Williams' Cow...
By now you know about the collaboration between Sunflowerman and The Urban Animal Scientist. The beautiful and ethereal watercolor illustrations and the amazing quality of the hand crafted collars are perfect compliments in the commercial field. The collaboration has led to the contemporary dog-portrait illustration that now graces the home of the The Urban Animal Scientist (see here). The Urban Animal Scientists' brother Bryant has rolled into town and is continuing the collaborative process.
Initially the request to paint a cow from a man who was educated in economics seemed so abstract and quite frankly, odd. Perhaps a bull or a bear would have been more appropriate. What I didn't know at the time is having received his undergrad from Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts Bryant has a deep appreciation for the arts and for purple cows.
Having the experience of the large dog painting under my belt I got right to work. What I thought would be as simple as a quick sketch turned itself over to 5 quick sketches. As you are witness of the images below, the first two images are quite deplorable. As I developed the idea further the perspective, color and brush strokes set themselves in place.
The process was beautiful. With the idea worked out and the excitement of the project still fresh from the three days before, I got right to work and within two hours the painting was complete.
Afterwards we saw it fit to do a little photoshoot with the painting.
And here's the final 3x5' painting of the Williams College Purple Cow.
New Collaboration…Sunflowerman and the Urban Animal Scientist
Last night I got to team up with The Urban Animal Scientist again! It is always a pleasure to be in such a creative space. He had an idea, I had a image and we brought them together with seamless ingenuity. Below is the product of the collaboration. Check it out and enjoy!
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7myquPcqrsU&w=560&h=315]
You may remember seeing something similar a while back. Check out the link here to refresh the memory
The Urban Animal Scientist...
I have been experimenting with different imagery in collaboration with my friend The Urban Animal Scientist. The Urban Animal Scientist is an urban brand of dog collars, soaps, and now concrete dog bowls. Handmade right here in Atlanta these oversized collars are crafted to match the owner and the dog together in perfect fashion harmony. What started out a couple years ago as an idea and a passion has burgeoned into a great brand, a How Magazine featured website, and a hub for great collaboration to take place. Below is a sampling of my work in collaboration with The Urban Animal Scientist.
My goal was to leave a large portion of white space and to utilize simple bright colors to define the form of the dogs.
The main focus was on the collars and the leads. I wanted the dog to be the subject while using the color to lead the eye through image ending at the collars and leads. I used black india ink sparingly and purposefully. Marking the eyes, ears, nose and mouth.
On these last two the process changed slightly. Instead of leaving a mass of white space I decided to fill in everything with color. Everything began the same with the pencil drawing, the light washes of watercolor and the india ink for definition. This time though I did not leave any white space I instead filled in the white space with Titanium White gouache. Finally I would finish the painting with a mid tone acrylic to frame the dog and to add value within the form.
