adi's illos

2012 Sticky Zine fair

2012-02-08T01:52:00.000-08:00

It's time for the annual Sticky Zine Fair at Melbourne Town Hall this Sunday and I'll be doing a little stall of my zines, artworks and buy-ables! Come on down, say hi, buy some awesome stuff and check out all sorts of terrific local inky talent.

12-5pm, Sunday 12 February, Melbourne Town Hall, Swanson Street.

Illustrators Australia 9x5 show 2011

2011-10-06T16:32:00.001-07:00

Night tree house

2011-07-29T23:05:00.000-07:00

Illustrators Australia A3 show

2011-06-08T20:45:00.000-07:00

It’s on again! Last year’s Illustrators Australia’s A3 Print Show was packed with excellent art, and this year is no different.

If you’re in Melbourne this month, please visit the gallery at the Northcote Town Hall and nab a high quality print at a good price.

You can also view them online here: www.illustratorsaustralia.com/events/2011_a3_show but the quality of the web images doesn’t compare to the ones in the exhibition.

I have a couple of pieces in there… Night Treehouse and Summer leaves

Hopefully it will be travelling to Sydney later in the year. Watch this space!

My baby rant blog is making a giant leap onto the page!

2011-02-24T12:04:00.001-08:00

My baby rant blog is making a giant leap onto the page!

The first in a series of three books, Into the Egg. is back from the printer and is available NOW! Into the Egg starts from the beginning of the story up until Leo's birth, and has some added material and useful links at the back.

Printed on 100% recycled paper and including postage. Support home-grown comics today! Tell your friends. Click here to buy.

Light vs line: a series of photographic portraits of Australian alternative comic artists

2011-02-13T14:49:00.000-08:00

I am part of Anna Brown's project 'light vs line': a series of photographic portraits of Australian alternative comic artists, taken by Anna Brown. Each portrait is paired with an illustrated self portrait by the subject.

It's an awesome project and although it is being rolled out online for the moment, Anna plans to exhibit us in the flesh in the future!

Rolling Stone Awards 2011 - Julian Assange Illo

2011-01-29T18:04:00.000-08:00

I was commissioned along with 10 other illustrators to do an illustrated portrait of each of the category winners for this year's awards. As well as appearing in the magazine, prints of the illustrations are being auctioned for charity. Right on!

Illustrators Australia Annual 9x5 show

2010-09-15T21:02:00.000-07:00

This work The tree house that never was sold in the IA Annual 9x5 show on Friday 17 September. Always a great night!

Ukelele madness - MUF 2010

2010-02-25T15:18:00.000-08:00

I have hand painted a ukelele as part of the 2010 Melbourne Ukelele Festival.

An Exhibition of custom painted ukuleles opens this weekend as part of the first ever Melbourne Ukulele Festival (MUF). The exhibition features Melbourne artists and illustrators .

The exhibition goes from Friday 26 February and has been extended to Wednesday 10 March at 303 located 303 High Street, Northcote.

2010-02-08T18:04:00.000-08:00

Illustrators Australia 9x5 show

2009-10-12T17:05:00.000-07:00

My work '20 cockatoos' sold at the recent Illustrators Australia 9x5 show which i'm really happy about. The standard this year was excellent! This year's theme was 20 to coincide with IA's 20th anniversary, and yielded some great ideas.
See more illustrators here:
http://www.illustratorsaustralia.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=126&Itemid=76

Illustration Friday: WRAPPED

2009-08-15T01:02:00.000-07:00

Things wrapped in things
(are the best things in the word)

Illustration Friday – FOLD

2009-06-12T23:48:00.001-07:00

Monster Maintenance Manual

2009-05-13T01:53:00.000-07:00

These illustrations are for a competition being run my murdoch books to illustrate their upcoming book 'Monster Maintenance Manual'. The winning illustrator must draw 70 monsters, so simplicity of characters and rendering is essential.

Comic work featured on The Design Files

2009-01-08T14:00:00.000-08:00

One of my comics was featured last week in the Melbourne mega-blog, The Design Files.
Check it out here! The story was about Tango 8, an awesome home-grown comic anthology that myself and a truckload of other inky talent contributed to.

