adventures in tablet lag

Children's Book Illustration. Final Version. Photoshop.
Christian Hill's Digital Illustration Class, Fall 2010.
The assignment was to create an illustration using Photoshop which featured a child and a non-human character in a scene which alludes to events preceding and following the moment depicted.

I had some extreme technical difficulties with this project. My laptop has always lagged a bit whenever I use Illustrator or Photoshop, and it decided to get ridiculously bad right when I started working on the final painting for this project. I am not sure what is wrong with it, but basically every time I make a mark on my tablet, that little circular icon that means "wait" pops up for anywhere from 2-30 seconds and I have to watch as the stroke appears in slow motion on my screen. I knew had to finish my project yesterday to avoid a late night trek to the nearest 24 hour kinkos tonight, so I sat at here almost nonstop for 18 hours painting one stroke at a time, crying, and pleading out loud to no avail with my laptop. I finished in time to sleep for an hour and a half before heading off to work. This sounds dramatic, but I really think that was the most miserable night of my life.

So I'm not totally happy with the end result, but I kind of can't believe I "finished" it, I really don't think I've ever been that frustrated before. At least none of my studio classes in spring are digital, maybe I will be able to save up for a new computer by fall.

d.i.y. halloween costume

Christian Hill's Digital Illustration Class, Fall 2010.
Technical Gag. Final Version. Illustrator-Line Art, Photoshop-Color and Halftone.
The assignment was to combine technical illustration and sequential illustration to create a three panel "technical gag" illustration.

technical gag: line art

Technical Gag, Line Art. Illustrator.
Christian Hill's Digital Illustration Class, Fall 2010.

technical gag: drawing

Technical Gag, Line Drawing. Graphite.
Christian Hill's Digital Illustration Class, Fall 2010.

i used to think i was funny

Anyone else have a really hard time coming up with ideas for this? I have been trying so hard and so long to think of an idea I like. My brain is now mush and I have no idea if any of these are even a little bit amusing. I would really appreciate any feedback, if you guys have time.

For the at least one of you who looks at my blog who is not in this class (hi mom) the assignment is to combine technical illustration with sequential art to illustrate a process (like an instruction manual or something) and add a funny twist at the end. It's hard as balls, at least for me.

Anyway, here are the best ideas I have, hope you at least smile slightly at them because it's pretty much time for me to choose one and move on before I fall even more behind.





This one might be hard to read, even if you open it all the way because I was getting pretty lazy. Let me know if you are confused and I will try to clarify it.

chutes and ladders, why not

Autobiographical Map. Final Version. Illustrator.
Christian Hill's Digital Illustration Class, Fall 2010.
The assignment was to create fifteen symbols that represent personality traits or events in your life and combine them in some sort of map.

abstract representation of myself

In-Class Exercise. Illustrator.
Christian Hill's Digital Illustration Class, Fall 2010.

one art, please

These are some of the arts that I made in Hala Swearingen's Illustration Class last spring:

These are master studies of Mucha's Evening Star. I spent exactly one bajillion hours on them. From left to right: graphite, charcoal, acrylic.

Caricature Assignment. 
Watercolor, Pen and Ink. 

This is Michael C. Hall as Dexter in Dexter. If you haven't seen it, you should really get on that because it's awesome. The first two seasons are on Netflix instant streaming, btw.






















Birthday Card Assignment. Watercolor and Prismacolor.



















Miscellaneous arts from around that time:



A Very Wise Baby. 
Graphite.






















Self portrait. 
Paper Stained with Coffee.






















Graphite.

















Now these are all older arts circa 2004-2007:


Charcoal.

















Prismacolor.






















Watercolor. 

You can see the staple marks at the top because this is before i discovered gummed paper tape. This is my little sister. She's not little. She's buff as shit and she'll kick your ass.



















This is my first oil painting, and I think my most favoritest art of all the arts I have done so far. It's a self portrait of myself, back when I was shaving my head.



















Another self portrait. 
Oil.






















A Tree In Golden Gate Park. 
Oil.