Hey Everyone!  I am pleased to report that I just received a shout-out from a different blog.  If you checkout; http://myblogfinallymadeit.blogspot.com/ you will see my Year-of-the-Dragon cards in her collection of cool and beautiful dragon images.  I am very happy and flattered to be shown among such talented company.

I will post new art soon!  I promise.  Hugs to all, -Dan

Vespa in Florence

It has been several months since my last post.  I am pleased to say that I have left my job and taken a new job at a great company in New York City's Soho.  These last three months have been great!  I am learning all about a whole new line of products...

In my free time I am still spending a lot of time at my art table.  Here is an illustration of Florence, Italy, that I made into a card.  A few years ago my sister went on a Vespa tour of Tuscany.  She came back with the most beautiful photographs!  With luck I will be taking a vacation this September and I have begun to think that my boyfriend and I might end up in Italy!

What are the best parts of Italy to see?  I think I have to go to Florence...  but what about Rome?  (I'd love to see the Vatican...)  Venice?  (Looks so beautiful!)  One of the cities in the South?  Please leave a comment and tell me where I must go.

Vintage Valentine

Valentine's Day is almost upon us! This is an image I created of two lovers on one of the many boats in New York harbor. (Perhaps the Staten Island Ferry... not usually the most romantic boat in New York but who can say...?)

My inspiration for this card actually came from the Eiffel Tower Winter card in the previous posting. I wondered why I had not drawn some of the totally beautiful, breath-taking locations in New York City. Every day on my commute the subway train that I ride rumbles high above the New York Harbor and I can catch a quick glimpse of the Statue of Liberty (for about ten seconds!).

The card is meant to look old fashioned in the style of clothes and in the very restrained color palette. I tried to recreate the old sepia toned photographs in everyone's attic. The only color used in a light pink wash in the sky and brown and flesh tones for our two lovers. If you like it you can find it for sale on my Etsy page at http://www.etsy.com/shop/danieljosephdurkin . Happy Valentine's Day, my friends. Hug to all!

Winter in Paris

This picture is a scan of the Holiday Card I made and sent to my family members and friends. I had originally wanted to draw Sacre Coeur in snow and I did a lot of Internet research on finding a proper assortment of images to create this illustration. The Eiffel Tower has a mysterious and magical hold over many Americans, and while clicking through about a hundred images of Paris, the Eiffel Tower began to call to me. I reasoned that I could quickly draw and complete this picture and then I would move on to a proper illustration of Sacre Coeur. (And wouldn't Sacre Coeur, a beautiful church, make more sense on the front of a Christmas Card? "Mais oui!")

Actually, this picture took a longer time to draw than I had expected. Once it was completed I had to hand paint all of the white details on each card. The number of Holiday cards I send out seems to have grown larger and larger each year. In the end, I found myself spending the holidays with my family in Chicago and still painting cards several days after Christmas- hoping that people wouldn't be too mad getting a very tardy holiday card. (As I write this I can still think of several people who I still owe a holiday card too... I'm sorry!) But this seems to be the refrain for every holiday- There is never enough time!

If anyone reading my blog would still like to receive "A Very Tardy Holiday Card", please send me your address. I will send you a blank Eiffel Tower card which you will be able to send out during the holidays next year to a friend or loved one. Happy Belated Holidays to everyone! Big Hugs!

2012- the Year of the Dragon

Hello everyone! I am very pleased to say goodbye to the big winter holidays. Although I love them, Christmas can become overwhelming when you work in retail. Stores are open longer and the poor employees have to listen to the same ten, worn out, Christmas Carols on repeat. (If I ever hear Michael Jackson sing "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" again I cannot hold myself responsible for my actions.)

I am pleased that I finally had two whole days off in which I could sit down and draw. Last year I had a great deal of fun creating a card for the Chinese New Year which celebrated the Rabbit. Now that is 2012 we are about to enter the Year of the Dragon. The image on the card is supposed to be a scene reminiscent of the the Miss America pageants. The little white bunny, last year's winner, stands beside the dragon and claps. (I'm going to miss that bunny.) The rest of the animals of the zodiac are present and watching.

