Artwork and Illustration
I create illustrations, often as posters and apparel. I also make canvas-based artwork using a variety of traditional and digital methods. Here are a few selected artworks, illustrations and commissions.
First, a few posters I’ve made over the years.
Starry Night
The biggest brand in American soccer commissioned me for a matchday tribute to its greatest player.
In 2014, the Los Angeles Galaxy asked me to create a poster for an upcoming match against Vancouver Whitecaps FC. This was a special night: Landon Donovan, the Galaxy’s all-time leading scorer (and by many accounts the best American soccer player in history) was being honored before kickoff.
My design aimed to tie the various themes of the evening into one arresting visual. A galaxy of stars reigns over a white-capped mountain, representing the two teams (and expressing a preference for the home side). A flag is planted atop the mountain, further signifying LA’s intent to “conquer” Vancouver.
Here, a second layer of meaning emerges. The mountain-and-flag motif doubles as the representation of a soccer field’s corner flag, as seen from an on-field perspective. The corner forms the mountain’s peak and the snow cap is mirrored by the corner’s quarter-circle.
Corner flags don’t normally contain much writing, but this one does: Landon Donovan’s jersey number 10. Landon was known for his proficiency at taking corners; this spot is “his.”
As a final touch, the array of stars forming a “Galaxy” above the scene contains a special reference. There are exactly 107, the record-breaking number of goals Landon had scored for the club to date. (He added a few more before the end of the season, and one more during a 2016 comeback, for a total of 114 L.A. Galaxy goals.)
I named the print “Starry Night.” The Galaxy distributed it as a poster on match night, made it available online, and auctioned off several copies signed by Donovan to benefit charitable causes.
I remain honored to have worked with the Galaxy on such an immensely meaningful poster. As an artist and a huge fan of American soccer, it doesn’t get much better.
USA Matchday, match day poster series for the U.S. Men’s National Team in the 2014 World Cup
USA Matchday
An exercise in national identity, geometry, and simplicity.
The 2014 World Cup was a great reason to create art and design. Working with the field of Cup teams, I developed the 32 Nations project for Clean Sheet Co., my apparel business. Working as an independent artist, I created this series of World Cup-inspired limited edition prints. The prints commemorate the United States’ participation in the tournament, with a design dedicated to each of their three opening round opponents.
I took an ultra-minimal, geometric approach to portraying national identity with each print. The idea was to find visual places where the identities of the U.S. and their respective opponents, converged. The United States shares stars, and some colors with Ghana. With Portugal, colors and proportions mirror each other. And the U.S. and Germany share an affinity for stripes (depending on context).
Each print was produced in a limited run for purchase. Posters were hand printed by AntiDesigns, a well-loved Boston print studio. Each hand-pulled, edge-to-edge screen printed poster measures 11” x 17”, using gallery-quality inks on beautiful 100 lb. French Paper Speckletone stock.
Ski Maine poster
Ski Maine
I produced this poster as a promotional item for a friend's apparel label. The idea was to capture the style of a vintage travel poster, with clean lines, texture, and a sense of propulsive motion. I don't get out on the slopes too often these days, but I hope I captured a bit of how it feels to be on your first run of the day in Maine's unique backcountry.
Return to Soldier Field, match day poster for Chicago Fire
Return to Soldier Field
This poster was originally prepared to celebrate the Chicago Fire’s return to Soldier Field at the outset 2020 MLS season. The match was cancelled by the arrival of Covid-19, but the design was well-received by Fire fans and lives on as a tribute to their return to the heart of the city.
Sirens, a poster for the Chicago-based Sirens Supporters Group
Sirens
This design was commissioned by the Sirens Supporters Group, ferocious female backers of Chicago Fire FC and the Chicago Red Stars. The artwork plays on Malort, the notorious (and divisive) local beverage that Chicagoans love to toast with.
Corkstock 2024, event poster for Cork F.C. (Pennsylvania)
Corkstock 2024
This design was created to promote an event benefitting a local soccer club. The background of green, black and white vertical stripes mirror's The Cork F.C.'s on-field jerseys, and the foam finger has a story all it's own. (I can't tell it nearly as well as some of the guys on the team, so you'll have to attend a Corkstock to hear the definitive tale.)
Do Not Power Down, poster commemorating the 30th anniversary of the World Wide Web
Do Not Power Down
This design was created to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the World Wide Web in 2019. The artwork recreates the face of the world’s first web server. The machine ran in Tim Berners-Lee’s office at CERN in Switzerland. A sticky note was required to ensure it was not casually turned off. The spirit of the early internet has always inspired me.
Modified Gritty, concert poster for Radiohead in Philadelphia
Radiohead / Gritty
Two landmark events nearly coincided in late summer of 2018: Radiohead played Philadelphia in August, and a few weeks later, in very the same building, Gritty was introduced to the world. I’ve always been certain that there was a connection. Could Radiohead’s infamous Modified Bear be the true forebearer to our beloved Philly mascot? The resemblance is a bit uncanny. I designed this concert poster to stoke the speculation.
I create canvas-based artwork as well. My mediums include oils, watercolors, and ink, as well as mixed media and collage. I’ve been featured in several gallery showsIncluding the Cambridge Art Association‘s RED and BLUE shows, and I have a permanent mural installation in Cambridge, Mass.
Urban Portraits, a series of mixed-media artworks
Urban Portraits
Capturing fleeting moments of city life.
Subway Platform • 2012 • 44 in. x 30.5 in. • mixed media on canvas
The Urban Portraits series explores the identities and idiosyncrasies of the city. The series includes elements of street photography, collage and digital assemblage. Original pieces are finished and presented on canvas. A limited print edition, signed and numbered, was also produced.
