Hallmark & SJSU

Softee

2008-05-09T02:13:00.000-07:00

Just got a care package from Hallmark for this summer. There was a compilation CD of Kansas City music inside...and guess who was on it? Softee! Sarah's band! So cool to hear your stuff on there Sarah. I'll be out there in a few weeks!

Thank you!

2008-03-11T22:17:00.000-07:00

Sarah, Ramon, David

Thank you so much for coming and presenting the workshop, I greatly appreciated all your time and patience. The entire experience was a breath of fresh air and has encouraged me to think more freely and appreciate art in all forms. Thanks again!

I'm still working on Mr. Rex Newton Devereux, the high class robot, but this is Ms.Nancy Nurse, a character from the same world that I've finished in for Flash. Thank you!

you guys are crazy awesome...

2008-03-04T12:18:00.000-08:00

sarah here, just wanna say thanks for all the fun, groovy art talk/critiques, your hard work and last but not least, giving us your time because we know that it's so very precious when your in school. sometimes it seems every second counts. anyway, we're back in kc making magical cards-n-stuff but we hope you all continue to post your work from the workshop. and anything else for that matter. we'd all love to keep in touch with you. also a few peeps asked what softee (the band i'm in) sounded like. here's the myspace url down below. we have some music posted but we're getting ready to record all new stuff so be on the lookout :) last but not least, here are a few pics from the workshop. the first one i like to call "laura's impersonation of sasquatch" :P and "jazz-hands" obviously. well...you guys were wonderful and amazingly talented. thank you again so much and good luck with all your artistic endeavors!!!! sarah
www.myspace.com/softeerocks

Posting work..

2008-02-29T12:44:00.000-08:00

Hello again to everyone in the workshop, Ramon, Sarah, and David.

Here's my posting of choice, which is the last piece that I did in the workshop. I chose this particular drawing because it feels the most complete, and reads pretty well even when seen in small size.

Thank you again for coming to San Jose State! it was nice seeing David and Ramon again, and I'm glad to meet Sarah as well. I'd like to also thank you for bringing all those materials and books since it inspired me lots during work.

Hi Again

2008-02-27T21:57:00.000-08:00

Thanks David, Sarah, and Ramon for coming to out last weekend. The workshop was very fun, I enjoyed it a lot. I post this drawing because I felt that it illustrates my character's personality and behavior best.

Thank You

2008-02-27T13:18:00.000-08:00

I really enjoyed the workshop and appreciate you guys coming out here. I love character design so I am very happy to learn anything I can about it. I definitely learned a lot that I will apply to my future character design endeavors. Thanks Again!

Thanks

2008-02-26T19:33:00.000-08:00

David, Ramon, Sarah,
This is Lam. Sorry for missing you guys' workshop on Saturday. I should have let you guys know ahead of time that I was not able to come...
And I want to thanks you guys for spending time with us! You guys' feedback is wonderful and help me a lot in creating my characters. Big Thanks!

Thank you!!

2008-02-25T22:47:00.001-08:00

Thank you so much for coming here to have this workshop with us! I had a great time and learned a lot :). I chose this mailbox because it pretty much sums up my characters and environment by the style and what the sprites do (deliver mail). Plus I think people liked the mail box a lot too, hehe. Thank you again!!

Thank You!

2008-02-25T10:38:00.001-08:00

Thank you so much for giving us your time and attention this last weekend! We had a great time. I really appreciate it, and I came away with a lot of new insights on how to approach the character design process. I chose to post this exploration sketch, because this just feels the most like my character. Thank you for all the great feedback about her!

Thanks Guys

2008-02-24T02:10:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to let you guys know that your time spent with us is greatly appreciated. I chose to post this drawing because it is the product of all the wonderful feedback that ive recieved during the workshop. Thanks again!

- Paul

Thanks Again!

2008-02-24T01:15:00.000-08:00

David, Ramon, Sarah,
Thank you so much for the whole weekend. You sacrificed your time and energy to be out here with us and we all really appreciate it. For this post, I thought I would put up the little hockey player in the pose that got the biggest reaction....poor guy.

