Two Headed Beast

STAINED

2011-10-30T12:01:00.003-05:00

Long time no post!

The reason for this posting delinquency is that I just spent this past year exploring people's tattoos and the stories behind them as a side project at work, with an end goal of displaying this work in the 9th floor gallery space. I wanted this to be very story telling, and to communicate my findings through a mix of photography, design, illustration, and lettering.

First up, getting the stories. I had everyone e-mail me their tattoo's meaning with no set guidelines. I wanted this to be real; any length, no editing. The smallest tattoo ended up being the longest story in the end, which made for a fun display solution.

Next up, getting everyone photographed. I had the great pleasure of working with photographer Jane Kortright on numerous studio and location shoots that fit the concept of the story, then took the raw photos and integrated design and illustration to further push the concept. Lettering all of the stories became an overwhelming task at first, but when they seemed to take on a look and feel over time, the process started flowing nicely. I felt the stories were equally as important as the photos, so I wanted them to visually carry as much weight as well.

There are 6 display windows around the outside of the gallery, and I decided to use them as a way to integrate the inside with the outside. My final solution was to paint tattoos morphing out of spilled ink on mannequin limbs, and have pulled quotes from different stories that had impact in one way or another floating in front of them on the glass. I then experimented with printing on low tack vinyl, making it appear that ink had spilled from the body parts to the ground, out of the windows.

Making everything work in a set space to hopefully transcend people passing through the gallery into their world for a moment was my last challenge. I wanted this to be multi-sensory.. I had an oil fragrance made to give off the scent of a sterile tat shop using a mix of patchouli, clover honey, and amber.. I wanted the reception food to communicate ink and pain, so I served chili pepper infused chocolate, cracked pepper crackers with blueberry jalapeno jam for a subtle sting, and the clear cups with chilled water were partnered with a variety of 'Mio' flavorings, which when squirted in, produced a flowing ink visual. I also had plead the case for music being an important emotional layer to the overall experience, and very graciously I had surround sound installed. I fussed over the music for a bit, but in the end put together an ambient mix that had texture, imperfection, a slow pace to it.. collectively the sound just felt right when viewing the imagery and reading the stories. And a last minute decision to loop behind the scenes video footage of some of the shoots turned out to be the center piece of the interior.

I sent a call out to the Hallmark community in October 2010, asking if anyone was interested in being photographed and sharing the meanings behind their ink. 26 participants and one year later, STAINED has finally seen the light of day. I put together a little slideshow sampling of set up/reception pics. Thanks again to everyone involved! -C

Automatic Tattoo Machine

2011-03-09T10:14:00.016-06:00

A co-worker forwarded me this link today about an automatic tattoo machine called Auto Ink. Why this seems to only randomly assign religious symbols is a little strange and limiting, as is the forearm only placement.. but with further development, imagine the possibilities. For better or worse, this has left me intrigued. The precision factor is kind of appealing (assuming the machine doesn't get bumped!). And If you could upload and program the needle to move with your own artwork, the possibilities are endless. But missing out on the hunt for a good shop, the smells, the music, working with an artist.. that would be a shame. These are the things that create an experience. What ever happened to human interaction? Human inter-huh?? Anyway, as a standalone object, the machine has a nice shape to it. Customizing it to your liking could plus it even further.

I have mixed feelings about this 'Auto Ink', but lean towards supporting those tattoo artists sticking themselves out there making a living doing what they enjoy. -C

Missouri Western State University: Working Artists Discussion

2011-03-08T20:03:00.005-06:00

Our good friend Misha Kligman teaches foundation drawing at Missouri Western State University, and asked if we'd come talk to both of his classes about life as working artists. We were happy to do it, and put together a little power point presentation featuring work that showcased our process. More exciting though was getting to participate in two critiques. The assignment was to do an autobiographical illustration either in a series or a single image. The results were varied, and dishing out constructive criticism to a bunch of new-to-us students was kind of a thrill. Between Misha, Mirna and myself, a good range of comments were offered up.. I kept touching on composition, concept, and paying attention to details.. Mirna had drawing technique advise and related well to illustration concerns.. and Misha didn't sugar coat anything. Very tough, very sincere, very effective. To stay engaged and give everyone your full attention for hours (with little nourishment) was exhausting. I left having a new respect for teachers.. and Misha. Great experience! -C

