A picture is worth a 1000 words

Behance Network

2009-09-14T09:46:00.002-04:00

Hi everyone. Wanted to let you know about a great online network specifically for creatives, Behance.net. From now on I'll be posting new work on this site. Here a link.

More Thesis Work

2009-07-29T22:11:00.002-04:00

Thesis Work: Back to Politics

2009-07-17T10:14:00.003-04:00

From U.K. with love

2009-06-17T00:40:00.003-04:00

A few months ago I was contacted by Tom Wild, a designer practicing in the U.K. Tom was involved in a personal project of creating a book showcasing illustrators and designers from around the globe and circulating it amongst the art directors of U.K.'s ad agencies and design shops. The theme of the book was dreams and the unconsciousness. Two of my pieces were included in this collection. It's great to meet such individuals that while furthering their own career contribute to the discipline and the art community as a whole. You can view the book online right here.

Feathertale Covers

2009-06-15T22:35:00.002-04:00

Here's the printed Feathertale Review Magazine Issue 4. I had the great privilege to illustrate the front and back covers of the magazine. The AD, Lee and the entire Feathertale team as well as all the contributors did a great job in making this a great issue. Look for the magazine in your local Chapters, it should be hitting the shelves in couple of months.

Graphic Architecture V2

2009-06-10T00:36:00.005-04:00

A couple of months ago I posted some work I have been doing as part of my studio course this semester. The main project involved creating a 3D structure relating to a neighborhood in Toronto as well as to a story from the book "Invisible Cities" by Italiano Calvino. I am relieved and excited to say that the work for this project and the course is drawing to an end. Here are the final graphics that went on the structure as well as some shots of the actual model.

American Illustration 28 online

2009-05-19T17:24:00.002-04:00

Here is the link for the images chosen to appear on American Illustration 28 online site. These are organized alphabetically by last name.

Feathertale Review

2009-05-15T22:34:00.011-04:00

Here are the front and back covers for the 4th edition Feathertale Review magazine scheduled to come out later this month. The theme for this issue was surviving in a time of uncertainty. Both these images reference two stories that appear inside the magazine. One is about a humorist writer, Spalding Gray who ironically commits suicide by jumping off the Staten Island ferry. The other is about a Georgian cosmonaut who is sent on mission into outer space with no means of returining back to earth. Both stories although dealing with the concept of death do try and put a positive spin on the whole motif and give the reader a sense of hope. The art director, Lee wanted me to do the same with my images, call it dark humor if you will. If you're unable to attend the Feathertale launch party at the end of the month the magazine will be sold at Chapters till the end January, make sure to check it out, this publication features some great work from a variety of very talented illustrators and writers.

3X3 Merit Award

2009-05-14T17:57:00.004-04:00

I just got word that my Woody Allen submission won a merit award in the 3X3 pro show and will be included in the 6th edition award annual. It's really exciting being in this book with some of the illustration legends I've been admiring for years. Look out for the annual it's due to come out later this year.

GOOD NEWS

2009-04-27T22:57:00.002-04:00

Just received word from American Illustration one of my images has been chosen to appear on the AI site. Many thanks to the judges. I'll post a link once the image is up there.

graphic architecture

2009-04-17T23:37:00.007-04:00

As part of my studio curse this semester the main project is to create a 3D structure, sculpture if you will, with graphic elements on its surface. The project entails selecting a neighborhood in Toronto as well as a story from a book by Italiano Calvino, "Invisible Cities" (I found this book is a great source of inspiration, make sure to check it out if you have a chance) The 3D piece has to be in spirit of the selected neighborhood as well as carry some of the themes explored in the chosen story. Here some process image making, I'll be using some of this and other material as a facade of the final structure. More to come soon.

WOODY

2009-03-12T02:04:00.003-04:00

After watching a few Woody Allen films I got inspired to do this piece. Woody seems to be constantly surrounded by gorgeous women both on screen and off. Part of the humor of his films comes from seeing this droopy Jewish guy intimidated by the presence of various hot girls, that's what made me chuckle.

It's been a while.

