Easy Glider No. 2 New Bike, different pose.

So, Pinc Tacos asked me if I would revise the Easy Glider pin up and insert a different style of bagger, one that had been customized and belongs to someone that they know. They really like the girl, but wanted to change the bike. Unfortunately, different bike meant that I had to alter the girl's pose a little bit. So far I've got the drawing of the bike and the girl just about rendered, but as you can see they're both completely naked. So as soon as I'm satisfied with the drawing, I'll go in and start blocking in the colors and filling out the details. So I just wanted to share you a quick little process shot of the revision. Enjoy her while she's still naked.

Great Video with me sketching in it!!!

Randall's Quest To See Denver's Best from Art Directors Club Denver on Vimeo.

I was approached by my friends Randall and Lindsay about being in this movie because they wanted an Illustrator to be in it. I think the idea is to show some different aspects of the Art Director's Club of Denver, in promotion for the Annual Show, this year. So we have Screen Printing with Stew and Nicky at Ink Lounge Gallery, Bryce Boyer Photography,Chris Thomas at Ripcord Design, and Myself doing Illustration. So about half-way through the movie you get to see me working on a sketch that I was doing for my original Chrome and Chroma painting. I never ended up making the painting that the sketch was for, since I went with "The Wild One," instead of this idea. But the drawing was based on a motorcycle ride up to Estes Park, and it got me to thinking about doing a series on Motorcycling Across Colorado. I still might do the series but right now I'm more inclined to focus on getting published, again, rather than gallery work. You can also briefly see my motorcycle in the movie, at 5:30 in, right after Randall leaves Herb's. Hope you enjoy the movie!

Here's the Sketch:


The ADCD Annual Show will be Sept. 24th. For more info visit www.ADCD.com.

The Wild One - painting for Chrome and Chroma 3

Apart from my motorcycle pin ups for Pinc Tacos, I wanted to do something that was completely original for the Chrome and Chroma 3 Motorcycle Art show. After I got back from Chicago, I spent a few days researching, sketching, and researching some more about what it was that I wanted to do that would speak to people. At first I was kind of stuck on the idea of making a painting with subtle references to Indian Motorcycles. I did a drawing of an American Indian making smoke signals that look like an Indian Chief Roadmaster. Then I drew a Bison Skull with the Indian logo. Then a couple of drawings of girls in leather jackets with Indian Motorcycle logos. Then I stepped back and realized that the drawings were nice, but ultimately uninspired and not terribly original, like I was just advertising for Indian. So I still wanted to have a painting with a classic feel so I starting looking to some of the things that inspired me to become a motorcyclist. One of those things was a 1953 black and white film called "The Wild One," starring Marlon Brando, about a motorcycle gang that comes in and shakes up a town. Then the leader, Marlon Brando, falls for the Sheriff's daughter and then things start falling apart. So, since I don't want to just remake a picture of Marlon Brando, I did a couple of sketches where I reversed the role and made Brando's character into a female. At first the sketches were overtly sexual with dynamic poses. But then I thought about the character and went with something that was more cool and collected. I wanted a girl that was attractive, tough, and methodical the way a gang leader should be. Here's a side-by-side of my sketch and the picture of Brando that I was working from.

Deuce is Wild Pin Up Final.

So I've finished "Deuce is Wild," and before the final touches, I was asked to switch the redhead with a blonde and to have them doing a burnout on top of that. Is it the safest thing to do? In reality, no. But since they're not real girls and it's not a real situation, it's ok. That's what fantasy art is for, right? Creating and actualizing imaginary and risky situations, like paintings of Greek gods and Jesus walking on water.

Deuces Wild update! Mid-Progress.

