Double Dog Dare

Lacey, one of my dearest forever-friends, commissioned me to scratch these dachshund portraits for her husband Jarod. She sent me reference photos of their pups Charlie and George, and I did my best to capture their personalities. The portraits are ink on clayboard panels with wood cradles, so they can be hung side by side without glass. I love drawing dogs, so I had a blast drawing these guys. Plus, I even got to meet Charlie and George when I was in Oklahoma over the holidays. Thanks, Lacey!

Telepresence & Videoconferencing

This is an illustration for an article about telepresence and videoconferencing in the November issue of AV Technology. It was a fun challenge to come up with a way of illustrating this subject in an interesting way. Thanks, Margot and Nicole!




For this same issue, I also did a portrait of one of the magazine's contributors.

Todd Rundgren for Guitar World

This portrait of Todd Rundgren ran in the August issue of Guitar World. The article was about Rundgren's new album of Robert Johnson covers. The AD wanted to play with the idea of putting Rundgren in Johnson's shoes at the Crossroads, an idea I instantly loved. I had a great time working on this. Thanks, Alexis!

Anti-Muslim Inner Circle

These 10 scratchboard portraits of the men and women who put gasoline in the fire of the uprising of anti-Muslim sentiment were commissioned by the Southern Poverty Law Center for their magazine Intelligence Report.

You can read the article online here. Thanks, Sunny and Russell!

Gaga for Gaga

So, I have a confession to make -- I love Lady Gaga. She is both fantastic and fascinating. I think it's great that there is a pop star who challenges our preconceptions and who brings theatricality to a whole new level. There is something so inclusive about Gaga's attitude, and she is consistently sticking up for all the little monsters out there who believe in what she does.

This portrait was inspired by the "Telephone" video -- like her other videos, it is visually incredible with style in spades. Definitely check it out if you haven't seen it.

Neda Agha-Soltan

On June 20th, 2009, Neda Agha-Soltan was shot and killed by government snipers during a protest of the Iranian election. Her death was filmed and photographed by fellow protestors, with footage and pictures quickly making their way to YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter. Her death has in many ways provided a rallying cry for Iranians, despite the fact that the government has declared mourning and prayer for Neda illegal. She has become a symbol of the hundreds of people who have lost their lives standing up for what the believe in during this tumultuous time. The name "Neda" means "voice" or "calling" in Persian, and she has been referred to as the "voice of Iran".

Her story has struck a chord with me in many different ways, especially since we were born in the same year, and I felt strongly compelled to make a portrait of her. Though her death was horrific and far too soon, it has made a huge impact around the world. She is a martyr in the truest sense of the word. Here's to the people of Iran. Stay strong.

American Illustration & Applied Arts

I got word recently that these portraits of Poe and Ayn Rand have been "chosen" for the American Illustration 28 web gallery.

I did the Rand portrait in the Atlanta airport while waiting for a connecting flight to visit my family in Oklahoma. I always get nervous that airport security will try to confiscate my scratch nibs as some sort of tiny, terribly ineffective arsenal of weapons (this has never happened, I just like to worry about it). I'm glad I didn't have any run-ins with TSA on that trip.

Several of these portraits will also appear in the Applied Arts photo/illustration annual out this month. They have put the work up online as well.

Slumdog

Slumdog Millionaire is the movie of the year in my books. My fingers are crossed for it tonight...Let's hope "it is written".

Here's a detail for good measure...