Watch the Surfer on BET again!

Tommorrow on Friday, Hugh Wolverine Jackman is going to make an appearance on BET's Music Video show, 106 & Park, to promote the "Wolverine Origins" movie, along with yours truly the SUBWAYSURFER

It's a done deal, they taped the show this afternoon!

You mean that YOU'RE going to be on the show??? well, not in the FLESH, but my artwork will be.
BET had this great idea of drawing Puffy, Ciara, Kanye West, and Lil' Wayne as X Men Superheros complete with their own pecular "powers" and The Surfer got to draw the characters.

This is the most fun Ive had on a freelance job in a while and since I was asked to draw it "Comic Book Style" I reached deep inside and found my inner "Jack Kirby" and drew with total satisfaction.

In fairness to the studio, I cant show the artwork TODAY as the program airs TOMMORROW AT 6PM. but stay tuned until tommorrow! and check out the show!

they're creepy and they're spooky....

You look at some couples and you wonder how did they ever get together. This one here was a truely odd paring...

feeling good in the hot sun!

People in NYC are FINALLY getting a taste of warm weather here, and although it's hot folks are reallly happy. The look on THIS particular guy's face is pure bliss! he almost looks drunk with pleasure.

blast from the past, but this time with pizzazz!

You may remember seeing this picture in a previous post a few years back in blk and wht. I colored it in today and wanted to display it again. This is hands down my all time favorite caricature as it brings back fond memories. It was done a couple of summers back when I took an artistic leap out of my caricature comfort zone and began experimenting with extreme exaggeration. I still remember staring at it for a long time after it was done unbelieving that I had actually pulled it off,and also remember wondering if i could do something similar again. Ive since proven that I could, but you'll always remember your "first". I originally did this in black and white and always knew it would pop out in color since the gurl I was drawing had bright greenish bluish hazel eyes red hair and freckles.

Manuel vs. The Statue Of Liberty Poster Project

I was approached by an indy playwright/director to do a caricature/cartoon poster for his two person play, Manuel Vs. The Statue of Liberty. The main character, Manuel, had such an intriguing face I knew I wanted to draw it on the spot. I wish I could have exaggerated it more, but when you're doing work like this, it's more important to please the client and give them a recognizable picture of the subject, and not just your artistic rendition.
The plays very title is so intriguing, that I hope it lives up to it's hype. I have a feeling that it will.

HERES MY UNAPOLOGETIC CALL TO ACTION

if you're loving the way the arwork was drawn on this poster, let your passive admiration lead to decisive action! I am ready, willing, able, anxious and available to draw cartoons/caricatures to help you announce your special event. Maybe you don't need a poster, but how about a flyer, an avatar, an illustration for an EBOOK cover, or blogpost? I'm ready to go to work for you.
Email me at cartoons4u2@aol.com. Prices are more affordable than you think!

This post reminds me of a poem  From my  Ebook. Anointed Verse Unrehearsed on the statue of Liberty entitled,  "Miss Liberty's Got A Lot To Say Today" heres the Link: http://subwaysurfer.blogspot.com/2011/07/july-4th-poetry.html

Let the church say amen.

God is truly no respector of person, as this intense young man here is evidence of . He showed up to Church one warm sunday morning wearing dark shades, a long floor sweeper black leather jacket, and a long boat chain around his neck that had a single key on the end of it. You didnt THINK I WOULDNT draw him???? My only regret was not being able to do a BETTER picture!

When he say me sketching him he asked, "whatareyewdoin?" I replied that he had a great "look" and I wanted to capture it. When he saw the final product he examined it for a moment then replied, " I dont get it"and walked off without additianal comment. I hope I didnt scare him away from Church for good....

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: GLENN FERGUSON

http://www.glennfergusonarts.com/illustration.html

See that web address there? BOOKMARK it, and visit it often. Glenn Ferguson is one of the greatest caricature artists currently living in the universe. I have no hard proof, but I'd bet a dollar to donuts that the guy is not even human, but some kind of mutant. Glenn is one of my personal inspirations and all time favorite caricature artists of all time and that says a lot because Ive got some pretty heavy hitters on my list. Glenns work breathes life, intensity, personality and humour. A master exaggerator and as corny as it sounds a really nice guy. As a member of the NCN , now the ISCA, Glenn has consistently placed in the top three in the major competitions years after year. Just when you think he's done all he can do, he surprises you with ANOTHER phenomenal drawing that surpasses his previous one. I'm the proud owner of a piece he did of me years ago which hangs in my studio and will NEVER see the light of EBay!
Literally EVERY ounce of this picture here of Mick Jagger SCREAMS caricature, from his hair, right down to his fingertips! Glenn is a master of leaving no stone unturned visually and never fails to help me shoot for the moon.

