A Cartoonist Rambles- Humorous Illustrations and Cartoons Designs from Marty Qatani

Cartoon Polar Bear In Progress Stage Two

2012-02-09T21:22:00.000-08:00

In my last post, I started to show the process I was using to create a new design. At that time, the design was left off looking like this...

When I originally sketched this, I had intended to show more water at the bottom of the design. While not my preferred method of fixing the problem, I decided I would fix this is in Photoshop. Ideally I would have planned the sketch out better, but poop happens. Another issue I had was the paper I used to sketch on. I decided to sketch on water color paper because of the texture and the effect that I thought that would give the colors. Having learned a few PS tricks since then, I've decided to created that effect in PS as well, and go back to sketching on regular smooth sketch stock.

Here is the current state of my design...

I reduced the size of the image, and then resized the canvas back to the original size. I then had to extend the various design elements, such as the water and horizon lines back out to the edges, and paint back out the edges as well. There was and is still some clean up left from my original pencil lines. Due to the texure of the paper, alot of the pencil lines were left in the texture of the paper and never got erased ( I try to erase softly).

My next post should show some significant additon to the coloring. As always, please feel free to comment. I'd love to hear what you think.

Marty

Photoshop Work / Experiment in Progress

2012-02-02T18:44:00.000-08:00

I alway enjoy looking at favorite artist's work process. It's been a while since I posted one. Since I'm in the middle of experimenting with my Photoshop skills, I thought this would be a good time to do so again.
Below is a recent sketch of mine, that I'm currently in the middle of coloring...

I've long admired picture book illustrators whose style has a soft almost painterly look. Being primarily a vector artist, which I also love, I haven't really developed that soft look that I really admire. This is the year that I decided to really develop that look more. I doubt that I'll switch over to that look permanently, especially since it will take a while for me to develop it to the point that I'm happy with it.

Here's step two... I'm not even sure if I'm staying with these colors. I'm just trying to fill in blocks of color and try to see what I like and what I don't. Two big key changes to the way I'm working with this are, 1) use textures when I paint, and 2) painting on a "multiply" layer. The concepts aren't new to me, I've just never used them before. I like the effect and technique, I just don't know if I'm happy with the result yet.

You know what just occured to me ? This is supposed to be a polar bear.. white dummy... arghh..

My next post will sure the next, maybe next few, evolutions of this pc.

Thanks.. as always, thoughts and comments are appreciated.

Marty

Heat Miser Thing

2012-01-26T20:21:00.000-08:00

Welcome back to the MartyToons cartoon sketches blog. Sorry for the interruption, I'll try to avoid that in the future, and post original cartoon sketches and character designs on a regular basis. To kick off the New Year right, I'm posting a sketch I did last month around the Holidays. One of the must see animated Holiday classics, (IMHO), is The Year Without A Santa Clause. The special's popularity is due to two somewhat minor characters, Heat Miser, and his brother Snow Miser. It occurred to me that Heat Miser was pretty much a short dumpy Human Torch. That in turn got me thinking about how Superhero teams tend to have ongoing membership changes... and you get idea. I hope you enjoy it. Please feel free to leave comments. - Marty

Flaming Skull Guitar Rock n Roll T-Shirt

2011-10-18T20:05:00.000-07:00

The majority of my work is character design, humorous illustation and cartooning. But every so often I come up with something that doesn't really fall into that category. Feel The Burn is one of my classic rock t-shirt designs in my CafePress Store http://www.cafepress.com/martytoons . I'm a big fan of classic rock. Not the classic rock you hear on the radio. I didn't think it was possible to be sick of such great songs as Stairway To Heaven and Freebird, but corporate FM radio did it. Thank you Mr. Suit and Tie. The music I consider classic rock is hardly ever heard on the radio, bands like Ten Years After, Humble Pie, The Animals, Long John Baldry... the list is huge and endless, and the bands played on classic rock radio stations can't hold a candle to these band, but that's another story.

In addition to being a "classic rock" fan, I also have extensive experience working as a graphic artist in the screen print industry. When it comes to rock and roll apparel, certain graphic elements just scream rock; flames, skulls, hard core images and of course, guitars. In this design, I've incorporated all of those. Let me know what you think.

FrankenMutt & Copyright

2011-10-09T21:29:00.000-07:00

I was doing a little "free thought" sketching, and maybe because Halloween was coming up, this guy just popped into my head. I liked the way he came out, and posted it on a graphics "sketch" collaborative page on Facebook.

One of the members said that it reminded them of another character whom I had never heard of. When the member posted a link, I actually recognized the character after all. Long story short, it was a cartoon from the 80's (which I only saw a few times, and wasn't really a fan of.) I pride myself on my being original and NOT stealing work from other artists, but I started to wonder... do we store images in our heads for years, even decades, and not even know it ? Do little instances or experiences trigger the release of these images and then have an effect on what we're sketching ? AND... can that lead to trouble regarding copyright infringement ? Don't know, hope not... coincidence ? Definitely hope so.

There's quote, something to the effect of "Nothing is Original". And most Beatle fans can recall the lawsuit George Harrison was involved in regarding his song My Sweet Lord and the 50's tune He's So Fine. As talented as George Harrison was, would he need to copy a song and call it his ? I highly doubt it, but the resemblance between the two melodies is pretty uncanny. Was this some sort of mental storage recall as well ?

