tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-173164642024-03-13T18:05:10.673-04:00Leifdrawing101(stuff drawn by Leif)leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.comBlogger62125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-90485000207980972462014-11-09T15:45:00.003-05:002014-11-09T15:45:59.455-05:00My Hated Book CoversAbout twenty years ago I illustrated the covers and interiors for a young readers book series about a talking detective basset hound named Wordsworth. Only well after the series was in print did the editor tell me author Todd Stasser hated my work. Sometimes ignorance really <i>is</i> bliss. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJXhwo0KlJBHHJJZgoFFOGXBDgBxAIANZMKzBQKW0Rf0td1Z3uHesXqmDyQqbq8p5cDN4ZTm2_nTwEppVxBDlewAEfCMJZos070E7fRmNuCCfhPpiP8jMJOL8GHIzdnwv0IZRlSg/s1600/Wordsworth0102Printedlores.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJXhwo0KlJBHHJJZgoFFOGXBDgBxAIANZMKzBQKW0Rf0td1Z3uHesXqmDyQqbq8p5cDN4ZTm2_nTwEppVxBDlewAEfCMJZos070E7fRmNuCCfhPpiP8jMJOL8GHIzdnwv0IZRlSg/s400/Wordsworth0102Printedlores.jpg" /></a><br />
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All the originals, done in acrylic airbrush colour on watercolour paper, are long gone. But I did have enough forsight to make colour copies at the time. Here are five of the six covers from my hated book cover series...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8dsU3wC9H3lwb06Kr1aWBvhAGOS2Z9sRbHIQaZDc-i60B8ocQMXOb9Rx85t41Xb5VvVA3itLXB-_CsEfRQQ8sYNoPnzdBttY0DecplclJFeXvAdSG1k-Q9MGaGXTavIqC_LZGFA/s1600/Wordsworth01lores.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8dsU3wC9H3lwb06Kr1aWBvhAGOS2Z9sRbHIQaZDc-i60B8ocQMXOb9Rx85t41Xb5VvVA3itLXB-_CsEfRQQ8sYNoPnzdBttY0DecplclJFeXvAdSG1k-Q9MGaGXTavIqC_LZGFA/s540/Wordsworth01lores.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNymVUBZhl9Q-K6ivrj8JtXdzb-EOXK2aD66M6mCZfWg2oAKG8bxnKT66gFB5TMGIpAU38FiguQmcraz0gZFyLSGubGyftN35-eVXxpKXB7jg6u9QKw7_Y5rVhESMZqnLr9BWXcw/s1600/Wordsworth02lores.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNymVUBZhl9Q-K6ivrj8JtXdzb-EOXK2aD66M6mCZfWg2oAKG8bxnKT66gFB5TMGIpAU38FiguQmcraz0gZFyLSGubGyftN35-eVXxpKXB7jg6u9QKw7_Y5rVhESMZqnLr9BWXcw/s510/Wordsworth02lores.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSk1XV5wYonQz16aDnqgglKlI7qsRIrW9YzGc1PzaFIXQQNuevA2_AAMhltSdUgnHpXFo8Oh1fnoKlhSuN2A_kPCoxLJMYp0m0qXE8sEoIWiXtUAERCRlab-mDImbEKH-QyD8UZQ/s1600/Wordsworth03lores.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSk1XV5wYonQz16aDnqgglKlI7qsRIrW9YzGc1PzaFIXQQNuevA2_AAMhltSdUgnHpXFo8Oh1fnoKlhSuN2A_kPCoxLJMYp0m0qXE8sEoIWiXtUAERCRlab-mDImbEKH-QyD8UZQ/s550/Wordsworth03lores.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgiX3hyphenhyphenDanr45pc7TlrysbzB3LIfDMsuEegbqMadHySltHwpX_xolVz2LgFIlJ9QOQz3WwWtgvUPbVSj1FL9U5UHtDFFIulM7f7n0Wy_TxEWVeehLGeiq9jr8RLfnw7d7mfw5_cw/s1600/Wordsworth04lores.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgiX3hyphenhyphenDanr45pc7TlrysbzB3LIfDMsuEegbqMadHySltHwpX_xolVz2LgFIlJ9QOQz3WwWtgvUPbVSj1FL9U5UHtDFFIulM7f7n0Wy_TxEWVeehLGeiq9jr8RLfnw7d7mfw5_cw/s510/Wordsworth04lores.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFUNR-FEawEoiUnwJIzV5SuYNDr7JhW_OZnh5DpVW-aubbr9WH9K8dswrqpA4fpis8Ehwqn2lWYfQH4mylyn6FOfAp94MCJp_WRgT7xPOZDBGJYEFyzU3nvXXokyqGwH7moEGzbw/s1600/Wordsworth05lores.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFUNR-FEawEoiUnwJIzV5SuYNDr7JhW_OZnh5DpVW-aubbr9WH9K8dswrqpA4fpis8Ehwqn2lWYfQH4mylyn6FOfAp94MCJp_WRgT7xPOZDBGJYEFyzU3nvXXokyqGwH7moEGzbw/s530/Wordsworth05lores.jpg" /></a>leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-89121091001431722532013-07-30T09:06:00.004-04:002013-07-30T09:06:41.247-04:00This Year's Plein Air Paintings - July TripI just got back from what's become an annual July sojourn for myself and a small group of artist friends: our annual July plein air painting trip to Whitefish Falls ON, in the LaCloche Mountains north of Manitoulin Island. We had fabulous weather and I got right to it - beginning with this block-in of the cabin that sits across the island from the one we stay in.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/9401395136/" title="Cabin12BlockIn by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3669/9401395136_62a68ea399_o.jpg" width="400" height="300" alt="Cabin12BlockIn"></a><br />
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I let this one dry for a few days before coming back to it. Meanwhile I made my second attempt in as many years at this driftwood log, which I discovered a few years ago on a rocky little peninsula just beyond our island. My first stab at this piece was a disaster and I ended up painting it over.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/9398605777/" title="DriftwoodLog by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7420/9398605777_5eca6c85de_o.jpg" width="400" height="296" alt="DriftwoodLog"></a> <br />
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This time I think I did a bit better, but it's still not quite a success. Maybe next year I'll try again...<br />
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Next day I blocked in my 3rd painting of the week; a new challenge for me: attempting to capture the transparency of water and what lies beneath it's surface.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/9398673899/" title="MotorBoatBlockIn by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7351/9398673899_be0c88b323_o.jpg" width="400" height="300" alt="MotorBoatBlockIn"></a><br />
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This ended up being my most successful painting of the week, I think. I'd managed to get the transparency to my satisfaction and was prepared to stop there... but our instructor, <a href="http://www.edwardsartstudios.com/">Richard Edwards</a>, came by and pointed out that the real challenge would be capturing not just the transparency, but also the reflection on the surface of the water that obscures some of the transparency. <br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/9401442424/" title="MotorBoat by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3700/9401442424_7f119914bb_o.jpg" width="400" height="300" alt="MotorBoat"></a><br />
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It took some nerve to paint in the cloud reflections. As I brought the brush down to begin covering some of the sunken logs and stones, I thought, <i>"This is where you ruin this painting."</i> But ultimately, it was an important step forward and I'm happy I took it. Progress!<br />
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Every year during our painting week we take a day trip to the foot of nearby Willisville Mountain. This year I ventured up the back trail that leads through a lush forest and eventually to the top of the mountain. My goal was to paint the sun-spangled forest floor of the trail - another new challenge for me - in the past I'd avoided scenes like this, too daunted at the thought of organizing all those tree trunks into a viable composition.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/9398615433/" title="Forest01 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3669/9398615433_5e1c6f6e39_o.jpg" width="400" height="300" alt="Forest01"></a><br />
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The solitude of my location was both resplendent and a little unnerving. There are bears in these woods and the whole time I was there, I kept waiting for the sound of heavy breathing over my shoulder. I smashed this piece out in about two hours and packed up double-quick. <br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/9401389152/" title="Forest02 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7290/9401389152_b1368601a6_o.jpg" width="400" height="290" alt="Forest02"></a><br />
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Next time I want to paint a forest scene, I think I'll find a nice spot near home. The only bears we get in the city are on Kraft peanut butter jars!<br />
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The last day on the island, I revisited my cabin painting block-in from early in the week. Here's how it turned out after a few hour's work.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/9401431696/" title="Cabin12 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5515/9401431696_a9617b4600_o.jpg" width="400" height="533" alt="Cabin12"></a><br />
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leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-59945687367392882362013-02-11T09:35:00.002-05:002013-02-11T09:35:57.832-05:00Some Classic Gouache Pin-Up PaintingsA few years ago I got very interested in 1950s pin-up art. One of the best illustrators working in that genre was Mike Ludlow, who painted the 1957 Esquire magazine pin-up calendar. Here's a page from that year...<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/99881956/" title="Ludlow04.jpg by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm1.staticflickr.com/27/99881956_293c7c9de1_b.jpg" width="400" height="612" alt="Ludlow04.jpg"></a><br />
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I studied Ludlow's painting technique and then gave it a try myself. Gouache is a tough medium but also a lot of fun. Here's the result of my first effort...<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/8464271649/" title="redstripes by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8390/8464271649_f923e4a4ff_b.jpg" width="400" height="512" alt="redstripes"></a><br />
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I'm hoping to get back to doing some more of these -- check back soon!leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-83952618824701625092013-02-04T09:35:00.001-05:002013-02-04T09:35:28.079-05:00My Kawaii PaintingsA few years ago I became really interested in a type of cartooning called <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kawaii">"kawaii"</a>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/357227009/" title="greeneyescat02.JPG by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm1.staticflickr.com/165/357227009_93a58c2047_o.jpg" width="400" height="517" alt="greeneyescat02.JPG"></a>
This little green-eyed cat is my favourite, but I did a bunch of other paintings which you can see in <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/sets/1507328/">a set on Flickr</a>leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-13238186512322636012013-01-14T10:18:00.000-05:002013-01-14T10:18:29.591-05:00Marshall the Magnificent!Here's a little painting I did as a Christmas gift. It's our cat, Marshall, as a Luchador.
