Graham Smith Illustration Blog

The Cocktail Napkin: fashion geek

2012-01-11T03:30:00.000-08:00

"Does This Make My Antenna Look Big?"

I illustrate The Cocktail Napkin, the entertainment news feature on the last page of Miller McCune magazine, Art Directed by Craig Edwards. The tricky part of this assignment is drawing on a real cocktail napkin, no Photoshop allowed! The marker can't be too new or it bleeds, too dry and it rips the napkin. Touchy thing this napkin drawing.

This month's selected article is about high fashion clothing with cell phone receivers built into them. It's an actual thing!

More: Cocktail Napkin: Thunder Thighs

PlanSponsor: Patrick Groenendijk

2011-12-20T14:00:00.000-08:00

I illustrated a portrait of Patrick Groenendijk for PlanSponsor Europe. Patrick is the CIO of a Dutch co-operative private road transport pension scheme Pensioenfonds Vervoer. Read the article online.

Patrick Groenendijk by Graham Smith

The article's theme is change, and how this investment officer adapts. Art Director, SooJin Buzelli chose a sketch with dramatic clouds blowing ahead of a storm to represent the interview.

"Everything needs to change in order for things to remain the same." Patrick Groenendijk

Following the theme myself, I changed the way I usually illustrate portraits and inked this one at almost triple the print size. See how big the original inking is next to the magazine and my sketchbook? It was fun to draw that big.

Above are some details from the illustration. I create the backgrounds by any means possible, using ink, acrylic paint, brayers, brushes and different types of paper and printing techniques. To me, changing the way things are created each time, keeps things fresh and in discovery mode.

Another sketchy weekend

2011-12-19T13:55:00.000-08:00


Friday at Cosmos Cafe

Friday night in La Mesa, California outstanding guitar performances by Michael Lille and Andy Lund from Taylor guitars, rocked Cosmos Coffee Cafe. I sat down in the back with a chicken salad sandwich and black cherry soda (not pictured) and my sketchbook - and drew the room while acoustic harmonies soaked into the room.

Saturday at Tibet House

My friend, Rima Fujita is an artist and activist. We went to the Tibet House the next day, to learn how she was inspired in a dream to help Tibet. And to buy her book, "Save the Himalayas" which she gracious signed for a house full of her admirer's.

The Dali Lama wrote the forward to "Save the Himalayas" and gave Rima a special recognition at the peace summit in Japan. Through her organization, Books For Children, Rima has donated over 12,000 copies of her books to schools for Tibeten children in exile. All the proceeds from her books go towards supporting education in Tibet. Helping Tibet is Rima's life's work and she will not accept a penny for it.

Kim Jong Il - Death of a Dictator

2011-12-18T20:24:00.000-08:00

Kim Jong Il - Graham Smith

Kim Jong Il, 69, died from a heart attack today after "dedicating his life to the people." The North Korean dictator Kim Jong Il was the son of Kim Il Song, the founder Communist Nation and had been in power since 1994.

See More:

Hosni Mubarak
Amedinejad

Restaurant Sketchbook

2011-12-06T23:58:00.001-08:00

Coffee at Conrad's Diner in Glendale.

A while back, I started a new Moleskine sketchbook and decided it should have a theme. Since drawing and eating are two of my favortite things, I decided to fill the Moleskine with drawings done in solely in restaurants. That's it, above, with the coffee drawing. The Restaurant Sketchbook.

If you have gone out to eat with me and wondered, this is a collection of what I was scribbling in my sketchbook, while stuffing my face...

Pizza Port: Highway 101, California.

China Max: Dim Sum

A giant "Pho Warehouse" in Orange County.

Dim Sum on the Patio

Waiting for a table at Toshi.

Sake and seaweed salad at Toshi

Seared Ahi, green tea and sushi at Wa.

Dawn drinks tea at Thai /Chinese Cuisine.

Teresa and Andrei at Saigon City for Pho

Kitchen: I do have one.

Throw down at China Max

A very late night sketch: Conrad's

You can get anything at this diner - 24 hours a day.

Pho Hut in Glendale

Cotija's in Santee - picking up Menudo for Vinnie.

Tajima: We'd hit this place for spicy noodles after life drawing.

Picasso's for tapas: Hillcrest, San Diego.

Dawn preps a Thanksgiving feast while I draw.

Tofu House: brings you hot tea in a can!

Saigon Star for BBQ pork chops and rice.

Cafe Venti: Drawsome! Sketchbook Sessions

Sushi Roku in Santa Monica.

Another China Max throw down!

Cafe Venti: Drawsome! Sketchbook Sessions

It's fun looking through the old sketchbooks at the drawings, seeing what we ate, who sat at the table, what it looked like and remembering. I just noticed there are a bunch of places I eat at all the time, but never seemed to draw... too busy eating! I'll bring my sketchbook next time.

HealthLeaders: Portraits of the Editors

2011-12-06T19:01:00.000-08:00

Ed Pruitt - Editor of Healthleaders

Jim Molpus - Interim Editor of Healthleaders

Ed Pruitt and Jim Molpus are the Editor and Interim Editor at Healthleaders magazine. I was commissioned to illustrate their portraits for the Editor's Letter page by award winning Art Director Doug Ponte.

You can see the size of the drawing and the kind of pen nib I use to draw with. The bigger thick to thin strokes are drawn with the pen nib in the standard position. The really thin lines are drawn with the pen nib held upside down, using the thin, forward edge of the nib's foot.

Each person is drawn quite a few times until the portrait is figured out. I spread the inked portraits out on my desk to decide which best suits the assignment.

The Editor's portraits were destined to print small, so I illustrated the portraits about twice the print size, which was still pretty small. I have to be "hold-my-breath" careful when drawing small portraits, where the thickness of the line makes a big difference.

Sometimes, I think my nose is going to touch the paper, I get so close to the work. This is what the drawings looks like from that perspective!

Ed Pruitt: Detail, Black Cat India ink and General's non-repro blue pencil: Graham Smith.

Interviewed by an Art Student - Joanna Eberts

2011-11-29T13:30:00.000-08:00

Every so often, art students ask me questions about the process of illustration for their class projects. I'm not sure that drawing things and putting them on the internet qualifies me to answer these questions. But, I am always thrilled to help (and confuse) aspiring artists with off-the-cuff quips and unrelated anecdotes. Over time, I have compiled a folder full of these interviews. Here is one from an aspiring illustration student, Joanna Eberts.

As part of a class during my senior year as an Illustration student at RIT, we were told to interview successful illustrators whose styles we liked. I had seen Graham Smith's work a good year prior to this and knew right away I wanted to ask him some questions on the business of Illustration. It was a fun experience and I learned a lot. A year later finds me a happy graduate with a job doing art every single day, no doubt in part thanks to good advice and anecdotes from one dedicated artist. - Joanna Eberts

__________________________________________________

1. When you get a commission for a new piece, what is your process from start to finish? Brainstorming, Thumbnails, Comps, etc.
I wrote a blog post about that, check this link out...

Rat's Life: How to Draw a Cover for the SF Weekly

2. About how many hours do you put into one illustration?
As many as it takes. Schedules often dictate how long you can spend on each phase of illo development. When the Art Director calls and wants to see something in the am, or next week or in 3 months, you know what you have to do. Every great illustrator I know works until it's perfect, however long that takes.

3. What medium do you prefer?
I love them all. Colored pencils. Anything you can draw with, really. I like washy, liquidy kinds of paint, like watercolor, ink and guache. And collage. Love glueing and taping things. Also, I am never without my fountain pen.

4. How would you describe your style?
I have a drawing based style. It's representational and realistic. Subjects tend to treated heroically or demonically, combining drama with draftsmanship. It is stream of consciousness style, layered over logical structure. Beauty within imperfection. Wabi Sabi.

From my website ..."I draw traditionally with pen and ink to create energetically hand-rendered, emotionally charged portraits of musicians, celebrities and things of interest, using rich, organic textures and deep, earthy colors. I finish illustrations digitally, to client specifications."
From a review..."This guy’s stuff is great. It has a noir-like quality that could’ve come right out of the pulp fiction haydays of the 30’s and 40’s, but it still feels utterly modern. And unlike many graphic novel illustrators today he knows not to overdo it. He let’s us into the eyes or his subjects, shows us their wrinkles, and crooked smiles. He builds the character not through pyrotechnics of color and form, but through human emotion."

5. How did you cultivate your style?
My drawing style is an extension of my personality. Yin and Yang. Balance. An energetic, emotional line over a solid underdrawing. Traditional materials with digital finish. Opposites. I think a lot of illustrators personalities match their drawing styles.

6. Do you have any influences, if so who or what?
Parson's life drawing teacher, illustrator and master draftsman David Passalaqua inspired myself and a generation of artists, in a guru like manner back in the day. He's gone now. Is missed.

Egon Scheile, Leonardo da Vinci, Picasso, David Hockey.

7. What do you do when you encounter artist's block?
Ideas can come from the act of drawing. You don't have to have an idea before you start drawing. Just start drawing and something will come. You have to trust that it will. Your subconscience will bubble to the surface with ideas you didn't know you had.

Here is one way to do it. Draw many little rectangles on a page, draw something in each one. Anything. Nothing is thrown out. Everything is fair game. Even things seemingly unrelated. You are idea farming. The little rectangles that make you smile are the good ones. Here's another: Underline important words in the article to be illustrated. Illustrate each word all together on one page, allowing the pieces to interact with each other. Consider the relationships between your images.

If you are really toast. Contact your Art Director and ask for guidance. Send the AD your little rectangles. Say you got lost in the woods and need someone to shine a flashlight. They will help you. You are a team.

8. Where did your passion for drawing come from?
There are many artists in my family. Maybe it came from them?

9. What is you educational background?
Parson's School of Design. New York. BFA Illustration.

10. Outside of school what has been your biggest learning experience in relation to illustration?
Working as screenprint/textile designer in the fashion district of New York when I got out of art school taught me everything about trends, color stories, ideas, and working hard. We made at least 1-2 completely finished designs everyday. 16 x 22" By hand. No computer. Every 90 days there would be a new season and new colors and new trends, and we'd crank out 1-2 pieces a day based on that, and so on, until I'd completed over 2000 original works.

11. When you first entered the illustration business did you have any idea of what it would be like?
None at all. Still figuring it out, actually.

12. What is your favorite genre of illustration to work for, editorial, advertising, children’s books or other?
Editorial for the ideas and drawings. Advertising for the collaboration and better budgets.

13. What clients have you worked with?
Have a look in the sidebar of my blog. ----->

14. Who are some of your most recent clients?
Worth Magazine, Seattle Weekly, Brookstone

15. What did you do to establish the contacts you have now in the field of illustration?
Clients become aware to my work through advertisements in source books, online portfolios, my blog, website and by seeing published work and through my self initiated projects. I e-mail blast and I mail promotional postcards and sample sheets. I contact good matches directly. I network and get recommendations from other illustrators. Art Directors change jobs a lot. Create personal relationships. People hire their friends, and people they trust. So.... be friendly and trustworthy. Always deliver more than expected.

16. Is there a past job that stands out in your mind, if so why?
I got the assignment to illustrate first international cover of Paste magazine while in New York for my sisters wedding. When opportunity knocks, it's rarely under the conditions you imagined.

Paste: Chinese Punk Rocker

17. What was your least favorite or favorite Illustration job?
I drew 42 pen and ink portraits in 10 days. I thought it was going to be easy. By the end, I literally cried and Photoshopped tear stains off the inkings. I can't tell if that was the best or the worst.

18. What‘s the best part about being an illustrator? And are there things you don’t like about your job?
The best thing is controlling your own destiny. Another good thing is collaborating with talented people, and learning about each new subject.