Just something to think about. :)

Miami Steve and The Underground Garage

2011-08-21T19:41:00.001-07:00

I was at a total loss of what to sketch for the latest blog post, so I just figured I'd sketch the first thing that came to mind. Looking for some good tunes to inspire my creativity, I decided to listen to a radio show that I really love but don't listen to as often as I'd like, Miami Steve's Underground Garage. If you ever need a good musical education and want to be turned on to some classic garage rock and even check out some great indie bands, this is the show to listen to, (non endorsed plug) http://undergroundgarage.com/splash.htm Anyway.. it didn't take long for inspiration to kick my brain in gear... just do a toon of the man himself.... long time Springsteen partner and sidekick, the very underrated but much appreciated Miami Steve Van Zandt. If you love Bruce's music, do yourself a favor, listen to the show, and try and dig up some of Miami Steve's solo stuff... good good stuff... Cheers..

Gloop's Revenge

2011-08-01T18:43:00.001-07:00

"Somewhere out in space live The Herculoids...Zok the laser-ray dragon! Igoo the giant rock ape! Tundro the tremendous! Gloop and Gleep, the formless fearless wonders! With Zandor their leader, and his wife, Tarra, and son, Dorno, they team up to protect their planet from sinister invaders! All-strong! All-brave! All-heroes!! They're The Herculoids!!!"

The Herculoids along with Jonny Quest and Space Ghost, represent the epitome of Saturday morning SuperHero cartoons. Jonny Quest and Space Ghost traveled to some new exotic locale, and encountered some new mystery which lead to life threatening danger, here on Earth in Jonny's case, and out in space in Space Ghost's case.

The Herculoids were different.... trouble came to them. I loved these cartoons as a kid, but as a I grew older... the "animals" on The Herculoids all had powers and the humans didn't. The "animals" weren't stupid, they communicated and worked together every Saturday morning to defeat aliens from far off planets who came to THEIR planet to wreck havoc upon the leader (note: Human) of the Herculoids. Don't you think after awhile, the "animals" would get a little tired of this ? It's their planet... along comes this meat sack bag of bones with his family, and BAM, they get invaded on a weekly basis... what the hell is that about ? What if the "animals" had enough ?

And so.... I give you GLOOP'S REVENGE.

2011-07-05T13:41:00.000-07:00

Several projects have kept me from posting in awhile, but this idea has been kicking around for awhile. Sometimes I hear a phrase or certain words and they just conjure a picture in my head. One Saturday afternoon, not too long ago, I had the pleasure of watching the original Scarface on TV, starring Paul Muni. I was actually surprised at how similar it was to Pacino's version. It seems when remakes are made, they take alot of liberties with plotlines, but this seemed almost identical. But I digress... while watching the Muni original, I started to picture the same scenes in my head as played by Pacino... and then I got to the scene where Muni kills his boss Frank... and played back Pacino's Tony Montana calling Frank a COCK A ROACH in my head and it stuck. After an initial sketch that I was very unhappy with, I came up with this, which I'm pretty happy with.

I sketched this in pencil and went over it with my trusted Sharpie, then imported it into Photoshop and colored it. Lately I've been into stippling, so I decided to give the character a little texture on his skin. I also experiemented with the lettering a bit. I was trying to capture that spooky monster slime effect that was popular in the 60's. Those are two techniques I want to play around with and master alittle bit more.

Hope you enjoy it. Let me know what you think. Thanks - Marty

Bulldozing The Mental Roadblocks

2011-05-15T20:22:00.000-07:00

There are times when the creative juices just aren't flowing. Usually that's because "we" are distracted by outside influences, such as money, lack of time, stress or just having to do too many things in too little amount of time. "We" can cave into this and become totally useless in out attempts at productivity, or we can get ourselves on track somehow.

When I was a little kid, I loved monster movies... the classics, like Frankenstein, Dracula.. all the old black and whites... like I said, The Classics. The problem with this, was that when I went to sleep, my imagination was in overdrive to the point of getting nightmares featuring said monsters. To save my parents from running into my room in the middle of the night, I developed this little trick of forcing myself to think of the monsters on purpose, and then mentally creating a huge bulldozer that would push them out of my head. Sounds a little wacky, but it worked for me.

It worked so well, that I used now as a cartoonist to force myself to focus... no lie. If I'm distracted by the Money Monster, the Too Many Projects Monster, or the I really need to kill this particular person Monster, I use the bulldozer trick. I envision a "force" in my head to just shove aside all the non creative things cluttering it up... put on some rock n roll (again, the classics), grab some green tea and get down to business.

So the next time you can't focus... get on your mental bulldozer, crank up the tunes, get your caffienated beverage of choice, and do what ya gotta do. Just sayin !

Shutting Out Negative People

2011-04-28T18:33:00.001-07:00

We've all had to deal with them, the nay sayers, dream killers, and hope smashers. Our relatives, friends, and co-workers who like to give us a good dose of "their" reality. They either try to tell us that our dreams are just that, dreams, or they snicker and smirk while telling us we're being unrealistic when they ask us what we're trying to accomplish.

Don't let them get to you my friends... shut the door on their negativity. Revel in your vision's uniqueness. Stay true to your "dream" and shut out the people who think they're doing you a favor by telling you your ambitions and dreams are nothing more than day dreaming. Surround yourself with the things and people who help your spirit grow. There are plenty of them out there and the internet brings them much closer. Reach out and dream, google images that are cool and influence you, join groups and networks that foster your interests, but do this as well... ask yourself each day, "What have I done to bring my dream closer to reality today ?" And start by shutting the door on the people who tell you to stop dreaming.

Illustraton Friday : Journey

2011-04-20T20:38:00.000-07:00

For a split second I thought of doing something related to the band Journey, but since it wouldn't be very positive, I resisted the urge. I guess you could call this the ultimate journey, depending on your behavior... Enjoy. Process was hand drawn sketch, scanned into Illustrator, redrawn with brush tool. Copied and pasted into Photoshop and then colored in assorted layers.