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/8380832470/" title="MarshallMagnifico by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8498/8380832470_5eab608200_o.jpg" width="400" height="504" alt="MarshallMagnifico"></a>
I did two of these paintings and they were so well received when I posted them on Facebook that people started commissioning me to do similar paintings of their cats!leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-82333634660765274572012-08-11T08:56:00.001-04:002012-08-11T08:56:18.714-04:00Plein Air Paintings from the Summer of 2012Once again this year a bunch of us artist friends went up to Whitefish Falls, Ontario, in the heart of the LaCloche Mountains, to paint <i>'en plain air.'</i> We stayed at on the island at Bayvilla Lodge...
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/7758455080/" title="Cabin Nine by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8305/7758455080_bc9245fd7d_o.jpg" width="400" height="300" alt="Cabin Nine"></a>
... which has so many lovely views of the surrounding landscape!
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/7758454454/" title="The Island by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8447/7758454454_8fd0f74bcf_o.jpg" width="400" height="120" alt="The Island"></a>
But sometimes you needn't look to the horizon for beauty... sometimes it's as close as the parking lot, which is where I sat one afternoon and painted this:
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/7733710326/" title="BayvillaCabin by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7131/7733710326_a8bb78db3e_o.jpg" width="400" height="636" alt="BayvillaCabin"></a>
Just down the road from the lodge is a wonderfully ramshackle old garage. On the Tuesday of that week I took all my gear down to a shady grove across the road from that building. Three hours later, I had this piece mostly done...
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/7733710088/" title="FarquharsonsShack by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7275/7733710088_0d9fb42af3_o.jpg" width="400" height="267" alt="FarquharsonsShack"></a>
Backing up, on the Monday of our week in Whitefish Falls I started a painting of the bay inlet - a view from right outside our cabin on the little island...
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/7758406446/" title="First Painting, Part 1 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7263/7758406446_898b550d7b_o.jpg" width="400" height="300" alt="First Painting, Part 1"></a>
<i>Above, sketching the scene in paint - below, laying in broad swathes of colour with a palette knife...</i>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/7758406088/" title="First Painting, Part 2 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8294/7758406088_c9baccdb18_o.jpg" width="400" height="300" alt="First Painting, Part 2"></a>
<i>... and brush...</i>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/7758405530/" title="First Painting, Part 3 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8444/7758405530_2b19bd9aae_o.jpg" width="400" height="300" alt="First Painting, Part 3"></a>
After about 3 hours, I arrived at a satisfactory conclusion... well, not exactly "satisfactory." Although I wasn't unhappy with how I'd blocked in the scene, the full daylight look just wasn't working for me. So I turned this painting to the wall.
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/7758405142/" title="First Painting, Part 4 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7279/7758405142_d84287fb02_o.jpg" width="400" height="300" alt="First Painting, Part 4"></a>
That evening we enjoyed a most spectacular sunset. This is the scene I felt I really wanted to portray! I returned to this painting on our last day in Whitefish Falls and painted it over from the memory of that sunset.
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/7733709790/" title="InletSunset by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8432/7733709790_8a0c2cc717_o.jpg" width="400" height="253" alt="InletSunset"></a>
One other painting came out of our week in Whitefish Falls; this "View to the Willisville Mountain," also as seen from just outside our cabin on the island - except turning to look more to the North.
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/7758457176/" title="ViewToWillisvilleMountain by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8440/7758457176_bb1cbbbe76_o.jpg" width="400" height="391" alt="ViewToWillisvilleMountain"></a>
Returning home to Hamilton, I still had the plein air painting bug. One spot I'd wanted to paint for a couple of years now is a farm at the corner of Puslinch Townline Rd and Victoria Rd. So one evening I drove out there and set up in the corner of the farmer's field.
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/7733711192/" title="VictoriaRdPleinAir by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8428/7733711192_a2de7abb32_o.jpg" width="400" height="320" alt="VictoriaRdPleinAir"></a>
The following weekend I travelled back up north for my annual fishing trip with a great group of pals. I spent the Friday night at my buddy Mike's cottage, and that provided the perfect opportunity to do a little painting!
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/7735980178/" title="PaintingtheSharmaShack by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8431/7735980178_ebca22bd09_o.jpg" width="400" height="268" alt="PaintingtheSharmaShack"></a>
Mike has done so much for me over the years that I was delighted to be able to present him with a small token of my appreciation: this painting of his cottage, which he seemed really pleased to receive.
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/7735979996/" title="SharmShack by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8293/7735979996_aee108263a_o.jpg" width="400" height="301" alt="SharmShack"></a>
Travelling further on up north to the Oxtongue River, to our friend Wade's family cottage, where we have held the fishing derby for many years now, I spent about eight hours over two days painting in a little grove of pine and hemlock trees. This view of the Lovell family cottage is the result.
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/7740283066/" title="WadesCottage by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8430/7740283066_7e191d666d_o.jpg" width="400" height="225" alt="WadesCottage"></a>
And finally, upon returning home to Hamilton once more, I painted this view of a storm sewer - that's right, a storm sewer. It's in a tiny, forgotten meadow near here... so jarring to see it in the middle of such a beautiful, natural environment... I've wanted to paint it since last year. Last Tuesday I did!
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/7747295252/" title="MeadowStormSewer by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8308/7747295252_62dfd6c5f0_o.jpg" width="400" height="298" alt="MeadowStormSewer"></a>
Today (Saturday August 11th) I'll be bringing these paintings and quite a few others I painted last summer to the Locke St. Art Market, <a href="http://www.bing.com/maps/default.aspx?v=2&pc=FACEBK&mid=8100&where1=211+Locke+Street+South%2C+Hamilton%2C+Ontario&FORM=FBKPL0&name=Art++on+Locke+Street&mkt=en-US">211 Locke Street South, Hamilton, Ontario</a>
If you're in the area and have some time, please drop by and say hello!leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-57097349819209012172012-03-09T15:47:00.000-05:002012-03-09T15:47:33.524-05:00A New SiRobot Painting<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Here's a little digital painting I did a couple of weeks ago based on Simon's robot character design.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6896439673/" title="SiGuyRobotPainting.sm by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="SiGuyRobotPainting.sm" height="482" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7067/6896439673_faacd1855c_o.jpg" width="385" /></a><br />
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I did this in about two hours in Corel Painter. Hope you like it!</div>leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-75973259702212324342012-02-12T19:19:00.000-05:002012-02-12T19:19:20.996-05:00Super Simon Sunday: Robots & Ogres!Its been quite some time since I posted any of Simon's work. For those of you who were wondering, <i>"I wonder what Simon's been drawing lately?"</i> Well, here are some recent drawings.
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6866136901/" title="SiGuyRobot by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7201/6866136901_1036edd9b3_b.jpg" width="400" height="310" alt="SiGuyRobot"></a>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6866136567/" title="SiGuyOgre by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7063/6866136567_5c17473b34_o.jpg" width="400" height="597" alt="SiGuyOgre"></a>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6866137335/" title="SiGuyTopHatCyclops by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7195/6866137335_fd44419ff2_o.jpg" width="400" height="544" alt="SiGuyTopHatCyclops"></a>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6866135921/" title="SiGuyLosRobots by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7203/6866135921_397c57c86a_o.jpg" width="400" height="506" alt="SiGuyLosRobots"></a>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6866135557/" title="SiGuyBowlerTongue by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7049/6866135557_50d97dc916_o.jpg" width="400" height="473" alt="SiGuyBowlerTongue"></a>leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-25745852833287789482012-02-10T15:51:00.005-05:002016-01-22T09:23:27.405-05:00A New Magazine Cover Illustration<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">This month I was commissioned to do a cover for <i>Mac Times</i> magazine, McMaster University's Alumni Association magazine.<br />
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The client asked that I create something that would convey the idea of many generations of a family being McMaster graduates. They mentioned that a "family tree" of graduates was something they'd like to suggest... so here are a couple of thumbnail concepts I came up with based on that theme.<br />
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They liked the one on the left.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6853122753/" title="TimesRoughs by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="TimesRoughs" height="276" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7167/6853122753_9e9fb9a7c7_b.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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One sunny Sunday last autumn I had taken a bunch of photos while out walking the dog over at the golf course, and these photos served as inspiration and visual reference for the look I had in mind for this illustration. <br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-MM5g6Mb46-intpwLB8HuHz5TUC-vuOuLDUQAhvsk4dDYekg5L_Mxv-DIzrV1B4efFr75Y73Ulx4QHhdPALXeLCYTWFMNCb1a63SCvxiM921Voli5rbpKMyH9REr45JfUjCRXNA/s1600/Chedoke02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-MM5g6Mb46-intpwLB8HuHz5TUC-vuOuLDUQAhvsk4dDYekg5L_Mxv-DIzrV1B4efFr75Y73Ulx4QHhdPALXeLCYTWFMNCb1a63SCvxiM921Voli5rbpKMyH9REr45JfUjCRXNA/s640/Chedoke02.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>I really wanted to try to get a bit of that gorgeous <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/sets/72057594070673618/with/3856749303/">Bernie Fuchs</a> "sunlight filtered through leaves' quality in this illustration. When I Google Image Searched Bernie Fuchs, this image came up.<br />
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Perfect. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVCRM9YhcpMiRtZZJ1p5qQkH7eVIAuX-kNZV1JZH2g96JE7esRH6GKLP6zndX1BuJ93hD8oQS_vzzQEHNVIfDvVO-bnHhOn2PNgxjaTpWvQ_kMg1I9MRGYqIdn-tjrp6wNVVisJA/s1600/Fuchs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="524" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVCRM9YhcpMiRtZZJ1p5qQkH7eVIAuX-kNZV1JZH2g96JE7esRH6GKLP6zndX1BuJ93hD8oQS_vzzQEHNVIfDvVO-bnHhOn2PNgxjaTpWvQ_kMg1I9MRGYqIdn-tjrp6wNVVisJA/s640/Fuchs.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>I began roughly painting the base colours in Corel Painter. I used the Oil Pastel tool to lay in the beginning of my colour scheme.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6853122817/" title="step02 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="step02" height="519" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7046/6853122817_e8a04f1ee0_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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Here's how it looked after I'd 'painted' in the base colours, building up some tonal contrast.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6853122879/" title="step03 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="step03" height="518" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7011/6853122879_084473fc0e_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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Next I began adding filtered light (<i>à la Bernie Fuchs</i>)...<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6853122941/" title="step04 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="step04" height="529" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7010/6853122941_59341d1dda_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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... and textured the whole thing with one of my favourite Painter tools; the Scratchboard Rake.<br />
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Final touch: some "lens flare" effect (although NOT using an actual Effects filter - just oil pastel).<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6853123011/" title="step05 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="step05" height="526" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7171/6853123011_57fc7ea071_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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Here's the graduation cap (or "mortar board") painted in a separate file.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6853123091/" title="step06 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="step06" height="450" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7046/6853123091_5edbb5fdbf_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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The finished piece, after dragging in, resizing and rotating many copies of the mortar board.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6853123151/" title="step07 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="step07" height="548" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7026/6853123151_ac9f784995_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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Here's how the finished piece with text in place looked once the magazine was printed!</div><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhlQ5EX-oqS6afIOmfTgx0ytcJnViR8SzoczUoIGUzGYOwjvx5OKPG-PmGjqsct94cocQfXPO9OUmhrbdVtC3X81SG9W6yiNWvLKhmfXKZ8xEcPdGQjDzplUnboy7Yioso_eOoIw/s1600/MacTimes.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhlQ5EX-oqS6afIOmfTgx0ytcJnViR8SzoczUoIGUzGYOwjvx5OKPG-PmGjqsct94cocQfXPO9OUmhrbdVtC3X81SG9W6yiNWvLKhmfXKZ8xEcPdGQjDzplUnboy7Yioso_eOoIw/s400/MacTimes.jpg" /></a><br />