Paper Mache Head

2011-02-20T18:48:00.003-06:00

I forgot how much fun paper mache can be. -m

Gallery Opening at Leedy Voulkos

2011-02-04T08:41:00.008-06:00

This was a juried show which was first showing at the Hallmark Creative Gallery, and has now moved to the Leedy Voulkos (2012 Baltimore Kansas City, Missouri 64108). I have two pieces in it- Enchanted Forest and Happy Home. Hope you enjoyed the show. -m

Pistachio Portraiture

2011-01-15T10:54:00.005-06:00

These are little portraits on pistachio shells. A result of a very energizing and at the same time exhausting brainstorm. -m

FREE ART! (if you can find it)

2011-01-04T16:07:00.004-06:00

Fun idea from Tip Top!

Two Headed Cousins

2011-01-03T15:20:00.012-06:00

In keeping fresh posts during this holiday lull of personal work, thought we'd share what came up while searching the related images of a 'two headed beast' search. COUSINS!

Home Sweet Home

2010-12-17T09:53:00.002-06:00

Those Sharpies keep inspiring me! If I were to build a city, this is what it would look like. -m

sharpie sketch

2010-12-09T11:23:00.003-06:00

I got these new fine Sharpie markers. They come in really nice colors. Now I bring them with me to every meeting :) -m

The Passage of Time

2010-11-23T14:42:00.009-06:00

I knew for my next creation I wanted to push what I do. Collaging with clip art alone was starting to feel a bit limiting. When I created our website, I experimented with photo collage. I was instantly hooked! The process is the same; with clip art it's scanning.. with photos, it's shooting. Being these images all live on the computer, the crossover was easy, and photos have much more life to them.

I thought bringing my tattoo to life would be a nice in-the-moment challenge, and I already had a *concept and blueprint to work with. The gathering process was the fun part, as I felt like I was on a scavenger hunt with printout in hand trying to photograph all of the elements it required. I've been to the zoo, museum, antique malls, downtown, the library, and around the house to make this happen. The effort, though demanding at times, made it all the more rewarding upon completion. -C

*see original tattoo drawing previously posted.

Metamorphosis 2010: Art For Kyrie

2010-11-10T08:50:00.007-06:00

Local artist Tuesday Schmidt asked if we'd want to participate in a silent art auction to benefit the Kyrie Foundation raising research funds to fight pediatric brain cancer. We're honored to be part of this exciting event and glad to support a good cause. Above are the two pieces we're contributing. A simple white frame felt fitting for Mirna's 'Stormy' piece. I lit the 'Refugees' frame on fire around the burning mountainside. The quality prints are provided by Tip Top Gallery. For all the event details, check out the poster. -C

Enchanted Forest

2010-11-09T09:07:00.003-06:00

This is a piece for an upcoming show in February. All submissions will be reviewed by a jury and select pieces will make it to the final gallery show. More details to come!

cyclops-robot

2010-11-01T18:31:00.004-05:00

I made Al's Halloween costume this year! -m

Tip Top Gallery

2010-10-25T12:20:00.005-05:00

Both Mirna and I were recently approached to be part of an online art gallery, called Tip Top Gallery, that offers limited edition archival pigment prints of photography and illustration in various sizes. After seeing how simple it works and hearing some of the other talented artists that were going to be involved, we gladly agreed. The site is now live, and will continue to be updated, so check back often. We will be linking this to our twoheadedbeast website soon to bridge the two and make buying prints from us even easier. Thank you Tip Top for the opportunity. -C

Abandoned Places

2010-10-21T08:43:00.004-05:00

Just wanted to share a link from 'thecoolist.com' of this fascinating collection of modern day ruins. !!! Love !!! -C

Giant Creepy Cat

2010-10-20T10:37:00.003-05:00

To all you cat lovers out there, this is for you. -C

quick monster study

2010-10-13T15:34:00.003-05:00

Another Halloween inspired Photoshop sketch -m

It's about that time a year...

