Likeness Cover, Final

Hi everyone,
Things have been busy. Over the past couple months I got a job at the Seattle Blick Art Supplies, I am periodically taking online classes through Tutormill, I have set up a page on theispot, and my boyfriend and I got a dog, Jefferson. Unsurprisingly, the blog was pushed to the very bottom of my to do list. I will be posting lots of new art over the next week or two as I catch up.

Now, on to the art.
The reimagined Likeness cover is finished, yay! I completed the final in Photoshop and Painter, protecting the integrity of the drawing while letting me experiment with creating a mood through a limited palette.

Likeness Cover

Lately, I have focused on creating a few book covers. This piece is a cover image for the Likeness by Tana French. The drawing began as a study in an oversized sketchbook; however the unrehearsed line work reminded me of my personal sketches (something I've wanted to bring to my illustrations) so I'm using it as a final drawing. The illustration will most likely be executed in acrylic, gouache and ink.

Oprah Final

Completing this piece has been my main focus lately. The final is mixed media--colored pencil, acrylic and wax. Yes, wax. By spreading thin layers of wax over sections of the board I was able to quickly soften the edges of the background pattern and create the illusion of a glass surface.

Sketchbook Travels

My boyfriend and I just returned from six weeks on the road; a majority of that was spent exploring Europe. Here are a few new pages from the sketchbook created during our travels.

iPhone 4 Case

Like many Apple and technology enthusiasts, my boyfriend, Chris, bought an iPhone 4 in June. While learning about the iPhone Chris discovered Grove, a small Portland-based company creating bamboo iPhone cases. Grove offers several designs but also lets people submit vector art to customize their case, like so . . .

Comic Book Project Thumbnails

Here are my two best thumbnails for a comic cover assignment. I chose the Sandman issue that introduces Death, one of my favorite comic characters. I love the use of white space in the narrative so I'm challenging myself to carry that into the cover.

New Project

This is the progress for an illustration inspired by an article from the New York Times about Oprah's influence on women in the Middle East --particularly Saudi Arabia.


The drawing is executed in burnt umber and tuscan red Verithin pencils. Their precision was key in recreating the patterns throughout the piece.

Soccer Kids Final

Hi everybody,
The kids are finished! Yay! I am extremely proud of this piece and of how it developed.

The background is my favorite part of the piece. It seamlessly combines my two loves - painting and sketching - and embodies a direction that I plan to pursue. It also displays my continuing growth in distorting perspective and environments to create unique worlds without being tied to precise reproductions of my reference.
This illustration has been in the works for several months so it's a pleasure to be able to post it.

Please let me know if you have any comments or feedback. Thanks everyone!

Color!

Hi everyone,
I'm switching gears to a children's soccer piece that I concepted a few months ago. After deliberating between the two designs, I decided upon the simpler composition of the kids playing soccer in an urban setting. I felt this piece allowed for the most experimentation without overwhelming me. Here's the color study. I'm still working on adding and refining details but this will give you an idea of what's going on in my head.


I plan on returning to the second design in the future, the dog is just too cute to pass.

Thank you to everyone who gave me feedback on these when I initially posted, you guys help push me to make better illustrations.

Erika is going to be in Communication Arts!

Warren Buffet has been accepted into the Communication Arts Illustration Annual, due out this May! Yay, Go Warren!

Now I’m juggling five pieces -- the coffee shop debate and soccer pieces, as well as some new portraits and editorial images. There will be a new post soon, but I wanted to reassure everyone that I haven’t disappeared. I’ll leave these two images to whet your appetite.

New Color Study and Logo

I’ve been working on my color for the coffeeshop debate illustration and my basic branding materials.
For the debate piece, I pushed the color to be less literal and less busy. Too much fought for the viewer’s attention in the first piece, so I went back to my value study and reworked the colors and patterns. I also played with warm and cool colors to direct the viewer's eye and create a mood within the space.

As I’ve mentioned, I’m updating my style and my old website, postcards, and logo don’t fit anymore. I’m bringing these up-to-date, starting with my logo. None of the computerized fonts I’ve tried worked, so I decided to go with a hand-lettered approach:

I'm happy with the result and I think it really works with some of my newer illustrations.

I'd love to hear your thoughts, enjoy!

Warren!

I am very happy to finally post this project. It combines my strongest concept with the looser "sketchbook" style I have been working toward. I pushed myself to do a great deal of experimentation on this piece, particularly in the process.
I began with a colored pencil drawing and then covered with a light gouache wash of neutral green. Next came a layer of ink on the coat and glasses. I was careful to leave some of the background showing through the ink so things didn't feel too flat. Then I applied the light skin tones to the face and hands in acrylic. The water used with the acrylics reactivated the gouache causing the colors to mix seamlessly.

Once the basic values were established, I lay numerous acrylic washes to create the subtle skin tones and colors on the abacus. I tried to keep my paints thin so I wouldn't loose my linework, something I am working on. Colored pencils and ink helped to sharpen edges and add detail on board before completing a final pass in Photoshop.
I am immensely excited about this process and am looking forward to utilizing it in my next illustrations.
Cheers

Quick Progress Report

Hi everyone,
Hope you had healthy and happy holidays filled with amazing food, family and friends!
Since returning to Seattle, I’ve been cranking on artwork preparing for a trip to New York. Many projects are moving along nicely, but I have been neglecting the blog (sorry!) so here are the latest art developments.
Ingrid is finished. I am extremely proud of this piece, particularly the color palette.

I have also been working on color studies for the coffeeshop debate illustration.

I am currently putting the finishing touches on Warren, he should be posted in a few days.
Cheers!