Happy New Year

Time for some changes and movement in a new direction...

Best holiday ever....

I think this is turning out to be the best holiday ever!

Lots of creative stuff, like a small anthology I'm putting together, a collaboration which has very neat characters and idea's flying around them... Can't wait to see more happen on that front, and I had a chance to gather all the parents and in-laws... One of the best parts of the holidays. To top it all off I have a job interview!

Life feels pretty good right now.
I hope everyone has a great holiday too.
Oh I would love to share more but really, it might sound like bragging. So I'll keep this post it to the important stuff, like spending time with the close family as mentioned above. It just nice knowing you have loved ones that care. That makes the season the only reason to celebrate... At least for me. I truly don't need all the extra crap. But just being invited to hang out is a pretty special thing. As economics become more difficult that fact that people invite to a dinner is pretty huge and special.

Thank you everyone for making my holiday that much better. Just knowing you all makes it better. Your generosity, and genuine affection makes this season a real thrill.

Merry Christmas!!!

Plugging away...

Here is a character for a new project... Still not really sound as far as integrating a character into a story. But it is something that I want to see evolve. That being said a collaborator has jumped on board. I need to see what we come up with if anything.

future south american devil type...

I thought it would be interesting to devise a look for a future looking devil. Funny really, the irony of people creating there own demons and yet I just did that very thing.

-enjoy

The line is Drawn...

I decided to contact the person I thought who should win the line is drawn.
After all I think that is a pretty classy thing to do. I hope it happens for them, I will say though that it is not a competition if everyone backs down and the person wins by acclimation.

No a competition is in place to push people to the higher level. There is some pretty amazing stuff happening though... I hope to see one more week in action.

The Line is drawn...

I wanted to do a sketch a week for this little competition... Just to warm up and get ideas flowing. Here is the link to the work others have been doing....http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/category/the-line-it-is-drawn/

Wow!

I mean a few are full color and just amazing in detail. I almost wonder how they did it. I for one thing if people can deliver that much detail and color the work every week they should be selected. Unfortunately I suspect that they are not with family... That is to say they are young, UN-married with no children. The rest of us simply put in a great effort. There is one artist that should get one position for sure by my thoughts, though I do not want to influence the voting. I think I would make a good alternate though. I've seen awesome work but a second place person will be a challenge to pick. A first place is a slam dunk. Some one is in for sure unless they completely stink at the deadlines or ruin the style they have presented.... Time will tell how this all works out.

Over all- everyone put in a huge effort and this was pretty great to watch and be a part of. I loved every week seeing what people put forth. Lets not forget the great idea's from the fans too! The suggestions were simply awesome.

unlikely team ups...

I thought I would do an image a week just to further my complicated life. It turns out to be far easier then an image every single day and still difficult to manage. At any rate I thought I would try out for the position of TLID. They are looking for regular talent and the skill and talent is out of this world too. I thought that I would be destroyed. Yet I managed to get a not one but two pieces in on time and they are all strong enough to hold their own. Mind you other people get the big props simply because they are doing full body shots and I'm just doing these vignette type of illustrations just to make the deadlines.... I wish I could do more but hey, wait and see what happens. I could win a position as an alternate. That would be good. Less pressure to deliver too.

process

Here is a short animation (gif)of a planned landscape.
First is the sketch... Then I thought I would do a painting of the Background and mix a little media with the computer and inked art over top so you get the blacked out modified sketch.

Then I paint off scene... paste a scan of the painting down, then I ink and pencil and tweak the foreground trees. Then I jump into computer chttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifolors on the foreground and merge everything into a nice final piece.

There is much more thought and color experimentation in the whole process though this is the quick revision animation of how I work.... It takes much longer then the few seconds seen here.

I hope the Gif animation works... it's late enough as it is... Argh!

Here is the link to the animation if it fails to work in blogger

-enjoy!

rambo of the X-men... Huh!?!?!?!?!?!

I thought it would be funny too.