2010-10-12T08:26:00.002-05:00

Quick vampire sketch. -m

Poor Stiffs

2010-10-05T21:11:00.004-05:00

I recently went to photograph animals at the zoo for my next piece, and was quickly reminded that the suppressed behavior of caged animals left them either pacing, asleep, or absent all together. So I took what I could and headed to taxidermy heaven, aka Cabela's. I left thinking one man's retail paradise is another man's good laugh. Who'd have thought the Big Bad Wolf would be reduced to a men's shoes model. -C

OMGod

2010-10-03T11:20:00.006-05:00

Saw this gem-stop en route to a camping trip. Wow. -C

lunch box notes

2010-09-30T21:25:00.005-05:00

Here are some samples of my daily morning sketches that I put in Alex's lunch box. He's a great kid and has always appreciated them (that's what keeps me going every morning...) I've been doing this for a couple of years now, so it's become a habit. And as habits go, I don't think much of them and don't expect him to either. However, he made my day recently when he said that he and his friends always wonder what the drawing of the day just might be. Knowing that he and his buddies are excited to see them just makes me melt... Aaahhh, I'm so lucky. -m

sunny side up

2010-09-21T08:43:00.002-05:00

Just a quick sketch from a few days ago. -m

the Shake Shack on Santa Fe

2010-09-20T17:52:00.006-05:00

Our neighbors recently opened up a little restaurant called the Shake Shack on Santa Fe in old downtown OP, and asked if we could help them out with signage. The idea here is simple; serve up good old fashioned burgers and shakes, with an emphasis on being local, organic, and sustainable. A simple hand-done, nostalgic solution felt fitting. -m

Need I say more...?

2010-09-17T14:29:00.003-05:00

I (heart) After Effects :) -m

GILGONGO album

2010-09-12T17:25:00.012-05:00

I recently had the great pleasure of working with an old friend from college, Mr. Michael Marsicano, on the album artwork and design for the band Gilgongo. He flew out to KC to brainstorm old school, face to face. The idea we ran with is to have this spider vixen on the cover with an expression leaving you to assume she's awaiting her next victim. Opening to the inside reveals a guy actually wrapping himself up in her web, victimizing himself.. a theme found within. We wanted the colors to support the overall melancholy vibe. The grey on the disc shown above is faked in to represent the raw disc, which slips out of the inside right panel. He illustrated the exquisite figurative work, I worked all of the supporting elements, layout, and lettering. -C

Greaserama II

2010-09-05T13:57:00.004-05:00

Greaserama

2010-09-05T12:16:00.004-05:00

This Labor Day we met up with friends to check out Kansas City's 9th annual Greaserama car show. From rusty grime, to pristine perfection, this custom car and bike collective left me wishing I had more time on my hands, a bigger garage, and an old car to play with. Set in an old drive in theatre, there was cheap beer, big hair, and a steady stream of live surf punk/rockabilly music. Though regrettably we didn't stay, at night they were playing a double feature of Grindhouse and Sin City. Finding inspiration in unexpected places is refreshing. -C

Frida

2010-08-30T07:56:00.006-05:00

Our friends Emily and Sergio recently had a baby shower. As one of their gifts a couple of girls and I designed different iron transfers for the onesies. Knowing that Emily and Sergio always have been big Frida Kahlo fans, I decided that their baby must be a fan as well :) -m

Šimo Ešić

2010-08-26T20:03:00.011-05:00

Recently I was lucky enough to go back to Bosnia for a very short but sweet visit. Besides visiting family and friends, I also met someone who I greatly admire. Šimo Ešić is a children's book author whose books I read as a kid. He now owns his own publishing company and has done some very nice work indeed. Meeting him was very cool for me. I think I could have spent hours talking with him about children's books. The best part of it all is that he asked me to illustrate one of his books! I am super excited about it, and have already started in between finishing some other projects.

Of course, I can't show any of my progress until it's completed (and yes, it'll be a while since it's a 60 page book) ,but here is one example of his books- my favorite children's book right now. It's a "baby's firsts" book, and doesn't look like the typical pastel colored BORING baby book we're so used to. It was illustrated by Ljiljana Manzalovic i Mihailo Pisanjuk. I absolutely love their retro style and Šimo's writing is very fun,clever and still sophisticated.

The cover

This is a page for the baby's vaccines. Given the theme, this could not be more adorable.

This is a page for baby's first photo. I LOVE the camera illustration!

Interestingly enough there is a 'happy event' and 'sad event' page in this book. One of my favorite illustrations. Really a great solution for the situation.