You can see more of my editorial art <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/sets/72157594190568338/">here</a> and some of the other magazine covers I've done are <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/sets/72157600171721044/">here</a>leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-3336530253054573202011-08-08T16:05:00.002-04:002011-08-08T16:54:52.763-04:00Painting 'en plein air'<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Last summer I went up to the LaCloche Mountains with some artist friends. We stayed in this little place called Whitefish Falls and spent a week painting 'en plein air.' Actually, my friends spent the week painting... I spent the week starting and abandoning paintings. By the last day I'd really produced almost nothing of value - and then I managed to squeak out these two small oil studies in one day.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6018106286/" title="Crabapple&Canoe by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="Crabapple&Canoe" height="318" src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6144/6018106286_e7e9a7e2c4_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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They were done when our group went out to Willisville to paint on location. I was actually pretty happy with them and wished we were staying longer. It was my first time painting landscapes, first time painting with oils... and because of my schedule back home in the real world, that was it ...<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6017557321/" title="CanadianFlagBoat by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="CanadianFlagBoat" height="332" src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6008/6017557321_62c7519497_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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... until last month, when we all went back to Whitefish Falls again! This time I was determined to sink my teeth into painting - inspired largely by the discovery of the work of Albert Pucci in a couple of old Grumbacher <i>"How to Paint..."</i> books I had found in a used bookstore earlier this summer (you can read about Albert Pucci on my other blog, <a href="http://todaysinspiration.blogspot.com/2011/05/albert-pucci-1920-2005.html">Today's Inspiration</a>). As well, I've been following the progress of a couple of friends, <a href="http://michaelcolemanley.blogspot.com/">Michael Cole Manley</a> and <a href="http://williamwray.blogspot.com/">William Wray</a>, who have been doing some fabulous, inspiring landscape paintings over the last couple of years.<br />
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Anyway, things started off quite well... on the first day I managed to get one painting done.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6021769853/" title="LeifPainting01 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="LeifPainting01" height="328" src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6130/6021769853_a68f2f366b_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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I spent about four hours on this, which was done mostly with palette knife, a technique I was really curious to try after reading the lessons in the Grumbacher books.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6021774645/" title="BayvillaGrounds by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="BayvillaGrounds" height="328" src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6203/6021774645_fd6602e8f6_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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Day two (Tuesday) and I'm starting on my second painting, using a burnt umber ground like the one Pucci uses in one of his lessons. Initially I included the bass boat you see just beyond my artboard... but I was struggling with this piece, getting more and more frustrated. Ultimately, my friends advised me the boat was the problem. They said the painting needed a dose of "Boat-be-gone."<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6022311604/" title="LeifPainting02 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="LeifPainting02" height="275" src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6079/6022311604_87f7ae0c14_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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So I scraped it out and went with just the natural features in the scene. This was met with hearty approval from my ' painting advisory committee' and I have to agree. Sometimes you need to edit your scene or else, as our instructor <a href="http://www.edwards-artstudios.com/">Richard Edwards</a> explained, you get a painting that actually has two or even three paintings crammed into it.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6021745459/" title="OurBay by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="OurBay" height="311" src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6206/6021745459_35d55fd8a8_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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I passed this old rusted bulldozer every day on my way to get the morning paper at the variety store. Finally, on Wed. morning I went out at 6 AM and sat down to paint it in the rising sunlight. By 9 AM the light was gone so I planned to come back the following morning and finish it - but we had cloudy weather both Thursday & Friday morning. I hope to still go back in and work on this further. Interestingly, it was particularly well-received by a lot of the husbands of the women who were in the painting class!<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6021764379/" title="Bulldozer by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="Bulldozer" height="320" src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6089/6021764379_20a3eef742_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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This is a tough read, I know... its the view of an old abandoned hydro generating station built right into the cliffside on the opposite shore of a waterfall (which is not visible in this angle). The cliff is made of multi-coloured stone and part of the back interior wall of the station is exposed cliff face. Very cool, but probably looks very odd in my painting.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6022301380/" title="WhitfishFallsHydroStation by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="WhitfishFallsHydroStation" height="312" src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6079/6022301380_5c6c7e98ae_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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We spent the morning on top of Willisville Mountain, which is to the left of this scene, picking wild blueberries. So I only had about an hour and a half to whip this up. Looking across toward the tiny hamlet of Willisville.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6021745055/" title="Willisville by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="Willisville" height="329" src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6189/6021745055_b49f026015_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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That was my last effort up in Whitfish Falls. The next day I drove to my friend Wade's family cottage, near Dwight, Ontario, on the Oxtongue River for our annual fishing derby. I painted the piece below over about three hours on the Saturday afternoon of that weekend.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/6022301528/" title="OxtongueRiver by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="OxtongueRiver" height="328" src="http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6148/6022301528_d8cfc46285_o.jpg" width="400" /></a>
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Oh yeah, and I won the derby!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5HIcPyNPQvkZCZ1ihqRyio79pNTuQZhvtCH3vXWIukKx92BAMbVmctKhyphenhyphen8BjbSADCWA7a0XXxVq7JEt0FYvoc2YFKCB6XPfc2cyNWXkYcYSBL2LT0vB8KuCsJdA3SR7XNS1-aMg/s1600/FishOn2011Winner.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="533" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5HIcPyNPQvkZCZ1ihqRyio79pNTuQZhvtCH3vXWIukKx92BAMbVmctKhyphenhyphen8BjbSADCWA7a0XXxVq7JEt0FYvoc2YFKCB6XPfc2cyNWXkYcYSBL2LT0vB8KuCsJdA3SR7XNS1-aMg/s640/FishOn2011Winner.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-84550589637537648892011-06-03T09:01:00.000-04:002011-06-03T09:01:51.927-04:00HBD to Me from Super SimonJune 1st was my 47th birthday. Super Simon presented me with this awesome birthday gift. Thanks Si!<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5793533674/" title="HBDtoMefromSi by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3161/5793533674_23a9b2b7f1_o.jpg" width="400" height="294" alt="HBDtoMefromSi"></a><br />
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I need to post more of Simon's recent work. Hope to do so soon!leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-77245402575157278732011-02-20T16:46:00.004-05:002011-02-20T17:05:05.075-05:00What IF...What IF... popular video game concepts had existed as paperback novel adventure series back in the '50s and '60s? I've been intrigued by the illustration styles and the graphic design of that era for some time now. Intrigued enough to want to try my hand at creating some mock vintage paperback covers of my own! Participating in <a href="http://illustrationfriday.com/">Illustration Friday</a> gave me the perfect opportunity to have some fun exploring the possibilities.<br />
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Here's my concept for the Illustration Friday word <i>"Dusty"</i>...<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5462900588/" title="IF.Dusty.LaraCvr.final by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5177/5462900588_dc1b2aaa9d_o.jpg" width="400" height="640" alt="IF.Dusty.LaraCvr.final" /></a><br />
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... and <i>"Surrender."</i><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5462880694/" title="IF.Surrender.cvr by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5135/5462880694_7e2cc67ddf_o.jpg" width="400" height="640" alt="IF.Surrender.cvr" /></a><br />
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I was struggling to get GTA 4 star Nico Bellic to look right at that angle - so I built a model in <a href="http://poser.smithmicro.com/dr/poser-right-nav.html">Corel Poser</a> to help me work up my initial sketch.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5462870694/" title="NikoBellicSteps by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5058/5462870694_1177804b52_o.jpg" width="400" height="192" alt="NikoBellicSteps" /></a><br />
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Now I'm working on the word <i>"Reverse"</i> (I know, I know, I'm, like, 3 weeks behind). <br />
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I've already got something in mind for the video game I'm going to mock up. I really want it to be a bit of an homage to <a href="http://www.flickr.com/groups/544453@N25/pool/page13/">the great Robert McGinnis' paperback covers</a>... <br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5462826148/" title="IF.Reverse.thumbs by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5256/5462826148_5467c82295_o.jpg" width="400" height="640" alt="IF.Reverse.thumbs" /></a><br />
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... and that means spending some time doing some drawings of gorgeous ladies. <br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5462224711/" title="IF.Reverse.girlstudy02 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5256/5462224711_8dacc19071_o.jpg" width="400" height="775" alt="IF.Reverse.girlstudy02" /></a><br />
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Oh, what a chore! ;^) For reference I used some old girlie magazines for these figure studies - just to - *ahem* - get the right period 'look', of course.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5462825880/" title="IF.Reverse.girlstudy01 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5093/5462825880_1447fd397f_o.jpg" width="400" height="640" alt="IF.Reverse.girlstudy01" /></a><br />
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I'm really going to take my time on this one, so check back now and then - I'll be adding more drawings as I work my way through the development of this piece.<br />
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* More of my Illustration Friday pictures <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/sets/72157594174407345/with/5462825880/">here</a>.leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-19011548241753958672011-01-31T09:43:00.000-05:002011-01-31T09:43:02.740-05:00IF "Chicken"This time around the word for <a href="http://www.illustrationfriday.com/">Illustration Friday</a> was "Chicken." Since I've decided to build up portfolio of video game-related artwork I racked my brain trying to come up with something fun that involved chickens.<br />
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Simon reminded me of <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GlzxyeteJRE&feature=fvst">the chicken attack in Zelda.</a> Perfect!<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5383879301/" title="IF.Chicken.sm by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5212/5383879301_b568dd4c07_o.jpg" width="400" height="250" alt="IF.Chicken.sm" /></a><br />
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I remember watching the boys when they were young, playing Zelda - and how weird it was to see Link being chased around by a bunch of chickens. So here it is - my version of a Chicken Attack from Legend of Zelda!<br />