Hey everyone

2008-02-22T00:23:00.000-08:00

We want to thank you all for staying with us on the marathon session of the Hallmark workshop. Your dedication is very admirable. For tomorrow we would like everyone who has a good sense of direction to continue to develop there characters based on tonight's critique. If you left after tonight's session and you are unsure what to do we have a few suggestions:
Consider starting with a simple sketch of a character and imagine what their personality is based on what describes their world.
This could include : Sidekick, Logo, Vehicle, Nemesis, Personal belongings, Diet, Moves or Powers, Story/Origins, Environment, Theme song. Please bring materials to work in class tomorrow (today) - drawing tools and paper/tracing pad. See you then................... and nice work!

2008-02-21T16:37:00.000-08:00

My name is Charlene Fleming. I'm from Fremont and came to SJSU in 2004 after transferring from Ohlone College. I've been drawing since forever... it was the first thing I ever felt I was good at. For a long time it really was the only thing I was good at because I had severe hearing problems and had difficulty with speech and school because of it. My hearing was finally fixed over halfway through my childhood but I'm hardwired as a visual person. I love to write/draw comics, design characters, work in my sketchbook, and experiment with any media I can get my hands on. Just a few favorite artists: Odilon Redon, Ilya Repin, John Singer Sargent, Ovi Nedelcu, Ronald Searle, Tadahiro Usuegi, Nicolas de Crecy, and Ashley Wood. I'm inspired by a lot of musicians/music groups as well, like The Replacements, Pavement, Pulp, Spoon, Ted Leo & The Pharmacists, and Stone Roses.

I would love to work as a character designer or colorist but I'm open to just about anything in the art field. I would eventually like to publish my own graphic novels. I'm really excited to learn and see the work everyone comes up with.

http://www.goguygo.com

2008-02-20T23:03:00.001-08:00

Hello everybody, my name is Pat Marconett. I've been at SJSU for 4 1/2 years. I grew up in Santa Cruz, and I currently reside in Fremont. I come from a family of engineers, so like Yuri, I had a lot of arguments about art with my parents too. I'm so happy that I decided to go to San Jose State, and I'm always amazed at my progress. I want to someday work in visual development at a aniimation studio. Some of my favorite artists are: J.C. Leyendecker, N.C. Wyeth, Mucha, Jie Xiangyuan, and Iain McCaig. I'm excited about learning more about color in this workshop.

Hi this is Yuri

2008-02-20T21:46:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,
My name is Yuri Mikami and I'm from Tokyo Japan. I moved to the U.S when I was 17yrs old because my father got transferred to U.S. branch. So, I am a resident alien.
I originally majored in pharmacy in Japan and I love mathematics and chemistry. (Science is fun.) On the other hand, I love drawing and reading comics since I was little. I made a lot of unofficial coterie manga magazine since I go to elementally school. I've always enjoyed drawing and writing comics, but I have never thought I could do it for a living because my parent always told me only tarented people can do it. After I moved to the U.S. I got a lot of influences from a lot of people and I decided to change my major to art. When I changed my major to Animation, I had a lot of arguments with my parents, however I do not regret my decision and I am glad they understand what I am trying to do now.
My favorit artists are; Norman Rockwell、Frans Hals, Tadahiro Uesugi(http://www10.big.or.jp/~tuesugi/), Yoshitomo Nara(http://harappa-h.org/AtoZ/modules/popnupblog/index.php?param=2), Seizou Watase (http://www.apple-farm.co.jp/index.html)

Thank you for this opportunity I am looking forward to work with everyone in the workshop!

Here, it is my art blog http://abiteoforange.blogspot.com/

Hello!

2008-02-20T17:50:00.000-08:00

Hi my name is Michael Fong. I came to SJSU in 2005 from Sacramento. I originally was going to try to do Industrial Design here, but when I learned of the Animation/Illustration program I knew it would be a better fit. A few artists that I admire include Harry Carmean, Hayao Miyazaki, Lisbeth Zwerger, Bill Watterson, Barnaby Ward and the list goes on. I especially love character design and after school I hope to be employed in some kind of character designing capacity. I am very much looking forward to this workshop!

