Holiday Illustration Promotion

Here is my 2007 holiday illustration promotion.
Happy holidays to all.

My illustration work gets a nod. Well, two nods.

Two of my illustrations (above) have been accepted into Illustration West 45 by the Society of Illustrators of Los Angeles.
All the accepted entries will be up on their site in Spring '08.
SILA.

Me on Boonika

Hey, look, my rabbit is the weabbit of the week on boonika.com.
boonika.com

New Art

I've been painting away preparing for a couple shows. I'm posting daily to my flickr page.
Check it out.

Making frames

This is how I make my supports for my paintings. I use masonite. I like it because it doesn't give as much as canvas and doesn't have the texture of canvas which means I can apply my own texture.
The magic ingredients are glue and pressure.
This one is 12"x12".
Making a bunch of these as I have a couple shows coming up. Paint, paint, paint.

New painting, "Solar"

This is a commissioned piece. The client is giving this as a wedding present.
18"x24" Acrylic on masonite.

Current Show

Showcard from my current outing. If you are in Reno, get on over to Never Ender and see some art. There is another show, "Bye, bye summer" group show happening at the same time in the back gallery. Never Ender also has cool clothing and gifts. Start that x-mas shopping early.

New Shows!

I've got a few new shows coming up:

NEW SHOW. "MAKING MARKS", Solo show at Never Ender Gallery in Reno, NV. Show opens Aug. 18th and runs 'til Sept. 22nd. Opening reception Aug. 18th, 7pm.
I'll have some work in this show that hasn't been seen outside of my studio. Very reasonable prices on a lot of small works. It's never too early to start that Christmas shopping. ;-)

Also, two shows coming up in late fall and winter. More info. to come on these.

Current Show - Cordially Invited 2

Cordially Invited 2, originally uploaded by Brian Raszka.

A show that I am participating in is currently on display at Never Ender. If you are in Reno stop in a take a peak. Never Ender also has lots of cool clothing for the gals and the guys.
I invited Lisa Congdon to be in the show with me. Check out her work, it's rad.

Gotcha!

Gotcha!, originally uploaded by Brian Raszka.

Another in my new series of illustrations.
Ink drawing, hand created textures assembled and colored in Photoshop.

Squaresville

Squares Ville, originally uploaded by Brian Raszka.

Another in my continuing series of illustrations.
Squaresville. Where everything is angular.
One for the portfolio. This is a new style and I am excited about where it will go as I add images. As I said it is a new style but has many elements that I have been using for years: ink drawing, textures both hand and mechanically created, use of hand-created type all put together and colored digitally.
I enjoy working in the digital realm because I can rearrange, resize, recolor at will. I don't use Photoshop's fancy tricks because I want to keep to as close to a hand-done look as possible. Having said that, you have to know Photoshop pretty well to keep to a hand-done look.

Birds Know

Birds Know, originally uploaded by Brian Raszka.

Another new one...I'm on a roll.
What do birds know? I dunno know, I'm not a bird. But wear a hat just in case. I like birds as a symbol: freedom, nature, wildness. Fun to draw.
Ink drawings scanned and digitally colored.

Hurt Your Eyes

Hurt Your Eyes, originally uploaded by Brian Raszka.

New illustration work.

Chimera

Chimera, originally uploaded by Brian Raszka.

This make me giggle; before, during and after I made it.
Cross pollinizating, evolution, our planet is getting mighty crowded, we're living close to the animals, side-by-side, pushing them out, who'll win, where are we going, hang on kids, it's going to be a bumpy ride.
Acrylic on wood.
6.75"x9.5"

I'm an artistaday

Artistaday
A site where artists get some love. Check it out. Rate the artists.
And, they are running a contest to design their logo. If you've got some ideas, give it a shot.

Just a thought on buying Art

I understand many people are intimidated by the thought of buying art. Intimidated to go into a gallery to even look at art. Art shouldn't be intimidating. There is so much art out there to look at. Prices are great too. Most people think that to get an original piece of art will cost a fortune. Not so. Sure there are well established artists and their work sells for thousands but there are so many artists just beginning their careers and their work is very reasonable. How reasonable? About the same cost for a hi-end poster or art reproduction. Maybe less.
There is a lot of art on the web. Check out flickr and type in the type of art you are looking for in the search pane. Tons of artists on Myspace as well and countless other on-line galleries. Most galleries are on-line as well.
If you find an artist you like, shoot them an email to see if they have anything for sale(if they don't already list their work on their own site).
Go to local galleries, go to galleries when you are on vacation, go to art fairs, whatever.
As to what type of art to buy, well that's up to you and your tastes. Forget about art as investment and just buy what you like. Maybe you start a collection of art of one type of animal that you like. Or, art that is all the same color. Or, same general style. Or, landscapes. Whatever floats your boat.
My personal collection (still budding) is quite eclectic. I just get what I like at the time. I'm an artist but I don't necessarily want to look at my own work all the time. I want to be inspired by the work of others.
So, go forth, look at all the art you can and buy what you like.

