a very worthy cause

I finished a painting today that I’m really happy with...and guess what? It could be yours.

For the third year in a row, I am participating in “Postcards from the Edge,” a show and sale of original postcard-sized art to benefit Visual AIDS. Emerging and established artists contribute works on paper, all priced at $85, that are hung in an egalitarian exhibition at a Chelsea gallery. Each work is signed on the back. Meaning: buyers—if they know what they’re looking for—could walk away with an original piece by the likes of William Wegman, Kara Walker, Yoko Ono, or [*a-hem*] Anna Raff. (No spoilers here, sorry; you’ll have to guess about my imagery. Hint: it’s not a bird.)

The Preview Party is Friday, January 6, 2012. For more information, visit the “Postcards from the Edge” website.

a more mobile-friendly ornithoblogical

Ornithoblogical is now even easier to follow while you are on the go. With a new mobile-friendly interface, you can quickly scroll through the latest birds on your phone, as well as read or add to the comments section.

I hope you’ve enjoyed the latest installment of Thanksgiving-inspired birds. Looking over the comments, I see no one has yet cried fowl. ;v)

cold and flu season - group health cooperative

If you live on the East Coast, you no doubt heard, or perhaps directly experienced that crazy nor’easter over the last weekend of October. Earlier that week, I completed an illustration assignment that really put me in the mood—albeit not too literally. 

I was asked by the Group Heath Cooperative in Seattle to create an image for their cold and flu season outreach, encouraging members to get their flu shots. Below are a few of the sketches. The final solution (above) is more straight-forward, but the message is less dire than say, skiing off a stuffy nose mountain, or fending off a storm of birds and swine. Although, I think you’ll appreciate the humor of those sketches (below). Here’s to staying healthy this winter!

your holiday prep...rescued!

If you’re like me, you sometimes get so caught up in holiday hype, you forget how to do even the simplest of things. Thankfully, the folks at Kiwi Magazine and I are here to help. 

Yes, now you’ll never have to stress about remembering how to shape a cookie. Available on newstands—if not now, soon—here it is in print, complete with step-by-step illustrations. So even if you forget how to read, your holidays table won’t be ruined by square cookies. And anyway, if I were you, I’d be more worried about that bossy walnut with the ruler.

big night

Last night I had the privilege of attending two great Illustration Week events in NYC. Chair of the Masters in Illustration Department at the School of Visual Arts, artist, mentor, saxophone player, and my occasional boss, Marshall Arisman was one of the honorees at the Art Directors Club Hall of Fame Gala. Just being in the same room with luminaries of the design and illustration worlds, such as Viktor Koen, Steven Heller, Louise Fili, Massimo Vignelli and Paul Davis, to name a few, was a thrill.

Next, doing my best impression of a jet-setting New Yorker, I jumped into a cab to head over to “The Party,” which marks the publication of American Illustration 30, and to hobnob with my fellow illustrators and celebrate our inclusion in this years annual. Needless to say, I’m a little weary today. 

of potstickers and sleep apnea

A changing of the guard always brings with it the potential for growing pains, but I’m pleased to report my delight with the tear sheets that arrived in my mailbox today. The current issue of Kiwi Magazine on newsstands marks my first collaboration with their new creative director, Ridge Carpenter. 

As usual, my illustrations are featured in two sections: accompanying the essay on the last page, and in a series of spots for their “Cooking with Kids” section (above). The latter is now much more cleanly designed and, lucky me, my images are larger.  

So for the latest techniques on how to fold a potsticker, and to learn how a dad copes with the dangerous mix of parenting and sleep apnea...Well...you know the drill.

national day on writing - nytimes.com

Thursday, October 20th was the official National Day on Writing, and the Twittersphere was abuzz with writers, educators, journalists, students, and poets (to name just a few) answering the question #whyiwrite. Above is my illustrated contribution, as featured on Ornithoblogical and The New York Times Learning Network blog. You can learn more about the day, and read some fantastic quotes here.

of rats, sloths and other notable creatures...

In case you’ve been wondering why you’ve been seeing fewer birds and other such imagery up in my slice of the blogosphere of late, it’s because I’ve been hard at work on an exciting new project.

A few months ago, I was approached
by Candlewick Press to illustrate a collection of animal poems by the hilarious and prolific J. Patrick Lewis, the current U.S. Children’s Poet Laureate. As you might imagine, I jumped at the chance. The book, due to be released in Spring 2013, allows me to immerse myself into the minds of rats, bulldogs, sloths, and mata-mata turtles, to name just a few. While I can’t share much about the illustrations until publication, I will occasionally throw a little detail at you here and there...like here, in the sketch at left.

Meanwhile, I’ve also been working on two pieces for the November issue of the South African magazine Migrate. Since we’re almost halfway through October, I’ll be able to share those in just a few weeks. In the meantime, here’s a detail from one, titled Above. Happy Autumn!

etsy updated, and a little etc.

