J. David McKenney blog

New Work: Mermaids

2012-02-03T17:40:00.004-05:00

Mermaids: Graphite, and Ink Wash on 27"x40" Hot Press Watercolor Paper

sketches:

Runway Looks: Christian Dior Spring 2012 Couture Collection

2012-01-24T18:58:00.006-05:00

sketches:

The Tempest

2012-01-18T23:24:00.000-05:00

More Personal Work

2012-01-06T17:08:00.000-05:00

Mermaid #2:

Acrylic, Graphite, Pastel, on 18″x24″ Heavy Watercolor Paper

pencil sketch:

thumbnail sketch:

Personal Work

2012-01-03T10:13:00.000-05:00

Mermaid #1

Acrylic, Graphite, Pastel, on 18"x24" Heavy Watercolor Paper

pencil sketch:

thumbnail sketch:

I have an Announcement!

2011-12-30T10:51:00.003-05:00

After much thought and preparation, I have split off my portfolio into two separate artistic identities with two separate names, websites, and Facebook pages.

I will continue to use J. David McKenney for artwork of a more adult, high-fashion sensibility.

I will use Joshua David for my lighter, younger portfolio.

Please visit my new website:
http://joshuadavidillustration.com/

Please also visit my new Facebook Page!

Joshua David Illustration

Factory Girls

2011-12-24T09:23:00.001-05:00

Factory Girls:

Jane Forth

Donna Jordan

Dance Drawings

2011-12-13T18:45:00.002-05:00

Drawings of dancer, Hank Bamberger

here are some photo outtakes from our day together:

Thank you Hank! You are as talented as you are amazingly good looking:)

Dances of Vice: The Moonlight Circus Poster

2011-12-05T13:02:00.002-05:00

with title:

no title

This poster features the beautiful burlesque dancer Medianoche who will be preforming live at the event

December 30, 2011 @ 7PM

Riverside Church 91 Claremont Ave, NYC

Tickets & Info

DancesOfVice.com

sketches:

thumbnail

My first Mermaid Ball-Jointed Doll is now available on ebay!

2011-11-14T20:41:00.006-05:00

Her name is Aoife and she is available on ebay

see how she was created!

Hot Wheels: shoes from the Prada Spring/Summer 2012 sho

2011-10-20T10:19:00.003-04:00

also check out this style profile on me:

http://binzentovincente.blogspot.com/p/special-thanks-to.html

Princess Prep Fashion Contest Results!

2011-10-11T22:00:00.003-04:00

Greetings Princess Preppies: we are proud to announce the winners of our FIRST EVER Princess Prep Fashion and Story-telling Contest! We received some amazing entries, and it wasn't easy to decide, but our winners are as follows......

For Best Overall Story and Costume, our winner is.....Camila Cerda!

Camila dressed Princess Prissy in this scrumptious outfit - we just love it!

and Camila's story:

Prissy’s Cupcake Club Party

Finally its Saturday, the day of the weekly meeting of the Cupcake Club! Obviously all the princesses are more than prepared; they’ve been thinking about their outfit the whole week! Is such an important occasion, cause the status of the members in the club is not only defined by their personality or influence, but also by their style. In this exclusive meeting the girls compete to have the coolest outfit and to impress the other princesses with the uniqueness and creativity of their dresses.

The weekly meetings of the Cupcake Club always have a different host. All the girls fight for this opportunity, cause this is the chance to impress the others and show that you are really worthy to be part of this exclusive club. The princesses organize splendid tea parties, with all the delicious things you can imagine: hot chocolate, vanilla milkshake with chantilly cream, heart shaped biscuits, strawberry and raspberry cake, chocolate fountains, and of course, the most cute and beautifully decorated cupcakes ever.
The most nervous of all the princesses is Prissy, cause this Saturday is her turn to host the party. She’s been waiting such a long time for this opportunity! She decided to honor the name of the club by making a total cupcake decorated tea party. In this line, she determined to be a cupcake herself. She asked the most talented young designer of the city to make her a sweet cupcake princess dress worthy of a lady. And Prissy wasn’t disappointed, cause the costume was stunning: soft and delicate fabrics with shinny sparkles and a skirt fully decorated with hand-sewn beads imported from Italy. Her favorite part of the outfit was the cupcake purse that her father bought her from one of the most prestigious boutique in Paris. Everything announces that Prissy’s party will be one of the best Cupcake Club meetings ever done!