Illustration Friday: Bottled

2011-04-14T21:03:00.000-07:00

My latest entry for Illustration Friday... Subject: Bottled. "Bottled" brings up very specific images, there's not alot of interpretation... there's some, just not alot. I just decided to keep it simple. This was actually a quick sketch...I used this more as an excuse to experiment with Photoshop some more than anything else. I also wanted to play around with a set of filters I've had laying around for years and haven't touched. They're called Machine Wash, and for creating textures. Pretty handy. If you're interested in seeing more of them, check out http://www.misterretro.com/ he has some very cool items for designers. (Note: I am not a paid spokesman for Mister Retro, nor do I receive a comission for mentioning the site. Just some cool stuff I thought I'd share).

Illustration Friday - Duet

2011-04-06T18:33:00.001-07:00

My contribution to Illustration Friday this week... Duet. Couldn't figure what to do with this for a few days... then it hit me (like a lot of good ideas do - seemingly out of nowhere). I struggled with the background before I came up with this. It's a little simple in my opinion, and I actually had a more geographically correct one in mind after this, but time constraints prevented me going with.. perhaps in the future. Please enjoy, and feel free to comment.

Illustration Friday - Toy

2011-03-31T20:36:00.000-07:00

My entry for Illustration Friday this week... subject: Toy. I considered thinking outside of the box again, maybe doing something with a bit of social message behind it, but decided to just play it straight this week. I also wanted to continue using the Illustration Friday post as an excuse to experiement in Photoshop. The black lines were sketched and inked on paper, redrawn in Illustrator using it's Brush Tool, and then cut and placed inside Photoshop for coloring. I like the better line quality this gives me, as opposed to just scanning it into Photoshop directly.

I just wanted to paint it quick and not worry too much about staying inside the line. I also set Photoshop's brush tool to dissolve. I like the "spatter" effect it gives me around the edges of the strokes. Enjoy and please feel free to comment.

Thanks - Marty

New Characters and Practicing New Mediums

2011-03-27T21:39:00.000-07:00

This is a new set of characters I'm playing around with. Like alot of my projects, they just popped into my head enough times until I got them out on paper. This was also an excuse to use the new markers I purchased. My previous post (two posts ago) was also "colored" with these. Right now, I'm enjoying working with different tools. Aside from digitally coloring my designs, I'm playing around with colored pencils, these Black and Gray marker and other colored markers, but I have to be honest, I'm losing the desire for the other colored markers. Maybe that means I should go back and work with them so more ? Hmmm... regardless, enjoy this sketch and comment freely. There'll be more of these guys and their friends to come. Count on it.

Cultivate - Illlustration Friday

2011-03-24T20:50:00.000-07:00

IF - CULTIVATE
Okay.. made it to Illustration Friday two weeks in a row, that's a good thing, now I just have to work on getting the post up a little earlier in the week. Don't ask me why, but within minutes of seeing that Cultivate was the theme / word, this image popped into my head. Love the practice I'm getting in Photoshop with this. Please feel free to comment... technique, style, message...

Illustration Friday - Stir

2011-03-17T19:22:00.000-07:00

Getting tired of his woodland home being destroyed for the third time in a month, Raccoon decided it was time to STIR things up amongst his friends.

This is my first contribution to Illustration Friday. I plan on making this a weekly exercise. One thing I learned, work small... it's just supposed to be a fun sketch. I ended up spending more time on this than I planned on. One reason was, I had wanted to experiment with Photoshop a little bit, more I didn't like the way it was coming out, and the time it was taking, so I switched to color pencils. I like the way it came out, for a sketching exercise. Comments welcome and appreciated.

Sketches, Planniing and Quality

2011-02-27T20:39:00.001-08:00

I decided to sketch out a new design for my Jr. Dino Club property in my ongoing effort to increase the size of the image library and also continue to show designs that allow the characters' personalities to show through. Unfortunately, I was rushed, and unfocused while working on the sketch, which resulted in alot of mistakes. Resisting the urge to rip this up, I decided to use it as practice for my shading skills. As I was doing that, I kept finding more mistakes. So I decided to use this a reminder / lesson to myself... as far as MY art goes, ( and I think pretty much everyone else's), planning is needed for everything, even the simple sketch. This design will be re-drawn, cleaned up and added to the Jr. Dino Club image library when it's done, but for the meanwhile, this will serve as lesson to myself to NOT RUSH THE ART !!! So, with that said, I give you the mistake filled Jr. Dino Club sketch. Don't let this happen to you. :)

Things That Pop Into Your Head

2011-01-16T19:57:00.000-08:00

One of the curses / treasures of being an artist, is that many times, visual ideas will just pop into your head due to some type of visual or auditory stimulation (careful readers... this is a family blog). That's the case with this sketch... I was working on a non creative part of my job when a favorite song of mine came on the radio... and BOOM.. in an instant, this image popped into my head. I saw it clear as a day, and I had to get it down on paper. It took me a couple of days to finish, but the image never left my head. Sometimes, when I get an idea... it grows, mutates, alters or I change it intentionally, but this one never did... from the instant it popped into my head, until the last stroke of my pen... it was and remained this...

So here's to cool ideas that pop into your head, never let them disappear... act on them, write them down, commit to them... those are usually the good ones.

Putting Plans into Action.

2011-01-02T19:58:00.000-08:00

It's another New Year, which begs me to ask... which camp do I want to fall in ? The "Make A Resolution that I Know I Won't Keep & Don't Really Care" Camp, or the " Take a Hard Look & What I Want To Do, and Take the Necessary Steps to Do It" Camp ? If you're guessing, let me give you a hint. I'm wearing my steppin' shoes.

