NPR Desert Companion: Make Some Noise
I came up with a few ideas
Ultimately, the 2nd one was chosen since it reflected more of the actual event.
Hello. My name is Hernan and I'm obsessed with illustration, design, music and travel. I'm also a secret web designer and snapshooter.I've worked with a variety of clients including Starbucks, SoFa Festival, Disney, FedEx, NPR and Seven Magazine. You can find me on facebook and twitter. my web hub lies here or you can view my portfolio directly.
I'm always open to partnering on new projects, specially involving illustration. I'm not currently available for in-house work, web design, or extensive branding work.
I came up with a few ideas
Ultimately, the 2nd one was chosen since it reflected more of the actual event.
The Smith Westerns playing 'Weekend' at the Boulevard Pool inside the Cosmopolitan on September 21, 2011
A video I shot of the opening performance by Broken Social Scene of their song Cause=Time on Saturday evening, September 3rd in Los Angeles Historic Park in Los Angeles, CA. They Were awesome!
Desert Companion, Southern Nevada's local NPR monthly magazine contacted me for an assignment 2 weeks ago. It was a very rushed deadline but I was determined to embrace this opportunity. About 3 years ago, I was reading Desert Companion at home and examining the competition's work. I felt a bit, well, competitive. I said to myself: I can do better than this! I'm going to get myself published in Desert Companion! –then a quarterly magazine, I exclaimed to my future wife. I won't bore you with the details but let's just say the universe works in mysterious ways. I got myself out there and networked, befriended and attended events and gatherings as much as I could. I didn't know it fully then, but I was planting seeds.
On to the illustration. This was fairly forward and self explanatory. The Editor wanted to establish a certain look for a possible regular feature upon which authors would describe their experience in a uniquely specific, uncomfortable experience based on their character. I had the opportunity of perusing the article to dig out specific 'scenes' to capture in my own way. I offered him the following sketches/color studies:
The initial reaction was positive but wanted something a bit more engaging as to drive the point of this magazine feature: uncomfortable and defensive to understanding and positive afterwards. I refined the option:
The only additional edit was to render the foreground figure in a more astounded reaction than merely intently listening. I also included the closeup of the orator just because I liked it so much!
I must say this is one was a quick one and I really liked how it turned out. Started with the idea on saturday night and I finished the drawing the next day, colored it and printed it by monday. Framed it and delivered it to the Neon Reverb Artists show here in downtown Las Vegas on Tuesday. It's part of a collective show at the PWC gallery for the monthly First Fridays Music and Arts festival. I'm quite pleased with how it turned out. The subject was quite open as long as it had to do with music.
I chose a non-direct approach by displaying a feeling of longing or loss due to the emotional and collective shared experience 'The Huntridge' has for a lot of people here in Las Vegas.
Before many of the large resorts, hotels and casinos started booking national musical acts, The Huntridge was the only place away from the strip that the locals had to catch their favorite bands as they stopped by Las Vegas. Think of it as our own CBGBs or Troubador. Unfortunately due to many factors, it felled into decay and closed. It stands now in the same place, unmoving and its owners are unwilling to accept offers for its rebirth. To most local residents, this is the first place they saw a concert or a favorite band and it's painful to see it slowly withering away in the desert heat.
Pencil and ink, digital color.
Sunday. Felt inspired to do something I love. So I did a quick digital color study of my beautiful wife. Photoshop CS5 kicks butt.
2010 was another terrific year for music. Although most of us can't say it was the best financial year, it certainly saw an upswing in the economy. Here are my picks for best albums released in 2010.
Click on the images for a review over at Pitchfork media.
The Apples In Stereo - Travellers in Space and Time
Danceable pop disco space rock. Hooky licks in feverish grooves that may sound strange, but makes perfect sense in their world. You will assimilate.
Vampire Weekend - Contra
Borrowing from world music, reggae and calypso, Vampire Weekend's sophomore attempt proves that they've hit that sweet spot. Elastic range and danceability, don't be surprised if you haven't already heard them on TV or while shopping.
MGMT - Congratulations
60s psych rock with 70s Art rock tied neatly with amazing compositions. MGMT's second album got weirder and more niche but also more refined and deep. Amazing talent.
The Arcade Fire - The Suburbs
An amazing array of baroque pop and philosophical lyrics under layers of sounds. Prolific songcrafting unified under a theme. You will be engulfed
Los Campesinos! - Romance Is Boring
Billowing, loose pop with Morrissey-like lyrical sardonicism performed by a 6 piece + Glockenspiel from Wales.
Mates of State - Crushes
Kansas own married duo turned out a beautiful mix tape of their own beloved songs. Mates' perfect blend of brooding synth chords and offsetting harmonies do themselves justice under the guise of such songwriting as Belle & Sebastian, Girls and Death Cab for Cutie
The Drums - The Drums
You might've already heard The Drums' infectious, post-punk styled happier hooks on television, but the fact is that, even though they're recycling late 80's rough trade instrumentation, they're still a modern, stripped down version of pop. Single string guitar melodies with a surf vibe sung with absurd melancholy. Turn this up!
LCD Soundsystem - This Is Happening
Lacerated electronic beats followed by brooding, almost frenetic slices of manufactured sounds delivered with honest lyrics about the ability/inability to evolve. Early 90s industrial sound coupled with hyper modern means calls out for some intense atmospherics as well as meaty dancefloor anthems ready for mashups. Very contagious art rock ballads set to a sparkly, fuzzy sound
Deerhunter - Halcyon Digest
Deerhunter's Halcyon Digest is a perfect balance of pop sensibility, jangly twee layering and shoegazing ethos. The album is brilliant in the details and gives equal spotlight to a variety of instruments. Tiny electronic flourishes and natural sounds embellish the straight forward, imaginative lyrics. Midtempo delights that are easy to get into
Landor had an interesting article about brand succeess in this economic downturn. Some of these aren't a surprise but number 1 ranked Clif Bar wasn't expected. Read on about how they arrived at this decision at http://bit.ly/fgNWaS
A 5 minute video about creativity and technology in today's world and why it is important for all of us to learn how to program and be creative through powerful, portable technology.
Daniel Shiffman : Computational Design from Etapes on Vimeo.