19. What is your opinion on the current illustration market?
It's changing. And within change, there is always opportunity.

20. What is the most useful advice you can give to a young illustrator?
Never let them see you cry! (kidding) (actually, not kidding)
Illustration doesn't have to look a certain way, it doesn't have to look like your favorite artist. Does happiness, artistic fulfillment or the respect of your peers comes from an illustration style calculated solely for profit? The only way to be truly original in illustration is to completely be yourself. Everything else has been done.

_____________________________________________

Links:

http://joanna-eberts.com/
http://joanna-eberts.blogspot.com/

http://www.grahamsmithillustration.com
http://inkdrawing.blogspot.com
http://thebritneyhenryproject.blogspot.com

Life Drawing Workshop: Rouge, Rhythm and Flow

2011-11-22T13:17:00.001-08:00

Rouge rocked the short and poses using wings, sheer fabric and a giant sword at the Life Drawing Workshop I teach at Sony Online Entertainment.

To capture this winged angel's strength and beauty in these short pose demo drawings, I decided to emphasize the rhythm and flow of the pose.

I think a lot about how one form flows into the next, allowing me to simplify many complex shapes into one simple shape - emphasizing the gesture, not all the little details.

I like to look for shapes that rhyme visually, shapes that have similar features that repeat, and use them to create a rhythm in the drawing. The repetition of strokes or repetition of shapes creates organization and structure in a drawing.

To create a rich drawing vocabulary, you can contrast one rhythm structure against another to emphasize the illusion of space - just as contrasting light against dark creates the illusion of space.

Rouge the Winged Angel: drawings by Graham Smith. 18 x 24 inch Strathmore Sketch and Strathmore Premium Recycled paper. General's graphite stick 6b and colored pencils.

Worth Magazine: Tom Marchant

2011-11-16T02:06:00.000-08:00

Tom Marchant by Graham Smith

I love illustrating the straight up, pen and ink portrait for the Twenty Questions interview for the beautifully designed Worth magazine.

I ink each portrait quickly, trying to maintain energy in the line while being as accurate as possible. As a result, each drawing has a life of its' own and each turn out differently.

For the Oct/Nov issue of Worth, Art Director Valerie Sebring asked me to draw Tom Marchant - "a British tech innovator whose online travel agency customizes unique travel experiences".

I inked Tom Marchant's portrait three times for this assignment, using slightly different pen nibs and brushes, adding differing amounts of detail and facial expressions in each portrait.

Above, you can see the size of the drawings in relation to my hand. I draw them about twice as big as they will print on a textured paper.

Below, is a close up detail of the finished portrait.

I rely on the blue under drawing to provide shading information difficult to draw in ink. The blue under drawing is more than a guide, it is a softer counter-balance to the hard edged ink. I like when things balance.

Tom Marchant detail: Graham Smith

For the art geeks: Hunts 513ef nib, #99 nib and #8 round brush. India ink and blue pencil on Aquabee Super Deluxe Paper.

Dia dos los Muertos handmade masks

2011-10-31T15:32:00.000-07:00

I made Dia dos los Muertos masks from cardboard, masking tape, acrylic paint and black India ink. Both of these designs contain tears and sacred hearts - to show that we miss those that have gone before us.

The red roses were made by twisting tissue paper into a rope, then rolling the rope into a cinnamon bun shape. The roses were stitched together with thread to hold them together and onto the black skirt. I taped a thin wire to the back of the roses to keep them suspended inside the eyes.

1/4 inch black elastic was stitched into loops and taped to the back of the bones, so they could be easily slipped over a black, long sleeved shirt and leggings.When I ran out of elastic, I taped jute string to the bones instead.

To make the hair, I cut open a paper bag, folded it to make it kinky looking, and cut it into 1/2 inch strips, leaving a 2 inch margin along one edge to keep the whole thing together. The hair "fringe" was taped around the inside of the mask.

Later, as a final detail, I hung little kneecaps from a wire off the femur bone. Forgot to take a photo.

See more Dia dos los Muretos masks >>>

Life Drawing Workshop: Brianna

2011-10-14T13:48:00.000-07:00

Short pose studies of Brianna Leigh, one of San Diego's tiniest life models, from the Life Drawing Wokshop at Sony. For this workshop, Brianna's poses ranged from two minutes to twenty and were drawn quickly with a Prismacolor stick. 18" x 24" on Canson 50lb Sketch paper.

>> Briana's Long Pose Drawings <<

Drawsome! Art Show Opening Nite Photos

2011-10-12T14:10:00.000-07:00

Drawsome! Art Show by Sketchbook Sessions: San Diego

Anitza Rodriguez

Anitza Rodriquez of the Chula Vista Community Art Center asked me to produce an art show in support of the arts, at the South Chula Vista Library.

She explained, "The kids down here don't have anything. The art programs have been cut from the schools. These kids will grow up never knowing anything about art."

The Sketchbook Sessions: San Diego artists and I immediately agreed to create the Drawsome! Art Show to help support the arts in this underserved community.

The goal was to show the kids that real live artists, living in their neighborhood, create cool things we all enjoy, like books, movies, clothing... and iPad apps! The goal was to inspire the kids to be artists!

The CVCAC volunteers.

We planned so many activities for opening night we were lucky the Chula Vista Community Art Center high school volunteers made sure everything ran smoothly opening night. Thanks to Chelsea Reyes, Alanna Hinds and Janelle Hinds for attaching hanging wires to the artwork and helping to hang the art show!

There was something for everyone at this community oriented event: caricatures, face painting, henna tattoos, an art area for kids to draw and paint, digital painting demonstrations, rock bands, food trucks, a balloon artist, coffee and cake, all in addition to the art show! All these services were provided freely, by volunteers who support their community and the arts.

Javir Batiz opened the night with psychedelic guitar licks from back in his Santana days. Joy Watley, the library's branch manager, didn't blink an eye when he cranked his amp to 11. Aw yeah!

Caricature Artist Jared Lipscomb

Young-blood, artist Jared Lipscomb volunteered to draw free caricatures for the kids on opening night.

Jared wasn't allowed to get his caricature drawn when he was a boy. Not in the family budget. With that in mind, he sat there all night long, drawing everyone he could. Jared wanted every kid who wanted a drawing, to get one. So, they lined up!

Opening night, the library was packed with more than 600 people!

In the digital conference room, where it was a bit quieter, concept artist and teacher Dzu Nguyen offered a free Photoshop painting demonstration for the more serious attendees. A roomful of people came specifically to learn from the young master.

Dzu Nguyen - Concept Artist and teacher

Paul Davies co-founder of Sketchbook Sessions: San Diego, mugs in front of his creations.

Motion Capture artist Frank Strocco admires Dave Wilkins wall of El Zombo pages.

Creative Entertainment by Judah Buxton - balloons

The balloon artist, Judah Buxton worked those balloons all night! The kids loved their balloon swords and balloon superhero masks. His tiny blue and red "Spiderman" was spectacular!

Eddie Holly, co-founder of Sketchbook Sessions: San Diego.

Eddie knows how to please the crowd, so he busted out his Justin Bieber!

Artist Brice Banfield got recognized for his support of the arts.

Illustrator Dean MacAdam was in charge of hanging all 65 pieces of art in the Drawsome! show along with Cazi Tena.

Dean MacAdam generously donated his illustration "Reading Hill" to the library's children's section. Dean is an illustration technology leader dedicated to education, his #1 selling iPad book, Bobo Explores Light has gotten rave reviews, educating kids in an engaging way.

Anitza Rodriguez and Cecilia Eguia Serrano - El Solde Tijuana, Ejecutivo de Ventas Espectaculos Cultura

Cecilia Eguia Serrano stopped by to interview Eddie Holly and I about the Drawsome! Art Show. Cecilia speaks Spanish and Eddie and I do not. Luckily, Anitza translated everything we said!

Artist Martha Ambrose, opening night of Drawsome!

That night, Tori Roze, an up and coming local musician, was the toast of the evening.

Through a generous grant from the Chula Vista City Council, I was able to print a giant drawing of Tori Roze and donate it to the the Chula Vista Library. Tori and I both signed the canvas print that night. (Printed and assembled by Cathy Kniess at Chrome Digital)

In celebration, Tori Roze and the Hot Mess played an inspirational set on opening night. (Yeah, we had two rock bands that night!) Thanks Tori! Listen to the album.

Paul Davies and I checking out the Tori Roze print hanging in the Chula Vista Library.


The Hot Mess guitarist's supports the musical arts with some gorgeous guitar playing.

Hellz yeah, Tori Roze plays the trumpet, kid.

Gourmet food trucks!

Folks gotta eat! The food trucks were super delicious, and charitable too! They supported the arts by donating some proceeds to the local high school band. I ate the last carne asada burrito, it was for a good cause, yo.

Dave Wilkin's youngest fan waits for the artist to autograph her El Zombo book - a book about the world's greatest luchador, back from the dead...

Betty Woznis the Library Director and Senator Juan Vargas' representative stopped by to see the show and to recognize the artists for supporting the arts in Chula Vista. Thanks for letting us have rock bands in your library!


Jin Yung Kim, Dave Wilkins, and Graham Smith, with our recognition certificates from the California State Senate. Thanks for supporting the arts Chula Vista!

Artist Cazi Tena hung the 65 piece show in a long night of curating and nail hammering with illustrator Dean MacAdam and the CVCAC volunteers

Dawn Vitale, Director of Marketing at Eventful did the marketing for the show - all Pro-Bono.

Dave Wilkins donated a bunch of his El Zombo books to the library. Then, he sat in the back room and signed autographs for his fans.

Dave Wilkins illustrates books, is a professional luchador, creates artwork for Sony, and most recently, comic book covers for DC's the Green Lantern!

Artist Aaron Kasten gets officially recognized for his support of the arts.

Artist Kimie Kim is congratulated by Deputy Mayor Rudy Ramirez (wearing shorts and flip flops). Hey, it's California, man.

Admiring the art of Cazi Tena.

Joy Watley - Chula Vista South Branch Manager.

Anitza Rodriguez Chula Vista Community Art Center leader and City Council Representative.

Artist Jin Kim getting props.

Graham Smith with Sketchbook Session: San Diego founders: Eddie Holly and Paul Davies, with artist Aaron Kasten.

Towards the end of the night, a tweenaged girl asked me if Sue Dawe, the unicorn lady, was really at the show. I pointed her to the artists lounge. A while later, I saw her running and yelling, "Sue Dawe drew me a unicorn!" The little kid waved it in the air and skipped away.

The San Diego Sketchbook Session Artists are a mix of professional artists currently working to create video games, concept art for movies, tee shirts, books, magazines and comics, all dedicated to supporting the arts in San Diego. They meet once a week at a cafe in San Diego to draw in their sketchbooks.

Drawsome! Art Show - Sketchbook Session: San Diego Artists
Paul Davies Eddy Holly Cazi Tena Graham Smith Martha Ambrose Dzu Nguyen Peter Han Jared Lipscomb Jin Kim Dave Wilkins Sue Dawe Brice Banfield Kimie Kim Dean MacAdam Aaron Kasten, Ian Holaday

_______________________________________________

Credits:

Art Donors:
Dave Wilkins
Dean MacAdam
Graham Smith

Coffee: Starbucks on Palomar St. in Chula Vista

CVCAG Volunteers
Anitza Rodriguez
Alanna Hinds
Chelsea Reyes
Janelle Hinds
Lexi
Guy Fisher
Amanda
Elisa
Entertainment Volunteers:

Creative Entertainment by Judah Buxton - Balloon Artist
Elidia Cabrero - Face Painter
Jared Lispcomb - caricatures
Natasha Papousek - Crescent Moon Design

Food Trucks
Crazy Wheel Coffee
Delicioso Food Truck
Two for the Road

Library
Betty Woznis - Library Director
Joy Whatley - Chula Vista Library, South Branch Manger

Marketing: Eventful

Music:
Javier Batiz
Tori Roze and the Hot Mess

Photos: Ian Holaday Arts.

