pocza

More Mars Hill Kids stuff!

2012-01-08T19:38:00.000-08:00

This weekend was the launch of the Mars Hill Kids new curriculum. I'm VERY happy to have been a part of it. Both as a Christian and as an illustrator. Seeing stuff "live" still blows me away. Many of my projects get sent off and all I can do is hope they turn out well. Attending Mars Hill I get to see it first hand.

A while ago, I created a bunch of art including the MHK logo. It was developed as a coloring book. And as MH started to decorate the kids rooms with giant versions of my art, I was in awe. Standing next to them was very exciting as I eye balled every line to see if I made any mistakes. That big, it would show! And the contrast of a fat, old tattooed guy with cute art still cracks me up.

Recently, the AD in the art department asked me to help with the first curriculum book illos. It was a tight turn around, and they let me play with a new style that helped meet the deadline. I really like the majority of the work I cranked out over those few days, but could nit pick it all to no end. I wanted every little line to work perfect and could have spent many hours on each one. However, there is something special about having a deadline. That something I love in the sketch stage that often gets lost. The rawness of the art. Sketches have soul. The finals themselves can be great, but there is that "something" factor that I tried hard to keep that in this series. And I feel it's there.

This project was another step in the right direction for me. I want to get into Kid lit art. As much as I like business editorial, I love, LOVE, LOVE kid art.

Jesus Project: Part two. Markers

2011-11-17T14:52:00.001-08:00

Since starting this project, I have been using digital illustration. But I wanted to try it with traditional materials. I don't feel like my hand drawn work is my strongest, so I don't do it much. I do however, LOVE the organic feel and raw nature of it. That alone covers my feeling of inadequacy over it.

My marker style was picked up mentally over 25 years ago. I never did any marker work back then, but was so enthused by Vaughn Bodes work in underground comics that it made an imprint on my brain. It was never my intention to rob the style, but I do feel like I "made it my own" though. Vaughn was a master.

So, I got it out of me. I did it traditionally. I like it and hope you do. If I were to do more in markers, I would want to work bigger. The size I am working at now is too small for some of the markers, and it shows off the bleeding ink that gets absorbed. I never felt more confident in my work than with the computer, but again, love the specialness that hand hewn work can produce.

I'm also thinking beyond the Jesus Project. I can see doing a few more of the illustrations, but the entire Bible has so much to offer. How cool would it be to do a kids Bible? VERY.

The Jesus Project: Part one

2011-11-13T09:44:00.001-08:00

The Jesus Project. A series based on Jesus, for kids, but I'm hoping people of all ages will like it. At this point, I have NO direction. Just starting out with a character development of Jesus. Originally, I wanted to have Jesus skipping rocks as he walked across the Sea of Galilee. And I may go back to that, but wanted to nail down a style.

A. Basic clean, bold line work. With this work, I feel like I can add more personality. It would also make for a great coloring book if I turned off the color layers.

B. I love the warm, friendly feeling of the line work here. Not as much detail, but the inky line work looks old. It, could be interesting to have old world treatments to the line work and place that on parchment/scroll paper... and wow.

Again, no direction aside from, make Cute Jesus art. Once I get a few pictures done, I will see where this takes me.

HR fun!

2011-08-16T23:30:00.000-07:00

I love, love, LOVE doing work for Bremmer and Goris! The Creative Director is a really nice guy, and really enjoy working for them. The team there puts out a magazine for a client about Human Resources. And I must admit, it is very over my head. But I like the challenge of illustrating a concept I don't "get".

Here are a couple samples I recently did for them. For more samples and fun, check out pocza.com!

DJ Frapp

2011-06-15T21:02:00.001-07:00

I don't usually enter contests. But I really want an ipad2, so I am willing to give it the ol' try. And DA is having a contest with StarBucks as a sponsor. Blended Remix. It feels really good to be illustrating something for fun again. I think I may start entering more contests. If nothing else, it is just practice.

INSIDER editorial

2011-05-23T09:21:00.000-07:00

Just over 10 years ago, I worked for a great agency called Bremmer and Goris Communications. One of their clients puts out a magazine called PEO Insider. I contribute my enthusiasm for editorial art to this magazine. The client was very open to using illustration and would let me do just about anything that fit the feature. Although, we struggled one time over the concept of "Piggy Backing". My first comp looked too much like pig sex. LOL. I was upset at the time as I didn't see it that way, but now, it kills me. Thanks Steph.

