WORKINGTOGETHER

I recently had the opportunity to work with a Charlottesville company to produce an illustration for the splash screen and subsequent screens within a new software product. We wanted to include a multi-faceted gem and a map compass. Other elements were added and subtracted along the way. I made several presentations. After each client review I revised the image to answer client concerns and try client suggestions. I always kept the goals of the project in mind as I worked. I also realize that sometimes you don’t “get it” right away and the work becomes more collaborative. These images are the final icons from which the client intends to choose one.

Giving back is fun

The UVA Neurology Running Crew Shirt is intended to encourage department staff to join the running crew. A portion of the sale of each shirt goes to the Epilepsy Foundation.

Why I keep drawing

I attend a life drawing group once a week. As an illustrator and artist I think it is important to continue to develop basic drawing skills. I draw a lot of people in my work. I would be remiss if I did not keep my understanding of the human face/form sharp. First image is from the drawing group. The second image (not derivative from the drawing just an example) is a personal illustration.

I used one the model sketches from our life drawing group to create this image: The Human Machine Interface in a Time of War

Ink to Digital - Adobe Illustrator

I developed this sketch on paper with a Sharpie. I was about to translate it into digital art by scanning it and use it as a template to draw the final piece with the pen tool. I decided to scan it at 600dpi and auto traced it instead (something I have been doing since Illustrator incorporated auto trace into the program in 1527 A.D.) I comped it up into a poster, gave it a catchy tagline and here is the result. It was a just for fun project.

Same here. This was a commercial project I recently finished. First a detailed pencil sketch. Then a cleaned up sketch. I drew the final with a sharpie and then followed the same process as above.

Rocket MEN

Given the crisis on the Korean Peninsula continuing, I worked up these portraits of Kim Jong Un, and Donald Trump.

ILLUSTRATOR TEXTURING

I have been attempting to add more techniques to my Adobe Illustrator portfolio. This one uses the some of the various Photoshop filters/effects available. I needed to keep the file as an .ai during production so any applied filters/effects would scale properly, and to keep the file from getting too large. The robot is for my grandaughter. She is into wild animals, dinosaurs and robots.

Describing Process

What do you do when the machinery and process you are trying to describe no longer exists? What if the machinery and the process were "invented" by a company and there were very few, if any, of the designers alive to fill you in on the details? These were the issues I faced when trying to illustrate a paper filter making machine. The client, author and I wanted it to be correct and believable. I researched the paper making business and soon realized there was plenty of reference online; but none of it matched the configuration and process I was trying to capture.

 I decided to focus on the process and use the illustration as only a reference. The three of us constructed more of a narrative than a technically perfect illustration. I broke the narrative down to make it easier for the reader digest. This is the state of things now. A long time ago I realized the creation of information graphics is an iterative process. I feel we are getting closer; but the final product will probably look quite a bit different. The important thing right now is we all feel we are on the right track

AIR FILTERs FOR INDUSTRY

I was asked to create a series of illustrations depicting the fabrication, installation and testing of HEPA paper filters used in nuclear processing and power plant facilities. The illustrations were meant to be used in a business/technology development case study. The client was Flanders, Inc. The company invented the filter product fabrication and developed all the installation processes involved deploying a successful solution. At first, I considered an infographic approach; but because technical innovations and details involved in describing the product, I chose a more realistic style. The illustrations had to appeal to both a technically savvy and an informed layman's audience. I worked with the writer and the client to help them decide what illustrations were necessary. We reviewed my progress together. The process helped us to clarify information and provide visual ques to effectively illuminate the text.

I will post the whole set when they are approved and complete.