DRAW LOVING DRAW

A Different Kind of War Horse

2012-02-15T11:36:00.000-05:00

Second assignment for my poster class. This time it's a gig poster for one of my favorite bands, Good Old War. The show is March 9th @ Vinyl in Atlanta, GA so if you get a chance or if they're playing another date in your area, definitely go check them out! Enjoy.

Sneaky Peeks

2012-02-11T10:30:00.000-05:00

This quarter is turning out to be pretty intense! Which explains my absence lately. Lots of cool things coming up so stay tuned! In the mean time, here's a sneak peek of some stuff I've been working on.

"There's a lot of attitudes going on around here... don't let me get one."

2012-01-25T11:30:00.000-05:00

I love Wes Anderson movies. I also love books by Roald Dahl. Put these two things together and you get the movie Fantastic Mr. Fox. So what the cuss; here is my poster for the aforementioned movie. Enjoy!

Sketchbook Smetchbook

2012-01-23T11:50:00.000-05:00

Hey gang- here's some more sketches! Enjoy.

Aren't you a SITE for sore eyes?!

2012-01-16T11:05:00.000-05:00

Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day everyone! If, somehow, civil rights and a day off from work or school aren't already enough reason to celebrate….I have some great news! Today's the day I'm launching my real life, totally professional portfolio website! Head on over to brandonloving.com and check it out for yourself. You might as well tell everyone you know while you're at it. Then, since you're just sitting around the house anyway, come on back and let me know what you think.

Neglect The New Year

2012-01-12T17:50:00.000-05:00

Please forgive my absence on here lately! Honestly I was a little less than productive during the holidays due to the welcome distraction of family and friends and a two day battle with the flu. I'm back now and will hopefully be sharing some of the things I've been working on in the near future. Until then, here's a few pages from my sketchbook I thought I'd share. Consider it a little snack until it's time for the good stuff! Enjoy.

Hurray! The first self portrait of 2012! I swear I'm not narcistic- it just so happens that I'm always available to model whenever I need to draw from life or take references!

"…Here to stay, is the BLUEBIRD"

2011-12-20T10:04:00.000-05:00

Merry Christmas everyone! Hope you're enjoying the holidays. For those of you who haven't seen it already, here's the Christmas card I made this year repurposed as a gif. Please feel free to share/ reblog this and spread the joy! Just make sure you give credit where credit is due and to include a link back to this post or I will hunt you down like the sticky bandit you are and go all Kevin McCallister on your behind! Enjoy!

A Hairy Situation

2011-11-19T10:00:00.000-05:00

David Bazan recently asked for fans to submit album cover designs for an upcoming split 7" single with Deerhoof. Unfortunately, my submission wasn't selected but I really liked the way it came out so I thought I'd share.

Edit 11/28/11: This image is now available as a print and other items @ Society6! Just in time for Cyber Monday!! Soooo affordable!

Mountain Brew

2011-11-07T10:00:00.000-05:00

In my Advertising class we had to do a package redesign. We could choose any product we wanted for this assignment and I thought to myself, "It's gotta be beer". Specifically, Bell's Expedition Stout. In my opinion, Bell's current packaging doesn't quite capture the epic essence that the Expedition name demands. If you're familiar with this beer at all I'm sure you know what I mean. When I think of the word "expedition" I think of trekking to highest, farthest corners of the earth and all the obstacles you would have to overcome in between. Bell's Expedition Stout boasts a unique and complex flavor and so I wanted this beer to have the same elite status of an explorer who's conquered Everest. Therefore it was important for me to make sure my redesign captured that spirit of adventure that has been missing from the Kalamazoo-based brew all this time. So without further ado, here's what I came up with!

Hey Sailor!

2011-11-01T19:16:00.000-04:00

Direct painting assignment for my Electronic Illustration class. I thought it'd be fun to show the screenshots of the process/progress (or rather MY process) as I went along. This was only my second attempt at direct painting (painting entirely in Photoshop) and I was pleasantly surprised at how much I actually enjoyed it. It's a little bit of a departure from how I've been working lately but it was nice to actually paint again....even though there was no actual paint involved! Enjoy.

First, side-by-side of the reference and sketch.

Then, some the under painting and blocking in shapes....

Then, building up the values.....almost done.....

And BOOM! Done! Pretty rugged right?!

