Rich Conley Art

Kings of Comedy

2012-02-03T09:43:00.000-08:00

My tribute to some of the masters of laughs. I wanted to create that oldtime movie feel so I stuck with the black and white theme. Just looking at this one makes me smile.

This is a little better

2012-01-30T13:37:00.000-08:00

Okay two postings in one week. It's a miracle. Actually it's just my way of getting off my butt and putting myself out there. My goal for 2012 is to get something published somewhere. Nothing too major, just the next step. So here are a few more of my more recent pieces.And to avoid any confusion, it's Fred Astaire, the amazingly talented Adele, and LMFAO(my daughtertold me I HAD to do them)enjoy

Take 64 or so.

2012-01-28T14:30:00.000-08:00

Finally able to access my blog again. Don't know what happened, don't care. But here's some the stuff I've been working on since my last post.

The Situation.....

2011-10-11T11:40:00.000-07:00

I got an email on Sunday from my brother asking if I followed the Situation on Facebook ? He told me I should check because my caricature was posted by him on his page. Too funny. A piece that I gave very little time or energy gets more attention than just about anything else I've done....too funny.Here's the piece I speak of.

Guess who's back....

2011-09-14T07:40:00.000-07:00

After a long summer filled with getting my daughters ready for college, lots and lots of live events, various computer problems and a major family issue I'm hopefully back to posting more regularly. Hopefully. Here are a few examples of this I did in between all the craziness.Let me know what you think.

When an original dies

2011-02-24T15:40:00.000-08:00

I'm taking a break from my artwork this time to talk about a true masterpiece. My wife's grandmother passed away on Feb.14th only months form her 100th birthday. I know that the standard response when hearing of someone living that long is "they lived a good long life". Well she lived a life few will ever duplicate. Unfortunately for me I only got to know her after my marriage, her family had the privilege of having a one-of-a-kind original to inspire them their entire life.She did more after turning 60 then most of us will do in a lifetime. She founded a group called Haven after her husband's death to help others deal with grief, today that group helps thousands in their time of need. At 65 she received her degree in fine arts, she became master weaver and showcased her work all over the world.. For her 80th birthday she decided she had to see the world from a hot air balloon, she went on an archaeological dig, and only her doctors request stopped her from white water rafting. As a child she was called a prodigy and traveled by train to NYC to play piano on the radio. She raised three amazing children, looked after seven grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren. And had more zest for life than any person I've ever met.
I have had the amazing good fortune to meet Presidential candidates, Academy Award winners, Hall of Famers, Heavyweight Champions, and Grammy award winners. They all pale in comparison to her.
Today the world is just a little less illuminated because one of it's brightest lights is missing.I will miss her smile, her laugh, her ability to make me feel like anything I said was interesting and important. I am better because I met her, I only hope I can continue on with the same love of life...and chocolate she had.

Happy New Year and new start

2011-01-20T07:03:00.000-08:00

Ok, new year, new start. One of my new resolutions is to post more, here, on the ISCA, Deviant Art, where ever I can get my work out there. For far too long I've kept so much of my stuff to myself. Call it fear of failure, fear of success whatever. This year I'm going to get off my butt and put myself out there. So here's a bunch of my latest stuff. I went back to Jason Seiler's book and studied his painting technique. It was very helpful. I will admit I through in some of my stuff as well and it seemed to work ok.

2010-10-28T05:41:00.001-07:00

I just finished up the project for Malaria No More. I have to admit there were several times when I really thought I wasn't going to be able to complete it. I compare this project to running a marathon, and I definitely hit "the wall" at about number 18. There were ones that I loved , others I "completed" and a few that drove me crazy (er),but all in all I'm happy with the overall work I did for this one. 25 digital paintings in 16 days, not a pace I want to duplicate very often, but it tells me that I can if called upon I can do it. I'm including photos from the evnt in Hollywood where some of the celebs received their pictures.

