U.S. Women’s Soccer Win Equal Pay
Reasons for Hope
Originally published in February 2022 in Blog
Elsie de Wolfe
Originally published in November 2021 in Blog, Toronto Illustrators
Elsie de Wolfe on the shoulders of her French fitness instructor. Elsie was one of the great characters of the early 20th century. As they say, she was up for anything. Daughter of an American father and a Canadian mother, she ran a successful interior design firm on “Toity-toid” street in New York, […]
Hyper-realistic vs. suggestive drawing styles
Originally published in November 2021 in Blog, Toronto Illustrators
Hyper-realistic or suggestive? In high school, I was OBSESSED with drawing objects so accurately that the viewer might mistakenly try and lift them off the page. I liked certainty. This copy of a Clinique eyeliner ad was a case in point. While I was making this, I remember slicing my Staedler eraser […]
Paris in Muskoka
Originally published in August 2021 in Blog, Toronto Illustrators
Last week, we had the most delicious croissants, crêpes, and coffee from the food truck, Frenchie’s Bakery and Crêperie. You can find their truck parked on the sparkling shoreline of Huntsville inner harbour. You don’t go to Muskoka to leave it, but while the food was on our plates we WERE IN PARIS! We dedicate this drawing of the […]
A Stroll Through Allen Gardens
Originally published in August 2021 in Blog, Illustration, Toronto Illustrators
Goodbye, Instagram. Hello again, WordPress
Originally published in July 2021 in Blog
What? You didn’t hear the news? Instagram’s 3-column scrolling gallery loved by illustrators, photographers and influencers alike is going away. The very thing that makes Instagram unique — its square photo sharing feature (and filters) — is about to be wiped out and replaced by all video all the time. But why? you ask. […]
How I Drew This
Originally published in July 2021 in Blog, How to Draw, Illustration, Toronto Illustrators
Process Porn: I drew this landscape in the @Procreate app using the “Peppermint” pencil ✏️ (in the Brush Library under “Sketching”). Paul Cézanne was my guide. His angled brushstrokes had a consistent rhythm. They look like the wind blew them all in the same direction. I prefer Procreate’s pencil tools to it’s oil brushes (at […]
Coco and Diana
Originally published in March 2021 in Blog, Toronto Illustrators
Reading is my greatest joy. This exchange appeared in Amanda Mackenzie Stuart’s biography on Diana Vreeland called Empress of Fashion. Diana described the conversation in greater detail: “Coco [Chanel] was a nut on armholes. She never, ever got an armhole quite, quite perfect, the way she wanted it. She was always snipping and taking out […]
Life Drawing during Covid
Originally published in December 2020 in Blog, Toronto Illustrators
Dude throwing javelin Woman in fetal position Grizzled man hunched in deep thought I’ve pointed my drawing horse at all of these classic life drawing poses (back when it was possible to attend pay-as-you-go art classes). During Covid, to prevent rust buildup, I’ve sought out figure poses in Google image searches and YouTube channels, including […]
Why we love dogs
Originally published in November 2020 in Blog, Custom Portraits
I’m Lio and my mom asked Alison to draw me for my upcoming birthday. I’ll be one on December 19th. If I understand the family chatter correctly, I’ve helped everyone get through some ups and downs lately. Everyone keeps saying it’s bad out there, but I feel great. Nothing’s gonna get me down. Stick with me […]