Wow! It's been a long time. Where have I been? What have I been up to? It will probably take too long to go through all of that so let's just catch up to where I'm at now and what I'm doing right at this moment.

I'm still doing some freelance illustration here and there but my big new project that I recently launched is www.beerportraits.com
As you may have guessed, these paintings done with beer. The painting below is one of the first ones I completed for the new site. With each painting there is also an interview about the subject. Everyone I interview is someone connected to the world of craft beer. The interviews will range from brewery owners, brewers, chefs, musicians, farmers, illustrators and on and on.

The painting below is of Cleetus Friedman, Executive Chef, at Fountainhead Chicago. 

As I begin to wrap up freelance projects from the previous few months I will transition into working on this site full time. I'll be traveling to beer festivals throughout the summer and fall. I'll be interview new people every month.

Please keep an eye on www.beerportraits.com for future updates.


*Kablog will remain up for the time being but most of my current blogging will be on the new site.

Cheers!
Kyle

Come meet the creators of The Monster Weekly, August 6th, 2013 at The Grind Cafe in Lincoln Square!

Extraordinary Pair

This week's monster(s) posted up at the Monster Weekly were a lot of fun and I feel worth re-posting here. I veered off into a different direction inspired by the Excellent writing of John Francisco and Carolyn Defrin.

Click the link above to read the story.

Extraordinary Pair
9x14in
Watercolor on watercolor paper

Cheers,
K

Who are you?

Greetings!

I'm trying to find things to post here that haven't been posted yet on The Monster Weekly. Most of my recent work has been for New Holland Brewery and until the new beers come out I'm stuck keeping things under wraps.

This piece is a bit of a test. It's not too far off from a lot of stuff I've done before and it may not be perceptible to most but I've changed how I applied the paint to see what sorts of effects I could get. I'm not sure yet how I feel about this one but I'll probably do a few more in this style and with characters from Lewis Carroll's Alice universe (just to keep with a fun theme).

Caterpillar from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

Watercolor, ink and colored pencil on watercolor paper.


I'll probably make a few prints of this guy to sell at Spectrum Fantastic Art Live in May.


I've got a few other projects in the works that I should be able to talk about very soon. I'll try to get back to updating this thing a little more often.

MORE ART!!!

Cheers,
Kyle

Neglect or just busy?

Howdy,

I think I've been neglecting this blog (again) but I've also been super busy lately so I guess that's an okay excuse.

I can only post some sketches right now. I'm in the middle of a couple of big projects that will come out some time next year and I can't really say much about them right now.

While I waited for friend at a pub I drew one of the patrons sitting near the window. He had a bit of an elf quality and was sitting near some Christmas decorations that all seemed to fit together.

I drew this guy up right before I went to NYC back in the early fall but I don't think I ever posted it here. This was a test piece for a project I'd like to do but will probably sit on the back burner for awhile.

I'll try to post a few more things soon.

Cheers,
K

Pumpkin Beers in Chicago!

Hey hey,


Here is a quick poster illustration I did for my friends over at Fountainhead . It was a fun project to work on and I wish I could spent several more days fine tuning it but that's the way these things go sometimes.

If you're in Chicago on Monday, 10/29/12, stop by Fountainhead and have a drink with me. I'll be hanging out there all night.

From Fountainhead:

"Come celebrate our Second Annual Great Punk’n Party with us as we devote a night to all things Punk & Pumpkin! We will be playing Punk Rock all night while showing “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” on the TV, followed by other Halloween classics. We will be gravity pouring a couple pumpkin beers straight out of large pumpkins, both upstairs & down!We’ve  also purchased a lot of pumpkins for carving on our rooftop – come help us while supplies last! Pumpkin carving starts when the doors open at 4:00!"

1970 W. Montrose Ave.
Chicago, IL


Cheers,
Kyle

More monsters and a bit of news

Hey there folks,


The Monster Weekly is going strong with a new monster posted today. Please take a look, www.themonsterweekly.com and help spread the word. There will be a new monster and story every Monday!

I just wrapped up a couple of small projects and I'm getting ready to start a new batch of labels for New Holland Brewing. It looks like I'll be doing 5 new labels over the next couple of months. I'm excited to work with my favorite client again.



Cheers,
Kyle