For the last few months I’ve been working as a freelance character designer on 3-2-1 Penguins!, a new animated series on NBC. The premiere episode airs this Saturday (10:30am Central, check your local listings). 3-2-1 Penguins! is about four wacky penguins (Zidgel, Fidgel, Midgel, and Kevin) who travel the universe along with two kids, Jason […]

One of the more challenging aspects of freelancing (especially if you are just starting out) is figuring out what to charge for your services. Different clients have different budgets, and they will be using your artwork in different ways. How do you know what your fee should be for a greeting card illustration? What is […]

As my regular blog readers know, I’m taking a character design class online from Stephen Silver over at schoolism.com. I’ve been posting my work from each week’s lesson here on the ol’ blog-o-rama. So far I’ve designed a character (Dr. Jeckyll) for a pretend “Jeckyll and Hyde” movie, starting with thumbnail silhouettes, then concept sketches, […]

“John K” (short for Kricfalusi) is the creator of Ren and Stimpy, and a prolific blogger. I’m not a big fan of Ren and Stimpy, and John’s abstract drawing style (shown above) doesn’t really appeal to me. But his blog is terrific! His posts about art, animation, and cartooning are very thoughtful and filled with […]

The 19th Annual FallCon will be held at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds in St. Paul on October 6-7. FallCon is Minnesota’s largest comic book convention. If you live near the Twin Cities, come check it out. It’s no Comic-Con (what else is?), but it is a well-organized event with big attendance and a lot of […]

One of my all-time favorite living illustrators is Dennis Jones. His work is phenomenal. His characters are cartoony and fun, his drawing skills are solid, and he is a skilled painter who knows what he is doing with color. He balances fine-art painting techniques with appealing cartoon doodles for a stunning effect. Jones already has […]