So 10 years later, I get to play with the fine folks at B&G and PEO Insider. I know I can see massive change and growth in my work since my first issue. Good times.

Mars Hill Coloring book: Part two

2011-04-26T14:36:00.000-07:00

I love kids stuff! I can't even tell you how much I loved working on them.

Mars Hill Church

2011-04-26T10:16:00.001-07:00

A few months ago, I had the opportunity to work with Mars Hill Church and their kids ministry. What a challenge. It was one of the most fun projects I have had in a long time. Originally, what started out as a coloring book, became art installations at the campuses. This Easter, the coloring books were passed out to all the kids and I hope they enjoy it! Looking forward to showing onsite samples, but for now, here are some of my favorite images.

Gonna Need a BIGGER plunger!

2011-02-02T09:26:00.000-08:00

Here is the cover for my new book, "We're gonna need a BIGGER plunger!" 200 Pokeweed strips, commentary and guest art! For this special edition, there are only 20 books, signed, numbered and drawn in for only $20. PLUS, you get special recognition in the book! Offer ends Feb 4th!

Check out the store for more details!

Filos

2011-01-25T13:49:00.000-08:00

I have to admit, I love seeing a logo I did BIG. The original logo has the "pizza/pasta" type under the Filos name. But in order to use an pre existing sign frame, it had to altered a bit. But I am still glad to see it up there!

The owner of Filos has a rich history in the pizza history. He had worked under a guy who helped establish pizza shops in the PNW for decades. So Lief is excited and proud to open the shop up this weekend!

atomic marble

2011-01-19T15:16:00.000-08:00

Branding and identity are now, more than ever, all the rage. Once upon a time, it was only the business world that needed a identity. Watching Mad Men helped remind me of that. I am freelancing now, thank you economic downturn. But that has placed many of us in this interesting spot. All of a sudden, I had to find out who I am. What services can I offer that others can't/wont?

As a creative, I can make an illustration, a logo, or design. But I try to do it with the best in customer satisfaction. I work over a project till the client is happy. That is something that MOST crowd sourcing people wont give you. Attention. You get what you pay for, and if $99 (from crowdsourcing) is what you want to spend, I'm sure somebody is willing to do it. I think it cheapens the art of design. The common thought these days is, "if you have a computer, you are a designer". WRONG. There is so much more to a logo than punching in a name to your favorite type face. Giddy Up is mine, but it doesn't speak for ME. Unless I was a western style artist, maybe.

I know some VERY talented designers, and they start out right in the computer. But those guys tend to be great word smiths. Then there are others like me, who always start it off with a sketch. Very old school, but it saves me some time flushing out ideas. Then I only take the ones I love.

With Atomic Marble, the client had an idea of what he wanted, and almost, more of an idea what he didn't want. That is a double edged sword, but thankfully he is a very solid communicator. I love to ask questions, rather than try something and look dumb for it. I don't like to waste time for me, or my clients budget. So after several sketches, I email them off for concept approval. Once we get there, I start looking for the perfect font. And I play with the fonts to see how letters work together. In the this case, we both agreed that the type had to be all lower case. It created too much visual strain to use caps and lower case.

My old school thoughts of working things in black in white, till I get the shape still work. You need to have versions that a silk screener can use, as well as a sign maker. They tend to be simple, one color version. But Atomic Marble needed MORE. So I broke one of my own rules and used gradients and all kinds of little bells and whistles to make this logo work. I decided that, this is a new time. Some people will only ever have their logo on a web page or phone app. So why limit it? Once we started taking that approach, magic started to happen.

I thought we had arrived. But the client wanted to see just a little something more. And I am glad he did. We applied a molten color scheme and were close to home. Now, one thing the client did not want to include was the fun little atomic circles like old retro sci-fi stuff. But I HAD to try it. And WAM, there is was.

Many, many revisions later, we had come up with what the client NEEDED and wanted. In this social media world we now live in, everyone has a brand wanted or not. You have a profile pic on Facebook right? And it tells alllll about who you ARE. Now even Mom and Pop have branding! Keep in mind, you wont get this kind of attention and customer service at most crowd sourcing shops.

