John S. Dykes

BOILED IN HOT OIL...

2008-09-19T01:45:38+00:00

Henry Founda

2008-09-17T02:17:33+00:00

BLACK TIE OPTIONAL

2008-09-09T14:22:46+00:00

Reader's Digest

2008-09-04T15:00:19+00:00

A few months ago, Hannu Laaksu, Design Director at The Reader's Digest contacted my super secret digital alias, Leo Acadia, to see if I... he... was interested in doing some regular work for them. Throughout the magazine, there are what they call 'fillers' - very short anecdotal stories - usually humorous - and grouped together loosely by subject matter. These are sometimes tricky things to illustrate in a clear and simple way - and hopefully with a secondary concept... where the visual appears to be one thing - but on second observation, there might be more there.

These fillers are popular with their readership - and have been part of the magazine for some time. Over the past 10 years, James McMullan had done over 800 of these illustrations, and more recently with a re-design, Beppe Giacobe (Italy) had done some as well. The magazine usually runs between four to six (sometimes more) fillers per issue -

While the final illustrations print small - roughly the size of postage stamps - it is a lot of work sketching ideas out - But I really enjoy the process of working on these sometimes rather elusive concepts. It's almost like solving a puzzle - there's a concept in there somewhere....

This is roughly the size they appear in print... (if I sized these right...)

Yelminik! Can i say that on here?

2008-08-20T22:21:59+00:00

The Yelminik Travel Bureau held it's multi-annual worldwide blowout poster competition and guess what? I'm pleased to say there was only one survivor! We are still working out the details and selection of the tag line, but here are the top picks: Yelminik: Comfort on every hill top. So, stop on by. And sit right down. Then go. Go To Yelminik, and go to a fine spot on the hill. Perky Yelminik: Come and enjoy! Go To Yelminik fer sure. Go To Yelminik. One house. One hill. One heckuva good time. Yelminik: It's breezy at the top! ******* Visit the Yelminik web site for terms and conditions. Void where prohibited. Not available in Jersey.

MLB ALL STAR GAME

2008-07-21T20:08:39+00:00

I turned on the All Star game around 11PM (8th inning??) while relaxing in a hotel room on the road last week. Ah, summer at it's best. The past few weeks must have been hectic with deadlines and travel and summer - but it was not until the 13th inning that I remembered that I had some work in this year's All Star Game Program(!). It woke me up enough to stay with the game, which went on for another three days. This piece focuses not on the All Stars - but on what all the other players do during the All Star break. The assignment was real fun to work on... if you call this 'work'.

I went to my first baseball game at Yankee Stadium... The sights and smells and pure excitement - and that drive from Long Island into the Bronx for a seven year old suburban kid has stayed with me. Oh, and it's good to be back on earth.

HIT THE ROAD!

2008-05-23T02:14:12+00:00

Here's a shot taken from the traffic-cam to give us a quick indication as to how the traffic is starting to flow this Memorial Day weekend ... Remember to get an early start, cause 'As California goes, so goes the nation'....

ERROR!

2008-04-29T03:04:18+00:00

Here is a piece that ran in yesterday's Los Angeles Times... A chronicle of the rise in movie prices over the years.

And a note received: Dear Sir, With all due respect I wanted to point out a serious error in your cartoon on the front page of the Sunday edition of the Los Angeles Times Business section on April 27, 2008. This is a part of the article titled "Reel Fun's Still a Real Deal." You have listed movie ticket prices for various years in the history. As an example, however, .35� (this is point 35 cents) is not the same as $.35 or 35� (the last two are the same and mean 35 cents). In fact, .35� is not even a Penny. You have put in the price of movie tickets as .27� and .69� for the years 1942 and 1961. I hope I have not offended you by bringing this to your attention. However, I hope that the result will be that this type of mistake will be avoided in the future. Regards...

Derek Simmons, Deputy Design Director, was great to work with....

AUSTRALIA

2008-03-27T14:33:07+00:00

Is it really a 37 hour trip to Australia?? Well... not exactly. But a departure at 5pm Friday from Boston, to an arrival in Brisbane at 6am Sunday... it sure seems like it! And well worth it... We made the three week trip last August. Here are some paintings and some select photos. I'll post more as I create them.