The Golden Bird

2008-10-06T02:49:00.000-07:00

An illustration to accompany a review of the new collection of poet Robert Adamson's work in Coast magazine.

Clutter: ordering the disorder

2008-09-10T18:43:00.000-07:00

I have been stupidly busy at work and my desk has rapidly been becoming a bomb site. I thought i'd give myself the challenge of drawing it from memory, in a strange way, ordering the disorder. Sadly, the illustration looks a lot neater than the actual chaos.

treehouse

2008-09-01T00:32:00.000-07:00

Friday archives

2008-08-08T19:04:00.000-07:00

I've had this image sitting on my desktop for months. It brings a smile to my face every time.
The horse is obviously quite accustomed to Vogue photographers.

The Friday Archives

2008-08-02T17:16:00.000-07:00

I've decided that I'm going to start contributing something to The Friday Archives - a great idea from Loobylu . I often look to my old sketchbooks and diaries when i need inspiration - it can be good to revisit old ideas that were never realised.

This week i've posted a random comic from 2004 that i drew after I'd been living in London for a few months.

2008-08-02T16:16:00.000-07:00

As discussed with Claire, here's a simple 6 frame comic about the dumn stuff that kids do.
I'm gonna tag some folks and hope they can step up and do the same. I tag Ord, Claire, Amber and Vanessa

You probably know the deal already... no pencils, no planning, no computer, just you brain straight onto paper. Then scan and publish! Hoorah!

poof!

2008-08-01T17:08:00.001-07:00

babywarming

2008-07-20T01:45:00.001-07:00

i thought i should share the deep cheesiness of these illustrations i've done for tom and katie's babywarming..... doing straight-out cute stuff makes me faintly nauseous. but their bub, peggy pearl, is cute as a button and charming to boot, so what the hell!

enough

2008-07-19T03:27:00.000-07:00

10 years ago comic meme

2008-07-16T05:03:00.000-07:00

This posting is in response to being tagged by amber. (a little while ago, mind, i've been a little slack.) This was the general idea of what to do...

Back to basics comic meme

Draw a ten panel comic about what you were doing ten years ago. Put pen straight to paper - no pencil, no computer, no planning, no starting again if you make a mistake. Simply draw, scan, publish. Tag some people who you'd like to see do the meme too. Oh and if you want to do it even if you haven't been tagged you are most welcome!

To complete the circle I tag Claire, Sarah, Willie Baronet Anthony and Sarah Firth

PMS 153 & 476 part 2

2008-04-16T02:51:00.000-07:00

Csn't get enough of working in two colour!
Another one for Edition magazine.

PMS 153 & 476

2008-04-12T20:00:00.000-07:00

The joy of a 2 colour illustration. This is a submission to Edition Magazine issue 3

A month of rehab

2008-04-07T02:58:00.000-07:00

All through February I was involved in a drawing project called Comic Artist rehab. You can see the results here.

Comic Artist Rehab

2008-03-09T16:58:00.000-07:00

I'm currently involved in a project called Comic Artist Rehab with for other 'lapsed' illustrator/catoonist types. The deal is we have to post a 4 panel comic every 4 days for a month.
You can check out the results here:

http://comicrehab.wordpress.com/

Illustration Friday: Multiple

2008-02-22T16:40:00.000-08:00

Behatted

2007-10-25T22:38:00.000-07:00

And now for something completely different, here is a hat a made recently, modelled by it's lovely owner, Noah.

IF: Extremes OR Queen Bitch

2007-10-15T04:21:00.000-07:00

No doubt all hot-blooded ladies will understand what i'm getting at.
Great theme this week. Lots of excellent ideas!

Illustration Friday: OPEN

2007-10-08T16:48:00.001-07:00

Eyes and ears OPEN!

The Blues: Part 2

2007-09-30T05:21:00.000-07:00

When one post is just not enough. Jon Spencer. aw yeah.

Illustration Friday: The Blues

2007-09-28T18:34:00.001-07:00

So, if I could channel Ray Charles, Tom Waits and Ella, it would probably look a little somethin' like this.

