Moyo Magazine interview!

Hi everyone! Just a quick post here today. I wanted to let you know that there is an interview with me in the latest issue of Moyo magazine! It is free to read online so be sure to go check it out. The magazine is filled with great information and interviews on surface design so you definitely don't want to miss out!

Best wishes!

Joshua

Returning! and Learning vector

Hi everyone! Long time no see! Firstly, I must apologize for my absence and hiatus. Shortly after my last post in August I took a new job and moved to Chicago. I am currently working as a graphic designer on the picture book imprint at Sourcebooks publishing house! It has been a crazy, but exciting time moving and transitioning both to a new city as well as to life post grad school. I took some time away from illustration as I settled into my new job and explored my new surroundings. Being in Chicago now, I had to act quickly before winter set in, which it now has haha. At any rate, it's time to get back on track and back to illustration business! I have some projects I'll be working on in the coming weeks that I'm looking forward to sharing with you all. In the mean time, I thought I'd share my foray into using Illustrator for designing some patterns I created for a work project. These were primarily exercises for myself to get a better handle on the program, and I definitely plan to employ it more in the future.

Until next time, best wishes!

Joshua

Water Rays

Among other current projects, I am also participating in Make it in Design's three week summer workshop created to establish a networking community for surface designers as well as deliver prompts for generating work. While the summer session may already be in progress, they offer courses throughout the year that are really valuable to anyone entering the licensing industry! If you missed the post earlier on my blog, I actually was one of three scholarship recipients to the full four courses earlier this year. The second section begins in October, so I am looking forward to that. Be sure to check out Make it in Design's website and check out the other participants in the course's work as well! For now, here is my quick response to the week one prompt: "Water Rays"

Joshua

CLAMP Fan Zine

Hi everyone! Above is my piece for the first of two fan Zines I am participating in this month! This one is in celebration of CLAMP, and you can be pre-order the zine here. There are a lot of really lovely illustrators participating in this one with me, and many fellow MICA alumni. Of course, I had to draw my three favorite CLAMP heroines from Magic Knight Rayearth! (We all know I can't resist any opportunity to draw a magical girl, haha). For those who aren't familiar with it, Magic Knight Rayearth is a really amazing story that was one of the many to shape my childhood. I really recommend giving it a watch, because it really is so much more than your stereotypical magical girl story! (Not that I don't love those just as much!)

Coming up next will be a Powerpuff Girls Villains zine! I'm really excited about that one as well. As for who I'm illustrating, I'll let that be a surprise. I also have some more fun children's narrative pieces on the way as well as a few new pattern collections! Keep your eyes peeled for those in the near future.

Best wishes,

Joshua

Promo materials

Hey everyone! I hope everyone is having a fantastic summer weekend! I can't believe we're already breaching mid-July. Where is the time even going? Anyway, I wanted to share with y'all a promo piece that I recently created. I'm just waiting for the postcards to arrive to send out =). I'm also working on a story and picture book dummy to accompany this piece along with to other stories I am putting together. I look forward to sharing some of that artwork with you as well in the near future!

I don't want to give too much of the story away yet, but I've named the leading character Jenny Li for now, and I'm really excited to see where she goes! Keep an eye out for some more pirate themed work from me in the near future, perhaps some patterns? 

Best wishes,

Joshua 

Summer greetings!

Hi everyone! I have to apologize for neglecting this blog for a while. Shortly after my last post my hard drive crashed and I lost everything! I was pretty crushed about it of course and hit a bit of a slump. Additionally I graduated in May and since have been doing a lot of traveling and moving! But I've finally picked up the pieces of my sadly lost thesis and gained the momentum to keep moving forward! I'm working on some new projects at the moment, but before I proceed with sharing those, I wanted to do this quick post to share just a few more pieces that I completed in the spring before losing my files.

Firstly I was working on a retelling of the Jabberwocky poem set in an India inspired fantasy world.

Additionally, I did a little doodle for a background piece in a good friend's stop motion animation. When I can grab the link to that, I'll be sure to edit it into the post.

And lastly here is a quick sketch that i first made for one of the new projects I'm currently developing =).

I'll be reporting back within the next day or so with some actually current work, but in the mean time, best wishes! And thank you for sticking with me through the lull! 

Joshua

Thesis Exhibition!

Hi everyone! I have to apologize for my absence post thesis completion! It has been a hectic month filled with my installing and de-installing, travel and many projects! Without further ado though, I'm happy to share a few photos of my exhibition! It was so crazy to see the culmination of my thesis work all on display this way. As you may know, there was a lot more work and of few other thesis projects scrapped along the way, but I'm really pleased with what I developed and where my work has gone. I can't believe that in just three weeks I will be graduating with my MFA! It has been a wild ride, but I am so grateful to have gone on this journey. Over the next few days I'll be updating with a few other projects I've been working on, as well as some doodles. But for now, here is my exhibition!

Best wishes,

Joshua