Hi all,
So sorry to say that this will be my last entry in Blogspot. It's been a wonderful 65 entries, and I thank anyone who has been following! Please be sure to switch over to Tumblr, or at least bookmark my blog there. Thank you and....
adios,
caitlin
Sunday, April 15, 2012
2011 Graduates
Hi all!
I decided to do an illustration for an article, because my portfolio is really lacking concept right now. Pretty much immediately after sitting down to think of ideas, I remembered an article I’d seen someone post on Facebook. The New York Times interviewed a good portion of the class of 2011 at Drew University (and then did research about the rest of us). It’s overwhelming how many 2011 grads are either still unemployed, or not working in a job related to their degree. It definitely hit home for me, because I’ve been doing pretty random stuff since school, and it’s been hard to swallow at times. Anyway, here were two of my better ideas:
On the left is a wall of portraits, with a banner at the top reading “class of 2011.” Instead of the portraits being of success stories, it shows the graduates doing jobs like dog grooming, pizza delivery, nannying, sub shop, etc, with a plaque reading their degree or honors. The one on the left is a tiny graduate overlooked and overwhelmed by a sea of giant professionals who are ignoring him. I decided to go with this idea because it read much more quickly for a lot of people, and also because I didn't have much time.
"2011 Graduates," Gouache and Digital, 2012.
I honestly did struggle with this piece a bit, and I'm still not sure it's at the point of becoming a portfolio piece. This is after much careful surgery in Photoshop, and I think it's looking much better, but for some reason I just feel that the sketch is the best. Hate it when that happens.
adios,
caitlin
I decided to do an illustration for an article, because my portfolio is really lacking concept right now. Pretty much immediately after sitting down to think of ideas, I remembered an article I’d seen someone post on Facebook. The New York Times interviewed a good portion of the class of 2011 at Drew University (and then did research about the rest of us). It’s overwhelming how many 2011 grads are either still unemployed, or not working in a job related to their degree. It definitely hit home for me, because I’ve been doing pretty random stuff since school, and it’s been hard to swallow at times. Anyway, here were two of my better ideas:
On the left is a wall of portraits, with a banner at the top reading “class of 2011.” Instead of the portraits being of success stories, it shows the graduates doing jobs like dog grooming, pizza delivery, nannying, sub shop, etc, with a plaque reading their degree or honors. The one on the left is a tiny graduate overlooked and overwhelmed by a sea of giant professionals who are ignoring him. I decided to go with this idea because it read much more quickly for a lot of people, and also because I didn't have much time.
"2011 Graduates," Gouache and Digital, 2012.
I honestly did struggle with this piece a bit, and I'm still not sure it's at the point of becoming a portfolio piece. This is after much careful surgery in Photoshop, and I think it's looking much better, but for some reason I just feel that the sketch is the best. Hate it when that happens.
adios,
caitlin
Sunday, April 8, 2012
What I Wore Today!
Hello all!
New Square Carousel challenge! This one is for the website “What I Wore Today” by Gemma Correll. We are also collaborating with The Pen Pals!
My process for this piece was much different than my usual method. I actually did sketches every day, during one of the most fantastic weeks I’ve had in a long time. South By Southwest was providing tons of entertainment (and free shows, which I was able to see 5 of!), my best friend was in town doing interviews, the weather was lovely, and I was able to enjoy Austin probably more than I ever have. Usually I don’t sketch much, but I felt that the week needed to be documented in as many ways as possible. This also gave me options to choose from for my final piece.
Keep in mind that these are pretty rough (and goofy!) sketches!
And here's my final! I'm pretty pleased with it:
"What I Wore on a Very Good Day," Gouache, 2012.
That's all I have for now!
adios,
caitlin
New Square Carousel challenge! This one is for the website “What I Wore Today” by Gemma Correll. We are also collaborating with The Pen Pals!
My process for this piece was much different than my usual method. I actually did sketches every day, during one of the most fantastic weeks I’ve had in a long time. South By Southwest was providing tons of entertainment (and free shows, which I was able to see 5 of!), my best friend was in town doing interviews, the weather was lovely, and I was able to enjoy Austin probably more than I ever have. Usually I don’t sketch much, but I felt that the week needed to be documented in as many ways as possible. This also gave me options to choose from for my final piece.
Keep in mind that these are pretty rough (and goofy!) sketches!
