Holidays... merry, bright, all that biz.

       They're here, they're here! Get your santa hat, break out your credit cards, and eat waaaay too much! That's what we're getting ready to do this weekend. Martha's parents AND my parents are coming to Chicago to get their thanksgiving on... it's going to be cuh-razy. Also, I'm starting up the portrait promotions to make some nice gifts/extra holiday cash. Let me know if anyone needs some drawing done! I'll never stop being amazed by how excited people get when they realize I do animals as well. Draw them, that is. 

       Email me at benrum@gmail.com for price queries and deadlines.

The Puppet Business

       In college, in an acting I class, I met a man named Paul Santos. It's because of Paul that I've become so undeniably involved with puppets. When I lived in Lawrence, I was working side-by-side with Paul on his reason for being: The Felt Show. Our friendship hinged on his paying me to make puppets. His adamance for deadlines and my (then) predilection to procrastinate almost derailed what friendship we had, in those early days. Now, though, we get along like elephants and dandelions... which is, I assume, really well. We stay in touch as friends and as coworkers, since Martha and I moved up to Chicago. I miss working with Paul firsthand, and I miss puppeteering, from time to time, but the man keeps me in projects, like these below. I sill make the puppets, and I'll post some pictures of them

 sometime. For now, my favorite fliers.

       This election day poster is my very favorite that I've ever done. A lot of time was spent in photoshop, aging this baby up... and people really liked the result, according to Paul. That's how I end almost all of my statements: According to Paul. Not really.

       Until the election poster, this was my favorite, if for no other reason than because I'm a nerd. It was really fun drawing a few of my puppets into the classic star wars poses. And asking a trash can to stand in for R2 is always funny to me.

       Paul has the good ideas. Our flier designs are almost always hashed out in one discussion over the phone. Paul says he needs a flier for this date or that, and we start talking themes. This show was a musical, or at least music heavy, show, so we talked album covers for maybe ten minutes, and agreed on this fine looking spoof.

       The College Sucks flier was one of the first ones that I really got into, on the illustration side. Before this, the drawings were fine, if not a little bland, but this one signified the shift between drawings and illustrations. At least it did, to me. Oh yeah, and, According to Paul.

It's no great pumpkin... but it'll do.

       Let's start this thing right. We got a LOT of attention on the bus last night!

       The people who know me best could tell you, or, I guess I can tell you, as I'm the one writing... I take Hallowe'en very seriously. I love (almost) all things spooky, creepy and macabre. More than anything, I like the dressing up part! Over the years I've built up the expectations of my friends and family with my passion for making a better costume than the year before. This year, I did pretty good, I think. We'll start with the sketch:

       I dove right in after working out the details on paper, and, as always, had to make a LOT of changes and sacrifices along the way. Rather than take up line after line with detailed description of my long quest of fleece and foam, I'll just hit you with a work collage to summarize.

       And then I became THIS BEAST! It's a little warm in there, but, lucky for me, it was plenty chilly outside this weekend.

       Here's a better shot of my fine-looking tail. 

      I included this one because it's a funny shot.  Happy Hallowe'en!

A Handful of Illustrations

       Below are a few things I've drummed in the last year or so. I uncovered a folder today in a very ambitious moment of tidying up, and thought them fit to share. Everything here is ink and watercolor... with maybe some pencil showing through.

I want to be a funny booker.

       From a young age, I thought I would draw comic books, as a grown up. Now, here I am doing little jobs here and there, no big artistic career moves, aside from shows and a regular influx of jobs every holiday season. It's all I can do in between these high points of productivity to fuel the artistic oven... and I think I'm reverting to my childish ways and grasping at the straws of past comfort zones, because lately... ALL I WANT IS TO WORK IN COMICS! So the thirst is there, that's a good thing, but I'm dry on material and practice. So, for this week at least, that's the plan... brush up on my comic book skills and get my ass HIRED! Here's the practice I put in today. 

       And here is a closer look:

       The big guy looks like a doofus, but that's the idea. And if the kid looks like a terribly annoying little twerp, then I've done my job. These are some characters I'm kicking around for a short graphic novel idea. I'm trying my damnedest to look like a professional here, so let me know what you think.

Too Much Time On My Hands

       Well, for those of you waiting in suspense, my show and Andersonville Arts Weekend as a whole went really well. 

       I sold a painting to someone I respect but don't know very well, which is a good combination. In my mind, it means he actually likes my work enough to buy it for his own reasons, not just to support me or as a very generous compliment. 

       I know that's probably not the case, but when someone close to me either commissions or straight-up buys one of my pieces, the thought always crosses my mind. Here's an example of that situation. 

       Granted, I know Laura really likes Superman, so it's not that hard to believe that she would actually want the painting.    

   

       The opening was a lot of good fun with some friends and a lot of nice strangers. Some of the families I work with were gracious enough to come out and see the show, and one of my favorite five year olds in the world described it in a whisper as "one of the greatest things I'd ever seen." In my book, that's a good review. Below are some better shots of the paintings as presented in the show. 

       This one will serve as a shameless means of getting a picture of me in here. All of the others were taken at the close of the evening, and I had been thoroughly be-sodden with wine, and had become understandably less respectable looking. And I like how productive I look here. 

Now It's ON!

      It's getting down to 'crunch-time' regarding my upcoming show. As part of the Arts Weekend, I'm confident that there will be no shortage of meandering strangers to come accross my portion of the show, but just to play it safe, I'm sending a few of those massive e-vites. Here's what I came up with.

       If your a Chicago reader (pun!), feel free to swing by and see the show. There'll be wine, snacks and good conversation to ease into. Hope to see you there!