Happy New Year!

Bizarro and Christmas ....
good times .... gooooood times

Halloween ..... The Lost Drawing

I drew this for Halloween, stuck it in a book, forgot about it, did some cleaning 'round the house tonight, found the drawing, and now present it to you with Yuletide greetings ;)

It's been nearly a month since my last post .... ouch .... but this cold Chicago weather has got me in hibernation mode.

Some more background paintings for the animated short. These will have a screen time of only about 2-3 seconds, so you'll barely see 'em. But they were sure fun to work on. It now looks like things may wrap up in late winter, early spring, because the studio is busy with commercial work for the holidays.

Train Sketch 11-13-06

Haven't done one of these in a loooooooooooooong time *__*

Funny Fizzles

My animated homage to the coolest drink mix ever ..... Funny Face!

Some more images which will be used as background art.
Hopefully when the short is complete, it will be posted in part or in whole. I'll definitely bring it up, and will post any updates, or links.

!! Thanks for all the positive feedback !!

These are some background pieces for an animated short a studio in Chicago is producing. The short is finally within view of being completed, and if all goes well, may be finished by the end of the year. That's all I can say for now, but will be posting some more soon ...... :)

Beasties 2

couple more furry fellows ;)

Edit 10/10/06 : Did some 'tweaks' on this post, including completely re-doing #1, the original just didn't seem to fit the rest of the bunch.

Beasties

More color studies ... :)

Colored Kaiju 2

More Giant Monster art, inspired by a Godzilla movie marathon.
I chalk these type of movies, along with old comics, as "happy place" material ;)

Colored Kaiju

2 B colored ....

... I'm still alive, just takin' a little break :)

Hope everybody had a great holiday!

Red Planet

Photoshop experiment .... *__*

Kids at Play

For last weeks Outsider Art Club theme.

Happy B-Lated Birthday ......

....To Me!!!!!!!!!!

It was Tuesday, Aug. 15 .... celebrated at mmmmmm..... Todai.

*_*

When I Grow Up.....

This was done for Outsider Art Club, a weekly themed art blog composed of mainly Chicago based animators and artists. It is open to anyone though, so if your interested, head on over and join ....... :)

Devil Man

Recent commission of Go Nagai's classic manga/anime character from the 70's.

Interestingly enough, Nagai's work has always been an influence, but it wasn't until very recent that I discovered who the creator behind the work was. He's responsible for such classics as Devil Man, Cutey Honey, Kekko Kamen, but probably best known for his work on Mazinger Z and Getter Robo. These last two were part of the giant robot craze which invaded the U.S. in the 70's and 80's, and were better known as members of the Shogun Warriors* toy line.

For me, Nagai is one of the rare artists who can combine adult themes, humor, and cool monsters all in one. If you dig old school anime, I recommend hunting down some of his 70's Japanese t.v. shows on e-bay. Good stuff!

* p.s. ........24" first release Mazinga Shogun Warrior ......BEST TOY EVER!

Train Sketch .... 08-06-06

:)

Illustration Friday: Clean

Been wanting to submit to this weekly illustration jam for quite a while.
This is my first :)

Check it out ..... Illustration Friday.

Final Colors

I think this is my third time editing this post :) , but I have to stick with what I have at this point and move on ....... These will be the final bookmark/magnets for Comic-Con *__*

*Update*Update*Update*

I can hardly believe it's been nearly three weeks since my last update! But I've been a busy beaver, and would like to share what I've been up to recently, ..... and what's in the works. So without further ado ......

Share the Luv Sketchbook

My first self published book, Share the Luv, Sketchbook vol. 1, is ready for shipping ....

Full Color front and back covers (pictured)
64 b+w pages of pure cartoon fun
6.5" x 10.25"
Perfect Bound
Signed and numbered,
First printing of 150 copies

USA + Canada: $10 + shipping
International: $13 + shipping

For ordering info, a sneak peak, or any questions please visit my new store.

San Diego Comic-Con: July 20-23

I'll be attending this year's Comic-Con and sharing a table with a slew of Chicagoland (and ex-Chicagoland artists). I'll be selling sketchbooks, prints, and will color up four of the above sketches (in my "pastely" style) to make as bookmark/magnets. If any strike your fancy, please let me know. It'll be my first Comic-Con, and I'm really looking forward to the enormousness of it!

So if you happen to be there, stop by table E-6 and say "Howdy, Hi, or Was' Up"!

Legendary

I've recently been asked to contribute a comic story to a new book called Legendary. It's being done in an anthology style, with all artists asked to give interpretations of "Legend". I'm very excited about being a part of this due to the interesting theme, roster of great talent involved, and proceeds will be going to various funds supporting the comics medium.

Since I firmly believe in recycling, I'll be reworking a story I had started as part of another anthology, which didn't quite get of the ground. Above are a couple penciled pages, which will be re-done. The first page was to have a cosmic Kirby type space background.

Please check out the official Legendary blog for details, and sample artwork .... great stuff!

Welcome To Kreepsville, U.S.A.

The kreepy kartoon pitch, Welcome To Kreepsville, U.S.A., is still in the works. Here's a couple misc. kreeps to fill up some space :)

Cereal Killers Book ....

.... should be ready shortly. The head kreepster himself, Doctor Viktor Von Kreep, says the book will be squirming it's way into reality this summer. I'll kreep you posted!

Above are some sketches of "Maggie Maggot", which will accompany the illo "Sugar Frosted Maggots", posted earlier.

Commercial Work

Speaking of creepy cereal mascots, here's some concept work from a spot done last Fall. From .... the "day job" *_*

Chewbone

Speaking of animation, stop by my buds at Chewbone and give 'em a howla' !
"J-Dog" Meredith recently posted a fun bit of animation he and I did for the heck of it called "Diddles Red Lager". Yep, that Diddle and this Diddle would be the same Diddle.

Here's the invitation I did for last year's Chewbone Christmas party, I know it's a bit late, but only 'cause I'm still getting over the hangover ...... @__@

Last, But Certainly Not Least ....

... when I get some spare time from all the above, I love spending it with my two special ladies :)

xoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Adam Warlock

Recent commission I did, which was very fun because Warlock has always been one of my favorites. I've always been a sucker for the cosmic space-opera types. Plus, Warlock started his career in the pages of Fantastic Four as "Him", with plots and pencils by Jack Kirby (sigh).

The Fat, Obnoxious, A-Hole....

... a Chicago staple, and commuter favorite *__*

(yep, it's a she)

Train Sketch ..... 06-13-06

Welcome To Kreepsville U.S.A.

Something I've been working on recently is some development work for an animated television pitch called Welcome to Kreepsville U.S.A. I was contacted by the master Kreepster himself, O'Neal Pignani (a.k.a. Doktor Victor Von Kreep), after submitting my "Maggie the Maggot" illo for his upcoming book Cereal Killers, and asked if I'd be interested in developing an idea of his, along with background artist Pat Pakula. After talking to O'Neal, and realizing we had the same passion for cartoons, monsters, toys, comics, and all other forms of low-brow art, I jumped in.
I'll be posting more sketches and concepts over time, and invite you to check out the official Kreepsville Kartoon blog for more info and updates.

I thought the date of 06-06-06 would be a good day to starts things up ;)

Also, many thanks for all the wonderful comments you've all been leaving! I've been a busy bee lately, but really appreciate all the kind words and thoughts! Hope to make my blog rounds soon!

Take Care,
Darryl