2009-02-28T03:20:00.002-05:00

I Haven't had much time to post for a while now. It's been kinda hectic returning to York after a 3 month strike. Anyway I wanted to post one of the projects I worked on as part of my studio course. This is book consisting of famous quotes and images illustrating those quotes. The book is a 26 page accordion fold which sits in a hand made wooden box. I know I became a carpenter… I'll post more images of the actual layouts. It was fun project I got to work with a letterpress, which works great when combining it with traditional illustration. More to come.

charlie again… in color

2009-02-02T02:50:00.003-05:00

green dude pink clouds…

2009-01-19T19:59:00.001-05:00

Sigmund Freud

2009-01-15T23:54:00.001-05:00

Rasputin

2009-01-14T22:22:00.001-05:00

Trying out some new things with ink and digital.

Happy 2009!

2009-01-02T14:32:00.002-05:00

Here's a piece I did as a New Year's gift.

Another commission

2008-12-15T21:29:00.002-05:00

I guess a lot of people like caricatures for the holiday season, I say why not. The color is a bit off on the image my scanner was acting up.

finished art

2008-12-06T13:29:00.001-05:00

sketch

2008-11-28T01:39:00.003-05:00

Here's a sketch for a commission I'm working on. I'll post the final soon.

Ah the way we were…

2008-11-20T15:46:00.021-05:00

I thought I'd put up some of the life drawing and painting I did while was at Sheridan.
p.s. Some of the stuff is a bit R rated so parental discretion advised… Enjoy.

The Big Bang Theory

2008-11-18T13:37:00.004-05:00

We all got theories, the older and more established you are to more of them you have, but sometimes I get the feeling they all originate from the same place.

BANANAS!

2008-11-05T22:59:00.002-05:00

I'm currently working on a tag design for a clothing line, "Banana Hills Apparel" here's the logo that I came up with for the brand. I'll post the final design when it's done.

Cheerio

You got mail

2008-11-05T22:44:00.005-05:00

Karl Marx

2008-10-29T14:38:00.002-04:00

Here's a recent lino block experiment.

CEO Bloopers

2008-10-10T23:36:00.010-04:00

I was recently commissioned to do several illustrations for an article in the Financial Post Magazine. The article dealt with various mess ups and shortcomings of CEOs of different large companies, right up my alley. Many thanks to the art director, Roy Gaiot, great guy to work with. Hope you like…

"WORD ON THE STREET"

2008-09-27T13:51:00.004-04:00

"Feathertale will be on display at Toronto's annual Word on the Street festival Sunday, September 28. Look for the blue monkey in the Magazine's Muse Alley of Queen's Park. Notable Feathertale contributors Kevin Scanlon, Rick Taylor, Iain Marlow will join host Brett Popplewell for a stand-up hour of comic readings during the day's festivities at the Magazines Canada tent."

As well, my piece "Road to discovery" above will be on sale as a limited edition print. If you're in the area check out the event and pick up a print. It's great for the kids and even better for the misses.

Feathertale Review

2008-09-16T11:18:00.006-04:00

I had the great pleasure to meet the creators of The Feathertale Review magazine this past Sunday, at the Feathertale launch party. Brett and Lee were a pleasure to work with. Here's my contribution to the mag for the article "The customer's always right." Other friends and fellow illustrators to contribute to the mag inculde: Paul Leli, Alejandro Cardona, Alexei Vella and Rebecca Hitchens. My apologies for the poor picture quality.

mAiLer

2008-09-14T00:07:00.004-04:00

My most recent mailer design, going to press right about now.

Sketchy sketchy!

2008-08-27T21:30:00.026-04:00

I've been meaning to put some of my sketches up for a while now, I just never got around to scanning them. I'm off to NYC next week on sort of art pilgrimage but I'll be back soon with more posts. For now I leave you with some of the scribbles I've done over the past couple of months. Bear with me there's a few of them.

Just a Chuckle

2008-08-25T11:04:00.002-04:00

One of my cartoons has been featured on Feathertale's website this week, you can check it out right here.

Well Read

2008-08-19T21:44:00.002-04:00

Here's a recent image from the "Newcomer" series.

Feathertale Review

2008-08-05T23:10:00.002-04:00

Here's some recent pieces I did for an article in the Feathertale Review Magazine. The article is about a restaurant that neglected to notice that their soup of the day had maggots in the mix and served it to their unsuspecting customers. That'll make you appreciate home cooking. This was a really fun project. Lee Wilson, the art director, is a very cool guy to work with. Look out for this issue of the review in the next few weeks.

