ERIC MERCED

My name is Eric Merced. I'm an Illustrator and Comic Book Artist based in Worcester MA. (as we pronounce it around here: Woos'ta) . I've been illustrating and drawing comics for a few years now and I cannot think of a better job then this one.


http://www.ericmerced.com




When did you first decide to become an illustrator? Was there a pivotal moment?

I've been into comics, I would say, all my life. That's basically my main thing. But a good friend of mines who happens to be an awesome illustrator just kept pushing me in that direction. I guess, you can say, he saw the potential of going beyond comics into another field. It's been just recently where I've decided to take him at his word and I've been shaping my style into a more illustrative friendly look versus the comic book look. What has resulted, I think, is a combination of both. A very stylized look that fits easily into both fields.





Who or what inspires you?

I have a lot of artists whose work I like. Both in Comics and Illustration. But Drew Pocza, Sherwin Shwartzrock, Von Glitschka, Jerry Shamblin, those guys are the ones that come out on top when I think of illustration. Comics, two guys are responsible for shaping my art hands down. Mike Mignola and Arthur Adams. Those guys were ahead of their time.



Where does your training come from? Self-taught? College/Art School?

I am self-taught, with helping hands along the way of course. When I started Adobe Illustrator I must have hackled Drew Pocza to death with my questions. But as far as drawing, that's all self taught from books and studying and constant practice.








How do you keep "fresh" within your industry?

That's one of the hardest parts I guess. I mean, you can do something and get so accustomed to it that you become stale. In other words, there is no growth. I had a point in my career where I got that way and it felt depressing. I felt I wasn't really getting anywhere. So a part of remaining fresh is doing what I love. Not trying to be like anyone else, or draw or illustrate like anyone else. Just basically doing what I love, how I love to do it. I love cartoons. In fact, I started drawing because of Disney cartoons. So, I try to bring that to my illustrations. I used to take jobs that required me to draw realistic. How did that make me feel? Depressed. So now if someone calls and says, I need this photorealistic drawing, I say, sorry, thanks for contacting me but unfortunately I'm not your man. LOL. It's a hard thing to do when you're pressed for money but, why do something that's going to get you down in the end? I know tons of illustrators who can go back and forth. But I have decided that's not me.



What are some of your current projects?

I have found love in doing work for charities. There's no actual pay in it. You do it for free. You do it because it's an opportunity to do something helpful with your art. So I just wrapped up two sketch card sets for March of Dimes. One based on Archie comics characters and the other on the old Greatest American Hero TV series. Those were just so much fun to do and so fulfilling.

Along side of that, I'm just wrapping up a children's comic book for a small publisher, and I have a huge job to illustrate a huge project, and another project to illustrate for a DVD documentary which, unfortunately, I'm not allowed to talk about any of them. Isn't that wonderful how that works? LOL. I get these jobs and I'm told "don't say anything. Keep it a secret!". So I'm bursting inside to open my mouth and yell it out by I can't LOL. And apart from those the usual jobs that come by.







Which of your projects are you the most proud of? And why?

I love all of the projects I've had the wonderful opportunities to work on. I mean, what better job then doing what you love and getting paid to do so. But as far as pride, I guess it would have to be the charity work. I mean, I love to get a call back or an email from a client who's grateful and happy for the job I've turned in. And that's fulfilling in it's own sense because as an illustrator you're main job is to bring the clients vision in and make it alive, give it flesh basically. So when a client is thankful I know I've done my job. But the charity work is something you're doing for little ones, to be specific the March of Dimes charity work, who can't really do anything for themselves. It's fulfilling to know that your work, your art, is being put to good use to help the needy. That is an awesome and rewarding feeling.





Are there any areas, techniques, mediums, projects in your field that you have yet to try?

I like oil painting. And digital painting. Never tried oil painting. I have tried digital painting and, so far, I have failed at it. But I admire digital and traditional painters. That's an area I would love to expand and get good at some day.




Any advice to the novice illustrator?

Advice. Let's see. What can I say. I think the most important thing is truthfulness. Being true to yourself. Going out there and doing what you like as opposed to becoming a mold or stamp or carbon copy. Being true to yourself will bring you fulfillment. Take for example Von Glitschka's work. This guy is unique. Different. Why? Because he's true to himself and his art. And that has caught on. And when you're true to yourself and you try your best, the world takes notice.
Another thing is practice. You really need to put in time to grow and expand your skills. Experiment with it. Don't settle for less. Challenge yourself and don't be lazy.