Joshua Frost

2010-12-15T11:38:00.001-08:00

I have a pal that is a GREAT photographer. And really, a great guy. Funny as hell. And he has been asking me to help him with a logo for some time, and I finally had the time! Played with a variety of styles and whatnot that didn't catch his eye. Then I asked him to send me a scan of his signature. And bam, the creative wheels were rolling. Tweaked it a lot to keep it from being identical to his sig, for legal purposes, but really love how it turned out. Check out his work, and you will fin my ugly mug there!
Joshua Frost Photography.

Identity

2010-10-28T13:42:00.000-07:00

Here is a sample of an identity I recently did for Westview Church in scenic SD. Simple but clean.

Showcasing first the logo, then business card (front/back) as well as letterhead and postcard.

Logo-ago-go

2010-10-14T10:54:00.000-07:00

I love Logos. Trying to find a simple way to represent a company can ber very challenging. And the ones I tend to enjoy the most, are hand penned, not just a font. But often, the right type face screams at you. Type is an amazing graphic element.

Mascots!

2010-10-05T11:32:00.000-07:00

I have been working on a variety of sports mascots for Prep Sportwear.
Lots of em, but these are some of my favorite ones. You can check a sample of how they are used over at their site.
Very fun project that I am having to find that line between too goofy and too serious.

Westview Church

2010-06-24T23:18:00.000-07:00

Just wrapped up a logo for a new church in San Diego. My brother in-law has a gift for church planting, so a benefit for me is, I get to do his logo. Very nice symbiotic relationship.

More Wizards of the Coast

2010-05-19T19:27:00.001-07:00

I really had fun working on this series. Starting out in illustrator and adding all the texture in Photoshop. For me, this was a great way to find freedom from my bold thick outlines.

© Wizards of the Coast LLC

2010-05-19T13:45:00.001-07:00

Several months back, I had a great opportunity to work on some illustrations for a book coming out now from Wizards of the Coast for the Dungeons & Dragons line. I was very excited, as I used to buy D&D books as a kid just for the art. So when the AD there asked me if I wanted in, hellz yeah. My "style" does not fit the normal D&D wold, but Jon, the AD wanted to try an new approach. SOmething never done before. So he gathered up a few out of the norm illustrators for the project. I am happy and thankful to be one of them.

It has been VERY hard for me to not post them till publication. So if you are near any major book store, look for it. Three more spots coming, so check back!

You can see the book here.

Pokeweed! The comic

2010-03-08T12:11:00.001-08:00

All growing up I have had a love for daily comics. A passion is more like it. And through out life, the passion stirs every so often. So I have tried my hand at a few comics. Nothing really stuck. Until now. Using a strip concept I started back around 2000, I built off it recently to create Pokeweed!

Pokeweed! is a small little place just south of nowhere really. I don't think you will find it on any maps. But a pleasant small town atmosphere is was makes this place fun to visit. Please joing Phil, Clint and Buster for some grand adventures!

http://pokeweed.pocza.com

Shoanti Air

2010-01-12T14:41:00.000-08:00

Shoanti Air! The finest in barbaric flight in the world of Galarion.

I enjoyed theconcept of barbarian style character with inflight assistance. And it gave me another chance to use my squiggly style.

Sherlock Holmes

2009-12-21T13:25:00.000-08:00

Interior spots for a book coming out soon about Sherlock Holmes. Published by Atomic Overmind Press.

Krampus!

2009-12-18T23:22:00.000-08:00

Worked this up for my holiday email campaign. So to kill two birds with one stone, I am entering this in a illustration contest as well as using it as my holiday mailer. Krampus was a monster who ran with Santa, but he took care of the bad kids!

Sleepy

2009-11-01T23:11:00.000-08:00

Another Cthulhu inspired strip. Doesn't everyone hate Mondays?

SHIRTS!

2009-10-28T12:01:00.000-07:00

Some designs of mine going into production soon. I will have more details very soon.

Sherlock Holmes

2009-10-21T19:48:00.001-07:00

Just wrapped up a book cover for Sherlock Holmes being printed by Atomic Overmind Press. I am very excited about this illustration as it is with a new style of inking. The old blotted brush style Andy Warhol used to use for drawing shoes. But I think it really worked well with the content.

