This is an illustration I created for class a few weeks ago to be intended for Rolling Stone magazine. A portrait of Clint Eastwood in effort to showcase a review of his most recent film, Gran Torino, released in 2009. This image was created from individual ink drawings that were scanned and coloured digitally.
This was completed for a digital media class. The assignment required us to choose one of two songs chosen by our prof, I chose the song Pink Cigarette by Mr. Bungle. I have mixed feelings about the finished product, but to be honest I wasn’t incredibly inspired by the songs we were given as choices to illustrate. Not a huge fan of the colours, but I felt they suited the song well.
So here’s a look at my final assignment for Illustration 3. We were assigned to illustrate an Independence Day holiday shopping bag for the high-end retailer Barneys New York. So this image is comprised of 4 sides when folded. I decided to draw a panoramic scene, using collaged photos from the New York Public Library as reference. The drawing took a full day, I started with a basic outline on grid paper, then transferred the outlines using carbon paper onto a nice off-white watercolour paper. From there I added detail with pencil. Colouring took quite a while, but I think I pulled it off alright in the end.
Within the illustration I tried to include important American figures and elements. I wanted to create a bag that would look interesting from far away, but upon closer inspection little tidbits of american history are scattered around each side.
From left to right; American Flag (obviously), Paul Revere (jumping between buildings on his horse), George Washington (Chopping a cherry tree in the park), Liberty Bell Cafe, A few colonial soldiers marching down the street in front of the ‘Jefferson’ building, and a kite about to be struck by lightning (referencing Benjamin Franklin).
Illustration for Dairy Farmers of Ontario, final assignment for my Digital Media class. I am pretty happy with how it turned out, my goal in doing this assignment was to create an illustration with as simple shapes and little detail as possible. As much detail with as little detail, if that makes sense. Which can be a daunting task. Anyways, it took about 8 hours to complete, luckily I was able to get it all done in one day! Tell me what you think! Questions are open, I’ll comment back with answers.
Two illustrations for the book “48 Laws of Power”
Conceal Your Intentions
Keep people off-balance and in the dark by never revealing the purpose behind your actions. If they have no clue what you are up to, they cannot prepare a defence. Get them far enough down the wrong path, envelop them in enough smoke, and by the time they realize your intentions it will be too late.
Keep Your Hands Clean
You must seem a paragon of civility and efficiency. Your hands are never soiled by mistakes and nasty deeds. Maintain such a spotless presence by using others as scapegoats to disguise your involvement.
Thank you to everyone who went to the Villain show this Friday, it was a huge success! Here are the 4 pieces I submitted to the show and are now on display at Sleeping Giant until November 27th. Prints of my pieces are available for purchase for $25, and limited edtition prints of two are available on museum grade 300 gsm paper for the very reasonable price of $45. Once again, thank you to everyone who came out to make this night a success, and if you have not visited the gallery yet, I urge you to see the show. So much talent under one roof!
Emerging artist and illustrator Mikellis presents a collection of re-imagined vintage book covers. Entitled The Library of Modern Villainy, this new body of mixed media explores a twist on adult-oriented television cartoons. The Library of Modern Villainy draws inspiration from 1960s and 1970s era Pelican and Penguin book covers in an effort to showcase each villain’s unique personality through print.
Born in Newmarket, Ontario. Mikellis is a third-year Illustration student at OCAD and has exhibited at the Whippersnapper Gallery and AWOL. He currently divides his time between collecting slides and dreading the impending gloom of winter.
In-Class Media
These were in-class assignments for my digital media class. We were given a phrase to work from and roughly 2 hours to complete the illustration from start to finish. It was a great excuse to take advantage of cheeky photoshop effects.
“The Last of the Blue Dream”
“Have You Seen the King?”
“My Unpleasant Family”