More caricature reactions from Texas

I'm back home in PA, after my yearly stint at the State Fair of Texas--with alot of blog-catching-up to do. For now, see these fun-to-draw couples and their reactions to my airbrush caricatures. :-)

Caricature reaction 10-18-11

I haven't had much time to really blog while in Texas (there will be a huge recap when I get home) but I wanted to get this little video snippet up.  These two enthusiastic caricature fans came in because I had previously done the parents of one of them:

Here's their reaction:

The latest caricature craze.. sunglasses?

Once in a blue moon, someone will ask me to draw them wearing sunglasses. Sometimes I will dissuade them, because the point of a caricature is to emphasize one's unique facial characteristics--including eyes. Other times, in fact, frequently lately, the cool factor of shades is just too much-- they need a caricature to celebrate this! :-D

This young married couple were just too cute. The husband was drawn first on his own, then the wife decided to get one also.  Mr. and Mrs Faux Chris Rock!

More Texas caricatures, etc.

One of my favorite families who come back every year for a caricature!

The mom and girlfriend of a serviceman who is stationed in Tanzania sat for this one; they are going to send it to him. I asked them if he was in Zanzibar, and they surprisedly said yes, how did you know that?? I told them that one Freddie Mercury was born and spent his early childhood there! 

A Jack Russell. Woof.

A kid who loves Angry Birds...I'm attempting to do cloud backgrounds more often.

This is what Texan girls wear to football games (photo taken on the OU-Longhorns game day).

The two photos above are of my colleague Paul's work. He's a whiz at comic-book-y stuff, and also renders hair with an airbrush like I'll never be able to...well, maybe someday. I learn alot from all three of my co-workers here.

Another cute couple--I had fun rendering her platinum blonde hair against the rainbow background.

"Can you make me playing an electric guitar?"So I made it a Red Special...

This woman came up to me and told me I'd drawn her and her friend last year, and that they really liked it---and it was on her phone!

Stylish sunglasses-wearers...

"Game over!"

Deep-fried chocolate-chip-cookie dough balls with chocolate syrup. Mmmmmm! Better than Schweddy's!

A cute lil' girl. I have been trying to draw bigger and this one achieved full use of the paper.

His shirt was hilarious! His wife didn't want a caricature at first, but when she saw it, she loved it. :-)

A foursome!

A great smile!

A brother and sister wearing typical expressions--I love catching those!

A little break from caricaturing in Texas

During my time here at the Fair, I work 12-hour days--every day--so there is really no time for anything but drawing caricatures, eating fried food, (the fried chocolate chip cookie dough is delicious!) and sleeping. However, the other night, due to the 3-mile-away proximity of a live Tim Minchin performance, I took a break...

...wore my caricature of the man on my t-shirt, and look who I happened to bump into! We were in a beautifully restored Art Deco theater:

Okay, he appreciates all his fans enough to meet them after his concerts, and he said he remembered me from giving him that caricature in Washington, DC a few months back. Although I'll forgive him if he was just being polite, since I certainly can't remember everyone I've ever drawn. We chatted about our mutual affection for the Beatles and Queen. :-)

The Dallas audience was extremely warm and appreciative towards him, considering he had some issues with his piano rental...Here is the one clip I took of him practicing his artistry: (and he attributes his American success to Youtube, so that's why I feel okay sharing this non-spoiler kind of snippet--it just showcases what a whiz he is on piano!)

As we left, Dallas was receiving some much-needed, long-awaited rain!

Airbrush sample/Caricaturama entry!

I killed two birds with one stone today. Vincent Van Gogh is this week's Caricaturama subject and now he's my airbrushed sample at the caricature booth here at the State Fair in Texas.

I have to credit my very funny friend Bob East for his great idea---the ear of corn!! I had originally done ol' Vincent with the ubiquitous food item here, the corny dog, and posted it on Facebook:

So I just airbrushed corn on another piece of paper and taped it over the corny dog. :-)

Deep in the heart of Texans--2011

Well. it's that time of year again, I am sitting in the outdoor caricature booth at the State Fair of Texas with three colleagues---and am madly drawing/airbrushing faces! Here's a few highlights from the first few days of the fair. The weather is absolutely perfect so far, and lots of Texans are venturing out after a scorching summer.

I've drawn this little girl since she was an infant!

 Grandmom and grandsons! 

 Big baby boy!

Two wine-drinkin' ladies!

Facial hair and mohawks are always fun to draw!

Ha, they even posed like their drawing for me!

Wedding shower caricature...Oktoberfest theme

This is a recent commission which was ALOT of fun to do!!

It's marker/artstix, done from several photos. And the client and I found each other through Craigslist!

Ben Franklin-approved caricaturing

Last night, my friend Celestia Ward, who's visiting from Las Vegas, and I drew caricatures in the presence of Ben Franklin himself  (well, a 30-ton marble effigy, anyway) at the Franklin Institute in Philly:

We were the resident caricaturists for a corporate event that also included Mummers, and one of the best magician/balloon artists in the area---John Cassidy. I've got a video snippet on that in a bit--first a little bit of pertinent info on ol' Ben:

That's from a 1905 article in a New England periodical that I found on Google...and was news to me! Wow, another thing to admire about the man!

So the event was lots of fun, and was in such a spectacular setting that I somewhat overdid the scenic photo-taking. Enjoy!

 There's John Cassidy, stocking up on balloon creations before the guests' arrival...

 My little spot on the steps in the rotunda...

 Celestia was on the other side...

 The serene statue of Ben that dominated all...the dome is based on the Parthenon in Rome.

Celestia's view of my spot...

And my view of hers!

We caricatured more men than women--it was an IT conference, and just as in the caricature industry, women are a minority. But we got to draw one or two! Here's a few of mine. Celestia was a little too far away to get photos of her work (or I would have!)

Now so you can feel the vibe:

Caricaturama--Novak Djokovic

This week's subject is a world famous tennis player who makes some fierce expressions!

Digital over marker sketch. Took about an hour or so.