RIP Steve Jobs

2011-10-06T04:51:00.000-07:00

This was way back, waaaaay back in the day... I'm remembering our very first Apple computer. We were little kids when dad brought home an Apple IIe. It looked like a typewriter that connected to the TV through two antenna wires. Personal computing was just invented. There it was, pure magic on the dining room table.

Fast forward to tonight. Steve Jobs is suddenly gone. I'm standing in a room full of artists at Sketchbook Sessions. I had to draw a picture of him as a tribute. He's the man. The other artists drew him too. Respect, yo.

The drawing was photographed, the exposure adjusted and uploaded to Facebook - all from my tiny iPhone. With my left thumb. Magic! We've come a long way together, Steve. Woz too. I needed a whole studio worth of gear to do that, just a few years ago. Thanks, Steve.

RIP Steve Jobs. 1955 - 2011 Graham Smith

So, what was your first Apple Computer?

My first Mac was a Quadra 700. It had an external 640 meg hard drive, a 19 inch monitor and the biggest Wacom tablet you could get. A 44 meg Syquest drive transported art files from my studio in Brooklyn to the printer in Manhattan. This was a badass system back in the day. It cost $12,000! Worth every penny.

Over the years I've loved using the computers Steve Jobs developed at Apple Computer as tools to create art and run my business. I bought lots of them.

Apple IIe

Quadra 700
540c "Blackbird" Laptop
8100AV
8500AV <------it's hard to play favorites, but...

iMac classic - Bondi Blue
G3 Tower
G4 Sawtooth
G5 Dual 2 GHz PowerPC
Macbook Pro 15
Mac Book 13
Cinema Display 23

iPod shuffle - 1st gen
iPod 10 gig - 3rd gen
iTouch - 1st gen
iPhone 3GS
(pre-order) iPhone 4S

Sketchbook 27. RIP Steven Jobs. Fountain pen and magic marker. 5.5"x8.5" Graham Smith

Life Drawing Workshop: Short Pose with Meegin & Bree

2011-10-05T17:27:00.000-07:00

Meegin reads a book: Graham Smith

It is fun draw alongside the artists at Sony Life Drawing Workshop. Over the last 2 sessions, we were lucky to have Gun toting Meegin and Pink haired Bree model for our short pose workshops. Poses range from 2-20 minutes, with an emphasis on fitting the figure fully on the page.

Meegin reads - detail

Meegin contemplates shoes - Graham Smith

Meegin adjusting shoe.

detail

The life drawings of Meegin, in blue, were drawn with a Prismacolor stick, which is a solid block of color one third the length of a pencil and square in cross section. This was the first time I tried it. Me likey! These drawing are on Canson Sketch 50 pound paper.

The drawing of Bree, below, were drawn with a General's 6B graphite stick. Her portrait in brown was good old terracotta colored pencil.

Bree with Staff - detail

Bree with Staff - Graham Smith

Bree in brown - detail

Wild Girl

2011-10-03T15:17:00.000-07:00

I did this drawing of "Wild Girl" in my studio for practice.

I sketched her figure roughly at first, then re-drew her to refine the lines and shapes. I try to keep the second, more refined drawing, alive by keeping up the same energy as the first drawing. The trick is to really draw, using the first sketch as a reference, while trying to actively explain and refine your message. Do not to simply "trace" over your sketch with a cleaner line, the line will lose it's life and the drawing won't contain your full creative energy.

Now, go draw something!

- G

For the art geeks: Pencil 6B/2H on 11x14" tracing paper.

Blue Lady

2011-09-30T14:22:00.000-07:00

Here is a drawing I did the other day. Blue Lady. Colored pencil on marker paper. 11 x 14 inches

Life Drawing Workshop: Fall 2011

2011-09-07T14:09:00.000-07:00

Get your ART on at the Sony Life Drawing Workshop! I will be instructing a private, 8 week life drawing workshop for the artists and animators at Sony Online Entertainment and Sony Computer Entertainment America from September 13th to November 1st, this fall.

Every Tuesday night from 6 - 9 pm, we will draw from life, using nude models to study the human form, draw expressively and to practice observational drawing.

Sony Life Drawing Workshop : Art Supply List

Must Have:

A big drawing board, at least 18 x 24.

18 x 24 paper - your choice
                smooth newsprint - erases easier
                rough newsprint - nice grainy texture
                sketch paper - white (Canson Biggie Sketch or Strathmore sketch)

Drawing implements - one or many of the following:
                charcoal pencil's, soft - General
                woodless graphite pencils - 6b
                graphite sticks - 6b
                conte crayons
                pastels
                colored pencils - get the cheap ones made by Blick.
                colored pencil sticks - the size of a small french fry, all color, no wood.
                pens - ball point

Pencil sharpener - get a good one, or a razor blade.
kneaded eraser
Small eraser - like the Tuff Stick, the mechanical pencil of erasers.

Optional:

                Brush pens: Tombo, one end like a brush, the other a felt tip marker.
                watercolors
                oil pastels
                crayons
                markers - bring half dried up ones too, they make a nice texture
                other kinds of paper - toned or color
                sketchbooks

Is there something you've always wanted to try? Experimentation is part of the workshop. Bring a few things to see what you like.

Local Art Supply Stores:

Blick Art Materials
www.dickblick.com
1844 India St.
San Diego, CA 92101
(619) 687-0050

Artist and Craftsman Supply
www.artistcraftsman.com
San Diego, CA
3804 Fourth Ave.
San Diego, CA 92103
Phone: 619.688.1911

Rhino Art
www.rhinoartco.com
97 N Coast Highway 101
Encinitas, CA 92024-3282
(760) 943-7440

The SOE Life Drawing Workshop is a private workshop, open to artists and animators at SCEA and SOE San Diego only. The workshop is limited to 20 participants.

For a list of Life Drawing Workshops open to the public in San Diego, click here: Life Drawing In San Diego.

Drawsome! Art Show

2011-09-01T01:46:00.000-07:00

Drawsome! Art Show
San Diego Sketchbook Session Artists
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Opening Reception: 6-9 pm Friday, Sept. 2, 2011
Chula Vista Library, South Branch. 389 Orange Avenue. Chula Vista. CA. 91911
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Artwork by local video game and movie concept artists, tee shirt designers and illustrators, presented by the San Diego Sketchbook Session Artists in collaboration with Chula Vista Community Arts Group and the Chula Vista Public Library.

Live Demo: Digital Photoshop painting by Dzu Nguyen. Caricatures by Seaworld artist, Jared Lipcomb. Free: balloon sculptures, face painting, henna tattoos, painting and drawing area for kids. Music: Javier Batiz, Tori Roze and the Hot Mess. Food Trucks: Crazy Wheel Coffee , Two for the Road , Delicioso Food Truck all donate 20% of proceeds to the Library.

San Diego Sketchbook Session Artists:
The San Diego Sketchbook Session Artists are a mix of professional artists currently working to create video games, concept art for movies, tee shirts, books, magazines and comics, all dedicated to supporting the arts in San Diego. They meet once a week at a cafe in San Diego to draw in their sketchbooks.

Cazi Tena
Dzu Nguyen
Dean MacAdam
Jared Lipscomb
Eddie Holly
Graham Smith
Paul Davies
Brice Banfield
Kimie Kim
Jin Yung Kim
Aaron Kasten
Sue Dawe
Dave Wilkins
Peter Han
Martha Ambrose

Corporate Portraits: T. Rowe Price

2011-08-30T22:11:00.000-07:00

I illustrated three portraits for T. Rowe Price's beautifully designed (and illustrated) planLink magazine the other day. Jon Zerivitz, art directed the project, and did a great job designing the illustrations into the layout.

To begin drawing a set of corporate portraits, I ink each portrait a couple of times, looser or tighter and often at different sizes. That's the funnest part, exploring different ways to make a matched set of drawings look like individual people.

I like to emphasize the direction of the eyes and exaggerate their size a teeny bit. I illustrated all the T. Rowe Price corporate portraits looking straight at the viewer. Adjusting that detail helps these financial advisers appear more friendly, engaged and honest.

One of the strengths of the illustrated corporate portrait is the opportunity to unify a group of mismatched head shots, in a way that positively emphasizes client themes.

I'm holding them up so you can see the size I draw them. Below that are some detail shots.

Illustrated portraits in T. Rowe Price's planLink magazine: Graham Smith.

For the drawing nerds: Hunts 513ef nib, Winsor Newton #8 round brush. Black Cat India Ink, Aquabee Super Deluxe drawing paper.

When the pen nibs are brand new, they tend to be drippy. Once the nibs get "seasoned" ink holds on a little better and you get less accidental drips. By "seasoned" I mean that the factory oil washes off, the surface gets etched, and ink starts to dry on nib, ya dig?

Sketchbook 26: Sketchbook Sessions

2011-08-16T17:54:00.000-07:00

Wednesday night is sketchbook night. So, the last few Wednesdays I've been hanging out with the San Diego Sketchbook Session Artists at Café Venti, drawing and eating Spam fried rice until 1 am.

The first Sketchbook Session night, I ordered the Spicy Squid and a Pepsi, and promptly drew the scene my book. Below, are a few of the Sketchbook Sessions drawings I drew in Sketchbook 26, while eating, talking and singing karaoke with friends.

September 2nd, the San Diego Sketchbook Session Artists will be displaying their work at Drawsome! an Art Show to support the Arts at the Public Library in Chula Vista, Califonia. Read more about this Event.

In this drawing: Frank Strocco, Aaron Kasten, Dave Wilkins, Spicy Squid, Paul Davies, Eddie Holly, Jared Lipscomb, Peter Han and art fan, Tina Marie.

In this drawing: Cazi Tena. Susan Dawe talks to Laura from Wales. Video game artist Jin Kim told me, if you press the button (bottom left) the waiter will come and will bring Spam fried rice.

Illustrator, David Gordon at Comic Con (left) lost naked guy (right)


David Gordon, Alberto Ruiz, Tim Mantoani and I were throw together at a Comic Con dinner at Bice.

For the drawing nerds: Sketchbook 26 is 8.5 x 11 inches, Neehah Environment Desert Storm, recycled sustainable paper. 32 letter sized pages folded in half, with a file folder for a cover. The whole thing is stapled and taped together, making a 64 page booklet. I started this one last month at Comic Con. I used Platinum Carbon Ink in a Lamy Safari fountain pen and colored pencils with some acrylic paint here and there.

Make your own recycled sketchbook

Life Drawing Workshop: Lizz with Aura

2011-08-01T13:10:00.000-07:00

Lizz seated with Aura: Graham Smith

I sat down and started drawing right away, trying not to make too much noise. I hadn't noticed the workshop started an hour earlier than usual when I walked in! There were a lot of talented artists drawing and painting Lizz that night, and they all had a 20 minute head start! We all had some fun drawing and meeting new friends.

Lizz - detail: Graham Smith

To me, no drawing of Lizz is complete without drawing a halo around her. I don't know why, but it simply must be there. Below, is the first drawing where her "Aura" appears. It was drawn a few years ago at the Ubiquitous Bee Studio in San Diego.

Lizz with Aura 2008: Graham Smith

After all the drawing and talking, a few brave artists ventured into San Diego's "less popular area's", where some secret Asian noodle shops are hidden. The dumpling soup was just as good as promised! Afterward, we agreed not to linger in the parking lot, the whole area looked kind of shady.

