Another Girly-Gurl Sketch

I completely forgot about this Supergirl sketch when posting the girls I worked on this year (she's pretty butch, right? I figured if she's SUPERgirl, then... well, anyway...).

This was done in early summer (08) when I was working on the female side of sketching, and I found it while grabbing some final images to my sketchbook, being published in February by Art Squared. It was done on a Wacom Cintiq using Adobe Photoshop. I would love to do a series of these soon, perhaps for a smaller sketchbook. Drawing women is tough, but they sure are nice to look at!

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Girl Sketching

Drawing girls is not that easy, and it's something I've tried to brush up on this past year. At the 2008 Comic Con in San Diego, I did a few sketches to sell while at the show. These were just for fun to practice, and I came across them yesterday while cleaning out some boxes, so I figured I'd share them here.

WARNING: naked lady drawing below

Drawing women is a separate mentality and skill, in a way, and I always feel it's important to work on our weaknesses. Women make me weak, and drawing them is not easy... hwah ha ha.

These drawings came on the heels of some other drawings of the feminine variety, also done for Comic Con. These were staple-bound as a small sketchbook. I still have a dozen or so left, if anyone is interested. Here are some samples of the drawings in that compilation:

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Life Drawing Weakness

I was visiting the Society of Illustrators this past week with my friend Arkady, for the bi-weekly "sketch & jazz" night, for figure drawing. Even though one of the models was great, I was distracted by what I am always drawn to: FACES. I am inspired by the quick doodles of Canadian artist Seo Kim. Frequently she posts sketches on her blog from life drawing sessions, where she strays a bit and sketches the other artists. This can look a bit creepy to a bunch of strangers (I got a few weird looks), but it was really fun to test out a quick and cartoony observational sketch. I was clearly influenced by her work, and it was really a fun exercise.

Next time I'll have to draw the models some more. I had plenty of nude sketches of those girls, but they are a bit weaker than these cartoon faces. That's another reason I must go every week... to improve where I feel like I'm lacking in my craft. That's what it's all about! Maybe I'll see you there?

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A Holiday Special

Christmas, Hanukkah, whatever you celebrate: From December 5th through December 25th, you will get a free personalized sketch of YOU or a loved one inside your copy of REJECTS, when you order it from Art Squared Books.com, as a holiday special from me to you.

Just order one or more books from Art Squared, including REJECTS. Email your photo(s) of you or a loved one to me at joe AT joebluhm DOT com. ...and just like that, you will have your own special Holiday copy of REJECTS, signed with a custom caricature! But to get this to your house by Christmas Eve (giving it as a gift?), be sure to get your order in no later than December 15th. That being said, this offer is good through CHRISTMAS day.

Here are some samples of the style of sketch you may get. These are caricatures of some great artists from a book signing in Toronto, Ontario, CA. So go ahead and give some art as gifts!

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Virgin Ads Complete

They have been finished for a little while now, but the Virgin Media advertisements which I was a big part of designing are finally all aired or being aired in theaters and television in the UK.







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Finally... another video!

I've gotten around to editing the last video I recorded. Future videos will have sharper production quality as well as better audio, as I've ironed out a few errors since recording this one. But I hope you enjoy!

For the rest, visit my digital podcast blog or YouTube page.
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Illustration Friday: Opinion

Here's my 2nd stab at Illustration Friday, a website/blog giving weekly assignment words for practice and inspiration, as well as community. Again, this was a quick one, but this time on the Cintiq. I wanted to practice getting a simple editorial idea down for the topic (opinion), and see if I can follow through quickly while keeping it appealing. The drawing was all I had planned, and the tones/shadows were just an experiment. I'd love to hear how you feel about this one.

I'm also experimenting with very basic hand-drawn animation lately. I've put a few hours into a small project and I'll keep you posted on that soon. Anyone who has quick methods (I hear Flipbook is a good program), tips or techniques to pass along, feel free to email me or comment here. I really respect animators, and it's not easy.

Lastly, I'll be finishing up some Digital Podcast videos this week to post at the Digital Podcast Blog. I know I've teased and stalled on this in the past, but I really do have time this week to finish it up, and I'll let you know when it's here.

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illustration friday: 'Pretend'

I've been ignoring the Illustration Friday blog/site for a while, and I keep saying I'll participate. I finally got to it! Though it's just a quick doodle in my sketchbook, it's still an effort, and I'll try to keep up with my own projects and practice assignments to keep fresh.

