Postcard Illustration: "Maps and Atlases"

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Postcard Illustration: "Maps and Atlases"
for Art-Card set "GB: 2011-12"

Here’s an illustration I recently finished for a postcard. The illustration depicts Maps and Atlases singer/guitarist Dave Davison belting one of my favorite tunes,“Israeli Caves.” This is a superbly talented and artful band. Their tribal progressive rock sounds never fail to make me want to move and get in my creative zone.

The process of coloring the illustration was a fun experiment. It was my first time coloring a sketch in Photoshop in this particular way. The process was laborious, but it gave me some added flexibility in terms of colors and effects. Below, I've added the final art and some shots of the process. It went from a pencil sketch to a 2-toned hybrid of illustration and digital painting. I’d love to design some rock posters or a children’s book in this style.

This was the initial sketch that got the whole project rolling. I knew more or less that I wanted key elements involved --- his hair, glasses, argyle sweater and hollow-body guitar --- but my composition was far off.

I figure it all out for the second sketch. Having all the crucial elements, I inked in the line work and started brainstorming how I might color the piece.

i started with markers. I loved certain moments or parts, but it wasn't wholly successful. I took notes on what worked and what didn't work and decided to replicate the effect in Photoshop.

The finished piece (pictured in full at the top). I colored it almost like I would a coloring book, but added highlights and shadows for depth. Then I but a half-tone filter on the entire piece and worked the background to give it a 'worn paper' or distressed comic book feel.