Job: Vol 2

2009-10-11T13:20:00.000-07:00

Back cover of same book project.

Job!

2009-10-07T22:16:00.000-07:00

Poor old Job and those boils! Book cover illustration.

Sleeping final

2009-10-06T10:44:00.001-07:00

I posted what I thought was the "final" image a few days ago. However, after talking with the AD about it, we decided it needed "more". The original met the needs of the art order, but it just did not work as well once completed. So I added more luggage and a top to the machine and bam, it worked.

Concept was about people having to sleep at airports, done for a Executive Travel magazine.

Mimic door!

2009-07-30T07:36:00.000-07:00

Aaannnd another Mimic. Mimics are really funny monsters from D&D. Not as funny as a Gelatinous Cube, but funny. This time, the Mimic takes on the shape of a door. Sure would be handy with solicitors!

Mimic!

2009-07-26T23:39:00.000-07:00

HA! Finally got to draw one of the goofiest monsters, the mimic. This monster takes the form of something like a chest, or a door, and when the unsuspecting victim gets close...nom, nom, nom. Oh the fun of D&D. Thanks to Sean K. Reynolds for having me work on this one.

The Royal Archivist

2009-07-22T20:31:00.001-07:00

A pal of mine is starting a publishing company with a steampunk bent to it. Working on the logo now, but had fun working on the character, so I started that first.

Cthulhu!

2009-07-09T22:43:00.001-07:00

Sample of Cthulhu illustrations for a fun book about H.P Lovecraft. A Lovecraft/Cthulhu for Dummies kind of thing. Just over twenty illustrations for the book, and a coloring book is in the works!

Airport Security

2009-04-30T08:33:00.000-07:00

A small gig, but very fun. Scanners are being tested at airports now to help with security. So I tried to have some fun with the clients request. THe first round showed more of a skeleton in the scanner, but the water bottle looked like a concealed package tucked inside the body cavity in true drug mule style. SO, we opted for a more "body" shape over skeleton.

When traveling, keep in mind, YOU might be having to walk through a scanner!

New Cthulhu!

2009-04-23T15:53:00.000-07:00

Had some fun with another Cthulhu image.

new samples

2009-03-19T08:49:00.001-07:00

My Merry little Christmas!

2008-12-22T13:33:00.001-08:00

Snowed in here in the Seattle area, and I could make it into work. So made my holiday card. Hope you enjoy.

Bloodless

2008-12-18T23:47:00.000-08:00

Another one of my mini monsters for Paizo Publishing. This will be in a RPG module due in stores in a few months. So here is a sneak peak. I really liked working on this one. No, I loved it.

Back ache!

2008-12-17T22:25:00.000-08:00

Editorial illustration for Executive Travel. The story is on on chronic back/neck pain due to travel.

Keep on Cthulhu

2008-12-08T22:40:00.000-08:00

I have been so busy and stressed out over the past month with my son having cardiac arrest in Nov., tha I have been getting behind on projects. But find time to doodle during our production meetings at Paizo. Here is one Idid today. Just the average happy go lucky Cthulhu.

Editorial art

2008-10-05T19:46:00.000-07:00

Just a little diddy I cranked out over the weekend. Glad I was able to try my hand at something other than monsters!

Cthu Pac

2008-09-28T15:31:00.000-07:00

Another in the Cthulhu series. I am in NO way a fan of 2pac. Nada. But, thought Cthug Life sounded funny, so I built the illustration around the words.

YO!

2008-09-20T19:29:00.001-07:00

YO! I grew up on RUN DMC. Love em. This is my tribute to them. Whos House? Cthulhu's Hoooouse.

Cthulhu Up!

2008-09-13T22:27:00.000-07:00

Working on a series of Cthulhu monsters. The first of the new series is a take on the "Cowboy Up" stuff. I hope to get some shirts printed at some place like zazzle.com. Maybe some buttons and posters. This is part of trying to "market" myself more. Was thinking he would even make a fun comics strip. Who knows!

