Monster Attack!

Alien Brainbot 1 & 2 (stacked)

A year ago I was commissioned by my friend Derek Muscat at Theocy Design to illustrate a pair of "Big Monster Attacks" for decks he was preparing for Drake Snowboards. One image would showcase the "creature" and the other a montage of comic style panels depicting the devastation. I drew up a multitude of sketches for each concept and would have been happy to finalize any one of them. The final artwork was done in ink on heavy paper and coloured digitally. After the job was submitted I took some time to revisit both images, altering the layout, expanding the palette and textures, and adding all the lettering.

Below are my three favourite sketches from the concepts submitted as well as a couple of photos I took along the way.

Sketches | Process | Product

The Thing

The Thing | Commission

The Thing is an 11"x17" ink drawing, coloured digitally.  The piece was done for Joe Kilmartin, a knowledgeable comics and pulp culture enthusiast of The Comic Book Lounge and once upon a time, Dragonlady Comics in Toronto.  I have enjoyed frequenting Joe's College Street shops for many years.

The Thing | Sketch | Inks  | Digital Colour

One of my favourite Marvel characters, The Thing, has always been a popular choice when sketching at conventions or warming up at home.

I'd done a rough of Mr. Grimm twisting up a lamp post, an element that may still end up in this image as an overlay.  The copy(text) in the top image was all lifted from different sources (a couple of Kirby Pin-ups mostly) and modified.

Scorched: 2013 Subaru BRZ

Scorched | Storyboard Art (abbreviated)

Here are some fragments of frames to a storyboard I created for a very stylish video directed by Common Good (for DDB) to introduce the new Subaru BRZ.

Scorched | Common Good | Subaru Canada

My thanks to Jamie, Eric and Dwight for inviting me to the table on this one. The guys were a pleasure to work with and the spot looks great!

To see more work by the awesome gang at Common Good check out CommonGood.tv.

Cineplex: Escape From This World

Escape From This World (Round 1, colour storyboard art) | Spy Films | Cineplex

About a year ago I was engaged to produce a series of colour frames to support a concept being developed by Director Arev Manoukian and Producer Markus Trulli at Spy Films. Their idea was to create a parallel between the evolution of flight and the technological advances in film and cinema over the last century. A spot which would ultimately serve as the new Cineplex opening and play before every movie nation-wide.

Escape From This World | Storyboard Art Round 2 (Fragments, abbreviated)

We expanded on the initial boards with dozens of black and white drawings, exploring camera moves and designing a multitude of sequences. Keeping in mind that the choreography of the evolving aircrafts would happen alongside advancements in the audio and visual presentation we also looked for opportunities that would best showcase the use of 3D technology.

Escape From This World (2D video) | Spy Films | Dashing | Cineplex

Arev's vision was crystal clear from the beginning, and how faithfully the amazingly talented visual effects team at Dashing Collective brought the storyboard to life is a testament to that. I can't forget to mention that the final 40 second film is entirely CGI.  Congratulations to all involved! And special thanks to Arev and Marcus for bringing me on board for preproduction.

For a more in-depth look behind the scenes at the making of this short film visit Cineplex.com.  If you keep your eyes peeled you may even catch a glimpse of yours truly wearing a toque and dark glasses;)

To see more work by Director Arev Manoukian check out his reel at Spy Films.

The good folks at Dashing have also put together a write up about this project discussing some of it's more technical aspects. You can find that at Dashing.tv.

Do You See What I See?

Do You See What I See | A Holiday Card (unfolded, front and back showing)

Another Christmas card! 

Each folded card measures about 4.5x6.25"(31cm x 11cm unfolded)

5 cards for $20+shipping. Red, pink or blue envelopes are included.

To purchase this card email me at, ap@alexanderperkins.com Subject: Do You See What I See?

The broken white line does not appear on the printed cards.  Just here as a guide to show where the card is folded. 

Do you See What I See | Holiday Card | Detail (front and back) 

Do you See What I See | without copy

Sketches | Process

Some of the sketches and trials that went into this illustration.  At the bottom right corner you can see the sketch of an elf that didn't make the cut along with a few different outfits for St. Nick. 

Season's Beatings

Season's Beatings | A Holiday Card (unfolded, front and back showing)

I had a lot of fun putting this together. From the character design to how the greeting is revealed when the card is unfolded, there were soo many possibilities. Expect many more like this! 

Each folded card measures about 4.5x6.25"(31cm x 11cm unfolded) 

5 cards for $20+shipping. Brown or black envelopes included. 

To purchase this card email me at, ap@alexanderperkins.com. Subject: Season's Beatings 

Also, the broken white line does not appear on the printed cards.  Just used it here as a guide to show where the card is folded.

Season's Beatings | Holiday Card | Detail (front and back)

Season's Beatings | without copy

Makes a pretty haunting illustration without any words too!

Santa | Sketch | Detail

The scribble that started this illustration.  

Happy Birthday Mom!

