Digital wedding caricature commission

I completed this digital commission to be used as a sign-in at a candy-coated wedding!

1st Communion party

Yesterday afternoon, I was invited to draw caricatures at a young man's 1st Holy Communion party. Here is just one of the couple of dozen faces I drew!

It turned out that the family are true caricature fans...the dad had been drawn circa 1979 in Ocean City, Maryland by chalk-and-glove-technique-pioneer Irv Finifter (who has influenced many caricature artists that I know), and the son had been drawn last year at a Phillies game by my friend Bob Miele. Of course, I had to have a photo of their framed drawings:

Bob's is on the left, Irv's is on the right. Both are done using the lecturer's chalk for color, and one gloved finger to mix it into the paper. I used to use this technique myself, until I switched to Prismacolor Artstix after having seen them at a convention. You can get beautiful pastel effects with the chalks, and Bob is a virtuoso with them. I wish the photo wasn't so blurred, but it was hard to get a shot without using flash (to avoid the glare.)

It's great to see my art form as part of a family tradition, and one of the many reasons why guests are so thrilled to get a caricature at a party.

Update: My client graciously shared her own photos and some nice feedback! Thank you!

Emily is fantastic! She really captures the guest's personality in her drawings. I highly recommend her for any special occasion!

O's day game

Headed down to Charm City yesterday to draw at a kid-heavy Orioles day game. It was field-trip day for Baltimore elementary and middle-school students. However, of all the people I drew, none were school-age kids--all were babies, toddlers and some beer-imbibing adults!
And I forgot my camera's memory card again; I am beginning to think it's Rrrrick's fault--- because the last time I couldn't take good photos, I worked with him too. LOL
At least I had my cell-phone camera, even though its colors are wonky....(compare to my previous post---same paper, same markers and artstix)



The married couple opted for BW because they wanted the caricature to match the other black-and-white drawings and photos they had hanging in their home. I jokingly told them that was the only 'good' reason for not getting color!!
The two buddies did choose BW because it was cheaper, after finding out the price was per face, not per drawing! (They'd asked if I'd draw both of them for the price of one, to which I said, "Nahhhhh.")

College Spring Fling

Another warm, breezy spring day found me caricaturing outside. A local community college held a Spring Fling on its grounds-- not only for its own students, but the public was welcome as well if they bought a wristband. My caricatures and some very talented face-painters proved to be the most popular attractions, judging by our lines...





See what I mean about the face-painting? Every time I saw this girl, I had to smile myself!

60th birthday party

Here's the man of the moment with his framed birthday caricature. The sign-in mat was flat on the table to its right so guests could sign it easily.




(Above) This couple hail from Dallas, Texas. I told them to make sure to come and see me at the State Fair this year, and they said they would!

Thank you so much, Steph and Tom, for having me draw for your wonderful family! :-)

Digital birthday commission

This gentleman was treated to a 60th birthday caricature by my client (his wife), who made a very good art director! She had very helpful suggestions that made this piece come out as well as it did. He was very surprised and pleased today at his party!

Final version of Joe Biden

Finished this digital painting in Photoshop from start to finish in one sitting! How fun is that?!:-)

Work-in-progress: Joe Biden

This is what I have so far on my Joe Biden charity-auction caricature. The first image is the very rough sketch, which I chose out of several attempts. (He's not as easy to draw as the President.) The second sketch has been tightened up considerably. The third has some color added, but it's by no means complete yet. These are all separate layers in one Photoshop painting. I plan to emphasize more the size of his cranium, hair plugs, hooded eyes, and bottom teeth which seem to be a prominent feature of his mouth. Maybe I'l get it done tonight....

the Internat'l Society of Caricature Artists

The National Caricaturists Network (NCN) is no more. It has become the International Society of Caricature Artists (ISCA). As a longtime member, it's good to see this group growing in stature. Aside from lots of Americans, there have been so many far-flung talented members who come to the annual conventions--from Japan, Europe (especially the UK, Ireland, and the Netherlands) Korea, Malaysia, and Australia. They also participate in our online forum. I am proud to call many 'friend'. Were it not for this organization, my skills and (and life) would not be what they are today.
Thank you, ISCA!

Next project: Joe Biden

I've been asked to create a digital caricature for a charity auction next month--of our Vice-President, Joe Biden. The really cool thing is that he will be signing one print to be auctioned to the highest bidder, and one print for the artist!
I'll be drawing live at the event as well. Don't think he'll actually be present, but it's still a thrill!

So I have decided to document my process with this project on my blog. The first thing is to gather reference material. With good ol' Joe, that's easy; there are almost too many photos on the internet to choose from. I want visual info from more than one photo reference A) because no one photo shows all that can be shown, and B) I want my work to not be a 'copy' of a photograph.
Next step: a rough sketch. More to come!