Last but not least, the end pages with the little "bird-notes" :)

ICON6

2010-08-16T14:58:00.006-05:00

One of many reasons why I love working for Hallmark is that it truly feels like an extension of my art education. I still feel like a student. We're offered many amazing lectures, workshops, research days, and every so often (used to be much more common in the pre-sucky-economy-days) we get to go on a trip. A few months ago a friend of mine and I were asked if we wanted to attend the ICON6 conference in L.A. this July. Who would say no to that? This was my first time at ICON. We had a great time, saw many many lectures, and met some amazing artists and art directors. Since this was mainly a group of freelance artists, there were a few topics that seemed to come up time and time again:

illustration vs. animation
contract lingo
getting paid for what you do

It was evident very early on that a lot of clients now a days expect illustrators to have animation skills. This started a debate whether illustrators should expand their skill sets, or continue to illustrate while animators did the animation. In the end, Jesus de Francisco from Motion Theory said it best: Use whatever tool you personally like to tell a story in the best possible way. All movies start with drawings. I agree with him. No one should learn a skill set just because. If animation interests you, now is the perfect time to explore it. If not, there are many other ways to tell a story.

Discussions about contracts were very interesting to me. After hearing many examples and personal stories, I realized that everyone gets to hear the "Well, you're the first illustrator that has a problem with this part of the contract..." from at least one client. I have to say that after this conference I feel much more confident about pricing my work and asking for what I need in a contract to be spelled out in a simple language.

Another thing that illustrators experience on a regular basis is being asked to do work for free. Melinda Beck spoke on this subject. She read a very powerful letter that she had written to a big company who had asked her to do a piece for free because it would be great promotion for her and besides, other successful illustrators have already agreed to it as well... Her letter was so well written, and unlike many illustrators who have the need to blurt out the f word every few seconds, she did it very diplomatically and positively. I wish I had a copy of that letter. I'd frame it and put it in my studio, and I'd read it any time I needed a little confidence boost. There are times and reasons when pro-bono work is very appropriate and fun. But this is something everyone needs to figure out for themselves. However, no one should ever do free work for big corporations and companies.

And lastly, here's a great Q and A quote from the Wayne White presentation:

Audience:"Is the term illustrator outdated?"
Wayne: "Yes. You should be called creationists."

Tat Progress: Session Two

2010-08-12T19:48:00.003-05:00

Coming along nicely! -C

HOW's Top 10

2010-08-02T12:21:00.006-05:00

HOW magazine has listed us as one of their website’s "Top 10" sites to see for the month of August 2010! We are excited and humbled to be part of such a talented group. Thank you HOW!

Refugees: Behind the Curtains

2010-07-25T21:24:00.003-05:00

This is Mirna's original gouache for the Refugees piece. We're experimenting with different approaches to our collaboration process to see what we enjoy best. This turned out to be one starts, the other finishes. -C

Stormy

2010-07-24T18:23:00.004-05:00

Sometimes we have to take risks and weather a storm, no matter what. That's what this little 5x7 gouache piece is about. My themes don't always reflect what I'm going through in my personal life. Something, however, sparks each piece. A lot of times it's movies, books, conversations with friends and family, etc. Enjoy! -m

Tat progress: Session 1

2010-07-23T16:52:00.006-05:00

Session 1 complete! Chet Duvenci from the Mercy Seat is the artist inking. Great experience thus far. He's been able to keep the integrity of the detail throughout! And a down to earth dude at that. Jake's arm should take 3 sessions; mine 3 to 4. More to come. -C

Refugees

2010-07-22T20:31:00.005-05:00

This is a piece Chris and I collaborated on recently. Being a refugee is an all too familiar concept to me, so I set the stage with a gouache painting. I wanted to show the adaptation that takes place when people are forced to leave their homes and cultures. Chris used symbolism in the characters and other elements throughout to depict the various stages of adaptation, ranging from acceptance to fear. We hope to collaborate a lot more in the very near future. -m

twoheadedbeast.net

2010-07-21T18:59:00.003-05:00

We're pleased to say, our website has gone live! And yes, we're 'dot net'. We almost feel like this is a new beginning as artists. I thank Mirna for her patience while I spent countless hours away wrapping my head around this site, and Jake for giving these still environments life and function. Please check back often. We will be spending the next little while just creating. I've got a lot on my mind that I'm looking forward to express, as does Mirna. Thanks, and enjoy!