 

Summer’s end finds me busy with several small, ongoing projects and one really big one. But more on that in a later post. In the meantime...

It’s been a while, but I finally updated my Etsy shop. There you’ll find a selection of digital prints from Ornithoblogical, as well as some etchings and other goodies. This batch features “cock a doodle do” and “cock a doodle drew” (seen above), as well as some perennial favorites.

I take requests, so if there’s a piece that is not available in the shop, just let me know, I’m happy to put it up there.

kiwi magazine - august issue

We’re all told not to play with our food when we’re little. But when it comes to the Cooking Class section of Kiwi Magazine, I can’t seem to restrain myself. This month is no exception, so in the off chance you need to teach a little one how to properly empty a muffin pan, you know where to go...

And as usual, you can also find one of my illustrations on the last page of the magazine, accompanying this month's essay on homeschooling.

3x3 children’s show winner

It seems the fine folks at 3x3 Magazine didn’t think one of my birds was decorated enough. So...pin another award to the little guy’s chest! In addition to American Illustration 30 and Print Magazine Hand Drawn, “In General” has received a Merit Award in the 3x3 Children’s Show and will be included in their Illustration Annual No.8, due out in December. Bravo to one of my favorite illustrators, Gary Taxali, for winning Best in Show, and to all the other winners!

blue canvas magazine

The current issue of Blue Canvas Magazine includes an article on the MFA in Illustration at the School of Visual Arts, and I’m tickled to be amongst the distinguished alumni (John Hendricks, Nathan Fox, Brian Floca, Yuko Shimizu, Sam Weber, Daniel Lim, Martin Wittfooth...the list goes on) whose work is featured. 

make something 365 interview

Recently, I was interviewed by artist/designer/entrepreneur and all around great guy, Noah Scalin, for his 365 blog as a follow up to my ongoing Ornithoblogical project.

He is also the author of 365: A Daily Creativity Journal: Make Something Every Day and Change Your Life! and creator of his own award-wining, year-long blog Skull-A-Day.

As you know, I’m still creating birds, so it was rewarding to take stock with Noah, and muse a bit about where it all started and where it has taken me so far. You can read the interview here.

a collaboration with mom

Last year, when my friends announced they were expecting a baby, I never expected my mom to suggest learning how to make a quilt as a gift. “You design it, and I’ll make it,” she said enthusiastically. And so we did, but most of the credit goes to Mom, who did all of the heavy lifting.

The centerpiece of the quilt is my portrait of Sadie, our friends’ beloved 16-year-old pointer, familiar to some from invitations and Christmas ornaments over the years. The cityscape and row of evergreen trees represent the move they made a few years ago from New York City to Portland, Maine.

Earlier this week, I was privileged to present the finished product to Meghan and Jim, and their gorgeous, little girl on behalf of my mom. It seems like Claire approves. Thanks Mom!

the new york times: magnetic poetry

T. S. Eliot had it wrong. April was not the cruelest month—at least not for me—unless you count the weather in NYC. In addition to getting into some illustration competitions and being selected “Pick of the Week” by Illustration Friday, April was National Poetry Month and brought with it a new collaboration with The Learning Network blog at The New York Times. For the second year running, editors Katherine Schulten and Holly Epstein Ojalvo held their Found Poem Challenge. And what you see above is my illustration for the announcement of the winners this week. A reinterpretation of the old novelty gift magnetic poetry, the hand-lettered words represent the wide range of subjects submitted by student poets. Many thanks to Katherine and Holly, and congratulations to the 10 poets whose work will be featured on the blog.

gallery nucleus - illustrated type

If you find yourself in the Los Angeles area between May 14th and June 6th, make your way over to Gallery Nucleus for their “Illustrated Type” exhibition. I was invited to contribute a letterform of my choice, and decided to make a new piece featuring my “M is for Monster” character—originally created for LetterPlayground—who at post time, was crawling his way across the continent. Among the other luminaries showing their wares will be John Hendricks, Jessica Hische, Josh Cochran, and my SVA buddy You Byun.

evil dewars on the rocks (reprise)

This morning, my mom reminded me of this piece that I made a few years ago, and—in light of today’s news—I thought I’d repost it here. The subjects are meant to be generic, but the message is the same.

illustration friday pick of the week

From time to time, I post images to IllustrationFriday, a website dedicated to the illustration community, where a weekly subject is posted to spur artists on to create images. This week, I’m very pleased to have one of my birds selected as the “Pick of the Week.”

And—if you’d like to take her home with you—she’s available as a signed print on my etsy shop.

american illustration 30

Excellent news received today: two images from Ornithoblogical have been selected to appear in the American Illustration 30 Annual. There were more than 7,000 pictures entered this year, but only 316 actually make it into the book. For more information about AI-AP, click here. That makes three birds (if you include me) who will be attending the AI-AP party later this fall. Woop!

the bathers

What exactly is going on here? You’ll have to pick up the April/May issue of Kiwi Magazine and find out...