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More of my <a href="http://www.illustrationfriday.com/">Illustration Friday</a> images here.leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-88022619205375180512011-01-18T13:56:00.000-05:002011-01-18T13:56:48.136-05:00Super Meat Boy Wallpaper for Desktop & iPhoneI've had some requests for wallpaper of this <a href="http://supermeatboy.com/">Super Meat Boy</a> illustration I did last week, so here it is - thanks for the compliments!<br />
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Someone asked for 1920 x 1200... just click and then drag it to your desktop.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMVjDNzpGnBwq1XfSriqm0qgg9FXewkKSCFLky2TZbO6jp6i09vhKZezyykWIIkhc5lNxZTGH0eWhMAAzOCimkHRYdQV-iit4t3nYVYkj2AbiyuB1laeEzgrCjkG7dlF7Iu4t-sA/s1600/SMBwallpaper.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="250" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMVjDNzpGnBwq1XfSriqm0qgg9FXewkKSCFLky2TZbO6jp6i09vhKZezyykWIIkhc5lNxZTGH0eWhMAAzOCimkHRYdQV-iit4t3nYVYkj2AbiyuB1laeEzgrCjkG7dlF7Iu4t-sA/s400/SMBwallpaper.jpg" /></a></div><br />
... and I made a version for iPhones too!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3MaFeEvNXc5c-RhN5OO4q16MIlk7jN-9wcuItY4fnYfK5CVTzE_suM-sfheK7dQlwchcEnCdWJSfVpsQoBAhWg8hjjOZsZ2uHo786-lMd_WcfzB7uu7gseMLMcS-gYZf14O70-g/s1600/SMBiPhoneWallpaper.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="400" width="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3MaFeEvNXc5c-RhN5OO4q16MIlk7jN-9wcuItY4fnYfK5CVTzE_suM-sfheK7dQlwchcEnCdWJSfVpsQoBAhWg8hjjOZsZ2uHo786-lMd_WcfzB7uu7gseMLMcS-gYZf14O70-g/s400/SMBiPhoneWallpaper.jpg" /></a></div><br />
Edmund and Tommy at <a href="http://supermeatboy.com/">Team Meat</a>, the creators of Super Meat Boy, both sent me nice notes that they liked my illustration - many thanks, guys!<br />
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Visit <a href="http://supermeatboy.com/">the Super Meat Boy blog</a><br />
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SMB is © Team Meat.leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-61798050962512076162011-01-16T20:16:00.000-05:002011-01-16T20:16:54.359-05:00Illustration Friday: Deja Vu!Have you heard of <a href="http://supermeatboy.com/">Super Meat Boy</a>? My son, Simon, has been playing the video game like crazy recently. I'm not a gamer myself - but I've watched Simon play quite a bit and I have to admit, its a pretty wild concept. Its hard to drag your eyes away from the carnage of a little red cube of meat being slaughtered in a splash of blood over and over as he tries to dodge all manner of deadly buzzing saws.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5362290678/" title="IF.DejaVu.detail by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5041/5362290678_1d3391f51a_o.jpg" width="400" height="400" alt="IF.DejaVu.detail" /></a><br />
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When I looked at last week's Illustration Friday word, "deja vu", it made me think of <a href="http://supermeatboy.com/">Super Meat Boy</a>... how he must surely experience a feeling of deja vu each time he leaps and zips past the blood stains left behind by his earlier incarnations.<br />
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Does he have a vague feeling of distress... does he realize he's been by here before and <i>didn't</i> succeed in rescuing Bandage Girl... ?<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5361498281/" title="IF.DejaVu by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5047/5361498281_6888a03a0c_o.jpg" width="400" height="309" alt="IF.DejaVu" /></a><br />
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More of my Illustration Friday illustrations <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/sets/72157594174407345/with/5361498281/">here</a>.leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-80439096987478492662010-11-28T21:16:00.000-05:002010-11-28T21:16:04.237-05:00A Textbook (Art) ExampleEarlier this year I did a whole pile of illustrations for a textbook series on vehicles and transportation. A WHOLE pile!<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5216604114/" title="AirplaneGroup by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="AirplaneGroup" height="368" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4108/5216604114_6d54f288db_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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All of these vehicles illustrations were done as spots, to be inserted in various places along with text and photos. But to make things a little more interesting for presentation here on my blog, I decided to mock them up as imaginary covers. So don't bother looking for these at the library or in your six year old's knapsack. (I just made 'em up)<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5216016411/" title="TractorsGroup by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="TractorsGroup" height="411" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5050/5216016411_091a4e0e9a_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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Normally I don't really love drawing vehicles because, *ahem*, I'm not very good at mechanical objects. But this came by way of a designer friend who specifically asked me to do them and I was looking for a little freelance to do on the weekends and evenings between teaching my classes. <br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5216016575/" title="FarmGroup by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="FarmGroup" height="368" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4108/5216016575_3db162eb80_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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And as I worked on them, I was so happy with how they were turning out that it actually became quite a fun assignment.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5216604576/" title="HelicoptersGroup by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="HelicoptersGroup" height="368" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5010/5216604576_0bb0cb667c_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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Believe it or not, all of these vector-looking illustrations were done in Corel Painter. Why? Because I'm not an Illustrator illustrator. I've been using Painter for a few years now and find it quite versatile. I know, I know, I really, <i>really</i> need to learn how to use Illustrator. I've just been, you know... a little busy lately.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5216604792/" title="TanksGroup by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="TanksGroup" height="368" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5123/5216604792_5cc3f51fc6_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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Right now I'm working on another giant batch of vehicles for a new series of textbooks from the same client, so this seemed like the right time to show off the last batch.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5216017157/" title="FiretrucksGroup by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="FiretrucksGroup" height="368" src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5003/5216017157_0a2a1f7183_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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Hope you like 'em! Let me know what you think!leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-47103152961533237572010-11-21T07:54:00.000-05:002010-11-21T07:59:21.220-05:00Seven Spots for the Medical PostHere's a job that arrived on a Friday afternoon and had to be done on Monday morning: seven spots for the Medical Post. That's a LOT of art to complete in just two days, but I didn't have anything planned that weekend so... what the heck!<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5193417686/" title="BrainInjury.flat by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4089/5193417686_ac6ef32e0a_o.jpg" width="400" height="403" alt="BrainInjury.flat" /></a><br />
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These first few are my favourites because I was able to devise these sort of interesting contrasting visual elements of the 'infographic' style juxtaposed with the more painterly style of the small figures. In retrospect, I wish I'd used this devise throughout the entire series, but "them's the breaks" when you're cranking stuff out at speed, I guess... <br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5192820285/" title="BehaviourEconomics.flat by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4112/5192820285_0634983493_o.jpg" width="400" height="403" alt="BehaviourEconomics.flat" /></a><br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5192819487/" title="VirtualPractice.flat by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4132/5192819487_d1e0186eef_o.jpg" width="400" height="403" alt="VirtualPractice.flat" /></a><br />
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One thing I <b>am</b> really happy about is the handmade paper background element I used throughout. I think it works well as a nice unifying visual device - and is a little more interesting than the typical flat colour treatment you see in most infographics. I felt that by adding something 'organic' to the mix it would balance images that otherwise could end up with a very cold, technical look because of the the line art style.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5192820025/" title="GroupVisits.flat by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4104/5192820025_81babfa0f9_o.jpg" width="400" height="403" alt="GroupVisits.flat" /></a><br />
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Yeah, I know this one looks very odd. Apparently doctors are using honey to treat burns. Go figure!<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5193417442/" title="Honey.flat by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4113/5193417442_45463ab283_o.jpg" width="400" height="403" alt="Honey.flat" /></a><br />
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All of these were printed at about 3" by 3", in case you're wondering. Not too small, but small enough to best be served by a simple style, which is why the AD asked for this bold line style I used. <br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5193417178/" title="MedAbbApps.flat by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4083/5193417178_98b4170734_o.jpg" width="400" height="403" alt="MedAbbApps.flat" /></a><br />
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This last one with the six-pack was added late in the game and without any concept sketch from me - just a quick email describing what was wanted. Because of the subject matter it feels to me a bit out of place with the rest of the spots, but I did like how it turned out. <br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5192819743/" title="MaxPacking.flat by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4131/5192819743_7b4ddbf09b_o.jpg" width="400" height="403" alt="MaxPacking.flat" /></a><br />
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So there you have it -- seven spots for the Medical Post!leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-50614684137791927252010-09-19T13:41:00.000-04:002010-09-19T13:42:30.648-04:00The Return of SuperSimonSundays!!!After a long summer of endless hours in a horizontal position on the couch in the back room, Playstation controller firmly affixed to both hands, Super Si returns to school, to his Grade 11 Entrepreneurship Class, to bring you...<br />
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<b>Le Cat Machine!</b><br />
written and illustrated by Simon Peng<br />
© 2010 SuperSi Enterprises (Patent pending)<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5005165590/" title="LeCatMachine01a by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="LeCatMachine01a" height="381" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4092/5005165590_e7e412aece_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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The cat died!<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5004554141/" title="LeCatMachine01b by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="LeCatMachine01b" height="304" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4104/5004554141_40a136cc46_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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What to do...?<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5005165430/" title="LeCatMachine02 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="LeCatMachine02" height="303" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4129/5005165430_2902a43a6b_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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Recycle it?<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5004535375/" title="LeCatMachine02a by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="LeCatMachine02a" height="527" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4150/5004535375_c09dde28e7_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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Hide it under a cardboard box...?<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5004535197/" title="LeCatMachine02b by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="LeCatMachine02b" height="331" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4134/5004535197_a7d2b05977_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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Stash it in the neighbour's mailbox?<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5004535091/" title="LeCatMachine02c by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="LeCatMachine02c" height="506" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4128/5004535091_3db1147491_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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Make an attractive hand-crafted dead cat head pendant???<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5004534809/" title="LeCatMachine02d by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="LeCatMachine02d" height="596" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4084/5004534809_02957f8398_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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Introducing <b>"Le Cat Machine!"