Tim Bradstreet Sketchbook volume 1

Here's the cover to the new Tim Bradstreet sketchbook from IDW. This is the first book, in an on going series. This format is similar to the Kaluta sketchbooks. I don't really have a lot to say about this one. I tried to keep it simple with minimum colors, as to not overwhelm the cover art. Because of Tim's subject matter, I thought adding a reptilian texture to the cover made sense.

Shadow Box Art

Bazooka Joe

Orange Popsicle

Mid-Century Romance

Friend or Foe?

Television spokesmodel

Alright! I know this is a little different entry than what I usually do, but I thought these boxes were kinda fun. I had a hankering to do some 3 dimensional design work, and these boxes are the result of that. The problem with me and creating, is my lack of patience. I like to get things done quickly and then move on. I could never do oil painting, it would take too much time for me, and I would lose interest in the project before it was finished.

With these shadowboxes, I wanted to think up the idea, execute it and be done, in no more, than two days. I'm sure the craftsmanship and finish of these, could have been much more polished, but that would have meant spending more time on each box. I like to think there is kind of a crude charm to these. Really this was the result of having to purge. I sometimes get inklings and uneasiness where the only relief is to create something. A lot of times it's based on things, or materials I'm not familiar with. For these boxes, it was all based on a shopping trip to my local Michael's craft store. I used wooden balls, wooden dowels, a clear plastic christmas ornament, wire and sculpy. Oh, and everything is painted with those 69 cent bottles of craft paint.

I realize they aren't things of beauty, but when I finished them, I could sit back and go ahhhh! Sort of like after eating a very large meal,  sitting on the sofa and having that satisfying burp. Yeah, that's it!

Jeff Smith's BONE "The Great Cow Race" Artist's Edition

 Jeff Smith's BONE Artist's Edition cover

 BONE title page

BONE dedication and table of contents pages

I was a late arriver to the world of BONE. I think at the time, there was limited exposure for the book. The story that first captured my attention, was "The Great Cow Race." After reading that and meeting the cast, I was hooked. It was a mix of Walt Kelly's POGO and "The Lord of the Rings." There was adventure, intrigue, humor, and great animated style character design. 

When looking at and reading the story, it's hard to really compare it to anything else out there. The style of the drawing is very charming, and looks like style guides for an animated feature. Based on the cartooniness, it might suggest that this is a humor/funny animal book. Although there are plenty of humorous situations and funny moments, the storytelling is much more layered and textured. Actually, there is a lot of very dark and foreboding sequences.

Jeff Smith's ability to create personalities out of white blobby creatures, is pretty jaw-dropping.  I never thought I would become so immersed into the journey of the Bone cousins. What a pleasure and delight to be able to get up close and personal with the creations of Jeff Smith and his BONE universe.

Joe Kubert's TOR Artist's Edition

 Joe Kubert's TOR Artist's Edition cover

 TOR Title Page

 TOR pages 2-3

 TOR pages 5-6

TOR page 57

Another Joe Kubert book, and another day in heaven! I don't know how he was able to maintain such a high level of artistry over such a prolonged period of time. What is your favorite decade of Kubert's work: 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, 00s? It really is quite astounding to see the quality of art continue to be brilliant decade after decade.  

I continue to try and make each of these Artist's Editions unique onto itself. It's a challenge not to repeat myself. I'm sure there is a recognizable style in everything I do, but I do my best to mix things up. It's kind of like asking a cartoonist like Joe Kubert not to draw like Joe Kubert. Something will always show through that is a give-away. I'm not sure that is necessarily a bad thing. I wouldn't have wanted Kubert to suddenly start drawing like Charles Schulz, that would have just seemed odd. But certainly over the decades his art style changed and evolved. I hope I continue to be a work in progress. I don't ever want to get to a place of complete satisfaction. That's dangerous. The way I look at it I still have another four decades to try to get it right!

Nostalgia Zone

 First Logo attempt

 Second Logo attempt

 Third Logo attempt

Final Logo solution

This is a series and progression for a logo I designed for a comic-book, collectables store in MPLS. I first entered into a discussion with the owner/manager, to get his general thoughts on what he was looking for. We did a brainstorming session, and agreed on a general direction. The logo was going to be a 3 color design: blue, red, and yellow. Because of the name, it seemed like a no-brainer to make it look vintage, or...RETRO! I thought it should look like something that would appear on toy packaging, or a child's shoe box. Who could have guessed that I love retro design? 

