Hartford Illustration MFA- New Website

As many of you may know I had the privilege of earning my MFA degree at the University of Hartford in their Low Residency MFA of Illustration program. This program is uniquely designed to allow working professional illustrators a chance to further their studies and earn an advanced degree without uprooting their family or abandoning their career to enroll in a full time program. It was the perfect place for me and I found it to be the perfect environment in which to be challenged, inspired and in which to cultivate new skills. In addition to my MFA degree, I left Hartford with a network of lifelong friends that I still talk with on a regular basis. I highly recommend this program to anyone who is seriously considering graduate studies in illustration. Program director Murray Tinkelman and the outstanding faculty (including the likes of Gary Kelley, C.F. Payne, Ted and Betsy Lewin) and inspiring guest presenters from the highest ranks of the industry make this an unforgettable growth experience.

Check out Hartford's Low Residency MFA in Illustration here.

Influenced by the Best

"Thunderbird" -Sunset magazine "cover"

Oil on canvas, 18" x 24" by Greg Newbold

Whether we want to admit it or not. All artists are influenced by what they see. Whether it's our surroundings, the things we like, photography or the work of other artists, we seek out and internalize the visual material that resonates emotionally within us. During my MFA journey at the University of Hartford, we were given the assignment to create a magazine cover in the style of a Golden Age Illustrator. I of course immediately wanted to pay tribute to one of my favorites, N.C. Wyeth.

The 1914 Dixon cover that inspired me

While researching possible magazines in which to insert my painting, I thought o the several magazine covers created by another of my favorite painters, Maynard Dixon. I figured why not pay homage to both artists at once. I found a grainy photo of Maynard Dixon that gave me enough information to start from and with the addition of a palette and brush, I created a heroic view of Dixon painting in a landscape much like the ones he loved to paint.

Giant in the Clouds- by N.C. Wyeth

I tried to create the scene with the design, color and brushwork  sensibilities of Wyeth, especially the clouds and the way that the figure drops off into mostly shadow. In the end, I think it also shows  quite a bit of the influence both artists have had on my own work.

Remembering Kazu Sano 1952 -2011

Return of the Jedi poster by Kazu Sano

My first exposure to the art of Kazu Sano was sometime in early 1983 when the spectacular movie poster for Return of the Jedi was unveiled. Being a huge Star Wars fan, I spent hours dissecting the details of that picture and admiring the skill of the artist that painted it. I could not decipher the initials "KS" in the lower right corner and it was many years later after I was already a working illustrator myself that  I finally figured out who Kazu Sano was and that he was the one who had created that beautiful poster.

In March of 2009, as part of my MFA studies with the University of Hartford, I got to meet Kazu and hear him speak in San Francisco. He recounted his journey as an artist and the challenges that he would he assign himself to in order to constantly improve his skills.

Before coming to the US from his native Japan in 1978 to study at the Academy of Art University, he painted a self portrait a day for an entire month. At another time when he was feeling a need to improve his color sense, he cut different shapes out of colored mat board and make the "Arrangement of the Day" which he would then base a small painting on.

Portrait of Frank Sinatra for the US Postal Service

Styracosaurus for a National Geographic article

Kazu used his talent and work ethic to propel him to a noteworthy career that included over 450 book covers, numerous movie posters and postage stamps as well many magnificent paintings for National Geographic. His constant experiments with surface and mediums led him to become a master of both acrylic and oil paint.

He told of his constant experimentation and how he finally arrived at his personal process of mounting canvas on Masonite to get the exact surface he loved to paint on. The tactile quality of his original paintings was impressive to behold when he laid out dozens of his works for our class to look at. I left that day feeling privileged to have seen his work and met the man.

Earlier this May I received word that Kazu was not doing well. I immediately wrote a note thanking him for his influence on me as an artist. I was saddened to hear earlier this week that he passed away on May 31 after a long battle with cancer. I hope that my note arrived in time for him to know of my esteem for him and his work. The illustration world has lost a great teacher and true master of the craft. His loss will be felt greatly- rest in peace Kazu. Additionaly, a beautiful tribute by friend  and artist Robert Hunt can be read here.

Kazu Sano website
Article on Kazu written by Paul Zdepski

Penned In

Penned In- by Greg Newbold

24" x 32" - Oil

This is a companion piece to my painting titled "Unburdened". It was part of my MFA thesis project at the University of Hartford Low residency MFA in Illustration. We were asked to come up with a "dream project" and then create it. I had always wanted to make some paintings based on my experiences on the family farm growing up which included the ritual of yearly sheep shearing. In this piece I capture the uncertainty of the animals as they wait for their time to be relieved of their winter burden of wool. I still have a lot of material to draw from in this series (see thumbnail drawings here) and more paintings are planned including one that is already on the board. I hope to get started on it in the next little while as there has already been some interest expressed it..

Here's the Deal

"Here's the Deal" - acrylic - 19" x 13"

First thumbnail sketch - approx. 2" wide - roller pen

Final Drawing - approx. 4.5" wide - black Prismacolor

During my first session at the University of Hartford Limited Residency MFA-Illustration my assignments included writing and illustrating my own children's book. I spent many a midsummer night the first week creating a thumbnail dummy book version of "Scuffy, A Scarecrow's Tale", a project my wife and I had been writing. The story follows the adventures of our hero Scuffy as he overcomes his fear of just about everything in order to defeat his nemesis the crow. The full dummy book included a refined manuscript and black and white drawings for each spread. I also completed four finished paintings based on these drawings. I am extremely satisfied with the project so far and am in the process of hunting down the right publisher (anyone willing to have a look?). Here is a bit of the process.