18" x 24". Colored pencil. Strathmore 50 lb paper.

Comic Con 2011 - drawings and artists

2011-07-27T18:48:00.000-07:00

2011 Comic Con was epic. I have never seen so many legendary artists in one place before.

Thursday: I was there with my friend (and award winning author) David Gordon to promote his newest book, Jett Pup, and his page in the Tr!ckster collection. I picked him up at the airport and drove straight to the publisher/printer party where his books were displayed. After the 5 hour flight, David headed straight for the free sushi. Cigars were for sale and a full bar flowed. David couldn't believe his luck!

David Gordon by Graham Smith

Like magnetism, I was drawn into the next room. The DJ was killing the old school jams and the crowd was sucking it up with a straw. Awe man! Geeky artists love to dance, yo! AND there was a life drawing session going on!

The Gallery Girls commanded the stage dressed as barbarians. Fur bikini's, chain mail panties and curvy swords. I stood in the back and scribbled into my brand new, homemade sketchbook # 26. Now, I couldn't believe MY luck! This was better than finding a parking spot right away.

Some dude tapped me on the shoulder and handed me a free 18 x 24 newsprint pad, a set of pastels, and a graphite stick (6B the kind I like to draw with). The night couldn't get any better... until I was escorted to the last available seat in the front row. Right next to the DJ!

Then someone brought me a free drink. I love this place!

I begin scribbling as fast as I can. The guy next to me is killing it, the next guy down from him looks to be drawing pretty well, too. I have to stop peeking and get to work. There were about 50 artists drawing at the same time.

The barbarian's pose for 20 minutes at a time. Our end of the row is all drawing in time with the music, heads bobbing, drinks spilling. Big smiles all around. I swear the DJ played, "Whoomp, there it is" when the barbarian girls took the stage!

I'm not paying attention to my drawing anymore. I'm just soaking in it. I see world famous pin-up artist Alberto Ruiz behind me. (Who made me nervous.) David Gordon was drawing on the floor. Looking down the row, Vanessa Lemen, and Ron Lemen of Studio Second Street were expertly drawing a barbarian girl pretending to club another with a bone! I see Ironman animator, Paul Davies and pin-up artist, Eddy Holly sitting in front of LA's Dave Crosland, all drawing to the music. Life drawing Dream Team, right there, kid!


Alberto Ruiz (left), Eddy Holly (back), Paul Davies (front), Graham Smith (right)

2:00 am. They kicked us out and the barbarians drove back to LA. Everyone stood outside talking, the night's weather was perfect and was about to get better.

3:00 am. Alberto Ruiz's birthday. Paul Davies and Albert Ruiz invited David Gordon and I out for a late night breakfast. Over hash browns, bacon, eggs and black coffee, Alberto demonstrated how he draws feet using the least amount of lines possible, the difference between male and female feet, drawing examples right in my sketchbook. In turn, David Gordon discussed the principals of design. Just before sunrise, we crawled back home. Day One. Done.

Feet drawing tips from Alberto Ruiz!

Alberto Ruiz explains his theories on energy and direction of line work when drawing the figure.

I draw the drinks and appetizers at BICE while the printer schmoozes Alberto

Friday: Walked the show and saw Big Dave Wilkins holds up the belt with Peter Han, Dzu Nguyen pimping his portfolio and Sho Murase in Artists Alley. We schmoozed over drinks at the Omni bar, with the folks that printed Tr!ckster, Jett Pup and Alberto Ruiz's books - Steven Goff of Global PSD picked up the tab. Thanks man. Ted Adams, CEO of IDW Publishing sat right next to us!

Dave Gordon and I escaped just in time to attend one of those weird trade show dinners, upstairs at the Omni hotel - where the unlikeliest mix of people is most likely.

Comedy writer, Martin Olson (Encyclopedia of Hell, Invasion Manual of Earth) and John Stevenson (Director of Kung Fu Panda) were unfortunate enough to be stuck at my end of the table. (I, of course, was thrilled!) John Stevenson wore blue tinted glasses. Mental note, in case I wanted to draw him later. Martin Olson looked more "Double-Oh-Seven" than a comedy writer. I wrote that line 'cause I figure he might read this.

Kirk R. Thatcher (Star Trek, ET, Muppets, Star Wars) sat on my right, across from Australian artist, James Baker. (Thanks for autographing "Sephilina the Nauti-Girl" for me, James!)

Kirk R. Thatcher is a giant man, with a giant beard, dressed in a Hawaiian shirt. His name tag? Jeff Lebowski! He asked everyone a theoretical question involving questionable deeds I can't even think of a way to euphemize. It was so awesome! David Gordon pretended not to hear. James Baker's girlfriend, and super talented artist Julia Lundman, just stared at him, blinking. Later, nothing but laughing from that end of the table, so I guess the punchline was worth it.

Back at our end of the table, John Stevenson blurted out that he is the only Director in Hollywood that takes the bus. Leaning in and talking low, he confided in us about his terrible, overwhelming anxiety about driving. Evidently, he is terrified to cause an accident and hurt other people. So, he takes the bus or taxi to the set. He was super nice, and patiently explained how he made the leap from story lead to director, at Dreamworks. Which is another story.

Already bored with his Grilled Beet Salad, comedy writer Martin Olson poured gas on the fire, asking John Stevenson:

MO: "What about when you play driving video games, do you freak out then?"

JS: "No. I'm fine with that.

MO: "What about roller coasters?"

By this time, I'm all smiles. I loved my end of the table! Discussions of unspeakable acts on the right and high functioning neurosis on the left, made us three artists in the middle seem normal and boring, by movie people standards anyways!

So much for the warm ups.

David and I went straight to the party at Tr!ckster after that. By this time, names were irrelevant and deeds unavowed. A good time was had by all. Day 2. Done.

Saturday: David and I took it easy, drawing in our sketchbooks and sitting in the shade across from the Convention Center, when Matt Peters (story board artist) and Bill Pressing (Rex Steele, Dreamworks) sat down for some shade. Bill Pressing offered some advice on book creation and posed uncomfortably for a few fan photos. I had already lost my voice from the night before, so I bought us both a Coke. Earlier, his printer told me, that after seeing Bill's drawings, she figured him to be "ass" man. That's all I could think of when I met him.

Heineken, Pepsi, sushi, Skittles and shade got us through the day and prepared us for another (potentially strange) dinner. Who knows what the night would bring? The entire staff of Global PSD, Alberto Ruiz and San Diego photographer Tim Mantoani were thrown together with Dave and I, at a big round table at BiCE restaurant.

Tim Mantoani is working on a book using large format Polaroid (20 x 24 inches) and explained how it works. It's a peel-apart instant poster! How cool is that? Graciously and once again, Steven and Adrianne Goff of Global PSD hosted and picked up the tab! Thanks again!

That night, local artists, Paul Davies (Sony) and Dave Wilkins (Sony, DC, Marvel) were hosting sketchbook sessions for the visiting artists at a cafe, down the way.

Alberto, David and I, along with the Global PSD staffers, Kate and Christina, headed off to see if we could find the sketchbook event on a midnight mission. We missed it, couldn't find it, or both. (We're artists not Seal Team Six, yo!)

On the way back, we found geeks sleeping along the walkway, behind the convention center. They were the first in line for next years Comic Con tickets!

David completed his Comic Con victory walk back to the car, smoking a cigar. Day Three. Done.

Sunday: Jett Pup book signing by David Gordon. I bought a "Don Juan's Night of Love" movie poster from 1955 (USA) from Century Guild, ate some Pho, and dropped Dave off at the Amtrak station. Comic Con. Done.

It's unanimous!

- G

Amy Winehouse - RIP

2011-07-23T11:27:00.000-07:00

No, No, No. Amy Winehouse by Graham Smith

Amy Winehouse found dead today in her London apartment. The talented and troubled singer was only 27 years old.

Aby Rosen - Real Estate Tycoon

2011-07-19T01:09:00.000-07:00

Aby Rosen - Real Estate Tycoon. Illustration: Graham Smith

"Featuring a cutting-edge design and compact format and printed on paper typically reserved for books, Worth magazine is geared to be an elegant, practical and portable resource for dynamic CEOs, entrepreneurs and investors.

Art Director, Dean Sebring sent me Aby Rosen - Real Estate Tycoon, to draw for the Twenty Questions feature I illustrate for each issue of Worth magazine. This is the second in the series. Howard Schultz is the first.

I really like the ring of this guy's title. Tycoon. That just sounds bad-ass.

Aby Rosen - Real Estate Tycoon. Detail. Illustration: Graham Smith

It's impossible not to notice that Aby Rosen - Real Estate Tycoon, has a perfect hair-do and impeccable taste in suits. He looks dazzling. Naturally, I selected the more delicate and flexible, Hunt's 99 nib to draw him with. I knew he'd appreciate the difference.

When drawing slowly and carefully, I can draw with the thin, pointy nib just fine, without piercing the paper or bending the tip. I used the Hunt's Speedball 99 nib and a light touch to draw his face and hair.

When drawing faster and more expressively, or more specifically, when I want to push the pen forward and scrape it sideways (not just drag it backwards) I draw with a Hunt 513 EF nib. The 513 is big and steel, so it's tough and less springy than the 99, but it has a little foot, called a "something or other", that allows one to push the pen forwards on the paper without digging a little hole in it.

I used the Hunt's Speedball 513 EF nib to draw his shirt and the jacket.

If you can spot the line quality differences, you too, are a pen nib connoisseur. Just like Aby Rosen - Real Estate Tycoon.

- G

The Dude Abides

2011-07-12T00:27:00.000-07:00

If asked to draw the Dude, one abides.

When Art Director Craig Edwards at Miller-McCune, asked me to draw illustrate Jeff Bridges as "the Dude" from the cult classic The Big Lebowski, I put on my bowling shirt, opened a sassparilla and began to draw the scene where the Dude talks to the Cowboy in the bowling alley.

Using a #8 round brush, I inked this one at about double the print size. But, I got startled and dripped ink on my drawing when two guys suddenly busted into my studio. They demanded money and urinated on the rug! I had to Photoshop the drip marks off my illustration. Nothing could save the rug. Afterwards, I painted a nice chalky blue around the Dude's portrait. It kind of tied the whole illustration together.


Deconstructing "the Dude" for Miller-McCune magazine. AD: Craig Edwards. Illustration: Graham Smith

- G

Life Drawing Workshop: muscular male

2011-07-01T13:27:00.000-07:00

John Bruno seated: Graham Smith

It's fun drawing the muscular male. Figuring out all that geometry while keeping a natural gesture is the trick. It's easy to get caught up in all the details and lose track of the drawing as a whole. That's why short poses practice is so helpful.

To give your drawings a natural flow, first capture the pose's gesture, then conform the muscle geometry to the gesture drawing.

Robert: twist and lean

Robert: seated in chair

Robert: thinking deeply

Ian: lunging sword

Ian: resting sword 2

Ian: kneeling sword 3

Ian: sit with sword

Sherman: double block

Sherman: twist

Sherman: crawl

Sherman: meditates

These drawings are 18" x 24" on 50lb Strathmore sketch paper and were created with 6B graphite stick or colored pencils, as demo's at the Sony Life Drawing Workshop. The color drawing of John Bruno was done at the San Diego Life Drawing Meetup Group long pose session. Colored pencil over raw sienna acrylic wash.

Life Drawing Workshop: Black Swan with AK-47

2011-06-15T16:01:00.000-07:00

Dzu Nguyen, concept artist, gave a quick drawing demonstration at last nights Life Drawing Workshop at Sony. We set the model, Meegin, up in her "Black Swan with AK-47" pose, and Dzu Nguyen began to demonstrate how he begins to draw a figure from life.