What makes a designed piece or illustration successful?

As a professional visual artist, whether you're an illustrator, designer, or even a comic book artist, your job is to communicate, visually, a given idea or ideas. When you're hired by someone to communicate an idea, you're hired to flesh that idea out. To give it form, shape, life if you will. That illustration, design, piece of art or what have you, has to clearly communicate that given idea. If it doesn't, you've failed. If it does, you've succeeded. A successful illustration then communicates, in a clear format, an idea that most everyone can understand at first glance. That idea can be geared towards a specific audience or group of people. If the illustration manages to "talk" to that group, then you've succeeded. But take my word for it, it's much easier to describe what makes a successful illustration or design then to actually do one! LOL.





What do you do to keep yourself motivated and avoid burn-out?

I had a project, a graphic novel to be exact, that was very long. The longest body of work I have ever done in comics so far. In the middle of the project I started to get burnt-out. It was horrible. I wanted so much to work at full force but I couldn't. I did finish the project, thankfully. But I learned a huge lesson from that. And it comes back to my early comment about being true to yourself and doing what you love, and how you love to do it. So I keep myself motivated by not taking on projects that I know off hand will burn me out. Also, looking at other artist's work. I have a Deviant Art account and, man, I'll tell you, that place is an attraction for some wicked crazy artists. I look at their work and instantly I'm motivated to do more. To push myself. It's a humbling experience because you get the rude awakening that, you're not as good as you'd like to think you are and you have a lot of room for growth.




Finish this sentence. "If I weren't an illustrator I would have been a..."

Photographer. Or maybe a detective. Or a Navy Seal. LOL




And finally, what is the best thing on prime-time TV right now?

Prime-time TV You're going to look at me like I'm an Alien for saying this, but I don't watch prime-time TV. It's true. I don't have time for, well, for that kind of stuff. I know everyone raves about Lost, but I don't get into that kind of stuff. I do however enjoy watching movies. Either at the theaters or on DVD. That's my entertainment. That, music, and comics. But not many comics. Just a small handful.

And this is the part where I lift my hand up, part my fingers in the middle and say, Live long and prosper! LOL

Labels: Eric Merced

posted by Jeff @ 5:00 PM 2 comments links to this post

BRIAN BRASHER

I'm an illustrator, designer, pixel pusher, quasi-typographer, and all-around mostly nice guy from sunny Alabama. I've reached the glorious zenith of having some totally ludicrous selection of artwork decorate thousands of t-shirts, a tidy sum going into my coffer for a minimal amount of totally enjoyable work. I've plumbed the lowest abyss of having to rearrange the contents of a full-page automobile dealership newspaper advert so that instead of 25 new cars and 150 used cars the ad would have 15 new cars and 225 used cars ... per the car dealer's after-hours demands ... with only minutes until press time. I've lost count of how many UI icons I've created over the last few years, but it's safe to say that it's somewhere in the thousands. My career has been - and will probably remain - all over the graphics map, but I think I like it best that way.


portfolio: http://etherbrian.org/
blog: http://etherbrian.tumblr.com/
Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/etherbrian/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/etherbrian
Alamofire: http://alamofire.com/


When did you first decide to become a graphic designer/ illustrator? Was there a pivotal moment?

I enrolled in college with no clear direction in mind, only a fuzzy vision of the El Dorado that would be my lifestyle as a rich and famous artist. My high school art teacher was a highly-educated and passionate lover of classic art, and she regularly chided me for creating art that was "too stylized". But in college I sat under the tutelage of a lively and expressive German lady whose father, besides hiding Jews from the Nazis, was an expressionist artist of no small importance. It was she who introduced me to the high graphic arts, and I never looked back (nor did I take any oil painting courses).




Who or what inspires you?

Pre-internet loves: Albrecht Durer, Gustave Dore, Hieronymus Bosch, Jan Van Eyck, Jack Kirby, John Buscema, Sal Buscema, John Severin. These days, with bajillions of jaw-droppingly talented artists hanging their artworks all over the cyberwalls, there are too many inspirational people to keep track of: Cartoonists, photorealist painters, urbanseque designers, pixel pushers, etc, etc. Also: Film noir, googie, arabesque pattern work, populuxe, psychedelia, funk, soul, retro tech pixel graphics, Chuck Jones, and Tex Avery.





Where does your training come from? Self-taught? College/Art School?

