STATION ZERO

I was  psyched when Light Grey Art Lab announced the call for artists for their Station Zero show. They had been working on amassing a collection of old sci-fi books from the 50s through the 70s and were looking for artists to reinterpret the covers.

I definitely wouldn't call myself a sci-fi buff. More a sci-fi admirer. When I opened up the package containing my book from Light Grey, I was excited to find the beauty pictured on the top left. Such a great cover already!

When I thought about what I like in great cover design, more often than not it is pretty clear, graphic and slightly quirky design. I liked the fun line of shapes under Leiber's name on the original cover and thought that creating vignettes on my cover using similar shapes could be a fun homage to the original design.

This cover turned into one of those cases where I work on it and keep adding things only to undo everything because it starts looking too cluttered. The book is actually comprised of four short stories. I thought four of the shaped vignettes would be an interesting concept to work with, one alluding to each of the stories. In the end, I simplified it down to two. One with the radar to hint at the government/technological aspects involved in the stories and one to hint at the barren landscape that permeates the book.

You can see photos from the show's opening last Friday on the Light Grey Art Lab blog. The show will be up for another few weeks so if you live in the Twin Cities area you should check it out! If not, the rest of the artwork can be viewed in their online gallery and prints are available from the shop. Thanks to the awesome folks at Light Grey Art Lab for including me in another one of their amazing shows!

SMARTY PLANTS

Light Grey Art Lab in Minneapolis have another great show opening this Friday that has been curated by Amy Ng of Pikaland! SMART featured a call for art that is clever, subtle, and thoughtful. Only a slightly daunting task....

I decided to apply figuring it would be a good challenge if I was accepted into the show (and also because Amy is awesome). I then proceeded to agonize over what I'd illustrate for weeks after being accepted into the show. Everything I thought of just seemed so contrived because I was thinking about it so hard. After flipping through some old sketchbooks I was finally inspired by a doodle I had done years ago. 

If you live in/near the Twin Cities, the opening reception is this Friday at 7! Prints are now available in their online shop.

I have to thank Lilly for the clever title of this illustration. Pun master.

Also, here is a silly doodle of how I imagine most participants in this show to have felt when they heard they made the cut...

POKEMON BATTLE ROYALE OPENING

I've had the Pokémon theme stuck in my head all weekend. The show opening was such a blast! The nice folks at Light Grey Art Lab let me snag a few photos from their flickr to share with you here. The Light Grey Art Lab team did a stellar job and the place was jam-packed. (There was even a line down the block before the doors opened!) It was a great event (the very best) and I'm so happy that I could be a part of it.

The online gallery is up now if you want to take a look at all 151 Pokémon. There are a few prints still for sale (including some of my Porygon).

1, 2, 3, and 7 from Light Grey Art Lab flickr
4, 5, 6 from my instagram

POKEMON BATTLE ROYALE

I was so excited when Alyssa and Bryan asked if I wanted to participate in the Pokémon Battle Royale show a few months ago. I haven't really kept up with any of the newer versions of Pokémon—or any of them, for that matter. For me, it is all about the 151 originals.

Despite the fact that I was complete rubbish at collecting the trading cards back in fourth grade, I have fond memories of watching Pokémon after school and hours spent playing Pokémon Snap. For those who don't know, Porygon is the only Pokémon that was created in a lab. It was only featured in one episode of the tv show because that episode just happened to cause almost 700 kids in Japan to have seizures (even though it was Pikachu that caused the seizures, not Porygon!). So, I thought Porygon deserved a little love.

The Pokémon Battle Royale brings together a list of 151 stellar artists who have all put their own spin on one of the original 151 Pokémon. If you live in/near Minneapolis you should check out the show opening tonight at Light Grey Art Lab! More details here. (It's going to be the very best).

SNEAK PEEK—PORYGON

I mentioned a little while back that I was participating in the Pokémon Battle Royale show at Light Grey Art Lab next month. The show paired up 151 illustrators with the 151 original Pokémon and I chose #137–Porygon. The show opens on April 20 in Minneapolis, so if you live in the area please feel free to come and revel with other Pokémon nerds! Chelsey and I will be driving up from Milwaukee for the opening. I finished up my piece over the weekend and wanted to share a little teaser. I'll post another update next week with a few more details.

P.S. Light Grey Art Lab currently has a Kickstarter going to raise funds to add a computer lab to their space for teaching art and design classes. It's a great space run by some amazing and talented people, just sayin'. If you're interested in learning more or backing them you can do so right here. 

Pokemon Battle Royale

As a child of the 90s, Pokémon was a big deal in my adolescent life. Which is why I am super psyched to announce that I will be participating in the Pokémon Battle Royale show this April at Light Grey Art Lab in Minneapolis! 151 artists illustrating the 151 original Pokémon. There is a stellar list of artists participating in this show (including my pals Chelsey and Kaycie!) and you can check out the full list right here along with the Pokémon they are illustrating. I'll be illustrating #137–Porygon.

Let's do this thang

Keep your eyes peeled here for a few Poké-related updates in the future and if you live in near Minneapolis come and check out the show opening on April 20! It's going to be the best that ever was.

Banner illustration by Alyssa Nassner