-enjoy

Childern and Spoonerisms

My youngest made us all chuckle when we offered up some ice cream.
Well the conversation went like this....

"Hey, do you want some deep fried ice cream?"

Response:
"Oh gross! I don't want deep fried Vikings!"

Just thought I'd share.

-Enjoy!

playing with style and color

I'm always looking for interesting ideas in art and how to approach them in a way that best tells the visual story. Here are a few illustrations done with ink, ink wash, pencil and black pencil crayon. I loved how these turned out. Also I added a cross over card - Yes! A mummy helping Santa delver goodies to the children... Might not be what you wanted for Christmas but it would be better then a severed head from this guy!

- Enjoy.

Real artists

Most people would agree that real art comes from children. They have a very neutral view of things and tend to depict the world around them in the most honest of ways. Every so often though, the children get the craziest ideas and that come through in their art too.

No matter what they create though it is pretty compelling. One thing children tend to lack universally is the sophistication or rather maturity to make their art look finished. Some times that means a little guide could jump in to help them out. In my case my little ones always want to do what Dad is doing. By combining forces with my children I created these two paintings....

-enjoy

New Ebook...

Oh yes! I finally finished a short illustrated tale that is available over here...
http://www.lulu.com/content/e-book/my-kraken-mckraken/12093230
The Book is called My Kraken McKraken. It is about a giant squid and only costs $2. Original art and a great starter reading book for children looking to read fancy hand writing. Truly a must have. My boys thought it was really great to look at.

Life Trend....

I've had calls, I've had Interviews and I've had rejections.
The only thing I haven't had was a BEER!


Its a good thing I have all these useless digital skills of graphic design, art, illustrations and digital media as well as Web SEO and various software skills. Heck If I spent any more money on useless skills and upgrading, I could be unemployed for the rest of my life! Not a bad prospect. I wonder if the Mustard Seed has a few extra beds this winter. I can't offer much in the way of skills but my body heat and heavy breathing would at least add to the natural heating of the cold tiled floor.

Now back to my Beer. Here's to life!

Illustrated Audio Tale...

The first episode is up...
http://3deadkings.blogspot.com/
Since this is a one person production, it is not likely to change in quality much. All art and voice work is done by me and is copyrighted in its entirety by Richard Grzela 2011.

3 Dead Kings Begins in November

A new audio story blog I created and produced begins in November.
http://3deadkings.blogspot.com/
It offers an interesting twist on a creepy tale.

Where Have I been?

Well I've been looking for work!
My journey took me to the USA in the hopes of finding where all the Americans put their cash. I found it too. The economic crisis is over. I found your cash. Now you can afford to hire me. Unless I keep some of this for my self.

By the way we hit a record 41degrees centigrade when I went on a treasure hunt. I have to say that it was the craziest journey I have ever been on too. Here is the photo to prove I was successful.

Illustrated Audio Project....Could be you!

Are you interested in web casts and audio programming?
want to be part of a project?
Want you voice on the web?
Want to contribute art or ideas?

Think it over, give me a shout.
I'm putting together a script for another webcast. A great opportunity for all to contribute. So far ten episodes have been scripted. All I need is a fellow voice or artist to throw their talents into the mix. A low-high-tech creation by yours truly.
Simply comment or email if your interested in doing art or a character voice.

It is a horror themed tale. Looks pretty darn good on paper so far too.
here is the link to the past project... FightOn

Risen

I have to say that this is one I can truly laugh about now. I was there just a few days ago.

I lied to my self....

Some times I think things are finally on track, so I make plans to move forward and then something annoying happens that bends me in the wrong manner and I completely flip my lid and want to hurt something. I have to remember that my last part time job was labor work, so I'm a bit stronger then the average desk jockey who might have 30 extra pounds around their waist... So I tell my self things are working out, move forward, but the plans fall apart and I get bent out of shape... Like I said.

I get flustered and instead of breaking every thing I just smash a few things and go on a art binging and produce like crazy... Here is what happened when I was right bent out of shape....