Desktop publishing was only just beginning to make inroads into college courses when I was a student (the three Macintoshes at school weren't nearly as powerful as those which I was using at my part-time job in the art department of a newspaper). I would say that I was self-taught, but I don't think I set out to actually teach myself anything. It's more accurate to say that I was in the right place at the right time and that a little curiosity on my part caused a lot of what I needed to know to topple over and fall on top of me. I had little to no internet access then. If I had, perhaps today I'd be Art King of The Universe! *cough* Ahem.





How do you keep "fresh" within your industry?

I don't keep fresh at all. If by "fresh" you mean staying on top of illustration and design trends, I don't really play that game. Good or bad, right or wrong, for richer or for poorer I do things the way I like. As Mr. Sinatra sang, I do it my way. I'd likely be much more successful if I jumped onto whatever trendy bandwagon happened to be parading down Main Street, but I'd be squirming miserably with every pen stroke or mouse click. Don't get me wrong, there's usually genuinely beautiful work to be found amongst all the trendy stuff, but too many people are sacrificing their originality only to ape the latest trend. And they end up being indistinguishable from the art/design masses. If, on the other hand, by "fresh" you meant being up-to-date on tools and technology, I do so as the money allows. My motives, however, aren't noble or industrious. Tech is a toy to me, and every boy needs toys!





What are some of your current projects?

I've been with Alamofire for the last two years (and was with it two years prior when it was called Firewheel Design). I've created a beaucoup of artwork for Alamofire's Facebook-based game PackRat and am currently generating tres beaucoup iconic items for a new location-based iPhone game by the name of Gowalla. For the last few months, when the sun goes down, I've been trasnforming pixels into cell phone UI's for a company in Oslo, Norway. On a lark I began throwing together various art elements recycled from rejected and abandoned projects into tshirt designs and have made a reappearance at Threadless. What can I say? It's a dice roll for some easy money. Speaking of shirts, I don't know why, but I don't like wearing the ones I've designed. Except, that is, this one. Go figure.





Which of your projects are you the most proud of? And why?

To be honest, I can't put my finger on just one, so will you indulge me if I detail a project of which, in contrast, I'm absolutely ashamed? I was asked by a newspaper to illustrate a penguin for use as a mascot in a free classified advertising scheme (I never figured out that bit about the free ads). Unfortunately, instead of just letting me illustrate the flightless bird in my own style, I was handed two pencil drawings of penguins and was told to create modelled vector renditions of both. One was by somebody in-house (who had more ego than talent and who nobody had the guts to tell to buzz off) and the other was by another freelance artist (who, I believe, was going to charge a lot more than me for the job and only got paid for the pencil drawing). I then had to take the "3D" penguin based on the freelancers sketch (though I was unable to escape the "pleasure" of having to deal with Mr. Ego) and I had create various versions of the penguin carrying/handling/fondling some some crap he wanted to unload via a free classified ad (I never figured out that bit about the free ads). I hated every illustration I created. Not because I didn't do my best but because they were hack work, and long and passionately have I hated hack work (most of which begins with a statement like, "I love your work. I need you to illustrate this like >INSERT SOME OTHER ARTIST'S NAME HERE<."). Little did I know that my hack work would be appearing everywhere. It was, of course, spread like a rash throughout copies of the newspaper, but it was also on posters and paper boxes and static clings and billboards. Anyplace they could find to tell the world about free classified advertising (I never figured out that bit about the free ads) there were those accursed penguins. Thanks for indulging me (and thanks for overlooking and the parethentical stuff)!





Are there any areas, techniques, mediums, projects in your field that you have yet to try?

I have a tablet but have yet to spend any quality time with it. Besides using it to mimic ink work, I'd like to try my hand at some digital painting, but if that will ever happen only the Shadow knows. I've pondered the notion of using an opaque projector to super-enlarge some of my drawings onto plywood. I would then trim the wood to the each drawing's edges and paint them. There are a few art galleries in town as well as an enormous annual show-and-sell in the park, and I think it would be keen to dabble in that world with my plywood pieces. Coming back down to earth, I'd like to revisit font creation. Just a few days ago I received an email asking permission to include a font of mine on a CD that will accompany a Japanese magazine. That's nice (and it's nice that they actually asked), but those fonts are old and horrible and I need to create something to cancel them out!




Any advice to the novice designer/ illustrator?