Laugh Out Loud

2008-07-17T23:13:00.003-04:00

I'm in the midst of a series of comedian portraits. I will post the finals in a bit. For now keep smiling, here's a teaser B/W of the original king of comedy Charlie.

Featured on Illustrophile

2008-07-10T09:00:00.002-04:00

Many thanks to Charlene Chua for featuring me on Illustrophile. You can check it out right here.

Social Skills

2008-07-06T22:08:00.004-04:00

Something I thought about the other day, 'surprisingly' while at work. People in today's age are so used to hiding their true thoughts and intentions behind fake smiles and pleasant conversation that I sometimes find myself wanting to hear just one honest insult, rather than one more dishonest compliment. How about you?

The old man's bounty.

2008-05-25T23:23:00.001-04:00

Road to Riches

2008-05-21T20:59:00.003-04:00

Here's a recent piece from my "newcomer" series.

Egregious

2008-05-14T21:53:00.006-04:00

The good people at Feathertale were kind enough to do a feature on me in their monthly online publication, Egregious. Two of my pieces were featured. You can check it out and download the publication right here.

Site Update

2008-05-12T00:54:00.001-04:00

Just finished updating my site, all I have to say is I should have paid more attention in computer class. After a long battle it's done check it out right here.

Cute pair

2008-04-29T02:07:00.004-04:00

Gold diggers and the guys who date them.

The rich keep getting richer…

2008-04-24T01:51:00.002-04:00

This is another image from my "Newcomer" series, dealing with the hard realization regarding the distribution of wealth.

Feathertale

2008-04-21T12:12:00.003-04:00

I was recently featured on Feathertale's cartoon section. Check it out here. Special thanks to the art director, Lee Wilson.

Fedor Emelianenko

2008-04-13T23:03:00.004-04:00

I was watching a few reruns of the Pride fighting championship, it sort of like UFC but seem a bit more brutal. The world champion is Russian, Fedor Emelianenko. He doesn't seem like much but watching him fight is quite a thing.

Something New, Something Different

2008-04-07T23:03:00.004-04:00

I'm starting a new personal series "The Newcomer"

office work

2008-03-25T23:35:00.001-04:00

It took me a couple of days to finish these up but here are the rest of the images for my mailer. See you soon.

Mailer

2008-03-18T00:25:00.007-04:00

I'm in the process of putting together a new mailer that is going to consist of 7 images corresponding to a day of the week of the "working man/ woman." Here are the first few images let me know what you guys think. More to come soon.

portrait time

2008-03-04T23:38:00.002-05:00

A recent caricature.

On the Road to Discovery

2008-02-07T00:49:00.000-05:00

I've been slacking on the posts the last few weeks due to my recent endeavorer to apply for graduate school. Here's a recent piece I did, "On the Road to Discovery." See you soon... I promise.

Shooter

2007-12-05T00:01:00.000-05:00

More digital experiments

2007-11-30T15:33:00.001-05:00

The nightmares we have

2007-11-25T21:19:00.000-05:00

Here's something recent out of my sketchbook.

Digital Mess

2007-11-21T01:06:00.000-05:00

Mr Bubbles

2007-10-29T19:32:00.001-04:00

Life inside the bubble. Come on, we all do it sometimes, think about it.

Archival Giclee Pritns

2007-10-19T17:33:00.000-04:00

Hi everyone, I've recently put up some of my images to be sold as giclee pritns on Imagekind. The prints come in customizable paper type and framing options. Check them out.

Sketchbook

2007-10-15T22:21:00.001-04:00

Here's a couple of recent sketchbook entries with some digital added. See you soon.

Animal Farm

2007-10-10T21:16:00.000-04:00

Here is personal piece I just finished. It was good working with a lighter subject matter than my usual, hope you like.

faces

2007-09-24T23:08:00.000-04:00

Here something I did for a friend from work. I'm planning to do digital color on it as soon as I get a chance. See you soon.

Promo!

2007-08-24T00:27:00.001-04:00

Hi everyone I've just finished putting together my new mailer. I was going for a propaganda poster look. Let me know what you guys think.

