By: Erik Brooks,
on 5/29/2014
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| The almost blank canvas (letters lightly penciled in)... |
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| ...to early progress from the Genie Z Boom... |
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| ...to getting pretty close... |
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| ... to the final touches... |
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| ...and the finished product! |
By: Erik Brooks,
on 5/9/2014
If you follow this blog or are familiar with my work in any way, then you know that I pretty much specialize in children's book illustration, comic strips, and the teaching/schools visits that come about in connection to those pursuits.
Occasionally, my skills are safely tested in the realms of library promotion and summer reading materials -- but in the last year I've had several opportunities to stretch the ole' illustration and design hat a bit.
For starters, a few logo designs:
By: Erik Brooks,
on 3/15/2013
By: Hazel Mitchell,
on 9/21/2012
By: Hazel Mitchell,
on 8/26/2012
By: Hazel Mitchell,
on 7/31/2012
By: Hazel Mitchell,
on 7/17/2012
By: Hazel Mitchell,
on 7/2/2012
Good news for librarians this week ...
By: Hazel Mitchell,
on 4/25/2012
By: Hazel Mitchell,
on 6/30/2011
Deadlines are good things. They make you stretch yourself. You achieve things you thought were impossible. Sometimes things are even better because you have to work quickly. I relish them and - I dread them. But I know I am happier when I have them, than when I don't. I think that's one of the reasons I enjoy working in the illustration field. Mostly you are working for a client, and that client has expectations - after all they are putting food on your table. I often hear freelancers (in all kinds of work) saying that they have a hard time getting motivated. My advice: get yourself a deadline. And if you don't have one, create one for yourself.
The reason I am rattling on about deadlines is that there's a few on my calendar. This is excellent, means I am busy. Who doesn't want to be busy? I handle my deadlines by making a written calendar, right now it goes until August 31. I have 2 manuscripts to illustrate by then (the next two books in Anastasia Suen's cheerleader series for Kane and Miller publishing). Before you 'gasp' they are black and white with colour cover, so it's not colour double spreads!)
Mid way through this is wham bam ... SCBWI Summer Conference in LA. Just to make things difficult for myself I've decided to redo my portfolio with totally new pieces. So that's F-I-V-E weeks away. Plus I want to take 2 dummies with me. I will be entering the Portfolio Showcase again ... this year I feel like I know what I am doing. Well, more than last year anyway!
As I said, nothing like a deadline ... here's one of the new pieces with a more whimsical style than usual.
By: rawtoastdesign illustration,
on 6/16/2011
These were several editorial illustrations created for the May/June issue of UTNE Reader. They were done for a bunch of stories that revolved around the topic of narcissism.
Half page, opener for "The Culture of Narcissism" - playing off the idea of thinking you are the center of the universe.
"The Narcissism Myth" - this one revolves around the subject of young people and their need for outside validation (i.e. Twitter, Facebook, etc.) being rooted in their own insecurity.
"Just Do It" - the focus on this discussion was about self-improvement, self-help books, obsession with being the best we can be, and the power of positive thinking. More or less poking fun at this stuff.
"Whatever Happened to Empathy" - explored how much we've lost our ability to empathize with others, walk in other people's shoes, etc.
"Narcissus Regards a Book" - People want to read about themselves and what they're into, not great literature.
More editorial illustration by freelance illustrator Jesse Kuhn at rawtoastdesign.com
By: rawtoastdesign illustration,
on 3/20/2011
I was recently commissioned for a pretty sweet illustration opportunity with McDonalds for the filet-o-fish "Tales From the Sea" campaign. Had to crack all five out from sketches to finals in five days too which was interesting. Unfortunately the billboards are only being used for a St. Louis, MO metro campaign though (not national). So if you're in St. Louis keep eye out and see if you can spot all five! Below are a few pics that have been sent back to me of them out "in the wild"...
1 Comments on Billboard Illustrations For McDonalds Filet-o-fish, last added: 3/22/2011
By: rawtoastdesign illustration,
on 3/11/2011
Just recently finished up this editorial illustration for the digital launch of Smash (the teen version of Tennis Magazine). It was for a piece called “Stress Test” about dealing with the top 10 pressure filled moments in tennis. Here's the link to the article to check out the full story and the new publication.
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Check out more of my freelance illustration work at http://www.rawtoastdesign.com.
Very clever, Eric! I'm not sure I would have recognized it as your style...which shows I need to do a better job of keeping up with your work!
Kind of my "every-so-often-editorial-cartoon" style for the local newspaper, David. I definitely experiment now and then, but you probably won't see this in a picture book anytime soon. Thanks for dropping by :)