</b> (plugs into any standard home outlet)<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5005146124/" title="LeCatMachine03 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="LeCatMachine03" height="329" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4106/5005146124_885e0e6f0e_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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Simply take your dead stinking cat and place it on the handy conveyor belt...<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5005145692/" title="LeCatMachine04 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="LeCatMachine04" height="243" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4092/5005145692_20134d113c_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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Press the start button...<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5005145440/" title="LeCatMachine05 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="LeCatMachine05" height="241" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4127/5005145440_bd99bbcfa8_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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... and voilà! A tasty burger!<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5005145072/" title="LeCatMachine06 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="LeCatMachine06" height="259" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4131/5005145072_e663424234_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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"Le Cat Machine" - for all your dead cat needs - only $49.00!<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/5004533169/" title="LeCatMachine07 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="LeCatMachine07" height="463" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4089/5004533169_38ef356136_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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(plus shipping and handling)leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-72277437270234939732010-09-11T20:07:00.000-04:002010-09-13T11:09:26.929-04:00Promotional IllustrationsI've been <a href="http://www.mohawkcollege.ca/LearnFromExperience/Leif.html">an instructor in the Graphic Design program at Mohawk College</a> since January, 2010. Check out the full program description <a href="http://www.mohawkcollege.ca/calendar/gdpCreative.html">here</a>. <br />
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This semester I'm teaching <a href="http://promotionalillustrations.blogspot.com/">a course called "Promotional Illustrations</a>," something I'm <b>very</b> familiar with.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4983698001/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="DermabondColouringBk.Cvr by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="DermabondColouringBk.Cvr" height="523" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4104/4983698001_434ffc5039_o.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dermabond promotional colouring book</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
Doing illustrations - both concept and finished art - related to the promotion of products or services has always been a major component of my work.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4983698093/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Coke.CounterCard by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="Coke.CounterCard" height="389" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4086/4983698093_ab33d7c372_o.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coke contest counter card</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
For the benefit of my class ( and for anyone else who might be interested ) I thought I'd show a few of the projects that have passed across my drawing board in the last 20 years.<br />
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<b>Promotional Concept Illustrations</b><br />
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As a storyboard/concept/layout artist, I'm often called upon to draw up ideas generated by art directors at marketing and promotions companies. Now, unlike the assignments my students are working on, I can't take any credit for coming up with these concepts. The ADs who hired me did the (often clever, sometimes not) thinking and called upon me to visualize what their concept would look like for the purpose of presenting it to their client.<br />
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Sometimes the artwork is about as close to utilitarian as you can imagine. These drawings for a South Park poster dump bin...<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4980523804/" title="RogersDisplayUnitDumpbin by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="RogersDisplayUnitDumpbin" height="400" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4152/4980523804_56e7469661_o.jpg" width="375" /></a><br />
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... and for a video store end-aisle merchandiser...<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4979915655/" title="RogersDisplayUnit02 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="RogersDisplayUnit02" height="400" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4103/4979915655_592d1147e9_o.jpg" width="375" /></a><br />
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... are intended to do nothing more than explain to the video chain store's executives what their store would look like with South Park merchandise in it. <br />
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Yes, business people are sometime so visually inept that they need something this obvious to 'get it'!<br />
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Here's another concept illustration for an in-store promotion -- this time for Absolut Mango Vodka. Here the promo concept is much more clever: the AD proposes that the grocery store chain replace their regular hanging weigh scales near the fresh fruit section (where the mangos would be kept, right?) with weigh scales shaped like a silhouette of an Absolut Vodka bottle. Clever.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4980524230/" title="Absolute.GroceryStore by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="Absolute.GroceryStore" height="308" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4112/4980524230_7c2a29a7b4_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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And to compliment the promotion, he devised an oversized plastic "dome" shaped like an Absolute bottle to be placed over the mangos, with an oval 'doorway' cut into it so you can reach in and grab a mango. Nice!<br />
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Because this was ( as usual ) needed at double-quick speed, I used some found photography as a background element for the drawing. You wouldn't be able to do this if you were producing finished art for publication, but in the hyper-fast paced world of advertising presentation art, you use whatever trick will get a decent looking visual to the client meeting on deadline!<br />
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Below, a few fun Absolut Mango promo items the AD asked me to visualize for him: a shrink-wrapped mango pit ready for planting (instructions on the mango tree-shaped hang tag), a mango-shaped bar coaster, and a couple of those little gel caps you put in water that grow something after 24 hours, in this case, a mango tree or an actual mango.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4979916305/" title="Absolute.PromoItems by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="Absolute.PromoItems" height="291" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4127/4979916305_6b814ef763_b.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
All these items would have been branded with Absolut Mango Vodka logos before being presented at the client meeting, of course.<br />
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Next up, a couple of promotional merchandise ideas for the launch of the Porche Cayenne. The keychain in the shape of a cayenne pepper seems like a natural...<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4980523936/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Porche. PromoKeychain.Bib by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="Porche. PromoKeychain.Bib" height="640" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4106/4980523936_00af04296d_o.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>... but what's with the bib? The AD's idea was to suggest that, once you get a look at the new Porche Cayenne, you won't be able to stop drooling (the merch would be personalized with the dealer's name, in this case, <a href="http://pfaff.porschedealer.com/">Pfaff Porche in Woodbridge, Ontario</a>).<br />
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Below, some promo merch concepts for Molson's. This stuff wasn't even for public consumption - this promo was intended for a weekend getaway at a Mexican resort for beer reps! <br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4979915781/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Molson.PromoApparel by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="Molson.PromoApparel" height="640" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4149/4979915781_c4aa1552f9_o.jpg" width="305" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">(Incidentally, I was also commissioned to design the little devil mascot that appeared throughout this promo)</div><br />
And finally, some drawings for a promo "event marketing" concept: a mobile Carlberg beer garden.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4980524014/" title="Carlsberg01.sm by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="Carlsberg01.sm" height="106" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4112/4980524014_08c01f7ed7_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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The idea here is that you put a bar in a trailer and pull it to various festivals and outdoor events. Everything folds right out and - voila! - instant bar!<br />
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(Again, keep in mind that these illustrations would have been branded with Carlsberg logos before the agency showed them to the client. The reason you don't see that in these drawings is because the art director said he'd take care of it in-house)<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4980524090/" title="Carlsberg02.sm by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="Carlsberg02.sm" height="258" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4113/4980524090_d8f2accf46_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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Also, remember that all of the drawings above are "concept drawings" only - never to be published - only for client meeting presentation, and thus not required to be finished to the same degree as artwork that would actually be viewed by the consumer market.<br />
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Some examples of the promotional illustrations I've done that <i>were</i> ultimately printed are coming up just below...<br />
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<b>Promotional Finished Art Illustrations</b><br />
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</b><br />
Flyers, coupons, P.O.P. material, promo t-shirts; they all need visuals to help the client promote their goods or services. Sometimes those visuals are photography or graphics ( like logos and such ) - but in many cases the ideal visual will be an illustration. Over the years I've done more promotional illustrations than I can possibly recall. <br />
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Below, an illustration for Heinz ketchup that was used for an in-store backer card, if I remember correctly. From the looks of that cartridge Mario is holding, many of you who were avid gamers while growing up will appreciate that this piece was done a loooong time ago! Unfortunately I rarely get printed samples from my clients once I've delivered the art so I don't have any type elements to remind me what the heck this was for. A contest to win a free Super Mario game, I think... <br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4980552442/" title="Mario-Heintz.POP by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="Mario-Heintz.POP" height="324" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4150/4980552442_63ed9ede70_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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Here's another backer card, this time for a Nestle's Quik promo where you got a free glass with purchase (the glass would have had some Quik Bunny artwork on it before this went to the printer)...<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4980552356/" title="Quik.HeaderCard by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="Quik.HeaderCard" height="160" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4127/4980552356_130b780da2_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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This is a good example of the important role illustration can play in the promotion of a product. Even though photography could have been used for the image of the clear glasses in the bunny's hands, the client wanted to retain an element of "illustrative realism" to connect the glass more effectively with the bunny.<br />
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And yet another Nestle's Quik promotion: three on-pack Quik Bunny comics I produced for a marketing and promotions company back in the 1990s.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4980552310/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Quik.PromoComic by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="Quik.PromoComic" height="400" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4125/4980552310_4be0fb0589_o.jpg" width="321" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div>These were digest-sized comics/activity booklets shrink-wrapped right onto boxes of Nestle's Quik chocolate powder ("Collect all three!")<br />
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Promotional comics have been popular for most of the last hundred years - and over the last twenty years, I've done quite a few for advertising clients and charitable organizations.</div><div><br />