2HB

New Adverntures

2010-06-18T15:02:00.002-05:00

This is a little gouache painting I did for a friend who just retired from Hallmark. Just wanted to wish her many new exciting adventures :) -m

Dinosaur Exhibit

2010-06-08T20:48:00.006-05:00

I recently did a chalk mural for the Union Station Dinosaur Exhibit.
Besides some silliness on a sidewalk, chalk had never been my thing... However, I really enjoyed myself. The black chalk wall really made the otherwise pale, pastel colors pop. As always, Chris was there to help me block in colors, guide me in the layout of this giant wall, and most of all, take some great photos :) -m

Performing Soon!

2010-06-04T14:03:00.007-05:00

After countless days and nights, our website is finally about to go live in July! The components of it have been designed and are now being web crafted by our good friend and tech geek, Jake Fowler. Thank you, thank you to anyone who's followed our blog up to this point. This started off as a place to share anything art related we did with our family and friends. We will continue posting to this blog to share our more casual art endeavors, but we are excited to have a proper place to house our work, separately and collaboratively. Our new web address is www.twoheadedbeast.net

Please stay tuned and spread the good word.

Mirna + Chris

tat work-in-progress

2010-05-25T20:42:00.005-05:00

These are some shots of my in-progress inking. -C

For Amy

2010-05-19T18:39:00.003-05:00

My friend Amy just lost her mom unexpectedly. I felt really sad for her. So what do you say to someone who is going through grief? I'm not that great with words, but hopefully this piece that I made for her will remind her of all the good feelings only a mom can bring.

My Tattoo

2010-05-03T21:34:00.002-05:00

The path from life to death, the surreal and the real being one and the same, and the concept of time are all topics that way heavy on my mind. My arms have already been inked; designated for life and death in my family. My right arm represents my heritage and birth, my left arm represents those who have passed. I had this concept to tie in both arms with a piece spanning my chest, using symbolism to tie in the above mentioned themes. Here's the outcome. -C

Jake's Tattoo

2010-05-03T21:20:00.004-05:00

A good friend of mine wanted me to make him a tattoo consisting of three components: A cephalopod, bones, and machinery. Here's the outcome. -C

Ukrainian Egg Painting

2010-04-14T18:31:00.002-05:00

A friend at work gave an Ukrainian Egg workshop recently. I had taken it last year and loved it, so I signed up again. It's a very interesting technique that requires some planing and steady hands. I have neither one of those qualities, but I still enjoyed it enough to buy my own kit and do some at home. I just love how bright the colors turn out. Enjoy! -m

Life's Bitter Ironies qotd

2010-03-31T08:26:00.002-05:00

Shoeboxblog. -C

Monsters & Robots Workshop

2010-03-30T08:41:00.003-05:00

Mirna and I recently taught a workshop to my son Alex's 3rd grade art class. Based on some basic art theories and Ed Emberly's teachings, the goal was to get them to see that you can make anything out of basic shapes and lines, in this case, monsters and robots!

First we provided pre-drawn water color shapes and asked them to add facial features, arms, legs, and any other parts they think would enhance their monster/robot.

Next, they went freestyle and painted their own shape using water colors, adding on any lines they wished.

Lastly, they were challenged to finish someone else's creation by painting a shape and switching with a buddy.

bOObs qotd

2010-03-24T10:20:00.002-05:00

Shoeboxblog.-C

"Sunglasses At Night" Guy qotd

2010-03-03T10:12:00.001-06:00

Shoeboxblog. -C

Secret Ingredient: Chocolate

2010-02-16T17:28:00.002-06:00

Mirna surprised me with an all chocolate meal for our first year wedding anniversary. She even made the menu on a slab of dark chocolate. She's nuts. Meal was nuts. I'm a lucky guy. The menu:

1. A simple red wine vinaigrette salad with cocoa nibs.
2. A crepe with chocolate dipped bacon and pistachio crumbs.
3. Hand made chocolate pasta tossed together with the meat and broth of short braised ribs.
4. Chocolate covered fruit balls with almond shavings. The balls consist of dates, dried figs,dried apricots and walnuts.