According to my good friend the Internet; "The Year of the Dragon will be marked by excitement, unpredictability, exhilaration and intensity." This particular web site goes on to say, "...people respond to the spirit of the Dragon with energy, vitality and unbridled enthusiasm, often throwing all caution to the wind. The Dragon is all about drama." A friend of mine (shout out to Melissa!) sent me an email earlier this week and she admitted that this last year of the bunny "could have used a little more HOP!!" and she was looking forward to the arrival of the Dragon and "a new year filled with FIRE!"

Best wishes in 2012 to everyone! Big hugs, -Dan

How long has it been!?

Shame on me! I have not blogged in several months! This is unforgivable!

Since the end of August a lot has happened; I went to London and had a lovely time, I participated in a Fund Raising Run-Walk for the Wildlife Society, I became a minister with the First Nation Ministry so I could marry two of my best friends, and then I visited my boyfriend's family in California. Now things seem to be slowing down slightly and I am aware that I have not posted any art lately!

Today I just completed making my Holiday Cards and I would love to send one to anyone who follows my blog and who will send me their address. In the next few days I will post a scan of the card. Hope everyone is healthy and doing well!

Planning a Holiday in London

I have a "holiday" planned in less than a month. My boyfriend and I are going to London for a week and I am pleased to report that although this will be my fourth time there this will be his first trip to England. I cannot wait! I love the history of the city, the crazy way the streets are laid out, and of course the food in London. Fish and chips with a cold pint of cider are the makings of a perfect meal. No place on earth does it better than London.

It took us a long time before we finally settled on going to London. Just by chance I had been working on this illustration for some time beforehand. Right when I was finishing up the last few details we bought our plane tickets and booked our hotel. (Perhaps this means I had a premonition!)

This illustration is a combination of several things. The cute little mini cooper is based on a classic cooper which is parked in a neighbor's driveway a few blocks from me in Brooklyn. I then used a combination of my vacation photos and historical images to create the London street. The dome in the back in St. Paul's Cathedral. (On one vacation my mother and I walked up thousands of stairs to see the view from the very tip top of that dome!)

If you are interested in this card please check out my Etsy Page for further information. http://www.etsy.com/shop/danieljosephdurkin . Also, if anyone reading this has done something super awesome during a stay in London please send me a recommendation! Cheers!

This is a card I created from a scratch board I drew of Coney Island, in Brooklyn, NY. All of my friends will tell you that Coney Island one of my favorite spots. It is a short-ish subway ride from my apartment and it contains the perfect mix of glamour and grit. The hot dogs are fantastic, the cheese flavored topping is suspiciously bright yellow, and there are still huge portraits painted on the sides of the buildings for a freak show. The area is "in transition" right now which in New York means that condos and banks are coming to take the neighborhood away from the Freaks. Coney will always live in the collective conscience through movies like On the Town, Annie Hall, Requiem for a Dream, and The Warriors.

This picture prominently depicts the Parachute Jump, a which is sadly no longer running. This structure serves as the main landmark on the boardwalk. Behind the Parachute Jump you can see several tall apartment buildings, the Wonder Wheel, and the Cyclone. The large sandy beach stretches to the right of the picture and eventually to Brighton Beach, New York's Russian Community. (Another one of my favorite spots!) Since Coney is on the Atlantic Ocean large weather fronts are not unusual to see as they slowly float out to sea and make their way to England. Here I have depicted some of the most magnificent clouds I have ever seen.

If you like this card please check out my Etsy page where it is available for purchase. http://www.etsy.com/shop/danieljosephdurkin . I would like to thank everyone for checking out this posting. Hope you're having an exciting summer! -Dan :)

It is cherry blossom season and I am proud to have finally completed a card for this quasi-holiday. Here in Brooklyn, our local Botanic Garden has a fantastic annual "Sakura Matsuri, Cherry Blossom Festival". This year I went with my friend Shawn and we were amazed at how many New Yorkers will come out in droves to celebrate together... We suspected that many were using Sakura Matsuri as an excuse to dress in a kimono or in the costume of their favorite animated character.

