6 degrees of seperation - Oliver Reed, Robert Downey Junior and Alan Hermosillo

People look like other people. The obvious family resemblances go without saying, kids will have a look of one or both of their parents, and hopefully not the milkman or Uncle Ian!!! But resembling somebody goes a lot further than family. In fact its an industry as you can hire David Beckham look-a-likes, Bono look-a-likes etc. My Dad still likes to tell a wee story about how somebody once (and only ever once!) mistook him for Harrison Ford!

This all relates to a caricature trade I'm in the midst of with an extremely skilled artist, Alan Hermosillo. He did a fantastic interpretation of Jeff Bridges as 'The Dude" from The Big Lebowski. I was so taken with it I emailed Alan proposing some sort of trade. He sent me "The Dude" and in return I'm creating a caricature of him. Here are two of the sketches I've done of Alan:

Whilst doodling away at this over the weekend Alan started to resemble several people, in fact he looked like a whole bunch of different famous people. Starting with Oliver Reed:

and Robert Downey Junior:

Others include Javier Bardem and Jimi Goodwin (singer with Indie band Doves). Its one of the most fascinating things about being a caricaturist. Recognising resemblances, embracing them and yet retaining a certain individuality. I'll pop colour comparisons on in a couple of weeks once I've taken my crayons to Alan's chirpy visage!

Paintings, some dating back to the last century!

Whilst thinking about what I could post this week I came across my equivalent of The Land that Time Forgot. That is the old fashionned pre-historic creation of pictures with brushes and mediums and canvases, stretching paper and cutting out clippings from newspapers of random celebrities to add to my morgue! Enjoy the following!

Mum and Dad

Phil Mitchell, Eastenders

Sharon Watts, Eastenders

. . . from Goodfellas.

Don't forget to check my other blog which I'll update next Monday:
http://rwccaricatures.blogspot.com/

Al Pacino, Anthony Hopkins, Gene Hackman

Next up from my archives I have Al Pacino, Anthony Hopkins, Gene Hackman. I'd scan in my original pencil sketch and colour-it-in on a programme called Art Dabbler on a wee 4 x 3 inch tablet which cost me about 30 quid from QVC at Birchwood Mall, Warrington, UK! I didn't use it for nearly 3 years until the great Kiwi caricaturist Murray Webb showed me just what the thing was capable of. Blimey Charlie, it's amazin' what memories drawings can bring back!

Busy week this week. I'm creating a smiling goat for a business logo, a quirky request though I've had others. Such as a squirrel that looks like the son of the owner of an indoor childrens pay-for-play centre, and a frog that looks like Johnny Depp/Jack Nicholson for a wine label! Of course my all time favourite was Dave Lee Travis in a lycra tiger suit playing MacBeth . . . or did I dream it!

I'm also involved in a trade with a chuffin good caricaturist Alan Hermosillo Ibarra. He's done a great version of jeff Bridges as 'The Dude'
http://www.facebook.com/#!/profile.php?id=769053477
which I'm hoping to swap with him in return for a caricature of him done by me!

And also keeping pace with my other blog:http://rwccaricatures.blogspot.com/

Comedy caricatures

Thought I'd revive this old blog and update it with some of my old traditional pencil sketches. This week . . . 

Robert de Niro . . .

And a colour one from my uni days!!!!

Check http://rwccaricatures.blogspot.com/2010/08/100-caricatures-in-year.html

next week for my latest rugby caricatures. And I'll be back at Frank Kitts market on Saturday 25 September.

Some early stuff

I've had a fairly lazy and uninspiring week this week so far as illustrating goes. I've done a bit more on the England footballers illustration but not enough to put up on here yet.

So here's some of my earliest efforts using a graphics tablet and a progam called Art Dabbler from about 6 years ago.

Nelson Mandela

Helen Clarke (Ex NZ PM)

Tana Umaga (All Black legend)

Busy week for me last week. Petone fair was very quiet for me until about 12ish and then I literally didn't stop sketching until 4pm. Thanks to everyone who massaged my ego with your compliments about my work! And thanks to Joost for the delicious Dutch 'croquet'!!!

Also had a commission from someone for a leaving gift. Included some of the photos I had to work from, then my initial sketches and finally the finished artwork.

So with all of that I didn't get round to doing any more on my 3 Lions (Rooney, Capello et al) illustration. However, below is an illustration of the fella's from Top Gear I did over xmas. Hopefully next week I'll be at a similar finished stage with the 3 Lions doodle.

Until next week

Adios

Grrrooooowwlll!!!!

Hello folks

Here's where this week's creative juices have flowed to. The wonders of face book allow me to do each character individually and then phaff(!) about with the composition. I'm still not completely satisfied with John and Wayne's mane's but I'll continue to fiddle. Just young Stevie G. to add on the right hand side being stroked by Fabio (Saucy!) not sure he'll fit though.

Had a break from the markets last weekend but back to it at Petone this coming Saturday all being good weather wise.

Until next week . . .