The Godfather - Working Outside the Comfort Zone

My normal and still preferred art style is with ink and paint. Currently I use Photoshop but I do miss my Windsor Newton Series 7 #2 watercolor brush. Since I use the computer due to ergonomic reasons it might be hard for me to go back to traditional methods but it's where I hones these inking skills.

Painting is not my forte. It never was but I have great admiration for painters. So I thought I'd try my hand at some digital paint. This is my first successful painted piece in a very long time and I have to say I enjoyed it! I think it's only a matter of time before I got so comfortable with it that I'll fall in love with it.

But my first art-love is still ink and paint.

So here is my "Godfather" parody piece, the "Gophather".

#mcdivot, #gopher, #gopherwrangler, #fairwaysolitaire, #green, #jeffwillis, #jeffwillisartist, #animation, #cartoon, "godfather, #parody, #burnie

Small Boast

I'm not a big award winning artist.

But why not boast about the time I did win an award. It's on my resume after all.

I won the 2002 "Golden Toonie", or the "Cartoonist of the Year Award" from Cartoonists Northwest.

I've been a member of this group for so long I can't even remember how long it's been. 25 years sounds about right. I give them full credit for getting me my first proper freelance job (contracting to you multimedia working millennials). It was a T-shirt designing job. Low pay but semi regular.

In 2002 I was working as a video game artist. After some work on a Harry Potter game among other titles the fabulous group was kind enough to award me the honor and I am truly grateful. It put me in some stellar company of artists too if you check the list of past winners including "Bloom County's" Berkeley Breathed, 2-time Pulitzer Prize winning editorial cartoonist David Horsey, Steve Greenberg, Brain Basset, Lynn Johnston the creator of "For Better or Worse" and John "Last Kiss/Donald Duck" Lustig. Not to mention Peter Bagge, Jim Woodring and Donna Barr.

It's quite humbling.

Not humbling enough not to mention it at least once :)

Where is he now?

Working with a wonderful varmint at Big Fish.

Golden Toonie Award Winners

·         2011 T Lewis and Shannon Wheeler (tie)

·         2010 Keith Curtis

·         2009 Kevin Boze and Mark Monlux (tie)

·         2008 David Lasky

·         2007 Pat Moriarity

·         2006 Sherry Flenniken

·         2005 Peter Bagge

·         2004 Rick Hoberg

·         2003 Kevin Brockschmidt

·         2002 Jeff Willis

·         2001 Ellen Forney

·         2000 John Lustig

·         1999 Jim Woodring

·         1998 Roberta Greogory

·         1997 Art Bouthillier

·         1996 Donna Barr and Peter Oakley (tie)

·         1995 Lynn Johnston

·         1994 Brian Basset

·         1993 Berkeley Breathed

·         1992 David Horsey

·         1991 George Jartos

·         1991 Steve Greenberg