I'm creating a plan that will allow me to work on multiple projects I've given myself in a way that won't overwhelm me and/or drop the ball on any of them. The key ingredients are organization, scheduling and focusing. Sounds simple enough, but I think the lack of any of those three is what causes most plans to fall apart. At first, it seemed a little intimidating, but the more clearer the plan becomes in my mind, the more jazzed (I love that word) I become about it. So... here's to my plan, your plan and all of us succeeding with our goals this year.

With that, I give you the first MartyToons Sketch of 2011. It's an experiment in Photoshop. I've been wanting add some variety to my designs, particulary a more painterly look. Photoshop can be a daunting program, but it can also be a lot of fun. One of my goals is to increase my photoshop skills which will in turn allow me to expand the variety of some of my character design work. See you soon.

Happy New Year, Marty

It's Good To Be Dex

2010-12-06T20:10:00.000-08:00

This is the companion piece to my previous blog. I'm still focusing on revealing my character's personalities through the sketches I'm creating. This may look familiar to some of you, since I posted it last week on my FB page and Twitter as part of my Sketch of the Moment series, but it was created with this purpose in mind.

Once again, this is Dex of The Jr. Dino Club. The last blog post hopefully showed Dex as a young fun loving, cute little T-Rex kid, which he is. but there's alot more to Dex than being a cute little tyke.

When I first came up with the concept for the Jr. Dino Club, I wanted each of the four main characters to have unique and different personalities, ( a no brainer in my opinon). I feel this is the best way to address various topics that can be entertaining and educational to young children.

So, what is Dex's personality ? Being the youngest, he's more self centered than the other characters. His needs come first. He wants what he wants, when he wants it. He's not malicious, more impuslive, spoiled and perhaps a tad bit whiney, but not intentionally mean. He acts without thinking, and can be oblivious to other's feelings. Does he mean harm ? No.. he's just a little T-Rex that needs to be shown the right road to go down... alot. ( And it's a long road).

So, with that background info in mind, I give you Dex of The Jr. Dino Club (as he sees himself).

As always, comments welcome.

Beyond the Basics

2010-11-15T19:53:00.000-08:00

One of my goals as a cartoonist/character designer, is to successfully develop and market a character driven property, in this case, The Jr. Dino Club. My first step in this, obviously is to create the characters, and the world they live in. Alot of focus was spent on the main character, Benny. Simple basic poses were created for the other characters, but now the time has come to branch these other characters out some more.

Without creating actual stories, simple illustrations of the characters standing, aren't good enough for the personalities to show through. So now, I'm focusing on creating illustrations using the other characters from The Jr. Dino Club that will allow their personalities to show through.

This particular illustration has been posted as one of my Sketch of the Moments in the not too distant past, but it now has a permanent home here on my blog. I give you Dex, the little T Rex, and the youngest member of The Jr. Dino Club. Enjoy and feel free to comment.

Expanding the Tool box

2010-10-03T20:51:00.000-07:00

I've been playing with colored pencils and markers alot lately and have really enjoyed it as a way to loosen up my drawing skills and habits. I've found myself wanting to expand my toolbox after drawing on a sketch pad of " premium recycled paper" I wanted to sketch on some paper that had some texture to it. I always like the way colored pencils looked on textured paper. So... this past Friday I picked up some Watercolor paper sketchbooks (the only ones I could find with the texture I liked), and finally got around to sketching something.

I think I'd like to explore Photoshop a little bit and see if I can add this "look" to some of my professional work. I'm pretty sure that between layers and textures I can come up with it, but that's a project for another day.

For now, I give you another sketch of the moment. Explore your creative what if's, expand your toolbox, and enjoy your art.

A Rare Night Off For Bruce Wayne

2010-08-22T20:09:00.000-07:00

A cartoonist's mind can run in alot of weird directions, alot of the time.... like this for instance.. What do Super Heroes do on a night off ? Seriously, they can't fight crime 24/7... there's gotta be some down time, especially for someone like Bruce Wayne. He has no super powers... that's gotta take a toll after while. There has to be a night once in while when he says, "Frig the Joker, Robin can handle it. That whiny little brat has to grow up some time. I need some ME time."

So crack open an ice cold Bat Light Mr. No Super Powers Super Hero, then sit back and watch old reruns of Smallville.

Sketching Away

2010-07-25T21:02:00.000-07:00

When I originally wanted to do this blog, I had intended to just post sketches, but I got wrapped up in the process and tried to be too clever at times... Soooo I'm going back to the basics and just posting sketches... nothing fancy and no purpose, no erasing (kinda sorta). Artists / Cartoonists and told over and over to sketch every day, and we should... it's the artist's equivalent of lifting weights. So for the time being, the posts will be just that... sketches, NOT finished pcs of art. One, this will allow for more frequent posts, TWO it allow me to keep my "art" muscles fit.

Please comment, critique and comment to your hearts content. I'll try to post what was going on in my head as I sketched what ever appears here. Your participation is greatly appreciated. So here's sketch no. 1....

The reaction to my last post was very posititve for what I felt was a throw away pc of art, so I tried to work with the character again. I don't like him as much as the last post, and comparing the two I can see why... but that's for me to decide. It highlights for me a question that was posted on a LinkedIn forum in regards to the "difficulty" of drawing the same character over and over.... so for your enjoyment or mockery.. I give you The Boys of Summer, Pt. 2

Boys of Summer

2010-06-26T14:52:00.000-07:00

It's been way too long for an update, and I apologize. Some welcome assignments have kept me busy. A while ago, I gathered some old illustrations together, stuck them in folder and marked it as sketches to digitize / further develop. I was flipping through the folder the other night, and the original sketch of this just caught my eye. I don't usually draw people for one reason or another, I'm an animal type of cartoonist, but this "kid" just really pleased my eye, so for all you baseball fans who remember playing in the neighborhood lot, or your friend's backyard during the summer.... here's the baseball kid....