The illustration here is of the Tidal Basin and the Jefferson Memorial in Washington DC. Although I have never been to DC in Spring, I have heard that their Cherry Blossom Festival is wonderful. If you are interested in this card please check out my Etsy page at www.etsy.com/shop/danieljosephdurkin. The question is... what do I draw next? Suggestions? Please post a comment or send me an email!

Hope everyone is well!

Koi Pond

I love koi fish! It was just a matter of time before they ended up appearing on a card. My boxes of photographs have been filled with snap shots of koi fish from garden ponds for the last several years. Drawing koi also gave me the fun excuse to work with a very exciting shade of orange. If you like this card it is available on my Etsy page at http://www.etsy.com/shop/danieljosephdurkin .

Although this is an illustration of koi, I have to admit that lobsters and seaside port towns have been on my mind following my recent trip to Maine! Please stay tuned for new sketches and artwork!

(Titles for this posting that you will be GLAD that I did not use; "Koi to the World", "Let's Hear it for the Koi", "Babes in Koi-land", "Koi-es Don't Cry", "Koi Vey!")

A Silver and Bronze Forest

This is photo of a recently completed wall painting commissioned by the visual team at the company I work for. They needed an autumn/winter looking background for a new collection. The idea was to pull out the silver and bronze tones so I only used two colors of metallic paint and built up several layers of each to create a sense of depth.

All in all I was pleased with what we ended up with... Anyone artist/designer will tell you that often you get half way through a project and think, "Oh no... what if this ends up looking terrible!? What'll I do!?" This particular project gave me a larger dose of that anxiety than I have felt in several months... Oh well. On to the next project!

P.S. I also just got back from a brief mini-vacation to Maine. What a great state! I took a million photographs and I am going to try to do some Maine based artwork soon. Stay tuned for updates.

Project Completed

Here is an image of my three pieces of art in the installation. The bedding and room were styled by my friend and coworker Jesse Sandobal. He was the one who commissioned these three pieces of art to tie the room together. Hopefully this will lead to other art based styling projects in the future. (We did a very successful installation together over a year ago. You can see images of it in one of my very first blog postings.)

Spring is hitting New York and I find myself walking more and more often. The first few flowers and leaves are beginning to sprout. This is going to be a beautiful Spring!

Heaven Sent Commission

Things have been busy lately. I'm pleased to report that my company commissioned three pieces of art from me... Although they did not ask for my original art or something from my portfolio I was still happy to be working. The project was for three large format canvasses with enlarged images based on sketches from a famous Italian furniture designer. We dug through his sketch book to find appropriate inspiration for our triptych. This is a photo of one of the three completed canvasses in my home. (Please note the original sketch taped beside the final art.)

Currently the book on my bedside table is titled "The Rape of Europa" by Lynn H. Nicholas. She writes a very interesting (though slightly dry) book on what happened to all of the greatest artistic masterpieces in Europe during World War II. The cover of the book has a photograph of the great hall of the Louvre totally empty except for picture frames. At the time of this commission I just happened across an image in my book of the Winged Victory being evacuated from the Louvre. If this statue could talk imagine the stories she would tell!

Once the presentation space is photographed professionally I will post additional images of the art in the finished space. Hope everyone is well, and thanks for reading!

Luck of the Irish

Here is a St. Patrick's Day card that I have spent several days trying to work out. I feel that it is a neat St. Patrick's Day card and I am proud that I have totally avoided stereotypical pitfalls like rainbows, pots of gold, and leprechauns. (Not to imply that those are bad...)

I wanted to include some writing on the inside of the card so I did research on three things, Irish toasts, Irish blessings, and Irish wit. So far, I have selected one phrase and included it inside the card; "May you live as long as you want, and never want as long as you live." This struck me as both clever and not cavity inducing-ly sweet.

As of writing this post I have not yet hammered out all of the details with this card. I am sure that some adjustments will be made in the next few days but for now it is available on Etsy at my site, http://www.etsy.com/shop/danieljosephdurkin.

