Aaron Meshon@Nuts & Bolts Conference 2012

Aaron Meshon

Aaron Meshon makes me laugh
Like Chris Rock makes me laugh.

Not forced humor
Genuine humor you can agree with.

And he can rant
Justifiably so.

He sees injustice and tries to right it
See’s inequalty and strives for balance.

I compare him to a watchdog
In fact I think in a previous life he was just that.

He is honest in his views
And guarded in his legal battles to the point that we may have to edit out some of what he says so it never leaves this room.

His insights on our legal system can be bone-chilling
His assesment of the fertile ground of licensing will make your head spin
But you’ll be laughing your head off
At least inside.

As with many illustrators who fly solo he has a pent-up need to talk
And talk
And talk
And talk
He’ll feel guilty
But for you it will be a guilty pleasure.

Aaron Meshon
1:15pm
July 13
Nuts & Bolts Conference
Society of Illustrators, New York
Sponsored by 3x3 Magazine
Early Discount Ends June 12

COW Int'l Design Festival Jurors and Winners

I was honored to represent the United States in the 2012 COW International Design Festival, other jurors included Michael Weinzettl, Germany; Alexander Kazarin and Alexander Leenetsky, Russia.

Michael is the publisher and editor-in-chief of Lürzer's Archive Magazine and joined the magazine when there was just a staff of two—Michael is in charge of all content of the Vienna-based publication. There were two Alexanders, Kazarin is president of the Society of Designers International Association and a host of other international design-related symposiums. And Leenetsky is the deputy chairman of the St Petersburg Regional Organization of the Union of Designers of Russia and is the founder and chief editor of the news portal design-union.ru. Complete bios and the winners are available on the COW International Design Festival site.

The top ten illustrators included Gabriella Barouch, Israel; Andrew Artyukhin, Russia; Anna Kasnyik, Hungary; Marco Tóxico, Bolivia; Omer Hoffmann, USA; Irina Egorova, Russia; Morteza Zahedi, Iran; Tomaso Marcolla, Italy; Wasted Rita, Portugal and Irina Pryadka, Ukraine.

Thank you to Helen Baranovska for the invitation to judge.

Martin Wittfooth@Nuts & Bolts Conference 2012

Martin Wittfooth:

Martin wants you to be uncomfortable

He wants you 
to not be content with the status quo
He wants you to think
To feel
To observe
To care

About the earth
And about your fellow man
His work is full of yellow lights that scream out
Caution!
His work looks 17th or 18th century Flemish yet modern
Many of his pieces are seemingly post-apoclayptic
Where humans have lost their foothold as the
Dominant specie.

He’s a reader
He thinks before he paints

Buses and refrigerators were an early recurring motif
In his work
He loved to paint them because these objects interested him
And represent the futility of humanity’s obsession
With self-preservation.

He labors over his paintings
Not to make himself famous
But to call attention to what we should all be observing:
The world around us
And the part we play in its survival
What can be more noble than that?
We can simply observe his fine work
Or take the lesson he is presenting and make a difference.

It is really up to us
But it doesn’t mean that Martin will stop saying what he’s saying in paint
And if we pay attention
It might just mean we can save ourselves.

Martin Wittfooth
11:15am
July 14
Nuts & Bolts Conference
Society of Illustrators, New York
Sponsored by 3x3 Magazine
Early Discount Ends June 12

Amazing Marshall Arisman DVD fromAmerican Artist Magazine

One of the perks of being a publisher is we get books and DVDs to review for our website and publications. One such DVD came in the mail from Marshall Arisman.

Produced by American Artist, we get a first hand look at not only Marshall’s studio but get to see him in action. As the DVD touts: No brush required—we get to see how Marshall uses different tools, traditional art supplies, or items from the local drugstore or stationery or hardware store to create powerful imagery. It could be a plastic comb he cuts into different lengths to give him a readily available cross-hatching tool. Or it could be a small printmaker’s roller that he uses not just as a roller but the edge to create a thin/thick line. Or pencil erasers to bring out a highlight. Or faux woodgrain stencils to create shadows.

We get to see him working with papier mâché, ink, pastel and oils. And unlike many instructors he doesn’t hold back, he shares everything. We learn the backstory about his imagery and how important content is over the act of painting and how he can tell if he’s transferred his energy into the finished drawing, sculpture or painting. He makes learning interesting and entertaining and you feel you’re right there in the studio alongside him. What a great experience!

Available on Amazon.com

Falmouth Students Visit 3x3

We had the pleasure of doing a portfolio review for students from University College Falmouth today in our Brooklyn studio. The group included two professors, Sue Clarke and Mark Foreman along with ten students. For those who might not know Falmouth is located on the far western coast of the United Kingdom, and as I hear they have palm trees growing there!

It’s always interesting to see the work from abroad, especially from the next generation of illustrators. One of the highlights was a student, Jo Chappell, who presented her work not only in a portfolio but also on the iPad. What I’ve always appreciated in portfolios from the UK is that most if not all work are examples of problem-solving.

After a pizza lunch and a brief overview about 3x3 and Creative Quarterly and a discussion about my view of the future of illustration we proceeded to review individual portfolios and then sent them on their merry way.