A bike ride from Brisbane to Redcliffe Penninsula ... we thought would be a few hours, was actually about 8.5 hours. the plan: ride up and stay over night in a motel, then ride back the next day. Turns out the standard bike trip for folks that take the 'tour' includes a majority of the trip by train. Agh! Needed to purchase a 2 inch thick street map and refer to it constantly. Arrive after dark. Ouch. Oh, and, no motel reservations were made in advance. Needed an extra day rest before returning.

We spent a week driving north to Airlee Beach, then back.... (North gets tropical.... looks like Hawaii in places). A great way to see the country and meet people.

The main north-south route - like our I95, is an undivided 2 lane road that is shared with road trains... triple tractor trailers. They get your attention... as do their 'creative' signs.

Not 90 minutes from downtown Brisbane, is an area of rainforests up in the mountains. A trip highlight. But as you drive towards the area, it is a dry, and arid desert. No sign of anything remotely rainforest.... until you get up past a certain point, it starts like a hollywood set, complete with hanging vines, screeching birds, and strangler fig trees. See to believe.

Whitehaven Beach is one of the only places on the globe with pure silica sand on its beaches. So fine, your legs sink past ankle deep at the water's edge. Locals use the sand to polish jewelry. We brought some home. Patti, Greg, and Jeff check it out....

NEW REPUBLIC

2008-03-24T16:58:02+00:00

What would baseball be like if all players were fully juiced on steroids??... And it was just fine?? This was the angle we took for the current New Republic cover story. An in depth article on the subject covers everything from the history of competition all the way through today... a fascinating read.... Art directed and designed by Joe Heroun and Christine Car. A fun assignment! Now I gotta get back to the gym.

ILLUSTRATING CONNECTICUT

2008-01-31T20:25:57+00:00

This just in: BRIDGEPORT -- Illustrating Connecticut: People, Places, and Things, an exhibit that explores the history and culture of Connecticut through the art of illustration, will be on display in the Burt Chernow Galleries at the Housatonic Museum of Art, Feb. 7 - April 4. The list of illustrators exhibiting includes notables such as Bernie Fuchs of Westport, Guy Billout of Fairfield, Kinuko Craft of Norfolk, Randall Enos of Fairfield, Bob Kessel of Norwich, Leslie Cober-Gentry of Fairfield, who, notably, lives around the corner where John S. Dykes used to reside, but now resides in Massachusetts, and wishes he consumed much more diner food than he does now, because there are no great diners in Sudbury, but at least his cholesterol levels have plummeted (LDL), and Hal Mayforth of New Hampshire...(Some excellent diners in Montpelier, BTW)... Here are 6 of my paintings that will be included in the show. This series, for the most part, was created back at the turn of the century, when I was living in Connecticut eating donuts and stuff. 9 out of 10 Drawgers will attend the opening on Thursday, February 7, 2008, according to the latest Rasmussen poll. The museum is located on the campus of Housatonic Community College, 900 Lafayette Blvd, Bridgeport, CT, less than 150 yards off I-95 (Exit 27) and Rte 8 (Exit 1) in downtown Bridgeport, one block from the Arena at Harbor Yard. Gallery hours are Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. For more information, call 203-332-5052 or log on to "http://www.housatonicmuseum.org/"

I love painting these sorts of things - interviewing average folks, keeping the process fun and engaging, painting interesting subject matter. Eating.

Heres a detail of Clint and his pancakes.

SLOW PLEASE

2007-12-29T02:12:51+00:00

The U.S. Department of Transportation contacted me a while back and asked if I would be willing to participate in a new campaign they were undertaking. It is a multi-tiered multi-lateral campaign to reduce excessive driving speeds on our nations highways - something to which we all can relate. The main effort is to get crazy maniac drivers to slow the hell down through a series of well placed, thoughtful, slow the hell down signs. Art Director Marina Enahosa was a pleasure to work with - emailing words of encouragement daily - and even sending flowers and chocolates when the burden of coming up with another brilliant idea seemed, well, miles away. The designer, Feliciera - who like Cher and Madonna, goes by only one name - was a real pain in the ass. We chased concepts through 16 rounds of roughs and came full circle back to my original ideas. (Please don't send her a link to this.)

Winter Baseball

2007-11-27T16:41:00+00:00

Do not despair! There are plenty of ways to satisfy all of your baseball cravings during the winter months! This piece was created to illustrate 'A Fan's Guide To The Offseason' for Major League Baseball. I was fortunate to have a few pieces accepted into the Society of Illustrator's 50th annual exhibition, and this was one of them. Medium: Acrylic on cheap cardboard from the back of a pad of tracing paper. A few details follow...