Planning the drawing's composition, measuring and pre-visualizing were emphasized before making your first mark on the paper.

The first decision is weather the orient your paper vertically or horizontally. The next, is to make a small, light mark where you want the top of the drawing to be, and another where you want the bottom of the drawing to be.

Dzu warned not to rush into the drawing, and that a slow and methodical approach will actually save you time (and frustration) over the course of drawing a long pose.

The key is to constantly re-measure your drawing based on the head size, to keep things in proportion, and to constantly re-check your drawing's plumb lines, to keep things in the right position.

After the short demo, all the artists stoked to give Dzu's classic/hybrid lay-in style a try, and they all began their 100 minute drawings of the girl with black feathered wings, combat boots and a machine gun. By the end of the workshop they had each created a great drawing.

However, everyone seemed to agree that drawing an AK-47, and matching it perfectly to a model's position, ain't as easy as it sounds!

Between helping the artists with their drawings, I began a quick lay-in of the Black Swan, myself, using Dzu's technique. I found his strict emphasis on measurement very helpful. You can see in the drawing above, how far I got in about 40 minutes.

Do the artists out there have any favorite tips on life drawings to share? How do you like to begin your life drawings?

Life Drawing Workshop: Brianna Leigh

2011-05-27T14:51:00.000-07:00

Brianna Leigh: Seated Study 3: Graham Smith

This week, Brianna Leigh was a joy to draw, twice! She modeled for a few quick studies at the Sony Life Drawing Workshop, and for a longer pose at the San Diego Drawing and Painting Meetup Group, later in the week. We all shared some Skittles and spent the evening drawing with our friends.

Brianna Leigh: Seated Study 1: Graham Smith

Brianna Leigh: Seated Study 2: Graham Smith

Brianna Leigh: gesture studies: Graham Smith

For the art geeks: 18 x 24 inches, colored pencils and white charcoal, on Strathmore 400 series Dry Media paper, 100lb with an Raw Sienna acrylic paint wash.

Kidnapping Illustration "Seized" Award

2011-05-25T14:18:00.000-07:00

Seized illustration by Graham Smith

The Arizona Press Club awarded "Seized" a second place nod in the Best Illustration category, as judged by the design staff of the Los Angeles Times.

Thanks Arizona Press Club! Illustrating this frightening kidnapping story (and all that fur) in a bold, graphic composition was really fun. The best part was collaborating with the super talented Peter Storch while illustrating this compelling story. Read more about how this illustration was created...

Judges: “An overwhelmingly arresting image. The combination of the tiny chick peering from the unescapable fangs of a terrifying wolf is harrowing. You can't help but be drawn into this story.”

Illustration by Graham Smith. Art Directed by Peter Storch, for the Phoenix New Times. Story by Monica Alonzo.

Hustle & Woe for Seattle Weekly

2011-05-17T12:15:00.000-07:00

Hustle & Woe: Graham Smith

The Seattle Weekly, was looking for someone to illustrate the Shyan Selah: Hustle & Woe cover story, by Keegan Hamilton, when Art Director Boo Davis, saw the gangster rat video, and thought my rough and gritty style might be a good fit.

The Seattle Weekly wanted an energetic, moody illustration of hip-hop artist Shyan Selah, with the headline drawn as a tattoo on the his arms. Boo explained the whole project while dragging a suitcase down the San Francisco streets, on the way to see Shyan Selah in concert.

Boo was going there to see for herself what he is: a hip-hop artist, or a con artist.

Here's how I illustrated the cover:

Hustle & Woe pencil sketch: Graham Smith

After a round of thumbnails, I sketched up the idea of the rap star tangled in his own mic cord. To figure out how to draw the hands and arms, I put my baseball hat on, blasted the stereo and channeled my inner rap star into the studio mirror for a while. Yeah! That counts as work. I love this job.

Illustrating hand drawn type is really fun too, in a putting-a-puzzle-together kind of way. It took a long time to figure out how to wrap ye Olde English type around a forearm contour, in perspective. I comped up the pencil drawing with the Seattle Weekly masthead and sent it to Boo.

"Can the figure be flipped... quicker read on the headline?" She asked.

Now, it was me that had to hustle. I quickly re-drew the headline. To save some time, I inked the whole thing with the type reading backwards. I planned to flip the whole thing one more time, using Photoshop, making the type read forwards in the final illustration.

Original inking: Graham Smith

To make room for all the typography, I inked the Shyan Selah illustration pretty big, about 18 inches tall. I used a big, round # 8 sized brush to make sure the brush strokes were big and bold. India ink, on 100 lb Strathmore Recycled Drawing paper.


Original inking next to printed paper, before it was flipped and colored. Illustration: Graham Smith

The original ink drawing is about 150% bigger than the printed magazine. Notice the backwards headline on his arms? To begin the digital work, I scanned the inking in several pieces and auto-stitched them together in Photoshop.

Hustle & Woe for Seattle Weekly. Illustration: Graham Smith

Above is the finshed illustration next to the edited, printed magazine. Below is a detail. It wasn't until the illustration printed that I noticed his Rolex was on the wrong hand!

Hustle & Woe. Illustration: Graham Smith


Hustle & Woe detail: Graham Smith

Boston Review: Small Changes, Big Results

2011-05-10T16:52:00.000-07:00

I worked with Art Director, George Restrepo before, so when he asked me to illustrate an article for the Boston Review, filled with statistics, studies, percentages and facts about behavioral economics, I didn't freak out. I knew that at the heart of it, the illustration would be about people, their feelings and motivations, something we all have in common. The key was to connect the data to the viewer, so I pulled some quotes I thought were emotional, and illustration worthy, and began sketching.

1. Indian woman and the lentils

"...small upfront incentives should be very effective at changing behavior. And indeed a program that provided a small incentive for mothers to immunize their children (1kg of lentils for each immunization and a set of plates when the full course was completed) raised full immunization rates from 5 percent to 38 percent in rural Rajasthan (Banerjee, Duflo, Glennerster and Kothari, 2011)."

Sketch 1: Indian woman wearing colorful traditional Sari, struggles toward her goal, held back by diagrams representing malaria, economics and immunizations. She is incentivized by the immediate benefit of 1kg of lentils, the unseen benefit of immunizations are too abstract to overcome her daily toils. Set in Indian countryside. These sketches are 18 x 24 inches and drawn with graphite sticks and 6b Ebony pencils.

2. Kenyan girl chases education.

"Research in Kenya found that providing a free school uniform (costing about $6) could increase school attendance by 6.4 percentage points (Evans, Kremer, Ngatia, 2009)."

Sketch 2: A Kenyan girl chases her dream of an education, if only she had a $6 school uniform. People sitting under the shade of the trees look on, is her dream out of reach? Kilamanjaro in the background. Graphics of a coin and mosquito are tied to her feet by thread, these problems hold her back.

3. Overcoming obstacles

"...small costs can deter people from making very beneficial investments..."

Sketch 3: Kenyan people struggle to overcome economic obstacles, represented as local currency. The Boston Review liked the idea of coins representing obstacles, but I wanted to add an element of people helping each other too. Which sketch would you have chosen?

Boston Review, Behavioral Economics. Small Changes, Big Results. Art Director: George Restrepo. Illustration: Graham Smith.

Boston Review: Small Changes, Big Results. Illustration (detail): Graham Smith

Life Drawing Workshop: Summer 2011

2011-05-06T14:30:00.000-07:00

I will be instructing an 8 week life drawing workshop at Sony Online Entertainment from May 17th to July 12th, this summer. Every Tuesday night from 6 - 9 pm, we will draw from life, using nude models to study the human form, draw expressively and to practice observational drawing.

Life Drawing Workshop : Art Supply List

Must Have:

A big drawing board, at least 18 x 24.

18 x 24 paper - your choice
                smooth newsprint - erases easier
                rough newsprint - nice grainy texture
                sketch paper - white (Canson Biggie Sketch or Strathmore sketch)

Drawing implements - one or many of the following:
                charcoal pencil's, soft - General
                woodless graphite pencils - 6b
                graphite sticks - 6b
                conte crayons
                pastels
                colored pencils - get the cheap ones made by Blick.
                colored pencil sticks - the size of a small french fry, all color, no wood.
                pens - ball point

Pencil sharpener - get a good one, or a razor blade.
kneaded eraser
Small eraser - like the Tuff Stick, the mechanical pencil of erasers.

Optional:

                Brush pens: Tombo, one end like a brush, the other a felt tip marker.
                watercolors
                oil pastels
                crayons
                markers - bring half dried up ones too, they make a nice texture
                other kinds of paper - toned or color
                sketchbooks

Is there something you've always wanted to try? Experimentation is part of the workshop. Bring a few things to see what you like.

Local Art Supply Stores:

Blick Art Materials
www.dickblick.com
1844 India St.
San Diego, CA 92101
(619) 687-0050

Artist and Craftsman Supply
www.artistcraftsman.com
San Diego, CA
3804 Fourth Ave.
San Diego, CA 92103
Phone: 619.688.1911

Rhino Art
www.rhinoartco.com
97 N Coast Highway 101
Encinitas, CA 92024-3282
(760) 943-7440

The SOE Life Drawing Workshop is a private workshop, open to artists and animators at SCEA and SOE San Diego only. The workshop is limited to 20 participants.

For a list of Life Drawing Workshops open to the public in San Diego, click here: Life Drawing In San Diego.

A Rat's Life: how to draw a cover for the SF Weekly.

2011-04-27T17:26:00.000-07:00

Art Director Andrew Nilsen, of the SF Weekly, called with a dark and gritty assignment to illustrate a story about the ultra-violent, MS-13 gang, by Lauren Smiley. These true, noir stories are just the kind of thing I love to draw. As a kicker, the Art Director asked to film the entire process in my art studio/man cave.

Here is how the whole thing when down, in 10 (hard to follow) steps.

Step 1. Read the article while drinking coffee.
Step 2: Think about it.
Step 3: Draw a bunch of little squares in your sketchbook and fill them in with your ideas.

sketch 1 front view

Step 4: Draw a better version of the thumbnails. In this case, I drew the sketch huge, 18" x 24", because the concept called for lots of detail in the tattoo's, plus the cover is pretty big. Planning ahead, yo.

sketch 2 back view

Step 5: Sketch more. Always give your Art Director some choices. In the back view sketch, the FBI logo is more visible than the shoulder placement on the front view. Both say gang rat. I submitted the two sketches above, plus the sketch book spread.

Step 6: The Art Director notices some good detail in the thumbnails that helps advance the story of the illustration, he asks to see this thumbnail worked up.

sketch 3 gang sign and cuffs

Step 6 : Work up the selected sketch. Less than an hour later, sha-bam, third sketch presented. The AD and I spoke several times to work out little details. I spent the next several hours drawing the MS-13 rat and all his tattoo's.

detail

Step 7: Add something awesome.

Sometime during the development of this drawing, I began to think I needed a tighter tie-in between the gang rat and the FBI. Something that denoted manipulation or control. The FBI logos on his shoulders were nice, but the piece needed more. That's when I added the FBI ear tag - like the kind researchers staple to their test subjects in the wild. That little detail added the extra layer of information that turned this from a drawing into a cover illustration.

