Jake of CrossFit REP found out about my work through a referral from an old friend Sarah, who reached out to see if BAMFaktory was still doing painting gigs. My partner Brad did the brand mural at her old company Golden Arm Media back in 2015, but since he has a full time job hasn’t been taking on any outside work. Since I’d been freelancing full-time, I decided this would be a great opportunity for me to do my first solo mural project.
CrossFit REP already had a logo mural on their wall, but the color didn’t quite match his branding. He also wanted a big hashtag painted across the top in line with a 1ft purple bar that had been started at the top of the mural wall. Since I had done a few hand-lettered signs for weddings in the past, I suggested that he let me free-hand the tagline at the top rather than stenciling or taping off each individual letter as it would save time and cost.
In total, the project took me a bit over 18 hours over three days to complete, with a quick pre-work session to test the paint colors. I used a level and ruler to grid out the tag line prior to painting. For the logo, I used their projector and also fashioned a compass out of a string and split key ring to make sure my circles were perfect.
I’d love to do more mural work in the future, especially with some creative elements. Please contact me for a quote, if you are interested in commissioning your own mural.
When I met Amelia, I was working through my Krystalline Kweens tarot series. A die-hard Dungeons & Dragons fan, she immediately fell in love with the elegant femininity I brought to each of my portraits and wanted to see herself or one of her D&D characters portrayed in such a light.
After much consideration, she ended up deciding that she wanted me to portray her character Anaïs Birdsong, a half-elf bard and servant of the Lady of Light. She had reluctance about being ready for me to do a portrait of her, but the more she described her character the more I realized that in her mind the character shared similarities with her physical appearance.
When I asked about the character’s style, she cited female indie-folk musician Lenka and specifically her song Trouble is a Friend. I used the singer’s style and the mood of the song to influence the clothing and attitude for the character, incorporating Amelia’s favorite color: a vibrant blue. She used this character in an adventuring party, traveling from town-to-town, playing in taverns and dreaming of greater fame, so I kept the clothing choices both practical and stylish.
In the stained glass window of the church, I incorporated the transgender flag colors. On her guitar, I added a peacock feather decoration reflecting her favorite color, while the peacock symbolizes a spiritual awakening and, in many cultures, is connected to the transformational phoenix. The rolling hills in the background harken back to the scenic vistas of her birth state, Arkansas.
The final version of this 5″x7″ D&D character portrait was drawn using a mix of Copic markers, Micron fineliners, and Gelly Roll pens on Strathmore smooth bristol paper.
If you’d like to commission your own D&D character portrait, click here to see my rates and make a request!
When Cass became the Director of Digital Marketing for Nulo Pet Food, she wanted to show off her beautiful fur-babies, Tim Riggins and Lyla Garrity, by decorating her desk with a pet portrait.
Unfortunately, she has a problem getting her babes to sit still for a portrait, so she reached out to me for an uniquely illustrated pet portrait of her very active pups.
After gathering several reference photos of her pups, I gave Cass three thumbnail concept options for how they could be positioned in the portrait. Once a thumbnail concept was selected, I did a quick close-up color draft to ensure that I could capture both pup’s unique expressions (see Sketchbook Concepts below).
The final version of this 8″x10″ pet portrait took me around 12 hours to complete (+3-4 hours for the concept sketches and drafts). It was drawn using a mix of Copic markers, Micron fineliners, and Gelly Roll pens on Strathmore smooth bristol paper.
Tim Riggins Reference Photo
Lyla Garrity Reference Photo
Sketchbook Concepts
Final Portrait
If you’d like to commission your own pet portrait, click here to see my rates and make a request!
This year, when my friend Jacque’s hubby met his idol, the fantastic Dave Grohl, she knew of the perfect gift for him to honor this exciting moment.
She had seen the black ink drawings I did in preparation for the Afterhours Canvas Battle and commissioned me to help capture this moment in a similar style.
Overall, this 11″x14″ piece took around 6 hours to complete, done entirely in black ink with Micron and Stabilo fineliners with Sharpie and Copic markers on Strathmore smooth bristol paper.
Reference Photo
Sketchbook Draft
Final Portrait
If you’d like to commission your own fan portrait, click here to see my rates and make a request!
After seeing a couples portrait that I did during MerMay, shared by a mutual friend, Nicole reached out to me via Instagram to have something similar done of her and her beau, Conrad.
She loved the sparkle effect I had given to one of my other MerMay portraits and wanted to channel some Ursula fierceness in her portrait, while she imagined Conrad as half-shark.
If you’d like to commission your own fantasy portrait, click here to see my rates and make a request!
When her sweet dog passed, friend and past neighbor Carrie contacted me to commission a portrait of him that she could eventually have tattooed on her. Since I knew JD in life and he was one of my favorite neighbor dogs ever, she knew I would be the right choice to capture his spirit.
If you’d like to commission your own pet portrait, click here to see my rates and make a request!
This pet portrait was commissioned by my friend Jordan as a Christmas gift for his bosses’ of their dogs, whom he’d gotten to know very well while working at Camp 4 Paws.Â
During production, the middle basset hound, Rosie, passed away so a faint golden light was drawn around her head and body.
If you’d like to commission your own pet portrait, click here to see my rates and make a request!
This pet portrait was commissioned by my longtime friend Adam, who wanted to see his dog Harry as the star of Singing in the Rain. After a few brief concepts, I worked up this fun and fantastical piece for him!
If you’d like to commission your own fantasy pet portrait, click here to see my rates and make a request!
