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

Debt Collective Comic

Last year I was approached by Laura Hanna at the Debt Collective to create a socio-political themed comic for their website that they were preparing to launch. A handful of other artists were asked to create something based on the topics the Debt Collective are trying to address and I was asked to create a comic about Neo-Feudalism, which is the idea that there is a rebirth of policies prevalent in feudal societies. But, Laura also wanted to give a hopeful message in the comic, encouraging that there is a way around the current state of affairs. I haven't done a lot of political work in the past few years, compared to how fired up I was about it right out of college, but it felt good to get back in it, and also read a bunch of infuriating news articles. Thanks to Laura at the Debt Collective for asking me to participate.

Below is the B&W version before the color was put down. The whole process of making a comic is very humbling and every time I work on one, which is not often, I always gain more respect for the people who really understand the medium and make it look easy. 

Here are a few close-up shots from some of the more detailed sections of the comic.

Process pics below.

Soul Clap & Dance-Off with the Psychic Ills and more

Last minute Soul Clap & Dance-Off poster swooping in on ya! There's quite a fantastic psychedelic line-up for this month's party so we channeled that Parliament spaced-out funk for this month's illustration. Even though this one was done under a very tight deadline, I had a blast working on it. Something about illustrating spaceships, stars and cosmic dust really does it for me. INFO AND TIX HERE!

Left Field x Prime Denim Label

A few months ago I had the opportunity to work with Left Field NYC again on a denim label for a collaborative jean with Prime. The image definitely went through some changes, as you'll see in the sketches below, until we finally settled on "the one". Originally, there was going to be a large sacred rock in Australia in the background but that got nixed and then we went for a few different versions with a wave crash and then a shark until we got the composition that included both.

The final product came out with black ink on a tan patch but I had the classic Levi's label in my head when I did this color study in red. It was still helpful though in figuring out the contrast for the final illustration. It was also tricky working on something that was going to be shrunken down to the size of a business card because I am such a detail oriented person but I think I was able to pull the reigns where it was needed. Probably could have a little more but, whadda ya gunna do?

The jeans are available on Prime's site and they are a pretty penny but knowing the quality of Left Field's denim I would bet these puppies are totally worth it. The craft and attention to detail in their products is really amazing and I'm stoked to work with such a reputable brand. Thanks again to Christian McCann for the opportunity to work on something I never considered taking a shot at illustrating and, in the end, being really happy I did it.

The Last A-Frame EVER! For 2018

The final a-frames of 2018 for Gimme! Coffee have arrived! If you're going to call a special holiday blend, "Sleigher" I'm obviously going to respond with an appropriation of the classic Slayer logo. It would be shocking if I didn't. Some other holiday gift hustling on the flipside. 

And in other news: I have put the neon cat prints on MY WEBSITE. Thanks again to everyone who came out to the holiday fair last week and purchased something from me. All remaining prints are up on the site. If any orders are placed between now and Christmas they will arrive after the holidays. Just a heads up.