Meat Loaf qotd

2010-02-01T16:07:00.004-06:00

ShoeboxBlog. -C

Sushi qotd

2010-01-29T11:10:00.003-06:00

Times are slow at work, so I've been cranking out these little blog posts for the Shoeboxblog. Random Russ' writing is the best. -C

Flying Spiders qotd

2010-01-28T08:41:00.002-06:00

ShoeboxBlog. -C

Jonas Brothers qotd

2010-01-27T08:49:00.004-06:00

Here's another "quote of the day" I did for the ShoeboxBlog. -C

Silly Portraits

2010-01-16T13:09:00.003-06:00

3.5" cube with 1.5" weird little block

I'd love to do a series of these! The cube is about positive thinking. The little lady is just a fun experiment. Chris took some nice pictures of them for me. -m

Regrettable Words

2010-01-16T13:02:00.002-06:00

6.5" x 9.25 x .75"

Here's a little painting I did last night. It's an idea I've had in my sketchbook for a while. Enjoy! -m

Mail Me Art piece

2010-01-14T15:52:00.003-06:00

This is a quick little painting I did for the "Mail Me Art" competition. It's really a fun idea. I decided to send them a "snail male." -m

life's put hair on my chest

2010-01-09T16:56:00.003-06:00

8"x8"
Finally! It's been so long since I've done a piece JUST BECAUSE! We've spent all day in the studio today. Chris scanning an endless amount of vintage magazines, and me painting. We have a lot of art plans for 2010, and today was just the beginning. More to come, soon :)
This piece has been on my mind for a while. I just thought it would be something many people can relate to. Hope you enjoy! -m

Al's bedroom makeover

2009-12-30T20:51:00.002-06:00

Our main gift to Al this Christmas was to makeover his bedroom. Here's the before and after. -C & M

Bowie/ Costello/ Yorke

2009-12-27T11:29:00.003-06:00

Mirna painted those dear to me, with plans on expanding the series. -C

FRAMES OF MIND

2009-12-27T10:38:00.003-06:00

This is a collection of different quotes from those close to Mirna I put together for her main Christmas gift. -C

Holiday Magic

2009-12-21T13:44:00.002-06:00

To all of our family and friends. -C & M

Kanye vs Taylor

2009-12-17T22:53:00.004-06:00

09 recap highlight. For full recap, visit ShoeboxBlog.-C

Cage Cuddling

2009-12-14T12:32:00.003-06:00

For a laugh, visit Shoeboxblog.

ShoeboxBlog Halloween Posts

2009-10-23T10:11:00.004-05:00

I recently joined the Alternative Humor studio at work. This is a series of Halloween themed "quotes of the day" I contributed to the ShoeboxBlog. -C

Cake decorating

2009-10-22T15:29:00.004-05:00

After designing my own Wedding Cake (which is really not that involved, so I'm not posting it), my friend Tobe asked me to collaborate with another artist friend (Amy Kligman) to design her Wedding Cake. Amy and I wanted to do a test cake, so we decided to make Tobe's Bridal Shower Cake. Tobe picked the colors and we just went with it! It was a lot of fun. I could see myself doing more of this in the future ;) -m

New Book!

2009-10-09T15:24:00.008-05:00

Hello everyone!
Long time since posting.
Well it's been a busy year and many things have distracted us from making lots of art. However, that will change soon. We will try and focus more on personal work starting late October. Until then, here's a little collaborative book I worked on with my dear friend Maura Cluthe. "It's Not Easy Being Brave" was written by Megan Haave. Making the book was really a great process. Maura and I did everything together! First we created all background textures with acrylic paint. Next we drew out the outline on acetate and scanned everything in. We added some color and detail in Photoshop. Lastly, while I was in Florida getting married Maura finished the layout of the book - lettering and all! The stuffed monster comes with the book. We really appreciated the freedom we had in designing it. It pretty much turned out like the mock up we made!
Another, very cool addition to this book was that my 8 year old step son Alex got to participate in the making of this book. The part where the boy in the book writes a note to Pip (his monster pet), as well as the "This book belongs to" page was Alex' handwriting and drawing. I'm very proud to have officially collaborated with him on his first nationally published piece of art. He also gets mentioned in the credits. Now, how many 8 year olds do you know that can say that???
Hope you like it! If you'd like to own it, "It's Not Easy Being Brave" is out in the Hallmark stores right now. -m

2009-07-13T19:32:00.003-05:00

Here's just a quick drawing I did a couple of nights ago. It's about those moments when we wish we had a "mute" button for certain people... -m

Fuzzy Bunny?