I've got a sore drawing paw today so this is pretty scrappy.

Alphabetti spaghetti

2007-09-02T21:51:00.000-07:00

Sorry, I almost completely forgot about s, which is ridiculous as so many great things begin with it: spaghetti, sea, slint, swervedriver, sebadoh, sicily, sardinia, sunshine, soul, sleep, seduction, silliness, salami, sausages, sauerkraut, swimming, snuggling, scott (walker) etc. duh!

Poem

2007-07-22T01:05:00.000-07:00

Illustration Friday: Discovery

2007-07-15T00:43:00.000-07:00

Space! The final frontier! A voyage of discovery and adventure...etc. etc.

I made a nice little discovery of my own with this illustration this evening. It was initially a line drawing, which I coloured, but then i turned off that layer by accident and liked what i saw underneath. I get really sick of my lines sometimes.

Twist

2007-07-01T04:06:00.001-07:00

I had quite a few ideas for this week's topic. I settled on drawing the fabulous twisted roots of a morton bay fig tree. I've always been obsessed with these graceful giants and their sinuous roots and hair-like tendrils. I also attached a pic of my mum getting excited about the very same tree.

The elephants were another idea I thought I'd include:

Regret

2007-06-16T20:12:00.000-07:00

Illustration Friday topic this week is regret.
I particularly like the gloomy billowing clouds of smoke.

Illustration Friday: My paradise

2007-06-04T20:27:00.000-07:00

Finally some time to draw and post something!
This week's illustration topic seems terribly cheesy- i'm not really sure why. But i got an nice image out of it, which is all that matters. This place could be anywhere but i was thinking of a spot on the Southern NSW Coast in the Mimosa Rocks NP, and also, right on the other side of the world, a spot called Mikri Vigla on the island of Naxos in the Aegean.

illustration Friday: Green

2007-04-07T04:40:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking about birch trees since reading a beautiful story by Tony D'Souza called The Man Who Married a Tree (seek it out, read it and weep. it is published in McSweeney's Issue 20). Unfortunately birches are few and far between in Australia so I couldn't get a live model.

Whilst on the subject of green... this is a picture of regrowth after a massive bushfire that ripped through the Alpine National Park in Victoria in late 2006. The leaves and trunks are still obviously burnt but the green fuzz is all new foliage... so vivid. I took this 2 days ago whilst on a camping trip.

Wilson's Prom walk

2007-03-27T02:53:00.000-07:00

I don't usually post photos on here, but here's two from an epic walk/camp we did at the Wilsons Prom NP on the weekend. There was an epic storm and we got soaked to the skin. Such a beautiful place.

Illustration Friday: Hide

2007-03-06T03:03:00.000-08:00

For this weeks theme i started thinking about animal hide and leather. And somehow i ended up with this bull wearing a Elvis '68 comeback special stylee leather outfit.
Man i love ink!

Illustration Friday: Communication

2007-02-23T17:27:00.000-08:00

Not mushroom in here!

2007-02-19T02:35:00.000-08:00

These were a few of the really pretty ones from a gorgeous encyclopaedia of mushrooms i've been looking at.
As my friend Katie said, bless all those folk that died in order to find out which ones are edible and which are organ-petrifyingly toxic.

Illustration Friday: Gravity

2007-02-19T02:16:00.000-08:00

Falling rabbit.
I couldn't help myself. It was the first thing that came to mind.

Illustration Friday: Sprout

2007-02-07T14:24:00.000-08:00

Crunchy 'n green!

Illustration Friday: Buzz

2007-01-11T14:42:00.000-08:00

Sheesh, almost a week late. I've had this idea sitting around all week, was just to lazy to post it. Bad form!
Is is just us Aussies who call a shaved head a 'buzz cut' or is it everyone else too?

IF: Mask/I got pink-eye!

2006-12-11T00:04:00.000-08:00

This seemed strangely appropriate to this weeks theme. I managed to get conjuntivitis on the weekend. It's bloody horrible. I look at myself in the mirror and what looks back is an extra from a zombie film. I was sitting on the train this morning and people were staring... it doesn't feel like me.

