Secret Agent Man!

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I really need to get back in the swing of things. I don't know why, I hit a slump for a while there and only recently "rediscovered my balls" so to speak. It took a while to tease the creativity out again, it started with helping other people with character development. Then I started taking a new look at my own characters, and next thing I know I'm writing short stories and participating in online groups. Go figure.

To the right we see Mr. Maness, the man of many talents, as one of his characters. The original image is from the pilot episode album for "Keeping the Faith." He's been in productions such as "The Reindeer Monologues," "The Cleveland Cemetery Tour," and "You Can't Take It With You." He has a habit of using fancy descriptors for otherwise boring colours, but I don't hold it against him. I also like to tease him.
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ArtBistro October Winner!

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I've been on hiatus for the past week so I could get my creative juices flowing again. It came as a big surprise to me when I checked my inbox and discovered that I was chosen as a winner for the October Design Gallery on ArtBistro.

"This album represents excellent level of professionalism that ArtBistro members exhibit in their art work. Congratulations to all the winners!"

I didn't know that anyone actually looked at my work on that website, but I'm pleased nonetheless. Interestingly enough, it was the illustration of Miss Kinash's character, Vincent. His dashing good looks and upbeat attitude save the day again.

The picture to the right is completely unrelated, an art trade with Mr. Kyle Bishop. He requested that I do a portrait of him, and he would do one of me. Still waiting on that, but I had been planning on doing a portrait of him anyway.
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Art Show

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Tonight I am going with friends to Andrew Noel's art show at a winery on Bainbridge Island. Last time I saw his work, it was impressionistic and full of colour. We still talk about the "fourth dimensional bubble" incident. I can only wonder what he has been doing for the past year, and how much he has improved on his style.

Lately I have been swamped with the amount of work I have to do, but I'm not complaining! I have almost finished up adding the text and information to the album cover for Grape Juice. I knocked out most of the hard work on a private illustration for another friend, and after that I'll begin work on the single-strand text for Ben Masters' business card. I think I hear my ride, so I'm cutting this short.
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Coming Soon!

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With all the the digital portraits, or iDents as I grudgingly call them, being proudly displayed on my friend's social networking pages, I have started the grueling process of coding a website from scratch. I have also started researching possible advertising methods other than word-of-mouth to get my artwork seen, sought, and bought.

Already I have had three requests for commissions that have popped up since the weekend, two being portrait commissions, the other is typography work for a business card. That's not counting the requests for trades and giftart that have started trickling into my inbox. With my low-low prices and meticulous attention to detail, I'm sure that this enterprise will start reaching new heights.
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Artistic Vision

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A lot of people have crawled out of the woodwork lately and have offered kind praise about my work. This pleases me, as I have felt that digital work is often overshadowed by the fine art community. Digital work is still work, and requires just as much skill as rendering in charcoal or paint. A traditional artist can point out the thousands of badly rendered digital pieces, but a digital artist can do the same just as easily. It's not about the artistic medium, or what tools are used, it's about technical skill, good composition, and artistic vision.

I do two kinds of work in relation to art. The first would be art that is intended for other people, such as commissions, requests, and gifts. The second would be art that I do for myself, my illustrations, sketches, and practice pieces. The digital portraits that I have been doing lately seem to fall between the two categories I have created for myself. While I create them for my own artistic betterment and enjoyment, they are at their core, portraits of other people, and are intended to be enjoyed by everyone.

Anyways, to the right we see Friendlings Redux. I thought the picture was too adorable to pass up, so after I asked the photographer's permission, I did a digital recreation of it. This marks the first occasion in which I have worked on a portrait for someone I have never met in person.
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Fight, Mikus, Fight!

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This week has been oddly successful in regards to artistic pursuits, maybe it's just the weather. Anique Zimmer and Briana Kinash, two great illustrators and friends, have made their blogs known to me. They can be found in the blogroll at the left along with Ms. Nicole Gelinas, another very talented artist.

To the right is a commissioned illustration piece I have been working on for a couple of weeks now for DJ Grape Juice's upcoming album, "Fight, Mikus, Fight!" Enjoi!
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Back to School?

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Earlier in the week I had promised Briana that I would accompany her to Evergreen State College, and didn't know that yesterday was the day that the trip would take place. She got a hold of me through Facebook of all places, and about 30 minutes after she contacted me, we were on our way to Olympia. It was a wonderful trip for the most part, and she suggested that instead of joining the Army, perhaps I should go back to college and pick up another degree. If I somehow manage to get my already existing loans in order, I might return to college to pick up a second Bachelor's degree in something a little bit more lucrative than art.

I was very delighted to see that there was an illustration for me waiting in my inbox, from my former college roommate nonetheless. She was a legend in our graduating class, and will no doubt go on to create something amazing. This is the first example of art I've seen from her in months, so maybe she'll start producing other things for the world to see.
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Recovery

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My aunt called at 6 in the morning and it turns out that there is some heart blockage, and she had her surgery. She'll be on her way back from Somewhere, NC this weekend, and she has to visit her doctor when she gets back to her home in Detroit. She says she's fine though, and we're all relieved on this end.

On the right is a portrait of my college roommate, Miss Curry, dressed up as Zorro. "My sister informed me that a costume was a prerequisite for Halloween."

It's also an experiment in using gradients properly, which is why there is no background.
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Angioplasty

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My aunt called up and apparently has had an episode when on a visit to North Carolina. She's in the hospital right now, and is going to have an angioplasty. She says she's going to be fine, but we're all a little bit worried.

As for the illustration, it's a portrait of Miss Kinash and myself from when we were young and full of beans. What's odd is that it feels like it was ages ago, but it's only been a couple of years. Either way, I'm the one in the hat with the big ears.
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Explosm

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Now that I have been diligently updating my Facebook whenever I create a new digital portrait or illustration, I am dedicating this blog to sharing my art without being perforated by random videos and comments. Updates should occur every other day, or whenever I complete a new piece.

In the meantime, here's a portrait illustration I did for an old friend's birthday yesterday.
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