experimenting with gouache and digital

good old school illustration techniques mixed with some digital. I started  using gouache again a few months ago for the first time after many years, it feels very relaxing:)

Some of the images that were airing at CTN 2017 this year

ROBIN HOOD project

I've worked on a personal take on the Robin Hood characters for a Kickstarter book project (Masters of Anatomy).
Here are a selection of concepts created before getting to the final designs for the book. They show a bit of my process when trying to nail the character for the story I have to tell. When I started I was looking for an interesting twist to it within the given limitations. Not an easy thing to achieve as it has been seen so many times. The moment I found my angle I worked out character personalities and ultimately the style I thought was appropriate for the tone. It has been a fun exercise considering the small scale of the project,  and I like some of the characters that came out of it.

NEW: character Sketches from a project I worked on

for a book that got financed through kickstarter: Character Design Masterclass
I did many different designs for these characters before landing somewhere I was happy about.
The big guy is the one is going to be in the book in full color.
I had lots of fun on this project and I'm looking forward to see what other designers did!

The 3 wise monkeys print

I'm taking part to a small collective art exhibition here in Vancouver with this print. It was great fun working on it:)
Just mail me if you would like to get a copy. There are also other colors available and it is printed on heavy watercolor paper.
more illustrations coming!

KICKSTARTER project! CHARACTER DESIGN MASTERCLASS with Masters of Anatomy starting NOVEMBER 17TH

I'll be part of this supercool book together with 130 artists. Some of them being my favorite designers in the industry. Its a massive volume with more than 1000 original character designs.  So Exciting! All the artists are designing characters for a great classic story: Robin Hood.
It's a great artbook to have for those who love character design. Check all the project's details here on the Masters of Anatomy website. The Kickstarter will take off on November 17th

Character design process: observational sketches

Another precious practice to help designing interesting characters is sketching from life. Lately I had the chance to do it more often and I love it:) And when I don't have the time to do much I try to squeeze in at least one drawing a day. It takes just a few minutes and it is an excellent habit.

A little video sample of part of my design process

This is just one way I like to go sometimes to find my characters. It's a great way to find fresh ideas. It helps me to avoid falling in my design habits. I draw a scribble on the page, or ask somebody else to do it, and then I look for interesting character shapes in it.
I find this technique a great exercise to do and lots of fun to practice.
I will use then these concept drawings as a start for further  exploration of the character.

The Book Of Life is among the contenders for the Oscar 2015 as best animated feature :D!

Really enjoyed working on the designs of Director Jorge Gutierrez and Sandra Equihua for their beautiful and bold film. Here are some samples from the art-book.

quick sketch

posing for a picture.

playing around with an oldie

I played around with an old design and pushed it a bit more. I like to to through this kind of process to find a character :)

here is the older take:

first post of 2014!

since I got such a nice response for the Templar knights I'm showing around for my sketchbook project, I figured I'd start the new year with a bonus knight.

HAPPY 2014 and may all your knights be merry!

inktober

pencils and paper

a little break from digital production work:)

"Ronald Searle in America" exibition . My contribution to the fundraising

Story artist Matt Jones ( http://mattjonezanimation.blogspot.it/ ) is organizing an exhibition in San Francisco on the work of Ronald Searle in America. Matt has maintained a Searle "tribute" blog since 2006( http://ronaldsearle.blogspot.it/ ), which is an extremely rich source of information and inspiration for every Searle's art lover.
Now,  most of the pieces that he is gathering for the upcoming exhibition are unseen and It will be the first time that Ronald's work  will get exposed in California!

I feel very honored to be in the group of artists that was asked to contribute with one piece to the fundraising that will help out the organization of the exhibition, which is truly a labor of love.
This is my tribute to Ronald Searle's crazy St. Trinian's characters:) . It's ink and pen on heavy weight vellum.
and it was lots of fun to work on this. Thanks Matt!!

If you want to know more about this great initiative check out the blog! There are soo many great artists that are helping out! Great contributions!
http://ronaldsearleinamerica.blogspot.it/

Templari for my sketchbook project

These are from a while back and are part of a sketchbook I'm hoping to complete within the end of the year. I feel very lucky being working on some great film projects these days, but at the same time I'm always dreaming of completing my own personal project too. Fingers crossed!

owl doodles

I played around with some owl sketches today

sgancia i dindi gringo

some healthy spaghetti cowboy fun!

laallalalaaaaalllaaaaaarghaaallala..!

another sketch from a scribble for Cup o' doodle
I told to myself not to draw pirates for a while but this one just sneaked in

Pin-ups

I have many projects in the works and I use Instagram/Twitter to send the WIPs out to friends to get their reactions and feedback. I figured I posted the pics here too. I like the format and it will be nice to see the differences between these versions and the final ones:)