I’ve made it through my busiest summer yet…well I’m almost there anyway. Thanks to all the fairs and festivals that brought me to their events!
I’ve drawn 23 days at 12 different events since the beginning of June. That’s about 1,155 to 1,540 caricatures in 2 months! I’ve got 5 more events in the next two weeks. Check my event schedule for my locations so you can come get a drawing!
I learned that chalk art on the street is called “Madonnari” derived from the first forms of the art which were depictions of the Madonna. Obviously chalk art has changed a bit since then.
This is my 8 ft by 10 ft box drawn for the madonnari festival in Mount Vernon, Iowa: Chalk the Walk. This is an original illustration designed specifically for the festival to make use of the inherent properties of chalk and pavement. It seems to me that chalk glows on when drawn onto pavement so I made use of that and also planned for the color of the pavement for extra effect. (besides that it saved me some work since I didn’t have to chalk in those areas)
The interesting thing about chalk art is that it’s so transient. It is an amazing thing to walk down the street colored in bright colors and then this morning the rain came and washed it all away. Unfortunately I couldn’t film the rain washing everything away – the street was re-opened and there was a car parked on my drawing.
I seem to have a bad habit of forgetting to update my blog when I’m drawing caricatures at Universal Studios Florida… So here I am again, back from the dead.
It’s been a good season so far. The park was open until midnight the week between Christmas and New Years…kept me pretty busy. Yes, New Years Eve I worked from 9:30 am to 1:00 am New Years Day.
After I drew the drawing on the left of the gentleman in the plaid shirt and the girl with black hair a woman refused to have her sons drawn by me. When I turned around to ask if anyone was waiting for a drawing she promptly said, “We’re waiting for him”, referring to another artist.
As you may or may not know…I have and ongoing “Celebrity of the Month” at my studio. Each month I put an unnamed caricature outside my door. Passersby can guess the celebrity and put their answer (with a contact number) in a box on my wall. On the first of the new month I draw a winner and that person receives a free caricature!
Jon Heder as Napoleon Dynamite was the Celebrity of the Month for November (I accepted either Jon Heder or Napoleon Dynamite as a correct answer, regardless of spelling).
Stop by my studio to make a guess for December!
I am pleased to announce that I received two awards at the convention for the International Society of Caricature Artists (ISCA). I had a great week with great artists from all around the world. 140 artists from 14 countries to be exact.
I received FIRST PLACE for Outstanding Body Situation Style and THIRD PLACE for Outstanding Cartoon Style!
Let me give a brief rundown of what happens at an ISCA convention. All the competing artists are given a section of wall in a large ballroom. Only drawings done at the convention can go up in that space. There are 4 days designated to drawing. During that time there are artists drawing in the ballroom 24-7. The room is transformed into a giant workspace. There are art supplies, computers, paper and artists everywhere. At the end of the designated drawing time all the participating artists vote on certain categories. (the red numbers are my competition number and the individual drawing number). As seen above, I received awards from 2 categories…making me an award winning artist!
It’s that time of year again. School supplies, new classes, new teachers… Welcome Back to all the students!
Here’s my next celebrity example…pretty self explanatory.
On a side note, Ames IA was flooded last week. I could not leave the city for 2 days. Luckily I made it out in time to draw at Fayette Watermelon Days yesterday.
I’ve decided I need more celebrity examples. The last movie I saw at the theater was Knight and Day at the dollar theater. Am I a real caricature artist now that I’ve drawn Tom Cruise? …I didn’t make his front tooth prominent enough, maybe next time I’ll try from another angle.
Marshall Co. Fair in Warren Minnesota. You betcha! I really had a great time!
Although Kids’ Days events are a popular place for caricatures, there is no age limit on being a kid. Here are some kids that I drew during Janesville Days, in Janesville, Iowa.