Update!

2007-08-17T22:43:00.001-04:00

Hi everyone I've just finished redesigning and updating my website. New pieces have been added to both sections so check it out right here.

Comrades

2007-08-13T22:08:00.000-04:00

Here's the first two of my Russian politician series. These are of Putin and Jirinovski, who's a known shit talker amongst politicians in Russia. I'm trying to get a few more done before I update the website and start a mass mail out of promos again. See you soon.

juxtapoz

2007-08-08T09:12:00.000-04:00

I've just got word from Juxtapoz I'm being featured on their Reader Art section. You can check it out here.

Birthdays, birthdays.

2007-08-07T22:54:00.000-04:00

My sister has been asking me for one of these for some time now. Her birthday is tomorrow, hope she likes it. She's as picky about her art as she is about her food. heh.

In other news, I've started a 3 week internship at one of Toronto's best design studios, Pylon. The projects at Pylon are great and the people are even better. Stay tuned to the Portnoy chanel, more to come right after this...

Good things come in twos...

2007-08-04T09:10:00.000-04:00

I barely got my feet wet at The Post when Jonathan Kay sent another assignment my way. This one with literally a 3 hour turnaround. I was given the article at 1:15, went through a couple sets of roughs and delivered the final by 4 pm. It was a bit hectic but it definitely taught me how to be quick on my feet in terms of concept. Interesting assignment and Jonathan is a great guy to work with. This article is another excerpt from a book by Pauline Chen. It's about a doctor who saw that having human compassion, rather than a cold professional manner, towards a terminal patient's family can have a great positive effect on helping them cope with a soon and imminent death of a loved one. This piece is published in today's (Saturday) Post page A23, check it out!

I LOVE QUICK TURNAROUNDS!

2007-08-03T07:57:00.000-04:00

Some very exciting news! After visiting the National Post this job came my way from Jonathan Kay, the comments page editor. The article talks about the moral dilemma surgeons face when treating terminal patients especially children. The surgeons find it important to seek comfort in the rituals and practices of their trade. The idea I used for it is a doctor who’s protecting herself with a shield in a form of a surgical lamp, while holding an ill child.
I really enjoyed working on this assignment in definitely opened my eyes into how tight deadlines are when it comes to newspapers. Special thanks to Kagan Mcleod and Donna Braggins for helping me with this, lets hope this is a glimpse of things to come! For those of you who are readers of The Post you can check out my piece in the Issues section page A11 of today's (Friday) paper.

INK SPLOTCHES!

2007-07-27T13:41:00.001-04:00

Some more fun with ink and digital. See you soon.

a bit of fun

2007-07-21T12:57:00.000-04:00

Here's just something out of my sketchbook. I'm curently working on a series of caricatures of past Russian politicians, I'll upload them soon. Hope everyone is having a good summer.

Lord of War

2007-06-29T23:00:00.001-04:00

This is a peace I wanted to do for a while now. It’s inspired by the movie “Lord of War” which is based on actual events and is a real eye opener into the world of illegal gun trade. The medium is ink on wood panel with digital. See you soon.

I like Creepy

2007-06-25T22:36:00.001-04:00

Happy 45th

2007-06-18T18:07:00.001-04:00

Here’s a piece for my dad, who’s turning 45 tomorrow. Like most dads he feels he needs to be the handyman around the house. But things don’t always go as planned and that’s when I get sucked into various renovation projects. I’m sure some of you can sympathize and relate… Uh Paul.

Submerged Drinking

2007-06-12T17:11:00.000-04:00

As some of you know I work part time at a Wine Rack store in the heart of little Moscow. From day to day I encounter very interesting individuals that seem to be determined to make it into my store to get their daily drink. They come in, sometimes regardless of severe weather, early or late time of day, or I think any other external natural elements. So here is a piece to celebrate their persistence, this one’s for you guys.

stock crash

2007-06-09T00:37:00.000-04:00

In a continuous attempt to make digital my friend, I’ve decided to do this piece. Inspired by a recent horror interview at a brokerage firm that sent me running for the hills and back to the drawing table, literally.

Digital can be fun!

