Toucan Scam

I'm trying something new. I think I might do this, I think it just might work!

I've been thinking about using this biographical-log as an art-platform, a place to show off my new drawings 'n stuff. So, here is a nice vector drawing I made, using Illustrator CS3. Right now this birdie is going to be a Motmot button, and might end up as a poster.

So, in a previous post, I mentioned the amazing Charlie Harper book that I picked up a few months ago. And while I'm not trying to copy his style, (and definitely NOT comparing my work to his!) I am hoping some of his magic will rub off on me. I have been trying to move in a more stylized direction, but still keep the essence of whatever animal I happen to be drawing. Charlie Harper is the absolute master of the stylized animal drawing.

I didn't try to draw something that looked like Charlie Harper, but after working on this for a few hours, I realized it was looking kind of Harper-ish. Or Harper-esque. I'm not sure which.

While we were in Mexico, we had a chance to see some wild toucans. We packed up our stuff, and we found ourselves in the middle of the jungle, with a super nice guide; who lived in the jungle her whole life, and knew every birdcall. The toucan looked exactly like this! (Actually this is a toco toucan, and the toucans we saw we're keel-billed toucans, which look very similar, but have a different coloring.)