And here's my final! I'm pretty pleased with it:
"What I Wore on a Very Good Day," Gouache, 2012.
That's all I have for now!
adios,
caitlin
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
I love "They Draw and Cook"
Hello all!
A few weeks ago, I was personally invited to enter a competition hosted by my favorite illustration website duo, Nate and Sally from "They Draw and Cook," and "They Draw and Travel." The contest is to create a recipe (for "They Draw and Cook") using one of Kraft's products. I chose the "Cabo Beach Cheese Burger" from their website. This was a lot of fun to work on, and I pushed my color palette a little bit with this piece, to give a feel of summertime fun.
"Cabo Beach Cheese Burger," Gouache and Digital, 2012.
Here's the piece on their site!
More work coming soon! Keep your eyes peeled!
Also, be sure to switch over to my Tumblr, because I'll be putting my Blogspot to rest in just a few more posts.
That's all for now!
adios
caitlin
A few weeks ago, I was personally invited to enter a competition hosted by my favorite illustration website duo, Nate and Sally from "They Draw and Cook," and "They Draw and Travel." The contest is to create a recipe (for "They Draw and Cook") using one of Kraft's products. I chose the "Cabo Beach Cheese Burger" from their website. This was a lot of fun to work on, and I pushed my color palette a little bit with this piece, to give a feel of summertime fun.
"Cabo Beach Cheese Burger," Gouache and Digital, 2012.
Here's the piece on their site!
More work coming soon! Keep your eyes peeled!
Also, be sure to switch over to my Tumblr, because I'll be putting my Blogspot to rest in just a few more posts.
That's all for now!
adios
caitlin
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Those other updates I was telling you about!
Hi all,
I painted another Austin scene for work, only this time in glazes instead of gouache, and on a plate instead of paper, which is a lot more difficult! We are using it as a sample right now, to show all the different sizes and shapes we have to choose from. I love to see my work in a different media like this! It's really rewarding, knowing that it's something useable. Eventually I'd like to make more pieces like this.
Also, I have some of my old prints hanging for sale! My boss, Kelly, was nice enough to let me test out the waters a bit, to see if anyone is interested. I've had a lot of positive feedback, so hopefully a purchase or two will be on the way!
And again, make sure you switch over to my Tumblr page, so I don't lose you when I make the final switch! That's all I have for you today. :)
adios,
caitlin
I painted another Austin scene for work, only this time in glazes instead of gouache, and on a plate instead of paper, which is a lot more difficult! We are using it as a sample right now, to show all the different sizes and shapes we have to choose from. I love to see my work in a different media like this! It's really rewarding, knowing that it's something useable. Eventually I'd like to make more pieces like this.
Also, I have some of my old prints hanging for sale! My boss, Kelly, was nice enough to let me test out the waters a bit, to see if anyone is interested. I've had a lot of positive feedback, so hopefully a purchase or two will be on the way!
And again, make sure you switch over to my Tumblr page, so I don't lose you when I make the final switch! That's all I have for you today. :)
adios,
caitlin
Sunday, March 4, 2012
Latest Square Carousel Challenge!
Hi all,
Sorry it's been a while. Please make sure to check out my Tumblr, where I'm updating more regularly now. Eventually this blog will no longer be used. Sad, I know :(
So... now for:
Square Carousel challenge number 13!
"St. Patty's Parade People," Gouache and Digital, 2012.
We can't attend the St. Patty's Day parade in Savannah this year... so we're going to make ourselves one. Head on over to the site to see what everyone else came up with, and also to read more about these characters.
Not too much going on in other news, at the moment. I've just been busy getting my day-job stuff sorted out (which it looks like is now finally the case!). I have sent out 20 packets full of goodies to art directors at publishing houses, magazines and even an art licensing company, so hopefully something will come of that soon!
I've also got a few other little things to show you, but it will have to wait for another day... Oh, the suspense!
adios,
caitlin
Sorry it's been a while. Please make sure to check out my Tumblr, where I'm updating more regularly now. Eventually this blog will no longer be used. Sad, I know :(
So... now for:
Square Carousel challenge number 13!
"St. Patty's Parade People," Gouache and Digital, 2012.We can't attend the St. Patty's Day parade in Savannah this year... so we're going to make ourselves one. Head on over to the site to see what everyone else came up with, and also to read more about these characters.
