CA Illustration 51 is here!

My copy of Communication Arts Illustration Annual 51 just arrived the other day. As usual, it's filled with the veterans of the industry, artists I've admired since high school, and lots of new talent as well.

I was lucky enough to get a recent project from the Harvard Law Bulletin accepted. Ronn Campisi commissioned me for a piece in the Book Review section, for a novel about the rise and fall of a college president.


It is a great honor to be included among some of the best illustrators in the field. Thanks again, Ronn!

Westword Cover

Last week I did a cover for Westword, the weekly here in Denver. The feature story is about Alan Sudduth, a man from Aurora that's serving a 70 year sentence for the murder of a cab driver. However, evidence points to the friend that was with him at the time of the shooting. Not to mention the friend has admitted to the killing, and testified that Alan did not commit the murder. The problem: if Alan tells the authorities who really pulled the trigger, it's considered snitching, and is a serious offense in prison, and in the neighborhoods where Alan grew up.


The issue is on newsstands around town today (the 22nd), so if you're local, go pick one up! I worked with the very talented Jay Vollmar on this.

Dallas Observer Cover

I just finished an illustration for Alexander Flores from the Dallas Observer. The piece was for the cover story on Dallas County judge, Jim Foster, who was recently defeated in the Democratic primary. Check out the story here.


For any Peter Sellers fans viewing this post and finding the cover eerily familiar, you're spot on! When Alexander called me for the assignment, he already had the concept in mind. The story of Jim Foster is reminiscent of the main character in the 1979 comedy Being There, starring Sellers, and Shirley MacLaine. Alexander wanted readers to make that connection (it's also mentioned in the article), and so decided that the cover should be a remake of the film poster:


The only real change the editors wanted was to the Dallas skyline, and the surrounding landscape. I would love to give credit to the original creator of the poster, but can't find the name anywhere. Anyone who knows it, feel free to drop me a line. Thanks again, Alexander!

Communication Arts: 2010!

A couple weeks ago I was informed that a project I entered into the Communication Arts Illustration competition was accepted. I entered one piece that I worked on with Ronn Campisi for the Harvard Law Bulletin, and one personal piece. The Law Bulletin piece was chosen, and will appear in the Annual, which will be out in May.


I was hoping my personal piece would be chosen as well, but that's the thing about personal work: it's not always as pleasing to everyone else. Still, having only entered two pieces, I was lucky to get any in. The illustration annual is extremely competitive, and it's an honor to win two years in a row.

Airport Insecurity- Boston Globe

I finished this piece for Grant Staublin at the Boston Globe a couple weeks ago. It accompanied an essay in the Sunday magazine about security measures in airports. Read the article here. The image quality of my illustration on the website isn't very good, so here's a better one:


The article argues that although the steps that the government and airlines take to prevent terrorist attacks are bothersome and inconvenient, they are also necessary. While I don't necessarily agree with every point made in the piece, as an illustrator, it's not my job to agree with everything the writer says. I do, however, see the reasoning behind the article's conclusion. With my illustration I wanted to ask the question, "just how much security is necessary?" Thanks again, Grant!

Boston Globe Work- Fattened by Pills

I had an illustration in yesterday's Boston Globe Magazine, for an essay about a hidden cause of obesity in the U.S. The article points out that one of the primary causes of obesity is psychiatric drugs, anti-depression medication in particular. Weight gain is listed as a side effect for many drugs, which is a nice way of saying "a harmful consequence." And as more and more people (including children) are given prescriptions for whatever kind of problem they have, it's only going to get worse.

I worked with Grant Staublin and Chin Wang on this one, which is always a pleasure. I also just finished a different piece for Grant the other day, that I'll be posting as soon as it runs.

LA Times Health Section Cover

Joey Santos from the LA Times called me after the New Year's weekend with an assignment for the cover of the Health Section. The article explained the two sides of a debate surrounding psychotherapy. On one side are the psychologists that prefer the use of cognitive behavioral therapy when treating patients. On the other are those that prefer a more personal, customized approach.


On the final day I was working on the piece, Joey had a proposition for me: if I could make the deadline, they had some extra room and he really wanted to use another illustration inside the section. He wanted to use another one of my sketches I had turned in, but it would be black and white. Luckily, I finished the final for the first illustration early, and had time to do the second. I'm glad I was able to take advantage of the situation, and it was great working with Joey again.

Harvard Law Bulletin Work

Ronn Campisi contacted me after he received my Loteria cards, with a couple illustrations for the Harvard Law Bulletin, the alumni magazine for the school. Both were for the Book Review section. The first book, Negotiauctions by Guhan Subramanian, deals with some complicated stuff. You know, game-theoretic approaches to corporate mergers, the usual. So given the complex subject, Ronn wanted to keep the illustration fairly simple. The main theme of the book was deal-making, and finding the right offer out of many possible offers. Finding the best fit, in other words.


The second review was for Stubborn as a Mule, by Richard Fallon. The fictional story follows an overly ambitious, free-market obsessed college president, as he attempts to unseat a moderate Republican Senator. Judging by the review, the theme of the book seemed to be that over-reaching ambition and ego can lead to an inevitable fall from grace. This piece was a two-page spread, so I wanted to use the long format to convey the two stages: ambition, and the fall. Thanks, Ronn, for all your input.

LA Times Food Section Illustrations- Part Deux

As promised, here is the second part of the commission for the Food Section of the L.A. Times. It's for a great little story about mothers, home-cooking, and working class South L.A. in the 1950s. The author explains how his mother's cooking (the best in the neighborhood) instilled in him a certain view towards food. That it should be about more than filling your stomach. It should be prepared with love, and satisfy more than just your appetite. Read it here.