Greetings

2008-02-20T17:32:00.000-08:00

Hello, my name is Micah Sibert. I'm a junior in our Animation/Illustration program (a senior at SJSU) going into BFA next year. Like Januel, I proudly hail from the burg of Stockton (Forbes Magazine's #2 most miserable city!), but I am now a resident of San Jose.

My art heroes are N.C. Wyeth, Hayao Miyazaki, Gustave Dore, Ashley Wood, James Gurney, Dean Cornwell, Milt Kahl, Yoshitaka Amano, and others. I love great stories, and I love artists that tell stories and creates worlds.

I am very interested in learning more about design and appeal, and anything else I can pick up from this workshop. I would like to work on story or production art in a feature animation studio.

Hello!

2008-02-20T14:33:00.000-08:00

Hi!
My name is Brittnie Bruner. I grew up in Pleasanton and currently live in San Jose. I have been attending San Jose State for about 5 years and hope to graduate next spring! I've always enjoyed art and drawing, but never thought I could do it for a living (thank goodness I was wrong). Everyone always told me it was a "born in talent" so I ended up going into psychology for a little while, but always found myself going back to art. So, alas I couldn't resist any longer and took the plunge, and haven't looked back since. I draw from my inspirations like Mary Blair, Peter De'Seve, Eyvind Earl, Franklin Booth, Glen Keane, and the list could go on forever. I thoroughly enjoy learning and discovering new ways to approach a situation, so I am very excited to be a part of this workshop. Thank you for coming and doing this for all of us, we really appreciate it! Thanks!

Hello

2008-02-20T10:31:00.000-08:00

My name is Luka Wang and I'm from Taiwan. This is my sixth year in the U.S. I love drawing and traveling. Seeing different places in the world gives me inspiration and appreciation of life. I am an animal lover and environmentalist. My husband and I have two cats in the U.S., three cats and one dog in Taiwan. We are planning to adopt another kitty here~
I am looking forward to work with everyone in the workshop. Thank you for this opportunity!

Another hello...

2008-02-19T21:48:00.001-08:00

My name is Aletta Wenas. I'm an international student from Indonesia, and I've been studying abroad here in the US since 2002. I am currently focusing on character design, visual development, and concept art since I love drawing and painting.

There are a lot of artists I look up to, old masters and contemporary artists alike. For example, Antonio Canova, John Singer Sargent, Anders Zorn, Yoshitoshi, Tomer Hanuka, and Shawn Barber. I also collect a lot of vinyl and designer toys since their designs are very cool to look at and it's a ton of fun doing repaint jobs on some of them.

Looking forward to attending the workshop, and I hope everyone will learn a lot and have a great time!

http://alettashideout.blogspot.com/

Greetings!

2008-02-18T18:06:00.000-08:00

Color by Andrea Rhodes

I am the one they call Januel, son of Manuel. I am originally from the kingdom of Stockton, but am currently a proud soldier of these San Jose hills. I am a graduating senior, concentrating as a story artist. With that being said, my influences include the immaculate Charles Schulz, the force of nature known as Mark Andrews, America's other illustrator J.C. Leyendecker, and the genius of Wes Anderson. I love beautiful imagery, entertaining stories and bittersweetness. I'm sure this workshop will be more fun-filled than a weekend with Batman!

www.artofjan.blogspot.com

Schedule

2008-02-18T11:06:00.000-08:00

Hi folks. Looks like the schedule for the workshop will look something like this:

7:00pm-10:00pm Thursday night (we will be bringing pizza and drinks to class for everyone),
7:00pm-10:00pm Friday night,
10:00am-noon Saturday morning,
3:00pm-6:00pm Saturday afternoon.

I am not sure what room we will be in, but I'm sure John will get us handled.

Thanks for posting to the blog. Your stuff looks great! This really helps us to become familiar with you and where you want to go with your work. If you haven't posted yet, or if you want to post anything at all please feel free to post. It's going to be a great workshop.