Bunny book

Bunny book, originally uploaded by Brian Raszka.

I started this a while back but just finished the left side.
Acrylic on book cover.

Witness

Witness, originally uploaded by Brian Raszka.

Another new one.
8.5"x11.25" Acrylic and colored pencil on wood plaque.

These Hands

These Hands, originally uploaded by Brian Raszka.

This burst forth from my subconscious and demanded to be seen.
6.75"x10.5"x1.5" Acrylic on wood

How to decorate a Munny

Subhead: Or, at least how I did it.
I've been wanting to get my own blank Munny for a while now. I got one from Kidrobot and got the paints out.

Here's your basic blank Munny in parts. Oh, what to do...













Start painting...add texture...I like to paint undercoats of color and add texture so that in the end result you will see color coming through the texture...I use Golden's molding paste to build up texture...hope it sticks...













Add more under-color...looks bad for Munny but don't worry it's only paint...














...add yet more color...












...done with the underpainting...now lets put on a topcoat...this shows the texture previously applied...












...close-up to see texture...












...a few details, put Munny back together and, voila! 'tis done.

Blah Blah Gallery.com Featured Artist for June

Blah Blah Gallery.com Featured Artist for June, originally uploaded by Brian Raszka.

Richard over at Blah Blah Gallery was kind of enough to ask me to be the "Special Guest Artist" for June on the BBG site. Thanks Richard it's great to be on a site with such great art and artists.

Book2_ties

Book2_ties, originally uploaded by Brian Raszka.

A 3D piece made from a book, sticks, paint, twine, glue and shellac.
Working on sculpture is a recent interest for me. I haven't done much in the 3D realm since college days. It is a very different way to work than painting.
12.5"x13"

Manifest

Manifest, originally uploaded by Brian Raszka.

In keeping with my recent explorations of the "Western" theme.
Mixed media on panel
24"x48"

Edwin's Story

Edwin's Story, originally uploaded by Brian Raszka.

Acrylic, pencil and collage
11"x15"
More adventures of Edwin to come. Stay tuned.

Ballyhoo

Ballyhoo, originally uploaded by Brian Raszka.

3 pieces that I sent to the "Ballyhoo" show at Bear and Bird Gallery in Lauderhill, Fl. The show is running from May 5 - June 8.
Lionel the Lion-Faced Man was a real performer. Octoboy, not so much. The first piece is an oldie that the good folks at Bear and Bird liked so that was sent.
2 pieces on right are around 6"x9" and are framed in vintage frames. The piece on left is about 9"x13" and is mounted to a panel with floating frame.
Contact Bear and Bird to purchase.

the Shatner

the Shatner, originally uploaded by Brian Raszka.

This is my piece in the "Shatner Show" at Uppercase Gallery in Calgary, Canada.
Lots of great artists involved in this project. Check it out.

Heads

I did 16 of these as a variation project. I wanted to see how many different versions I could do with one subject. I could have kept going. Maybe I'll pick it up again in the future and do more.

See my flicker page or my web site (go to my fine art section>people, places, animals-7th icon from left) to see all 16. Oh, and they are for sale as is most of the art on my site.

Bot

Buffing up my art collection. I just received my recent purchase; Gasbot by Gammaraybots. So cool. It has been put in a place of honor on the mantle.

The Making of Serpentina

This is a step-by-step of how I created my piece for the, "2nd Annual 3 Feet High Skatedeck Show" I call it, "Serpentina" named for a real side-show performer.
Go here to find more information about the show.
Let's get started...















Got my deck and I sanded the finish off of the art side so paint will stick.













I start by painting background color; little yellow and a little white. Starting to build up some texture...













...a little more bkgd. color - blue, a little more texture. I like texture...













...I place my rough sketch over the deck for positioning(sketchbook lower left)...













...here is a close-up of the face in the sketch...













...painting the body area...













...I have the areas of the body blocked in and have started to paint the under layers...













...working on the hair...













...working some more on body and hair. Building up mass and details...













...working on details. Highlights and lowlights...













...full view...















...working on the lettering. Luckily the holes in the board lined up with her eyes...



























...Fini.