Illustration Friday: Might

2006-12-02T14:14:00.000-08:00

Possibilities. Hopes. Impossibilities. Expectations.
I spend a lot of time thinking and talking about what might happen, what I might do.

Illustration Friday: Invention

2006-11-28T13:34:00.000-08:00

PP brought around a Tom Brousseau album on the weekend which I've been listening to constantly, 'Empty Houses are Lonely'. This illo was absent mindedly doodled whilst swooning to it.

Birthday beer

2006-11-25T14:18:00.000-08:00

This is a customised birthday beer label I drew yesterday. I've been meaning to do this for ages. It's pretty dodgey but I'm happy I've done it. Now all i need to do is soak the labels of a few bottles of Cooper's and I'm away.....

Illustration Friday: Smoke

2006-11-03T18:28:00.001-08:00

Like most ex-smokers I am particularily good at justifying my (very occasional) lapses. Pretty lame really.

IF: Wind

2006-10-30T22:50:00.000-08:00

I cheated.
This is a bit of a sideways interpretation: mainly because I wanted to have a go at the Owl and the Pussycat. I need to spend more time on this... i did it in a bit of a rush – but here it is. The colours are coming out particularly weird.... oh well.

Hooray for Shaun Tan

2006-10-24T23:50:00.000-07:00

Raj and I went to Dymock's yesterday where Shaun Tan was doing a book signing. I got a copy of his new book 'The Arrival' signed as well as a copy of 'The Rabbits' (oh how I love that book). He drew a little piccy in there for me an everything! It was really great to hear him talk about the process behind his work and all the ups and downs. He is so inspiring!

The pics below are from the new book. More info can be found on the Shan Tan link to the right. Check it out, he's the best! And an Aussie to boot. Yay!

Orange & Black '06

2006-10-24T23:41:00.000-07:00

This is my submission for Penelope's Orange and Black Halloween competition.
Unfortunately noone really celebrates Halloween in Australia, and the weather here is heading into summer, so it's certainly not harvest time. So a lot of the classic European and American imagery is meaningless over here (pumpkins etc.)

I tried to come up with something suitably sombre without being to clichéd. Any excuse to put a cat in!

Illustration Friday: Ghost

2006-10-22T03:16:00.000-07:00

I was looking up 'ghost in a reference book at work and came across this (part of a) wonderful poem:

In homes, a haunted apparatus sleeps,
that snores when you pick it up.

If the ghost cries, they carry it
to their lips and soothe it to sleep

with sounds. And yet they wake it up
deliberately, by tickling with a finger.

Craig Raine, 'A Martin sends a postcard home' (1979)

Illustration Friday: Smitten

2006-10-14T08:13:00.000-07:00

Trying to capture that feeling....

Illustration Friday: Trouble (or – me on the tram this afternoon)

2006-10-09T03:34:00.000-07:00

Trouble is when i get angry.
I'm bloody intolerable.

Beautiful!

2006-10-04T16:56:00.000-07:00

This is the most lovely thing I've seen in ages (the front page logo illustration). Just had to share!

Studio of the Month

Illustration Friday: Quiet

2006-10-02T03:40:00.000-07:00

This image came to me in bed last night: I dig those crazy birds that sing in the dead of the night when it's almost too quiet. There always seems to be one in every neighbourhood I live in. I'm not quite sure whether they are genuinely mad or just really happy.

Illustration Friday: Phobia

2006-09-26T04:36:00.000-07:00

Personally, I'm not really scared of spiders, they just make me a little jumpy. But some for some people just can't cope with the mention of a spider. A dear male friend of mine squealed like a girl and nearly jumped onto my lap in the cinema when that bit with Shelob in LOTR came on. Another lad I know won't park his car under trees 'unless spiders jump onto the car'.

But instead of criticising others phobias maybe i should be illustrating my own? Will post if time!

The hut that Tim built

2006-09-21T01:56:00.000-07:00

Spent the weekend up at Tim's block at Sawmill Settlement, near Mount Buller. He's been building a little hut over the past few months, it's really neat, and he is deservedly very proud!! Alex joined us too and we spent Sunday mixing, laying and smoothing the concrete floor. What a great little project to be involved in. I can't wait to stay in it when it's done, Tim is putting the walls in next week. I love the bush in that part of the world, so peaceful. The magpie decided to leave it's mark and left footprints through the wet cement... cheeky!