-Ramon

Hello!

2008-02-17T22:25:00.001-08:00

Hi everyone, my name is Andrew Harkins and I'm from right here in San Jose. In a nutshell, I love to bring characters to life and to tell their story no matter what the medium. I like to animate, conceptualize and create new and exciting ideas. But above all else, I truly enjoy working with my friends on projects that make ourselves and others laugh. My ultimate goal would be to work at a feature animation studio. Can't wait to get started!

artofandrew.blogspot.com

Hey There

2008-02-17T22:13:00.001-08:00

I'm Kelly Ricker. I'm from a small town between San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara, where I went to junior college before transferring to San Jose State. I have always loved to draw; in high school, my friends and I wrote comics -- mostly for our own amusement. I enjoy character design and story development.

Having a deep appreciation for a lot of different kinds of artwork, it's practically impossible to list examples for them all, but here's a sample: Pierre Alary, Bill Presing, Bruce Timm, Adam Hughes, Peter de Seve, as well as Alphonse Mucha, Charles Dana Gibson, and Bouguereau. I also love vintage magazine ads and movie posters!

I'm grateful for this opportunity and I'm looking forward to working with everyone!

2008-02-17T18:51:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone!

My name is Jake Panian. I transfered here from Northern Michigan University. I love character/environment design. Artists like Glen Keane, Mucha, Claire Wendling, Howard Pyle, Bernini, Ian McCaig, Coppo di Marcovaldo, the 9 old men and actors such as Russell Crowe and Tom Hanks continually humble and inspire me. I'm looking forward to this workshop!!

Howdy!

2008-02-17T17:26:00.000-08:00

My name is Renee Carty. I was born and raised in San Jose and have been attending San Jose State for about 5 years. If all goes well I hope to graduate next Spring! At a young age I became fascinated by art, movement, and storytelling, and since then I've fallen in love with animation and dance. A few of my inspirations come from James Baxter, Jean-Paul Gautier, Carlotta Grisi, Glen Keane, Claude Monet, Alessandro Barbucci, and Mary Blair. It's an honor to be a part of this workshop and I look forward to absorbing all that it has to offer!

Thank you!

(http://rcarty.blogspot.com)

Hello!

2008-02-17T12:08:00.001-08:00

Hi there! My name is Paul Nguyen and this is my second year at San Jose State. I've spent my life loving art but never really decided to pursue it as a profession until i made the choice to go back to school. That choice became the best i've ever made because i'm loving every minute of it. I hope to become a well rounded visual development artist someday. I draw inspiration from artists such as Frederic Church, Leonardo Da Vinci, John Singer Sargent, Howard Pyle, and Claire Wendling. I greatly appreciate this opportunity and look forward to meeting you all.

Hi

2008-02-17T10:00:00.000-08:00

Hey folks. My name is Vu, and this is my fifth year at SJSU. Initially I love fine arts, then I discover the animation/illustration program at SJSU and felt like I fit right in. My favorite artists and illustrators vary from Giorgio de Chirico to Brad Holland. Outside of art, I also enjoy photography and mountain biking. My goal is to be a visual development artist. For this particular workshop I really hope to learn design skills, which I am not very strong at. I am really excited to get started and meeting everybody.

Hello!

2008-02-17T01:55:00.000-08:00

Hello! My name is Laura Lee and this is my 2nd year in San Jose State University. I love to draw but mostly I love to animate. I grew up with a mixture of Disney films, Japanese animation, and Saturday morning super hero cartoons. When I came to San Jose State I was very relieved to finally be able to buckle down and do a lot of animation! Artists that are inspiring are Glen Keane, James Baxtor, Iain McCaig, Alphonse Mucha, James Jean, Stephan Silver, and Maxfield Parrish. I'm very honored to be joining everyone and am looking forward to learning and working with you all! :)

(http://artistlauralee.blogspot.com/)

Hello!