Camila, you win the amazing book Advanced Fashion Illustration by Bill Donovan

And our prize for Best Outfit goes to......DJ Tracy!

DJ dressed Bennie in this beautiful ocean inspired frock:

DJ's story:

With Halloween fast approaching, you need to get the perfect costume. This look is inspired by an elegant mermaid, made possible by a ruffled mermaid style dress with matching shoes, gloves, necklace and hair accessories.

DJ, you can keep designing those amazing fashions because you won My Fabulous Look Book by Karen Phillips and Illustrated by me, J. David McKenney!

And the award for Best Story goes to.....Dakota Cameron!

Dakota used our Virtual Paper Dolls to dress Bennie in a sailor costume:

And Dakota's beautiful story, which captured life at Princess Prep perfectly:

"Bennie walked through the glass doors out of the chilling wind and looked through the crowd for Prissy. Bennie was at a costume party as a sailor, with her long red hair pulled up in a ponytail, and a white sailor’s hat sat on her head. Soon enough Prissy called her over across the room, by the dessert table eating red velvet cake and holding her little white cat in her arms. Bennie walked to Prissy at the same time that Simone and her friends, Petunia and Violet, walked to them. Prissy was dressed as Annie from the movie of the little orphan girl, she wore a red puffy wig and worn brown clothes. Simone, Petunia, and Violet were all dressed as Bees, they wore yellow and black striped long tee shirts with black leggings and yellow headbands with little antennas. Simone looked up from her phone, "Nice costume" she snickered. Bennie just ignored her and looked through the desserts and took a sugar cookie. She took a bite, the cookie was sweet and warm. Prince Sebastian came over to talk to the girls. When he left, along with him trailed Simone, Petunia, and Violet. Bennie giggled as her and Prissy left the party under the moonlit filled sky."

Dakota, you get the Klutz book Headbands and Hairstyles by Eva Steele-Saccio and also illustrated by me, J. David McKenney!

Also, we had to add:

Our Honorable Mention goes to Diana C. Ramirez for her exquisite rendering of her very own Princess Amelia:

Count us VERY impressed!

Thank you to everyone who entered! Stay tuned for more news from Princess Prep: The Royal Academy here, and on Twitter @ItsPrincessPrep!

All our love,

the J's

Little 2" Beauty Cameos

2011-09-22T17:51:00.003-04:00

I drew this little collection of beauty cameos while waiting for my friend at our favorite bubble tea house, they are each only about 2" high.

details:

Naya

Ms. Vix

Tamera

Esther

Piglet

Dora

Alice

Eleanor

Janet

Fashion Week!

2011-09-08T10:40:00.002-04:00

Marc Jacobs Fall 2011

Jimmy Choo Fall 2011

Calvin Klien Fall 2011

Marc Jacobs Fall 2011

Stella McCartney Fall 2011

Fashion Illustraton: Prada Baroque Sunglasses

2011-08-29T12:53:00.001-04:00

Influence: Olive Oyl and Popeye

2011-08-26T08:17:00.001-04:00

Olive You: graphite, red marker, on heavyweight drawing paper. 11"x14"

My best buddy Kate gave me this Olive Oyl doll last week because she knows I used to LOVE Olive Oyl when I was a little boy and I drew pictures of her all the time. .

I never understood when my mother used to explain to me that she was supposed to be funny and not glamorous, to me she was a vision of loveliness.

Doodle Series: Mermaid Hats With Large Hat Pins

2011-08-20T10:41:00.001-04:00

Creating LoveChilde

2011-08-10T13:03:00.002-04:00

LoveChilde's creation is now viewable as a video!

Portrait of Amber Ray

2011-08-05T15:36:00.001-04:00

sketches:

Process:

Live Fashion Illustrations with Tommy Hottpants

2011-08-01T18:44:00.003-04:00

Today the very very cool and effortlessly dreamy Tommy Hottpants modeled for a collection of fashion illustrations profiling his unique stylings....

