A new push for marketing

As an artist with no representative, no degree in marketing, no company to do illustrations for it's tough to find an avenue that can keep me busy and happy with the art that I do. I love to draw people, I love to draw in public so how could I make that into a revenue? Over a year ago I decided to market myself as a caricature artist for parties, events and festivals. This has been going on with ups and downs at different events. Why stop at trying to do everything by myself though? Connecting with party and event planners was one marketing strategy I had to tackle. After making a bunch of fliers with this service and spread it out to dozens of stores, I got a call the next day from a party planner about working a party. So any artist that is just waiting for something to happen without doing anything different will wait a long time. I say reboot your strategy by reaching out to others and connect with them, you never know what will happen. My goal is still to develop my own illustrations and be recognized for them, but I need to be pro-active in what I am happy doing right now. I used to think that the caricature artists in the bay area were uneducated and talentless hacks, and for some I still think that ;). That doesn't necessarily mean I am one in doing the same trade. This new approach in marketing seems to work and hope it will continue to work, along with the people I connect with.

Palm Springs art class

So I taught a class at the Palm Springs art museum on Saturday, October 16th and it turned out great!! The kids were nice and focused, ready to do some work and learn. As I walked around to observe the teen's art, it was already obvious to me that they were getting a hang of things. It was not only a learning process for them, but for me as well. They were really involved in what they were doing and seemed really into it. My age range was from 12 to 19, which seemed that it might be hard to handle but it wasn't too stressful. It was an awesome class and the education coordinator asked me to come back in July, so I look forward to teaching the kids again!

The Design of Music

So here's the color comp of the commission sketch that I posted earlier. I'm genreally happy with the direction I'm taking it. The posterized edges in it gives it a more stylized, graphical type of painting. As with all my paintings that I do a digital color composition for, the colors may change when I paint it traditionally. Which is what I want so it doesn't look so much like a digital painting. Will post another update as time goes on.

New Commission Sketch

So, here's a sketch for a new commission I received from someone I met at the recent Stage Coach Days event in Banning. It's musically inspired and considered a challenge for me, especially since it's going to be stylized in a posterized, traditional painting. I love challenges though, because it always makes me think differently on how to approach something. So here's a preview of what it's all about, enjoy and I'll post up a digital color comp of the piece soon.

Sketches and Color Comp "for Harvester of Sorrow".

Working on a new piece, which I actually posted a first sketch of previously. I thought it was too restrictive and didn't like the composition that much so I completely changed it. I'm putting up some development sketches, the final sketch, and the color comp I did. I'm painting it traditionally so it won't look so "Digital". I'm doing this illustration in the hopes to add a new client to my list, Wizards of the Coast. Time has been going to long since my portfolio review with them at Comic Con. Since I have a direct contact with the art director I'm going to send him this, along with one more piece.

new illustration sketches

Here's a sketch of a painting I'm going to do for Wizards of the Coast in the hopes of getting some work for them. I'm not gonna send just one, but a few more so I don't keep on having to send new stuff all the time. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Saving Grace

This is my latest finished commission for my first real collector of my work. I'm really happy with the way it came out and he was also. I actually immortalized my roommate in it, so he's another person that's happy with it, ha ha.