If you look closely in the video, you'll see how an old school illustrator uses "cut and paste".

cut and paste the old school way

detail

Each of these tattoos mean something, they are not simply body decoration. MS-13 means "Mara Salvatrucha". "Mara" for gang and "Salvatrucha" for a man from el Salvador. 13 signifies loyalty to the Mexican mafia. 805 is a Mexican area code. A dagger pointing up on the forearm promises revenge. A dagger pointing down means that revenge has been taken. Spider webs means jail time. The higher the placement of the MS-13 tattoo on the body, means the higher ones rank in the gang. If you see gang tattoos placed higher than the shoulder, that means you are dealing with a very serious gangster.

The finished drawing by Graham Smith

Step 8: ink it. (in this case I skipped this part)
Above is the finished drawing. Normally, I would take this drawing, slap it on the light box and begin re-drawing the whole thing in ink to create the final product. This illustration however, called out for a gritty, grimy, raw treatment - so the pencil drawing itself was used directly on the cover.

Step 9: Get the drawing into the computer. Too big to scan, I photographed the drawing using a 50mm lens, f 11, at 1/4 second, with 600 watts of light in RAW format. I even used a tripod and remote shutter release.

Step 10: Experiment, add texture layers, resize and add color in Photoshop.

Work in Progess: MS-13 Rat's Life. Graham Smith

For a while there, I was thinking of making the rat red and the background white. I thought this could work because the rat is making the "devil's horn" gang sign, and the rat would be red, like the devil, and the color of the Salvadoran flag is red and white, but, no.

Always print the illustration at full size to check the color and readability. Here's the print proof next to the original drawing and the finished, uncropped illustration below.

MS -13 "Rat's Life" illustration for SF Weekly: Graham Smith

Art Direction/Cover design: Andrew Nilsen. Illustration: Graham Smith

Here's the old school tools I use to make the illustrations:

Generals 6B graphite stick - fill big areas quickly. Primsacolor Ebony pencil jet black, extra smooth - draw smaller detail with rich black. Dixon Ticonderoga, soft pencil - for drawing detail and building gradients. Mars Steadtler plastic eraser - for wholesale erasing. Tuff Stick eraser - for precision erasing. Kneaded eraser - for lifting graphite in a more delicate manner. Pencil sharpener - get a new one more often than you think. India ink, waterproof - draw and make textured backgounds. Big paint brush - for splattering paint like a wild man. Small round brush - must have rolled away while I was taking a photo!

Artists drawing artists

2011-04-26T13:47:00.000-07:00

In life drawing workshops across the land, the tradition is: If the model does not show up, the last person to enter the room is the first "volunteer" to pose on stage.

A while back, the artists at the Sony Life Drawing Workshop got their first "volunteer" modeling experience when our model no showed. Instead, we took turns drawing each other, posing with plastic guns and wooden swords for a few minutes each. Everyone soon had a much better appreciation for the work life models do. Staying perfectly still while looking dynamic, is much harder to do than it looks.

During the second half of the workshop, the artists practiced drawing 10 minute portraits. Taking turns posing seated in a chair was way easier than standing there, holding a plastic gun, dynamically sweating. Here are a few quick portraits of the Sony artists "volunteering" to pose seated, in a nice chair.

Details for the art geeks: These were drawn in my 8.5 x 11 inch, recycled paper sketchbook (a big 400 pager I stapled and taped together). Used a Lamy Safari fountain pen and a Tombo brush pen to draw the figures. Blick colored pencils to draw the little portraits. The paper is really nice: Neehah Environment, desert storm color, recycled, acid free, smooth.

The Cocktail Napkin - Thunder Thighs

2011-04-19T12:02:00.000-07:00

The Cocktail Napkin - Graham Smith

Art Director, Craig Edwards pitched an interesting idea for "The Cocktail Napkin" - the last page feature in Miller-McCune magazine. He said, "The feature is a collection of short, humorous stories, I want the illustration to be doodled directly onto a cocktail napkin, then photographed at a bar".

"This months blurb is about a new type of dinosaur recently discovered and the funny name the scientists gave it."

Creating the funny little drawing was the easy part, but the assignment was to deliver a photograph of that drawing.

Suddenly, I needed to recreate a bar scene in my studio, and since this was a rush job, I needed to do it right away. Red reflections were added by dangling Christmas lights just out of frame. I sprinkled water drops nearby to add some authentic bar flair. I did use an actual fountain pen to draw the thunder thighed dinosaur, but not the pen in the photo. That pen is a Pelican, and has a deep blue pearl barrel, chosen as more photogenic than my daily drawer. Shot = Jack Daniel's.

To get that narrow band of focus on the drawing, I opened the aperture of my 50mm lens up all the way, to f1.8 and popped the camera on a tripod. In the test photos, the shot glass still looked dark, so I held a tiny flashlight above it to add little sparkle details.

Next time, I'll try iced tea in the shot glass. It probably illegal to waste Jack Daniel's for a photo shoot.

Cheers,

Art Director Craig Edwards

2011-04-13T13:56:00.000-07:00

Craig Edwards by Graham Smith

I illustrated this portrait of Art Director Craig Edwards for an article in St. Louis Magazine about his successful redesign of their magazine.

As an art director, Craig was not happy with how his existing head shots fit the layout, and asked me to draw a more flattering version for the article. I gave his portrait the "rockstar" treatment, punched up his faux hawk and gave him Burt Reynold's eyebrows. To make the portrait a bit more engaging, I changed the direction of his eyes to look directly at the viewer.

# 2 round brush and pen with india ink. EF 513 nib on Aquabee super deluxe paper. 5.5 x 8.5 inches.

Life Drawing Workshop: experiments on washed paper

2011-04-08T13:49:00.000-07:00

Ian

Ian struck a slouchy, laid back pose at the life drawing workshop Meetup last night.

Afterwards, we all hit a new noodle shop in Mission Hills, San Diego. Izakaya Masa. We coudn't get to that little hole-in-the-wall fast enough after the workshop, we were all starving! All the artists were delighted to learn they use the old school, wavy style noodles in a super delicious pork broth. Oh yeah. Had to get the deep fried squid and chicken with spicy mayo too.

Sherman

Sherman (the Shermanator) posed for the Life Drawing Workshop I host at Sony. Between helping the artists refine their drawings, I was able to chisel out a drawing of my own. "The Shermanator" got his name from his amazing ability to stand perfectly, absolutely still.

Lizz

Cadi

Lizz is one of the top life drawings models in the San Diego and always a crowd favorite to draw. I'd like to note, her feet are not actually gigantic, I just draw them that way. Also, she has a real left hand, not a catchers mitt as indicated in the drawing. That night, it was all about the spicy squid. The best place to get spicy squid, especially late at night, is China Max. Actually, all the food is great there.

We drew Cadi at the Life Drawing Workshop Meetup, at Art Institute a few Wednesday's back. I laid the drawing out quickly, in the first 20 minutes. When the pose reset for the next 20 minutes, the models chair slid off the stage, scaring everyone in the room. Mostly Cadi. (Not hurt. All cool.) Later that night, we all went out for Japanese noodles at Tajima.

I learned it's better to start your drawing over, than try to fix a slightly moved pose. Annnd, don't put the models chair near the edge of the stage. It's considered "very bad luck" if you damage the models!

Terracotta, scarlet red, burnt umber, indian red, delta blue and white charcoal pencils on 18 x 24 inch, 80 pound Strathmore Premium Recycled drawing paper, with a raw sienna acrylic wash.

Howard Schultz - CEO of Starbucks

2011-04-04T16:22:00.000-07:00


Howard Schultz CEO of Starbucks: Graham Smith

Art Director Dean Sebring of Worth Magazine, showed me a really great looking layout for their Twenty Questions feature, and asked if I would illustrate an ink portrait of Howard Schultz, CEO of Starbucks, for this months issue. Worth magazine is beautifully designed and chock full of great illustrations. I jumped on the chance to illustrate that page.

These ink portraits are drawn quickly, straight off the pen. I usually draw a few portraits and choose the nicest one. Maybe I should have drawn Howard Schultz using coffee, instead of ink for this one?

Worth Magazine with original ink illustrations in the background.

Contributors blurb by Lynsey Santimays.

Lynsey Santimays, associate editor, called me up to do a quick blurb interview for their contributors section. We were just chatting away, but after 16 questions, I ask how many words the blurb was supposed to be. "150. I like to get as much as a can. You never know." she responded.

"I draw a bunch and choose the nicest one." Graham Smith

I illustrate these with a quill pen, the kind you dip in ink. The thing is, the portraits come out a little differently each time. If I spill ink, drip on the page, or the final result doesn't look this the subject, I have to start over. There is no erasing in ink drawing! I love the challenge drawing with this unforgiving medium.

Art Direction:Dean Sebring. Portrait: Graham Smith

See More >> Worth #2: Aby Rosen

Dive Bar rejects

2011-03-24T17:12:00.000-07:00

When the assignment to draw a dive bar for Philadelphia Magazine's April issue came in, I was stoked. Art Director Jesse Southerland and I both thought the edgy subject matter of the "Survive the Dive" article by Victor Fiorillo would fit well with my noir like pen and ink style.

I drove down to the Ruby Room, the same local bar we used for the Tori Roze photo shoot. It has a nice big booth across from the bar. I set myself up there with a few friends, my sketchbook and a fountain pen. Cocktails were ordered and "the work" began.

I drew the bar with a Lamy Safari fountain pen, in my 11 x 14 inch Aquabee Super Deluxe Sketchbook. No pencil sketch, strictly a la prima. That's the pen, on the corner of the sketchbook. I used a japanese brush pen to fill in the black areas.

The article describes a "kind of scary" place with a "rude" bartender. I left space in my dive bar drawing to place the bartender in later, via Photoshop. If you look closely, you can see my reflection in the mirror behind the bar.

Ruby Room, ink drawing in sketchbook 11 x 14

Dive bar reject illustration 1 - Graham Smith

I like to use real people and place hidden inside references in my illustrations whenever I can. The glum fellow above is my friend Andrei, (film maker and art director at Sony Computer Entertainment America). He just got his wisdom teeth out and was in the perfect mood to portray a rude bartender. Did you notice my portrait of Tori Roze in the upper right corner? Her album "From the Hip" debuted in this bar.

I colored the drawing up and submitted it to Philadelphia Magazine. The illustration was rejected. "Too depressing!" said the editors.

Drawing on my vast dive bar experience, I decided to illustrate a female character instead, "an overdressed woman shaking the new guy down for a drink" would be perfect for a "scary" dive bar. I sketched up the idea and send it in.

This idea was rejected too. Philadelphia Magazine does not condone drunken binges, but they did like the idea of this article being illustrated from a female point of view.

Dive bar reject illustration 2 - Graham Smith

With the second idea rejected and the deadline looming. I went out to for Himalayan food with Dawn Vitale (Director of Marketing at Eventful) to recharge my battery and to decide what to do next.

Luckily, Dawn "volunteered" to step in, save the day, and pose as the dive bar patron, in an eleventh hour illustration edit. I drew her holding up a well deserved cocktail that night, and Photoshopped her into the illustration.

Here she is, hot off the press in the April issue of Philadelphia Magazine.

Philadelphia Magazine on my desk

"Survive the Dive" for Philadelphia Magazine by Graham Smith

Ruby Room - sketchbook detail, Graham Smith

Vegetarian Rockstar

2011-03-21T11:48:00.000-07:00

Fran Healy - by Graham Smith

"Front man and songwriter for the pioneering Britpop band Travis, Fran Healy recorded his first solo album, Wreckorder, last year with a little help from veg legend Paul McCartney. Along the way, Healy, who currently lives in Berlin with his wife, Nora, and young son, Clay, became vegetarian."

Art Director Scott Hyers, of the Vegetarian Times asked me to illustrate a Fran Healy portrait for their One-on-One interview by Rachel Dowd, in this months issue.