- Enjoy

P.s. There is so much more but these are the only ones that seemed to get any true form. The rest were very ... lets just say energized.

Here!!!!!

Like I said - Don't believe the hype... You'll love it or hate it.
Let the work - work for you.

If you love it - Share it!

- Enjoy!

P.S. I don't speak Russian - So don't spam me. You can't expect people to allow a post if they don't understand your language. Try English so I can reject you good and proper.

don't believe the hype!

If you read an authors blog, or the artists and they tell you how awesome the book is... Remember how much work they put into it. Ultimately it depends on just what you like to read that determines the success... Most people grab my stuff for the art.

Yet not many others will buy the book. Once they give it a try they like the visuals and more... most books are like this.

Try some thing new.

post - no post

It has been some time since I posted last. Fear not!
I have been doodling and I might even share a few of them soon. What has been eating up time is planning a new comic idea...well not new for me just trying to make the process a bit more simplified for participants. I have one fellow partner who is handling some of the project while I do most of the heavy lifting. IF things go well between us, then we may expand the idea into a more inclusive thing.

Right now it is fun just sharing ideas and getting something going. The project is small but will take at least a few more weeks of work to get a product out for viewing.

Stay tuned for more. I think it is pretty exciting. More to come will really make it sing. Maybe I can con a few artists to pitch in some more to the project as well. We will have to wait and see.

Style Exploration

I was asked to come up with a gritty visual for an illustrative tale.
This is what I have so far. It is pretty much a rough version of my regular style. I'm not quite sure of all the details as more material has to come my way. Until then, you get to wonder as much as I am what exactly is going to be final look of the work.

-Enjoy

Myth-a-Con

This is a rushed post...
Myth-a-COn is an awesome game convention.
Over 200 players converged on the small site to play a huge number of games. The gamers were further treated to a fully catered feast for breakfast, lunch and dinner!
ranging in price from $4-10 the food ranged the gamut of a hot dog to a full feast Turkey dinner with all the fixings!

You get a huge amount of choice in both game and food. If your going to a convention to play a game or want to try something new - the fans and players are great to approach.

At the end of every session - Everyone shook hands and moved on to the next game. They are an impressive group. The staff were friendly and amazing too. Everyone was warmly welcomed.
Be sure to book Myth-a-con for your next game convention stop. You will not be disappointed!
-enjoy

WIP- ZombieLoveBunny

I was at Myth-a-Con! Some one wanted to see what I would do for a Zombie version of the Love bunny... Here is your zombie Love Bunny. HaHaHa

Kicks and Giggles.

-Enjoy.

finished pages for a short project...

Comic Pages... I hope to do more in the future.





- Enjoy

Hands Comic

Created in two days, I picked a topic that I knew absolutely nothing about, this is a wonderful piece that kind of gets you thinking about our selves and is completely free...
https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=explorer&chrome=true&srcid=0B-eEO_c5LsEOYzQyM2ZjYWMtZTlkMy00ZWE2LThkOTctOTNiNTM2OTNjYTM4&hl=en_US

The real challenge was keeping the writing at a grade 7 level as a minimum. Unfortunately I promised myself I would destroy the original when completed. I did that. Now guess what... I found a few typos and I can not go back.... Darn it all. At least it explains why I would give this away for free.

-Enjoy.

on a whim...

We spend a day in the bad lands.
Just up and took a weekend day and trekked through the heat and humidity of the famous horse shoe canyon. Took in the Dinosaur museum and then finished the day in the out door water park by the worlds biggest T-Rex.

Why would we do this?????????????????????????

Why not. Life can not be lived in the boredom of a bunch of bills and worries. Throw caution in the wind and live a little. Life is only what you make it. You might as well accumulate more debt in the process. Ha!

Fred and Barneys is a small family restaurant there - serving Chinese food. The waitress was very wonderful to our children. I suggest you give it a try when your in Drumheller, Alberta next visit.