Gutter Punk

Rock

Leading Man

Jesse James

and Papua New Guinea Tribal Grunge

Thank you Tommy for giving me so many looks in one afternoon! You are beyond awesome!

Live Fashion Illustrations with Darian Darling

2011-07-20T15:36:00.006-04:00

Yesterday I went over to my good friend Darian Darling's house, dubbed "The Pussy Palace" for a little lunch, conversation, and some casual live fashion drawings! I LOVE Darian's style and I wanted to capture some of her signature looks....

Playboy Pin-up

Biba Glam

Rock n' Roll Blondie

Disco Dancing Dress with Nude Pumps!

and The Missing Nolan Sister

So much fun we had!!!

New Work: Moonstruck

2011-07-14T09:27:00.000-04:00

Moonstruck: 18"x24", various ink washes, graphite, and pastel on rough watercolor paper

sketch:

Life in plastic, it's fantastic!

2011-07-10T13:27:00.000-04:00

I did these three pieces of artwork a few months ago for a big doll company in California. The line that the drawings were intended for has been put on the back burner but I can still share the images with you!

The concept is a little more "bubble gum" than my normal style but it was still totally fun to do!

Early Concept Sketches:

(I think this one is so funny for some reason)

Sketches From The Alexander McQueen Exhibit At Metropolitan Museum Of Art.

2011-07-08T20:54:00.002-04:00

J. David McKenney's Zodiac Girls are now available on T-Shirts!

2011-06-20T12:21:00.001-04:00

Aries Girl T-Shirt

Born between March 21 - April 19

Taurus Girl T-Shirt

Born between April 20 - May 20

Gemini Girl T-Shirt

Born between May 21 - June 20

Cancer Girl T-Shirt

Born between June 21 - July 22

Leo Girl T-Shirt

Born between July 23 - August 22

Virgo Girl T-Shirt

Born between August 23 - September 22

Libra Girl T-Shirt

Born between September 23 - October 22

Scorpio Girl T Shirt

Born between October 23 - November 21

Sagittarius Girl T-Shirt

Born between November 22 - December 21

Capricorn Girl T-Shirt

Born between December 22 - January 19

Aquarius Girl T-Shirt

Born between January 20 - February 18

Pisces Girl T-Shirt

Born between February 19 - March 20

Portrait of Darian Darling

2011-06-17T10:49:00.001-04:00

Finished portrait of the glamorous Darling Darling:

india ink wash, red lacquer, white ink, pastel, and graphite on rough watercolor paper, 18" x 24"

photo of Darian during the photoshoot.

So if you have been following me on facebook and/or twitter you will know that I have a new friend/muse in Miss Darian Darling. I first read about Darian in Fashion Doll Quarterly in and article called "The Real Life Barbie Dream House of Darian Darling." After reading the article I immediately looked her up on facebook and wrote her a letter demanding that we be best friends right away....lucky for me she agreed!

In addition to being a New York nightlife celebrity Darian also runs a lifestyle blog all about....being blond and fabulous! Check it out Darian Darling: A Guide to Life For Modern Blondes.

We have become fast friends and Darian agreed to model for a portrait. We had a lovely time (and about 2-3 bottles of champagne between the two of us) taking the photos I used as reference.

Below is my process:

rough sketch:

building up the image:

pencil sketch

pencil sketch with photo reference

I always like to pop in a little red first

then put back in some white

and finally I built up the vignette with some many layers of ink washes

OLD DRAWINGS FROM MY OLD SKETCHBOOKS 1999-2006

2011-05-25T12:26:00.001-04:00

During a intense "spring cleaning" I stumbled across my old sketch books under my bed. They were really fun for me to go through and I thought I'd snap some photos and share a few of them....if you care to look.....here are various sketches, photos, and ramblings that were going through my head in my early 20's...

TO VIEW THE ENTIRE COLLECTION CHECK OUT MY FACEBOOK GALLERY

Eighties Glamor Pinball

2011-05-02T11:13:00.000-04:00

Last week I was asked to redesign a 1980's pinball machine to be used in a cosmetics commercial. Unfortunately the commercial has gone a different direction and they aren't using an illustration anymore but I love what I created and I'm still really happy to add this piece to my portfolio.

