New Look–Next Book.

Here we have a double page spread for the next Stickfiguratively Speaking book that I am ready to show. Now, this image will not be one of the actual finals in the book(I will fully redraw it at the correct size) but it is exactly how the final art will all look. It will be a true graphic novel. So a hearty THANK YOU to Mr. Washington Irving for penning the most famous ghost story that these shores have ever known.

The above image with the solid black sky is how the art will be printed in the book. The art begins however, as the bottom image shows. They are all drawn in pen and ink but with a few solid fills and reversals done in Photoshop.

Two things

This top image is a part of an autobiographical series I’ve decided to work on in between projects–sort of an ongoing thing. They will eventually be made into a book–but more of an art book project, nothing that I care to ever have published.

This second image is nothing more than a demo I gave to one of my classes the other day on–guess what? CROSSHATCHING! Ahhh, the fun of an infinite number of tiny, black lines. Keeps a man sane to be able to control all that ink;)

he-man bad guys

Openin’ up shop.

I finally sat down the other day, and made the shop page for my website!

There’s only a few things for sale at the moment, but I’ll be putting up more soon.

To commemorate this event, I have done a little doodle of myself, located below.

Check out my shop at: www.bortstuff.com/shop.html

Assorted Sketchbook Doodles

Just some stuff from the ol’ sketchbook. I am enjoying drawing characters with actual skin on them for a change…

Sketchy sketch sketch… sketch.

Got a new sketchbook (with some pretty neat cream paper), so I’m attempting to draw stuff without tearing pages out in a rage, leaving only four or five pages between the two black front/back ends.

New Site Design

Thats right! I completely changed my website around! Enjoy the new pages, such as the wonderfully popular “Illustration” page, or the beautifully revamped “Characters” page, or swing by the brand spankin’ new “Sculpture” page!

Sunday Afternoon

A little drawing-thing based on a drypoint from the 15th century. For a fundraiser for a memorial foundation. Not especially thrilled with it… probably should have gone tighter. But, not bad for an afternoon. 3″ x 3.75″

Grave Humor

Looking at the completely empty calendar on the right side of the blog, I feel like I need to justify the lack of posts lately. I’ve been working on a book titled Grave Humor, which you can pre-order here .  It’s the first time my little skull people are being published, which is pretty neat. Who knew they’d be useful? :)   Anyway, the book is a humorous collection of photographs of real tombstones found throughout America that tend to fall into the category of “funny, ironic, and ridiculous.” I was responsible for the cover, chapter openers, interior page illustrations, and spot illustrations.  The team over at Family Tree Books was excellent to work with (great job Christy!).  Anyway, I guess what I’m trying to say is: check it out. Release date is looking like September. Some stuff from Das Buch. [reader note: I will attempt to rediscover the resolve to post on a more sustained basis.]

Profilin’

I suppose posting something, no matter how monstrously terrible it is, is better than posting nothing. So… here’s a warm-up doodle from earlier today. I like female profiles… so elegant and perfect. (Oh, and this was supposed to be a back three-quarters view, which ended up looking more like a side view. Which is why the eye is so far forward on the face plane. Bleh. Excuses!)

Corey Shea Pole Vault Relays

Every year I design a new black and white/crosshatch image for a memorial track meet held by a good friend in honor of his brother Corey Shea. I kinda like still having these small links to Rhode Island and my old friends from Glocester. This is the 2010 edition with design work by Justin Shea.

Happy Time

Quick doodle while I should be working…

S(t)i(ck)stine Chapel

As promised today to a very kind gal who came to my book signing at The Pawling Book Cove in NY. A detail from the Sistine Chapel, drawn in stick figure.

The Unsung Hero…

Well, I know I haven’t posted in a while–working on some stuff that I can’t show (yet). But once everything begins to calm down again, hopefully things will pick back up on zee blog.  I thought I’d post an ode to the great unsung hero of all pen and ink work: the scratch sheet. Without him, we wouldn’t get proper ink flow in our pens as we work. And yet, how poorly we treat him once we’ve finished a drawing, or filled him up; how we toss him aside, forgetting all the memories we shared with one another.  Oh you, great disposable hero, how I love you:

One big ball of string

A small bit of concept art from a story I’ve been writing.