BUSINESSMAN GONE MISSING

2007-10-26T04:31:54+00:00

Law enforcement officials in the greater Wahlahbafa area ask your help in locating the unidentified businessman (pictured) last seen in the vicinity of The Great Hole. Hot Tips Line: For real Hot Tips, call 978.443.7772 We are pessimistic in our hopes of ever finding the guy, so The Wahlahbafa Chamber of Commerce will move smartly ahead and auction the businessman's fine automobile at or before NOON tomorrow. Henceforth. Proceeds will fund plenty of alcohol, tobacco, and firearms for the Annual Wahlahbafa-One-Helluva-Holy-Holiday-Hootenanny Extravaganza. Our sincere condolences go out to the businessman's family, but this really should be a blast!

Teach Your Children...

2007-10-23T03:46:24+00:00

SAFE TO TRAVEL

2007-10-17T21:37:46+00:00

The Republic of Breefiztan has just LIFTED TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS to this Caspian Sea gem. History: Breefiztan has been inhabited since the stone age. The region's climate and terrain are best suited for nomads practicing the cultivation of mulch. So get away now. Before more TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS.

WARNING

2007-09-27T10:03:08+00:00

Notice:

Aussie Bats

2007-09-11T03:31:32+00:00

Cathie's Catskill Bats post reminded me of one of the freakiest sights I think I have ever seen. We were in Australia in August (will post photos, sketches, and paintings). Driving from the beach into this deep orange / green / blue twilight, I saw what looked like birds flying - first one or two - then a larger cluster - and in the distance a dark cloud of many, many more. Just as we were crossing a bridge a short distance further - we were enveloped in this massive cloud of thousands of Flying-foxes - big fruit bats - the bodies are squirrel-sized - wingspans can be over 3'. The fluttering, flickering, and swooping of these black shapes against the orange sky was as wierd as it was spectacular. A few came down within a few feet of our car - close enough to catch that classic bat-wing shape... (It reminded me of the mesmerizing sensation of driving into a snowstorm - the snowflakes becoming an abstract pattern of shapes - constant and repeating). I wanted to pull over and take some photos or a quick video - but there was no place to do so - plus driving on the left only confuses life even more.... I thought of lunch earlier in the day - and just what kind of mushroom soup was that, anyway?? And why did that waitress giggle 'No Worries, Mate" - then saunter away laughing?? These and other questions must be answered if we are to go on.

American Visionary Art Museum

2007-07-31T01:57:31+00:00

Speaking of Maryland... We just returned from a quick trip to Baltimore's Inner Harbor area.... Plenty of fabulous crabcakes, of course - and a great visit toThe American Visionary Art Museum. Collections of art by self-taught individuals, usually without formal training - this place is a treasure! Works by Martin Ramirez, Mary Proctor, William Kurelek, James Harold Jennings, among many others. An incredibly interesting place to visit. Almost without exception, the bios of these artists are tragic, amazing, fascinating.... their art provides a peek into the inner voices of their souls... Here are a few from one of the brochures... Photos by Dan Meyers.

The Gift shop could easily swallow up two hours of your day - complete with original paintings and handcrafts for sale...

Cut Your Bills in Half....Etc...

2007-06-29T02:14:29+00:00

Some from the 'VaRiOuS' folder...

New Offerings In Continuing Education

2007-06-14T15:29:33+00:00

School's almost out, so now is the time to plan our summer continuing education class schedule. Here are three from a series. Classes fill quickly....

Fly Pleep

2007-05-08T03:31:24+00:00

...and live longer. "Turbulence free for over forty years". "The only airline serving Flaherty Free Tiger Shark sandwiches - non-stop... coast to coast and the islands". Book 'em Danko.

Pay A Visit...