Briefly, before I finish, I would like to mention a holiday that I have never ever heard of until a few weeks ago. Someone at a party mentioned in passing "Evacuation Day". When I wondered aloud what this day was (and silently wondered if this holiday needed a card) I was told that in the Boston Area they celebrate the day the British retreated out of Massachusetts to Nova Scotia on March 17th. This just happens by some great historical coincidence to fall on St. Patricks's Day... Thus the public sector workers of America's largest Irish Catholic city get St. Patrick's as a paid day off. How funny! (In full disclosure the blogger is an Irish Catholic who also enjoys days off.)

Love in Times Square

Here is my Valentine for this year. This is an image that has been sitting in my sketch book, patiently waiting in line for a chance to be drawn and finished, for several weeks now. I am very pleased with how it came out.

Perhaps this image in inspired by the famous black and white photo of the sailor kissing the young lady at the end of World War II... I have always loved Times Square and it is always a treat to sit down and draw something that you have a connection to.

I am still making very small changes to this image but it is available on my Etsy page for purchase. Please check it out at http://www.etsy.com/shop/danieljosephdurkin . (We are running out of time before the 14th... does everyone have a card for their special someone?)

Spreading like rabbits...

Isn't it just the way this always happens? I have one sketch of a bunny in my house, and then I draw a second bunny... (they meet, fall in love...) Before I know it, there are 77 bunnies! ...or to be more specific, I have had orders for 77 Year of the Rabbit Cards.

I'd like to take a few minutes and thank everyone who checked out my Etsy shop over the last few weeks. The conversations I have shared with Etsy customers have been wonderful! I have attached a map of the United States showing where the bunny cards are concentrated. (I love those red and blue political maps at election time... can you tell?)

The whole Pacific Rim of the US had a great reaction to the cards. Thanks to Darci and Anna in Seattle, Max from Bainbridge Island, Margie in Spokane, Emily in Portland, Cecilia in San Francisco, Mymy in Menlo Park, and my good friends Jarrod and Amnon in the Bay Area. Honorable mention goes to the very chilly Minnesota, Illinois, and Colorado. Thank you Karen in River Forest, Rebecca in Lincolnwood, Lora in Minneapolis, Jeni in Mankato, and Midori in Arvada. I was pleased as punch to receive an order from Texas, Ohio, and Washington D.C. Thank you Barbara, Bonnie, and Gillian!

This map does not even show a little red symbol in Melbourne, Australia, but thanks to Kerry our little bunny is hanging out with kangaroos.

Special mention and thanks to Annette in Toronto who is sure that this is going to be her year! Also, to Howard in Brooklyn for providing helpful design tips and for suggesting yummy, local restaurants. I was pleased to be in touch again with the Parson's Family in South Carolina. (Check out their Etsy page by searching their shop name MonkeysOnTheRoof.) Thanks also to my good friend and co-worker, Nora, right here in New York City.

My friend Tania gave me instructions on how best to celebrate the Chinese New Year on February 3rd. She recommended not washing your hair or sweeping up your house because that might inadvertently sweep away your luck. She also suggested that you buy a new item of red clothing and wear it that day. (Isn't this much more interesting than silly Groundhog's Day?)

2011- Year of the Rabbit

The Lunar New Year is almost upon us! For the last several years it has become a favorite holiday of mine. My birthday is on Valentine's Day and my boyfriend and I have thrown parties at our apartment in the past. We figured out that if we called it a Valentine's Day Party single people would feel excluded. I also felt that throwing yourself a birthday party is self-indulgent... we finally decided it would be easier and more fun to celebrate the Lunar New Year.

Last year was the year of Tiger. Any thoughts? I thought it was an okay year... But now we are heading into the Year of the Rabbit. According to the dependable people at a web site called theholidayspot.com we can look forward to a relaxed year in which, "Good taste and refinement will shine on everything and people will acknowledge that persuasion is better than force." Sounds good to me!

This illustration is something I've been itching to do since the year of the Horse! I have a fasination with paper lanterns and I've wanted to try to create the warm, beautiful glow that you get from them when they are lit. Thanks to my buddy Jen who approved the rabbit illustration in advance to make sure he was cute enough... You can't quite tell but this little rabbit is thinking, "This is going to be my year!"

As always this card is available on my Etsy page. Best wishes to my friends!

Paris From Above

Happy New Year Friends!