Zizzle ZAZZLE zuzz

2008-08-30T08:46:00.000-07:00

I have no clue what that subject means. I just love Z. But anyway, I just started posting images you can now order t-shirts and whatnots of over at Zazzle.com. I have NO Clue how they look as far as quality. But I am trying to work it out to get the best image quality I can. Only 3 available right now, but more to come.

ipodpaper.com

2008-08-07T16:13:00.001-07:00

If you are one of the lucky people who can have a iphone ( thanks for nothing verizon :| ), you can now have some of my illustrations for wallpaper. When paul Howalt asked me, I could not say no. The guy is a total bad ass illustrator and I was pumped when he asked me to add some designs to his ipodpaper.com site. Maybe you don't have an iphone, but an ipod touch, you can still have em"!

Disclaimer: I had nothing to do with Prince. Although I did see the Purple Rain tour when I was a kid.lol.

oooze Mephit

2008-07-17T11:51:00.000-07:00

About that time, well seems like a longer though to get to do a small illo for PAizo Publishing. We are moving the module form a monthly to a bi-monthly product. So, that means I don't get to do a monthly monster. Poop. They are fun to do, and I try to pack in as much detail as I can for something printing at the size of a stamp.

Originally, I was going to do a Chimera. Since module is called Chimera Cove, and the sped that gave me the art order did into include an illustration of any Chimera, I thought it would be cool to do one for my designer note monsters. Well, Chimeras are complex and since I really have a tiny amount of space, I did the ooze mephit. BAsically, and ooze imp.

Some day, it sure would be fun do get some gigs doing stuff other than cute monsters.lol

Animated Wiiizard!

2008-06-17T13:02:00.000-07:00

A very talented fella named Tony Moseley was kind enough to animate this little clip based on the wizard illustration I did of a rpg character. It cracks me up every time I see it. Tony has a great sense of timing and gag writing. Make sure you check some of his work in the link. I had the privilege of laying out his book Zogonia: Slice of Death.

Thanks Tony!

Wiiizzzard!

2008-05-06T11:03:00.000-07:00

A new spot, again, running really small. But I tried like mad to pack in the details.

Falling sneak peak

2008-03-28T15:45:00.000-07:00

Here is a little illo for a game called FALLING coming out soon from Titanic Games/Paizo Publishing. I really dig goblins now.

Goblin Squad

2008-03-28T11:08:00.000-07:00

Here is a character I did for Paizo ( my day job) Publishing. We have taken on goblins as a sorta mascot now. The have much more character than the golem we use in the logo. ANYWAY, part of the new adventure we produce, has lots of goblins. So they asked me to help work up a goblin for a logo for a "street team". This was fun and I was already doing lots of goblin illustrations for a new card game coming out called FALLING. With goblins FALLING from the sky trying to be the first to hit the ground. Splat!

And yes, they use d20!

The Red Raven

2008-03-21T11:10:00.000-07:00

So thi stime, for my "designer notes" characters, I had to do a little fella named the Red Raven. he is pretty much a Robin Hood knock off. I have always known that there are really no original ideas any more. Just how we "spin" that idea makes it a little new. I will try to post a page of one of the modules so you can see how damn small these bad boys actually print. And then you can see why I have no room for them to do any action at all!
All in all, I kind dig the Red Raven. Simple and clean. But where does one get red feathers?
Drew

Undead Kobold

2008-03-02T22:09:00.000-08:00

Seems like I never have enough time to spend on this stuff. But with a short deadline of only a few hours, I think they turn out to be pretty fun. I think it would be fun to make some "shrinky dinks" of the monsters. Ok, now I think I gave a way a clue as to what my is with that reference. Anyway, I hope you dig him. d

My Little Succubus

2008-02-23T20:51:00.000-08:00

Always fun to do monsters. The background and type were just fun, but will not run in final layout for the game module with only 2"x 1.5", I had to make this succubus chick fit in.

Waiting.. DONE!

2008-01-31T14:18:00.000-08:00

I am really diggin' this one. I was only allowed to use 3 PMS colors and black for this project. So it proved a little difficult. But fun. I think that, and having to turn it around so fast really makes exciting for me. Something about horrible deadlines that can bring out good stuff. Hope you dig it.

Before and...

2008-01-30T10:29:00.000-08:00

Well, after will come friday. I opted to get involved in a promo with a company called Stockart.com. I am going to be building a building a selection of stock art for them. Should be fun. Anyway, here is the sketch I am working out for the artist promo they are putting together. It will fit into one of those pantone swatch book sized deals with several other artists. All we need to do is use 3 basic pantone colors. But I can not tell you how much I love mixing monster like Cthulhu and the average business man. I will post my final asap.

