Where ideas spring to life
This illustration of Gunther’s Ice Cream Shop at the corner of Franklin and 3rd Avenue in Sacramento, California, accompanied the article “Modern Classics” in the December-January 2018 issue of Sactown Magazine. Perched atop this iconic Mid-Century Modern gem dating to 1949, “Juggling’ Joe” lights up the night sky in neon and invites residents and visitors alike to satisfy their sweet tooth by the cup or the cone.
Are you Lord of the Dance or a Warrior? King Pigeon or Half-camel? With these illustrations in my Yoga series, I wanted to depict the grace and serenity — as well as fitness and flexibility — required for various yoga poses, with a touch of retro style.
Ūrdhva mukha śvānāsan, Upward Facing Dog Pose
Ashwa Sanchalanasana, Low Lunge Pose
Viparita Prapada Dhanurasana, Inverted Tiptoe Bow Pose
Chakrasana, Urdva Dhanurasana, Upward-Facing Bow Pose
Virabhadrasana I, Warrior 1 Pose
Ardha Ustrasana, Half-camel Pose
Raja Kapotasana, King Pigeon Pose
Ganda Bherundasana, Formidable Face Pose
Natarajasana, Lord of the Dance Pose
Austin-based keyboardist Basil McJagger commissioned an original illustration for a CD cover for his musical act The Basil Trio, with him on the Hammond organ, a guitarist and a drummer. Like me, he appreciates Mid-Century Modern style, and he was looking for a retro-inspired image that would evoke the early 1960s and portray the groovy vibe and cool stylings of his music. I chose a harmonious color palette of verdigris and various sepia shades and subtly incorporated basil leaves in the admiring fan’s cocktail.
Also from my “Rock Art” series is a triptych entitled “Mid-Century Modern Entertainment” that visually brings to life three songs: Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven,” The Hollies’ “Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress,” and Van Morrison’s “Moondance.”
Unwilling to bid adieu to the Mid-Century Modern visual aesthetic that I love so much, I was intrigued by the idea of extending those design motifs another decade to songs from the early 1970s. I also wanted to explore merging three individual songs into one scene, in this case of a nightclub.
Stairway to Heaven
Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress
Moondance
Another work from my “Rock Art” series is a triptych entitled “Psychedelic Beach” that visually brings to life three emblematic, feel-good rock songs from 1966: The Monkees’ “I’m a Believer,” The Beatles’ “Tomorrow Never Knows” and the Beach Boys’ “Good Vibrations.” In this trio of illustrations, I wanted to continue my exploration of merging three individual songs into one scene, as I did a few years ago in a triptych depicting a nightclub scene.
The visual treatment for this triptych was inspired by 1960s pop culture, beach party movies and poster art from the San Francisco Bay Area. I also drew inspiration from social trends emerging at the time, including the second wave of the feminist movement, peace activism, the concept of the Age of Aquarius, and hippie and psychedelic culture.
I’m a Believer
Tomorrow Never Knows
Good Vibrations
This design of a super-cool hipster soybean cartoon character celebrates healthy virtues with a whimsical Spanglish play on words. “Soy” means “I am” in Spanish and the word “cool,” obviously, transcends language, as does the fun retro styling we love so much. What’s more fun than a versatile vegetable with a Vespa?
These two illustrations are partially inspired by Huichol spiritual beliefs and legends, with important symbols reimagined in a harmonic pattern.
Spirit Guides
Spirit guides (represented in this design by the half-man/half-deer figures) are intermediaries between the spiritual world and the human world. They appear in dreams and visions to Huichol shamans (mara’akame), who follow their spirit guides and serve as ambassadors to the gods for humans.
Creating Daylight
One Huichol legend tells the story of how daylight was created (several variations exist, but I was inspired by the version related by Ronald A. Barnett in the e-magazine Mexconnect). When people realized that fire alone could not illuminate the world, they chose a magical boy to help them create daylight. The boy played a game with a hoop and arrow that made the Sun God appear, but he was too close to the Earth and burned everything. The snake people then flew up to the sky and tried to eat the sun, but that did not help. So the people implored Great-grandfather Nakawe to raise the sun. He asked the four cardinal directions to help him lift the sun. As he did so, he asked the people where they wanted the sun, and when at last they were happy, he secured the sun so that it would stay at that elevation forever, giving them light without burning them.