Lennon - Stuck in Time

2010-05-03T20:27:00.001-07:00

I heard a John Lennon song on the radio the other day and it got me thinking. Hard to believe that he's been dead for over twenty years now. What's harder for me now though is the fact that he was only forty when he was killed. At the time, forty seemed like a lifetime away from where I was then, but now.... ? John Lennon was always this mythic figure from my childhood. When I was kid, he was a pop star... when I was a teen, he was a Rock icon, and when I was in my 20's, he was this legendary figure, always much older than me.... and then poof... he was gone, frozen in time as the 40 year old John Lennon, and what really makes me go "Wow...." is the fact that I am now older than John Lennon was when he died... I don't know why that does what it does to me... maybe because he did all the things he did, experienced all the things he did, and became who he was, all before the age of 40. Or maybe because he'll always be that much older guy in my mind. Age and the passage of time are such relative concepts, it's funny how what at one time seemed so far into the future can quickly change to a memory. Hmmmm... so for what it's worth.... GooGooGaJoob

Politically Correct Mascots

2010-04-08T19:21:00.000-07:00

I'm sure everyone has become aware of the issue of certain team mascots offending particular ethnic groups. I never really paid much attention to the issue until it was put in front of me, but once it was, I could absolutely see the point of one group in particular. We all belong to one group or another, Italian, African American, Jewish, Catholic, the list is endless, but think about this... what if a team or two or three, used a common reference, or even what could be considered an ethnic slur to whatever group you belong to, as their team name. Now... add the merchandise that you would inevitably see, particularly in the team's home town, plastered with said name/slur, all over the place. I'm betting a lot of you would be offended.

So, for any minority, majority, religious group, organization and club that has been offended by a sports team's name and logo... I give you this.... (with apologies to a particular Northeastern Bball team).

Corporate Radio

2010-03-17T18:54:00.000-07:00

There was a time when I really enjoyed listening to FM radio, but honestly, it 's been several years at least when I could stomach it any more. Back in the day, DJ's had total freedom in regards to what they could play, as long as it was sticking to the station's genre. It was very common to hear "non hits" played off of albums. Yes, I said albums, as in vinyl, not CD's... but that's a subject for another blog....

Some of an artist's best songs were tracks that weren't hits... that was my whole reason for NOT buying Greatest Hits records... but again, a subject for another blog.

Today... if it were up to most "Classic Rock" stations, you would only need one or two songs by particular artists, and you wouldn't even need a large majority of artists at that... for those who only listen to Classic Rock radio for their rock diet... I got news for you... Lynyrd Skynyrd has recorded more songs that FreeBird and Sweet Home Alabama.... AND Zeppelin has more songs that Stairway to Heaven... check it out.

And what about the bands that don't get played at all anymore... Foghat, Procul Harem, Humble Pie, Ten Years After, Johnny Winter, please I can on and on... so before my blog turns into a rant, (if it hasn't already), I give you my take on the state of Classic Rock Radio... enjoy...

The Famous Disney / Marvel Combo

2010-02-28T17:55:00.001-08:00

A couple months ago it was announced that Disney would be buying Marvel, the giant comic book/ movie studio, famously known for it's Super Hero properties, SpiderMan, IronMan, Captain America, The X-Men, and you know the rest. Many fans of Marvel fretted that Disney would "tinker" with the Marvel properties to make them more appealing to Disney fans, but I disagreed, believing Disney as a large and successful conglomerate had the wisdom to know when they had something good and that it should be left alone. The recent announcement that two of the stars of the High School Musical franchise would be starring in the "re-boot" of the SpiderMan movies has me thinking I was very wrong, but that's not what this is about.

Regular readers of this blog know that I really like the concept of Mash Ups... basically taking two different genres or library of characters and bringing them together as one. As soon as the Disney / Marvel merger was announced, I thought the "mashup possibilites" were endless. This was so cool... I had to put something together and get it out to Disney right away... they would be blown away by my creativity, surely they hadn't thought of doing something like this inhouse, this idea was mine... duh!! mine and about a thousand other artists. Within days, the internet was flooded with a gazillion different Disney/Marvel mashup sketches, some lame, some incredibly cool and brilliant. Man, that took the wind out of my sails. So.... instead of keeping these to myself, I share them with you.

As always, I welcome your comments. Enjoy, and let me know what you think.

What if Superman wasn't the Model for All Superheros ?

2010-02-07T20:21:00.000-08:00

I'm pretty sure I can say that Superman, in one way or another, has been the template that most, if not all, super heroes are based on. I remember numerous cartoons even "parodying" Superman, (is that a word ?). I remember a Bugs Bunny cartoon where he donned blue tights and a red cape to become Super Bunny.

One cartoon in particular stands out in my mind as being a cool parody of Superman and that is/was Underdog. I loved Underdog as a kid, and especially loved the villians, Riff Raff, Simon Barsinister....

While trying to think of a new blog post and still keep the theme of Character Tribute going, I thought of Underdog, and wondered, what could I do to make Underdog different ? They already did that terrible movie, so making him a real dog was out.... and it hit me. What if Superman WASN'T the template for all heroes to be based on ?

Western Classics

2010-01-07T20:34:00.000-08:00

I'm really liking the cartoon character tribute / re-imagining theme I have going, so I'm going to stick with it for this entry. As before, I'm re-imagining a character from the Hanna Barbera cartoon library AND my youth. It's a bit of a struggle to re-imagine what I consider to be classic cartoon characters without ruining them. I want to retain some of their essence while adding a twist.