Happy Birthday Mom | A card for my mom

I've got a great mom. This is a card I put together for her a year ago. I decided to give her a year to enjoy it all to herself before I shared it online.  Maybe you'll see this year's card a year from now ;)

  

A card for my mom | Sketch | Detail

The cartoony likeness is from memory and wasn't hard to do.  My mother has made appearances in a lot of my commercial work and storyboards over the years.  The line work is drawn in pencil and the colour was added digitally with textures I'd painted in acrylic. The background is a paint by number I made of photo from an old family vacation.  I had my sister do the first pass but she was much too careful so I jumped back in to mess it up a little. Thanks for your help Claire!

The Dark Knight

Dark Knight now in colour! | Personal Work

This one's from waaay back! (1999)
At the time I had a few pages planned out and a couple more pencilled an inked. Somewhere along the way I lost interest,(maybe when I realized I hadn't left any room for speech balloons) but always thought this page was kinda neat. A little Frank Miller, a little Mike Mignola and a little bit Kevin O'Neill...  When I came across these drawings I thought it would be fun to revisit this piece with a quick colour job and post it in celebration of the new Batman flick.

Detail | Sketches

Along with the comic pages I found some other small drawings in the old sketchbook.

The Scarlet Witch

Scarlet Witch | Commission

The Scarlet Witch is an 11"x17" ink drawing, coloured digitally along with some additional hand made textures.  This piece was commissioned by Doug Simpson, manager at Paradise Comics in Toronto and an Avengers super-fan.
  

Scarlet Witch | Inks | Digital Colour  | Sketches

For more than a decade Doug has commissioned drawings of his favourite members of the Marvel Comics super team, including Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Ant-man, The Vision and Hawkeye.  Many of these drawings became promotional material for local comic book conventions.

This is the second Scarlet Witch I've drawn for Doug;)  Thanks for keeping me busy!

Up a Tree

Lion | Personal Work

This proud beast is painted in acrylic on illustration board and measures ~8" x 10".  It is available as a signed giclee print limited to one-hundred units and costs $60+shipping.  It also makes a swell  4.5"x 6" card!

Lion | Sketches | Detail | Wallpaper(1920x1080) 

There are a few more lion sketches leading up to the painting that I'll post as I scan them. 

Also, check out other products featuring this illustration now available at Society6. 

Happy Splashing

Zebra | Personal Work

The zebra is a beast that had been on my hit list for a long time.  This guy's been painted in acrylic on illustration board.  The painted area is only 5.1/8" in diameter (just a tiny bit bigger than it is displayed here).  The initial sketch I went with was even smaller.  I have it available as a 4.5"x6" greeting card and a small print, and will look into making buttons and coasters and other round things with it too.  I like the cheerfulness of the image, to me this zebra looks happy and refreshed.  I thought the water turned out pretty cool too.

Zebra | Painting on Board | Pencil Sketch

Something else I like about this little guy is that he reminds me of my parent's dog Mac. One of the happiest creatures on four legs, and my little brother.

Kick-Ass Annie

My Kick-Ass Annie | Commission for Anne Koyama of Koyama Press

I was thrilled when Annie asked me to contribute to her growing collection of amazing commissions, and did my best to create an interpretation of her icon/logo that would stand out in good company.  Be sure to check out the other fantastic "Kick-Ass Annie's" she's collected over the years as well as a ton of great books, comics and more at Koyama Press!

Kick-Ass Annie | Sketch and Detail

Like the cover to Kill Shakespeare this piece was originally conceived as a sketch and then worked over in photoshop incorporating hand drawn and painted elements.

New Work

Tyrannosaurus Rex | Personal Work

Creating a series of Big Lizard paintings has been on my list of personal projects for a long time. Due in no small part to my years hanging around the museum as a kid or the posters that wrapped my bedroom walls growing up. To kick things off I started with the tyrannosaurus because he's the king, and easily the most famous. Check out Portfolio 2 for a larger image of the Tyrannosaurus and expect more dinos in the coming months.

Tyrannosaurus Rex | Process & Detail | acrylic paint on illustration board ~12 x 18"
Fo signed archival prints please contact me directly.  For other prints, products and apparel please visit Society6.

More apes, and more Heston!

A few things from the Planet of the Apes | Personal

The third image in this posting is a photograph of a sculpture. The 15" figure dubbed "Heston" was created by the amazingly talented Alex Avelino and based on my designs in the painting above it. Alex A. does awesome work and there are many more collaborations like this one to come...

Inspiring stuff Avelino!

A Personal Favourite

Castro | Personal

In a few weeks I will be adding a fourth portfolio to showcase some of my looser more experimental stuff, like this portrait of Fidel Castro. It's also some of my favourite work.

SUPES!

Supes! | Personal

Here's a warm up sketch for a project I'm proud to be a part of celebrating Superman's 70th anniversary next month. Not sure how I'll approach the final work yet. More on this later...