cartoon vibe of the piece. 

Now it is complete. Some close-up shots below to give a good idea how the gold leaf looks when the light catches it just right. 

Rat Ripper Pins AVAILABLE NOW!

The Rat Ripper enamel pins are here and ready for purchase. Ever since I did this a-frame for Gimme! Coffee in Brooklyn back in...maybe 2014 or 2015(?) I have been trying to find a way to get it on something people could wear. My good friend Trey Kirchoff at Passengers Cafe and Coffee Coffee Coffee in Cleveland, OH helped me get the ball rolling and we got a design worked up for some pins he wanted to sell at his cafe's starting on New Year's Day. The crowd reaction seemed very positive when he started teasing these on social media so I decided to get a 2nd run made so people beyond Ohio could get their mits on them. Well, the day has arrived and they are available on my site. Link is provided below. Thanks again to Trey and Lisa for the help with this project. 

CLICK TO PURCHASE!

CLICK TO PURCHASE!

CLICK TO PURCHASE!

Rat Ripper Pins: Vol. 2

Do you, or people you know, love enamel pins, coffee, and rats? Weeeeeell, I have a new wave of the rat ripper pins in and they are almost ready for to get your hands on. I will be posting a link to my site on Monday the 18th when they drop. Enjoy this taster of the goods for now. 

Soul Clap & Dance-Off with Hailu Mergia

February Soul Clap & Dance-Off poster is here and this is going to be a big one: Hailu Mergia, the Ethiopian keyboardist, composer, visionary is going to be doing a special 90 minute set before the dancing kicks in at 11. Word on the street is tickets are moving fast so if you're a fan get on it now, and if you're unfamiliar with his music, go check it out and be happy you didn't go your whole life without hearing this musical treat. Link to tickets HERE