Here is the headbaord:

To create this image I used pastels, colored pencil, and lots and lots of photoshop.

Obviously I was inspired by early Jem and the Hollograms art:

and the work of Pater Sato

here are my rough concept sketches:

The Paper Doll Fashion Design Contest WINNER is..........

2011-04-15T21:00:00.001-04:00

DANIEL SOLIANI!!!!

Daniel sent me a lot of amazing entries but this one really stood out to me. The white and gold are so dramatic agaist her skintone and that headpiece is to die for!

One of the great things about paper dolls is the ability to mix and match different items. These pieces will be a great addition to her wardrobe!

1st runner up: Paige Cody for "Ultimate Extravagance"

2nd runner up: Robert Perez

3rd runner up: Chaitra

Congratulations to all the winners!

Thank you to everyone who participated! It was so hard to choose, I spent all day debating...you are all so talented! I'll be contacting you via email about your prizes!

I'm still working on creating the new dolls..I'm getting close, they should be done soon! The winning design will be included with the one of the new Virtual Dolls as well as one of two items from each of running up entries! Be sure to look out for them!

Stay Tuned!

JDM

Patrick Nagel inspried images

2011-04-12T10:53:00.000-04:00

I LOVE Patrick Nagel!
These are not a literal interpretation of course, just an homage.

La Mer- a new crest design

2011-04-07T14:21:00.001-04:00

process:

My "Drawn This Way" entries

2011-04-06T09:08:00.003-04:00

V Magazine held a drawing contest called Drawn This Way where they asked fans to illustrate Lady Gaga as an editor for her new fashion column.

Well, I didn't place in the contest but here are my entries.....I'm happy with them.

entry # 1

Gaga with Black Quill

Entry # 2

Gaga with White Quill

sketches:

Paper Doll Fashion Design Contest!!!!

2011-03-29T12:21:00.003-04:00

It's been almost two years since I made a new fashion doll (not counting the Princess Academy doll) and I think it's time for a new season!

As I spend these next few weeks creating a whole new array of outfits, hair, shoes, and accessories I think it would be fun if you did too!

So....I'm excited to announce my very first Paper Doll Fashion Design Contest!!

Last year I had a Rococo Wig Design contes t and I was so impressed by the creativity of the people who follow my work! Let's do it again!

Rules:

I have created two models that you can design clothes for. Each model has a color version and a lined version *see below* You can print these out and trace over them. You MUST use these models as templates, submissions drawn on other forms will be disqualified.

You may use tracing paper, a window or light-box (you can even use your computer as a light-box), or you may draw directly onto the model. Don't worry if the lines show through. Submit pencil, colored pencil, paint, watercolor, even digital drawings....all mediums accepted!

I'm looking for full head-to-toe looks! I want hair, makeup, hats, jewelry, gloves, dresses, tops, bottoms, tights, socks, and shoes! Not at the same time though, that would probably look insane! Have fun with it! Go crazy! Go glam! Go sophisticated! Go tropical! Go urban! Go funky! Go punky! I love all styles!

Also, you can enter as many designs as you want! So keep 'em coming! The more designs you enter the greater your chances of winning!

Please email me your designs:

JDAVIDMCKENNEY@GMAIL.COM

Deadline: Tuesday, April 12, 2011

The winner will be announced Wednesday, April 13, at 12 PM EST.

For the winner: I will virtualize your design/s and put them on my website, where you can play with them anytime you want.

I will also throw in one pair of Pro Ked Shoes, in your size, designed by me! Any pair you want!

I will be selecting 3 runners-up who will also receive a special surpise prize!!

I can't wait to see your designs!

xoxo,

JDM

Figure One:

Figure Two:

Good Luck!

Portrait of Jane Forth

2011-03-25T09:07:00.002-04:00

Portrait of 60's model / Warhol star Jane Forth

She was very glamorous because she looked like Olive Oyl and only wore toy plastic jewelery.

The Witch

2011-03-24T14:53:00.001-04:00

The Witch: black ink, yellow ink, red ink, and white ink on watercolor paper, 18"x24"

Process: presented without captions.

Blown Away!