After the first attempt, I was asked to change the look of the kid, and maybe add a couple different looks and some different type treatments. The second and third logos went the "googie" route. Googie design was popular from the early fifties through the mid-sixties. Bowling alley signage, Big Boy restaurants, Holiday Inn Hotels, Route 66 Motels, these all fell into that category. I liked the carefree fun approach, so I did my best to incorporate that style into my designs.

The final logo ended up being a combination of the previous designs. I really want to have a t-shirt with that new logo design on it!

Mark Schultz's Xenozoic Tales Artist's Edition

 Final cover for the regular edition

 Final cover for the variant edition

 Title page

 Contents page spread

 Chapter divider

 Chapter divider

 Chapter divider

Supplemental material index spread

It's not unusual to remember the details of very significant events in your life. For instance, what the weather was like the day you got married, or what song was popular when a child was born. Those important things seem to automatically be imbedded in your memory banks.  I don't know if this is good or bad, but I remember the details of that day in 1986, when I first saw Death Rattle #8 on the shelf of a local comic book shop. It was mid-afternoon and the sun was streaming through the windows, and as if it were a solar spotlight, it directed my eye to the front shelf where that comic sat. I saw the cover, and remember thinking, "I've never seen this Wally Wood illustration before." I also remember how my pulse quickened when inside the comic, it made reference to the story becoming an ongoing series.

That was my introduction to Mark Schultz and Xenozoic Tales. Later that year, I attended my very first comic convention at the Chicago comic con. To my great delight I discovered Mark Schultz would be in attendance. In a moment of sheer geekiness, I knew I had to go introduce myself to him, and tell him of my admiration for his work. As anyone who's ever met Mark knows, he is a very sincere and kind man. This actually, made me an even a bigger fan.

As a designer, I told Mark of my ambition to one day work with him. I ended up putting samples of my work together and mailed him a box full of goodies. Denis Kitchen, who was Mark's publisher at the time, got wind of the stuff I sent to Mark and asked for his own box of goodies. After that, we began a serious dialog about the possibilities of an actual project. Denis came up with the idea of doing a limited edition portfolio of Xenozoic prints. After several prototypes, I came up with the solution of putting the prints inside an e-flute folder that then was tucked into a silk screened wooden box. At the time, it was a pretty pricey item, but none-the-less it sold out immediately. That was my first collaboration with Mark. Over the next 20+ years I've worked on several book design projects with Mark, and have created some very unique San Diego Comic con exclusives with him. 

Because of my relationship with Mark, this particular artist's edition, felt very personal. Over time we've tried to establish a look and feel for Xenozoic Tales. We've experimented with the use of certain type fonts and styles of design. It's a formula that I think works and sets Xenozoic apart from other publications. It's no secret that I have a love for the design style of Russian Constructivism. I love the use of geometric shapes, and the airiness of white space. It feels formal and uniform with a sense of order. It makes sense in the context of the world of Xenozoic, which always seems to be searching for order out of the chaos. 

After all these years, I never get tired of admiring Mark's incredible abilities as an illustrator. I appreciate the fact that he trusted me with putting this book together. He allowed me to take bits and pieces of story panels and collage them together to create new pieces of art. This is a very special book that pays tribute to a very special artist. Thanks my friend! 

The Best of EC Artist's Edition Volume 1

 Final cover to book.

 Title page  

 Contents page for the Harvey Kurtzman section.

Contents page for the Al Williamson section.

EC comics were well before my time. I didn't really know much about them until later in life. They held a kind of mystical allure to me. I knew that the people who collected them were very loyal, and maybe a little protective. My first exposure to EC came through a reprint series called East Coast comics (EC...get it?). It didn't take long until I was totally sucked in. It seemed that EC had it's own little community of skillful artists, that were unique to the company. I wanted to join their club, and hang out and talk art with all of them. I become a little envious and jealous of the people who experienced EC through their initial printing. Did they see these comics for what they were? Did they realize at the time how unique and special EC was? Did they know they were seeing history being made? I'm still in awe of the company, for not only the quality of the art, but also for the quality of the writing.

When designing this book, I kept in mind that this was volume 1, in other words, there eventually was going to be a volume 2. I wanted to create a template that could be used for the second volume, that worked as a companion piece but also had it's own individual identity. I like the elegance and simplicity of the layouts. I think using seriffed fonts helped to give it a classic feel.