It has been an extremely busy period over the last few weeks, with a full slate of client projects on the board, as well as a couple trips just before and after the new year.

Attached is a small sampling of things that were completed recently...


A cartoon from a online dating book I illustrated last month:


A cover for a magazine distributed at a City Government Conference in New York, NY. (The illustration was commissioned by a professor at the University of Colorado, hence the Denver reference. ):

An illustration for advertisements publicizing an insurance bill recently passed in the Florida legislature:



A character created for a software company that offers "applications" for cell phones. They wanted the character for their presentation at the recent Consumer Electronics show in Las Vegas and offered beanie hats featuring the character printed on them to attendees:

A piece for a gentleman in California who trains contractors to be more successful with their businesses. This was essentially like drawing an old-style comic book cover...(Fun stuff.)

Something that kept me very busy this past July was illustrating a book called "Body Language". (I can post this here now because the book was recently released.)

The author, James Borg is a very intelligent fellow who resides in England. My work required talking with him about the concepts and look of the illustrations...and since the book's editor was also in London, there were lots of late night and early morning phone calls/emails crossing the sea because of the time difference.

It is probably the largest number if illustrations I have ever done for a book...all totaled there were 60 -- some of them quite detailed, so it was a healthy bit of work. Fortunately, I was able to set aside a solid two week block of time to work on it, completing it just in time for the publishing deadline.

From what I could see in reading the text they sent, the book itself seemed fascinating. A copy of the book just arrived from the publisher, so I am looking forward to reading it in its entirety. (Maybe I'll be able to go out in public and know exactly what someone is thinking just from the way they are holding their posture. Like, "Mmmm, this Starbuck latte is good and frothy.")

Click to enlarge

'Tis the season for corporate Holiday cards... I have several custom cards in process for various long-term clients who will send them to their clients. (I'll post some of them here when they are finished.)

I thought I'd share this one, as it was a little out of the ordinary, but also a lot of fun. It was created for a client whose family really gets into the celebration of Christmas. Anyway, I was told that they really like chocolate chip cookies and to somehow tie them into an over-the top Christmas photo scene. Their son is a singer in a band that is fairly popular nationally and has been featured on MTV & VH1, (hence the microphone in his hand.)

Weird and wild stuff...but the client loved it.

My wife and I voted last week, downtown at the courthouse. It felt terrific, almost like the "runner's high" feeling you get after a good mind-clearing jog. (It was also nice to have it out of the way...and knowing that long lines would not once again be part of our election day activities.)

I'm just hoping that regardless of who wins the big race, the vitriol begins to subside, putting an end to one of the most partisan eras in our country's history. (I'm probably dreaming.) Just from a cartooning perspective, it would be nice to do a political cartoon and then not expect to be screamed at by one side and given extreme praise by the other. Things are never really that black and white....except when viewed through partisan eyes.

If you haven't already done so, get out and speak your mind.

Happy Halloween!

First of all, a recent illustration done for Northwestern Mutual Life. (A piece commissioned for their ads and marketing...not really a humorous cartoon, but an illustration intended to introduce their services targeted to retirement.)

(Click to enlarge)

The second image is a 'Halloweened' version of that illustration that my daughter Julia and I played with the other night.

Often she will come and visit me in my studio and ask to sit on my lap while I'm working on something. Occasionally we will digitally draw over what I have in process, and then we take turns adding silly details...(the sorts of things that will make an eight year-old laugh.) No one ever sees these Bizarro-versions of the cartoons, (and certainly I never send them to a client.) But it is a fun way to spend some time with my little girl.

Here's hoping you (and your goblins, vampires, pirates, etc.), have a fantastic Hallow's Eve.

Under the gun with several deadlines right now... But here are a couple items from a book illustration job I just wrapped up today. The author is a columnist for the Cincinnati Enquirer; very nice woman who has written an intersting book about how to take better notice of the special moments of everyday life, as well as how to make your life less repetitive within its routines. Something worth reading it in its entirety, when I get a chance.

Some illustrations I created for a healthcare organization in Atlanta. I was hired by an agency who was in charge of creating new literature and posters, (to offer to hospitals), explaining the organization's services and products.

As you can see, they came up with a 'Wizard of' Oz theme, (and the large doctor's office posters included a yellow brick road pathway, etc.) They needed cartoon Oz characters that did not look like the characters from the movie, and yet somehow looked more modern that the ones in the original book.

A postcard for a business client, who is moving his family from hot-and-sweaty Austin, Texas to nearly-as-hot-and-just-as-humid Nashville, Tennessee.

The skyline in the background is intended to resemble Nashville's...and the strange building on the left is known locally as the "Batman building", due to its pointy bat ear--like towers. (I don't get to draw many armadillos, so this was a fun diversion for that alone.)