Caving to Frill.

Top: Back T-Shirt Design, Bottom: Front Center Chest - Click to View Larger Image.

The whole design trend to use oranate turn of the century frills and motifs in design isn't anything new. I told my friend 'Shane' who is a master at this style "I refuse to take part in this 'Frill' trend." We'll I've caved. And yes I admit it's fun.

A retired LAPD officer and former SWAT team member hired me to create this t-shirt design for his company. He sells products to police and SWAT members. Those Dover books collecting dusk on my library shelf are finally being put to good use.

The terms used in this design are buzz words popular with SWAT:
- Operator: High Level SWAT
- Tango: Bad Guy and or Terrorist


Detail of Design Textures.

It's hard to appreciate this design at such a small posting size so this image shows how cool the textures look at 100%.

Society of Illustrators Exhibit

'Hoo Do You Love'

Today I got some cool news. My owl illustration was accepted into the 49th Annual Society of Illustrators exhibition and publication. It was my first time submitting to the Society of Illustrators so I am pretty excited.

NYC - Urban Burn

This past week was my first time to visit New York City. Man alive is that one huge place. I was overwhelmed by how massive it is and how many people dwell within it's limits. All the cliches I've heard over the years are true. At one point it was sensory overload and much like Disney World I didn't come close to seeing and doing everything a visitor could. I am sure I'll be back again soon and I plan on visiting more key spots.

I did manage to find my way into the 'Late Show' with David Letterman so that was a whole lot of fun.

My visit inspired a doodle and that combined with a photo I took led to the following low-tech animation which I am calling 'Urban Burn'. I hope you enjoy the art.


'Urban Burn' Inspired by Time Square 10pm.

Sneak Peek!

Crumble . Crackle . Burn
by Von Glitschka

Crumble Crackle Burn portrays the aesthetic beauty of an art book but the functionality of a valuable tool that professional designers and illustrators will use again and again. It features 60 photographic textures of natural, real-world surfaces along with corresponding examples of how they can be artistically applied in design and illustration projects. The companion DVD contains all 60 high-resolution texture images in 3 formats that are ready for professional use. Also included on the DVD are additonal bonus textures bringing the total to over 120.

Compiled by a professional for professionals, these organic textures are timeless in application and will quickly become a favorite resource that will spark the imagination, inspire creativity and infuse your art with an authentic, organic flair.

Each of the '60' textures featured in the book will come with the following hi-res images:
- Layered Photoshop File (Grayscale)
- Bitmap Tiff
- Photoshop Brush Derived from texture


Some of my art using a texture called 'Wooden it be great'.

Also included in the book is a chapter I wrote on 'Texture Exploring' it even shows one of my first texture pictures going all the way back to 1985.

Make sure to bookmark 'www.TextureBook.com' it'll have free downloadable texture samples, an additional secondary set for those who purchase the book and will of course allow you to peek inside the book before ordering it.

Preview the interior
I have now posted interior images of the book here.

Now available on Amazon.com

You can pre-order 'Crumble. Crackle. Burn - 120 Stunning Textures for Design and Illustration' now through Amazon.com. (The release date is May, 2007) The book comes with a DVD containing over all the textures shown in the book and additional bonus textures. It's a no-brainer price for a book that will both inspire and facilitate your own creative growth.

Rock On!

When I was approached by the 'Rock & Roll Hall of Fame' to design the poster for their 'Summer in the City' event I swung back in my chair and played air guitar to celebrate.

They liked the tribal tattoo art I've done so I agreed to work in that style.

I have to admit I am not exactly a 'Head Banger'. I grew up listening to classic rock with bands such as 'Journey', 'Dire Straits' and 'Huey Lewis and the News' and my personal childhood favorite which class mates paid me to draw on their pee-chee and jean jackets 'KISS'. Actually my first ever paying commercial gig was to draw Peter Criss for a neighborhood kid who lived down the street, but that's another story.