Above is the illustration, drawn on a paper shopping bag. I thought that was the more recycled/vegetarian paper choice. Below are a couple of quick sketchbook studies. Fountain pen and marker on sketchbook paper.

Life Drawing Workshop: Kerry with 4 legs

2011-02-28T23:17:00.000-08:00

A slightly surreal life drawing of Kerry, drawn at the Life Drawing Meet-Up Group in San Diego.

I hang out there on Wednesday nights as a break from my illustration assignments, and to have fun drawing. This time, I drew Kerry with color pencils over raw sienna wash on 18 x 24 Strathmore 400 drawing paper. I used more colors than usual to build up her skin tones during this fun, 3 hour workshop.

Kerry: hand detail - Graham Smith

Kerry: feet detail - Graham Smith

Life Drawing Workshop: John Bruno in 100 minutes

2011-02-17T14:22:00.000-08:00

John Bruno: Graham Smith

This is a life drawing demonstration I created for the Life Drawing Workshop at Sony Online Entertainment.

18 x 24. Terracotta colored pencil over raw sienna wash. White charcoal for the high lights and scarlet red for the subtle color accent. Model: John Bruno.

As usual, I sit alongside the artists and demonstrate the lesson of the week. This week: the 100 minute drawing.

John Bruno detail: Graham Smith

Hosni Mubarak, President of Egypt

2011-02-04T12:54:00.000-08:00

Hosni Mubarak by Graham Smith

Hosni Mubarak, President of Egypt for the last 31 years, holds on to power as the Egyptian people demand the end of his regime.

Unpublished. 11 x14. Ink and digital.

Life Drawing Workshop: Gesture Drawing - Part 2

2011-01-31T22:23:00.000-08:00

Gesture drawing is challenging because you have to observe and distill information quickly.

For life drawing beginners, the tendency is to draw memorized symbols for the respective body parts instead of drawing what is actually observed. The challenge is to unlearn the symbols and replace them with observation. A good set of observational tools will allow an artist to understand what they see. If you understand something, you can draw it.

To practice those observational skills, to practice seeing, we do gesture drawings. Lots of them. Here is a pile of drawing of life model and artist, Jono.

"To draw from life, one must learn to see. Seeing is drawing. Drawing is understanding"

Learn to see the basic shapes that build complex shapes. Learn to see values, an objects relative lightness or darkness. Learn to estimate angles. Learn to see negative space. Learn to estimate proportions. Learn to see things that visually rhyme. Learn to see patterns. Look for them.

To improve your drawing chops, carry a sketchbook and practice your observational skills by drawing the world around you.

Gesture Drawing Part 1

2 minute gesture drawing of life model and artist, Jono.

General's wide graphite stick on Strathmore 50lb sketch paper. 18 x 24 inches, by Graham Smith.

Sketchbook Jam: Pam Am

2011-01-24T15:11:00.000-08:00

Pan Am at Sketchbook Jam, January 2011.

Shannon Bates on sax and Kimo Shim on djimbe.

Rodney Hubbard by Graham Smith

The Pan Am soul acoustic trio plays while artists draw in their sketchbooks at the Friday Night Sketchbook Jam in Encinitas. Vanessa Lemen, of Studio 2nd Street hosts this wildly popular event once a month and I was happy to attend, listen to the music and draw.

I made some new friends, traded art supply tips with the other artists, and a great time was had by all.

Plus, Vanessa bought donuts! Win!

Life Drawing Workshop: Gesture Drawing - Part 1

2011-01-12T00:25:00.000-08:00

Gesture drawings are the quick warm-up drawings artists practice at the beginning of a life drawing session. The goal is to capture the essence of the pose in a series of two minute drawings, warming up your drawing engine.

"Marks are your words, drawn me a poem."

The exercise is extremely challenging. There are so many things to think about. Proportion, movement, rhythm, volume, contrast, value, expression. The short amount of time forces the artist to make decisions very quickly. The first marks the artist makes on the page are the most difficult - the instant of creation when the drawing leaps from the mind into the world.

A big blank sheet of paper and a two minute ticking clock can be intimidating. But you have to start drawing somewhere. For beginners, I recommend just going for it. Throw all caution to the wind, look at the model and start scribbling as fast as you can. Don't worry about being perfect. There is no time to measure. Draw large and fill the page. Express yourself.

No matter where you start, your eyes and hand better be moving the whole time, or the two minutes will slip away. Gesture drawing is about deciding quickly and reacting to the model. That's the point of drawing the figure in such a short time, the artist is forced to reduce their drawing to the least amount of elements needed to convey their reaction to the pose.

To create the different strokes, shading, and lines in these drawings, I used a General's Wide Graphite Stick - 6B on Strathmore 50 lb sketch paper.

I draw the basic shadows using the wide, flat edges of the graphite stick, creating a nice wide stroke. The harder you press the darker it gets. To get a nice velvety texture, put a thick pad of paper under your drawing, so when you press down, the resistance is gradual and even, allowing a wide range of tones.

Switching to the corner of the stick, I build the drawing with more carefully observed line work. The corner gives thinner or thicker lines to work with, depending on how you hold it. The hard, thin lines drawn over the soft, wide strokes, provide a nice contract of marks all from one tool.

And by "carefully observed line work", I mean drawing as fast as possible while not looking at the paper.

Two minute gesture drawing of Kerry, one of San Diego's finest life models, by Graham Smith in a 20 minute live demo at the Sony Life Drawing Workshop. 18 x 24 inches. Strathmore 50lb sketch paper. General's wide graphite stick - 6B.

G.

GESTURE DRAWING PART 2

The "other" Ben and Jerry

2011-01-04T16:18:00.000-08:00

Jerry Brown and Ben Bernanke for the LA Times by Graham Smith

When I got the call to illustrate portraits of Ben and Jerry for the Los Angeles Times, I thought they meant the ice cream guys, not California's newly elected Governor Jerry Brown and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke. : )

Art Director Derek Simmons and I went straight to work figuring out how we would place the Ben and Jerry portraits in the layout for the year's end Sunday Business cover, shooting a few quick thumbnails back and forth.

With the layout locked, I inked the two portraits at the same size as they would print. I used a # 3 round brush mostly, and added the smaller lines with a quill pen. I inked Jerry Brown five times before I got him looking right. Ben Bernanke only took two tries!

Art Director Derek Simmons helped redesign the entire LA Times format recently, so I relied heavily on the templates he supplied to figure out the sizing of the illustration.

To finish the illustration, I created monoprints for background color with acrylic paint and a brayer, splattered it with ink, then printed full sized proofs on watercolor paper.

Ben Bernanke by Graham Smith

Jerry Brown by Graham Smith

I knew the portraits would be cropped into for the planned layout, but I drew the whole head and shoulders anyways. For some reason I have no worries drawing things I know will be cropped out, as long as it's me doing the cropping.

LA Times next to the original illustration

Original inking, printed piece in the LA Times and the sketch

Detail of Jerry Brown illustration - color proof on watercolor paper

Art Director's notes are the best.

I'm able to post the originals artwork next to the final printed pieces because Art Director's (and their staff) take the time to mail (as in Post Office) samples to me. Sometimes they have awesome notes attached. Thanks!

Britney Henry Video - Mt SAC Relays 2010

2010-12-29T16:15:00.000-08:00

MT SAC Relays 2010 from Andrei Booriakin on Vimeo.

The Britney Henry Project is excited to debut our new video of Olympic Hopeful, Britney Henry competing against the best hammer throwers in the world, at the 2010 Mt. San Antonio College Relays. Read More >>

In addition to my illustration and design work, I organize The Britney Henry Project - a creative collaboration at the intersection of art and athletics. I like to stay busy. :)

The Britney Henry Project is a group of creative professionals dedicated to creating media assets used to promote Britney Henry, and her effort to earn a spot on the USA Olympic team. The Britney Henry Project team members are all volunteers who donate their time and craft in support of Britney's Olympic dream.

Video by: Andrei Booiakin. Music by: Mark Matcho.

See More >>

American Woman Video by Andrei Booriakin and Graham Smith. A super rocking, hi def music video featuring Britney Henry throwing the hammer.

Behind the scenes photos by photographer Teresa Heath, she documents the competition and Mt. Sac Relay shoot in the most beautiful and unique way.

Mt. SAC Relays photos and portraits of the Elite Athletes by Graham Smith, can be seen here.

Read Britney's account of the day on her blog Olympian in Progress.

Links >>

Olympian in Progress

The Britney Henry Project

Vimeo Channel

Britney's Facebook Fan Page

Life Drawing Workshop: Ian as Pan

2010-12-09T15:10:00.000-08:00

Ian as Pan 18 x 24. Graham Smith

I upgraded to a heavyweight 100lb Strathmore drawing paper for this weeks 2 hour pose at the Wednesday night Life Drawing Workshop. The paper was prepared by drybrushing the Raw Sienna acrylic paint wash over the paper beforehand.

The drawing was done primarily in Burnt Ochre colored pencil, with Scarlet Red pencil and White charcoal details. Erasing the colored pencil without leaving a ghost mark or smearing, is now possible with this paper preparation. yay.

Ian as Pan (Detail) Graham Smith

I do my life drawings all old school. But some of the guys rock laptops with Wacom tablets and do digital life drawing. Here is digital painting of the same pose, by Dzu Nguyen, the organizer of the Life Drawing Workshop.

Afterwards we all went out for noodles.

Life Drawing Workshop: color washed paper

2010-12-02T18:15:00.000-08:00

Meegin: 2 minute warm up - Graham Smith

The other day, I bought two Leonardo Da Vinci books. I spent some time studying his drawings hoping to soak up some greatness. I tried to figure out what he drew with, how big the drawings were, and stuff like that.

I noticed Leonardo Da Vinci prepared his paper with color washes of purples, blues, reds, and rich browns.

Immediately, I went looking for paint to color wash some paper. I wanted to try drawing on the prepared paper at the next Life Drawing Workshop. So, here are some quick drawings of Meegin, doing 2, 5 and 10 minute poses.

Meegin steps up - Graham Smith

Meegin loves books - Graham Smith

Meegin knees up - Graham Smith

Meegin - colored pencil and white charcoal studies - Graham Smith

I diluted Raw Sienna acrylic paint with water and painted a few sheets of 11"x14" Aquabee 93lb Super Deluxe sketchbook paper, and a few sheets of 18"x24" Strathmore 50lb sketch paper. I used a little pump action misting bottle to wet the paper quickly, and a 2" brush to paint the wash over the paper. Make sure and place scrap paper underneath, so you can extend your brushstrokes past the edges of the paper.

I was not sure if color pencil would draw well over an acrylic wash, or if the paper would lose it's tooth. But, I did know the paper would get all wrinkly if I didn't press it flat after it dried. Place the painted sheets inside a big pad of paper and put some books on top to keep them from curling.

The paper kept it's tooth and accepted both color pencil and white charcoal well. But, the white charcoal didn't want to draw over the colored pencil, too slippery.

You can use a hard eraser to lift the color wash from the paper, creating subtle highlights. If you stain your paper with guache or watercolor, this technique works even better.

Meegin - colored pencil and white charcoal studies - detail - Graham Smith

Tori Roze and the Hot Mess

2010-11-09T01:01:00.000-08:00

Tori Roze illustration: Graham Smith

I illustrated the portrait of musician Tori Roze for the cover of her new album, from the Hip, created together with her band, The Hot Mess. The album is set to debut, so here is a behind the scenes peek at what it takes to put together artwork for an indy music project like this.

Above, is the finished illustration, and below, is a photo of me autographing a few of the pre-release CD's. (Poolside, of course.)

But I'll tell you, a lot goes into designing a CD package before you get to kick back and sign albums with rock stars. The good thing is, all the work is fun!