Don't know what else to say besides, ALMOST DONE! I'm very excited that I now have 7 followers in the blogging community. Thank you all, very much, for your continued support and interest in my work, it means everything to me. I will have this piece done by the end of this weekend so that I don't have to worry about it when I leave, next week, for Chicago and then Las Vegas. As soon as I get back, all of my time will be spent in preparation for the Chrome and Chroma 3: Motorcycle Art Exhibit at Uhl Studios. If you don't know the info, refer to an older post that I put up, all of the details are there. I've also been asked to show my work at Jay's Bar and Grill. The owner said he's tired of beer signs and bar mirrors, and he really likes my work and thought it would be nice to have it on his walls for everybody to see. So the months of July and August are all going to be about EXPOSURE!!!! Sweet! Okay, enough with my rambling, here's the pretty ladies.

Deuces Wild - New Pinc Tacos Pinup

I'm working on the next pinup for Pinc Tacos t-shirts. After this one, I believe they're going into full production with the 4 motorcycle pinups that I've done, including this one. I am confident enough with the drawing to be able to share it with you all. Everyone was pretty excited about Dyna Doll, the last motorcycle girl, but this one is going to take it another step. More complex bike with a more complex arrangement of figures. Since the bike is a Harley Davidson Softail Deuce, it's only right that I have two awesome girls instead of just one. This custom Deuce belongs to the client. One unexpected element popped up in the last week or so with a request from the client to put an 80-spoke wheel on the front of the bike instead of the 40-spoke that's currently on the actual bike. This pushed the project back a few days and will take a couple of days more once the painting and rendering phase gets around to that part of the bike. The benefit of this, though, is a much more dynamic front-end on the bike and another shiny thing to be able to look at, since the ends of the drag pipes are nearly covered by one of the girls. The girls themselves are subject to change, in the future, but the drawing of the bike is pretty much finalized, unless the client sees something he wants to change. So here's a process shot of the drawing. I'll try to keep them coming as the project rolls on. Also, here's a picture of the actual bike, so you can sort of get an idea of what I'm talking about with the spokes and the pipes.

Chrome & Chroma 3: Motorcycle Art Exhibit

July 30, 2010
Chrome & Chroma 3: Motorcycle Art Exhibit

Uhl Studios - 15801 West Colfax Ave.
Golden, CO 80401
(1/4 Mile West of I-70 on North side of Colfax)
Exhibit starts at 6 pm and goes til around Midnight.

You are invited to the 3rd Annual Chrome & Chroma
Motorcycle Art Exhibit at Uhl Studios presented by
American Throttle (www.americanthrottle.com).
Nine Artists Showing Different Styles of Motorcycle Art:
Christopher Manzanares will be showing his work along with David Uhl, Danial James, Michael Lichter, Ronnie Cramer, Patrick Glenn, Tom Pounders, Scott Jacobs, and Steve Schader.

Musical Guest Emilio Emilio is scheduled to play their
brand of Rock & Blues starting at around 7 pm.
Food and Drink will be served.

Donation at the door to help support "Art Reach".

Motorcycle Art including Paintings, Digital, Drawings, Photography and more • Food and Drink • Vendors (merchandise including Jewelry, Shirts, American Throttle games and more. And of course... Motorcycles (All bikes are welcome).

Dyna Doll Poster and La Fe: Prize Winners!

At long last I've finished the Dyna Wide Glide piece in time for the Colorado Alliance of Illustrators 20th Annual show. and I've affectionately named it "Dyna Doll." The piece took 3rd place out of all of the votes for High 5. My other piece, which was done for a recently released book of poetry, entitled "La Fe': Poetry of a Widow's Spirit," came in 2nd, so I was very happy and pleased with the turnout. Opening night of the show was really incredible and we packed Anam Cara Studio with an estimated 200 people or so. We're really hoping to have as many people for the closing party on June 11th, as well, so If you're reading this, you should definitely come down that night.

Dyna Doll was pretty grueling at the end, there, I lost at least one complete night of sleep and missed my print deadline by 2 days. I even lost feeling in my right thumb from my Wacom pen rubbing the nerves raw at the joint. But, after many revisions, here at long last is the newest Pinc Tacos pin up girl. Here's a couple of versions to check out. One without text and one with all the bells and whistles. You'll notice that the poster version is a little bit lighter. This is due to the fact that the image prints a lot darker and therefore needs to be brought out more in order to sustain its on-screen appearance.