Till then, enjoy!

Pre-mature post

2008-01-08T09:29:00.000-08:00

Not done with this spot, but kinda dig it so I wanted to throw up a WIP for it. Not sure how I like working in PS. But again, out of my comfort zone with this style. So it will take me some steady practice to get to where I want to be with it. But I hope you dig it all the same. Inspiration for this? Well, I live in rainy Seattle and coffee.. yummmm.

Coffee

2008-01-03T12:17:00.000-08:00

The foundation for my next illo. I got some great constructive crits on the first "paint" style illo below, so now I need to apply what I learned. Thanks everyone.

Not Kong

2008-01-01T17:10:00.000-08:00

The monthly monster I bang out. Keep in mind, I don't think of this stuff, just comes with the art order. And it appears a little larger than a stamp. All I can think of is the Wizard of Oz. I am tempted to put a fez hat on him! I find that in the world of D&D, there are no original ideas. But what the hell, it was still fun to do. Street date for this is a few months out.

Something to play with

2007-12-31T00:15:00.001-08:00

I have been meaning to try something other than my normal vector illustration. So here is my first shot. Not sure what to think of it. Inked it and scanned and added the textures in PS. I am thinking that I need to get MUCH more practice in on this kind of work. Feels stiff to me, but hoping that the more I do it, the looser it will become.

Web site

2007-12-02T15:10:00.000-08:00

I have been working on my web site and now I remeber why I HATE working on web sites. I am old school.. give me print to design. But I can only thank Rob M. I have basicaly had to rob Rob to get this site going. Simple and clean. I am hoping that my work will pop more and be less of a web page and more of a portfolio!
d

Monster of the Month

2007-11-28T19:16:00.000-08:00

Ok, so it is that special time of the month at work where I get to do a little spot art. I mean little. The characters in this series print about 1.5". I try to pack in as much detail as I can, but that is pretty small. And no back grounds or room for action. Oh well... still fun.

Paizo Holiday Card

2007-11-08T13:03:00.000-08:00

At the nerd factory, I was asked to illustrate the company Holiday card. Sounds like fun. The corp mascot is a golem and this year, we added some iconic goblins to our adventure paths. So I had to add 'em all in. The card comes with a funny little poem. anyway, so here is what I turned out. Shooting for an old Rankin/Bass style. Very flat but still fun.

Undead Dragon

2007-11-07T12:47:00.000-08:00

So, for those of you who do not know, I work for a nerdy gaming company as the AD for game modules. I had stopped drawing for a while, and it was doing these little characters that got me hooked again. So once a month I make a new character... I know, once a month is pretty lacking. Anyway, here is the undead dragon I just finished up. Given a very short turn around, so I take about 3 hrs to crank one out. Now, I may be loco, but I would love to see this on a skate board.

Calling Cthulhu

2007-10-20T23:50:00.000-07:00

So here it is... Call of Cthulhu! Cthulhu working 9-5 for The Man.
I am trying to explore this new look of being simple, but still with lots to look at.

Call of Cthulhu

2007-10-19T23:34:00.000-07:00

I work with a bunch of nerds and only the nerdiest of them talk and love Cthulhu. Evil monster based on H.P Lovecraft work. So I love to mix things up and thought that the corporate life is "evil" to me.lol So my next spot is going to be Cthulhu working for the Man.I will be working on the one on the right.

Nintendo style Drew

2007-10-10T23:16:00.000-07:00

I had a great time working freelance on site at NOA about 2 yrs ago. I try to stay in touch since there are some really nice people there. So a few months back, I had the wild hair to send some samples to NOA. Since I had a template for a DS game, why not make a DS game? Or at least some samples that looked like one. And since I LOVE big thick black outlines I knew this would be fun.

Happy Halloween

2007-10-09T23:01:00.000-07:00

Worked up some new illustrations inspired by Halloween.But I am now thinking I need to do an illustration for the upcoming Christmas spectacular that is Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber. Nothing says Merry Christmas like a reallllly close shave. Till then, enjoy these two spots.
Drew

Hola!

2007-10-08T22:10:00.001-07:00

This is just a test to see if I can get this dadgummed thing to work out right.