"All Manner of Madness" - Meet the Artists Night at Century Books

We'll be back at Century Books this Saturday, October 17, from 8 - 11 pm. Last week's opening was a smashing success - we had a huge crush of people on one of the hottest nights of the year! This week should be a little less crowded and a lot cooler, so if you weren't able to make it last week or you want to stop by to chat with the artists about your favorite pieces, we'll be there with food, drink, and the fabulous music of Krys Mach.


The opening reception for "All Manner of Madness: Celebrating 150 Years of Alice in Wonderland" drew a big crowd.

All Manner of Madness: Celebrating Alice in Wonderland

I'm so happy to be taking part in this group exhibit at Century Books in Pasadena. Hard to believe that it's been 150 years since Lewis Carroll published Alice in Wonderland. His sublime nonsense has inspired countless movies, art, books, comics, and so much more. Now it's our time to be inspired by "shoes and ships - and sealing wax - and cabbages and kings”. Hope you'll join me and my fellow illustrators Steven Corvelo, Kent Culotta, and Tanya Maiboroda as we share our own take on this timeless classic on Saturday, October 10th at 8:00 p.m. If you're not able to make it to the opening, the exhibit will run from Saturday, October 10th through Friday, October 23rd at Century Books, 1039 East Green Streetin Pasadena.

The 4" x 4" Sketch Challenge - Halloween Edition

This is the first in my new series of tiny sketch challenges. I thought it only fitting that, given the season, the theme should be Halloween. The rules are simple: make a small piece of art (4" x 4") with a Halloween theme. Use color, black and white, paint, pencil, charcoal, photos, collage - whatever medium you choose. And you don't have to be an artist to take part - it's just fun to try to make a picture in such a small space, like writing a one-line short story or doing a gesture sketch in life drawing. If you decide to join the challenge, post your tiny masterpiece on your blog or website and send me a link in the comments section so I can share.

This challenge is also posted on Facebook, and I'm happy to say some of my friends took up the gauntlet with style.

The first entry is from Suzy Block. She combined the 4 x 4 sketch challenge with her Doodle-A-Day project to come up with this fearsome pirate and his sweet Mini Me. Visit Suzy's Monkey 2 Monkey Blog to view all of her Doodle-A-Day entries.



Illustrator Kat McD has really gotten into the Halloween spirit by painting the Man in the Moon's face and using a couple of cleverly-placed clouds to suggest a ruffled collar and wisps of clown hair. I wonder if that's the Great Pumpkin he's watching over?



I really love Laurie Young's entry: a cute little trick-or-treater with vampire fangs and a bat headband.



Look at the way the moonlight silhouettes the witch's hat in this mysterious and moody entry from illustrator Steven Corvelo Those hauting yellow eyes really pull you into the picture.



From the mind of Jake Gordon: the Big Three of 1930s Universal Studios horror flicks: Frankenstein, the Mummy and the Wolfman.



Carah Smith's image evokes a sense of frantic danger, with the jagged wings of the bats mimicking the jagged teeth of the leering Jack O'Lantern. And is that a horde of zombies on the horizon? Yikes!



Mary Peterson has a unique take on the usually gloomy Edgar Allen Poe. This sunny yellow background makes him look (almost) cheerful!



This big-eyed black cat by Lois Keller reminds me of that old Groucho Marx quote: "A black cat crossing your path signifies that the animal is going somewhere."