I was one of the LUCKY LUCKY FEW to get my very own Glenn Ferguson Caricature at a past NCN Convention. It hangs prominently on my wall in my studio facing me and i can see it every time I look up from my Keyboard! When MOST people caricature me, they go for the EYES but GLENN went for the TEETH!!! LOL! what a genius that guy is!

Notice the 

SUBWAYTRAIN WITH THE GRAFFETT!!! in the background! How NUTS is THAT!!!!

Update... Glenn eventually DID win the Golden Nosey... It was Inevitable, and the RIGHT thing to do.

Businessman minding his Business...

I caught this Corporate Business drone staring off into sapce lost in thought on a Manhattan Bound train. WIth the climate of the job market today he was no doubt wondering if he could afford the double haxel nut Latte at Starbucks os should he be economical and go with dollar coffee at the food court outside the subway? decisions, decisions! As I was drawing him i couldnt help but wonder if I'd seen him before. I certainly remember the head construction.... maybe Im just lapsing into old drawing habits and referring to a particualr "caricature head template" that his fell into.

Susan Boyle Britains Got Talent

A couple of weeks ago, Susan Boyle was a 40 something spinster who nobody knew, and who would have passed on the street without giving her a second thought, and from her appearance, a few laughs.
After her stunning knock em dead performance on the show, "Britain's Got Talent" San Boyle, has optained superstar status, and the "chance" she never got.
Susan's voice is not just "good" or even "great" it's positively captivating. I can honestly say that I have never seen that look of astonishment, wonder and pure joy os Simon's face as he heard her sing, "I Dreamed a Dream" from the play, "Les Mesrables".
As a Caricature artist who makes fun of faces for a living, I cant help but to pass up a face as interesting as Susan's, but IN caricaturing her face Im also convincted, like so many others who saw her that night prior to HEARING her, of judging by appearances. The Scriputes tell us that Man judges by the outer appearance, but God judges the heart. This is SOOOOO true. When Boyle took the stage nobody I couls see was expecting much more than a lackluster, maybe even comical performance from her. She is not an attractive woman in the conventional sense, behing tall , big boned, overweight, and possessing a mane of curly hair and eyebrows so bushy that they look like they need a gardener to get them under control. Her appearance, however has NOTHING to do with her beautiful voice, and even LESS to do with her personality, shich judging from hearing her speech, was lively, animated and full of a quiet confidence.
Susan taught us all that you can NEVER judge a book by its cover. I hope in the future we are all a little wiser about quick judging the "books" we read before cracking open the cover.

Mr. Myagi remake

This is a remake of a caricature i did a few years ago of a distinguished Asian Gentleman I saw on one of the Eastside trains, mabye the 4 or 5 train.... I recall him catching my eye, after commenting on his appearance he looked quietly in my direction so i could get a VERY tood look at him. Something like this almost NEVER happens, and because it was so unusual, I remember his face sith complete clarity. I couldnt help thinking how he reminded me of a thinner, more elegant version of Pat Morita's Character, Mr. Myagi, from the "Karate Kid" movies starring Ralph Macchio in the title role in the eighties. I was between customers at a gig when I drew this. I always felt that he would make an excellent character as the role of the "ancient master" in some kind of anime series.

E train Caricature of BIG eyed woman

There she was with the BIG eyes long wavey hair and poked out lipp, how could I resist? havent done one of these subway ones in a while and BOY did it feel good.

A woman with high self esteem

I apologize if Ive posted this pic before, I dont THINK I have.... I found this drawing in my portfolio, and it brought back memories of a Barmitzbah gig I did in Conn. for the lovely lady you see pictured here.

This woman was actually pretty attractive. and I dont normally exaggerate the host/hostess of the event, but I felt that she had the personality and the self esteem to 'take it" and it turns out she was delighted!

Some people, especially women I find cant "BEAR" to not be seen "looking beautiful" for ONE second, even if it's in a caricature. "dont draw my nose big" "leave out my double chin" the list goes on and on... then you get those people like this woman here who KNOWS who they are, what they REALLY look like and what a caricature is supposed to be about..... FUN!!! this is the FUN part!!!!
If I could only have more women who felt this way!





of course, maybe she hated it and threw it in the trash when I left.

