Pedestrian #3

Pedestrian #2

Pedestrian #1

This is a comic series I'm working on based off of true stories I've experienced as a pedestrian.

Stop the Greed!

Today I'm finishing up a new poster for CLEAR. "Stop the Greed" is the title and features a ravenous Uncle Sam swallowing U.S. coins. (not gumballs)

Stop by the site later today and check out the final version!

~SD

New Promo Card

Wow, its been a while since my last post. Well a lot has happened in these last weeks of August. I lost my grandmother to heart failure, she was 94 and an amazing woman. She passed peacefully and surrounded by family and friends and an amazing cast of doctors and nurses.

These are some sketches for possible posters.

Lady Luck!

For my Mothers birthday, my sister and I designed a deck of cards featuring photos from our family.

Basil Wolverton

So yesterday I went to Chelsea to see the Basil Wolverton exhibit. He is noted to be the grandfather of underground comics and for good reason. If you ever saw a classic mad magazine you've seen his work. Lena reminds me of Pelosi, don't you think?

Ho Ho Ho Green Giant!

So I was listening to Glenn Beck this morning on 710AM and he sent a call out to illustrate Van Jones, the new 'green jobs czar' as the Green Giant about to crush a mansion.

To be honest, I didn't know who Van Jones was so I had to look him up. To my surprise he wasn't just another old and wrinkly politician from the hill but rather a young handsome african american! He'd probably make a good looking green giant, I just hope he wouldn't take offense if I ran with Beck's concept.

~SD

Thomas Nast

Thomas Nast, 1840-1902 The father of American Cartoon and my guiding light. I hope to emulate him in a way, his work was so powerful & merciless it brought down the democratic political machine "Tammany Hall." Not since then has America seen such blatant corruption of politicians and the system. We need another Thomas Nast to wake the people up!

~SD

First!!

Hi all,

Now more then ever do I think the world needs a conservative artist to illustrate the American political landscape. I set forth on this journey with a clear conscience, a spirited heart and an enlivened stroke of the brush.

This will be my journal, and my story.

~SD

Johnny Got his Gun Sketches

For the Comic I made about Johnny Got His Gun, I did these sketches first

The Studio

As I walk down the dark dead end street towards my studio, I feel the cold wind whip across my face and tear my eyes. It's another winter night in my urban landscape. The yellow streetlamps flicker on and off, like summer fireflies searching for their lost loves. The silence of the night is only broken by my heavily booted feet which echo down the cracked sidewalk. The alley cats rustling through garbage cans pause for a moment as they hear me approach. One looks out at me over the top of the dented tin barrel and licks her chops as if wishing if she was a just little bit larger, then maybe I'd pass as dinner instead of the rotten banana peel under her paw.

My shadow grows longer as the street itself grows narrower; my hands search my pockets for the key as the distance between me and my destination grows shorter. I look up at the starless black sky as I arrive at the mammoth overhead door that leads into my space; the faint sound of a Spanish love song can be heard through the window of one of the tenants above.

I take a deep breath as I slide my key into the lock of door, turn and push.

Like every night, I enter into total darkness and have to stand motionless for a moment at the entrance while my pupils widen in search for some hidden light. In the past, I would just walk carelessly into the dark, but after a few bruised shins and close calls, I've decided patience is a safer virtue then diligence. And as I wait in the dark, I welcome the heat stored over from last nights visit, and unwrap myself from the many layers of my winter garb. Finally, I begin to make out the familiar bulky shapes of the overturned desks to my right, and the vertical line up of ladders to my left. I move forward, deeper into the space, greeting some of my possessions as I walk past (hello armchair, hello clock radio, hello paint bucket). When I reach the back of the space I have to feel up the concrete wall until my fingers find the light switch. A burst of blue light streams across the studio as I flip the switch. Everything looks eerily vintage, like a scene from some lost silent movie, while the gallery lighting warms up and slowly turns from blue white to clear white light.

Now with proper light, I survey the space making sure everything is how I left it. Nothing missing, I turn my attention briefly to the clock radio and twist the dial. Brahms fourth symphony pores out of the tiny speaker and fills the void my art can't reach. I punch my imaginary work clock and pull my armchair forward to face my 15 ft long display wall. I sit down and stare up, my eyes darting from one painting to another, from one drawing to another, I try to piece together their meanings; the wall itself resembles a scrapbook more and more every night then a gallery wall. Finally I am reminded where I left off the previous night and pull the tacks off the drawing of a woman screaming in ecstasy, or was it terror? That I'll decide tonight.

The Bubble!

Heres an alternate poster I did for IWAN. Independent Working Artist Network

Credible Corispondence

This is the piece of work I put in the show Credible Corispondence

The Gallo Myth

The mystery of my mothers surname was never truly solved and I guess it never will be. A long time ago her grandfather had changed his surname from DePetling to Gallo for reasons still debated within my family. The story of my great grandfather began in the city of Trieste during the turn of the last century. The DePetlings were a wealthy family and owned one of the largest slaughterhouses in all of Tuscany. They were known among the people as the family of giants. All the DePetling men were extremely tall and very powerful, all except just one, my great grandfather. Perhaps that’s the reason why at the tender age of 14 he decided to stow away on a ship destined to America. Through the years some family members speculated otherwise and thought that he might have gotten a girl pregnant and was fleeing from the responsibility of fatherhood. Others went further to say perhaps he even killed a man and was escaping the authorities. The truth he took all the way to the grave.

But some facts remained; he was a very young man on board a ship filled with many other Italian immigrants in search of a new beginning. Because of his good education and likeability he ingratiated himself with the crew and they secretly made him a cabin boy. When the smoke-stacked skyline of New York City finally came into view all the immigrants aboard grew very excited and eager to set foot on the famed Ellis Island. But not my great grandfather, instead an immediate sense of dread and anxiety fell over him. Despite knowing several languages, he did not speak English and lacked the proper documents necessary to enter the country. As the ship entered Hudson Bay his fear of returning to Italy over took him and rather then take his chances with the authorities he took his chances with the elements. He dove off the side of the massive ship and swam to the shores of Manhattan. Years past and he learned English, struggled and worked hard until eventually he intertwined himself into the fabric of America. They say he didn’t change his name to Gallo until he heard that some of his brothers had traveled to America in search for him. His family never found him and life carried on.

In the end my mother and whole family all have very fond memories of him. He was a happy and spirited man. All the way into his old age he worked at the lavish restaurant inside the famed Statler Hilton Hotel as head maitre de. He wore a tuxedo everyday and was well known among the stars of the 30’s and 40’s. In fact he was often found carousing with Caruso (the illustrious opera singer) until the early morning hours, but that is another story entirely.

The End is NEAR!

I received this postcard from the future!

Yankee Game

Brothers Abroad

I wanted to post some sketches for the graphic book I'm working on based off the life and times of my great Uncle Set.

More Wine Label Concepts

Wine Label Concepts

Here are some conceptual Wine Labels/Brands:

Promo Banner Thingy

Wine Geek Society

Here's a logo I designed for the Chelsea Wine Vault "Wine Geek Society"

Happy Holidays!