Graham Smith - illustrator

A while back: I was drawing Tori Roze at a downtown life drawing workshop. I remember her, because she stared right at me for the entire 3 hours. At the end of the session, she asks, "Will you draw my album cover? I'm going to release an album one day."

Three years later, the phone rings. "I'm in the recording studio now, finishing my album! Will you still do it? "

Making the B(r)and: To determine a visual direction, we started with a recon mission to watch Tori Roze and the Hot Mess rock the house at a club in Ocean Beach. Guitarist, music aficionado and champion pumpkin carver, Mike Aryes flew wingman that night. After soaking up the vibe, we scheduled a photo shoot to get some reference shots for me to draw from.

Style: We were lucky to get Photographer Teresa Heath for this shoot at the Bluefoot Bar in Hillcrest, California. Teresa's natural light shooting style was a great match for Tori's keeping-it-real vibe. At the same time, I shot illustration reference shots with my trusty Canon 400d. Hair: Omar Coronado rocked the hair style and makeup, knocking out an inspiring, rock and roll do. Fashion: Fables by Barrie provided Tori's super-fly, punky outfit.

Tori gets her hair did by Omar Coronado.

Photographer Teresa Heath enjoys a private concert while shooting Tori Roze.

selecting reference shots for a portrait.

Selecting the best reference for an illustration and selecting the best photograph are two different things. Knowing what you want in the final illustration will help you choose.

Illustration: I like to draw the portrait with blue pencil before inking it, working out the composition while developing the likeness. I have the most fun during this part, figuring out all the little geometries, textures and values.

The blue under-drawing was drawn with General's non-repro blue pencil in an Aquabee Super Deluxe 11 x 14 sketchbook. The portrait is inked with Black Cat India Ink on Aquabee paper using a Hunts 513ef nib.

Preliminary artwork - blue pencil on Aquabee paper.

It's all about her eyes....and her hair!

Tori Roze by Graham Smith, ink 11 x 14

Inking is all about drawing. Not tracing. If you only trace the sketch, the line quality may appear stiff and without surprise.

I inked up a few different versions of Tori Roze. This one (above) just didn't have the major dose of attitude needed to be an album cover. I did like the way her lips came out, though.

Graphics: I love hand drawn typography so, I wanted to brush the name of their album all in one go, like the old school calligraphers did. I used a #8 brush and 14 sheets of paper before I got it just right.

Type: Tori Roze's voice has a delicious old school flavor, and since most of the artwork is loose, I decided to set the bands name in an old typeface with 1930's flavor, as a visual counterpoint.

The Hot Mess: Serge McCoy - drums, Harley Magsino - bass, Johnny Alexander - guitar, Jordan Morita - trombone, keys, Lee Clark - backing vocals, flute illustrated by Graham Smith.

Design: I assembled the illustrations, logos, liner notes, copyrights and all that stuff into the template provided by the CD duplication house. The final, print ready artwork was provided to the printer as a 300 dpi, cmyk, Photoshop file, uploaded through their website and printed on recycled paper.

album artwork in print ready template

Promotion: 2 weeks later, Tori rolled out of bed to sign CD's after returning from her New York City tour. Hell yeah, Rock Star.

Tori Roze holds up her new album "From the Hip".


Tori Roze. photo: Graham Smith

Myspace: Tori Roze and the Hot Mess

Tori's Roze and the Hot Mess upcoming gigs on: Facebook

The Reaper

2010-11-04T23:28:00.000-07:00

The Reaper. Graphite, ink and digital, by Graham Smith.

See this illustration along with 14 distinguished artists work at the "Of Light and Shadow" art show at DEMA office in Encinitas, California. 818 South Highway 101. Encinitas, Calfornia, until November 17th, 2010.

Archival prints available on request. 100% cotton paper. Matte finish. Hand titled and signed by he artist. $50 each. 13 x 19 inches.

"The Reaper" detail - Graham Smith

Art for Dead People

2010-10-22T00:54:00.000-07:00

Making Día de los Muertos decorations is a great do-it-yourself art project. They are fun to make, and since they are made by recycling cardboard, super inexpensive too. These skeleton figures are called calacas and are used as decorations during the Day of the Dead. They are art for dead people.

How to make your own calaca:

Draw a skull (or anything) on a piece of cardboard. It doesn't have to be fancy.
Cut it out. I used a snap off blade box cutter on a self healing cutting mat. Make sure and cut away from your fingers. Protect the surface you are cutting on.
Draw 2 circles for eyes.
and a triangle for the nose. You know where it goes.
Cut them out.
Paint it white. I used the least expensive white acrylic paint in the art store. You can use old house paint if you have some. It doesn't have to be perfect. Paint it in quickly, using a dry brush technique. Let the cardboard show through in places - it looks cool like that. I chose to paint the dirtier side of the cardboard, allowing the cleaner side to be towards ones face. It's up to you. I used a 1 inch wide brush.
Dry. If you didn't glop the paint on, it should be dry in 15 minutes.
Paint a cool design on it. I used black India ink and a #3 round brush. Just make sure it's cool looking.
Attach the decoration to a stick making a mask to hold in front of your face. Use staples or yarn to tie it on with.
Run out to a party and show your friends. The Day of the Dead is a time of celebration, where partying and eating is common.

Since Día de Los Muertos is a holiday that focuses on gatherings of family and friends to pray for and remember friends and family members who have died, I like to paint the heart symbol on the forehead of my calaca. Sometimes I paint a glow around the heart, or an eternal flame. That way, the dead know they are loved and will always be remembered.

Even though Día de Los Muertos is a celebration, sometimes we miss those that have gone. I paint tear drops on my offerings, so the dead know they are missed.

During the three-day celebration, families usually clean and decorate graves. Most visit the cemeteries where their loved ones are buried and decorate their graves with flowers. These flowers are thought to attract souls of the dead to the offerings.

In this tradition, I painted the Flor de Muerto around the eyes of my calaca. The ancient Mexican people decorated skulls, and displayed them during the rituals to symbolize death and rebirth.

In more practical terms, Aztec marigolds, the Flower of Death, contain essential oils used to wash corpses and contain many medicinal properties. They are still commonly planted in cemeteries today.

In most regions of Mexico, November 1st is Día de los Angelitos, which honors children and infants. On The Day of the Little Angels, toys are brought out to attract their souls. Deceased adults are honored on November 2nd, Día de los Muertos, the Day of the Dead.

Sometimes, it's our beloved pets we miss the most. I made some rememberances for them, too.

Día de los Muertos artwork by Graham Smith, made from 100% "recycled" cardboard.

This is a fun project to do together with your friends or kids. Let the kids draw and paint their decorations, but have an adult cut them out first. Don't let the kids be near box cutters and scissors. Safety. Okay?

Day of the Dead facts from Wikipedia. Thanks.

Guns & Girls - short poses

2010-09-29T15:44:00.000-07:00

Franzi with Walther P-99

Tuesday nights, I sit and draw right alongside the Life Drawing Workshop participants I teach at Sony. These are some of my short pose demonstration drawings. The drawing are 2, 5 or 10 minutes studies, drawn on 18" x 24" Canson 50 pound sketch paper with a 6B graphite stick.

Franzi with MP-5

Meegin -Chinese fans I

Meegin - short poses

Meegin with Katana

Meegin - the hitcher

Meegin - Chinese fan II

Meegin with P-99

Meegin short pose

Meegin with MP-5

Sketchbook Jam - September

2010-09-17T14:31:00.000-07:00

The second Friday of every month is the Sketchbook Jam, held at Studio 2nd Street in Encinitas, California. This month it coincided with Ron Lemen's birthday, one of the studio's proprietors. The place was packed with artists, friends and well wishers, and we all began to draw right away.

Before the place got too crazy, I drew Kathy McCord, a children's book illustrator and new friend. Participants of the Sketchbook Jam take turns posing on the model stand for one another. Posing (and holding still) for 20 minutes really provides an appreciation for the difficult job models do for us.

I drew Kathy in my recycled paper sketchbook, the one I made from old paper grocery bags a while back. Indian Red colored pencil and white charcoal pencil on brown paper.

The lovely and talented art student, June was the first person brave enough to jump on the modeling stand that night. She wore a top hat in honor of Ron Lemen's birthday, illustrating his current "wearing many hats" lifestyle. I forgot mine that night. Doh!

Black colored pencil and white charcoal pencil on old brown paper.

A guy with a giant beard, Victoria Bearden, Vanessa and Ron Lemen (back to back) and June enjoying a wonderful Southern California night.

San Diego is Underwater

2010-09-08T11:30:00.000-07:00

Lee Partridge, San Diego's CIO of Retirement Fund for ai5000. Illustration: Graham Smith

Art Director, SooJin Buzelli for Asset International's ai5000.

When the assignment to illustrate a portrait of Lee Partridge came in, I already knew the story. Lee Partridge is San Diego's newest Chief Investment officer for the cities underwater retirement fund, and he has a very complicated path ahead of him.

The article was not compete at the time of the assignment and the photo reference was super tiny and low res - so my first round of ideas danced around the idea of a straight up portrait and revolved around symbols of San Diego and business icons instead.

Art Director, SooJin Buzelli gave me "navigating a minefield" as the lynchpin to solving this problem. And upon review of the first batch of thumbnails, reminded me she wanted a portrait, not a complex scene. She also sent me a nice big fresh pile of hi-res photos to work from. Yes!

thumbnails for ai5000. Illustration: Graham Smith

Pencil sketches for ai5000. Illustration: Graham Smith

Using the sea mines symbols, and the waves that represent San Diego (and the condition of the retirement fund) from the first round of thumbnails, I quickly sketched a few portraits of Lee Partridge and sent them to SooJin.

A sketch was selected within minutes and I began working on developing the illustration right away.

The assignment was for a full page illustration, and I like to draw things pretty large. The sketch was done in non- repro blue pencil and inked on 11" x 14" Strathmore paper. Even though I sketched the the whole scene in one piece, I decided to ink the portrait and the sea mines separately. That way I could have a little wiggle room when it came time for final cropping.

Sea Mines ink detail for ai5000. Illustration: Graham Smith

Lee Partridge ink detail for ai5000. Illustration: Graham Smith

Original inking for ai5000. Illustration: Graham Smith

Runner's World Portraits

2010-08-23T17:37:00.000-07:00

The 2010 Runner's World Fall Shoe Guide is out, and I drew some little portraits of the folks that test and report the performance of different running shoes. Drawing these little portraits is fun and quick. One detail Art Director Marc Kauffman likes me to add, is to match the colors in the portraits to the full page feature illustration that opens the Fall Shoe Guide. The original inkings are about 5 -6 inches tall, and the background texture is guache.

Peter Vuong - Runner's World Wear Tester. Illustration: Graham Smith

John - Runner's World Wear Tester. Illustration: Graham Smith

Karon Klipple - Runner's World Wear Tester. Illustration: Graham Smith

The trick is to NOT draw lots of detail in really small portraits, but to rely on the large, basic shapes to carry the likeness. The shape of the head, the hair, the shape of the mouth, and the relationship to the size of the eyes are key areas to scrutinize while trying to craft simple little portraits.

I draw quickly and try to resist the urge to go back into the drawings and "fix" things. The drawings always seem a bit stale when I do that. It's better to keep the drawings brisk and fresh, than to overwork them with correctness. Funner too!

Runner's World illustrations by Graham Smith

These portraits are inked with 513 nib using Black Cat india ink on Aquabee Super Deluxe Sketchbook, 93 lb paper. The under drawing is done with a non -repro blue pencil. I don't erase the under drawing or try to hide it. I like to leave the process marks in each illustration. They seem more handmade that way.