Poison Ivy Sketch Card

It's like a Reece's Peanut Butter Cup. Two great tastes that taste great together. Chocolate + Peanut Butter = awesome. Beautiful women + Comics = MORE AWESOME!

Now, Poison Ivy makes you itch but let's just go ahead and ignore the blatantly obvious sexual double entendre here.

This gorgeous lass popped into my head last night. Only us art geeks get visions of sexy comic book characters, I suppose. Nevertheless, I grappled inspiration and got to work! The result is the botanical beauty you see before you.

So, while the rest of my gender was drifting off to visit the sandman with visions of Kim Kardashian (and the rest of her media reinforced ilk) I was turning a piece of cardboard into a delightfully fictitious femme fatale.

Sketched with Prismacolor marker and Prismacolor pencil on 5x7 chipboard.

Hope ya dig it!

Own an original!

You wanna piece of me?! Well now you can have one! Six of my original full color 5x7 sketch cards are up on eBay.

I've been having a blast lately creating these sketch cards.
Also I'm totally stoked at the idea of giving them a good home in the hands and heart of someone who loves 'em! If you've been in the neighborhood lately then you've seen Batman and The Punisher. But I've been a very busy boy and there's more!

Here's a look at all six sketches that can be yours!

Felicia Hardy A.K.A. The Black Cat (from Spiderman). Even with a supermodel wife at home, Spidey gets to hang around this gal all day. I'm tellin' you - Peter Parker's got it made.

Psylocke (of the X-Men). My most embarrassing high school crush. It's astounding that I was able to get a girlfriend in the middle of that!

White Queen (of the X-Men). Hey, if you can accept muscle bound guys flying through the air with superpowers then you can accept this little cutie running around in her undies kickin' butt!

Spidey. A nerd gets superpowers and scores a smokin' hot girlfriend. Stan Lee got the formula right with this one. Sucked me right in!

Good ol' brooding Batsy. Just once I'd like to see his reaction to a fart joke.

Dark, gritty, brooding, ultra violent, wearing tights and we still believe it. Only in a comic book!

So heroes, if you like something you see then lace up your boots, pull on your spandex, fasten your cape, jump on eBay and go duke it out for justice (or at least a decent little sketch)!

Step by Step 30 minute sketch

Start clean and end messy! Knocking out a 30 minute sketch means I've got to have my tools within quick and easy reach. Then I can hit the gas!

Here's a behind the scenes look at how I created the 30 minute sketch of The Punisher which I posted last Friday.

Since I keep my official drawing table at an angle for most of my work, I do these quick sketches at the dining room table. I need that flat surface to spread out all my toys.

8 minutes of progress and I've got the sketch right about where I want it in order to start inking. I'm sketching with blue (#2044) Col-Erase pencil on Chipboard.

17 minutes of progress and I've got my pencil sketch a little more refined and inked. I inked this with a black Prismacolor fine line Premier pen.

23 minutes of progress and I've got some color blocked in. I even had time to get some tones and modeling in on the face. Here I'm coloring with Prismacolor markers.

30 minutes and I'm all done. I added most of the white with Prismacolor pencil but those really saturated highlights were done with a Sakura white gel pen. The sketchy background tone was done with a black Prismacolor pencil using the side of the lead (not the sharp tip). Also, I added his stubble as the final step.

This is what my workspace looks like when I'm all wrapped up. Nice and messy. I love the look of creative aftermath!

Here's a scan of the finished sketch.

30 minute sketch - The Punisher

There's a lot you can do with a half hour of your life. Sketching homicidal crime fighters is just one.

And by golly that's how I chose to murder my thirty minutes last night. I jumped in with another 30 minute sketch and this time I did it with guns blazing (these double entendres are just impossible to resist).

Gee whiz, I was a HUGE fan of this character back in the day (comics, not movies)! Mike Zeck illustrated some insanely exquisite stories and posters of The Punisher. I, (in true geek fashion) had my bedroom walls covered in those richly illustrated posters.

So, while the girls at school were making a fuss about the New Kids on the Block, I was reading The Punisher (and harboring some SUPER TOP SECRET enjoyment of Hangin' Tough).

Thanks for takin' that little trip down memory lane with me. It's fun to draw a character that I loved so much as a yougsta!

30 minute sketch - Batman

I had such a blast with that last 30min sketch that I decided to jump back in with Batman.

The image in my head was slightly different than the finished product here but I'm totally cool with that. To be honest, the image in my head was slightly beyond my ability. It was super valuable for me to realize that I couldn't quite do it and also why I couldn't do it.

Drawing quickly has a way of unapologetically exposing my weaknesses. Since I don't have time for reference material or reworking, I've got to rely on what I REALLY know.

In this case my knowledge ended just shy of the image in my head but that experience tells me point blank what I need to work on. In the end I knocked a decent little sketch and I learned a little about my current limitations.

All is well in Gotham!

Angry Birds or Awesome Art?

Yesterday I had thirty minutes to kill and a decision to make: play Angry Birds on my iPhone or knock out a sketch.

I decided to take on the fun challenge of completing a color sketch in those thirty minutes.  It was a fun little speed exercise for me. I was amazed at how focused and resourceful I became when I had a specific goal and a time limit.

I got into an instant flow and just let this little cutie come pouring out. It was good solid fun and now I've got something to show for my thirty minutes. Sorry birds, I didn't miss you at all. Please don't be angry.

Prismacolor Marker, Prismacolor Pencil, White Gel Pen and Ultra Fine Point Sharpies on Chipboard. Booya!

Happy Chinese New Year!

If you've been slacking off on your resolutions then you've got another shot!

Today is the first day of the Chinese new year and this is the year of the rabbit (my sign). Hopefully that means all sorts of good fortune for me and my fellow cottontails. In the meantime, enjoy this happy little fella courtesy of yours truly.

Happy New Year everyone!