</div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4979944757/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Poptech.PromoComic by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="Poptech.PromoComic" height="321" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4107/4979944757_6e145eccdb_o.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
<br />
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>The example above is unique in my portfolio because it wasn't done for the consumer market. This comic was done for a cardboard engineering and manufacturing company and sent out as a "business-to-business" promotion.</div><div><br />
</div><div>Similarly, the mouse pad below was created for a pharmaceutical company and used as a "B-2-B" promotional item.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4980552134/" title="E-ManMousepad by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="E-ManMousepad" height="356" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4128/4980552134_cd46fe980f_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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Here's another backer card that was used for an in-store display, this time for Lay's.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4980551964/" title="Chester01 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="Chester01" height="144" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4116/4980551964_afa20d3826_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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And at last, a printed sample! A tent card for Campbell's Soup with all the type elements in place.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4980551884/" title="*1537 Tent_Card_SOUP-r2 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="*1537 Tent_Card_SOUP-r2" height="208" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4085/4980551884_a76f4330e0_o.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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Incidentally, I also did the character design for these veggies, which were turned into plush toys for the purpose of the promotion.<br />
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And finally, one of the most unique promo's I've ever had the privilege of working on: a limited edition Kokanee beer snowboard that was given away as the prize in a promotional contest.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4981161226/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="KokaneeSasquatch.bottom by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="KokaneeSasquatch.bottom" height="400" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4087/4981161226_b87f5cc9cc_o.jpg" width="384" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The bottom...</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4980555919/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="KokaneeSasquatch.top by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img alt="KokaneeSasquatch.top" height="400" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4132/4980555919_5823fe25a1_o.jpg" width="386" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...and the top.<br />
<br />
<br />
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Hope you enjoyed these examples and I hope they gave you some ideas for your assignments. Feel free to leave comments or ask questions!<br />
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</div>leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-24849871321731460072010-09-04T08:45:00.000-04:002010-09-05T14:05:05.200-04:0010 Years Ago, Right Now: My Pokémon AdventureTen years ago right now I was in the middle of drawing a huge series of <span style="font-style:italic;">Pokémon</span> storybook illustrations. My Pokémon adventure had begun about a year earlier with a ton of black and white line drawings for Golden Books' colouring book division.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4956881582/" title="PokeCBdisplay by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4083/4956881582_d74c8828fc_b.jpg" width="400" height="259" alt="PokeCBdisplay" /></a><br /><br />Those of you who, like me, had young kids at the time ( or maybe <span style="font-weight:bold;">were</span> young kids at the time! ) will probably remember what a massive pop culture presence <span style="font-style:italic;">Pokémon</span> had for a few years around the turn of the millennium. Starting with the cards ( which were quickly banned at my - and many others - kids' school), the weekday afternoon animated tv show and, in pretty short order, a feature length animated movie (and sequel).<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4956872492/" title="PokeCBInterior01 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4116/4956872492_452127c5be_o.jpg" width="400" height="453" alt="PokeCBInterior01" /></a><br /><br />All of this meant that a huge amount of artwork had to be generated and Nintendo's animation studio, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OLM,_Inc.">OLM, Inc.</a>, simply couldn't keep up with the demand from all the world-wide licensees. When Golden Books needed several hundred pages of b/w line art for their <span style="font-style:italic;">Pokémon</span> colouring book series and wanted them tailored to their specific editorial directions, Nintendo relented and allowed (apparently for the first time) some outside artists to test for the project. Five of those tested were deemed acceptable. I was one of them.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4956281867/" title="PokeCBInterior02 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4073/4956281867_e496bd8839_o.jpg" width="400" height="481" alt="PokeCBInterior02" /></a><br /><br />This is only a tiny fraction of the total number of pages I had to crank out - and I mean at speed! I think I did 40 pages over a weekend on one occasion... <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4956282033/" title="PokeCBInterior03 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4128/4956282033_221626bac2_o.jpg" width="400" height="520" alt="PokeCBInterior03" /></a><br /><br />If I remember correctly, I think I got a hundred dollars a page, which was, at that point in my career, the cheapest I'd ever worked. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4956873020/" title="PokeCBInterior04 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4126/4956873020_648cb4b0b9_o.jpg" width="400" height="367" alt="PokeCBInterior04" /></a><br /><br />But work is work and I figured I'd make it up on volume.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4956282447/" title="PokeCBInterior05 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4107/4956282447_f4cb008629_o.jpg" width="400" height="499" alt="PokeCBInterior05" /></a><br /><br />Besides, my sons were at that age where <span style="font-style:italic;">Pokémon</span> was HUGE in their lives... and who doesn't want their kids to be impressed with what they do for a living?<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4956873426/" title="PokeCBInterior06 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4130/4956873426_e895a91704_o.jpg" width="400" height="519" alt="PokeCBInterior06" /></a><br /><br />It was a chance to be a "cool" dad... and for them to be able to say to their friends at school, <span style="font-style:italic;">"My dad draws Pokémon." </span> This scored them a lot of cool points of their own, I don't mind telling you.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4956873586/" title="PokeCBInterior07 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4096/4956873586_b6205f1770_o.jpg" width="400" height="330" alt="PokeCBInterior07" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4956873762/" title="PokeCBInterior08 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4108/4956873762_e235bd9908_o.jpg" width="400" height="482" alt="PokeCBInterior08" /></a><br /><br />After the colouring book series I guess I must have proved myself -- because another licensee was given my name by Nintendo as a reliable supplier. This time they wanted full colour art instead of just black and white line. But I was sort of disappointed to find out I wouldn't be drawing any character artwork. They would be picking up existing character images from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OLM,_Inc.">OLM</a> and dropping them on new backgrounds - mazes - created by me.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4956429791/" title="PokeMaze by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4131/4956429791_9b3279dff4_o.jpg" width="400" height="332" alt="PokeMaze" /></a><br /><br />I know some people will be interested in seeing the layouts so I've included a couple here.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4957014968/" title="PokeMazePg04-05.layout by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4097/4957014968_8bedaf9ed4_o.jpg" width="400" height="175" alt="PokeMazePg04-05.layout" /></a><br /><br />This way you can sort of see the 'before' and 'after'.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4957014594/" title="PokeMazePg04-05 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4108/4957014594_d18d560800_o.jpg" width="400" height="175" alt="PokeMazePg04-05" /></a><br /><br />I realize these are pretty hard to see here on the blog but if you click on them you'll be able to view a MUCH larger version.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4957015704/" title="PokeMazePg14-15.layout by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4144/4957015704_845ccae932_o.jpg" width="400" height="174" alt="PokeMazePg14-15.layout" /></a><br /><br />Frankly, this was not one of the most exciting projects I've ever worked on. I had to devise the mazes based on the client's directions... so for instance, for the sake of the story line, this one had to be constructed out of sleeping Beedrills. Its was tough as hell trying to make the maze work - make it look good as an image <span style="font-weight:bold;">and</span> make it logistically navigable. It was tedious and time consuming and there was enough editorial interference to make the whole thing thoroughly aggravating.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4956424403/" title="PokeMazePg14-15 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4131/4956424403_1976cf5c93_o.jpg" width="400" height="174" alt="PokeMazePg14-15" /></a><br /><br />Happily, some spreads where much more straightforward, however...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4957009258/" title="MazePg06-07.layout by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4089/4957009258_4f987aa466_o.jpg" width="400" height="174" alt="MazePg06-07.layout" /></a><br /><br />... and I'm pretty happy to see them again after all these years. They work visually and I can see that the reader would understand where all the pathways are without any confusion.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4957008984/" title="MazePg06-07 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4101/4957008984_71fc28f4ee_o.jpg" width="400" height="174" alt="MazePg06-07" /></a><br /><br />A very important component of landing this project: the client insisted I do my best to mimic as closely as possible the painting style of the animated tv show backgrounds. That challenge became a big part of what I found most satisfying about the work of doing these pieces. Luckily I was able to find a few untranslated full colour <span style="font-style:italic;">Pokémon</span> manga paperbacks in Chinatown in Toronto. The art in each panel was essentially a frame grab shot very clearly from the animation art. I also spent a lot of time making and studying the backgrounds from screen captures I shot straight off the tv. Remember - this was ten years ago - no dvds yet! I had to freeze-frame VHS tapes of the show and shoot the tv screen with my digital camera! That was a long, tedious and often unsatisfactory process - but it was the only way to get semi-accurate reference.<br /><br />Below, one of my favourites of the bunch.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4956427393/" title="MazePg10-11 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4091/4956427393_bfd4b35dcd_o.jpg" width="400" height="174" alt="MazePg10-11" /></a><br /><br />There are several more spreads... unfortunately (as mentioned in my previous post) a lot of my old artwork is lost forever; locked away on decade-old gradually deteriorating CDs. I was only able to get my computer to read about half of the files on the disc I stored these images on.<br /><br />Next, I think, was the spiral bound <span style="font-style:italic;">"Worlds of Adventure"</span> story/activity book from Reader's Digest Children's Publishing.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4959989968/" title="PokeKeeperdisplay by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4101/4959989968_cc719eb1b8_b.jpg" width="400" height="259" alt="PokeKeeperdisplay" /></a><br /><br />When my U.S. rep called to tell me I'd been offered this assignment I was pretty stoked. At last I was going to get to do some full colour <span style="font-style:italic;">Pokémon</span> art, <span style="font-style:italic;">including</span> characters.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4959394979/" title="PokeKeeper03 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4145/4959394979_5806495947_o.jpg" width="400" height="501" alt="PokeKeeper03" /></a><br /><br />This is again some of the stuff that I can't recover from the back-up CD... so I scanned a few pages out of the printed book.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4959395047/" title="PokeKeeper04 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4131/4959395047_8f9e3a005b_o.jpg" width="400" height="499" alt="PokeKeeper04" /></a><br /><br />I can't tell you how happy I was to finally be doing what I consider some 'real' illustration for <span style="font-style:italic;">Pokémon</span>...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4959395113/" title="PokeKeeper05 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4130/4959395113_9283fbb928_o.jpg" width="400" height="508" alt="PokeKeeper05" /></a><br /><br />... unfortunately, the timing of the project was less than ideal ( isn't it always? ) and I ended up having to juggle several deadlines at once. Thank goodness I had, at that time, my buddies <a href="http://shoontz.com/illustration.html">Ben Shannon</a> and <a href="http://chipzdarsky.livejournal.com/">Steve Murray</a> were working for me in my studio. Ben and Steve were just fresh-faced kids, recently graduated from my old amla mater, Sheridan College, and had become a fixture in my Toronto studio, assisting me on all kinds of commercial art projects.