Land Beyond The Sea

2011-10-26T02:37:00.002-04:00

Fun little project for my Ad Ill class. We were given the task of designing an album cover for Matty Charles and the Valentines. We had complete creative freedom but were asked to create something that reflected the feel of the music. It seems that between this project, the "Show Me" poster and taking Poster design next quarter, my portfolio might end up being a little hand-letter-heavy. So get used to seeing more text!

Show Me Some Love

2011-10-20T11:07:00.001-04:00

Another project from my Electronic Illustration class. I think I must be a little homesick. Savannah can be a stressful place to live! As always, head on over to Society6 for high quality giclée prints, iPhone cases and more. Enjoy!

p.s. Thanks Matt for the help on the lettering!

After Hours Athlete

2011-10-06T11:30:00.000-04:00

Project for Advertising with Ryan Sanchez. The assignment was a print ad for Puma's Puma Social campaign and their After Hours Athlete Collection which is meant to appeal towards a twenty-something demographic. I tossed around a few ideas before eventually arriving to the one you see below. One of Puma's slogans for this campaign is "Here's to the After Hours Athlete". It celebrates the everyman and focuses on people with an active nightlife. In the same spirit, I wanted to elevate the everyman to Major League status. So I designed a series of trading cards adorned by fictional, professional darts, bowling and ping pong players. Since the dimensions for this project were essentially square and trading cards are traditionally rectangles, I needed a way to place these cards on the page. That's when it hit me. What better place for trading cards than the spokes of a bicycle? Below are the trading cards and then the final piece without all the Puma advertising. Enjoy and as always check out Society6.com!

Jaws vs. Jaws

2011-09-30T15:55:00.000-04:00

Hey gang! Please excuse my recent absence but SCAD is kind of a spare time black hole! Fall quarter has started up so hopefully if time allows I'll have more stuff to post. This is a project I just finished up for Electronic Illustration with John Foerster. It's a revamp of an older illustration I did for my friends over at Sharks Eat Meat. If you haven't seen the 007 flicks, Moonraker or The Spy Who Loved Me, then this might be little over your head. Don't sweat it, you're probably not missing anything!

I think I might throw this one up on Society6 in a couple of days, so make sure you check back! In the mean time enjoy!

Fiddy/Fiddy

2011-09-02T11:46:00.000-04:00

Final project for my Editorial Illustration class. This time the article was a Sports Illustrated article about the NFL lockout. I wanted to try and stay away from cliche themes like corn-fed linebackers and corporate greed. Although I feel like the players may have gotten the short end of the stick, the article seemed to portray the agreement that was made between the players and owners in a positive light. Therefore my concept revolved around peace and the season of Fall, which can never arrive soon enough for football fans. Not my favorite illo, but I won't hesitate to say, I think the it's a strong concept (if I do say so myself).

p.s.- I've started a new page for self-promo on Facebook. I plan on using it for updates and promotions and have been thinking I might hold contests for giveaways and/or original artwork. It's called "Draw, Loving. Draw!". Head on over and give it "like"!

UnBEARable Debt

2011-08-31T08:00:00.000-04:00

Third project for my Editorial Illustration class. This time for an article from the July 25th issue of Time Magazine. The article was about the U.S. debt crisis and how Republicans were refusing to raise the debt ceiling as part of a "'moral' fight against government spending". This is what I came up with.

I had fun making this one. So much so, that I decided to remove it from the context of the article and make it available as a print. So I ditched the cheesy hat and the graffiti on the honey pot. It's amazing how a concept can change by making a just few tiny changes. Available NOW @ Society6!

The VIrgin Winehouse

2011-08-24T14:00:00.000-04:00

Another illo from my Editorial class. This time the article was from Rolling Stone magazine which talked about the life and death of Amy Winehouse. The article was was pretty neutral and didn't really focus on any of the negative things the tabloids portray. I decided that although her addictions were a significant part of her life/career, creating an image that focused only on that wouldn't be cohesive with the article. Since most of what I read was reactions from from fans to her death, I decided I would explore that aspect and comment on the tendency some cultures have to more or less worship celebrities.

I'm thinking about making this available as a print on Society6 but I'm worried it's too soon and I don't wouldn't want to do anything that might exploit her death. What do you guys think? Am I being too sensitive? Drop me a line!

Lux-Venture / Advent-Ury!!!

2011-08-17T11:00:00.000-04:00

Currently I'm taking an Editorial Illustration course and learning a thing or two about concepts and creating more idea-driven illustrations. We were given a handful of articles from various sources and were asked to develop and execute illustrations to accompany each article.

