Beaver Lodge Cutaway Sketch

Certain things pose particular challenges when trying to illustrate a concept, such as how to show an entire environment, including both the inside and outside, in a single image.  I say illustrate, because whenever this type of problem is posed, it usually is not something to be solved using photography. This conundrum is often best solved by doing a cutaway illustration. I am working on just such an illustration right now for an educational publisher.  As I gathered information to design my own version of the cutaway beaver dam, I was surprised how poorly rendered most of such existing illustrations were. I ended up relying on photography to inform me on what the beavers and their houses looked like  and then created my own version. I referred to elements from dozens of sources to come up with my drawing, which I hope not only solves the problem, but does so in an aesthetically pleasing way. I am pretty happy with how it is coming together. I will post the fully rendered color version when it is complete.

Sledding Sketch

Winter will be upon us soon enough and I am in no hurry to say goodbye to the pleasant fall weather. That doesn't stop clients from assigning projects that will be published in the upcoming frigid months.  My picture book Winter Lullaby, for example,  was done during the summer months and I even had my kids pose outdoors in the heat of July with basketballs standing in for pumpkins.

In their winter coats no less. In hindsight, that might have been a bad Dad moment. You have to be able to get into the mood of a piece regardless of the time or season.  Anyway, here is the sketch a little spot I am doing for the Friend Magazine. It will print sometime this winter.

Boys' Life Sketches

"You know the Grady house is haunted, right, Evan?" This Boys' Life fiction story opens with young Evan being scared by the boys in his neighborhood. He turns the tables on the bullies and discovers that the sound they heard was just Mr. Grady's pet monkey which needed care after the old man's accident. Evan also figures out that Mr. Grady is an interesting person and worthy of his friendship. For the opening spread, I wanted to portray the moment when the two wanna be bullies are taunting Evan to enter the house.

I came up with several idea sketches and proposed my three favorite ones to nBoys' Life art director, Scott Feaster. I usually will only present my favorite idea and then show others if the preferred one does not fly, but in this case, I was intrigued with all three and would have been fine if any of the three had been selected. The final drawing needed a little more width and more of a  dilapidated feeling was given to the house. I enlisted my son and a couple of family friends to pose for reference and then I finished up the drawing. As soon as it is approved, I will render it in color using Photoshop.

Dragon Mountain Opener- Sketch

Here is the opening spread drawing for the Dragon Mountain story I am doing for Boys' Life magazine. In this scene, the boy loses his footing and slides down the slope of the mountain and into a dark hole. I posted the drawing for the second scene earlier so you can see what happens next if you click there.

It's always fun to try to get the reference material for a piece like this. My model, the son of our good friends was game to give me the look I wanted but it was impossible for him to hold the pose without falling over, so he did his best and I took the pose in pieces. I laid on the cement of the driveway to get the low angle I wanted and then had him pose the different parts he could hold, one at a time.

Head and torso with one arm, then the second arm and then the flailing legs. I pieced them all together digitally to arrive at the photo comp above which matched my sketch That is what I used to create the final drawing. Both drawings are graphite on bristol paper which I will now scan and use as the basis for the final Photoshop paintings. Stay tuned for the finished illustrations as soon as I get them done.

Dragon Mountain Sketch

I'm doing another project for Boys' Life Magazine right now. This one is a little different in that it will be a teaser for a writing contest. Boys from all over the country will be able to "finish the story" and prizes will be awarded for the best writing. This drawing is for the second spread. I will be painting these in Photoshop and will post the final versions when they are done. The sketch for the first spread is on the table right now and I will post it soon.

Death Trap- Preliminary Drawing

Once again, I am doing a couple of posters for our regional playhouse Pioneer Theater. Last year I did work for A Christmas Carol: the Musical and this year I have agreed to do two new posters. The first is for a murder mystery called Death Trap, the 1978 thriller by Ira Levin who also penned the creepers Rosemary's Baby and The Stepford Wives. The plot revolves around washed up playwright Sydney Bruhl who is approached by a former student Clifford Anderson to read a new play he has written. The play turns out to be fantastic and Bruhl hatches a plan to kill Clifford and steal the script for his own. Many plot twists ensue and the ending is quite a surprise. The weapons in the drawing represent the collection of stage props that decorate one wall of Sydney's house and are also used to knock off the main characters. I wanted something that was ambiguous enough to not give away anything but mysterious enough to draw in the viewer. As soon as I get sketch approval I will move to finish on this one.

Do You Sell Your Feathers for Worms?

Here is the preliminary drawing for a magazine illustration I am working on. In the article, the allegory is told of how a bird begins to sell his feathers for worms thinking that is easier than actually going out and catching worms. Besides, he has so many feathers. Well, on the day he realizes that he can no longer fly, it is too late. Comparison is made to choices in our lives and the question posed is whether or not we are selling our feathers for worms? Do we trade what is of most value to us for something less, simply because it is easier? Do we opt for the smoother path or maybe even give up our dreams because they seem too hard? I have made a few of those choices in the past including diet and exercise.  That's why I am currently undertaking a challenging climb back to better physical fitness, but I bet there is something in every one's life that equates to selling your feathers for worms. Regardless of where you are in life, I think it's a topic worthy of consideration. What have you sold your feathers for? How have you recognized or overcome this? I look at where I want to be in all aspects of my life and realize that it will take time to grow back a few of my feathers before I can soar again. I'd love to hear your stories!

Running With Geronimo - Final Drawing

As promised this is the drawing for the opening spread for the Boys' Life historical fiction story I am illustrating. It accompanies the piece in my previous post. I am still finishing it up, so rather than show it in progress, I will just let this one tease you a little bit. In the story, the cavalry posse searching for Geronimo and his small band of rebels comes to the farm of the young main character and asks him if he has seen anything. The young man plays dumb even though he is harboring his Native American friend, one of Geronimo's braves, in the barn. It is both fun and challenging to create these sorts of historically based pieces. The research involved is sometimes the hardest part. I will post the final piece when I finish it up  in the next day or two.

Portrait Drawings

Samuel P. Cowley- Graphite 4" x 5"  by Greg Newbold

Martha Hughes Cannon- Graphite 4" x 5"  by Greg Newbold

J. Golden Kimball- Graphite 4" x 5" by Greg Newbold

These drawings are part of a project I am doing for BYU Magazine. I'll show progress of the other illustrations as they progress. I will be bringing in some limited color to these and add some texture in Photoshop as well, but I like the organic quality of the drawings and will try to preserve it as I move along.