Lincoln: Process

Just in time for his birthday here is a recently completed portrait of our sixteenth president, Abraham Lincoln.  I have always been fascinated by Lincoln and have wanted to paint him for quite some time.  Such great sunken eyes!

I also thought this would be a good opportunity to show off a step by step of my painting technique.  I’ve added a new section to the website called “Process” which can be accessed from the site’s main navigation bar.  So if you've been curious as to how I go about a typical painting click here and check out the step by step process and video slideshow.

Happy birthday Abe!

-Dom

Swashbuckle Fred Pirate Study

Here’s a quick little figure study from an old pirate painting that unfortunately never came to be.  I have decided to revisit the figure here as a study because a friend of mine was kind enough to pose for me and thought he’d like to see himself as the swashbuckling hero.  Who knows, maybe someday Ill be able to recycle this figure into a future project.

You can also click on the image above to enlarge and get a better look at some of the brush work.  Enjoy!

-Dom

Spectrum 17

Spectrum 17, a compilation of the years best fantastic art has arrived in book stores everywhere.  I am both honored and fortunate enough to be included in this year copy.  Ive had the pleasure of owning every single copy of Spectrum since its inception in 1994 and still to this day find myself flipping through past years for inspiration.  With the awesome Manchess cover (which I had the pleasure of seeing created before my very eyes at IMC 2009) on the crisp white background, amazing type design, beautiful reproductions, and new artist info next to the specific art, it is in my opinion the best Spectrum to date!  Heres a small list of some fellow artist friends & colleagues I have the pleasure of sharing the pages with.

Aaron Miller
Greg Manchess
Boris & Julie
Howard Lyon
Donato Giancola
David Palumbo
Allen Douglas
Scott Fischer
Teetering Bulb (Zelda & Kurt)
Rebecca Guay
Steven Belledin
Terese Nielsen
Kristina Carroll
Raoul Vitale
Matt Stewart
Allen Williams
Justin Gerard
Joe Devito

Congratulations to everyone who got in this year.  If you've already got a copy Im on page 249, if you don't... what are you waiting for?  Its awesome!  Run on out and grab yourself a copy or get a really great discount from Amazon here.

-Dom

Imagine FX 60

Head on out and pick up the latest issue of Imagine FX magazine.  Besides being a really great resource for illustrators it has a cool article on the Illustration masters class I attended this past summer.  I was fortunate enough to have my Maid of Orleans piece featured with some other really great artists that attended the class.  In addition to the IMC article theres a neat little piece on the science behind visual perception by Jim Gurney and nice article on legendary illustrator William Stout.  So run on out and grab yourself a copy!

Here are links to the two previous articles I posted about the Illustration Masters Class:

IMC 2009
IMC 2010

Go check them out if you haven't already.

-Dom

IMC 2010: Joan of Arc & Imagine FX

Here is my assignment for this years Illustration Masters Class I attended a couple of weeks ago in Amherst Massachusetts.  (For those unfamiliar with IMC check out my previous blog post on last years here.)

For this years Assignment I chose to take on the Maid of Orleans... Joan of Arc.  We were free to interpret this book cover anyway we wished through either a historical viewpoint or, as I chose here a more fantastical one.  I’ve been wanting to do an angel piece for quite sometime and this was the perfect opportunity to take on the challenge.

You cacheck it out in my portfolio here or check out a larger view with some zoom details of brush work here.  Enjoy!

This years IMC class was a little different than last in that Imagine FX Magazine chose 10 artists to be featured in an upcoming article.  I just found out that I was fortunate enough to be one of the select artists.  Ill post an update when the article hits the stands, but in the mean time here is a list of all the artists that were chosen.

Anthony Palumbo
Clark Huggins
Dominick Saponaro
Andrew Baker
Jason Cheeseman-Meyer
Marc Scheff
Michael Hayes
Rebecca Solow
Sam Kennedy
Winona Nelson

Congratulations to everyone, Im honored to be in such good company!

-Dom

Phillustration 2010

I have the honor this year of being chosen to jury the Philadelphia Sketch Club’s upcoming 3rd annual Phillustration show.  Phillustration is a really great show put together each year by the Sketch Club, showcasing some of the finest illustrations from the area.  Ive been a part of the last two shows and can tell you the work submitted is outstanding!  Some past artists include Charles Santore, Joe Devito, and David Wiesner just to name a few.  While many of the artists that submit work are local, it is NOT a prerequisite to submit for the show.  Anyone may enter, and are encouraged to do so.

The show will be held at the Sketch Club in Philadelphia, June 4th - June 16th with awards and reception on Sunday June 13th from 2-4 PM.  A PDF of the shows prospectus with all relevant entry info can be downloaded here.

Work must be dropped off at the sketch club on Friday, May 28th from 1-5 PM or Saturday, May 29th from 12-5 PM.  If anyone has questions or would like to enter but cant make it to the drop off dates shoot me an email and maybe we can arrange a pick up or mailing.

I Hope to see some of your work there!

-Dom

1027 Final (For Real This Time)

Here’s the follow up to my figure study post from a few weeks ago.  After “finishing” this piece without the figures I felt something was missing from it.  I really thought it could benefit from another narrative layer and added the two foreground figures.  Adding the human element to the painting really transforms the piece from a nice train portrait to a much more narrative story.  Check out a larger version and zoom details here.

-Dom