On this project I knew I wanted to do a flaming type of guitar motif but I knew it had to reflect enough of the real thing or else I would run the risk of getting ultra-scrutinized by Rockers everywhere. So I asked my buddy a true 'Head Banger' to be my art consultant to make sure I was on the right track visually speaking.

(Click Image to View Poster)

Vonster Doodle Brushes

I love to doodle. Doesn't matter where I am at or what I am doing if I have a chance to put something on paper chances are I'll be all over it. I've found that if I am in a meeting I can pay better attention if I am doodling. My mind doesn't wander. I save all my doodles too. I have binders full of them that I can refer back to years later. It's fun seeing these obscure thoughts and images captured in a moment of time.

I took a handful of them and have created some Photoshop brushes.
Download the 'Doodle Brush' set here.

Portrait - Jacob Renfold

Back in like 1995 me and my wife noticed our phone blinking meaning there was a message left. I went over to the phone and hit the button to listen and the following message played.

"Hello this is Jacob Renfold. I called to get my ears cleaned. I think there full of wax. I can call back again later. Thank you."

At first I thought it was my goofy friend Matt who loves to do stuff like this just to mess with my head. But then the more I listened to it I realized some elderly guy had dialed the wrong phone number. I saved the message and then played it for my wife a few minutes later. We both laughed.

We kept that message saved for about five years until we had to switch our phone service. We'd play it for friends who came by to visit. How odd that a complete stranger would be such a source of entertainment for us without him ever knowing about it. It made us both wonder over the years who Jacob Renfold is and if he ever got his ears cleaned?

Fear of Math

I've been asked many times how I knew I wanted to do this for a living. I have often replied by saying "Fear of math." You see it was a clear case of math anxiety that would ultimately lead me into a career in communication arts. You see Pythagorus, and his numerical cronies equations never came easy for me, and the thought of college level mathematics kind of freaked me out so when an art school rep came by our class in high school I immediately knew I had found a creative escape route via art.

The style of this piece is basically how I draw when I am just entertaining myself. Most of the time I have no idea up front as to what I will be drawing or how it will come out, I just pick up a pen and let it simply flow out of me onto the paper. I often look at the art and try to figure out what if anything makes any kind of coherent sense on any level. Sometimes I am surprised by what I discover and other times I have no clue why I drew it, I just did. So I guess I enjoy the mystery of this style?

Lately I've been wanting to use it for a paying gig but couldn't find a good fit. That is until I got a call from an agency who was wanting background art created for the next incarnation of Windows Messenger they were developing a special site for. I immediate thought of this style and asked them for direction in terms of content etc. and they literally said the only limitation to the art is "No naked people or guns. Other then that anything goes." I responded "Giddy up!"

Thus 'Fear of Math' was born.

(Click for larger preview)

Super Doodle

As you've probably noticed by now my blog header and footer contains an illustration I created. I've never posted it on this blog but it's one of my all time favorites.

I call this style my doodle style. Most of the heavy lifting creatively speaking is done outside the box (computer) I use a black flair pen and just start drawing. When done I scan it into Photoshop and start painting in colors and textures.

Don't ask me what it means because I don't have a clue. That said, you'll notice desert landscapes, serpents, flames, winged creatures, hands and nebulous shapes are common themes that appear often in this style.

This specific piece I labeled 'Super Doodle'. That is because the original was about 12 inches long. It was a personal piece I did for myself. Up until the time I did this I had never used this style commercially. It's been one of those styles I've kept to myself. But recently I've decided to leverage this style and use it in a current project I am working on. I'll post more on that later.

Devil in the Rough

Another doodle illustration using some brush textures.

Guardian Angel of Doodlers

Often referred to as 'St.Doodle'. This angelic creature is often wrongly labeled as a nefarious bi product of poor attention skills. Nothing could be further from the truth. In actuality this benevolent overseer watches over sketchers, scribblers, garden variety scawlers and any pee-chee loving doodlers with a penchant to draw on a whim.



PS: Played around with textures on this doodle.

Escape!