Here's a wraparound picture of the book jacket. The cover image is the one that took 2nd place at the CAI show, without the text on it.

N' YaBass - Duck the Zipper Cover with Font.

Here's the first draft of the album cover with text. Wanted to go for a very comic book action hero kind of feel with a little bit of gonzo Ralph Steadman splash, for Duck's Name. Here's what I came up with. I'd post more explanation, but I've got to run out the door.

If you want to hear the album, it's on Sound Cloud
N'YaBass - Duck the Zipper

Duck the Zipper - CD Cover

So I finally decided, after talking with the DJ, Jesse Gillmore (aka N'YaBass), That I was going to just stick with the theme that I've been developing and do something simple. Here's the outcome. I'm pretty excited about it. A bit of artistic idolatry went into this particular piece, but I knew that I wanted something that was rugged and gritty. So here's the character, Duck the Zipper, holding a Desert Eagle. This is the gun that Jesse said he liked the most. I also figured that if he was going to be a motorcycle hero that he'd need to be able to shoot with his left hand so that he could still control the throttle. Overall, I think it turned out pretty awesome. Let's see what the client thinks.

If you want to hear the album, it's on Sound Cloud
N'YaBass - Duck the Zipper

Dyna Wide Glide: back end Modification

Due to a request from my client, I've brought down the back end of the bike and dropped the fender over the back tire about 3 inches (based on the amount of space between the tire and the fender.) So now the fender is just barely hovering over the back tire. The modification is pretty subtle but you can see the difference best if you're looking at the left rear blinker and the chain. This gives the back end a little bit more of a tapering aero-dynamic feeling rather than being so high off of the ground.

Dyna Wide Glide - Process update!

Just wanted to share where I am with the Dyna pin up. Haven't exactly gotten the go-ahead from the t-shirt printer, they seem to be stuck with color separation on the taillights of Easy Glider, which features a Harley Road Glide. They're telling me that there are too many different types of red inside the taillight and they can't print it properly, or something. I don't know, sounds kind of bogus to me, if they can print pictures onto a t-shirt from some crappy stand inside of a mall, why can't these guys figure out how to do it, as well? Either way, I'm getting back in gear and just going to work on this piece until it's finished. Then we can work out the problems later on.

With this piece I'm finding out the kick-ass foot gear is essential for female riders and a good picture. So I did some research and came up with some sweet looking boots for our sexy Dyna girl to be wearing. I also threw in some fingerless gloves to match and get an all-around bad ass feel to the whole thing. I was also asked to remove the left mirror, since that's what's planned for the actual bike that's being used in the painting. If you look at the last process shot and compare, you'll notice the difference.

Dyna Wide Glide - Pinc Tacos pinup #6

Well, it was bound to happen; The guys at Pinc Tacos liked the American Ironhorse pin up "One Hot Burnout," so much that they now want to get their own bikes put into a picture with a very attractive young model. This one focuses around a 96 cubic inch Dyna Wide Glide. He just got a new seat put on made of Ostrich leather from a company called Bitchin' Stitchin' here in Denver. So, naturally, we both felt that it was best to put a redhead on the bike, seeing as how the bike is a dark maroon with bright red pinstriping, very similar to the deep gooseberry paint on my 1500 Vulcan Drifter. So here's a process shot of where I'm at before I start really tightening things up and making it shine. I'm also in the process of redoing the Pinc Tacos neon sign so that it looks more like an actual gas tube neon sign. More to come.

Duck The Zipper - New Sketches!

