M.I.A.M.I.A. has intrigued me since I first happened upon her videos for Bird Flu, Sunshowers and Boyz online (way before Pineapple Express!). She is definitely one of the most unique musicians to emerge in the last few years, and I love her tendency to push the envelope in everything she does, while still being perfectly authentic. Apparently other people feel the same way, too!
I hope I captured some of her swagga in this piece.

Whoa!Holy dinosaurs, explosions, zombies, winged ladies, and lazer guitars! This commission piece was definitely a challenge, but a really fun one. It's a mixed media piece with watercolors, copic markers and digital trickery used to create the ultimate apocalyptic fantasy portrait!

M.I.A.I am currently in the process of painting an M.I.A. illustration– but it will most likely take a bit longer to finish, since I am also working on a commission. This illustration will be a mixed media piece combining watercolor, vector, and who knows what else! I'm also excited since this will be the first in a series of music-themed illustrations.
Rock 'n' Roll!

Sketch Cards!

I did these 2.5" x 3.5" sketch cards with brush pens and Copic markers at King Con to keep busy and they were a lot of fun. I'll definitely be doing more at MoCCA and having them for sale. Which characters should I do next?

MODOK SketchHere's the MODOK commission sketch I did at King Con! Weird, huh? ;)

KING CON 2009!King Con was this past weekend at the Brooklyn Lyceum in Park Slope, and it was awesome! The husband and I had a great time seeing old friends and meeting new people. It kind of reminded me of how MoCCA felt the first year or two, which was nice. We sold a few comics, buttons and some prints, but the extra fun part was doing commissioned sketches. I did one of an Indian dancer, inspired by the Indian-themed paintings in my portfolio, and one of the Marvel character Modok (a weird ugly giant-headed flying machine with tiny arms and legs), which was fun since I never draw things like that. The person who commissioned the dancer was kind enough to send me a photo and scan of the drawing:

I also did some fun small trading card-style color sketches, which I'll post later. Hope there's going to be another King Con next year!

Happy Halloween!

Have a happy & safe Halloween everyone!

Illustration for NYC AudubonI just finished an illustration for the NYC Audubon educational newsletter for kids. This piece is accompanying an article about the wonders of fishing in the city. Just make sure the ones you catch don't have three eyes! ;)
Seriously, the NYC Audubon is a great non-profit organization that looks out for New York City's feathered friends and other important environmental concerns, and I was very happy to create this piece for them.

Half-Naked Blue-Haired Zombie Woman!New painting! This piece is based on characters described in Margaret Atwood's The Blind Assassin. I'm a big Atwood fan, and I loved the multiple story-within-a-story device used, especially the sci-fi pulp stories written by the 1930's & 40's leftist political fugitive in the story. The "nude women who've been dead for three thousand years, with lithe, curvaceous figures, ruby red lips, azure hair in a foam of tumbled curls, and eyes like snake-filled pits..." was a visual I couldn't pass up illustrating.

Commuter SketchHaving to work on a Sunday: crappy.
The train home being empty enough to sketch comfortably: eh, small consolation.
But still, a fun sketch.

Whoa! Old Sketchbook!

I recently found an old moleskine that I used in my last year or two of school. Most of the time I am so focused on being able to make new pictures that I rarely look at anything old. It's definitely a strange experience. I'm not too happy with the bar sketches, (my friends probably agree!) but it's okay, I guess. I do like Prospect Park, and my old apartment view from the fire escape. Anyway, kind of hard to put old stuff up here, but at the same time it's kind of fun for a change.

Girly Stuff...

Just some quick girly studies I've done recently. The cocktail girls were done with copic markers, and the bride is a watercolor (I may re-scan. It's hard to get all the nuances of watercolor when scanning.) Fashion, flowers and pinks...
...but fear not, men! The crazed-half-naked-zombie-woman painting is a-comin'!