2007-05-02T01:31:32+00:00

The Nisbizut Travel Association in association with the Nisbizut Business Council conglomeration associates presents their first in the 'Pay a Visit' worldwide campaign of commissioned travel posters. The skyrocketing demand for travel to this part of the world is simply unheard of. Remember, "A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step on or around the greater Nisbizut region." -- Lao Tzu

TIME Spotlight

2007-04-24T14:59:33+00:00

Speaking of Ken Smith at TIME.... Ken art directed the Spotlight page that ran for a couple of years (early 90's to around 98??). I had sent some samples in - a series of re-created FBI Wanted posters. Ken liked them, but wanted to see how I would handle celebs and others in the news (more recognizable figures). Jack Kevorkian was on the radar at the time so I worked up his portrait, color copied it and Fedexed it Ken. My timing was right, and he liked it - but Paula Jones was also in the news... So he asked me to create P.J. Then we went back and forth between the two - I placed Kevorkian in a jail cell to make it more focused... My wife drove them in (email? whats that?) on a Saturday AM, and they published the P.J. piece. It was always great to do those 'person of the week' Spotlights... Bring 'em back, TIME!

Saturday at Levon's

2007-03-29T01:22:33+00:00

Levon Helm's Midnight Ramble in Woodstock, N.Y. was a real good time last Saturday, 3/24. If you are a blues fan, or you like any tunes from The Band, or if you just like rockin' live music with ENERGY, smokin' harp, talented musicians doing their thing in a home recording studio and whoopin' it up - this is it. They have special guests showing up, so it's never the same show... My intent was to do as much drawing as possible while there. Even though the furthest seat is less than 30 feet from the stage, we arrived a bit too late to get good seats or a balcony railing from which to draw... so I was looking over shoulders while holding the sketchbook... Most of the drawings I did were blind drawings - (like 'I can't see what the hell I'm doing' blind drawings!...and not technique by choice - but it was fun)... These are all ink line in the sketchbook, scanned and photoshopped... The shows run most Saturdays thru the winter.... A remarkable blues singer, Alexis P. Suter, was singing her last tune when we arrived - so no drawings of her. But listen to this (she's all woman! Holy....): http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=38552357 .... listen to 'Built For Comfort'... For those interested: Levon Helm: http://www.levonhelm.com/index1.htm

Kim's Kognac

2007-03-19T03:20:51+00:00

That works out to about $2,000 worth a DAY! ... Not including chips and dip.

Still In The Works...

2007-03-07T21:02:44+00:00

I start paintings from time to time based on not much more than a basic thought, or a photo I have taken, or simply a desire to sink into the process of painting. It can be liberating experience after a period of specific assignment work. But sometimes these journeys without direction come to a point where I am not sure where to go next. Certain paintings might stay propped up in the studio for months, until I have an idea for where to go next... I view these as more of 'the process' rather than anything 'finished'... and enjoy the journey while painting...

Twister

2007-02-28T03:14:32+00:00

Sounded just like a freight train.... this path of destruction is for Indianapolis Monthly. Tornado alley is to the west, but Indiana gits 'em too. Board provided by my wife's childhood dresser drawger bottom. Only one piece left.

Reportrait: James Alenson

2007-01-22T23:37:00+00:00

I turned on the radio on Friday morning and heard some talk of security at schools, and just what is appropriate. The conversation continued with a report that there had been a stabbing at Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School - here in my town of Sudbury, 17 miles west of Boston. My 15 year old son Jeffrey attends school there as a freshman. James Alenson, also a 15 year old freshman was involved in some sort of fight in one of the boys' bathrooms with John Odgren, a 16 year old sophmore. James died less than an hour later from knife wounds to his stomach and heart, as well as his neck. Odgren lives in Princeton, MA (45 min west) but attended school here under a program called 'GO' - Great Opportunities. He has a mild form of autism, called Ausperger syndrome, and was on several medications. Students described him as a loner (we have all heard this before...) who wore a trench coat, and often spoke of violence. The day before, he had described to a friend about a book he was reading - and how he was fascinated by a part that described the sound of dripping blood. And there were other indications in his conversations of this dangerous mind at work. He gave signals... ************ James' family moved to Sudbury just 6 months ago... for the great school system - as did we. My heart goes out for James Alenson's family.

Remember Whitewater?

2007-01-19T05:40:04+00:00

Talk about conspiracy theory! Here's a bad scan of a 'Whitewater' landscape I never did anything with... I even had fun with a golden rule type composition. See the Trooper with the bloodhound? James McDougal sitting on his camper throwin' dice... Ol' Web Hubbell behind a tree... Madison Guaranty sinking...Susan McDougal in her bathing suit (Why? I don't know...) I think it was this that led to a Time portrait assignment of Susan McDougal (follows) (another bad scan....).

