Holiday Hussle

with the holiday season comes the hustle and bustle of presents,

over crowded streetcars and busy shopping malls.

it's funny how sometimes the holiday season becomes the

"just get through it" season.

between all the spending and running around

let's try to remember to give thanks for all we have

and those loved ones dearest to us <3

Home Girls Pentimento Gallery Show

i thought i'd post my piece from the 

Pentimento Gallery Home Girls Competition 

for those who could not come out to see the show and vote for their favourite. 

the winner from the show will be announced soon

and the winning artist will have their piece 

put on the side of a building!

a lot of great work was featured in the show

with a lot of amazing Canadian women being showcased.

i chose Alanis as my homegirl.

i think she is an amazing singer/songwriter

and a strong, outspoken woman.

pumped up portfolio

i decided i wanted to expand my portfolio by adding some design

i'm starting with a series of gig posters for upcoming T.O. shows

the first one is for foster the people at the Mod Club;

a show i couldn't get tickets for but can still make a poster for!!!

so much time and so much to do

i feel like i'm living the life right now.

i have all day everyday to do what i want to do.

art, exercise, cook, read, explore, visit, nap!!!!!

i've been really interested in design and fine art these days, 

which i hadn't really gotten the chance to explore too much while in school.

here are some of my favourite things i've come across recently:

this is a flyer i got handed outside the AGO for the Short Film Festival

it's from May 31st-June 5th

perfect for those of us with short attention spans

spreads from the early summer Food & Drink magazine

i actually look forward to each new edition because of the beautiful design

(not to mention the actual food and drinks)

these were spreads from the SuperStore flyer i got in the oakville beaver

it was a refreshing break from the usual bombardment of advertising in the paper

and i thought it was perfect for the beginning of summer

nuts + bolts

i got an e-mail from 3x3 about their Nuts & Bolts conference

it's July 8-9th in NYC

it looks like there will be a lot of good info

especially for new illustrators

 want to plan a trip?

http://www.3x3mag.com/BulkEmails/3x3_conference.html

for the love of penguins

i finally got back into doing some experimental traditional work

after a run in with the dreaded stomach flu

it's so nice to just make something for the fun of it again

i had to start with penguins!

japan takes a beating

i had trouble with this concept

i've made some small changes since i handed it in for class

let me know if the idea comes across

Horoscope Spots

it's been a while since i've posted anything.

things have been just non-stop for the past little bit

but these are some spots i did

for the horoscope section of a travel magazine.

they're meant to be printed 3"x3" 

but you can get a better look this way!

pisces

taurus

leo

libra

unrest in the middle east

i really wanted to do a peace about what is going on in the middle east.

it's incredible the struggle this population has had to endure

for their basic rights and freedoms.

i think we can learn a lot from their power and endurance.

Things I'll Miss When I'm Grown Up

sneak preview of my upcoming narrative project.

when i'm grown up, 

i'll miss being fed,

by flying airplanes, 

that whirl round my head.

when i'm grown up,

i'll miss taking a dip,

with mountains of bubbles,

and my little toy ship.

more to come.

baby's first website

it's up and running and i even built it with my own two hands

www.alyssaandres.com

i'd love to hear what you think.

criticisms welcome.

more sketchbook stuff

 here are a couple more pieces from my sketchbook.

there's going to be a separate section on my 

new website for sketchbook pieces.

it's set to launch on my b-day;  March 2nd, 2011.

stay tuned.

Hunger

I hope this piece speaks for itself.

January Jones on the Death of Smoking

I was experiencing technical difficulties today 

and couldn't get this printed out to show in class!

Let me know what you think!

PS: January Jones is the chick from Mad Men

Yeah, random.

Rethink

44% of Sheridan illustration students are referred to as the "artistic member" of the family, while 8% are referred to as actual illustrators, 32% are referred to as both and 23% as neither.

Kids in the Hall

The Class Clown

The Cool Kid

The Dork

Daddy's Little Princess

The Teacher's Pet

The Tomboy

A throwback to those beloved, old school picture day portraits.

I busted out my old class photos as inspiration!

The Daily Grind

New semester, new thesis, new technique. 

I'm animating this shit for stu's reel :)

10 Things You May Not Know About Me

1. I am a twin
2. I'm a brown belt in karate
3. Both my thumbs are double jointed
4. I sleep with a big stuffed penguin named polar bear
5. My teeth are not in the right order on one side
6. I've had 12 different jobs in the past 5 years
7. I play the drums
8. I scare easy
9. I'm obsessed with dogs
10. Throughout my entire high school career I never got a final mark under 81%

swirly birds

Here are the other 2 pieces from this series all finished!

Let me know what you think!

the subconscious sketchbook

These are some of the pages I did for my subconscious sketchbook class. The class really helped me reconsider the definition of what a sketchbook is. I've never been a sketcher or a doodler but collage has always come very naturally to me. Aaron Leighton really helped me to get in touch with this subconscious part of my artistic self and it's really inspired my illustration work. This semester I'm going to try to translate this style into a more editorial format for my thesis.