This (or rather last) week's word to illustrate: PRETEND

NCN Convention ART

For those of you who may not know, the NCN is an organization (or "network") of artists who love, practice, and promote the art of caricature. Each year there is a convention and competition over the course of a week, where nearly 200 artists gather to attend workshops, seminars, classes, meet old and new friends, draw, paint, sculpt, and compete for awards or sheer pleasure. It is like nothing else you will ever experience, and I highly recommend anyone even mildly into portraits and/or caricatures, illustration, figurative work, character design, etc... to haul over to caricature.org and sign up. The 17th convention began a few weeks ago in Raleigh, NC. Over 200 people attended, and it was a blast.

This year I finally had a chance to relax a little bit, but still had a lot to do. All professionals that register for the convention are given a wall space, a sort of gallery, to exhibit the work they do over this week. When I finally got the chance to do some drawings, here is what I came up with:

I have to give great credit to Buffalo/San Diego artist Brian Oakes for doing some stellar work, as did many artists. Brian was among my biggest inspirations this year, and his work was hilarious, fun, editorial and original. He inspired the final drawing I did, which happened to be of him (at the very top, "sad eyes").

Jeremy Townsend is another incredible artist whose work is always commenting on the individual (sometimes TOO much... but that's what's great about it). He sees everything and is not afraid to throw it back into your face. Jeremy is a big fella, and has a loud mouth and personality. He's one of my best friends, and I've seen many drawings of him that are so great, it's not easy to figure out how to do something new. I've drawn him once or twice before, but completed only one finished caricature of his face. When I saw him standing from across the room, he made this face... it's the only time he's vulnerable and not "on". He grabs his big beard and tugs it down with his teeeeeeensy little mouth agape, his eyes darting around. He's either contemplating an art supply to go snatch from someone, or getting an idea for a new drawing/thinking of who to take a photo of next. This happens so rarely, but it's a big part of his expression and body language. I tried to figure out how to express to the viewer that he is vulnerable in this one moment... stumped... and thought the ambiguity of the baby was fitting.

Blah blah blah... I know, I'm going on and on about Jeremy and why I did this. Well, to be honest it's the only piece I was VERY excited about, and it's something different from my usual arsenal of styles or techniques. I am a true believer that we are NEVER a master, and always a student (in many ways). As soon as I fall back on old party tricks, I fail as an artist and fail myself. This was a fun painting and I enjoyed the simplicity of the messy, light acrylic paint. When it comes to my own work at this convention, I feel I learned more from creating this piece than I did from all the other ones I did, combined. This is important to me, and I feel it should be to all artists. You should never stop growing, learning and being passionate about all aspects of your work... this keeps you vibrant, excited and fresh.

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dropping a DEUCE

WARNING: The following post and link contain material that may be offensive to those without a twisted sense of humor. My lingo pales in comparison to the content HERE, so please proceed with caution.

So almost a year ago some twisted freaks decided to make the best of what would normally be a sad and trying situation. My buddy Len decided to take up a new hobby of "not walkin" and then cried about it. After crying like a little baby girl, he thought maybe he'd have a pity party thrown in his honor. But to his surprise, everyone got drunk, sang awesome songs, watched animation, made artwork, and partied for a whole weekend in a haunted hotel during a cold winter. Holy crap.

So now Len is still a giant baby-girl and wants to sob some more. By sobbing I mean hemmoraging blood, and by hemmoraging blood I mean party like a freak. This was the best time I had last year and I just decided it's not worth missing, so I'm all paid & registered and ready for CRIPPLE CON 2. (not an 'average' art convention)

Best part is, it's really cheap, you get to stay in a haunted hotel in Kansas City, look at awesome art, and party with awesome artists while you create your own twisted images (see below image: my most "accurate" drawing last year). I sincerely have nothing to do with organizing this, and have nothing to benefit, financially... I just have some awesome friends that I have not seen in about a year, and this party is a hell of a time. I really mean it.

So check it out and if you have a stomach and a solid pair, I'll see you in KC in mid-January. One thing worth noting is that they have great gift bags when you show up, but you can't really get one unless you register before December 1st. They have a lot to prep and it would be great to sign up soon. It's easy and if you don't want to risk your check the mail, you can literally pay the measly $45 in seconds, here.

It's really a great time, I promise you that.

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