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4959418401/" title="PokeKeeperPg5 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4091/4959418401_63a3285f04_o.jpg" width="400" height="547" alt="PokeKeeperPg5" /></a><br /><br />These two pieces, above and below, are from a bunch that Ben and Steve did when they took over the project half-way through. They did a fantastic job on these illustrations - and saved my butt on the deadline!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4960013998/" title="PokeKeeperPg11 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4089/4960013998_8083117e5d_o.jpg" width="400" height="557" alt="PokeKeeperPg11" /></a><br /><br />And then came the assignment I'd been waiting for: <span style="font-style:italic;">Pokémon</span> was at that time so wildly popular that Reader's Digest Children's Publishing soon came back with an assignment for two full colour storybooks! Each one would contain about a dozen large, elaborate double page spread illustrations and spots. They would be published world-wide in a bunch of different languages.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4960133026/" title="PokeAshBattledisplay by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4091/4960133026_1753dae745_b.jpg" width="400" height="267" alt="PokeAshBattledisplay" /></a><br /><br />The pay was not too bad: around $800 per spread, if I remember correctly. The catch: the deadline was horrendously short. I'd have to produce all of the art for both books in just a couple of months. Based on my calculations, I'd have to work from the moment I woke up in the morning until I went to sleep at night, seven days a week, to get everything done on time. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4960151964/" title="PokeAB01 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4112/4960151964_da57374170_o.jpg" width="400" height="315" alt="PokeAB01" /></a><br /><br />To make matters even more trying, we had just bought a new house and were in the middle of moving. Two second floor bedrooms were being renovated into a studio for me, as I had recently given up my space in Toronto.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4959547493/" title="PokeAB04 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4089/4959547493_4ebc9b1f77_o.jpg" width="400" height="256" alt="PokeAB04" /></a><br /><br />On top of those stresses was the worry of taking myself out of the loop for a couple of months. I wouldn't be able to do work for any other clients who called. When you're a freelancer you always worry about that: if you're not available for a client's project and they have to go elsewhere, they may not be back!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4960143244/" title="PokeAB06 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4090/4960143244_d92a97a6b5_o.jpg" width="400" height="256" alt="PokeAB06" /></a><br /><br />In the end, I decided it was just too good a project to pass up. Thus began my <span style="font-weight:bold;">real</span> <span style="font-style:italic;">Pokémo</span>n adventure - one where I literally ate, breathed and slept nothing but <span style="font-style:italic;">Pokémon</span> 7 days a week for all of September and October of 2000. It was the weirdest form of sensory deprivation I've ever experienced.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4960143364/" title="PokeAB07 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4086/4960143364_192de703e4_o.jpg" width="400" height="343" alt="PokeAB07" /></a><br /><br />And because I needed every waking moment to get all this artwork done, not only did I not leave the house for two months... I didn't even <span style="font-style:italic;">live in</span> my house.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4959554365/" title="Spot03 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4094/4959554365_55831b49fe_o.jpg" width="400" height="270" alt="Spot03" /></a><br /><br />You see, when we bought our new house, the closing dates hadn't lined up with when we would have to vacate our old house - there was a three month gap between the two closings. So that summer my wife and kids and I had been living with my amazing, generous in-laws.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4960147012/" title="PokeAB03 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4105/4960147012_fa0b2a7312_o.jpg" width="400" height="256" alt="PokeAB03" /></a><br /><br />They own a very large house, and with their own kids all long grown up and moved away, they were able to accommodate all of us PLUS allow me to use a spare bedroom as a working studio. So when Wendy and the boys moved into our new house at the beginning of that September, and while my new studio was still being renovated, I stayed back on the other side of town in my in-laws' spare bedroom and slaved away at these drawings!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4959547733/" title="PokeAB09 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4139/4959547733_80c1f0fab1_o.jpg" width="400" height="259" alt="PokeAB09" /></a><br /><br />I'll tell you... it was very odd. Wendy and the boys living across town in our new house and me living at my in-laws so I would be able to spend all of every day working on <span style="font-style:italic;">Pokémon</span>. On the weekends my wife and kids would come over and hang out so we could at least be near each other... while I <span style="font-weight:bold;">continued</span> to slave away on <span style="font-style:italic;">Pokémon</span>!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4960143514/" title="PokeAB10 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4128/4960143514_0f87359fe4_o.jpg" width="400" height="315" alt="PokeAB10" /></a><br /><br />It was a bit like being in jail -- albeit the most comfortable jail you could ever hope for (my mother-in-law is an excellent cook).<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4960143600/" title="PokeAB12 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4108/4960143600_1c85169b19_o.jpg" width="400" height="284" alt="PokeAB12" /></a><br /><br />When I finally finished <span style="font-style:italic;">"Ash's Battle"</span> I had to dive right back in and get started on "Orange Island Adventures". <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4959667989/" title="PokeAshBattledisplay2 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4120/4959667989_926c82c8d4_o.jpg" width="400" height="267" alt="PokeAshBattledisplay2" /></a><br /><br />I felt like I imagine one feels half way through a marathon. You're half way done... but there's a tough slog ahead and you're no longer fresh and energized. You know the second half will be even harder. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4960292022/" title="PokeOS01 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4151/4960292022_e74a7f74e4_o.jpg" width="400" height="315" alt="PokeOS01" /></a><br /><br />So my routine continued. Get up, eat a bite for breakfast, shower and get to work. Lunch in front of the computer... a quick break for dinner, then work until ten or so at night. Half an hour of television with the in-laws, then off to bed so you can do it again the next day.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4960286686/" title="PokeOS02 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4123/4960286686_67b54f73da_o.jpg" width="400" height="298" alt="PokeOS02" /></a><br /><br />And the next day...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4960286800/" title="PokeOS07 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4113/4960286800_ae847a2f7a_o.jpg" width="400" height="278" alt="PokeOS07" /></a><br /><br />... and the next day.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4960286596/" title="PokeOS04 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4131/4960286596_4684960a24_o.jpg" width="400" height="297" alt="PokeOS04" /></a><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">(I was only able to rescue a partially completed file from the CD for this illustration)</span><br /><br />I'll always remember this one incident as I neared the end of completing the illos for the second book: Wendy had come over with the kids as usual for Sunday dinner... and I felt confident enough that I was going to make the deadline that I agreed to go with her and the boys for a nice afternoon drive in the country. This was the first time I'd left the house in nearly two months. I remember riding in the car and thinking, "something seems different." The world looked... not quite right.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4959691175/" title="PokeOS03 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4096/4959691175_b23512838c_o.jpg" width="400" height="268" alt="PokeOS03" /></a><br /><br />Then I realized it was that I hadn't seen anything far off in the distance in nearly two months. I'd been so intensely focused on getting the job done, keeping such absurdly long work hours, that I'd literally not seen anything beyond my four walls for most of the previous eight weeks! Its like I'd been living in a cave...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4959700275/" title="PokeOS05 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4145/4959700275_d6ec5f7366_o.jpg" width="400" height="362" alt="PokeOS05" /></a><br /><br />And then it was over, and I moved myself and my studio home - to the newly renovated studio space on the second floor of our new house. Things seemed to quiet down in <span style="font-style:italic;">Pokémon</span> country. With the move to the new house I moved on to other clients again. <br /><br />This last batch was from another colouring book , done a year or so later and featuring a bunch of second generation <span style="font-style:italic;">Pokémon</span> characters. By this point my kids had sorta lost interest in <span style="font-style:italic;">Pokémon</span> so I wasn't being as well informed about who this new owl-like protagonist was. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4956873946/" title="PokeCBInterior09 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4132/4956873946_1f04bd71aa_o.jpg" width="400" height="774" alt="PokeCBInterior09" /></a><br /><br />My kids were always a good barometer of kid kulture in those days and I think they accurately reflected what was a waning interest in Pokémon in general. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4956874140/" title="PokeCBInterior10 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4093/4956874140_94ceb92e6c_o.jpg" width="400" height="522" alt="PokeCBInterior10" /></a><br /><br />I never heard from Golden Books or any other licensee about doing any more <span style="font-style:italic;">Pokémon</span> artwork.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4956874270/" title="PokeCBInterior11 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4085/4956874270_480070019f_o.jpg" width="400" height="467" alt="PokeCBInterior11" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4956283565/" title="PokeCBInterior12 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4136/4956283565_1ce33949af_o.jpg" width="400" height="504" alt="PokeCBInterior12" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4956283705/" title="PokeCBInterior13 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4151/4956283705_354a66050a_o.jpg" width="400" height="502" alt="PokeCBInterior13" /></a><br /><br />Its too bad the Pokémon gravy train had to come to a stop... but that's how these pop culture phenomenons go.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4956874584/" title="PokeCBInterior14 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4083/4956874584_0416e8775c_o.jpg" width="400" height="514" alt="PokeCBInterior14" /></a><br /><br />One thing that working on <span style="font-style:italic;">Pokémon</span> taught me was an appreciation the limitless potential for creating interesting character designs. Not that I designed any of what I was working on, but I still marvel at how the designers at Nintendo/Creatures/Game Freak had to come up with hundreds of new characters at a time. Some of them were really neat!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4956283957/" title="PokeCBInterior15 by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4118/4956283957_ab36364ab0_o.jpg" width="400" height="583" alt="PokeCBInterior15" /></a><br /><br />And that was the end of my <span style="font-style:italic;">Pokémon</span> adventure. The journey lasted about three years all together, I guess. There were some pretty big bumps in the road. But looking back at it, ten years ago from right now, it really was quite a big adventure and I'm glad I took it.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4959700353/" title="PokeOS Last Page by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4143/4959700353_f99f93de2a_o.jpg" width="400" height="496" alt="PokeOS Last Page" /></a><br /><br />I've never really told anyone about it all. I hope you enjoyed the story and, of course, the art!<br /><br />* <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/sets/72157624876087964/with/4959700353/">My Pokémon art set on Flickr</a>leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-7577396826978598902010-08-21T16:04:00.000-04:002010-08-21T21:00:50.106-04:00Promo Postcard RetrospectiveI was asked recently about the promo postcards I mentioned in <a href="http://escapefromillustrationisland.com/2010/03/24/podcast-episode-27-promotion/">my podcast interview with Thomas James of Escape from Illustration Island</a>... so I dug through all my old back-up CDs and managed to salvage a bunch. <span style="font-weight:bold;">* Note:</span> if you've only ever backed your stuff up on CDs its probably a good idea to get those files off of there before the discs degrade. I found out the hard way today that a lot of my work from 10 or 12 years ago is as good as gone, because the $@#&#!% discs won't read anymore!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4913433891/" title="KillerChickens.sm by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4102/4913433891_bfd1ebff38_o.jpg" width="400" height="600" alt="KillerChickens.sm" /></a><br /><br />These are some of my earliest cards, done in the late '90s before I had managed to land a lot of high-profile accounts. In retrospect they're also some of my favourite, most fun images that I've ever made, because I made them only to please myself. <br /> <br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4914037062/" title="Wolf&Red.sm by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4094/4914037062_606af80b93_o.jpg" width="400" height="313" alt="Wolf&Red.sm" /></a><br /><br />I wanted clients to be a little bit shocked by the mischievousness of the imagery. These were intended for advertising and editorial clients and you know what? They did get me a lot of work!