Illustration Friday: Change

2006-09-15T17:25:00.000-07:00

A very quick one today, better than nothing: I haven't posted on IF for weeks and have been missing it!
This is a great topic, my head is full of ideas, but I'm about to go up the mountains for the weekend so this will do for now.
I like werewolves! Especially Wolverine. Hmmmm.

Flowery doodles

2006-09-14T04:19:00.000-07:00

This is the beginnings of a birthday card: i've been feeling v. uninspired this week in general, (and typesetting annual reports at 'work' is killing me!), so i was pleasantly surprised at this coming so quickly and prettily. There is a lot to be said for just forcing myself to do it, rather than all the faffing around....

this would be beautiful with coloured inks and papers, but when i'm so short for time, illustrator and the ol' trust wacom does the job.....

Kumera weasel in far north Queensland

2006-09-12T02:41:00.000-07:00

I've just spent a week up in the rainforest of far north Queensland on a yoga retreat, an unforgettable experience, met so many awesome folk, and it was total bliss to be immersed in nature and warm climes after Melbourne winter!

This little guy was a team effort, Rebecca, Nick and myself. And a bit of full-moon madness (check it out in the background). The snow-pea skis are cool, non?

Illustration Friday: Play

2006-08-15T05:13:00.000-07:00

Thought i might glam up the ol' underrated triangle. It's always what the tone deaf kid gets given to play as a last resort, but the triangle deserves a little more love than that, no? It's quite glamourous really, especially when wielded by a David Niven look-a-like.... ding!

So many ideas for this weeks theme, my sketch book is full of scribbles. I'm still sick as a dog but I think this one worked out okay for me.

Tangle

2006-08-13T05:01:00.000-07:00

My submission for the Illustrators Australia 9x5 show 'Mix it up'. I'm pretty dissapointed I've been too unwell to put more time and effort in. It gets to a point where just getting anything in is a achievement, which sucks. I hate having no energy!

Imants Tillers

2006-08-06T00:15:00.000-07:00

Went to see the Imants Tillers exhibition at the Canberra Art Galley today (all dosed up on 'flu medication'. His method of working on multiple small canvasses as then assembling them as great mega works is very cool. And very sensible for th majority of us with small (if any) studio space. Yet another fabulous Aussie artist!

more about Imants Tillers

Illustration Friday: Capture

2006-08-05T16:59:00.000-07:00

This is a great theme this week but my brain in cotton wool and all I could squeeze out was this moody character....

I have a terrible 'flu that's been going for almost a month and doesn't look like getting much better soon. So I've been quite off in the creative department, not drawing much. Not doing much of anything. ARG!

Illustration Friday: Opposites

2006-07-22T20:45:00.000-07:00

I tried to think of two animals with really different characteristics to illustrate this one... I'm not sure it works. I have another idea I'll work up and post if I have time

Pomeranian lady

2006-07-15T19:07:00.000-07:00

Seen dashing about in the rain while we were having coffee in Elwood yesterday morning.

Illustration Friday: Sacrifice

2006-07-15T04:55:00.000-07:00

Illustration Friday: Skyline

2006-07-09T16:32:00.000-07:00

And now for something completely different.
I was going to draw this view from the top of Ruckers Hill in Northcote today, but it's so wintery and gray I didn't want to go outside. Fortunately I took a photo of it last night, which i used as reference for this which I did in Illustrator using shapes rather than line for a change . It's nothing flash close up, but viewed small it really captures that night view, especially if you've got blurry eyes like me. I think I like it.

Illustration Friday: Rain

2006-06-23T18:53:00.000-07:00

Rainy days and laundry.
Seemed appropriate for this week's theme. And seeing as I was sitting in the laundrette this morning with my sketchbook, I ran with it. I like laundrettes, especially this one on Victoria Rd.