2011-03-22T16:46:00.001-04:00

Check out my painting in the lobby of Park Avenue Blow Dry and Beauty Bar in Pheonix, AZ!

Thanks to Holli and Corbin!

Portrait of Shien Lee

2011-03-22T10:49:00.001-04:00

Finished portrait of the beautiful Shien Lee:

india ink, red lacquer, white ink, and graphite on rough watercolor paper, 18" x 24"

photo of Shien during the sitting:

Shien is a New York City Treasure! Shien is the founder and creator of Dances of Vice, a New York night life sensation that attracts a sordidly splendid menagerie of dandies, aesthetes, and dreamers who gather in shared enthusiasm for the music, fashion, culture, and beauty of times forgotten.

If you live in New York you must check out a D.O.V event. It's always a wonderland of eye candy and decadence.

I was lucky enough to have Shien sit for me at my studio last week. She has some of the best style in town, so I left her completely in charge of her own look. I just told her to bring veils and accessories! I ADORE what she came up with! From the moment she walked into the room I knew how I wanted this portrait to look: Bold and Inky!

Process:

the sketch:

I really liked how this sketch turned out. I wanted the final piece to look just like it....only a little tighter.

I moved onto my large paper. After I had my pencil outline, I appied masking fluid to the areas I wanted to remain completely white. Then I did a really light grey wash over the entire painting. I wanted to keep the tones as stark as possible but still have highlights.

I laid down my first few layers of darker grey wash.

I put down more masking fluid and then laid down the red

then I put down the black ink

after that it was about adding a few details and subtle washes.

and then I was done!

Jessie in Boots

2011-03-22T09:11:00.001-04:00

Jessie stirred up and swimming in hair: india ink wash, yellow ink, red ink, and graphite on rough watercolor paper, 18" x 24"

details:

Process:

I have drawn almost everything in my portfolio thus far from my imagination or memory. Now that I have a larger working space I'm beginning to combine my artistic visions with actual references (live model drawings combined with photographs).

I asked my very glamorous, very beautiful , and very kind friend Jessica to model for me at my studio last week. I threw a "Jerry Hall" wig on her, we did some live drawings, and then we took some pictures...

some of the photos:

she's stunning, no?

From the sketches and photographs I composed this rough.

And then I set to work on my final piece:

pencil

black ink wash for the boots

medium ink was for skin tone, light ink wash for hair

added yellow!

and Ta Da! Pure Glamour!

Showgirl in McQueen

2011-03-22T09:10:00.000-04:00

shoes: Alexander McQueen Spring 2010

process:

pencil drawing

tape off background

layed down several layers of gold leaf, red ink , and black ink to create a "snake skin" effect

layers

Zodiac Girls Cancer

2011-03-22T09:09:00.002-04:00

Cancer
June 21 -
July 22

sketch

Gaga the Gray

2011-03-22T09:09:00.001-04:00

Gaga the Gray: india ink, red lacquer, white chalk, and graphite on rough watercolor paper, 18” x 24”

I did this image of Gaga for fun because I love Lady Gaga and I love drawing creepy fingers!

Here is my process:

sketches:

This was my first Gaga sketch that I did on an airplane. It doesn't really look like her but I was just going from memory.

These were my composition thumbnails. I wanted to focus more on her monster hands while still keeping it an angular glamor shot. (I went with the pose on top right)

And here she is 3/4 of the way finished. You can see I hadn't finished her hands yet and the shading is still pretty minimal.

And LOOK! It even got blogged about on Nicola Formichetti's tumber! He's Gaga's stylist!

Blow

2011-03-22T09:04:00.002-04:00

I did this image for Park Avenue Blow Dry in Pheonix, AZ.

Digital Painting:

final sketch:

thumbnail sketches: (the original concept was going to include the logo in the artwork)

Thank you Holli for the super fun job! I love how it turned out!