Azure Haired Women from the outskirts of Sakiel-Norn

This is a sketch/study I did on my train ride home (it's nice when the commute is a little productive!) of a zombie woman inspired by Margaret Atwood's novel The Blind Assassin. (Thanks, Michelle!) I love Atwood because her stories have interesting sci-fi elements but are also very grounded in reality. She uses sci-fi in the best way, to show us truth about our society and where it could be headed.
The characters I was inspired by are described as a "pack of nude [peach] women who've been dead for three thousand years, with lithe, curvaceous figures, ruby red lips, azure hair in a foam of tumbled curls, and eyes like snake-filled pits..." Now clearly I took some liberties with that, but I think it will be much more effective as a full color painting. Should be fun!

She's Poison......Ivy of course! Here's a pin-up of my version of the character. Perhaps a certain cat-burglar will be next!

It's Summer!Well, at least technically. It was the official first day of summer a few days ago, and July 4th is coming up fast, so the weather needs to catch up with the rest of us in NYC and provide some fun in the sun! I am super-excited to start using our new yard and new Weber grill.

Unfortunately, our two kitties are of the indoor variety, although I kind of want to take them out on a leash, just to see how they'd react! I think it would be pretty much like the cats in this drawing. Tubby Desmond would find a nice spot to take a nap, and hyper-active, skinny Penny would be exploring the highest peaks she could reach.

Business Card Design

I recently created a business card for my friend Chris Fox, a personal trainer and fitness coach in Brooklyn. While it can sometimes be difficult working with friends, I think Chris & I are both very happy with the result– which is what really counts. Plus, the best part for me is that in exchange for my graphic design skills, I am getting some complimentary consultations with the talented fitness coach. It's a win-win!

MY NEW WEBSITE HAS LAUNCHED!!!

Please stop by and take a look at erinillustration.com! I am working on new pieces and continue to update here on the blog for now.

L Magazine Presents the NADA Emerging Artist Party at Bumble & Bumblephoto by Michael Seto

Whole Foods Market New York City stores sponsored the L Magazine NADA Emerging Artist Party at Bumble & Bumble this past Thursday. I created the signage for the event, and I attended the party as a guest. Of course, it was a lot of fun– delicious food, plus free-flowing wine & whiskey! I especially had fun creating the chalkboard for the oyster shucking station. Hipsters eating oysters– naturally! To check out all the photos of the event, click here. There are pictures of my signage, as well as my co-workers dishing out gelato & brownie sundaes and shucking oysters. There are also a couple of "Where's Waldo"-esque pictures of me watching a really wacky costume-fashion show, too!

Bringing Sexy Back......okay, I couldn't resist. Anyway, just a quick sketch I thought I'd share. I think it could definitely use some color, so I'll try and get that up soon.

FEED the kids, and look cool doing it!

At the Chelsea Whole Foods Market, located on Fashion Avenue, Heather, in charge of the Marketing Team, put together a "Project Runway"-esque challenge for students at FIT. The idea was to create outfits out of FEED 100 bags, and other Whole Foods Market reuseable bags. And the results were stunning! I created the window clings and designer info signage, while my co-artist Graham got his skinny butt down in the windows to set up the dress forms.
The FEED 100 bag is special, because if you use it not only does it cut down on paper & plastic bag waste– a huge problem, but it also provides 100 meals to hungry kids in Rwanda. I know times are tough here right now, but people in places like Rwanda have had it way worse for a lot longer, and these kids just want some square meals.
So come check out the window display along Seventh Avenue and 24th Street, get a FEED 100 bag for you or someone you love, save some trees and look cute– although probably not as cute these awesome outfits. (To see them all click here!)

Spring is really here!

Just a little spring-themed drawing. Nothing like enjoying an icy beverage on a warm, breezy stroll through Brooklyn. Hooray for Spring!

Karaoke!Now, I'm not actually ever a participant during karaoke– but I always said if I were drunk enough, I would want to perform my rendition of "Don't Stop Me Now" by Queen– just hope you're not there to witness it!
I did this little sketch of an enthusiastic anime-inspired karaoke fan for a work event (oh yeah!) and I think she's really fun– and a lot less shy than me!

More fashion...

The only advantage to taking the train late at night– there's plenty of room to sketch without people looking over your shoulder or falling asleep on you. I'm not sure where the dancer theme of the first sketch came from, except that I sure do loves me some leg warmers! The second one is in anticipation of some heat. Bring it already! It's too cold for Springtime!