(Apologies aux Messieurs Cézanne, Renoir et Seurat.)

MoCCA tees tease...

Here’s a sampling of my hand-painted t-shirts on sale at MoCCA this weekend (details below). Come see me at Table #i-13.

MoCCA Fest 2011 

(benefiting the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art)

Saturday, April 9th and Sunday, April 10th

11 AM – 6 PM

@ the Lexington Avenue Armory

between 25th & 26th Streets

New York City

MoCCA Festival 2011 - April 9th & 10th

Come on down to MoCCA Fest 2011 this weekend! (Table #i-13)

I’ll be launching three limited-edition, hand-bound books featuring art from Ornithoblogical: Bird Food, Jail Birds, and Bird House. Each includes nine full-color illustrations, and an original stab-stitch binding I’m fondly calling “bird feet.”

Also on offer will be flocks of signed bird prints, in addition to perennial book favorites such as The R. U. Fauna Department Store Catalog, and Ornithoblogical: Volume 1. And never fear—if you had your eye on a set of Gazers at last year’s festival, I have a few pairs left. Who knows? If all goes well, you might even get your hands on a one-of-a-kind, hand-painted tee. 

As in past years, I’ll be sharing a table with the fabulous Sophia Weideman, who will be launching her latest comic, the next installment of The Lettuce Girl.

MoCCA Fest 2011 

(benefiting the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art)

Saturday, April 9th and Sunday, April 10th

11 AM – 6 PM

@ the Lexington Avenue Armory

between 25th & 26th Streets

New York City

on the walls of lake isle press

The lovely people at Lake Isle Press have excellent taste in wall paint—don’t you think? And they serve delicious cookies at meetings.

Ornitho-Blog-of-Note-ical

One day last week in the Twitter-sphere, Blogger, the blog-publishing service that is brings you this post and all of my birds, chose Ornithoblogical as a “Blog of Note.” What exactly does that mean, you ask? Well, in less than a week, subscribers, followers, and (let’s not forget) kind commentary on the site has tripled. And guess what that means for me? Yep...I have to make more birds! So back to the drawing board I go for some analog tweeting. And thank you!

cabin fever and other adventures in illustration

When I was asked to illustrate a 4-page special section for the March issue of Kiwi Magazine called “Beat Cabin Fever,” little did I suspect I would come down with a serious case myself! 

This plum assignment—in addition to the regular cooking class spots and end-of-the-book essay pieces (see Measuring Up, above) that I’ve been illustrating for over a year—kept me furiously busy at my drawing board for a few weeks.

The feature includes games, puzzles, a recipe, and a pull-out fortune teller (above) to help kids decide what to do when the weather (or illustration assignments) forces them indoors.

Unfortunately, one of my favorite spots wound up on the cutting room floor, but I’m showing it here in all its glory. It was to go with a piece on recycling household materials into cool craft projects.

And finally, that athletic troupe of dried beans you see is part of this month’s cooking class: How to Measure Ingredients. It’s always a challenge to find an adventurous twist in what can be a pretty mundane subject. Speaking of which, this month we’re washing spinach!

nytimes.com—the learning network

Yesterday’s posting on The New York Times’ The Learning Network blog featured “100 Ways to Celebrate the 100th Day of School” with oodles of creative ideas for teachers, students and schools to mark the occasion.

Unbeknownst to me—while I was marking the occasion with a 100+ fever—Ornithoblogical got a great mention in #9. Now that sure made me feel better!

While the power of social networking sites like Twitter can more dramatically (and importantly) be measured by the events currently taking place in the Middle East, I have to acknowledge my own little learning network experience here. Through Noah Scalin’s 365 blog nod to my birds on Twitter, Katherine Schulten, one of the authors of The Learning Network, and I were virtually introduced. It just goes to show that “tweeting” is not just for the birds...or is it? Thanks Noah and Katherine!

print magazine hand drawn competition

Print Magazine, the venerable, bimonthly showcase of visual culture and design announced the winners of their first ever Hand Drawn Competition this week. I’m so pleased that “In General”—which ran on Ornithoblogical on day 177—has been selected as an Inaugural Illustration Competition Winner and will be featured on their website in May. A-Ten-Hut!

postcards from the edge

I am pleased to be among the artists who have anonymously donated work to the 13th Annual Postcards from the Edge benefit for Visual AIDS, on view this weekend and hosted by the CRG Gallery. Beginning Friday with the Preview Party, buyers can view the over 1400 postcards on display. It’s an excellent chance to get your hands on original works of art by established and emerging artists. See if you can pick mine out of the crowd. You might even see me nearby, plotting a purchase of my own. Click here for more details.