A few random photos from my road trip to Maine

If the thought of visiting Maine doesn't immediately
appeal to you, maybe these photos will help.

Finally, another post

I created a poster for Grand Street Gardens here in Chicago. We're pushing the D.I.Y. aspect of the place, so I felt a poster reflecting that was appropriate, naturally.
The pig rocks, but check out that freakin sweet-ass gourd.

Webber/Grand Street Gardens Ad

I put a rush on an ad we decided to do for the Tribune (House & Homes section). While I wasn't able to spend quite as much time on refining everything, I think it's still a really nice ad. This ad was created from an ad I did earlier in the week based on old vacation postcards. Obviously the dimentions for this ad are no where near that of a postcard's, but at only 3 inches tall, the long grandstreet sits nicely within the ad. If we go with this layout/ad again, I'd like to spend a little time weathering the ad.
The bee is pretty sweet too.
Link to large image

I painted this a little while back, but felt it should be posted. I really like this one. I thought about going back in and deepening the shadows on the sign, but I suppose that's me being my own critic. Makes me want to do something similar, but with a larger wood sign. Not sure if I want to use the space for a poem, or perhaps as a promotional piece.

I forgot to post an update

I totally forgot to put the artwork up here for the Fox Valley Philharmonic Symphony poster. The final poster wasn't bad, I just want to show off the painting. I went back in with Illustrator to add in the strings and some other small details.

Painting update

After trying to take a picture of my work, I realized I reaaalllly need a new camera.
Anyways, this where it's at right now. So far, it seems like it was a good idea to sketch out the painting with Burnt Sienna. It's far from done, but I think I'm starting to like it.

Logo for Federation of Women Contractors (FWC)

On top of trying to get ads, brochures, and biz cards done, I've been spending time here and there working on a logo for the FWC. Not to rip on the previous design (lie), but it was pretty bad. 'Though a valiant effort, it failed to convey any idea of the industry it was representing, which is a shame given that this is an awesome group of dedicated women. It's not completely finished yet, but the image above gives a pretty good idea of what they wanted and what I was able to do with it. I'm a little worried it might be a little busy, but so far it looks like it's reproducing well when scaled down. The skyline reads as Chicago (for those who know it) and the cranes look like cranes. I may be mocking a different version, so I'll post that if it materializes.

A poem about summer, made in winter

It's rare to see a winter storm roll through Chicago for well over 24 hours, non stop at that, but that's exactly what happened this Friday/Saturday. With the exception of a coffee run, most of my time was spent at the computer or staring out the window. Seeing all that snow made me wish for warmer weather, and that seemed to be reflected in a poem I wrote (well, poem might be an inappropriate word seeing as it's certainly not a strength of mine). Nonetheless, I had fun wracking my brain for the right words. It's about time spent at a lake in Crivitz, WI. Sounds like a disease, but it's a wonderful, small lake that I go to with friends  for the 4th of July. If you'd like to see a hi res version, click here.

So it's been way too long since I last wrote, but I'm trying my best to consistently throw my art up here. I've started an under painting for an oil painting I randomly felt like doing.  In addition to this, I'm currently working on a watercolor for my cousin, and I have an ad due the 26th, some place cards for our new store Grand Street Gardens, and some tri-fold brochure pieces that may or may not be placed in a nice folder (budget willing). Hopefully all of these will get placed on here. Seeing as it's been snowing for the last 20+ hours and doesn't seem to be nearing its end, I should have plenty of time to get more done. Time to layer some paint.