The reason I titled this post 'Escape' is because that is how creating the art felt. It was basically an escape creatively speaking. The doodle had started about four days prior and was sitting on my desk, so I just added to it over the four day period until I filled the paper. The more I looked at it the more I liked it.

Last night I decided to use it to create an example to show my illustration students this week. Just because it's digital illustration too many students think all the heavy lifting has to take place inside the box when in actuality it doesn't. So I'll be showing them how you can use your raw doodles as final artwork. Granted on an assignment you'd have to target a specific subject or theme but still the style and approach could work the same way. I just want them to view digital illustration as a method that allows for great flexibility not a ridgid tool driven work flow which I think is part of the problem in art programs now. (I'll save that rant for another time)

(Click picture to view non-cropped image)

Did you see that?

My art rep is doing a promotion this year with the theme 'Did you see that?'.

This is for some t-shirts they'll give out at the HOW Design Conference. That is if it's picked.



Colors are a bit off on this gif.

I don't give a hoot!

This illustration I did just because I thought 'Owls' looked cool. So I guess it was inspired by the 'Discovery Channel'?

Hoodlum Teaser

Cropped "Hoodlum" Editorial Illustration.

I love clients that give me complete creative freedom. The opportunity to explore and create in a direction that is fresh and new even though it wasn't what they had originally requested. Such is the case with this editorial illustration.

To read more about this project and view the un-cropped version of the above illustration visit my primary site.

Brewing Design

I just posted a new project at my primary design site regarding a coffee label design I did for Rahzo.com. I had shown this label to twitter users a while back after I got shipped some printed samples and was asked if I'd deconstruct how I went about creating it.

Well that is what this blog post is all about. So grab a cup of coffee and enjoy the post.


Source Photo: Paris, France.

1. Source Photo
Because I named the roast "Noir French Blend" it goes without saying it needs to have a French flair to the approach. I sourced out this picture which has the Eiffel Tower in the background.

I also picked this image because the contrast was perfect for how I planned on using it too.


Compositing images via Photoshop.

2. Distorting Reality
I wanted the the Eiffel Tower to be a focal point in my composition so if reality doesn't work you do what every fashion magazine does and manipulate reality so it looks better than real.


Converting photo to a halftone.

3. Halftone FX
I converted the photo to a halftone. In a nutshell: Convert color photo to greyscale, convert to halftone by going to the menu image/mode/bitmap. From there you'll have to experiment in order to determine what size of halftone works best for you, it isn't a one size fits all process. Once you have the size nailed down you have to convert back from bitmap to greyscale then copy/paste it back into your PSD file.

If you're still scratching your head after reading the above try this link it might help you? Or my big dot tutorial might also explain this process better?


Halftoned photo integrated into layout.

4. Halftone Integrated
I nest the halftoned photo into my over all layout. Mind you this is screen res so it doesn't do the halftone justice. Make sure to view the larger image at the end of this post to see how the halftones enhance the look and feel of the design.


European Beauty.

5. Romance
I wanted drama in my design. It's Paris so it needed some beautiful romance so I sourced out this photo. Her eyes were captivating and that was what I was after.


Romantic dot gain.

6. Larger Halftone FX
Once again I used the same halftone effect, just a larger size and composited the romantic gaze into my design.

A lot of what I do when I use Photoshop is experimentation. Playing with transparency, blend modes and arrangement of content and via layers to achieve the look and feel I'm after.


Laying a graphic foundation.

7. Graphic Foundation
This historical ornament and banner dangler will serve as the foundation for critical content like type and iconography as you'll see in the following images.


...Like a big pizza pie that's moire.

8. Creating a Moire Effect
The design over all felt too stark to me. I wanted to blend it all together more. So I just opened another color stock photo (Any will work) gaussian blurred it, went to filter/Pixelate/Color Halftone, converted it to greyscale, copy/pasted it back into my PSD file, messed with transparency and blend modes and there you have it.


...You're in love.

9. Moire Effect Applied
Compare this image to step 7.


Adding more character.

