This spring I was delighted to travel east to speak and visit at RISD and lead one of my stop-motion workshops at the Society of Illustrators.

Molly Walsh is the student who spearheaded my visit to RISD, she is a student with excellent drive that will lead her to amazing places.

RISD holds a dear spot in my heart, as I spent a semester there in 1995 as part of the Mobility Program where students in a network of private art schools can attend another school for a semester to take classes that their home school doesn’t offer. If you are a student you should inquire about it, it is/was a vastly untapped resource.

Anyways, I went to RISD to study scientific illustration, I spent practically all semester in the nature lab and spent my nights in the basement of some building at Brown Unv. drawing cadavers that the med students studied during the day.

I also was fortunate to take a watercolor class with the amazing Thomas Sqouros who sadly passed away in 2012.

After a semester I discovered that scientific illustration wasn’t exactly the right fit for me and I credit  Jean Blackburn for sitting down with me and telling me that I had a drive that needed to explore other realms of illustration and image making.

So needless to say I was delighted to visit with the classes of Jean Blackburn, Judy Sue Goodwin-Sturges, Ellen Weinstein, and my good friend Chris Buzelli.

I explored the Nature Lab all over again

and enjoyed a coffee at Carr House with SooJin Buzelli and Sota.

I then took the train to NYC and visited with the fine folks at Schwartz & Wade to talk about PR for the upcoming book The Beginner’s Guide to Running Away From Home.

I was able to pick up a copy of the April 22, 2013 issue of The New Yorker at a stand on Broadway to see my series of spots in it. Just a little thing, but was a pretty cool experience for this farm boy.

That evening I had a chance to sit down and chat with Sam Weber as part of his audio side project Your Dreams My Nightmares. I enjoy listening to his interviews (although I wasn’t able to listen past 10 minutes of my own). If you are not familiar with the podcasts, you should check them out. My interview is here.

this was my view overlooking Roosevelt Island

Next on the agenda was the main event at the Society of Illustrators. 4 hours of slap dash full throttle stop motion animation.

It was a packed house with 22 participants. Everyone was randomly paired with a partner, each pair was assigned a puppet and a prop or two. I gave a 30 minute demo and then set them loose. I am always amazed at how everyone just jumps in and goes at it.

Its a very small stage and folks have to practically work on top of one another and it soon becomes a large collaboration with several puppets and animators working simultaneously and taking every imaginable risk with the animation. 

I absolutely love this shot with all the hands on stage.

We did have a rogue pair that took to setting up their own scene complete with handmade iphone tripods. It almost appears to be a stereo-optic animation in the making.

All in all, they ended up with roughly 20 seconds of motion. Not too shabby for 4 hours:

and here is the result of the iphone breakout session. Credit to Wonil Suh:

Thanks to Molly and her cohorts at RISD and a very special thanks to Anelle, Johnny, Kate and Katie for allowing me to take over the Society of Illustrators for an afternoon.

Recently my representative, Magnet Reps, featured an overview of my work in their artist spotlight section of the Magnet Reps site. You can read up a bit HERE on what makes me tick if you like.

Thanks to Magnet Reps for a delightful 11 years, looking forward to the next 11. I don’t think any of us expected Red Nose Studio to have this broad of a reach, although our guts had a ‘feeling’ way back then.

Here is to trusting your gut!

Announcing my little contribution to the ICON7 Illustration Conference in Providence RI June 13-16 2012.

I have offered up Neven and his pet moth ’7′ as one of the raffle prizes to those who register for the conference. Hoping to help encourage folks who are on the fence about registering or not. The end date for eligibility to win Neven is end of day March 11th. You can find out more about registration here.

I have attended the conferences 2, 4, and 6. You can read about my attendee interview here .

After attending ICON6 I reviewed the conference and compared it to the previous conferences I attended. You can read that review on the Cincinnati Illustrators Blog.

Meet Neven (photos below). Resting upon his shoulder is his pet moth “7”, who is fashioned from a Speedball B-5 nib. Together they make perfect companions for ICON7. Ever dapper in his paisely suit, Neven is valued at $2100.

Go to it. You will like it, trust me, I am betting a puppet on it!

i am delighted to share this little Q&A for HOW.
you can link to it here.

thanks to Jessica at HOW for the opportunity.

if you were ever curious as to my preferred mode of transportation, the good folks at Good Spark Garage have put together a cool video along with stills from my dusty studio and my equally dusty motorbike. you can see their post here.

Corey and Casey aka the Wilkinson Brothers aka Good Spark Garage are two of the hardest working designers i know. I had the pleasure of meeting them over 7 years ago. it is rare that you meet folks with an equal passion for design, illustration and motorcycling in these parts. good stuff.

this month’s (August) issue of Indianapolis Monthly has a little write up on my studio and the recent covers i have done for the Indianapolis based Angie’s List Magazine.

thanks to the folks at Angie’s List and Indianapolis Monthly, its nice to get a little recognition in the neighborhood.

just a little note about a short Q&A in the Insights section of commarts.com called drawing-subconciously
where i talk about a cherished drawing i did as a child, looking up words in a thesaurus to stir-up ideas and why there’s nothing wrong with taking on a “real job� to support your work.
like i know what i am talking about…

a detail of the drawing of a buffalo when i was 6 that i mention in the Q&A

well, its OFFICIAL. my illustration has been featured in the Sept-Oct 2008/ Interactive Annual 14 issue of CA. never thought it would happen but something i have always aspired to. dont know what else to say…
the writer Matthew Porter was a delight to have around for couple days, i am not much of a people person but he knows how to get you talking and knows how to make me seem like maybe, just maybe i know what i am doing…
thanks CA and thanks Mr. Porter.

and thanks to my representative Magnet Reps for their continual support and belief in my work (even when few others did) They truly help me continue to do what i love.

for those who would like to see the animations featured in the articles in their entirety, you can link to them here:
The Red Thread Project

Innards

I was amused this fall when Sherri Cullison of the new Stretching Canvas magazine asked to write a bit on red nose studio and peak into my little world.

below is the announcement sent out from the publishers of Stretching Canvas:

For the latest on lowbrow, pop-surrealist and outsider art …

Stretching Canvas, brought to you by the Pfouts house and the people who happily bring you International Tattoo Art magazine, is now on your local magazine stands. If you want to check it out, head to your Wal-Mart or your favorite bookstore. Take a gander, spread the word, we appreciate it … and, as always, we thank you.

For a preview head to StretchingCanvas

there will be a little audio interview on the local NPR station WFYI 90.1fm here in Indianapolis.
the program is called The Art of the Matter. Hosts Sharon Gamble, Matt Socey and Travis DiNicola, joined by an array of fascinating guests, examine the cultural community from the perspective of who, what, when and where, while exploring the broader effects the arts have on our lives.

we talk about the See-Saw installation and a bit about The Look Book.
time and date:
the program will air and stream on Saturday Dec 8th at 4pm EST