2007-05-27T22:59:00.000-04:00

On Thursday May 24, I found myself downtown Toronto visiting Reactor Art & Design. At about 4:30 pm when I left their office, I along side tens of thousands of downtown employees, discovered that the subway service wasn’t operating. This being rush hour the taxis and busses quickly filled up. As the masses of people me included began walking north to see if any other stations were working, one could see the fibers of social structure begin to fall apart. People were literally going nuts. I personally witnessed some people desperately trying to pry the doors open on taxis already filled with pasengers. People were shoving and pushing as they made their way through the crowd slowly moving down Yonge Street. No one seemed to know what was going on. Some were saying that specific stations were operating, others were saying none were working. What resulted is a crowd, resembling the armies of Mordor wandering, yelling and franticly zigzaging in all directions all throughout downtown. All in all my usual 40 min trip took about 3 hours but I arrived home safe and sound without any bite or scratch marks, all though there were few close calls.

Back to Politics

2007-05-25T14:40:00.000-04:00

The new president of France, Nicolas Sarkozy defeated the Socialists' Segolene Royal on the May 6th election. Sarkozy is calling for tougher imigration laws and vowed to defend the identety and indipendance of France, while some critics aren't sure if he's up for the task.

Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels

2007-04-17T14:09:00.000-04:00

This is a piece of 'Big Chris' Vinnie Jones from the movie "Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels."

A Biblical Story by Oleg

2007-04-14T18:57:00.000-04:00

This is my version of what happened in beginning. Enjoy!

Don Cherry

2007-04-05T21:10:00.000-04:00

With the Leafs so close to the playoffs I felt I needed to do a piece on Don Cherry. I always knew him and his dog had a special bond.

The Bull

2007-03-27T12:47:00.000-04:00

Here's the finished illustration. After seeing Klichko in action during one of his matches I couldn't help but see the resemblance of the huge fighter to that of a bull. His opponent really should have wore different colored shorts.

Klichko

2007-03-23T18:23:00.000-04:00

Here's the linier for my next illustration of The Heavyweight Boxing Champion Klichko.

"Oh Those Russians!"

2007-03-15T23:44:00.001-04:00

With Putin's latest speech in Munich, criticizing the U.S. for its politics and world relations, whispers could be heard about the start of a new "Cold War." While the Russian media points to the fact that Putin should listen to his own criticism more closely.

Graduating

2007-02-23T14:36:00.000-05:00

Graduating can be scary, you're being forced to come out of your personal bubble and face the real world.

Jewish Nationalism

2007-02-18T14:21:00.000-05:00

These three illustrations are for an article in The Economist about how young Jews outside of Israel have problems finding a connection with the Holy Land. Some feel living or having a bond with Israel is not necessary for their Jewish Identity, wich the young generation seem to be establishing on their own regardless of where they live.

Miss Universe

2007-02-18T14:09:00.000-05:00

I imagined what would have to be done in order to get the world leaders to agree on world peace, this is my solution. The world leaders all enter a miss universe pagent and when asked what they would do if they were to become the nations leader they would all agree on world peace. No offense to the real miss universe contestants out there, you're doing a heck of a job girls!

Republicans at it again

2007-02-18T13:53:00.000-05:00

The republican party are once again relying on their old trics. Their "scare" campaign for the 2006 congressional elections once again features their favourite star Bin Laden and has the unmistakable signature marks of Karl Rove.

Baby Billionaires

2007-02-18T13:45:00.000-05:00

This is a spread illustration for an article in The Rolling Stones magazine about the "Brat Pack", a group of young entrepreneurs responsible for creating some of the most popular pieces of software like YouTube, Firefox and Facebook. These guys may be worth billions but that doesn't stop them from living the regular student life that they enjoy.

Borat Scandal

2007-02-18T10:27:00.000-05:00

It seems everyone wants a piece of Borat, new lawsuits are poping out left and right. I doubt anyone will manage to catch this rascal.

Finlandia Ad (mock up)

2007-02-18T09:58:00.000-05:00

My atempt at advetising illustration. This is an ad for Finlandia vodka, my vodka of choice.

Where do you see yourself.

2007-02-13T13:37:00.000-05:00

This is a piece depicting some of the types of people I encountered in my life, they actually look like this.