An online friend of mine, and fantastic artist in his own right, Chris Oatley, recently asked several artists to do a "mash up" for an online character design contest he was running. I loved the idea, and borrowed it for this entry. So what happens when two classic western characters come together ?

My Work Process

2009-12-19T14:43:00.000-08:00

I'm a little late with this, sorry about that. I was going to continue with my "homage" art theme and make it a series, but a follower of mine on Twitter asked if I could do a blog on my work process. It sounded like an interesting idea, so I decided to mix the two... "homage art" and my work process, so here it is.

I always start everything as a pencil sketch, and then go over the line work with a Sharpie or a disposable technical pen of choice. Right now I'm using Micron pens by Picma, but I'm not picky. I'll buy whatever I can find at the local Michael's Craft Store. I just like to have a set of pens/markers with varying width so I can have varying line quality. I like to use different point sizes to add shading or hatching while still in the sketch stage.

Here is the scan of my current "homage art" pc. I'd say who it is, but I'd like to think the majority of people can figure it out. Again, I'm a huge fan of the Hanna Barbera cartoons I grew up on during the 60's. That said, one of my FaceBook friends (Hi George), gave me a hard (but fun) time about recognizing about knowing who this is supposed to be.

From this point, I'll do clean up in Photoshop. I'll crop the binding out of the picture as well as finish off the left shoe with the pencil tool. Obviously I need a larger sketchbook.

You can see that I've also colored in the pupils of his eyes at this stage. Usually for my blog posts I won't redraw the scan in Illustrator, for two reasons. One is for time. Recreating the art into vector will be lengthy. Too lengthy if I'm going to try and do this on a weekly basis and still work on my freelance art. Second, working in Photoshop on a regular basis like this will only help my Photoshop skills grow, something every digital artist should want to be doing in my opinion.

Okay, from here, I add layers in Photoshop. The original scan will be a layer I call LineWork. That's all this will be, just the black lines of the scan. All other layers will be under this one.
The next step for me is to select a white portion of this, select similar, so all the white is selected and then hit delete. This will make the LineWork layer look transparent with only the black lines showing. I then add a background layer under this and fill it with white. Why ? It just makes it easier for me to color, personal preference. All other layers will between this and the LineWork layer.

Next step is to add a layer I call Color. This is where I obviously add the color. I don't just select the area I want to colorize and fill it with the paintbucket tool though. While on the Line Work layer, I select the area I want to color, and then expand the selection via the Modify action under SELECT. I expand it by only 2 0r 3 pixels. While this is selected, I go to the COLOR layer and fill the selected area. This eliminates a kind of "ghost" outline that will appear around the selection. In effect, I'm actually coloring under the Black outline as well as within it.

Finally, I add layer I called Details. This is where I add shading and smaller details if needed. Occasionally I'll have to shade a color or area that is very close to an area that has already been shaded. To avoid painting over an already shaded area, I'll add a temporary layer ABOVE the Details layer and paint in the shading. If I overlap an already shaded area, it won't matter. I can just erase over it on this new layer. Once thats done, I'll merge this NEW layer down to the Details layer.

That's pretty much it. I hope it makes sense.

Merry Christmas to you and yours. I hope the New Year is prosperous for you.

Marty Qatani
www.martytoons.com

Homage ARt

2009-11-23T19:13:00.001-08:00

My cartooning influences were instilled in me during my preteen years, watching cartoons on Saturday mornings. I can't name all the cartoons I used to watch, but I know when I see an image from one I used to watch, especially one I've forgotten completely about, I will stop, stare, and mentally go "WOW" for, what seems to me to be, a real long time. One of the biggest animation houses for television back then, and one of the biggest influences on my style, was/is Hanna Barbera. Hanna Barbera ruled Saturday morning t.v. for years, if not decades.

I've noticed that some artists & cartoonists create "homage" art, or "reimagined" versions of exisiting characters. I remember reading Disney Adventures with my kids when they were younger, and there was comic strip inside featuring a very grungy version of Mickey, Donald and Goofy. I wish I could remember the cartoonist's name. It totally blew me away. First of all, I was shocked Disney let someone "reimagine" their iconic characters, and second... it was like Disney characters from an alternate dimension and I've seen Flintstone caricatures by John Kricfalusi. I'm sure cartoonists everywhere have a drawer or sketchbook crammed with their version of famous characters... so I thought, why don't I do that. How could I pay tribute to the characters I enjoyed as a youth, yet hopefully make them a little different, a little fresher as well ?

Hopefully, I've done that here. Let me know what you think.

Cartoon Rock Bands

2009-11-09T19:58:00.000-08:00

I love Rock. My wife calls me a Rock snob. I take my rock music seriously and the older I get, the more annoyed I become regarding faux rock bands. I seriously don't understand how half the recent Rock n Roll Hall of Fame inductees got inducted especially when you consider who hasn't been inducted yet... (Justin Timberlake inducting Madonna ? What the #@**!! is that ?), but that's for another blog.

A real annoying trend ( that I think can be traced to the late 60's /early '70's ) is for cartoon shows to require their cast members be in a rock band, ASIDE from whatever it is they normally do, as if being in a rock band is some frivolous endeavor any twit can do. I can remember a cartoon version of the Hardy Boys breaking into song whenever a mystery was solved, The Archies had a rock band and actually had hit records too, they gave birth to Josie and the Pussycats, who solved mysteries in whatever town their cartoon tour took them, before they were shot up in space, Archie's third cousin twice removed on his Uncle's side, Sabrina, would later give birth to the Groovy Ghoulies. Jabberjaw was a cartoon shark, that also played drums while his cartoon human sidekicks jammed away. The Banna Splits, The Bugaloos, it's a long and endless list... (Does Hanna Montana count ?).