Exagggggggeratttttted profile

Really tried to push the envelope on this likeness. I think I ended up ripping the envelope and losing the likeness but it was fun trying.

Caricature of man with ponytail in starbucks by subwaysurfer

Captured this guy in starbucks. He was staring off into space as if to say, " Now that I've got my coffee, what do i do now?"

Caricature done in pen and ink then colored digitally in photoshop

Dude with pony tail

Some people just need to let go of youth.... this forty something dude looks ridiculous wearing his hair like this.....

Editorial Cartoon Wave Newspaper Economy Down, Crime Up

Latest Editorial Cartoon Drawn for The Wave Newspaper in Far Rockaway. As Times get tougher some are using it as an excuse for being "criminally minded." There was a recent push/in Robbery one week where the robber actually said to the victim, "Nothin Personal, It's the Economy!" As he pushed his way in. (He was caught by the Police, by the way)
It's funny, How people are linking an increase in Criminal Activity as a result of a failing economy??? Let's get REAL for a minute here. "Joe Stockbroker" whose lost his job, or his stocks recently aint exactly putting on a stocking mask, purchasing a gun, and robbin old ladies at gunpoint!
Maybe SOME may result to this type of desperate activity, but not MOST. One of my favorite movies, with Jim Carey and Tino Leoni, "Fun with Dick and Jane" will make you laugh as you ride the wave of this failing economy situation we all find outselves in.

To continue with my rant though...

The FACT is that Gansters do "Gansta stuff" like Drug dealing, Mugging, Shoplifting etc. In a "GOOD " Economy, "BAD" Economy, and everything in between! They ALWAYS have!! I wish folk would stup blaming EVERYTHING on the Economy! Some people are just "no good" cause they've ALWAYS been NO GOOD!!!

SUBWAY CARICATURES IN PEN AND INK

finally got a chance to do some subwaysurfing today to do some LIVE drawing. Cant wait to refine and post those for ya later in a coupla days. I did These Two live today at a gig. The first guy is affectionately nicknamed, "Pe Pe La Phew" by his coworkers, NOT becuase he smells like the Horny French Loony Tunes Skunk by the same name, but because he has a white streak of hair that stands out admist his sea of black hair. I asked him if it was a dyed job and he assured me that it wasnt. This was drawn on 8X11 cardstock from Staples, and drawn with a 0.7 Mechanical Pencil and Blending stomp.

The second lady was a flight attendant who has such an animated face that i did hers again from memory. Great drawing day! Ive been doing so many cartoons lately that i was wondering if I could still do these beautiful modeled drawings. looks like I got my answer. The kid's still got it!
She was drawn on 8X11 cardstock from Staples, and drawn a Black crayola Marker, and an Indigo Art Stixx.

Interview tips cartoon number one A FIRM HANDSHAKE

I was aimlessly watching The Cable TV and came across an infomercial this British fellow had on where he was teaching a seminar to young professionals entering the workforce on how to make a good impression. There was no new information, and i was surprised he was actually repeating some of the same old stuff that I've heard ever since I was a kid. "Get a haircut," "look your employer in the eye""speak in a clear confident voice" Gee, I thought are young people so dense they dont KNOW these things???? then he got to the age old sage advice of "greet your employer with a firm, confident handshake to show him you mean business" Once i heard that, my cartoon-mad mind kicked in and i instantly had this visual pun. The presenter actually helped it along because he was a MASSIVE bear of a man himself.He was well ober six feet, built like a linebacker for the Pittsburg Steelers, and had this curly shock of dark hair on top, cropped short on the sides and a five o clock shadow. I imagined that one of HIS frim handshakes must literally crush to powder the hand of an average man, and i'd love to be a fly on the wall to witness one of his interviews. I'll color this in later and maybe do more cartoons on this Interview series.

COMIC INFLUENCES. SHOUT OUT TO ARCHIE!