Erin Gallagher...fashionista?Considering that my daily apparel of choice is Levi's, a tee and a sweat-shirt, one wouldn't assume by looking at me on a typical weekday that I am at all interested in fashion– but I'm actually a secret fashionista-wanna-be. I try to jazz it up when I'm out on the town of course, I love Project Runway and I'm a sucker for fashion magazines. As a kid I used to sit for hours drawing girls in made-up outfits or versions of my own, and I recently thought– why don't I do some more of that? So here are some sketches, and I'm sure now that I've caught fashion fever again there will be more to come.

New LogoThis is a new logo for the demo-fest held every Tuesday evening at the Chelsea Whole Foods Market store. Every department has free samples available from 5pm–7pm. I wanted to convey Springtime, freshness, and simplicity with this design. I like both of the fonts a lot on their own, but I also dig how they contrast– one a bit edgy and more contemporary, but still with a home-made quality– the other with a clean, retro charm. Besides all that, who doesn't like free samples?

The Decemberists Poster ContestThis is my super-rushed entry into the The Decemberists poster contest. The objective was to design a poster for The Decemberists first show playing their new album, the Hazards of Love, in Austin, Texas. The album is a high-concept piece (naturally) involving a "rake" who is excited to find "love" and lust in marriage, but not so happy once all the kids and responsibility come around. When the fiend's wife dies in childbirth, he decides a fresh start is in order and quickly and efficiently disposes of his offspring. I believe there is an enchanted fawn and a fairy queen of some sort involved in the narrative as well, but we'll all have to wait for the albums official release on 3/24 to discover the whole story.
I really only had a day to work on this, so it's not how I envisioned, but I'm glad I was at least able to get the idea down. Hopefully next time there's a fun illustration contest I won't be packing up my whole apartment in two weeks!

It's Electric!– A New Threadless Tee Shirt Submission– Help Me Win!!!

Threadless is an awesome tee shirt company that prints designs submitted by artists and voted on by fans.

Click here to check out my new Threadless submission and please vote for my design to get printed. Thanks everyone!

p.s. You have to register with Threadless.com to vote, but I promise it's quick and painless– unlike a jellyfish sting!

Storm's a-comin'

I went to the New York Comic Con two weeks ago– and boy was it overwhelming. But it was also inspiring– I realized don't have nearly enough drawings of the comic-book characters I love. I grew up in a house full of boys who read comics and watched Star Trek, and having always been interested in making pictures, I looked at comics before I even read them. My brothers were avid Marvel comics fans, and, therefore, so was I. One of my favorite books was X-Men, and I really loved when Storm, the leader of the X-Men, fought Callisto for control of the underground, even-more-outcast-than-the-X-Men mutants, the Morlocks. After Storm successfully beat Callisto, and went to Japan and met Wolverine's lady-love, the free-spirited Yukio, she gave herself a rebellious new look– a punk mohawk with a leather & studs get-up. Rad! (And way cooler than Hallie Berry.)

Whole Foods Market Chelsea Tee Shirt Design

This is a design for the first-ever Whole Foods Market Chelsea Store Tee Shirt! I was happy to design it. The tee was given out to Team Members at a Team Member appreciation event (with ice cream!) today. The Chelsea store was the first Whole Foods Market to open in New York City, and now there are 5 stores in Manhattan, with more on the way. Chelsea may not be as flashy as the other stores anymore, but it's got a great neighborhood feel. We wanted to present that in the design, so we went with an old-school palette of browns and copper, and a seventies-style font, and of course, the ubiquitous yellow cab.

Spread the love and enjoy the day!

Vote for me on Threadless!

Threadless is an awesome tee shirt company that prints designs submitted by artists and voted on by fans. If you want proof of how awesome it is, I bought Tom 5 Threadless shirts for this past Christmas.

Click here to check out my first Threadless submission and please vote for my design to get printed!

Thanks everyone!

p.s. You have to register with Threadless.com to vote, but I promise it's painless if you know your name and email, which hopefully, you all do. :)