-Enjoy

Funny Things

Here is another quick drawing... Well not really that quick, just a WIP.
Guns are once again featured here. See a theme?
What has happened is a reflection of what my young ones are doing.... They of course are doodling swords. So I end up doodling guns. Go figure.

Here is the latest gun toting guy.

The idea here is he is as awesome with the gun as Billy the kid, but the gun itself is far more then it appears. It is an enchanted weapon. It is extra large. It is basically a hand cannon.Some people suggest he is compensating for something. But to say that is to walk away with an extra whole in ones head.

BTW - The Gun is named "Incumbent".

Pretty funny. The gun idea is loosely based on the first nations natives (Indians)version of the talking stick. Except the guy with the gun get to hold office. It is pretty hard to disagree with the guy pointing a gun in your face.

-Enjoy.

Super Heroes Must Die

Well this is a real site. I did a fan piece for it. What can I say. I kind of agree.

No more Astronauts...

It has taken some time for this to sink in. I mean what are you going to do with all the over educated unemployed nerds of the world????
One person suggested that they start a hockey team for the NHL. With all the head shots happening, those unemployed astronauts are likely going to be down to the normal I.Q. of everyone else by the end of the first season.
You could also have them turn into comic book artist. At least they would have a place to hang out with fellow geeks. That was my suggestion.

I always expected Japan to rule the world with robotics. They might just get their chance in the next 5 years too. Space will be dominated by their tech. Americans clearly have taken a step backwards. Perhaps they finally admit that humans simply can not live in space for long periods of time. Not that the average person needed to be told that.

Radiation, no air, not pressure, no sun, no food.... They better focus on teleporation and robotic drones. That we we can just beam to other places - star gate/ teleportation style.

WWE - THE ROCK IS BACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Tonight the Rock makes his Wrestling Come back!

SAY WHAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Unless your inviting me to watch Wrestling - Don't call me, I'm Busy!

The French

What can I say, no one can quite insult a person like the french. Okay Shakespeare comes close, but the french have it down to an art form. My Dad often reminds me of this when he break out into his rants.

Incidentally I've been going over the work of French painters and decided to try and replicate the art form on a digital style. I then took some of the lessons learned bought it to a more illustrative style and the results are all visually interesting to me. What do you think?


- Enjoy!

What I'm reading!

I decided to go to a book store recently. Yes you know the place like a library but you get to purchase books. I know it is a possibility that the same content is free on the web, though I did not want to search out 100 web sites when every thing might be neatly collected into one volume.

I found a great bargain book.
"The Big Questions - Mathematics" by Tony Crilly.

Just a great read. The book gets to the core of several ideas with out the long winded details and actual calculations. There is enough information to work the theories out your self or simply read the book to get a grasp of concepts old and new and how things are currently viewed through the eyes of math and our world.

If your a Math major, you will hate it for the lack of details. If your an average person like myself, it really is a great source of food for thought and makes you consider alternative ways of thinking about the world around you. I found it to be a refreshing take on life and the science that surrounds us that we may not have really thought about... like phones and travel!http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

I also put together another PDF / e-magazine for those of you who like the Palladium books game system. It can be found at the following link...
https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=explorer&chrome=true&srcid=0B-eEO_c5LsEOODdiODhiNzUtNjk4NS00OGIxLTlmNWItOTE0ZTkwMzgwMGVl&hl=en_US
It is created by fans from fan material. Collected nicely for free distribution to other gamers of this declining game system. It is pretty slick despite the many idiosyncratic aspect of the game mechanics it is the most comprehensive and detailed of any I've ever played as a player.

Workout strategies

Workout strategies are hard to come by. You really have to just do it.
Time being a limited thing I have turned to body sculpting, and body building techniques.

I know what your thinking...No I don't look like a steroid goon.

Female body builders use their body and resistance, where men use weights to really tear muscle up. I've chosen to go with standard weight training and incorporate some of the techniques the women are using. I have to say it really works. The results are starting to show. I can see abs under all my fat!