2009-06-13T16:18:00.003-05:00

I recently got moved to a talented team of illustrators called Pink Sky, who specialize in sophisticated cute. I questioned, why me? This is not what I do. Apparently they wanted a masculine/designer's perspective brought to the team. I put up this installation piece outside my new booth as a statement. A spokes that represents me in an abstract way. I found this image of a rabbit's head on a cabaret dancer smoking. It asks, "You were expecting a fuzzy bunny?" Pink paint drips throughout. -C

Play

2009-04-16T21:17:00.006-05:00

I participated in a new project led by my old school, Ringling. 100 images done by 100 artists all interpreting a common concept. This year’s concept... WAKING THE GIANTS.

This was created by two students who have set it up so that every penny of profit will go towards creating new scholarships for students to help them achieve what we have all benefited from already.

So, this piece is an ode to how music fuels my creativity when I work. Music is the vehicle to waking my giants. When played, I'm working hard. When paused, I'm hardly working. -C

Chris' surprise wedding video

2009-03-02T09:53:00.005-06:00

Finally I can stop sneaking around! For about 2 months I spent most every weekend at work creating this surprise video for Chris. He thought I was just really busy, and completely supported my overachieving attitude toward Hallmark.
I really wanted him to have absolutely no clue that I’m doing anything at all for him at our wedding. I didn’t want him to sense that there might be a surprise coming. I think I succeeded. The hardest thing was not being able to tell him when I learned something new in After Effects- which happened every day… We talk about work and our creative process all the time, and I was dying to share this new passion of mine with him.
However, it was worth it. I hope someone captured his face at our wedding when the movie started rolling. Our friend Sergio Moreno-Denton (who also performed our ceremony with his lovely wife Emily Akins) did an amazing job of finding the perfect equipment for the showing, setting everything up without me having to worry about anything, and all that while he kept it secret. Thank you Sergio!!!
My main goal was to show Chris in a creative and visual way what he means to me. He did such a lovely job surprising me when we got engaged, I really felt an urge to do something very special for him in return.
So, technically and creatively speaking, this may not be the best movie you’ve ever seen. But it just might be the most honest, raw, and genuine outpour of my emotions. It's also very small online compared to being projected on screen. Some details are lost. The writing on the bottom is the translation in Bosnian.
Anyway, I’m looking forward to applying some of what I learned in the process to future projects at Hallmark and in our freelance work. I think Chris and I could create some really fun movies together!
Enjoy! -m

Wedding Gift/ Poster

2009-02-23T18:58:00.002-06:00

And so it begins. Families merge. Two become one. This was our favorite collaboration to date. Credit Mirna for the concept. She drew out the line work for the trees and hand lettered the names of invited attendees and family. She also added a nice secondary element with the organic leaf shapes. Then I took over and lettered the heading, added the textures/colors, and integrated the faces into the trees using some vector faces of ours I'd experimented with a while back. Then I used some pages of an old book I'd gotten as a gift from Mirna to create the grassy earth textures in the ground. I then pulled out some words to form subtle phrases that signified our unity. We were both really happy with the outcome and excited to give them to our guests. -C

Wedding Gift/ CD Art

2009-02-23T18:32:00.003-06:00

It's official. We're married. We're really looking forward to creating art other than for ourselves. This is one of two gifts we gave to our friends and family who attended the wedding. Seeing as our DJ was an iPod mix I compiled, I knew I wanted to burn a sampling of what music was played that night. Here's what I came up with. -C

Our Wedding Invite/ Map

2008-11-13T12:20:00.004-06:00

Taking on your own wedding invite has proven to be more of a daunting task than earlier forecasted, but it's done! done! done! Worth mentioning: Pictured for this posting are the front and reverse on one file. The finished piece was printed duplex (on both sides), and die cut by hand. A long sheer white ribbon was then thread through a grommet at the top framed in by the embellishments above "Love" and "Ljubav" (love in Bosnian). We're both really happy with how they turned out. On to bigger and better things. -C