My point is, Rock, in it's purest and most entertaining form is passion. You can hear true passion in both the lyrics and the playing. If you ever get a chance to see a video of some of the greats, Hendrix, Alvin Lee, Jeff Beck, Clapton, look at their faces when their soloing.... they feel every note. Listen to the words to Springsteen's Born to Run or Backstreets, or any of Pete Townsend's lyrics off of Who's Next... those songs were lived, not concocted by some soul-less, money making corporate giant looking to capitalize on some perceived trend until it's been dried up like some milkless cow's udder. If you need to rely on background dancers and stupid funky costumes to carry your stage shows, because your music can't do it alone, call yourself an entertainer, but don't call yourself a rockstar Britney, Christina and GaGa. I leave you now to go listen to Carlos Santana play anything... THAT man has soul.

What the Hell Happened to Vampires ?

2009-11-02T20:09:00.000-08:00

Halloween has come and gone. The kids have rented horror movies, decorations are still up in the neighborhood, and I still have monsters on my mind. I happened to look at the cover of the latest issue of Rolling Stone and to the left of Shakira’s head, in bold type is the blurb VAMPIRE ROCK. What the hell is that and what the hell has happened to Vampires ?

This was an obvious reference to a review for the soundtrack of the latest Twilight movie, which again causes me to ask, WHAT THE HELL HAS HAPPENED TO VAMPIRES ?

Vampires are perhaps one of the most dangerous of all monsters. They trick you, they make you think they’re something they’re not. They lure you in and kill you, or if they like you, they’ll make you one of them. They have no compassion, they are cold, ruthless, focused killing machines. But not according to Hollywood.

The first Hollywood Vampires that made me scratch my head were the vampires from Lost Boys ( the first one ). They could turn you into a vampire if you ate their food ? What was that about ? No one bit Jason Patric’s character, or did I miss something. He shared a drink and some Beef Lo Mein with Keifer Sutherland and the boys and that’s about it. Towards the end of the movie, there he was, eyes glowing and fangs bared, AND he returned to normal by killing Keifer Sutherland... not how I remember Vampire lore, but I liked the movie so I let it go. I then became a fan of Buffy and Angel. Not too many complaints, but what happened to sleeping in a coffin ? What happened to needed soil from their homeland ? Again, nothing major, so I let it go....

Now ? Anyone remember a recent show called Moonlight ? A detective who is an unwilling vampire, wants to be human again and can walk around in the daylight if he wears sunglasses ? What ??? And now Twilight ? Not only can vampires walk around in daylight, but they fight werewolves for the affection of a human girl ? Don’t even make me bring up the Vampires Diaries... where is Bela Lugosi and Christopher Lee when you need them ?

What's in a Name ?

2009-10-24T19:49:00.001-07:00

With Halloween just around the corner, images of monsters are everywhere. I've always been a fan of the classic monsters, Dracula, The Wolfman, The Mummy, and of course, Frankenstein's Monster.

Something that always bugged me though, was how Frankenstein's Monster has always been referred to as just Frankenstein. As most people realize, Frankenstein was the name of the doctor that created the monster, but over time the monster came to be referred as Frankenstein as well. Alot of cartoon parodies of the Frankenstein Monster have come and gone over the years, alot twisting the name in some fashion. A few years ago there was cartoon called Tutenstein, there's a series of kids books called Franny K. Stein, many years ago, there was a show called the Groovy Ghoulies, and the huge green monster character was named as Frankie. Years ago, in one of my sketch books I did a cartoon monster and called him Francis Nathaniel Stein. (Frank N. Stein- get it ?), ... you get my point ?

So I started to think, if the monster's name WAS Frank Enstein, what were his relatives names ? So I give to you... Frankenstein's other cousin... Normenstein.

Phrases as Images

2009-10-06T19:03:00.000-07:00

As a visual creative, I'll hear something that immediately puts a picture in my head. Alot of people do this subconciously, and other people, art directors, advertising excecutives, and graphic artists, to name a few, I'll bet, do it instinctively.

Some painters, illustrators and other creatives will create a piece and then give it a name, but for me, sometimes I just hear a phrase or pairing of words and that's what I start with.... something happens and the mental imagery just starts to flow.

And so it was, as my oldest son often uttered a phrase he uses to describe something he really likes... I give to you an original Character Design.... MAD CHILL... thanks Christian !

MartyToons Top 10 Forgotten Advertising Cartoon Characters

2009-09-28T20:09:00.000-07:00

A very influential part of my youth was spent during the late 60's and 70's. I believe one of the reasons I choose to become a graphic artist, particularly a cartoonist, was due to all the fond memories I have of cartoon characters from that time period. My childhood was pretty average, but I really enjoyed it, especially the summers. One of my favorite memories was the weekly trip to the grocery store with my mom, my sister and brother, and our next door neighbors. Remember, this was the 60's, and the June Cleaver household was still a relevant image back then.

Anyway... I do remember I used to love looking at the different items in the grocery store that used cartoon characters on their packages, or hanging out at the bubble gum machines ( remember those ?) looking at the cards and goofy toys that were in them while our mothers were at the check out.

Recently I picked up a couple of books that released a floodgate of memories from that time period... KRAZY KID'S FOOD (Vintage Food Graphics) by Steve Roden and Dan Goodsen, who also have a fanastic website for anyone sharing these memories... http://theimaginaryworld.com.
MEET MR PRODUCT (The Art of the Advertising Character) by Warren Dodtz & Masud Husain, and AD BOY, also by Warren Dodtz & Masud Husain. Really cool books, I recommend them highly. But I digress... after going over these books, I started thinking about some of my favorite advertising cartoon characters that no longer exist... so I present to you now...
MartyToons Top 10 Forgotten Advertising Cartoon Characters...