Okay, I'm chubby, but the sculpting of the body can be achieved with daily repetition and no more then 10 reps per body part. Honestly - because I only do 10 reps per day it has taken 12 months to see results. Still so few reps and still just sticking with the limited time I have has proven that these pro-women really do know what they are talking about. Also, the heavier lifts that the guys use keeps your body looking in hunky form... Well in my chase it is more chunky.

I'm getting there. - LOL

time for images

I love doing this stuff. I thought I would change gears in the near future and tackle more political and editorial stuff. Focus on characters in our world.
For now this should do. I just need to get more ideas out.

-enjoy.

fan Piece

I did this piece while trying to stay true to OtherWorld Comic creators work. Yes it is visually different from my regular stuff because I'm trying to replicate the work of another and still keep the flare of visuals.

Hope you like it.

-enjoy

So what I've been upto...Part Deux

E-mags... yup I've join forces with a few e-mag publishers... Well sort of, I beg them to take me and my work. A whole bunch of folks have told me a suck lately. Who am I to argue with the paying customers. So what I did was grab my nut sack and took a run for the wall... I begged a few folks for another shot and they gave it to me... When it (my Work) appears in e-print I'll post it here. The first is for October, the second in January...We'll see if they love me... or not.

P.S. They (The publishers) don't speak English well so even if they slag me, I'll be able to pretend not to understand and take it as a compliment by saying..."Yhea you too buddy! Thanks!"

-Enjoy!

Some old and some never seen before...

These were drummed up and I thought I would share them... Memory being what it might be, or rather tech failing me again... I wanted to make sure folks had a chance to see my coloring and art from days gone by and of course see what I've been up to... Archiving of course.

-enjoy!

project end!

here is an ending banner.
-enjoy

pilot project

It seems far more difficult these days to get the simplest things done...I wonder how the university researchers do it. They simply ask and things just happen. Not so easy for the rest of the world.

pilot project...

I'm currently looking for writers and artist to put together short 4 page stories for publication. 4 Page tales will be worked on and seen at...www.4pagetales.blog

So far two writers and two artist are involved in this project. Basic information can be found in the first post of the site.

Davy Jones ...

This water color was produced for a children's book. I did the image on a 12x14 sheet to get the scale. Unfortunately the project was pulled... So I have this framed piece in my home office as a reminder that even your hard work can be tossed aside for reasons not often shared.

Still, It is good to let the world know that I still use traditional media to do the things I do.

-Enjoy

Illustration FX

I wanted to do something a bit different here... An image in a sketch book that just seems to leap off the page. I liked how it came out. I think what I might do is a generic sketch book page in B&W and then do color images on top of that. For now this is what I'm Playing around with for fun.

-Enjoy.

Work out -- body change

I've committed my self to a very light work out style to fit into my life style. Now a year into my efforts I should share the work out.

It is simple...
Do something every day.
Do 10 to 20 reps of something every day.

Thanks is it. It is working. Even when I'm tired I simply can still do ten reps of something. It is pretty amazing. Though I have not lost much in the way of weight. My body shape has changed dramatically. Mostly in the upper body and a slimming of the lower abdominal s too.

What is more humorous is that my children are now saying things like, Dad Superman is stronger then you, or The Hulk can lift way more than you. Hard to argue that though I generally do my work outs between 11:00pm and 1:00am when the little ones are asleep...I'm not sure where they get their ideas from.

I still think I'm pretty average though. Working behind a desk for 7+ hours a day leave little time for other things. This seems to be working for me though.

Mostly calisthenics (Ladies call it Peladies or some such thing) though I do use smaller/light free weights at least twice a week to change up the intensity.

Being stronger allows for more options too. You can do more and want to do more. You need the mental toughness to really push yourself through the really weary days. The mental toughness is what I'm working on. As a parent your mind is often fatigued due to the constant push and pull on your time too. This is a challenge to over come. Being in the mind frame to improve fitness helps take on more and tackle more. I wish I could offer more in the way of getting more sleep between work outs and busy days though I have not solved that challenge yet.