CD Package Design

2008-10-27T08:12:00.002-05:00

This is a CD package that Chris and I were commissioned to do for a kid's band called "Jetta and the Jellybeans." It was a lot of fun. -m

Balancing Act

2008-09-09T07:56:00.003-05:00

We created this piece for the Hallmarkers Give Back fundraising event, which is raising awareness and money for the Susan G. Komen breast cancer foundation, american heart association's go red for women campaign, and children's mercy cancer center. -C

emily's b-day present

2008-09-02T15:46:00.006-05:00

i did this watercolor for my friend emily's b-day. she's very much a "green thinker" and she loves owls. i support both of those habits. -m

weekly sketches

2008-08-20T09:12:00.006-05:00

i've been enjoying my luma ink sketches lately.

IMAGO gallery: EUREKA! show

2008-08-05T18:12:00.004-05:00

Here are pics from the EUREKA! show this past Friday. It was all great fun, and the group we did this with has a range of diverse styles. This piece explores my views on evolution. -C

weekly sketch(es)

2008-08-04T10:37:00.010-05:00

last week instead of doing my daily sketches, i made a postcard series that i sent to chris. why did i send it since we live together you ask? because it was our 1.5 yr anniversary and i wanted him to get something special in the mail.
they all have something to do with what we enjoy doing together or what we are grateful for, or look forward to. gardening, tennis, exploring nature, talking to each other, protecting each other and spending the rest of our lives together ( you figure out which theme goes with each card) - m

EUREKA show

2008-07-31T08:11:00.002-05:00

join us during the next first friday on august 1st, 2008 for this one night show!

Reception/Exhibit pics

2008-07-17T08:33:00.003-05:00

Here are some pics of the space I created to host the exhibit here in hallmark's archives on the 7th floor. From a life sized magician, who had in his hat a sources used/poster takeaway, a man-bat, a sea serpent, to a giant elephant creature with twins that took the "L" in the show's title "Welcome to this Crazy World" to reveal "We come to this Crazy World" (get it), I wanted viewers to transcend into this space for a moment and feel caught up in a strange dream. Everyone who enters this space have been in relationships before, and can hopefully find humor in a few of the pieces. For the reception itself, I wanted everything to have symbolism. A bouquet of dead roses breaks up the space between walls. Strawberries and blocks of shattered chocolate were served. It was all great fun. -c

Welcome To This Crazy World Exhibit

2008-07-17T08:24:00.004-05:00

When first asked to do an exhibit using hallmark's archives, my first thoughts were to create some funky rock posters sourcing some of the bizarre postcards I remember from past visits. I had recently met a former co-worker, Jesse Atwell, and knew he fronted his band Calvin Yordy. He gave me a copy of his EP to check out. After giving it a listen and getting a taste of the content, I thought it would be great to channel his lyrics through this show. He graciously agreed. All the songs deal with the highs and lows of relationships. Hallmark also deals with relationships, usually. So there's my tie-in. After going down and gathering a slew of sources that inspired me, I started creating visuals for the song titles and lyrics that interested me. I chose some wonderfully quirky sources that seemed to take on a life of their own. My goal was to get people to look at the archives differently and explore a point of view previously unexplored. -c

weekly sketch

2008-07-17T08:00:00.000-05:00

...gotta love those vibrant markers... -m

Mom's Bday Gift

2008-07-17T07:46:00.006-05:00

This year I wanted to make my mom's bday present using old pics from her younger years.
Stir up some nostalgia. So I washed them out to give it a dreamy, reflective quality. Mirna then went in and illustrated the
decorative elements to give them new life. My mom loved it. But then again, stick figures from us get the same reaction.

we're engaged!

2008-07-15T18:53:00.003-05:00

last weekend chris proposed to me with this lovely "ring hand" sculpture that he made for me. i'm the happiest girl alive! -m

sketch of the week

2008-07-03T10:29:00.009-05:00

i've committed myself to doing at least a sketch a day. i'll post my favorite of the week at every end of the week. here's the first one. enjoy. -m

ljubavi (= my love in bosnian)

2008-06-26T20:54:00.005-05:00

while i was on a 4 day trip, chris made this beautiful portrait of me. i love it! -m