Oh, What A Month !!!

2010-10-18T12:39:00.000-07:00

I have one of those months that artists dream of. It started with a request to do paintings of Adrian Grenier 0f "Entourage" and Vincent D'Onofrio from "Law and Order" I didthe film festival that they attended, got to meet them (both really nice guys) and got autographed copies of my pieces. The highlight of my night was meeting Bill Plympton, one of the greatest cartoonists/animators/caricature artists and one of my heroes . He was AMAZING !!
Fast forward 1 week, I am contacted by a group called Malaria No More. They want me to do 25 paintings that will be given to various celebrities as thank-you gifts. The list includes John Mayer, Orlando Bloom, Ed Helms, Jeff Probst, Josh Groban, Elizabeth Banks and on and on.
Well I got the first 17 done in 5 days, 5 loooooooonnnnnggggg days. I have 8 more to go but I'm getting closer to the finish line. They had their dinner leat night in Hollywood and they presented some of the stars their pics and I now have the photos to prove it.
Like I said, what a month. I wonder if this is what Jason Seiler's life is like every month ??
Below are some of the pics including Adrian's and Vincents.
To check out the event photos go to :http://www.wireimage.com/ItemListings.aspx?ipp=120&igi=459554&nbc1=17

Yes. I'm still alive

2010-05-28T08:52:00.000-07:00

I know, I know, where have I been ? Well I'd love to come up with just one reason, but Life has been crazy. Between a series of delays with the book I illustrated to lots of various projects for clients, and more live events than I care to count , I have been more than little bit busy. But here are a few pieces I've been able to fit in between projects. I'm hoping to be much more active now that I have a little more time.

Ughhhhh. and all that good stuff

2009-11-04T13:16:00.000-08:00

I know, I know, where the hell have I been ? I have spent the better part of the last few months working on artwork for a family style cookbook. The project is really fun and the artwork is great, but the lay-out end of it is really time consuming and took much longer then I expected But here are some of the other things I was able sneak in as well. I hope people haven't given up on me, I've been trying to follow other forums, a HUGE source of inspiration as well as motivation. Hopefully the cookbook will be out for Dec. and I can let you all get a peek.

Finally

2009-07-16T10:07:00.000-07:00

Ugh, my computer died 2 weeks ago.Fortunately HP had a recall because of bad motherboards, so it was completely covered. But I had to deal with little or no internet, but I did draw, and paint and here are a few new ones. I did a couple of the King of Pop. Brief history, I graduated from high school in 1983 the year after Thriller was released so it was perfectly timed to be the soundtrack of some of the most interesting time s in my life. I can remember coming home everyday from school, watching Mtv and seeing Thriller (back when Mtv played videos). Michael Jackson was an amazing talent, was he a troubled soul, yes but he was also an amazing entertainer. So I did 2 pieces one from a live show and one from Thriller. I also threw in my Bruno, haven't seen the movie, but I hear it's hysterical. Hope ya like. I'm just glad I have my computer back.

A little of everything

2009-06-23T09:17:00.000-07:00

I know I've not been doing a great job lately, but after a stretch where I was doing post-prom and graduation events every weekend I'm finally getting a chance to exhale. YEAH. Here's a bunch of stuff that I've been playing with. I included some sketches ( I had a tough time with the Bruno pic), and a piece I did for the ISCA's monthly contest. I had fun with Bones, he was always my favorite, and I loved the new version of him in the movie. The LAdy Gaga is a WIP I'm playing with a new technique, it was actually kind of fun.I've also been trying to improve my work via Jason Seiler's tutorial (which is fantastic). Hope ya like these. I'll try to do better next time.

Live from NY...

2009-05-20T12:46:00.000-07:00

Well between college events, springfests and now after-proms I've been doing a lot of live events (which is a good thing). So I thought I'd post some of the ones I remembered to take pictures of. I LOVE people who come up with great ideas, or just let me have fun with them.