Not my art but funny!

This made me laugh because it is so hard t deny. Now with a long slow recovery - You hardly can call the recession recovery that... When is the real salvation going to come through once and for all!

Finished Skull Porfolio

Like I said this one was getting pretty extreme, so instead of using a fabric interior finish, I simply glued down black construction paper. To make it more functional I recycled duo-tang clips so that pages don't fly around. Though I could have simply used an elastic band system to hold things in, I added small holes to give more options and keep the costs way down.

A more price extensive version would have been to use wood and cloth. More durable too! I only wanted a display piece for this one. Just get the idea across and creep a few folks out. I did finish this with a clear coat, which is why your seeing a sheen that was not really there in the previous photos. The previous photos were taken when the paint was still wet.

-Enjoy!

Custom Covers - Cool!

These are custom covers I've created over the last few weeks. They are relief sculptures one being on a duo-tang for my sons book report which scored a whooping 98%. I'm sure the cover helped. The second with the SKULL!!!!!!!!!! A fun project for a darker theme. It is a custom made portfolio built for 8.5x11 size paper... It is retro fitted with recycled Duo-tang clips though they can be removed for other clips too!

Just fun art for arts sake though I have had requests to do more I have to say that these are going to cost $300-$2,700 dollars for me to create each. Pretty cheap for a functional piece though they are meant for display purposes or stage props then actual every day use. The two seen here are $300 for the bearded man which is Not for sale as it belongs to my son. The second (with the Skull) is currently still under construction. But is looking like $500-$700 depending on how long the second process of interior finishing takes.


For those interested in seeing the real deal, feel free to swing by my place or order your own by request.

- Enjoy

New Illustration...

This was a crazy adventure... Mob Boss - Leprechaun .... You have to be lucky, not to get killed, not to get hurt, not to get robbed... I figured the perfect fusion would be an Irish Mob Boss meld into this final...

2 weeks of filling out suits and body types and I figured not only is he lucky, he is very comfortable, lets fatten him up. Then I wanted the Italian features of a round or blocked head with a distinguished beard that took the Irish to a new level. The suit is a bit shiny to reflect the sharp glowing style of the mob. I little bling in the ear, nose and hand. Then I made the Shelagh (Snake beating stick) a silver color to top it off.

I did try bowler hats but it was to New York and hid the good features, I tried a south American style hats too... No it did not do the guy justice. I had a full suit version but that was to stiff for an easy going Irishman. You might notice the small homage to the Archie Comics, the hatching on the side of the head. I wanted to do a bit more with the color though this is pretty darn close to what I wanted... Feel free to comment.

- Enjoy and thanks for all your support folks.

Messing around with some ideas.

Jeeper... Not a word - but spoonerism is. I love that word. It might just be my number one of all time... That leads me to the next illustration I'm knocking around. Something a little mob like with a twist... Oh I can't wait to nail the concept and put it together for viewing goodness.

Myth-A-Con

Yes I'll be there!
I've arranged to be the GM for the Palladium game settinghttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif. If you have never played Rifts, this is your chance to get a taste. I'll be bringing loads of little extras should the game be pushed forward. More information can be found at the following sites....
http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
http://warhorn.net/mythacon2/

You can find more here as well....

http://www.mythacon.ca/

If you want to try the Pen and Pencil gaming, bring your dice and a good pencil! Don't forget to register soon! Ask for it by name and maybe we'll get prime seating and placement.

Better post...

Here is the published piece slightly larger, based on the short story Meridian by Tony Peak... read it here....

Some times I wish bad news was like lightning... only one in 14 million... The reality is only good news seems to come like lightning.

Brutal........

This illustration is perfect for my mood.... Yes, Hung by questions and with a rocket hitting my head....Yes an expletive fits well here.
I need to post something more positive. I'll do that next.