The borough of Brooklyn is a famous hotspot for groundbreaking indie-rock bands. In that spirit, here’s a portrait of Adrianne Lenker, singer and guitarist for Big Thief. I drew this while listening to their rewarding new Album, Dragon Warm Mountain I Believe in You.
Aldous Harding
This singer-songwriter from New Zealand makes the most enchanting music. I drew this portrait solely while listening to her new album, Warm Chris. Her lyrics are so cryptically beautiful, you're compelled to keep listening in order to decipher them.
Krista Weaver CD Design
I had the pleasure of designing and illustrating this CD packaging for a fantastic signer-songwriter, Krista Weaver. Here whimsical songs evoke a wonderful sense of place, hence, the integration of maps into the design.
This was my first endeavor into CD design, and I learned so much from the experience. Enormous thanks to Krista for including me in this project.
Taylor Swift
" But I, I was high in the sky, with Pennsylvania under me. "
These are lyrics from the song Seven, from Taylor Swifts classic album, folklore. This iconic singer-songwriter's persona seems to transcend all borders, but we all start out in a hometown. In her case, it was a farm in Reading, Pennsylvania. From there, she would go on to conquer the world with spectacular songwriting skills, and an enchanting voice.
Kurt Cobain
In serendipitous fashion, this city and musician helped to put each other on the map. The phenomenon of Kurt Cobain and his band, Nirvana, helped shine a spotlight on the vital Seattle music scene. This late-great singer/songwriter will always be associated with the beautiful city he called home. This is part of a series called World Tour - in which I use maps and pages from an old atlas as canvases - painting images relating to the place on each map.
Signed prints of this piece are available here, in my Etsy shop!
Nina Simone
With songs like Mississippi Goddam, she confronted the ugliness of Jim Crow racism directly. We’ve been missing Nina Simone for some time now, but her music is still the perfect soundtrack to the protests of this past year.
Signed prints of this portrait are available here (in my Etsy shop)!
10% of proceeds from each print will be donated to Black Lives Matter.
Tom Waits
It's interesting how certain musicians we discover in our youth help shape our world view. I stumbled upon one such artist as a senior in college, Tom Waits. With his entirely unique approach to songwriting, this singer effortlessly channels downtrodden characters, like hobos, carnival barkers, and junkyard dogs. His attention to those fringe dwellers in society helps to confirm the humanity in all of us. Thanks to this artist, who was born in Pomona, California, for reminding us that everyone has a good story to tell.
Signed prints of this portrait are available Here, in my Etsy shop!
Ezra Koenig
I attempted a portrait of Ezra Koenig, the frontman of one of my favorite bands, Vampire weekend. He’s written some beautiful tunes about Capre Cod, which sparked this idea.
Prints of this piece are available here!
Here's a small study of singer/songwriter, Kasey Musgraves. This drawing of one of my favorite country artists was inspired by her song, Butterflies. No doubt, when I listen to her music, I get butterflies!
Signed prints of this piece are available here!
Amy Winehouse
Heres a portrait of the brilliant singer/songwriter, Amy Winehouse, in which I utilized makeup brushes to create depth. So many iconic singers have tragically died at 27 years of age, including Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Kurt Cobain, Jim Morrison and Brian Jones. Sadly, Amy joined that club in 2011. I drew this tribute on a map of her hometown, London. Signed prints are available here!
Édith Piaf
Heres a portrait of the Little Sparrow, Édith Piaf, drawn on a map of Paris. I was introduced to this legendary singer's music while sketching in my life-drawing class (at Parsons School of Design), and was utterly charmed. This immensely talented woman has earned an iconic status in France, and around the world . Materials: Pen, dry brush, and pencil
Prints of this piece are available here!
In Bloom
I was recently looking through a book of copyright-free engravings from the 18th century, and came across a page of flowers. It got me thinking about a song, In Bloom, written by one of the voices of my generation, Kurt Cobain. More than two decades after he died, Nirvana's music is still as relevant as ever. I was compelled to draw this tribute to him.
Prints of this piece are available here.
Bob Dylan
He emerged from the land of ten thousand lakes, with poetry tapped from the deepest of waters. His name is Bob Dylan.
A Busker from Saskatoon
Joni Mitchell started out as a busker from Saskatoon, and became one of the greatest songwriters of all time. Prints of this piece are available here!