Zodiac Girls Taurus

2011-03-22T09:04:00.001-04:00

Taurus

April 20 -

May 20

sketch:

Zodiac Girls Aries

2011-03-22T09:02:00.002-04:00

Aries

March 21 -

April 19

Sketch:

Zodiac Girls Pisces

2011-03-22T09:02:00.001-04:00

Picses

February 19 -

March 20

Sketch:

Zodiac Girls Aquarius

2011-03-22T09:01:00.001-04:00

Aquarius
January 20 -
February 18

Sketch:

Zodiac Girls Capricorn

2011-03-22T09:00:00.000-04:00

Capricorn

December 22 -
January 19

Sketch:

2011-03-22T08:56:00.003-04:00

Sagittarius

November 22 -

December 21

Zodiac Girls Scorpio

2011-03-22T08:53:00.000-04:00

Scorpio

October 23 -

November 21

original sketch

Zodiac Girls Libra

2011-03-22T08:38:00.003-04:00

Libra

September 23 -

October 22

original sketch

Debbie's Flower

2010-11-08T11:32:00.012-05:00

I was at my friends Debbie and Ben's wedding in Sydney last week. It's spring in Australia right now and Debbie works in a flower shop, so needless to say the wedding was overflowing with beautiful flowers. I was taken with the peonies in particular and so in my free time I sketched them as a hat. I took that drawing and, thanks to the wonderful people who created Photoshop CS5 and wacom tablets, was able to go directly from the sketch and create a finished painting.

The digital painting:

The sketch:
The peony:

Airplane sketches

2010-11-06T07:46:00.003-04:00

I just came back from a wedding in Sydney which gave me a lot of time to sketch on the plane. Here as some of my sketches....

Josh and Andrew's Ball Jointed Doll: part 3

2010-10-26T09:14:00.006-04:00

Sealing the doll parts. This gives the doll a hard shell so she can be painted and played with. This also provides the overall flesh color.Second coat of sealant
Detail work, body blushing, painted toes and fingernails, nips....waiting for a head

Some beautiful face painting

Then we set her eyes, added very tiny little eyelashes, and whipped up some old fashioned glamor.....

Ladies and Gentlemen, modeling two couture looks....

LoveChilde: by McKenney and Yang

Strawberry J-Girl

2010-10-21T15:04:00.002-04:00

Fashion Illustration

2010-10-20T09:42:00.002-04:00

Dress: by Atelier Versace

Thumbnail Sketches:
I saw this dress in New York Times magazine (The Milan Issue Winter 2010) and I knew I had to draw it.

Black, White, and Red Fashion Illustration

2010-10-13T20:27:00.006-04:00

original drawing is 15"x 20", black ink on watercolor paper, digital color

pre-photoshop:

sketch:thumbnail:

Digital Color Tweaking

2010-09-29T18:26:00.004-04:00

I was looking at this piece I did last week and I decided the colors weren't right at all. After playing around with the image in Photoshop I concluded that it was really washed out and WAY too green.
Here is the updated image. I think it's much better! Don't you?

original image:

The Sea

2010-09-22T16:50:00.006-04:00

15"x 20", Layered Acrylic Ink Washes, Colored Pencil, and Pastel on Watercolor Paper

Detail:

Process Sketches:

Process of Final Piece:The pencil sketch with masking fluid
wash 2
wash 3
wash 4
wash 5
The masking fluid is removed after purple clouds are painted, leaving pale yellow twinkles and highlights.
wash 6
wash 7
details added
wash 8
finishing touches

Her clothing is based on this look below, from Marc Jacobs Spring 2010 Ready-To-Wear collection:

photo by Marcio Madeira

Hope you like her!

The 3 winners of the J. David McKenney ipod case are......

2010-09-02T10:00:00.009-04:00

.........in no particular order......
Derya
I love the concept of a fan as a veil! The details and color choices are superb! So pretty! So sophisticated! Well done!

Alexa
I love how you took the classic ship on the powdered wig and made it an entire scene with waves and a sunset! Glorious! Very Clever!

and Valencia
I love her! Her pink hair! Her beautiful skin! I love that she doesn't need a purse because she keeps everything she needs up on her head. Smart lady!

Congratulations!!! You have each won your very own J. David McKenney iPod case! I'll be contacting each of you via email.

It has been so AWESOME to see all of your designs! I'm so blown away by your talent! Thank you to all of the truly gifted people who participated. Judging this contest wasn't easy, I wish I had more cases to give out!