Enjoy, I know I did.

Wolverine

2009-05-05T12:30:00.000-07:00

Okay, I know this isn't a movie review site, but with all the hype I thought I'd throw my 2 cents in (plus a new pic). X-men-Origins is a good/not great summer movie. Great visuals, a little light in the plot. If you loved the X-men series then you'll enjoy seeing some familiar face, plus a bunch of new ones, but the story here is the weakest part.

As for the pic, I had fun working outside of my normal color scheme and playing with colors a bit more, I was really trying to capture the feel of motion and a split second in time. Let mne know what you think.

Phew....

2009-04-30T06:43:00.000-07:00

Well after a stretch of college events I'm finally back to posting. Here's a couple of recent things. I have to admit I feel like I've hit a plateau, things aren't clicking the way I'd hoped they would. The paintings I don't feel are all that strong and I feel like I played it too safe as far as the caricatures went. Have to kick myself out of this rut, any suggestions would be great. Also to all my painting heros and ideas of pallete suggestions, I seem to be painting with the same colors over and over and I'm not liking the results. Are there sites or books I should be looking at.

Digital Painting Frenzy

2009-03-19T09:06:00.000-07:00

I've been working on a bunch of pieces that I've been thinking about/ working on for a while now, and I hate to repeat myself, but having the Cintiq had made thing so much easier, and productive. These pieces were ones I knew what I wanted but wasn't able in the past, now they are becoming more of a reality. BTW I have spent a good deal of time looking at various artists and their blogs and I have to say "thanks" you all inspire me and make me want to be a better artist. Your blogs are amazing and keep me grounded and kick me in the butt, it's great. I love hearing from all of you,I consider you friends even though we've never met. Keep the comments coming , they always help.

Off to see the Wizard

2009-03-05T15:50:00.000-08:00

As I said in my last post, I love my new Cintiq. I just finished a piece that I actually started sketching a month ago. It took about 30 hours to paint this piece, longer than any one I've ever worked on before. but I really like the end result. I often look at other artist's work and wish I was able to get the results they do, it doesn't deter me but rather inspire me. I'm hoping to finally get some of my stuff out to magazines and other places, attempting to broaden my possibilties. I thinking this may be the front of my postcard.

My Cintiq.....LOVE IT !!

2009-02-24T08:13:00.001-08:00

Here are my first paintings with my new Cintiq, it is amazing. I started the A-Roid piece without it and finished it up. The ability to get details is incredible. The Bruce piece was done totally in PSCS3 and I was able to do things because of the Cintiq that digitally I've ever done before. Thank-you Wacom, for a nearly blind guy you made my life much easier.Hope ya like the new stuff. Let me know.

Who's House ??

2009-01-29T11:23:00.000-08:00

Okay, have I missed much since my last post ? Hmm, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's , and oh yeah, a new President. Nope, not much at all. Well even in this bad economy I have been busy, between live events, gift caricatures and character design I have managed to keep busy (thank goodness). Here are a few new pieces I'm working on or have finished, let's hope 09' keeps me even busier and I somehow manage to do a better job here.

Neighborhood Politics

2008-10-23T07:18:00.000-07:00

I recently got back to digitally painting a few new pieces. I wanted to do something fun, thus the Mr. Rogers, and then I was watching CNN and I saw the target of my next pic, man he was fun. I also did a new House, he's got such a cool face, I like how this one came out. And finally for halloween a classic.

Time Flies......Ugh

2008-08-01T07:54:00.000-07:00

I can't believe how much time has gone by. I look at other artist's blogs and laugh when I see them go weeks without posting...and then there is me. Well I have time to get back to work on this blog. I've been all over this place, working constantly and meeting some great people. Here's some stuff to tide you over until I get serious again. Be patient, there is some good stuff.

Live stuff....

2008-04-28T04:24:00.000-07:00

I've been really busy with live stuff lately, here's a small sample of my more recent stuff.