1) The Frito Bandito - I know he was found offensive by a large portion of the Latin community, but my fondness for him has more to do with the time of my childhood than what he was or what some people feel he represented.

2) Fruite Brute - I always had a thing for monsters when I was a kid. When Count Chocula and Frankenberry Cereals were introduced, I thought they were so cool. When Fruit Brute Cereal followed...I couldn't believe it. Werewolves were far cooler than vampires or man made monsters.

3) Funny Face Drinks: These guys were very cool. Who wanted Kool Aide when you could drink Funny Face ? Goofy Grape... Jolly Olly Orange, and Choo Choo Cherry ? Their names alone screamed fun !

4) Quisp and Quake: I believe these were the first battling cartoon characters that had thier own cereals but each commercial advertised both. We always wanted Quisp to win (which I believe is still in production in parts of the world) but I couldn't help feeling sorry for Quake everytime he lost (what's that about ?)

5) Little Oscar: We never really ate alot of Oscar Meyer Weiners. Mom got whatever was on sale. But for some reason I seem to remember commercials featuring Little Oscar running on Friday Nights ( my favorite ) on ABC-TV. They had a classic line up... The Brady Bunch, The Partridge Family, Room 222 and then The Odd Couple. Good times ( in my head, not the show).

6) Mr Bubble - I have to confess, I do see Mr. Bubble products today from time to time, but it's this classic box design that hurls me back to my youth...

7) The Scooter Pie Giants - we loved Scooter Pies. Not a big fan now, but back then.... hoo boy! Tasty Gooey Sweetness.

8) The Tootsie Roll Owl - I remember this commercial running throughout Saturday Mornings during almost every other cartoon show. Again... good times. How many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Roll Pop ?

9) Fruit Stripe Gum Zoo Animals - just a quirky set of characters for a very sweet pack of gum. But it was from that time period, and they were cartoon characters... so they count, big time.

10) And Last ( for now) but not least... Kaboom Cereal. I distinctly remember not even liking this cereal. This was a big favorite of my sister's, but once again. This box just conjures up great times from my childhood.

I hope these images were as much fun to look at for you as they still are for me. For every fanboy out there that can't wait for the next Transformer movie, I'd like to think that there's another 10 people like me whose memories of fun times are linked to things 10-15 years prior to any gobot, megazork or Cabbagerash Kid.

Please note... these images are copyright protected and all rights belong to their proper creators and copyright holders.

Staying True To Your Cartoon Style

2009-09-13T18:09:00.000-07:00

It always bothered me when the success of something unique led to a plethora of copycats and cheap imitations. Rarely, if ever, has a copy of something, been as successful or good as the original. Why ?, you may ask...

In my opinion (and hopefully everyone else's)... the copies are only created to cash in on the success of the original, not with any desire to just create something new because they have a need to "get it out", or because they feel it's a great idea.... it happens in movies and TV all the time. It happens with cartoons and design as well, and it drives me nuts. How many designs have you seen lately that consist of dots, or circles or swirls of some type ?

The anime boom started to emerge a few years ago, ( I know anime has been around for decades, but the number of anime influenced shows has increased dramatically of late), and one of the most horrendous results of this, was the total bastardization of a favorite comic book of mine ( actually, more of my youth). There is/was a show starring a group of teen superheros (who shall remain nameless) that could have been so much better, especially considering who the characters were. Unfortunately, due to what I can only assume was a desire to cash in on the anime craze at the time, the characters were drawn in an anime style, their reactions were overblown and goofy like characters on many anime shows are, and what could have been a really good animated superhero show, was nothing but a lame, knock off of a great comic book.
But it probably sold alot of toys and I'm guessing that's what counted most.

So why does this bug me ? As a freelance artist/humorous illustrator, I am constantly being told by my peers, ( and I believe this), you have to create what pleases you. You can't force creativity. Unfortunately, when you're trying to market to businesses, whose goal is to make money, they want to see what is hot now. The end result of THAT is that everything being submitted is a copy of a thousand things that are already out there.

I would love to find a directory or mailing list of companies that only want "fresh" art submitted. I know there are some companies that do want , but they do seem to be in the minority.

Cartoonist vs Humorous Illustrator

2009-09-05T18:09:00.000-07:00

I often call myself a cartoonist when people ask me what I do, but I've been thinking lately that may be misleading. When I first decided that this was what I wanted to do, (too many years ago), a cartoonist was someone that drew cartoons, simple enough. However, for quite a while now, I've gotten the impression that the term "cartoonist" implies that you create comic strips or comic books. I'm not sure I agree with that though.

I'm probably dating myself, but I've always been under the impression that even if a singular illustration was humorous and funny in style, it was a cartoon, hence I've always considered myself a cartoonist. I don't draw a comic strip, I don't work on a comic book, I draw pictures in a humorous style. Does that mean I'm not a cartoonist ? I don't thinks so.

The term "humorous illustrator" is tossed around alot. I've seen directories specifically for Humorous Illustrtation, but the term always seemed a little over-glorified to me, somewhat along the lines of calling a janitor a Sanitation Engineer (no offense to Sanitation Engineers). Maybe we're in an age where everything has to be compartmentalized ( is that a word ?) I'm beginning to think so. I guess if that's going to make it easier to succeed as a freelancer, then it's a necessary evil.

Ramping Up

2009-07-06T20:16:00.000-07:00

This is the first of what I hope will be a weekly blog. That may be in the form of a sketch, or just some thought. Not sure, but that's what it will be for now.