New Site

Hi all, just wanted to let everyone know that my new website is up at rfkelly.com. I'm also moving my news/sketchbook/ blog to rfkelly.tumblr.com. Sorry blogger. It's not you, it's me.

-Rich

Drawing and The Beatles

I just returned from a fun and relaxing week in upstate New York. We stayed at Kait's house in Schenectady and on Saturday we trekked up to Sackets Harbor on Lake Ontario for the wedding of a former classmate. Below are some sketchbook drawings from the trip.





Also, if you are in Pittsburgh tonight head on down to the 3G Gallery for the opening of their "Influenced by the Beatles" show. The gallery owners, Coleen and Amy Rush are incredibly kind and generous and invited me to submit a picture. I ended up doing a portrait of John and Yoko, some of the sketches for which appear below.

"Influenced by the Beatles"
Opening: Friday, June 5, 5-7pm
3G Gallery
1001 Liberty Ave. Pittsburgh, PA

Pittsburgh City Paper

Here is a cover illustration I recently completed for the Pittsburgh City Paper. The article was about people leasing out their private land for natural gas wells, and how they immediately regretted that decision, as the drilling was ruining their land and their lives. It was a quick and enjoyable assignment. Thanks Lisa!

Below is the initial sketch with the copy layered on top.

This week I also came across a great figure drawing group at the Tojo Gallery in Wicker Park. I was particularly fond of the model's gesture in this first 5-minute pose and embellished it a bit in photoshop.

The Original G-Dub.

Fun Fact: George Washington once proposed that American soldiers adorn ice skates, glide across a frozen expanse of the Boston Harbor in the dark of the night, and assault the British. The plan was unfortunately abandoned as impractical. He also spent two seasons in the NHL with the short-lived expansion team, the Virginia Blues.

another nonsensical portrait.

Bowie Lyrics

Here's a little somethin' I did the other day. It doesn't really make any sense, but who cares?


Recently I had a book printed through blurb.com. I was extremely nervous about the way the colors would come out, but after several test proofs I crossed my fingers and uploaded my files. Alas, it arrived in the mail yesterday and I must say, it looks pretty sharp. It consists of 14 images, each accompanied by a short description and some process work. Although I wanted to keep it in my own personal library, it is for promotional purposes, and will hopefully be gracing the desk of an art director near you!


Lastly, I just picked up two of these...


Jesus Lord, I can't wait.

FOTC

I have been religiously watching Flight of the Conchords. So funny. A meshing of my pencil drawing and the digital color of the future

India Process and other nonsense

It's interesting to see how a picture evolves from a mere idea and thumbnail into a final painting. Here is a small sample of the drawings and comps that went into the India piece. While it might seem a bit redundant to keep drawing and redrawing, I really think that you learn from each mark you make.

Below are some quick sketches from last nights news conference. I quite like the balance of line and value.



Last night I received possibly the best Valentine's Day gift ever: A Casio CA53W Sport Calculator watch. Not only is it water resistant, but it has a dual time display, an auto-calendar pre-programmed to the year 2079, a fully functioning calculator for advanced calculus operations, a stopwatch that can measure normal time, net time, lap time and 1st-2nd place times, and both a daily alarm mode and hourly time signals... How did I get so lucky? Thanks Kait.

Things are Happening

Time is flying by. Hey time, slow the f down. Work, art-making, reading, music-listening, and thinking have been keeping me extremely busy. In true new-years-resolution fashion I have been pushing myself to create something (anything) new at least once a day. Some good tunes have been keeping me company (I can't stop listening to the new Animal Collective album) and I have been looking at words on pages from some good literature (I got a gift subscription to the New Yorker for xmas. Thanks pops.) Here is a small sample of what I have been up to. First some sketchbook drawings. I like drawing in the car, but Pennsylvania's roads are so notoriously bad that it's difficult to keep a steady hand.







This morning I did a quick drawing of Booker T. Washington and proceeded to screw around with it in photoshop. I've been doing a lot of drawing with a ball point pen lately so this quick indulgence with graphite felt good.




This is a portfolio piece that I have been working on for what seems like weeks, about the recent (can I still say recent?) terrorist attacks in Mumbai, India. I remember watching the news and I heard an onlooker say to a reporter (and I'm paraphrasing): "These monuments and buildings that we construct come and go, but the people are the true building blocks of India."



Finally, I picked up this bad-boy today at a thrift shop for a whopping $2.21. Now I can watch the Steelers trounce the Cardinals tomorrow at work. Even though it was manufactured in 1983, the picture and sound are incredibly sharp. Too bad it will be obsolete on February 17th.



Anyway, thanks, mom (and my moms friends), for reading. I'll post more soon.