Always a new place,a new face, at an insane pace.

It's been a while

2008-04-04T08:01:00.000-07:00

I know I hoped to be more active with this blog but a funny little thing called life got in the way. Today is my first day off in over a month and a half......busy is good, but every now and then it's good to exhale. So here are some of the things I've been working on...let me know what you think. And who knows maybe I'll be able to get more things up here soon.

Busy, busy, busy

2008-02-27T19:24:00.000-08:00

Life has been crazy, here aew a couple of wip's.

Caricatures,characters, and cartoons...oh my !!!

2008-01-25T07:11:00.000-08:00

I can't believe how quickly this month has gone by. With live events, clients work and various other projects I found it hard to believe that the holidays were nearly a month ago. This post includes a sample of my digital work, a character I'm doing for a great website that has weekly contests, and a fun one I did for my display board. I hope to do better with my posting in 08', but that will all depend on my work load, and busy is always better.

Caricature DUMP !

2007-12-29T07:17:00.000-08:00

I can't believe it's been over a month since I last put anything here, so to make up for that I'm going to dump a pile of stuff I've done (or re-done) over the last several weeks. The Jack Sparrow is an example of me not being totally happy with a piece and re-working it and re-working it until it's really where I want it to be. I thank the good folks at Disney(especially the Pirates ride) for helping me see how I should really draw him.

Honest Abe

2007-11-19T16:20:00.000-08:00

Okay, I know this may not be the most popular target today to caricature but I thought I'd take a break from the movies and try this. I finally feel like this one is what I'd like my paintings to look like, I'm finally getting the tightness that I want in my pieces. I'm hoping that each piece I do will get me closer to the level I'm really going for.

"You're a Bum"

2007-11-13T11:25:00.000-08:00

My absolute favorite movie. Great scene,great character.As I was working on it, I kept hearing him yell at Rocky,love that scene. I'm starting to feel like my digital work is getting tighter (finally). This piece is getting closer to the look and feel of the stuff I want to be doing. I tried some stuff in Painter and right now I'm not confident enough in it yet, but I'll keep working with it. If anyone has any requests, I'm always looking for ideas.

All by my elf...

2007-11-06T14:09:00.000-08:00

I'm still in my digital mode, and now I'm just going through characters that have made me laugh, and are interesting. I've been really working on trying to make my pieces "tighter". Will Ferrell has been in some pretty funny movies over the last few years I just thought this was a fun shot, so I did it. I'm trying to focus on really great characters, if you have any suggestions let me know.

Digital,Digital....and Digital

2007-10-24T08:58:00.000-07:00

Okay, Joe Bluhm's podcasts have been such an inspiration to me, I have really gotten back into doing stuff in Photoshop, here are a few new pieces. After some good advice from NCN members I am now happy with the Young Frankenstein, the Clooney piece was something I've kicked around for a few years, and the Willy Wonka was suggested to me by a very talented artist friend of mune, Rich Gabriel. If you love horse racing you should check out his site- http://www.richgabriel.com/, his stuff is amazing.

Work in progress

2007-10-13T14:47:00.000-07:00

This is a piece I like but I feel I can make better. It's here so that if anyone has any ideas as to what I should do to it feel free to let me know. It's done in Photoshop, a medium I'm still trying to get a handle on.

I love Young Frankenstein and this scene always makes me laugh, my tribute to the late, great Peter Boyle.

Watercolor works

2007-10-08T09:48:00.000-07:00

I've spent the last few months working on my watercolor skills. Here are samples of pieces I did solely in paint, no inking, more of an illustration feel. I'm trying to get a portfolio together to submit to magazines.

Try,try, again

2007-09-22T07:14:00.000-07:00

Okay, I thought I'd try this again...since my last one seemed to fade away. Here's some of the new work I've done over the summer, trying for a little more exaggeration,and spending more time on them. Hopefully I can do a better job on this one and keep it more up to date,