This is the image I created for an article from the Feb. 2010 issue of Travel and Leisure. It was about a recent trend in which luxury hotels are building in more remote locations to appeal to more adventurous travelers. I decided to include the preliminary sketches to show the process behind it all and to kind of show my thought process.

The whole thing starts out with lists and word associations in order to get the ideas flowing. We then did random word pairing and were asked to create thumbnails based off those pairings.

Then more thumbnails....

....and comps....

....sketch.....

....And then the final piece. The sketch wasn't working for me so I decided to revisit the composition and take better references.

6 and Stones May Break My Bones...

2011-08-13T12:15:00.006-04:00

Hey gang! What's new with you? Me? Well, funny you should ask. I now have art prints, iPhone cases, Laptop/ iPad skins and t-shirts & hoodies available for purchase at Society6! If you pay any attention to the stuff I make and have dreamed about owning something but were too shy to ask, here's your chance to make those dreams come true! Head on over and spend a little of that allowance money- you deserve it.

Here's something else new! My wife and I have two boston terriers whom we love. You can probably image how thrilled she was when I made a boston terrier skull and crossbones. Available now @ Society6. Tell everyone you know!

I'm a Wreck!

2011-08-01T10:00:00.010-04:00

Surprise! I have some more new stuff for you. It's been a little a shy of a year since my rumble with a sedan while riding my bike. I'm so thankful that although the car that hit me was pretty much totaled, the driver wasn't hurt, and I managed to stumble away with nothing more than a few cuts and bruises, a fractured humerus and a dislocated shoulder. So, in celebration of close calls and careless cyclists I did a set of three illustrations for my Materials and Techniques II class.

If you haven't already noticed from my previous post, I've been experimenting a little with new ways of working, and I'm kinda liking the direction things are heading. I've worked digitally before but it's been a while and until now I've never really considered making it a regular thing or developing this technique any further. Funny how things change! Anyway, take a look for yourself. Let me know what you think!

Edit: Prints, iPhone cases and laptop skins are now available at Society6! Get yours today @ http://society6.com/brandonloving!

Mess With the Wolf and You Get the Lasers!

2011-07-27T12:30:00.003-04:00

I don't know if you remember or not but few a weeks ago I promised some "face-melting" posters... and here they finally are! Some friends of mine are in a band called Lazer Wolf, or is it Laser Wolf? Maybe it's Layzer Wulf... I'm not sure. The only thing I do know is that I couldn't pass up making a poster with a name like that! Even if I wasn't really asked to.

You may or may not know this but Lazar Wolf is actually character in Fiddler on the Roof and I think if you scroll down it's pretty obvious where the inspiration for these came from..... Hands down, my favorite musical. It's like a scene right out of the play/movie- so action-packed!

"Very good. That way the whole world will be blind and toothless"

Every Dog Has Its Day

2011-07-11T11:07:00.001-04:00

Some more pages from the ol' sketchbook. This week's theme.....dogs. Stay tuned for some face-melting posters I've been working on!

Go Fourth....

2011-07-04T11:00:00.017-04:00

....And blow stuff up! Seriously though, safety first- No one likes an arsonist.

Mono en Mono

2011-06-26T10:59:00.000-04:00

I've been working a lot in my sketchbook recently so I decided to share a few pages with everyone. It's been nice to just fool around and work on personal stuff these past few weeks. I didn't notice it until I scanned these but apparently I've been interested in hands lately. Who knew? At any rate, Summer quarter starts up tomorrow. Looking forward to really nailing down this illustration thing. Maybe I'll learn me a thing or two!

Cirque du Fin

2011-06-11T12:45:00.000-04:00

...And the gang's all here! That about sums it up. Thanks for hanging in there.

Cirque du Six

2011-06-10T12:45:00.001-04:00

....The trapeze artist. My personal favorite of the six.

Cirque du Cinq

2011-06-09T11:45:00.001-04:00

....The fire breather. My instructor kept calling him Rambo..... so that's kinda ruined.

Cirque du Quatre

2011-06-08T11:45:00.003-04:00

....The lion tamer.

Cirque du Trois

2011-06-07T11:45:00.003-04:00

....The contortionist.

Cirque du Deux

2011-06-06T11:46:00.001-04:00

Ladies and gents.... behold the amazing, juggling clown! FYI, I hate clowns.

