A poster urging women to get mammograms pictures a young child’s eyes, which could be a daughter or a son that may be left behind should the mother not get a mammogram and die of breast cancer. ↓

Kansas Foundation of Medical Care and breast cancer awareness posters are compelling concepts. ↓

Kansas Foundation of Medical Care, breast cancer awareness posters, and ads. ❦

I proposed a poster design for the “Linotype The Film” documentary. I have them lined up in order of my favorite to my least. What I like about this one is the name of the subject, the design of the poster, and the colors. Even though this is about the old way of producing type, I thought a more contemporary approach would perhaps get more young people involved and interested in seeing the documentary. ↓

For the “Linotype, The Film” documentary, our photographer, copywriter, and I packed up the company car to drive to Iowa City, where I was to direct a short intro film to the documentary. It showcased our copywriter learning the old trade of setting lead type on a linotype machine, which he eventually conquered. ↓

This poster has a vintage yet contemporary feel to it. The Linotype machine cast molten lead lines of the type used for newspapers, magazines, and other printed materials. One entire line of type would be produced at a time vs. one letter, hence the name “Linotype.” ↓

Mixing an old-type style with a modern design was an attempt to cut through the clutter and build interest. The linotype machine was used from early in the nineteenth century to the late 70s and early 80s. It’s hard to believe that in that amount of time, a new, more advanced way of setting type had not yet been invented. ↓

I went more of a semi-vintage style with this poster. The concept implies you sit back at the theatre with popcorn and enjoy “Linotype the Film!” The short intro we filmed looked good on the big screen and fit well with the documentary. ❦

Photograph composites, along with illustrations, were done in Photoshop. If only she had known! ❦

3D art of the beer bottles and labels was created to present to the client. ↓

On this 6-pack carton, there's a painting of a man, which the client provided, and I designed the Oatmeal Stout logo. Fishing, Oatmeal Stout? I guess it made some kind of sense, …ON URANUS! It looked good, but it was stupid. I must have had one too many! ( 3D illustration ) ↓

A star was born, or so I thought for the “Ad Astra Ale” 6-pack design, but in reality, the stars were falling! The client rejected this one and all others of my design ideas. I've had enough of this craft beer stuff. It’s Miller time! ( 3D illustration ) ↓

As you can see, I was a little too daring and didn’t put a snake in the design. Instead, I used distressed old copper metal with rivets for the background. Another excellent example of the “Dare To Be Stupid” motto in action! ( 3D illustration ) ↓

I liked this 6-pack design with the wheat stocks and the hops in the foreground. ( 3D illustration ) ❦

I took it upon myself to learn 3D illustration apps. As I became more proficient, a demand slowly materialized. ↓

I took the initiative to learn all relevant applications and excelled in one, earning me the title of "Photoshop Guru," among other things. ❦

A newspaper ad and poster for Subsonic Scooters in Lawrence, Kansas. I’d look good on one of these! ❦

This was for a newspaper ad showing the coverage of the early cell phones for Southwestern Bell. Impressive! ❦

This was the 1984 Security Benefit Group Athens calendars series done in several black and white styles, pen and ink, grease pencil, and pencil. The illustrations were printed in a dark blue with a secondary color of burgundy on cream paper. The promotional calendars were for members and investors. ❦

These are a few of the Topeka Zoo’s promotional calendars for members and contributors. Like the SBG calendars, these zoo animals were illustrated in multiple black and white styles, pen and ink, grease pencils, and ink wash. The black and white illustrations were printed in brown, with the calendar and text printed in navy blue on tan paper. ❦

This ink illustration was created while I was in art school. Little did I know that I would be illustrating quite a few of these in my early career. ↓

This was an art class exercise, ink wash, and pen. This illustration style was used primarily for newspapers and magazine ads.↓

I remember this style of chair; we had two of them at home. Very comfortable, by the way! ↓

This is an Alco late 70s lampshade. What a beauty! I think maybe Mom had one. ↓

Are we selling the tire or the chain? Alco didn’t sell tires! ↓

Binoculars, one of my early assignments at Alco. ↓

I tried my hand at fashion illustration when I worked at Alco, but as you can see, that didn’t work out so well. ↓

I decided to leave the fashion illustrations to the fashion artist. ↓

Sufferin Succotash! A fun Alco ink drawing. ↓

1980s Stereo- How far we've come! ↓

Vista was also known for its banana splits.↓

Vista didn’t only serve hamburgers and fries; they even served healthy foods, like a chef's salad. This illustration was probably for an ad to run in the local newspaper. ↓

I illustrated many food items for Vista restaurant in Manhattan, Kansas. This was a Vista Burger that appeared in various coupons and newspaper ads. ↓

Dig this boot! I think it was for Payless Shoes. That's another good place for tassels! ↓

This was an experimental ink drawing style of a Greek statue I did for the Security Benefit Group calendar series. ↓

This is a scratchboard drawing for one of the Topeka Zoo’s calendars. If you're curious, scratchboard is usually a thin cardboard covered in black ink that an artist scratches off with fine, sharp tools to expose the white beneath. Of the few scratchboard drawings I‘ve done, this one is my best. Eye of the tiger, man! ↓

Parrots, etched in scratchboard also for a zoo calendar. ↓

A crocodile illustrated with pen and ink in a traditional cross-hatch-like style for the Topeka Zoo calendars. The texture and the loose feel of this illustration fit well with this old grumpy croc. ↓

This pen and ink drawing, another fave of mine, drawn in a unique cross-hatch style, was for one of the Topeka Zoo calendars as well. ↓

Ok, I have too many Topeka Zoo calendar favorites, like this one with ink splatters. ❦

In the early 1980s, our agency made the first kid's meal box for Vista restaurants in Manhattan and Topeka, Kansas. The owner of our agency, The Professional Advertiser, had an idea that would later become a successful international business. It was an idea that piggybacked off the popularity and success of McDonald's Happy Meals. Small restaurant chains cannot afford to have an agency develop a kid's meal box specifically branded for their restaurant. However, if they are mass-produced in various box designs that are easily customized to fit any branding, the cost would be substantially reduced. It took off like wildfire. We created catalogs for the restaurant owners to order from. Soon, we were designing and producing all kinds of toys and games that would be the surprise in each box. Like many American companies, we had them manufactured in China to keep the cost down. This box is one of four of the first kid’s meal boxes I created. The first boxes were called Monster Meals, which were designed to resemble a coloring book that came with a small packet of markers inside. From these first boxes came a multitude of various shapes and sizes of kid’s meal containers and an endless array of toys and games. Today, the breakaway company Kid’s Stuff has grown with several employees and has a warehouse where products are shipped to North America, South America, and Europe. Their best seller is still the Classic Cruisers, which are food cartons illustrated and shaped like the classic cars of the '50s and '60s. In the late 80s, I created the first Classic Cruiser and the other cruisers throughout the years. I continued to create the Classic Cruisers even after they split from Admark and became Kids Stuff. ↓