My Apple Confession
I have never owned an Apple product.
I have used several. I used the Apple2 in the summer of 1986 at a school program. I used several Macintosh computers in the computer labs during art school between the years of 1993-1997. One of my college roommates owned one during that time and I played Myst on it. I played around on a friends iMac in the early 2000s. I used one at a client’s site in 2006. I’ve played with a few friends’ iPods. I’ve played with a few friends’ iPhones.
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Photoshop technique
I’m working on a photoshop technique where I add textures to flatted line drawings.
How to NOT kill yourself.
My friend Alice wrote an e-book about ways for the suicidal to avoid suicide. I am a strong advocate of living as I believe death is the ultimate perversion of our God given purpose on earth. Alice allowed me to illustrate and format the book. Here are a few of the illustrations. If you wish to read the book or send the link to someone who needs to read it, follow this link to Smashwords. The book is free and available in many formats. Please note that the book is not aimed at children and there is very frank discussion of some very hard concepts along with very strong language.
The Theory of Rudy
During college, I was a printmaking major. I spent a lot of time doing woodcuts, monotypes, and etching. I took one semester of Lithography. Even though I loved lithography, I didn’t pursue it because of how impractical it was. The best lithographs were produced on huge slabs of limestone. This wasn’t just any limestone, either. This limestone only had one known and very limited source. Herron School of Art had been given the largest remaining collection of press ready stones. [...read more...]
Room redo for Zeke’s Birthday
My son turned 11 years old this morning. He is an awesome guy. Dawn asked him if he would like for us to redo his room this year as part of his birthday and he said yes. So, we did.
My project was a mural. We really like the Japanese woodcut “The Great Wave off Kanagawa” by the master Hokusai. So I decided to replicate it as a 10 foot by 8 foot painting. [...read more...]
Web Comic Review: Ratfist
Back in the mid-1990′s, when I was suppose to be doing my college homework, I often watched cartoons instead. Probably because I was very mature. My favorites were The Tick, Eek the Cat, and a little gem called Earthworm Jim. Earthworm Jim was a cartoon based on a video game about an earthworm. Named Jim. I’m not kidding. But Earthworm Jim had a face, some intelligence, and a bionic super suit with arms and legs. He was a superhero of sorts. The show was surreal and the humor was absurd, so I was definitely the target audience. [...read more...]
Painting: A quick oil sketch
There is nothing quite like painting in oils. The smell of the oil and turpentine permeates your brain. The buttery paint moves endlessly under your brush. [...read more...]
Illustration Design Process: Uncommon Childhood
In this article I’m going to explore the process of working with a client on an illustration. Here is the illustration used in the final piece. [...read more...]
Snowman Kid Craft Upgrade!
If you didn’t see it, I created a Snowman paper craft to print, cut, and glue. You can read all about it and download the PDF if you go back to “Fun Snowman Kid Craft“. There is now an upgrade PDF with mittens, a snow shovel, a corn-cob pipe stuck in a smile, and a pimped out top hat. It looks like this:
Fun Snowman Kid Craft
Tis the season and whatnot, so here’s a fun paper craft to do with your kids. You can also do this by yourself if your kids are stinkers. [...read more...]
Digital Art Beginner’s Guide
What is digital art? Digital art is artwork done in whole or in part using a computer. The artwork can be graphics, photo editing, drawings, paintings, or even 3D modeling. Some digital artists do the entire process with their computer. Others sketch thumbnails or rough drafts with pens or pencils before scanning them in to create their finished work. Still others scan in completed drawings or paintings and then use software to enhance the image or adjust the colors and intensity. [...read more...]
Natural Enemies
This illustration was done for the Antithesis Art challenge of “Natural Enemies“. Yesterday I spent some time chasing our Siberian Husky around the yard trying to catch her so that I could take the neighbor’s dying chicken out of her mouth. [...read more...]
News: KarlHabegger.com is now live
In the grand tradition of the High Court of Herringia, I would like to invite you all to join me in wearing khaki shorts, a t-shirt and crocs tomorrow to celebrate the official Turning On of the New Theme here at KarlHabegger.com. As you may or may not be aware, I have been posting my sketches, artwork and ramblings at The Replacement Komics for several years now. As part of an effort to organize my online life, I have decided to get rid of a few of my former domains. This website is the new home of all things specifically Karl with the exception of merchandise. When I am able to offer books, t-shirts, and autographed toothpicks in the future I will be using the Fishvan imprint for those efforts. [...read more...]
Upcoming book: Pernicious Tales
A long term dream of mine is coming to fruition. I’ve written and illustrated a very small volume of short stories, comics, and poetry. There are twenty-six pages and it will be bound graphic novel style. It is called “Pernicious Tales”. I’m hoping to publish in January. In the meantime, here a sneak peek at the cover.
New “KarlHabegger.com” WordPress Theme
As part of the transition from “The Replacement Komics” to “Karl Habegger” I’m working on creating a new WordPress theme and Content Management System. It is substantially more complex than previous themes I’ve used. I’ve worked on a lot of WordPress themes and skins, but this is the first time I’ve built one from the ground up. [...read more...]
Cha-cha-changes…
There’s a new sheriff in town, or at least the same old sheriff is planning on making some changes. Don’t be surprised to find me posting things like this: PARE4E5XPD7S –That may look like gibberish, but in reality it is perfect nonsense. [...read more...]
Calvin and Hobbes contest
The folks over at Superpunch! are holding a contest. It involves Calvin and Hobbes. You should enter!
I grew up on Calvin and Hobbes. It is one of the best and most loved comics I’ve ever read. Here is my entry. Calvin is all grown up, but still getting advice from his friend Hobbes. Note to my mother: I’m sorry. [...read more...]
Web Design: Antithesis Art
Back in November of 2007, Richard Dominguez and I decided to use the power of the internet to apply peer pressure to each other. The goal was to make certain we both stayed focused on creating art. It grew into the site known as Antithesis Art. I originally wrote the site in PHP, CSS, and created a back end using MySQL. It was an excellent exercise and forced me to learn things I wouldn’t have otherwise. As we added additional people to the fun, the administrative duties piled up. The back end was inelegant and had a VERY steep learning curve, so I ended up doing all of the administrative work to keep the content updated. Eventually this led to a long ugly hiatus. [...read more...]
Big Rock Candy Mountain
This drawing was done with my new Wacom Bamboo tablet in Manga Studio Debut 4.0. I drew with the ink pen tool in black and then used the brush tool to add various layers of grey. Finally, I dressed it up in the Gimp with the mat and frame. [...read more...]
Emo Elmo
My wife ordered a Wacom Bamboo tablet for my birthday. I’ve had my eye on a tablet for 6 or so years, but could never justify the cost. Fortunately, the price came down to something close to reasonable for a refurbished. My review: It is everything I dreamed it would be. [...read more...]