Cirque du Zombeil

2011-06-05T11:22:00.000-04:00

Finally it's all over! This term was nuts, man! Almost started to hate illustration there for a sec...almost. I'm definitely looking forward to this three week break. Then it's back to the grinding stone for Summer courses. Anyway, here's a project from my Intro to Illo class where we had to design six circus characters. I think eventually, I might throw them in an environment. In the mean time, just to be annoying I'm going to show them one at a time.

Here's the ringleader!

Dunna-nunna-nunna-nunna-dunna-nunna-nunna-nunna....

2011-03-30T01:34:00.007-04:00

The other piece I had on display @ the DeSoto Row Gallery.

Ad-Ven-Ture. ADVENTURE!

2011-03-25T15:39:00.002-04:00

One of my classes last quarter had work on display at the DeSoto Row Gallery a few weeks ago and this was one of the pieces I showed. It's basically just a narrative on some of the adventures some friends and I like going on whenever I'm in Missouri. I'm reposting some images I had up a two posts back. They're basically just roughs and preliminary sketches but I thought it would be nice to see them in context, next to the finished piece.

Here's to mischievous behavior ladies and gents!

Bless This Mess

2011-02-08T17:55:00.003-05:00

As always I'm a little late in the game but it turns out there's this website that makes t-shirts and you can win money if your design is chosen to be printed! Who knew, right? Thankfully, school is keeping me hip and one of my projects this quarter was to design a t-shirt for Threadless. Be a pal, and go vote for my design so I can score some cash!

Here's the design and a peek at the process!

The concept comes from a popular phrase and David Bazan song entitled "Bless This Mess". This is what I thought of as I repeated those words in my head. Now you have a brief glimpse of the horrors that go on up there!

"I'm a loner, Dottie. A rebel."

2010-12-17T17:04:00.001-05:00

Some Holiday-inspired arts and crafts coming in the very near future, but in the mean time here's a sketch. This is an ally cat we named Dottie. She was hanging around quite a bit and we were starting to consider taking her in, but it looks like someone else may have beat us to the punch. Either that or something bad happened. Who knows, maybe our terrifying dogs scared her away! Anyway, stay tuned for some Christmas carnage!

HAPPY TURKEY DAY!

2010-11-25T08:00:00.000-05:00

Sketchy

2010-11-21T17:58:00.006-05:00

Nothing profound to say. Just some sketches since I haven't posted anything in a couple of weeks!
Also check out my friends over at SharksEatMeat.com for a daily art fix and occasional works by yours truly!

CONAN!!!

2010-11-02T02:07:00.006-04:00

Monday November 8th marks the return of a legend to our television screens. It's been far too long since we've basked in the colossal comedy of this ginger gent. So in celebration of this momentous occasion, I bring you two tributes.

Ladies and gentlemen....I give you CONAN!

A little sketch and play off the Nike Bo Jackson ads back in the day....

And a warm greeting for a formerly fallen friend.... rise phoenix, rise!

Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins, Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas and Lisa "Left Hand" Lopes

2010-10-27T01:45:00.005-04:00

Since I'm starting to heal up, the sketchbook and I have been getting reacquainted. It's so nice to finally start drawing again! I thought it might be fun to share some pages (old and new) with you. Have a look.

First, some older sketches:

I decided to make lemons into lemonade on the next two. There's no better time to learn how to draw left handed than when you're right arm's in a sling!

And finally, a home-inspired drawing from the Drawing III class I took for 3 weeks. 18" x 24" drew until the pen ran out.

Something To Write Home About (Double Header)

2010-10-17T18:14:00.003-04:00

It's been a while since I've done one of these....So good news, I'm doing two! First up, is this little tribute for my good friend Luke. Not only did he give me a free ticket to a Royals game when I was home, but he got us hooked on a great little show called 'Sons of Anarchy' too! Now if that's not a BFF, I dunno what is. Thanks buddy!

Next up, is a package long over due. Several months after my little brother and sister's birthdays I finally sent them their birthday presents. Better late than never, right?! Anyway my lil' sis, Sarah likes the King so who better to adorn her mail? Sorry for the delay! Hope you like it!

It Ain't Over Til.....

2010-10-13T21:11:00.006-04:00

Here's some leftovers from my Life Drawing class last quarter. I've been getting a little more range in the movement of my arm so hopefully I'll have some new stuff in a month or so (or hopefully sooner)! That is, if the suspense doesn't kill you in the mean time.

Bon Appetit.

Same pose, different interpretation.

