August has been pretty dry, both from a rainfall standpoint here in Michigan, and from a workload standpoint, which indicates to me that I’ve waited much too long to send out some promotional mailings. The Obama portrait above is one that I’ve been tinkering with, off and on for the past 6 months or so. I did some concentrated work on it this week, and may do a little more tweaking before I send it off to the printer. I’ll probably be doing a series of four postcards, staggered over the next couple of months. I’ll also be recycling some past artwork that I’ve been particularly proud of from the past year, including one that won an obscure illustration award earlier in 2008. The other four postcard designs are pictured below.
As far as the rest of the workload for August, I’ve been keeping busy, but many of the projects I’m working on right now are ‘bulk projects’ that are still in the works. I did have a few small spots for the Wall Street Journal (I’ll be saving these up in the future and posting them in groups of four), and a farmland scene for the American Bar Association (pictured below). I also took a few vacations over the past two weeks, which also interfered with workload (unfortunately had to turn down one project due to my being too far from an internet connection that day).
Self Promotion
Xmas Mailing
Self Promotion
Finished up the xmas promo mailing. Thanks to Terri for posing for me, and thanks to Keenan for the ideas for the ‘story titles’ and ‘authors’. I’ve been working on this one, off and on, for the past week or so, almost giving up on it a number of times. The oil painting style is pretty unfamiliar to me, and took a lot of false starts before I was able to make it work. I think I should plan on doing a steady campaign of postcards this year, I’ve neglected advertising of late, coasting on my laurels, and it is really starting to show.
Spring Break Mailing
Self Promotion
Sometime around our spring break vacation, I put together a mailing postcard to go out when we got back from the trip. Recycling some recent art that I hoped would showcase a style outside of my usual scratchboard techniques, and also to push the ‘spot illustration’ idea, an area of my business that I felt could use a little pushing. Two of the spots were from the bi-monthly ‘health column’ gig that I’d been doing for years, and the others were for the same client, but different sections of the newspaper. The larger colored pencil rendering of the hand and snake was from a series of illustrations I did for a jesuit magazine earlier in the month.
Xmas Mailing 2006
Self Promotion
As both a combination xmas card and promotional mailer, worked up this homage to favorite giant creature movies with a giant rampaging santa terrorizing the populace. Kind of how I tend to feel every year as the xmas decorations seem to get set up earlier and earlier every passing season. Looking back on it now, it probably would have been more frightening had I made Santa with a big happy smile on his face instead of the evil grimace.
Summer Promo Mailing Postcard
Self Promotion
Put together a quickie promo postcard for the lean summer months. Trying to push the ‘spot illustration’ end of the business. Recycling a number of illustrations that I’d done over the past year or so (although the main ‘masks’ illo goes back even further than that I think).