Given the subject matter, I wanted this piece to reflect stylistic elements of vintage illustration, especially children's books, and design of the 1940s and 50s. It came fairly easy to me, because I usually derive a lot of influence from those areas already. Thank you again to Wes, who is always a pleasure to work with.

On another note, Chris Huth from Indy Ink recently asked me to participate in a group show at the gallery. I've sold prints from Indy Ink in the past, and was happy to join in the festivities. The main stipulation was that all work in the gallery be priced under $100, to tempt people to buy real art, made locally, instead of a gift card to some international chain. For anyone with some last minute shopping to do, and interested in purchasing something made by real live human beings, right here in Denver, check out all the work at Indy Ink on South Broadway. I have three high quality giclee prints of my Loteria pieces up. I believe the show will be up through January, in honor of "Buy Local Month."

LA Times Food Section Illustrations- Part 1

I was recently commissioned to do two illustrations for the Food section of the LA Times. They were originally to appear in the same edition on Christmas eve, but the publish date for one got pushed up. This illustration ran in today's edition, in an article titled "The pleasure principle in wine giving." You can read the article, which gives advice on choosing wines for gifts, here. Or if you have REALLY good eyes you might be able to read it from the image below.


The stores mentioned are local to the L.A. area, but the wines discussed can be purchased in many areas, if you know someone who would appreciate receiving a gift of wine. I myself am more of a beer man (good beer, like Guinness, or Newcastle), but I'm getting used to wine. Here's a closer look:


I'll be posting the second piece after it runs, I believe on Christmas eve. I had the pleasure of working with Wes Bausmith on these, who is always great. Thanks again for all the great feedback, Wes!

Loteria Self-Promo Cards

I put these Loteria self-promotional cards together a few months ago, and I've been sending them out every now and then. For those who aren't familiar with Loteria, it's a card game played in Mexico that can best be described as Bingo with pictures. They've garnered some very positive responses from the Art Directors that have received them. It's a set of four cards held in a sleeve that slides on and off. Three cards have an illustration relating to the theme I chose to address (which is environmental issues), and the fourth card is an explanation of the project. The three illustrations also have a blurb on the back giving information on each particular subject.

I've sent a lot out to local firms in Denver, but if I missed you, drop me an email ( there's a link on my profile) with your mailing address and I'll get a set out to you. Or if you don't want the cards, you can just say "hi."

Boston Globe Piece About Asperger's Syndrome

I finished this piece for Chin Wang from the Boston Globe Magazine not too long ago. It's for an essay by a man with Asperger's Syndrome, an autistic condition. The author explained in his essay the feelings of isolation he experienced growing up, due to his problems interacting with other people. He wasn't even aware of his condition until he was diagnosed as an adult, after someone remarked to him that he displayed the characteristics of Asperger's. I love working on conceptual pieces like this, and Chin was great. The Denver Egotist gave me a shout out for this one too.

Dallas Observer Cover

I just finished an illustration for Alexander Flores, for the cover of the Dallas Observer. The cover story is about a Mexican woman involved in a legal tug-of-war in a wrongful death suit, after the father of her children was killed in an accident at his construction job. Before settling with the companies responsible, she was stuck in the middle of a battle between two attorneys, feuding over who was really entitled to the settlement money. A great piece to work on. Read the article here. The good folks at the Denver Egotist took notice of this piece and mentioned it on their site. They also included me on their list of recommended talent a while back, after seeing me in Communication Arts' Fresh section. Thanks again Egotist!

Paper Sons Piece

I just finished an illustration for Wes Bausmith at the LA Times, accompanying an Op-Ed piece by author Lisa See. It's a very informative story, and an interesting piece of American history. Read it online here (sans my illustration). It was a lot of fun looking at old photographs from the early 20th century, when I was researching clothing of the period. The National Archives has a digital vault online with photos, immigration documents, marriage licences, and more. You can browse through it here. And, as always, it was great to work with Wes again.


I also did an illustration for Nick Jehlen from The Progressive recently. It appears in the book review section, where Moustafa Bayoumi reviews Engaging the Muslim World, by Juan Cole, and Sowing Crisis, by Rashid Khalidi.



With my illustration, I chose to focus on the first book, Engaging the Muslim World. As Bayoumi explains, it serves as an introduction to Islam, and the Middle East, and provides a way for the West to get to know Muslim culture, in an attempted cure of "Islamophobia." I felt it was fitting to portray the book as a doorway to a mosque. Thank you to Nick, who allowed me to go in a completely different direction, after I found an old North Korean poster that was very similar to the sketch that was originally approved.

One of my original sketches focused on the second book, Sowing Crisis, which details the ways in which the US and Russia, engaged in Cold War, exacerbated the many tensions, feuds and conflicts in the Middle East. I came up with a concept of the boot prints demonstrating the mess that the two super-powers left behind, and sent Nick the sketch. Afterward, I just happened to come across this old North Korean poster, which coincidentally used the same concept. I showed the poster to Nick, and he agreed that it was too similar, and let me go with a new concept.

One out of 5,470 ain't bad...

I received my copy of the Communication Arts Illustration Annual 50 the other day, and I've been spending a bit of time wandering through its pages. The art in CA Annuals is always very inspiring. I feel deeply honored to have one of the 207 winning projects (out of 5,470 entries), which includes work by illustrators that I've looked up to since high school (Gary Kelley, Brad Holland, Edel Rodriguez, just to name a few). This is my first time being accepted into the CA Illustration Annual (although I did have some old work exhibited in the Fresh section of the CA website), and it's incredibly motivating to see my piece alongside the industry's best talents. Pick up a copy and enjoy all the great illustration!