I was having a conversation with another artist friend of mine the other evening , and we were discussing different artists and comics that inspired both of us to become artists, ourselves. The usual names of Jack Kirby, Hanna Barbarea , Tex Avery, R Crumb, Charles Schultz, and other well known artists made their way into our conversation, then without even realizing it, i blurted out,
"AND ARCHIE!"
It's funny how most male artists wont "own up" to being influenced by "Archie Comics" well maybe not so funny, when you consider that Archie Comics, were those soft and squishy girlie books you threw to your kid sister, while you surged ahead reading the Fantastic Four and Superman. And yet, those Archie comics, at least for me, had a certain magic to them. Unlike the superhero comics that were "too hard" to draw, the Archie books somehow seemed more accessible, and easier. I remember feeling so good when I drew a successful looking Archie picture, and the stories, although"corny" were entertaining. When I got older, I found out that although simply drawn, the compostion, was masterful, and that was due to the work of Don Decarlo, an unsung hero, I think, in the comics world.
I drew this picture of one of my favorite Archie Characters, Mr. Weatherbee, because he had these nice rounded forms that were easy to get as a kid. So this is my salute to a comic that has spanned generations, and taught a LOT of us how to draw even though we wont admit it. The comics have a section where fans can send in their art, i think I'll send this one in!

Interview: WHYAM I DRAWING SO MANY COMICS NOW?

Although you didnt ask, I've decided to talk, so since you're here anyway, you might as well listen!

You may have noticed that as of late, Ive been doing a lot less subway clowning caricatures and more and more cartoons. The reason for this on one level is due to my accident I told you about last year, and drew a comic about as well, when I fell down two flights of stairs in my house. This limited my mobility to the point where I really cannot travel as easily as before, and those daily trips into the city where I ride the trains and clown the people are temporarily impossible. I was depressed as you might imagine, and having nothing outwardly to focus on I began to look inward.
I've always loved the medium of comics, like most artists, but after reading the work of my heroes, Crumb, Schultz, Don Martin, Hank Ketchum, and others, I felt my little "whiney voice" was too insignificant to make any kind of dent so i put that dream on the back burner. My accident caused me to stop and think about what effected me, what i liked, disliked, what my point of view was. I decided to write/draw on that, first as a form of theraphy, to keep my mind occupied, as not to slip into depression, and found that there were a lot of stories inside me, particularly ones that dealt with the industry that I've worked in these past few years, and the trials and tribulations of being an artist. On a more mundane level, I began to think about my relationship, with my dog, and thought how I could twist that. All of a sudden now all kinds of child hood, teenage and young adult stories are emerging , all wanting to be told. Im in the process of writing and drawing those now even as we speak.

Although I'd like to be paid, I've come to expect that maybe as an artist, that's the one thing that holds me, and sometimes other artists as well, from creating. When i was younger, i would spend hours drawing happily just for it's own sake, without any promise of financial or verbal reward. I firmly believe i was held back from doing comics because I was judging myself by the standards of my heroes who were "making money" and felt that if i couldnt produce similar "money making " work that it was worthless.

Looking back I can see that Ive pretty much always done SOME form of cartooning and comics, having submitted a lot to the NCN Trade Magazine, Exaggerated Features , and other places. I was just too dumb to realize this because I wasnt creating stuff in VOLUMNE.

Another observation Ive made since being homebound is that Im no spring chicken anymore. When i was younger, I would have laughed at my fall, dusted myself off, and trotted outside to do handsprings. Getting older makes you realize your mortality, and also makes you want to tell someone, anyone what you think, what you saw, what you did.

It's also been refreshing to know that i do have more than one artistic voice inside of me. For the past couple of years, Ive "spoken in the caricature voice" I love that voice, and have gained some fluency in it, but now it's the time to speak in the "cartoonist comic artist voice" . I cant wait to see what happens when I combine those two voices.

I guess i should shut up now...


As usual, Im taking a long time to say things. Why do I do comics now?
Because I enjoy them.
Because It's a way of telling my story, only if Im the only one who reads them.
Because it's a way of maintaining my mental , emotional health.
I guess, in a sense, it's helping to heal me.
And you cant put a price tag on that.

Having said that...

FEAR NOT ALL OF YOU WHO CLICK ON TO THIS SITE TO SEE CRAZY CARICATURES!! THERE WILL ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS BE GREAT CARICATURE DRAWING HERE!!!! SO DONT THINK FOR ONE MOMENT, THAT THE SURFER HAS ABANDONED THAT WHICH HAS ATTRACTED, HELD, AND CAPTIVATED YOUR ATTENTION FOR YEARS!!!! THERE WILL ALWAYS BE CARICATURES! THIS WILL NOT BECOME A "COMICS ONLY SITE"

NUFF SAID.