Cross Street • 2012 • 45 in. x 32.5 in. • mixed media on canvas
Scenes are inspired by the urban environment found primarily in the American northeast. Experiences in Boston, New York City and Philadelphia play a prominent role.
Uptown Appointment • 2012 • 41 in. x 30 in. • mixed media on canvas
The series explores the moments experienced by urban dwellers, from the sublime to the mundane.
Morning Commute, Elevated Line • 2013 • 36 in. x 14 in. • mixed media on canvas
Urban Portraits led to commissions for other artwork in this digital collage style, including a permanent installation at AVA North Point in Cambridge, Mass.
Outside the School • 2012 • 40 in. x 30.5 in. • mixed media on canvas
The Lobby • 2012 • 40 in. x 30 in. • mixed media on canvas
Rooftop Bathers • 2012 • 40 in. x 30 in. • mixed media on canvas
Man on City Bus • 2012 • 40 in. x 30 in. • mixed media on canvas
Service Alley • 2012 • 45 in. x 33 in. • mixed media on canvas
By the Corner Store • 2012 • 36 in. x 48 in. • mixed media on canvas
AVA North Point, a permanent installation in Cambridge, Massachusetts
AVA North Point
Creating ceiling murals for an artistic new residence
I was approached by the developers of AVA North Point, an art-conscious luxury residence being constructed in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The architects and designers working on the project had seen my artwork (via art broker Grand Image) and thought it would be perfect for a unique application: the ceilings of the building’s common areas.
At the outset of the project: mockups of my art on a 3D site rendering (left) and blueprints showing ceiling space (right)
I was commissioned by AVA for six unique pieces: murals that could be applied to the unique dimensions of the ceilings in prominent locations in the space.
The commission requested artwork in the style of my Urban Portraits series, with a concentration on local landmarks and imagery.
AVA North Point is located in an emerging, bustling neighborhood (North Cambridge), at the nexus of travel between Boston and prominent Cambridge universities like MIT and Harvard. I scouted neighborhood locations, shot photography and researched the area to find objects that could be useful in the pieces.
Each ceiling mural is approximately 30 feet long and 8 feet tall. Individual murals reference themes that include urban life, local landmarks, Boston and Cambridge history and the energy of neighborhoods around AVA North Point.
The final murals were delivered digitally and installed in May of 2018. The building opened to residents at the end of 2018.
Progressions, a series of mixed-media artworks
Progressions
Finding the overlaps between digital and physical spaces
A.I.P. • 2013 • giclée print on stock
The Progressions series springs from my fascination with digital space.
The prevailing rules and realities that govern digital spaces overlap with those that govern physical realities, but there are marked differences between them. For instance: there is no real concept of age or degradation in digital reality. Just as digital space frequently lacks a third dimension (physical volume), the presence of a fourth dimension (a linear progression through time) is not an innate digital concept.
Buffalo Roam • 2013 • giclée print on stock
I find that the customary metaphors and thought-shortcuts we often use in physical space can, when applied in an effort to comprehend digital space, break down in unexpected and fascinating ways. When those breakdowns occur, the resulting cognitive friction can be recognized and documented as art.
Albuquerque Freight • 2013 • giclée print on stock
The works in Progressions are two-dimensional. Each begins with a graphical conceit, and then follow it as it is (needlessly) aged and degraded across the canvas. The result is both natively digital and eerily physical. Each discrete frame can be though of as a moment in time; the larger work can be considered a mosaic (with richly-ornamented pixel elements) or a kind of timeline.
Nykvist • 2014 • giclée print on stock
The timelines depicted in this series did not need to exist. These original conceits, and whatever value they held, did not need to be degraded. Any resulting emotion generated by following each progression has no purpose in digital reality. As an observer in physical space, where degradation is a reality, these truths fascinate me. The Progressions series is an attempt to understand the shape of that fleeting fascination.
Bounces, a series of mixed-media artworks
Bounces
Passing back and forth, repeatedly, between canvas and screen.
Pesto • 2024 • mixed media on canvas / sampled down to 32-color PNG
In the early 2020s, I started to think about the process of making art as a series of "bounces". Instead of concentrating on a linear progression and a single medium – say, working on a canvas with oils, or creating a poster using vector editing software, what if I moved back and forth between approaches in a less rigid way? What if the process was the piece? A wave instead of a point in time?
I had the equipment I needed to make a looping proces: a selection of physical tools and materials; a laptop and visual software, a camera, a printer and scanner, and a collection of found textures.
Screed • 2024 • mixed media on canvas / sampled down to 22-color PNG
I began experimenting. I'd sketch on paper, scan it in, manipulate and add to it digitally, print it out again, physically mix the new copy with the original (using collage techniques), add media (ink, paint, and found objects), scan it again, do more digital work, print again, etc. Pieces in the series "bounce" between physical and digital forms many times before they are considered complete. Found textures and objects (including junk mail, canvases re-purposed from older uses, and snippets of drawings from my children) became prominent themes. Along the way, the process itself lends the pieces an agedness and they gain a dimension of time.
Smother • 2024 • mixed media on canvas / sampled down to 22-color PNG
I've been pleased with the outcomes, although it is sometimes difficult to portray a piece as complete when it exists fully along a spectrum that spans between physical and digital. Often a piece's primary form may be multiple things: physical (a canvas), digital (a file) or something in between (a projection). I've chosen to represent the pieces here in an intermediate state, as a physical canvas blended against this digital gallery space. For this exercise, each piece has been assigned a blend mode.
I've found the process to be freeing, and I get a great deal of satisfaction moving between physical and digital tools without worrying about fidelity or degredation.
The Bounces series is ongoing.
Starry Night, match day poster for LA Galaxy celebrating Landon Donovan