Reportrait: Hugo Chavez

2007-01-17T21:35:23+00:00

Reportrait: David Lynch

2007-01-05T01:19:49+00:00

This is a fast portrait for the Boston Globe done right before this year's great Christmas exodus. I just added the hand written story to it... (it was published without my commentary). I love getting interesting people to draw. I am a big believer in the power of meditation... Although I don't practice it as regularly as I'd like to... usually when the pressure heats up with life and deadlines - it is , besides excercise, the best way to get grounded, and to slow down a bit. But as with anything, regular practice does wonders. I just read the other day, that even if you are not able to give it 20 minutes - do it for a minute or two - because it is that regularity that is key. (Like drawing every day... you know the drill...). David Lynch is starting a foundation to try to raise some crazy amount of money in order to turn more and more people (like everyone) onto TM. It is davidlynchfoundation.org, if anyone is interested. And he's got a book coming out soon called "catching the Big Fish". Might be an interesting read.

Reportrait: al-Sadr

2006-12-20T18:51:54+00:00

Meet Moqtadr al-Sadr...

This is another way to go on this portrait... light background, scene of burning chaos. I am unsure of how to proceed with this portrait. I started a second, then a third - a full figure, with more background. Will post later.

In Context...

2006-12-12T02:17:51+00:00

Earlier this year I created a few pieces for a Restaurant chain, but only recently received the posters as they were finally put together... illustrations and hand lettering... I thought the old paper look helped. Not so sure about the basket of wings at the bottom...

Reportraits...

2006-12-07T05:49:58+00:00

Two and a half years ago I moved from CT to MA and now I am finally settled in to a new studio. While I was able to keep working, focusing on long term projects was tough. My studio was the living room - but we renovated over the summer. Now there is light! Storage! Organization! I can think...I think. Time to sink into something I can.... sink into. So here are two of a planned series of 100 'Reportraits'. These are portraits with a bit of hand lettered factoid - either interesting, or funny, wacky. Some will be like these, while others might be smaller, mainly black and white... My intent is to always have portraits in the works - get fliud, avoid being too tight, and to not fear failure. And, keep momentum going and be ready to work whenever the assignment schedule lightens up. I reserved www.reportraits.com ...for fun... and will do something with that soon - And of course, the other intent is to find or create a market for portrait work to do on a regular basis... hopefully.

I had started this idea just prior to 9/11. I was going to send a new postcard out each month to a fairly limited list of under 500 cards. Somehow got sidetracked.... I sent this mailing out on the weekend prior to the 11th. And somehow after that, Kim Jong Il and his father's shoes, well, it didn't matter that much... Stay tuned...

Niceness Epidemic Sweeps the Land

2006-12-05T23:16:45+00:00

This is a variation on a personal piece I had done... It is for a major metropolitan newspaper in the Boston part of our Globe. Article is about the proliferation of websites, organizations and movements devoted to accentuating the positive... Enough to give you a toothache...

And now for something completely different

2006-11-21T04:49:37+00:00

I gave a talk at the University of Kansas and started it off with some early creations. It helped to start off on a lighter note - before delving deep into the serious issues behind drawing pictures and coloring them in for a living.

The sign on Nixon's nose says: "Face 40 miles". I think I put peace sign earrings on'em, too.

Substitute teachers were prime subjects.

While we are on that school thing.... One more... My sister's class.... Addams Family?? Run for your lives!

Wait - there's more of that report card....

Some verifiable documentation of poetry prowess here??? And how 'bout those math check-plusses?? (and this is NOT a fraudulently photoshopped farm of facts, friends).

Direct Mailer: Do Not Resuscitate?

2006-11-16T16:28:41+00:00

Here are pages from a direct mailer I put together a few months ago. Doing more idea based cartoon illustration... they are quite unique, in that, they are only funny to me (wait till you see the Hair Chair..HA! I just break me up).

The promotional idea behind this 'catalog' is to send art directors something that might hold their attention (yeah, right) for a few more moments than yer average postcard might.... But... if there is something to read, and a bit of humor, it might help.

I think I mailed about 50 of these things out. Cannot remember if any assignments came in as a direct result, but I am almost certain no art director called with a rush Hair Chair job... I might need to refine my mailing list... The question of the day is... Do I call my college art student assistant and get her stapling again?? I do love the sound of that thing. Sounds like a real production is going on...