10. Texurizing
To add more depth and interest I used a variety of surface textures from my "Crumble.Crackle.Burn" book.


Interesting diagram art.

11. Diagram Illustration
I wanted culture appropriate imagery to collage my design with so I did some research and found this great retro diagram illustration of a Vespa scooter.


The Vespa has been parked.

12. Diagram Illustration Integrated
I'm building my design layer by layer taking the various graphic elements and collaging them together. After all that is essentially what graphic design means.


Information added to the layout.

13. Typography & Iconography
It goes without saying that the type you choose need to work for the specific genre you are designing for. This design uses just two typefaces and I've added an iconic graphic of a coffee plant to lock up the design motif.

I also left room so we could work in Rahzo's logo stamp as well.


The label diecut.

14. Diecut
On this project we had the luxury of doing a custom diecut so I created this unique shape to frame my design. Of course I knew I was doing this from the beginning so I kept that in mind as I collaged my graphic content too so as not to loose anything when it was trimmed.


Piping hot design ready to pour.

15. Final Product
The final labels came out great and the product is now available.

Click here to view a larger image of the final label design.

If you'd like to deconstruct this project further just download the "Brewing Design Pack" below which contains a print resolution (150 dpi) layered PSD file. (CS4 file but will open in CS3 or CS2) You'll be able to click through the layers and see exactly how everything was set up.

- Download "Brewing Design Pack" (5 MB)

Creative Edge

Dreyer's Fruit Bars.

One of my favorite snacks is Dreyer's Fruit Bars. I scarfed my first one back in 1997 and have kept them stocked in my fridge ever since.

Before I go any further I should say that this post is all about creative curiosity. Recognizing seemingly mundane moments in your life, and taking the time to view them from a different perspective and by doing so discovering something creatively new.


Popsicle sticks.

Every time I would have a fruit bar I'd be left with a popsicle stick. At least that is what people refer to them as. I never actually eat popsicles.


Broken popsicle sticks.

Usually I'm watching TV when I'm having one and I started breaking them into several pieces. After doing so I'd just toss them into the garbage and out of sight out of mind.

After breaking up hundreds of these popsicle sticks I began to notice the interesting edge they created when broken. But that is about as far as I took it.


Aligning broken pieces.

A few weeks ago however I was looking at a few more broken pieces and thought to myself

"This would make a really cool edge texture if you lined them all up."

Creative Edge.

So instead of tossing them into the garbage I started saving the best broken pieces. Once I had enough I drew a line on a piece of paper and started lining them up.


Building edge texture with pieces.

To hold them together I used painters tape. It has enough adhesion to keep the pieces in place but also easy enough to adjust them if needed.


Completed edge of broken popsicle pieces.

As I composited the popsicle pieces to form the edge I tried to vary the various broken ends so it would form a unique contour both positively and negatively.


Scan of pieces and detail of final edge texture.

I scanned the taped popsicle pieces in at high resolution greyscale image and then used Photoshop to adjust levels and created the final texture shown above.

It's been almost four years since my texture book came out but I continue to be fascinated with texture. Styles come and go but texture will forever be timeless and useful within design and Photoshop makes using them so easy.

Speaking of Photoshop, it's probably my favorite application to use.

That may surprise some people reading this blog, but I like it just because it allows the user to work the way they prefer, it's very flexible in terms of the app adapting to your own methodology and preferences in regards to a creative process. Ten people can do the same thing ten different ways and that IMO is an example of intuitive software.

I wish Illustrator was half as easy to use and adapt into ones creative process, but I digress.

I took a lot of time adjusting and refining the details in this edge texture so as not to blow out the image and lose the nice fine details of the splintered wood and the various artifacts it created when I scanned them in.





Example use of "Creative Edge" texture.

My penchant for frozen fruit on a stick peaked my creative curiosity and you the faithful reader benefit from this artistic experiment.