2008-02-16T12:26:00.000-08:00

Hi, my name is Miles. I been going to SJSU for over 2 years now and enjoy every minute I spend working on my art. I especially enjoy drawing animals and the human figure. My goals in art is to learn more about perspective, design, and color. Currently I enjoy the works of art of Sean Galloway, David Colman, Claire Wendling, Marcelo Vignali, Iain McCaig and much more. Its a pleasure to be here and to work with you all, and I can't wait to learn.
(http://www.milesdulay.blogspot.com)

Hello

2008-02-15T11:37:00.000-08:00

My name is Lam. This is my third year at SJSU. I have always been interesting in Illustration. I like to create my whimsical characters and put them into my fantasy world. In my spare time, I like to work on my personal projects or look at paintings from old masters. I am very excited and look toward to meet every one in the workshop.

Hi

2008-02-15T10:14:00.000-08:00

My name is Priscilla. This is my second year at SJSU. I became interested in illustration from attending an arts magnet high school in San Francisco. I chose to attend SJSU over MICA or Cooper Union in the east coast after high school, as opposed to my fine art instructer's recommendations because I was extremely attracted to the visual development and character design work produced here. After my first semester here, it was clear I made the right choice.
As a younger student, my work is still very representational. Thus, I look forward to learning how to simplifying and stylizing my designs more. I draw my inspirations from John Singer Sargent, Alphonse Mucha, Ian McCaig, Claire Wendling, and even fashion designers such as Alexander McQueen and John Galiano. I love to paint and draw and do fashion design when I have spare time.
What I love about being an artist is how we have the ability to design and create anything to our liking. Its almost like creating life in a sense. I look forward to learning as much as I can from everyone in this workshop. Its an honor to be here.

Hello!

2008-02-15T08:09:00.000-08:00

My name is Dora. I came to San Jose from Sacramento because I heard about the great program that they have here. I've lived here for about 4 years now and I'm loving it. Before that I was living and going through school in Sacramento for about 11 years. I'm originally from Salt Lake City, Utah. I miss the snow still... but you can't beat California summers!
I love to travel. My folks are from India so I go there often to visit family. In fact, I recently got back from a short visit
A couple of my inspirations are Hans Bacher and Claire Wendling.
I'm really excited to be a part of this workshop! I think it's an awesome opportunity. I can't wait to meet you all and start learning as much as I can!

Here is a link to my blog: http://debyani.blogspot.com. It has more of my work on there.

H E Y

2008-01-31T09:17:00.000-08:00

...... I'm David Pjecha And I've been with Hallmark for 21 rides around the sun. I like to draw and make things. For instance, I made these pictures all of which have a bird or birds in them. I like working with creative people. I did a Hallmark-SJSU workshop last year-it was cool. I'm looking forward to meeting you guys.

Hello. My name is...

2008-01-31T06:20:00.000-08:00

…Ramon Olivera. I grew up in Santa Clara. After graduating from SJSU in 1996 I came to Hallmark. My amazing co-workers are a great source of inspiration for me. Other influences include artists like Jim Flora, Paul Rand, Miguel Covarrubias, and Mary Blair. Here are a few samples of my work to give you an idea of what I do. I look forward to meeting you all!

2008-01-30T13:24:00.000-08:00

h e l l o...

I'm Sarah and I've been an illustrator/designer for Hallmark Cards for the last 6 1/2 years. I also play the bass and sing lead vox for a band called Softee with my best girl pals, who are also artist/designers at Hallmark. Never in a million years would I have believed someone if they told me that someday i'd be doing what I do. It's alot of fun. Here's some of my Hallmark work. I'd love to see YOUR stuff, so please...post away!

Welcome to our blog!

2008-01-29T13:19:00.000-08:00

Our workshop will run February 21, 22, and 23. The focus of the workshop will be character development and the creative content that surrounds it. We think you will enjoy what we have planned for you.

We want to take this opportunity to get to know you. If you are going to be joining us in the workshop, you will receive permission to post to this blog. Tell us who you are, where you are from, what are your goals, influences, and anything else you might want us to know about you. Upload a few examples of your artwork. If you have a link to a personal site or blog please include it. We’d love to see your work.

We look forward to working with you all!
Ramon, Sarah, and David