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Showing posts from 2020

End of Blog Posts

 For many years I've tried to keep up with 2 blogs and unfortunately I realized it is too much. I've decided to let this blog go and instead set up a blog with Wordpress. It's been easier to use, and have updates pushed to other platforms. Here is a link to my New Blog.  https://nmillerillustration.art.blog/

4.09 Deena Scarborough, Art Teacher

In this episode of My Creative Life, I had the opportunity to speak with Deena Scarborough a long time art teacher friend from Bulloch Co. Deena has taught every grade level under the sun and she does it with a positive disposition. Please enjoy this episode!  Here is a link about the mural that she and her students are working on for their community. https://www.statesboroherald.com/local/portal-mural-a-nod-to-the-towns-past/ Listen to the interview at My Creative Life .

4.07 Kristen Baird, Jewelry Designer Interview

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In this episode of My Creative Life, I spoke with Kristen Baird, jewelry designer, in Savannah, GA about her art journey and creation of her business. Here is more about Kristen.  About Kristen: Born and raised in Richmond, Virginia, Kristen decided to plant her roots in Savannah, Georgia after graduating from the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) with a bachelor’s degree in Jewelry Design. While going to SCAD, she was honored as a Valedictorian nominee, a Presidential Scholarship Recipient, and received the Outstanding Achievement Award in Jewelry Design. With a desire to continue learning and wanting to hone in on her craft, Kristen received her Rhino CAD Certificate and attended the renowned New Approach School for Jewelers, completing the Graduate Bench Jeweler program under the direction of world-class instructor, Blaine Lewis. In 2015, she decided to start her own business, Kristen Baird® Jewelry.  Celebrating several notable honors and awards, Kristen and her brand

4.06 Rita Tu, Illustrator

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Rita Tu is a freelance illustrator based out of NJ, and an MFA Illustration grad from the Savannah College of Art and Design. She has won numerous awards in the field of illustration. We talked on this episode of My Creative Life about her career.  To see more of Rita's work  Visit RitaTu.com  or IG @RitaTu Listen to the interview at My Creative Life.

4.05 Lindsey Gerow, Artist and Art Teacher

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Hi everyone had so much fun talking with Lindsey Gerow, an artist and art teacher. She is a mom and artist! She has traveled throughout Georgia teaching art. She studied at Georgia Southern University. To view Lindsey's work visit  Instagram @Lingeron Listen to the interview on My Creative Life.

4.04 Michael Mammay, Author

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I talked with author Michael Mammay on this episode of My Creative Life.  About Michael. Michael Mammay is a science fiction writer. He is a retired army officer and a graduate of the United States Military Academy. He has a master’s degree in military history, and he currently teaches American literature. He is a veteran of Desert Storm, Somalia, and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. His debut novel, Planetside came out in July, 2018, and was selected as a Library Journal best book of 2018. The audio book, narrated by RC Bray, was nominated for an Audie award. The sequel, Spaceside, hit the shelves on August 27th, 2019. Michael lives with his wife in Georgia. To read more about Michael Mammay and his books visit: michaelmammay.com/ Michael Mammay Twitter To listen to the interview visit My Creative Life.

How to add gesture in your drawings

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I made a video of how to get more gesture in your drawing, so your figures are so stiff when you draw them. I have problems with it in my own artwork. This video shows what I did to improve it. Happy teaching and drawing. 

4.03 Josh Cleland, Freelance Illustrator

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I had the pleasure of interviewing Josh Cleland a freelance illustrator based out of Portland, Oregan. Here is a little bit about Josh.  Since 2009 I’ve been creating high-quality, fun illustrations for clients all over the world including Highlights for Children magazine, Storytime magazine, Pinterest, and Wieden & Kennedy. My whimsical illustrations can be found in picture books, billboards, iOS apps, album covers, websites, my parents’ fridge, posters, newsletters, animations and more.   To see more of his work visit. www.joshcleland.com/ www.facebook.com/ClelandIllustration/ twitter.com/joshcleland www.instagram.com/joshcleland/   Listen at My Creative Life . Thanks for listening and please subscribe!

What is trim, bleed, live area, and gutter for illustrators?

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I noticed in the FB group I'm in that there were some questions about this. It's relevant to know these terms: trim, bleed, live area, and gutter. It's really important as an illustrator that you provide your client with the correct file size. I created this video to help explain the terms.

4.02 Kimberly Kaiser, Artist and Art Teacher

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Hi all, I talked with Kimberly Kaiser about her lovely mixed media pieces she has been posting on her Instagram. Love how she captures childhood. She is a mother, artist, and educator.  To see more of her art on Instagram @kimberlykaiserart. Listen to the interview at My Creative Life.

4.01 Courtney Mayo, Surface Designer

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I was so excited to have Courtney on this episode. I'm on season 4. She is an amazing surface designer and freelance illustrator that did her BFA and MFA at the Savannah College of Art and Design. Here is a bit about Courtney. I'm a freelance artist and illustrator with a fondness for cats, cake, reading, and good design. My illustrations are primarily digital, but I try to incorporate traditional textures into my vector work and I still enjoy sketching and painting as a way to step away from my computer on occasion! When not drawing, you can usually find me trying to cook, curled up with a good book, or off exploring the world. Clients include American Greetings, IG Design Group, Design House Greetings, SCAD, Air Bnb, and Great Arrow Graphics. Look for my designs at Dollar Tree, Target, Walmart, TJ Maxx, Wegman’s, Trader Joe’s and Family Dollar! See her work on her website CourtneyMayo.com Instagram Courtney Mayo Listen to the