Download "Creative Edge" Texture.
The "Creative Edge" Texture download includes the following content you can use in your own creative pursuits be it personal or professional as these textures are what I like to call open source creativity. Go forth and create!

- Layered Grayscale PSD File (Hi-Res, 8.5x11 inches @ 610 ppi)
- Left-Side Bitmap Tiff (Hi-Res, 1.5x11 inches @ 610 ppi)
- Right-Side Bitmap Tiff (Hi-Res, 1.5x11 inches @ 610 ppi)

The layered PSD file has multiple options so you'll have to turn on/off the layers to view all of them, such as pre-built masked layers to make usage easier. The PSD File is CS4 but will still open in CS3 or CS2 without any problems.

- Download "Creative Edge Texture" (67 MB)

Slum Sans

Photo of some slum typography.

It's been nearly six months since I spent time in the Mathare Valley Slums located on the outskirts of Nairobi, Kenya. My emotions are still raw when I think about that experience and it usually makes my eyes water.

At this time the post production of the documentary is in full swing and in good creative hands as well.

A common site in the slums is hand drawn typography used on signs. They are everywhere you look. For an upcoming collaborative project with Rule 29 I wanted to mimic this aesthetic so we could use it for titling in our project.


Slum Sans on light background.

As you've seen in previous posts the slums continue to be source of inspiration for me.


Slum Sans on dark background.

I drew out the whole set by hand pretty small so it wouldn't be crisp. Then I created a rough highlight you could add to the type to give it some pop. I even used a slum texture to degrade the letterforms as well.


Slum Sans complete set.

The whole set is just a simple vector file with the letterforms on one layer and the highlights on another. So you just compile what you need to create the word.


Slum Sans detailing.

I optimized the texturing as much as I could without loosing that nice authentic feel. The source file in the download below is a CS2 Adobe Illustrator file.

Update: A big thank you goes out to Brian Carroll who took my raw vector files and not only created a working font but also created the missing letter "I" that some how I over looked in the process? Brian is a multi-talented creative who is part of Studio Litchfield so check out their site.

Download Links

- Slum Sans - Vector Art (1.9MB)
- Slum Sans Font (217KB)

If you find this resource useful please consider donating to the work of Life in Abundance who works in African slums helping people improve their lives. Donate here. Thanks.

Slum Textures

"Slum Textures" 35 Royalty-Free Textures.

Back in April and May I spent 10 days in the Mathare Valley Slums located on the outskirts of Nairobi, Kenya. It truly was a life changing experience.

The slums consist of a vast network of small corridors that weave their way through haphazard constructed shacks. While there I took a lot of pictures capturing the daily life of those who call the slums their home.

Many of my pictures documented textures I came across while walking through the slums and this set represents the sensory experience I visually encountered during my time there.


Source photo and resulting texture.

The best things about textures is they never go out of style unlike other resources such as fonts, stock art or even photography. A texture that looks crappy now will still look crappy 50 years from now. And that's craptacular!


All "35" Textures in set.

I've put together this set of "Slum Textures" so you can use them in your own projects. If you don't like the way I created the PSD file or the bitmap tiff file no worries, you'll be able to create your own versions using the original source photo included for each. So the possibilities are endless for your creative needs.

Source File Specifications.
Each Texture Includes the following formats for each of the "35" textures.

- Original Source Photo (Hi-Res, RGB jpeg)
- Layered Grayscale PSD (Hi-Res, 10x13 @ 315 ppi)
- Bitmap Tiff (Hi-Res, 10x13 @ 315 ppi)

Also included in the download is a bonus PSD source file for you to deconstruct and see how to put the textures to use.

(All PSD Files are CS4 but will still open in CS3 or CS2 without any problems.)

Download Links
The whole set is broken into four manageable downloads.

- Slum Textures 1 (192MB)
- Slum Textures 2 (173MB)
- Slum Textures 3 (169MB)
- Slum Textures 4 (168MB)

If you find these textures useful please consider donating to the work of Life in Abundance who works in African slums helping people improve their lives. Donate here. Thanks.