If I offered any advice it would be something disingenuous that I just made up. The planets aligned for me in my pre-ubiquitous-internet world, so my steps and missteps aren't very helpful to anyone not abiding in that time period. Anyway, with our economy in the achey breaky state that it's in, recipes for success that were fool-proof just six months ago may soon be nothing but fluffy pink daydreams about Way Back When. Am I a ray of hopeful sunshine or what? But seriously, improve your craft whenever and however you can. Even if you're a god among mere mortal artists, assume you're not and keep striving for perfection (most folks who assume they possess the godly attributes are usually and sadly far from having attained them).





What makes a designed piece or illustration successful?

Without getting all zen in my answer, if it enriches somebody, even just a single soul, then it's a success. How does one define success anyway? The client gladly pays a princely sum for it? It meets the approval of the Keepers of the Divine Design Flame Who Must Be Obeyed? It convinces dunderheads that if they don't purchase the product emblazoned with it they will go to their graves tragically unhip? I think most people reading this probably greatly appreciate the work of some person who operates (or operated ... R.I.P.) in relative obscurity. That the work makes a connection, that it touches you (be it design or illustration or film or literature or a blueberry pie or whatever) then it's a success.




What do you do to keep yourself motivated and avoid burn-out?
When I'm able, I divorce myself completely from my work. I get away from the tools that I use to work. I get away from things that even remotely remind me of work. That usually allows me to return to the task mightily refreshed. Also: Love it or hate it, employ it or avoid it, herald it as brilliant or blame it for the demise of Western Civilization, Twitter has been for me a silly yet fabulous little something to take the edge off things when the edge needs taking off.





Finish this sentence. "If I weren't a designer/illustrator I would have been a..."

Contender.





And finally, what is the best thing on prime-time TV right now?

It must be something on Japanese television that I've never seen because there's little I can stomach that appears on my American TV set. How do I love thee, Netflix? Let me count the 100,000+ ways!

Labels: Brian Brasher

posted by Jeff @ 11:42 PM 3 comments links to this post

ED HALL

Born in Jacksonville, Florida, Ed Hall received his B.D. in Graphic Design, and his M.F.A. in Painting from the University of Florida. While in college he did political cartoons and illustrations for The Florida Independent Alligator, UF's school newspaper. After college, Hall worked for several weekly publications in and around Jacksonville, and finally settled at The Baker County Press in Macclenny (just outside of Jacksonville) where he continues to work as the weekly cartoonist. He also does weekly cartoons for The Ponte Vedra Recorder and a monthly cartoon for The St. Johns county Business Ledger.
For the last 12 years, Ed has owned and operated Design Alternatives, a home-based residential design service. And for a few years, he was an adjunct professor of drawing at Flagler College in St. Augustine and at The University of North Florida, Jacksonville.
Ed's cartoons and political illustrations have been featured in The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, The Tallahassee Democrat, The New York Time's Scope Magazine and on CNN Headline News. Overseas, his cartoons have been featured in Eulenspiegel, Germany’s premiere humor magazine.
Over the last 12 years, Hall has won 9 Florida Press Awards, 3 Newsmaker Awards, and numerous fine art awards in national and international competitions. In 2003, Ed was presented the 53rd Annual Green Eyeshade Award for weekly cartoons by The Society of Professional Journalists. He has also won the Florida Press Club Award three times (2003 & 2006, 2008), competing with cartoonists from newspapers up to 75,000 in circulation.
In 2003 Ed was invited to join Artizans, a Canadian based syndicate. Through Artizans, Ed’s cartoons appear weekly in publications and newspapers across North America.
Hall's cartoons and figurative art work have been displayed regionally and nationally, most recently at the American University Museum in Washington DC, the Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania, the Fowler Gallery in Provincetown Massachusetts, and the Laredo Center for the Arts in Laredo Texas. He was also awarded a one-person show at the Reddi-arts Gallery in Jacksonville Florida. Other recent awards include best of show in Behind the Mask, Inside the Head a Jacksonville Coalition for the Visual Arts exhibition in 1997, and best of show for Figures of the Millenium, a St. Augustine Art Association show held in 1999.

In 2003, Hall published his first book of Political Cartoons entitled, Code Red – Editorial Cartoons by Ed Hall. His second collection entitled Diversions and other Political Observations was published in 2006. His cartoons are also consistently featured in Charles Brook's "Best Editorial Cartoons of the Year (2001 through 2009)."
Hall is a member of the Jacksonville Coalition for the Visual Arts, the Association of American Editorial Cartoonists, the Florida Press Association, and the Society of Professional Journalists. His work is also held in the permanent collection of the St. Augustine Art Association.

www.halltoons.com
www.halltoons.blogspot.com


When did you first decide to become a graphic designer/ illustrator? Was there a pivotal moment?