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4913489787/" title="LetsEat.sm by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4117/4913489787_dca50475a2_o.jpg" width="400" height="269" alt="LetsEat.sm" /></a><br /><br />I think the combination of retro-pop imagery and slightly off-colour subject matter got my work noticed by ADs who, frankly, probably felt a bit cynical (as I did) about the corporate bullsh*t you have to shovel to make a living in the ad business. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4914037468/" title="W&RPostcardBack.sm by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4074/4914037468_d861e0b77c_o.jpg" width="400" height="269" alt="W&RPostcardBack.sm" /></a><br /><br />Hopefully these cards gave the ADs who received them a moment's pause and a chuckle when they arrived in the mail. It always made me feel really good when I'd go to client meetings and project briefs to see my postcards pinned on their bulletin boards - even several years after I'd first sent them out.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4913433405/" title="Beelzebub.sm by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4139/4913433405_2f1e9fdbd0_o.jpg" width="400" height="269" alt="Beelzebub.sm" /></a><br /><br />At some point in my career, probably about 5 or so years in, I began to change my promotional strategy a bit. I still believed very much in the power of the promo postcard -- but I began using imagery from some of my more high-profile assignments instead of making up images from scratch. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4914036888/" title="Pokemon.sm by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4143/4914036888_3d58d1aa6b_o.jpg" width="400" height="594" alt="Pokemon.sm" /></a><br />This strategy wasn't always as successful as I imagined it would be. When I sent this card after doing a bunch of Pokemon art for Golden Books, I figured a ton of calls would light up my phone. In fact, not a single client called. I'm not sure if the joke with the Korean translation threw them... or if Pokemon was too specifically stylistic at the time that clients couldn't imagine what else I might be capable of drawing for them... or what exactly the problem was. But I really loved this card - and concept - and was really disappointed when it failed to generate any new assignments.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4914037362/" title="Pokemon.Back.sm by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4117/4914037362_2540200d8e_o.jpg" width="400" height="269" alt="Pokemon.Back.sm" /></a><br /><br />This next effort was somewhat more successful. Again, I tried to make it fun and a little wacky - but still very evident what exactly my specialty was. I seem to recall this card got me <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/sets/72157594383179774/">a couple of decent packaging art assignments</a> from design firms working on products targeted at the kids' packaged food market.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4913433533/" title="CharDesign.Front.sm by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4118/4913433533_2989d6c7ba_o.jpg" width="400" height="269" alt="CharDesign.Front.sm" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4913434349/" title="CharDesign.Back.large by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4074/4913434349_5c7b9185d4_o.jpg" width="400" height="269" alt="CharDesign.Back.large" /></a><br /><br />Around 2001 I had a nice run of luck, doing <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/sets/72157600171721044/">three covers for <span style="font-style:italic;">Maclean's</span> magazine</a> in a fairly short time frame. (For those who aren't Canadian, <span style="font-style:italic;">Maclean's</span> is Canada's weekly news magazine, the Canadian equivalent of <span style="font-style:italic;">Time</span> or <span style="font-style:italic;">Newsweek</span> in the States, so this was pretty sweet in my books - having my work seen nationwide on every newstand in the country).<br /><br />I decided to try leveraging that sucess and recognition into more magazine work. I devised a postcard that collaged all three of my <span style="font-style:italic;">Maclean's</span> covers into one image. This card was only sent to magazine art directors in Canada.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4914036538/" title="Editorial.Front.sm by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4136/4914036538_4c1cfe4fde_o.jpg" width="400" height="594" alt="Editorial.Front.sm" /></a><br /><br />Unfortunately this card was also a dud. I don't know why. Actually, I should clarify that it <span style="font-style:italic;">seemed</span> to be a dud - but to be honest, the illustration business really went south during 2001. Not just for me... a lot of people I've talked with over the years will confirm that after 9/11 business kind of dried up for them too. This seems to have been the case on both sides of the border. My feelings must have been showing in my next effort! I remember doing up this card with a sense of quiet desperation. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4913486871/" title="Lichtenstein.sm by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4101/4913486871_18176da60a_o.jpg" width="400" height="269" alt="Lichtenstein.sm" /></a><br /><br />I wanted to capitalize on the success I'd had throughout the years creating commercial art with a Roy Lichtenstein/pop art feel to it. For a long time I seem to have been the go-to guy in the Toronto area when clients wanted this sort of look for their project. I still do quite a bit of stuff for editorial art directors where they'll ask for <span style="font-style:italic;">"that Lichtenstein dot thing."</span><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4913434497/" title="Editorial.Back.sm by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4119/4913434497_3b689db174_o.jpg" width="400" height="594" alt="Editorial.Back.sm" /></a><br />Whether these cards are the reason I've landed those projects or not is up for debate. This is the down side of doing promo postcards: each card ends up costing you about a dollar to send ( when you add up the cost of the mailing list, printing and postage) and you send them off en masse, say about a thousand at once, and you have no idea how much of an impact they've made unless somebody calls you back fairly soon after they've gone out. When that doesn't happen, you can get pretty bummed out. But like I said - the real idea behind the cards is to create an arresting image that and AD will like enough - not just to stop him for a moment - but to want to pin that card up on his bulletin board and look at again and again. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4913486753/" title="Coke.sm by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4080/4913486753_42091f553b_o.jpg" width="400" height="269" alt="Coke.sm" /></a><br /><br />I've had clients call me and say, <span style="font-style:italic;">"I'm looking at this postcard you sent me and I think you're perfect for this project I've got..."</span> and I'll ask them what the image is and think, <span style="font-style:italic;">"Jeez, I sent that card out three years ago!"</span><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4914086532/" title="FamousFaces.sm by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4100/4914086532_845ec9bdda_o.jpg" width="400" height="269" alt="FamousFaces.sm" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/4914084952/" title="FamousFaces.back.sm by leifpeng, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4123/4914084952_ebcaf9d597_o.jpg" width="400" height="269" alt="FamousFaces.back.sm" /></a><br /><br />Sending promo postcards requires a pretty big investment - both in time, effort and money - but its one I highly recommend. However, its imperative you <span style="font-weight:bold;">do your homework!</span> Be critical of your own work and only send your best, most arresting, most appropriate imagery. You have to think like an advertiser, because that's exactly what you are in this case. The product you're promoting is you and your artwork. Try to have fun and be creative, but also be objective and practical - so you're not just mailing dollar bills away with no hope of a positive return for your hard-earned investment.<br /><br />Good luck! :^)leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-41169105368750645752010-02-11T17:55:00.001-05:002010-02-11T18:23:40.099-05:00IF: "Muddy"This is not only my entry for this week's <a href="http://illustrationfriday.com/">Illustration Friday</a>... its also my entry for a very cool new blog called <a href="http://monstersinrealplaces.blogspot.com/">"Monsters in Real Places"</a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4063/4350004090_69cdcfeaf7_o.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4063/4350004090_69cdcfeaf7_o.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br />I always figured Yukon Gold potatoes came from the Yukon. But no, the bag of 'yellow fleshed' potatoes in the basement came from nearby Shelburne, Ontario. Huh! Curious, I decided to check out Shelburne on Google Earth... and was amazed at what I saw! Yup, its Muddy Pete, the giant potatoe monster, caught on Google's satellite photos as he tries to sneak around the outskirts of Shelburne, leaving his signature giant muddy footprints behind him . You can tell by all his many, many eyes that Pete's been hanging around for quite some time.<br /><br />Anybody can contribute a monster in a real place. Just drop by <a href="http://monstersinrealplaces.blogspot.com/">the MIRP blog</a> and check out how to participate!<br /><br />* Incidentally, Muddy Pete is very much inspired by an old Power Rangers action figure called <a href="http://www.megazord.net/USERIMAGES/l451.jpg">"The Eye-Poppin' Eye Guy"</a>. My kids used to love playing with their Power ranger action figures when they were little. When they got older and decided to get rid of all those action figures, I rescued Eye Guy from the trash and he holds a place of honour on my studio toy shelf.leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-3381052093671143852010-02-04T09:22:00.000-05:002010-02-04T09:31:54.231-05:00IF "Focused"This week's <a href="http://illustrationfriday.com/">Illustration Friday</a> word was "Focused". A tough one to figure out! I had a lot of different thoughts about this but finally came up with the idea of doing something like those cool old title sequences you always see on James Bond movies.<br /><br />I found some reference of <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/aurora_feizul/3466693687/">a girl pointing a gun on Flickr</a> and used that as the basis for my illustration. I'm going to send the Flickr member a link to this post - I hope she likes the way I used her photos for inspiration to create this IF piece!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4026/4329625837_1d17cb9d36_o.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 518px;" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4026/4329625837_1d17cb9d36_o.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br />This really was a fun one to work on... but I wish I had more time to explore the design further. Maybe I'll try out some variations on the weekend!leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-18304205554487372352010-01-28T06:55:00.000-05:002010-01-28T07:08:19.686-05:00IF: WildernessIts been a very long time since I participated in <a href="http://illustrationfriday.com/">Illustration Friday</a> - but recent events in my life have brought me back, and I'm <span style="font-style:italic;">really</span> happy to be participating again. This is not actually the theme for the current week... I wanted to "warm up" with an old theme before I actually jump back in and join the IF group. So I chose a theme that IF ran a couple of weeks ago: "Wilderness".<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4058/4310685073_141ae2ae74_o.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 518px;" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4058/4310685073_141ae2ae74_o.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br />This one was especially meaningful for me because every day, seven days a week, I take <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/sets/72157594516633060/">my dog Zero</a> for a hike in the nearby "urban wilderness" of our local conservation areas. Lately, I've been disturbed by the creep of suburbia. In some areas I've watched it approach over several years to the point where it seems the developers will chew up every last inch of their green space to build cookie cutter houses.<br /><br />In a sense, our urban wilderness is being replaced by a <span style="font-weight:bold;">sub</span>urban wilderness.leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17316464.post-5384451634682957342009-10-19T10:49:00.000-04:002009-10-19T10:53:23.396-04:00SuperSimonSunday on a Monday: Gory StoryA cautionary tale from the twisted mind of Simon Peng!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2768/4026362746_6742a47124_o.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 558px;" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2768/4026362746_6742a47124_o.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2775/4025609415_a0da827c9e_o.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 543px;" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2775/4025609415_a0da827c9e_o.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2555/4026362592_aa7f1dcbfe_o.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 525px;" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2555/4026362592_aa7f1dcbfe_o.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2454/4025609267_420408cb82_o.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 535px;" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2454/4025609267_420408cb82_o.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br />* <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/sets/72157613201005295/">More super cartoons by Super Simon Peng</a>leifpenghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07232334860061949895noreply@blogger.com3