I've been having some fun doing more thumbnails and half-assed sketches of this character. I haven't quite figured out his story, yet. I'm sort of thinking he's kind of this gear-head superhero who's a mechanic during the day and a vigilante at night. Kind of an amalgam of Ghost Rider, Punisher, Batman, the Crow, Spawn and probably some other of my favorite heroes. I guess I should probably talk to DJ N'YABASS about the ideas for a story. I'm listening to Duck the Zipper, right now. You can find the whole album on Soundcloud.com
N'YABASS - Duck The Zipper
N'YABASS described the album as the emotions inside the head of Duck the Zipper. There's definitely a bit of narration in the album from start to finish. It all wraps up with some sad love-songy kind of longing for a girl, so next I'm going to try to maybe throw in a female character and see how that evolves.

Duck The Zipper - aka Merganser aka Morgue the Zipper

So I've been fiddling around all day with this Duck idea, and I've come up with some strange and interesting solutions that have very little to do with the DJ's initial idea. I just kind of let myself go in any old direction that my pencil felt like and this is where I ended up. The first series was what you might expect to see, an anthropomorphic duck creature thrown into a zoot suit for good measure. But as I started doing my thumbnails and getting some action out of the bird, I began thinking to myself, "What if the bird is a symbol, Like BATMAN! So instead of being a bird, the character just has bird-like equipment and he's actually more of a Kick-ass superhero type of character. So what kind of equipment would make him cool, birdlike, and stealthy? How about a wicked looking bird helmet! I know, right? that's what I said. Freakin Sweet! So I sketched it out and then decided to do a full body character study and colored it up a bit in photoshop. These probably aren't sketches that will stick around for the final draft, but process is as process does and I just wanted to show you all what kind of fun you can have with a pencil.

Drifter update #4!

So I've been working like crazy trying to get this piece ready for the show on Friday. Which means that it needs to be printed, framed, and at the The Great Frame Up before tomorrow night! OUCH! That's a tight deadline. But I decided that the front end of the motorcycle was looking a little sad and needed some beefier forks and such. The tires were looking a little wonky, too, so I've fixed those. Really just tightening things down, now, and getting the drawing really solid before I start really rendering everything in great detail. We'll all just cross our fingers and hope that I can get this thing polished up in time. If there's anything I'm missing that looks a little weird, I'm totally open to critique, right now. Thanks!

High Plains Drifter Pin Update! process #3

I've been pretty busy getting things ready for my show on Friday night at The Big Frame Up in Littleton. So I'm really getting in gear to bust out this last pinup so that I can have it ready to hang before Friday Night. Here's just a quick process shot of where I am, I'll have a more refined version to post, tomorrow, but I just wanted to show you that I'm still working and revising.

High Plains Drifter Pinup

Howdy Fans, Working on something that is very close to my black little heart... My OWN BIKE! Freakin Sweet! After nearly a month long Holiday away from pinups I'm back on track and this time I'm using my very own 1999 VN1500-J Kawasaki Vulcan Drifter. That's 1500cc's of fuel-injected, shaft-driven, two-wheeled rolling classic beauty with all the classic flavors of a '47 Indian Chief but all the kick-ass power and performance of the 21st century. This will also be the first pinup in a line that will be exclusively designed for print on tons of novelty items from buttons to posters, coffee mugs, sweatshirts, and whatever else is available to print on. This is still in the early stages, obviously, but I thought I'd post a quick process shot to show you that I haven't been entirely sedentary since my last post. My bike currently has Vance and Hines pipes on it, but I still have the original 2 into 1 Fishtail pipe, as well and I thought that the original pipes have a nice classic look to them that I wanted to preserve in the painting.

One Hot Burnout! Pinc Tacos Poster.

Ok, so now that we've settled on the image, we're throwing in the neon sign and a little bit of flavor text. The text may change or we may throw it out entirely, but we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. I'm a huge fan of all things classic, so naturally I chose this very attractive Art Deco font for the flavor text.

Pinc Tacos - One HOT Burnout! Final (maybe)

Ok, after blood, sweat, tears, and probably the loss of 8 or so pounds, I believe that I'm finished with "One Hot Burnout!" Everything's been polished, contoured, and Turned on, I think I'm ready to stamp my final seal on this one. Of course it's all up to the clients to tell me if there's anything else that they want to see, but I'm guessing that this one's good to go!