Fastest Guns In The SOUTH

2010-08-14T10:20:00.003-04:00

Hard to believe I'm almost done with my 3rd quarter already! Here's some things I've been doing in my Life Drawing class! Mostly things from my sketchbook but also a few longer poses from class.

Thanks for looking!

Dad Day Delivery

2010-06-20T22:02:00.003-04:00

Happy Father's Day to all those pops, grandpops and pops-in-laws out there! I threw something together last week and sent my step-dad a package to commemorate the occasion. (Hope he likes it)! We didn't always see eye to eye when I was growing up but there were some fun times too! And so it was the good times I tried to reflect on the envelope. We always had fun wrestling the old man to the ground.

Take a look!

And just for fun, here's one of my pal Miles.

Something To Write Home About 5

2010-06-16T02:52:00.007-04:00

My little sister, Kylie turned 15 recently so I thought to myself, "what are teenage girls into these days?" Turns out Justin Bieber is a pretty big deal and pretty popular with the teen and preteen girls. So, little sis, in celebration of the big 1-5, I'm pleased present to you your very own Bieber portrait and SCAD t-shirt (every girl's dream)!

Happy Birthday!

Stay tuned for more!

Something To Write Home About IV

2010-04-09T20:07:00.002-04:00

Today's blog is dedicated to aunts and uncles everywhere and especially to my Aunt Elaine. Aunts and uncles are great for many reasons. To quickly name a few: they let you get away with stuff your parents probably wouldn't, they teach you stuff you otherwise wouldn't care to know, they bail you out when you get into trouble and basically take you places that may or may not have ghosts. Well, at least mine did.

So in the recent tradition of sending lame gifts in significantly less lame, hand-decorated packages I give you these images. This is my aunt's recently departed lab Cleo. My aunt always wanted a painting of her but I never took the time to oblige. Unfortunately, this is barely a fraction of the painting Cleo deserves but I hope it serves its purpose for the time being!

Anyway, here it is....

Something To Write Home About III

2010-03-31T19:34:00.003-04:00

Alright, so this idea isn't quite catching on the way I had hoped; but it's fun anyway!! Here's one I did for my grandma for her b-day. It's from an old photo of my grandma and grandpa and I on the Viking Voyager at Worlds of Fun in KC, Missouri. Adorable, right?!

And just a little side note in case you're like me and think it's a good idea to send a ceramic mug (no matter how well you pack it) through USPS: Better get the insurance or use UPS/ FedEx! Oh well, at least she gets a great box out of it!

Check it out!

3-D!

Just in case someone decides to throw it around.

Off to the post office to meet its demise!

Something To Write Home About II

2010-03-02T20:46:00.008-05:00

Alright folks, here's round 2 of the illustrated envelope project. As we speak, thousands upon thousands of these little guys are finding new homes. If you too would like to adopt one of these adorable little envelopes here's how I think it's gonna work:

1. Email me @ blovingart@gmail.com for inquiries.

2. I will then reply to your email with all the information you'll need.

3. Send me something cool. (Think of it as a trade. The item you send doesn't have to have any significant monetary value. The more unique the better. These can be handmade items, photos, souvenirs, things that inspire you....be creative).

4. As soon as I get your get your package in the mail, I'll get started on your one of a kind envelope!

5. Wait anxiously by your mailbox for your ART to arrive!

Or don't. Either way! Whatever.

Now without further or due:

Something To Write Home About

2010-02-15T02:59:00.015-05:00

I don't know if it's because I'm from the midwest or because I'm getting older or because I'm a little lazy; but I have the tendency to do things a little slower than everyone else. Nowadays everyone's gotta have it now. Everything's wireless and instant. Not that I don't ever get impatient, but I think it's important to slow down a bit and take it all in. Since we've moved to Savannah, things have been moving pretty quick. I started school only a week after moving and have had my nose to the grindstone ever since!

It's starting to feel like I've kinda gotten away from that midwestern frame of mind! SO...In the spirit of all things SLOW, I'm dedicating this post to the US Postal Service. In this wireless age of emails and text messaging you continue to persevere! And until the day when scientists figure out a way to teleport our love letters and Zappos orders, your cause will live on!

Just for fun, I've started customizing the envelopes I send home. These are just a few of them. More to come!

p.s.- If you're interested at all in receiving your own one of a kind envelope let me know! However, a wise man once said: "If you're good at something, never do it for free." Send me something cool or awesome and I'll return the favor!