I had been in college for about 18 months, majoring in Architecture, but I was finding the calculus courses to be a little overwhelming. I had taken art classes all my life (both private and in high school) but had never really considered making it my vocation in life until that Summer. I can clearly remember dreading the phone call to my Dad to tell him that I was changing majors. But much to my surprise, he never batted an eye; he just said to do what I loved. I’ll always thank him for that. So the next semester I enrolled as a Graphic Design Major. Interestingly, I had to make a very similar telephone call my last semester in Graphic Design, to ask if it would be OK to stay in school and get my Masters Degree in Art. Once again, without hesitation my parents agreed that this would be best for me. I think that their belief that I could really make a living eventually with my art, helped me to believe in myself.





Who or what inspires you?

Everything inspires me. Movies, architecture, music, theater, ballet (well maybe not ballet). I studied the German Expressionist almost exclusively in college. Egon Schiele, Kokoschka, Gustav Klimt. Those guys were getting it done at a time when I would have liked to have been working. The raw energy of the Expressionists still fires me up to this day.






Where does your training come from? Self-taught? College/Art School?

I’ve always been able to draw anything that is set in front of me. My parents noticed it early on, and really pushed the art thing. Especially my mom. She was a huge influence on me becoming an artist. She would sit me down in the middle of the kitchen floor with a huge roll of butcher paper and just let me go nuts. I guess that was better than me drawing on the walls! Although, I have 6 years of higher education (Masters Degree) under my belt, I think you definitely learn more out of school than in. The University environment is WAY too political. I found this out when I was teaching studio art after college as well. The professors all have their own agenda, so anyone who comes in with the students in mind, (and the students begin to like) is immediately drummed out because they are seen as a threat. Kind of counterproductive huh? Check out Art School Confidential. They got it right.





How do you keep "fresh" within your industry?

I keep fresh by trying to stay involved in the local art community. I’m a member of The Jacksonville Coalition for The Visual Arts, and attend a figure drawing session every Sunday at the local community college. I enter shows whenever possible. I also try to seek out liked minded individuals and creative types. Attending gallery openings, concerts, etc. all opens up your mind to new ideas about art, and keeps you sharp.







What are some of your current projects?

I’m currently working on character development for a comic book/graphic novel that I want to publish. I’m assembling a team of writers and pencilers, and I plan on doing most of the inking and coloring myself. I also have my syndicate cartoons, and political illustrations that I do every week. Those keep me pretty busy.







Which of your projects are you the most proud of? And why?

I like the covers that I’ve done for The Washington Post. They’ve allowed me to use both my cartooning skills and my figurative background to produce some pretty eye-catching illustrations.





Are there any areas, techniques, mediums, projects in your field that you have yet to try?

I’m intrigued by tattoo art. The fact that it incorporates the human body on a very physical level - ink on skin. I think it would be cool to re-think this medium in a whole new way - like with a full-sized figure tattooed onto a full-sized figure.






Any advice to the novice designer/ illustrator?

Don’t worry about sending too much stuff to an editor or art director. It’s their job to sort through stuff. They’re used to it. I used to fret over pissing off editors by sending them tons of cartoons until one of my editorial cartooning buddies gave me this piece of advice. And you know what? It worked. I kept sending and within a year I got a job with the publication I was soliciting - The Washington Post.

Oh, and draw all of the time, even in your sleep. Keep a sketchbook active at all times, and look for the beautiful mistakes in there - those are the things that can be magic.






What makes a designed piece or illustration successful?

The single most important thing (and the thing most usually ignored) is composition, and the play of positive AND negative space. It is what starts the drawing out on it’s course, and if it is not considered at the beginning, the illustration is doomed.






What do you do to keep yourself motivated and avoid burn-out?

Draw from life - a lot. I find that keeping busy, be it sketching from the live figure on Sundays, or studying the structure of the skeleton I have in my studio, helps to rejuvenate me.






Finish this sentence. "If I weren't a designer/illustrator I would have been a..."

Professional surfer - the wave kind, not the internet kind.





And finally, what is the best thing on prime-time TV right now?

Without a doubt, it’s got to be Rescue Me. It’s gritty, it takes chances, the characters are believable, and, having friends and family roots within the Jacksonville Fire Department, I know these guys know firefighting. It’s also politically incorrect, which I absolutely love.

Labels: Ed Hall

posted by Jeff @ 5:00 PM 0 comments links to this post