Not too much going on in other news, at the moment. I've just been busy getting my day-job stuff sorted out (which it looks like is now finally the case!). I have sent out 20 packets full of goodies to art directors at publishing houses, magazines and even an art licensing company, so hopefully something will come of that soon!
I've also got a few other little things to show you, but it will have to wait for another day... Oh, the suspense!
adios,
caitlin
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Just a teeny update...
Hello all!
"Light Bulb Debate," Gouache and Digital, 2012.
That's all for now! Sorry for the briefness here :)
adios
caitlin
Just a very brief post to show you my latest piece for Square Carousel. The challenge was "Sh*t Politicians Say," which I was so excited about! I never illustrate politics, or specific people, so this really pushed me to go outside of my comfort zone. Head over to Square Carousel to see more crazy quotes, and to read more about the Light Bulb Debate!
"Light Bulb Debate," Gouache and Digital, 2012.
That's all for now! Sorry for the briefness here :)
adios
caitlin
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
First Change of the Year
Hi all!
So, to those of you who adore Blogspot, I have some news you may not enjoy. I've created a Tumblr, where I've imported all of my old posts, and plan on beginning to use it as my only blog sometime this year. I'll be using both at first, just because I'm not a huge fan of change myself, but eventually, should things be as great at Tumblr as they say, I'll stop posting on my Blogspot. If you have a Tumblr account, be sure to follow my new snazzy layout! And also, a big thanks to Casey Crisenbery for helping me figure out the HTML coding... not exactly my cup of tea!
On to other news: School is back in session for Square Carousel! Our first challenge of the year, chosen by Maily Degnan, is to illustrate our favorite movie. I chose "Big Fish" for mine, and focused on the character design of protagonist Edward Bloom's true love, Sandra Templeton. Head on over to Square Carousel to read more about the movie and my process!
"Sandra Templeton," Gouache and digital, 2012.
Also! I got my new set of cards in the mail! They look fantastic. Gotprint.com did a great job with the color. This time, I got matte instead of glossy, and I really prefer the turnout! The only thing I'm a bit saddened by is those corners. Last time I got rounded ones, and I loved it, but unfortunately, for some reason, you can't get them with matte cards. Oh well! I'm excited to send them out. Time to start writing addresses!
That's all I have for now, folks,
adios
caitlin
So, to those of you who adore Blogspot, I have some news you may not enjoy. I've created a Tumblr, where I've imported all of my old posts, and plan on beginning to use it as my only blog sometime this year. I'll be using both at first, just because I'm not a huge fan of change myself, but eventually, should things be as great at Tumblr as they say, I'll stop posting on my Blogspot. If you have a Tumblr account, be sure to follow my new snazzy layout! And also, a big thanks to Casey Crisenbery for helping me figure out the HTML coding... not exactly my cup of tea!
On to other news: School is back in session for Square Carousel! Our first challenge of the year, chosen by Maily Degnan, is to illustrate our favorite movie. I chose "Big Fish" for mine, and focused on the character design of protagonist Edward Bloom's true love, Sandra Templeton. Head on over to Square Carousel to read more about the movie and my process!
"Sandra Templeton," Gouache and digital, 2012.
Also! I got my new set of cards in the mail! They look fantastic. Gotprint.com did a great job with the color. This time, I got matte instead of glossy, and I really prefer the turnout! The only thing I'm a bit saddened by is those corners. Last time I got rounded ones, and I loved it, but unfortunately, for some reason, you can't get them with matte cards. Oh well! I'm excited to send them out. Time to start writing addresses!
That's all I have for now, folks,
adios
caitlin
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Fresh start, 2012
Hi all!
The last few days I have been working on my new mailers for 2012, and am happy to tell you that they are ordered, and hopefully on their way soon!
By the way: Spoiler alert, if you are on my list! I'll be posting the images here.
I decided this time to change it up a bit by sending out two different cards, one aiming at children's book publishers, and the other at editorial clients. Had I been able to afford it, I would have printed cards for art licensing and perhaps another editorial example as well. Hopefully 2012 will eventually allow me that! This is still pretty exciting for now.
For the first card (my "editorial" one), I used an image you may recognize, but played with it a bit, and eventually decided to display my hand-lettering abilities at the top. This also created an unexpected and unique composition for the postcard.
