Welcome everyone to my little corner of the illustration universe! After a few months of posting artwork on Facebook and talking to many of my friends in the art community, it became readily apparent that what I was doing was blogging more about my work and process, than I was about silly whimsical life stuff. Sooooooooooooooo, it was clearly time to create and start posting onto a proper blog dedicated to sharing and communicating about the process and progress of current illustrations.
Speaking of Illustration, for those who are curious or don't know, I've been an illustrator since the Spring of 1998. In that time I have produced magazine illustration, book illustration, storyboard and concept illustration for advertising and portrait painting. (lincolnadamsillustration.com) I've also worked for several years as a designer to supplement the fickle mistress that is Illustration. And for the last three years I have had the pleasure and privilege of teaching various illustration courses in the Continuing Education department of the Cleveland Institute of Art (my alma mater).
Frankly, I've worn quite a few hats— some might argue (myself included) that I've worn too many. Part of it is mere survival! Kids gotta eat! But that's not entirely true. In twelve years of being an illustrator, I've had sort of a dual personality as an artist. I call them the C.F. Payne persona and the Marshal Arisman persona. As Richard Pryor often remarked, he had to kill his inner Bill Cosby to emerge as the comedian he would become. Well....I tried to kill my inner C.F. Payne for a while. It didn't work. The Mad Magazine mentality will never leave. And in truth my passion for illustration as a craft ultimately resides in the storytelling behind the concept AND coming up with the most effective solution no matter where it leads! So if it's off the wall funny, let it be! If it's serious and deep, so be it!
Then one fine day last January, I was watching the behind the scenes making of DVD of Pixar's "Incredibles", and it was then I realized my calling as an illustrator. I watched the artists acting out and creating the persona's of the characters they were drawing, designing and story-boarding. I recalled the countless times I had stood in an art director's office (when we still met in person) and literally acted out, voices and all, the concept (I pushed a lot of ideas through that way!). And then I remembered all the work I'd put into my BFA Thesis, writing, story-boarding, character designing, that resulted in a limited animation (yes, well before the days of Flash or Dreamweaver being taught in school). The heavens opened up. Birds began singing. And a fire under rear was ignited! I had come full circle with my desires and was ready to find out how break into the animation industry as a character designer and or storyboard artist!
Well I spent a few fruitless months in the online program of the Pittsburgh Art Institute...all I'll say is it didn't meet the standards of my previous education or the standards of how I myself educate...Undaunted I searched on until I found Schoolism.com. Here, indeed, is an online program that really works for the working professional. Currently, I am enrolled in Stephen Silver's Character Design course and I'm having a blast and learning a ton!
Much of what "Linkage Drawings & Such" will be about is the art and philosophy of character design that I am learning. I hope to enjoy and communicate with other artists and character designers in the coming months (years?) And hopefully, my own accumulated knowledge and vision of illustration will come through, as well!
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