3.13 Penny Weber, Children's Book Illustrator

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In this episode of My Creative Life, I had the opportunity to speak with Penny Weber a children's book illustrator in NY. Here is a little bit about Penny.  Penny Weber is a full-time artist and illustrator from Long Island, New York, where she’s lived all of her life. She works both digitally and traditionally in acrylics and watercolors. Penny attended classes at the School of Visual Arts in New York.  Over the years she has worked in residential murals, greeting cards, and she still offers portraits, caricatures, and pet portraits to independent clients.  In 2007, Penny turned her attention to children’s book illustration and quickly signed with Wendy Mays and Janice Onken to be represented by WendyLynn & Company.  Since then Penny has illustrated many books, including the Chris P. Bacon series for Hay House Publishers.  Some of Penny’s other clients are McGraw Hill Education, Seed Learning, Tilbury House, and Learning A-Z.  Penny is proud to boast that she has NE

After Effects Tutorial Demo

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I worked on going over some of the simple basics of animating a layered Photoshop CC file in After Effects. Super basic. I'm including my layered Photoshop file that you can download and try to follow along with the video tutorial. The file is a PDF but if you open it in Photoshop CC you can resave it as a PSD native file and then import it into After Effects. Good Luck! Here is a link to the MerMay PDF file . I dropped the resolution and file size down for easier download.

3.12 Maggie Roth Freelance Illustrator

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This episode of My Creative Life I had the pleasure of talking with Maggie Roth. Here is a little about Maggie. Maggie Roth is an Oklahoma based artist. She received her BFA in Illustration from the Savannah College of Art and Design in 2019. Maggie moved to Oklahoma after graduating. Maggie explores the art direction of both styles she is passionate about, her illustrative style, and minimalist linework style. As a freelance artist, her current work is focused on her minimalist abstract linework. She explores the complicated essence of our human experience in life through the simplicity of a line. To see Maggie's work visit http://www.maggieroth.com/ Instagram@MaggieRoth_ To listen visit My Creative Life Podcast.

MerMay Challenge for May

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I decided to try and participate in the MerMay 2020. I created a video on my drawing process and then the final animation. I'm going to add some more videos on using After Effects basics. I'm new to After Effects. I'm also going to work on some more drawing tutorials. How to draw a rabbit. Looking forward to making these videos. This week I had an interview with Mariyka Auber a surface designer for Carter's. I also have an interview next week coming up with freelance illustrator Maggie Roth.

3.11 Mariyka Auber Surface Designer & Illustrator

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Mariyka was a delight to speak with as we share the interest of surface design and children's books. Here is a bit about Mariyka. Mariyka Auber is a freelance illustrator and in-house designer for Carter's. She specializes in cute animal characters and whimsical hand lettering, and infuses humor and emotion into everything she produces. Aside from art, Mariyka loves taking care of her ever-growing indoor jungle, watching home renovation shows, and taking weekend hikes through the forest.  She lives in Atlanta with her fluffy bobtail cat, Jasper. To see more of her work visit https://www.mariykaauber.com/ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCiguLq50XQ65BxbgIcejSRg https://www.instagram.com/mariykaauber/ Listen to the podcast interview at My Creative Life.

3.10 Anna Brettschneider, Textile and Rug Designer

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Today I had Anna Brettschneider, textile and rug designer based out of NYC. Here is more about Anna. Anna is currently a textile & rug designer at Crosby Street Studios and resides in New York City. She focuses on designing hand-painted surface patterns with bright, bold and modern color schemes. While incorporating her skills in painting, drawing, and printmaking her design work maintains a very organic style and upbeat aesthetic. Vibrant color and spirited use of linework can be found in all of her work. When she is not creating, you will find her reading design magazines, researching and shopping upcoming trends, and also seeking adventure while traveling to new spots. Anna Instagram Anna Brettschneider Website Coolstuff.NYC Visit My Creative Life to listen!

My video tutorial on How to draw using a Loomis head.

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I think it is really nice to provide some type of system that works for drawing heads. The Loomis head was a system created by Andrew Loomis an American Illustrator. I use it all the time now.

Surface Design Collab with @typebyNikita

I made a video of my check out the pattern in Adobe Illustrator. Nikita is a graphic designer and professor of graphic design. He has been creating this comprehensive Adobe Illustrators for free on is IG.  Check out @typebynikita .

3.09 Marjorie Crosby-Fairall, Children's Book Illustrator

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In this episode, I got to talk with award-winning children's book illustrator Marjorie Crosby-Fairall. She is based out of Australia. Here is more about Marjorie. When I was a little girl I escaped to the library as often as possible where I spent hours devouring picture books and minutely examining their illustrations. I was very young when I decided to become an illustrator like my then-favorite illustrator C.W. Anderson (what little girl doesn’t love horse drawings?). Encouraged by my creative family, I gained a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Illustration from Northern Illinois University. Following my move to Australia, I worked in many areas of illustration, including picture book illustrations. I live in Sydney with my husband and son and spend my days happily illustrating books in the company of my dog, Junior. I love to experiment with new techniques for my illustrations, but always seem to return to my beloved and well-used color pencils. Released Nov

iPad stand and how I record my videos demonstrations

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I've had people ask me how do record my video demos. I use a stand I made from PVC pipe. I'm posting a video on youtube and here are the plans. I've also included a photo of what the cutters look like. $6 at my local hardware store. I made 11 of these stands. The cost was about $3 for each stand.    Here are the related videos for what I use to make my videos.

3.08 Jen Dunlap textile designer and owner of Bon & Venture

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I interviewed Jen Dunlap a talented textile designer and owner of Bon & Venture based in Savannah, Georgia. She has a lovely selection of scarves, kaftans, and bags with her textile designs. The designs capture the charm and feel of living in the South. It was a really informative interview and learned so much about how she got into the business of textile design.  To see her work visit her store site Bon & Venture website Bon & Venture Instagram Bon & Venture Facebook Listen to the interview at My Creative Life.