"Postcard 2012," Gouache and Digital, 2011-2012.
"Hello Neighbor," Gouache, 2012.
The lettering here was a lot of fun! For Christmas, Kellan got me two amazing books full of lettering samples from the 1940s through '70s, and I spent quite some time pouring over the pages, looking for ideas. For anyone who loves type and lettering, I highly recommend these books! I am in love! (With the books, and with the boy).
The second card was almost entirely new work, although you may recognize the houses below from my collaboration with Seo Kim! I loved them so much, I had to use them again for something. For this card, I knew I needed something that would embody all the different elements of a successful children's book. This is challenging, because those elements usually unfold throughout 32 pages, but I had to represent as many as possible in one image. I feel as though the result was pretty successful, as I attempted to show both animal and child characters, an event taking place, a location, a brighter color palette, while still keeping my stylistic approach to all these things. Hopefully a publisher will feel the same way! We shall see!
"The Best Dream," Gouache and Digital, 2012.
The back of both cards will be the same as my previous one:
(It's hard to see the edges on a white background, huh?)
And in other news, They Draw and Cook is featuring my Superfood Salad on their jumbotron this week! They have been the kindest, most supportive people of my illustration career, and I can't explain enough how thankful I am to have fans in them!
That's all for now, but keep an eye on Square Carousel, because we are starting back up for the New Year!
adios
caitlin
The last few days I have been working on my new mailers for 2012, and am happy to tell you that they are ordered, and hopefully on their way soon!
By the way: Spoiler alert, if you are on my list! I'll be posting the images here.
I decided this time to change it up a bit by sending out two different cards, one aiming at children's book publishers, and the other at editorial clients. Had I been able to afford it, I would have printed cards for art licensing and perhaps another editorial example as well. Hopefully 2012 will eventually allow me that! This is still pretty exciting for now.
For the first card (my "editorial" one), I used an image you may recognize, but played with it a bit, and eventually decided to display my hand-lettering abilities at the top. This also created an unexpected and unique composition for the postcard.
"Postcard 2012," Gouache and Digital, 2011-2012.
"Hello Neighbor," Gouache, 2012.The lettering here was a lot of fun! For Christmas, Kellan got me two amazing books full of lettering samples from the 1940s through '70s, and I spent quite some time pouring over the pages, looking for ideas. For anyone who loves type and lettering, I highly recommend these books! I am in love! (With the books, and with the boy).
The second card was almost entirely new work, although you may recognize the houses below from my collaboration with Seo Kim! I loved them so much, I had to use them again for something. For this card, I knew I needed something that would embody all the different elements of a successful children's book. This is challenging, because those elements usually unfold throughout 32 pages, but I had to represent as many as possible in one image. I feel as though the result was pretty successful, as I attempted to show both animal and child characters, an event taking place, a location, a brighter color palette, while still keeping my stylistic approach to all these things. Hopefully a publisher will feel the same way! We shall see!
"The Best Dream," Gouache and Digital, 2012.
The back of both cards will be the same as my previous one:
(It's hard to see the edges on a white background, huh?)And in other news, They Draw and Cook is featuring my Superfood Salad on their jumbotron this week! They have been the kindest, most supportive people of my illustration career, and I can't explain enough how thankful I am to have fans in them!
That's all for now, but keep an eye on Square Carousel, because we are starting back up for the New Year!
adios
caitlin
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Happy New Year!
Hi all!
Just a very, very quick post to let you know I've survived the holiday season and haven't forgotten about you!
Just before Christmas, Seo and I completed our collaboration piece for Square Carousel. I really, really love how it turned out. It's so much fun to see how my work can transform by the hands of another artist. Check out the website to read more about our process and thoughts on the final piece!
"Relationships," Mixed media, 2011 ©Caitlin B. Alexander and Seo Kim
I'll have more news to share soon.
adios,
caitlin
Just a very, very quick post to let you know I've survived the holiday season and haven't forgotten about you!
Just before Christmas, Seo and I completed our collaboration piece for Square Carousel. I really, really love how it turned out. It's so much fun to see how my work can transform by the hands of another artist. Check out the website to read more about our process and thoughts on the final piece!
"Relationships," Mixed media, 2011 ©Caitlin B. Alexander and Seo Kim
I'll have more news to share soon.
adios,
caitlin
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