Illustration Friday: Dance

2006-06-20T00:32:00.000-07:00

hArrrrrrrrrrrh! A jolly dancin pirate, me hearties!
This Illustration Friday topic really stumped me, probably because it's a really great one. I think I perhaps got a bit too ambitious, then I got angry and frustrated, and then I (almost)gave up. And then I drew this fella in 5 minutes. It's not great but at least he's got some spirit.

What I had really wanted to do was a row of girls at a school dance, looking all awkward and spotty and sexy, wringing their hands and wishing the earth would swallow them up.... remember that feeling? It's really the kind of thing I need some reference for though, all my sketches looked forced.

Illustration Friday: Jungle

2006-06-12T02:07:00.000-07:00

I went a bit bananas today with a whole bunch of paper and fabric for the IF jungle theme. Didn't quite work out, but I like the texture anyway.
Collage is an awesome medium but it can end up looking like a mess.

Illustration Friday: PORTRAIT

2006-06-05T03:16:00.000-07:00

I had meant to draw a few people on the weekend but got all shy about it as usual.
So I'm my model again. This is the first drawing I've done of myself with my glasses, makes things a lot harder in a way, but it's nice to be able to see what I'm drawing better.

Those spooky-tree Firths: for Sarah

2006-05-29T02:25:00.000-07:00

A lovely specimen in Epping Forest, outside London.
Note frozen lake. Brrrrr!

And one that had fallen over in the snow.

For more Firthling spooky-tree action:
http://sarahthefirth.blogspot.com/2006/05/brother-will-poses-with-sexy-tree.html

In technicolour

2006-05-28T02:08:00.000-07:00

Illustration Friday: CAKE

2006-05-26T23:37:00.000-07:00

I'm resisting temptation to colour this one up, as I did it really fast and like the looseness of it. I did another version which ended up looking a bit too self-conscious, so here is the first and best!

Illustration Friday: FAT

2006-05-07T21:11:00.000-07:00

Anya' s diary: more drawings

2006-05-01T22:30:00.000-07:00

Here are some almost finished drawings for the Anyas book.
The writing isn't part of the illustrations, it's just to identify them.
I like the dead mouse best.

Illustration Friday: UNDER THE SEA

2006-04-29T21:04:00.000-07:00

Octopus tentacles are really creepy. This guy was supposed to more sinister but it came out a bit lame. **sigh**
Anyone remember taht really scary octopus illustration Roger Dean did? I think it might have been on an album cover.

More swallows

2006-04-26T00:02:00.000-07:00

Anya' s diary: test illos

2006-04-23T21:44:00.000-07:00

These are two experiments for some illos I am doing for a childrens book.
After messing around with very realistic drawings i got frustrated so am now trying a more graphic approach. I think i'd rather err on the side of simplicity than overwork! Still messing around.....

Illustration Friday: ROBOT

2006-04-22T01:36:00.000-07:00

Arrrrrrrgggh! Post-apocalyptic evil robot hand!
The drawing started out really nice and innocent but something went horribly wrong......

Swallow tattoo ideas

2006-04-17T01:01:00.001-07:00

I am designing a tattoo for a friend's 30th. She is keen on a swallow: somewhere in between the old school sailor-style swallow tattoo and something more illustrative. I want to keep away from the rockabilly look that a lot os swallow tatts have, they're sweet and all but not very individual. I like the idea of incorporating some foliage, maybe cherry blossom? to give it a more natural feel. The swallow seems to turn up quite often in chinese and japanese brush paintings but it's a bastard finding any reference...

Illustration Friday: spotted

2006-04-16T00:43:00.000-07:00

There's something sinister about girls in spotted dresses...
Did this one waiting in the laundrette this arvo.

Illustration Friday: SPEED

2006-04-08T00:02:00.000-07:00

Here's a sketch for this weeks submission to Illustration Friday. This weeks theme is SPEED. I might alter bunny a bit later on. His goggles rock.

...and then he went into technicolour!

My first blog!

2006-04-07T16:25:00.000-07:00

Wow! After about 5 years of THINKING about setting this thing up, I finally pulled my finger out and set up my very own blog in less than half an hour. I still feel like I'm driving a car for the first time, but I'm sure I'll be pasting html and posting like a demon in no time.

Yay!