I have included an illustration I have been working on of the roofs of Paris. When we arrived in our hotel during my recent vacation there I found myself taking way too many pictures of other people's roofs. Kinda crazy... Later when I was flipping through my photos I kept thinking, "What nut got a hold of my camera and took all of these pictures?"

The image on top is of the original scratch board. The second image is printed on recycled paper and I have added a bright white and a mid-tone shadow. (It's funny, sometimes I prefer the black and white original... thoughts?) Please check out Etsy to find a series of cards that I have made from this illustration. I'd also like to give a shout out to Miss Mishel of Clinton Hill Brooklyn, John J. Hoody of Connecticut, and Aileen of Miami Beach, Florida... These great people bought some of the Grand Central Terminal Ceiling cards to use as Holiday Cards. Thanks a million!

Hope everyone had a great New Years.

Holiday Card for 2010!

Hello Friends!

I am pleased to post my holiday cards for 2010! After I posted the Thanksgiving card on Etsy.com I received the greatest response possible; People bought them! I'd like to shout out to my friends Opera-John and Shawn and thank them for buying. Also, Jordan on Manhattan's Upper West Side, Rose in Florida, Jen in Maine, Melissa in Texas, and the Parsons Family in South Carolina! The boost to my confidence was incredible!

Here you see images of the card and two images of the envelope. My initial idea was to create a three image joke. The front of the envelope serves as our "establishing shot" and shows Grand Central Terminal, here in midtown New York. The person receiving the Holiday Card will (hopefully) flip it over and will see an image of an invitation, inviting someone to a Holiday Party that evening hosted by Orion. Upon opening the card the viewer will find that the Holiday Party is being thrown on the underside of the ceiling of Grand Central Station, with all of the Zodiac signs invited. (Taurus the Bull has a present, Pegasus has three gifts, and Cancer the Crab is bringing gifts and wine!)

The illustrations were created from scratch board and they are printed on a natural toned piece of recycled paper. I used a gold marker to try to recreate the gold leaf and stars in the Grand Central Ceiling. It is disappointing but the gold is impossible to scan into the computer. (Please pretend that each figure shimmers a bit!)

If I don't get a chance to post a message before the Holidays, I would like to wish everyone my very best for the last few weeks of 2010 and joy and peace for all of 2011!

Things I am thankful for

I have attached an image of a Thanksgiving card I am preparing to send out to friends and family. Everyone who reads my blog (all five of you) will be receiving a card from me. If anyone else is reading this and would like to receive a card please just send me a comment with your name and home address!

This is an image I have wanted to create into a card for several years. Over the years I have filled several sketch books with doodles in which I planned out this card. The sketches have never worked to my satisfaction and I always question myself and ask, "Does anyone actually send out Thanksgiving cards?" Each year Thanksgiving has passed me by making all of this moot. Happily, this year I managed to find one day to get all of the drawing done. Now I just need a few evenings to paint the white details.

The Thanksgiving Parade in New York was one of those things that I LONGED to attend when I lived in Chicago. Now as a New Yorker I just try to keep it in mind and avoid Times Square and Broadway on Thanksgiving. Often it is very cold and the street is always packed like a sardine can. One has to admire the Radio City Rockettes. Rain or shine they show up every year wrapped in short little fur coats and hats, but only wearing nylons and tap shoes. I'd have thought they'd have learned from the previous years and said, "Hey ladies, how about we wear pants this year?"

The card above is a scratch board illustration of the Dakota on Central Park West and 72nd in New York. This is the famous building where John Lennon and Yoko lived and where Mia Farrow as Rosemary cried out, "His eyes! What have you done to his eyes!?"

The large balloons in front of the building are stand-ins for the cartoon characters who float down the parade each year. I expected to run into legal trouble from The Networks if I put in Sponge Bob or Kermit so here is Nicky the Simple Squirrel, Georgie the Over-Indulgent Turkey, and Wilhelm the Aggressive Penguin. (All the names come from a non-fiction book I'm reading on the lead up to World War I.)

Later this week I will be posting some of these cards onto my Etsy site. Please check them out there along with some of my other work. I am thankful and proud to say that I have sold two items off of Etsy. The two images of the vegetables below were sold and will soon be hanging in someone else's kitchen.