I'll try to hold another contest like this in the future as soon as I get something else cool to give away!

Here are some of the other amazing wigs submitted for the contest:

Thank you again to everyone who sent in a design! I hope you had so much fun designing these truly awesome wigs.

Marie Antoinette would be so proud!

Last Day of the Rococo Wig Design, iPod Cover Contest!!!

2010-09-01T10:56:00.004-04:00

I have already gotten some GREAT wig design submissions! I'm really impressed! really good job!

Tonight I'll be picking 1-2-3 winners who will receive a free speck ARTSPROJEKT iPod touch case featuring my own Rococo Drawing, The Vamp.

You still have all day today to submit your designs. Remember that I created a template to start you out but it is optional, feel free to submit your own design in whatever format you like.
Send your ideas to me by tonight and I'll announce the winners tomorrow morning (around 10 am EST)
Submit your entry to jdavidmckenney@gmail.com and put "iPod contest" as the subject
Can't wait to see all your crazy wigs!!!

Tomorrow's the day! Send me your wig design submissions!

2010-08-31T08:41:00.001-04:00

jdavidmckenney@gmail.com

3 days left to enter my ipod case competition!

2010-08-29T10:26:00.005-04:00

Just a warning! The Design a Rococo wig and win my iPod case drawing contest will be ending in just three days!

What is J-Girl?

2010-08-26T16:59:00.011-04:00

If you have been following me on facebook you will know that I've been occasionally creating images for an album called J-Girl.
J-Girl is still in the development phase but it's what I'm calling beauty images I create for a younger audience. I hope to someday be as famous as Lisa Frank and have my work all over young girls' (and some very special boys') notebooks, pencils sharpeners, and lunch boxes.

Here is one of my newest J-Girls

pencil sketch
rough sketch (The sexy skirt, legs, and flip flops were added by my boyfriends 6 year old niece Julia.)

Josh and Andrew's Ball Jointed Doll: part 2

2010-08-24T01:02:00.009-04:00

This is the second, but not last, installment of Josh and Andrew's first ball jointed doll. The last time I blogged about the doll she was ready to be jointed, so lets start there.

I created the hip joints, and neck joint
Knee joints (in the oven at a low heat for quicker drying)
Testing both leg joints.
Creating the shoulder joint:

hollow ball
sealed into the arm
Hollowed out the eyes

Setting the eyeballs into the head
All joints finished, ready for carving, and then stringing.
Andrew creating the ankle joint with wire
Joints carved
And after much much tweaking and refining she is all strung together!
I did a test coloring of the face to see what she would look like painted, then I sanded it off.
She is now a fully poseable doll but she needs to be sealed, primed, and then painted.
PHOTO SHOOT:
Andrew and I couldn't wait to dress her up, so we had a photo shoot at Andrew's studio with the raw doll. We dressed her without color since she doesn't yet have any color.

Stay tuned for the finished doll!

Also check out the September issue of American Vogue, page 429 for a blurb about Andrew's amazing line of dolls The Kouklitas at Barney's in New York City

Blood Roses

2010-08-20T17:33:00.007-04:00

"An atmosphere created by the never ending pursuit beauty."

Well here is the finished piece that I started a few months ago with my "Play-Art-Director" experiment. I experimented....I learned some things.

Below is the photos I took of the process. I hope you find it interesting

Contest: Design a Rococo wig and win my iPod case!

2010-08-18T11:28:00.004-04:00

Hello Everyone! I'm having a small drawing contest and giving away three of my Artsprojekt iPod Touch cases. This is a design competition and what we are designing are Marie Antoinette powdered wigs, or really any sort of fantasy hair.
Why? because I LOVE Rococo wigs! I even have a tattoo of one.
See.....

So go CRAZY!!!! Add curls, swirls, ribbons, pearls, bows, flowers, feathers, ships, bird nests, gumballs, tea cups, soup cans, chicken feet....whatever you fancy.

I will announce the winners by Sept 1, 2010 on my blog and facebook fanpage, so that's just about 2 weeks to come up with a creative hair motif and submit it for a chance to win a J. David McKenney Artsprojekt x Speck Apple iPod Touch caseThis iPod case is not sold online and can only be obtained by winning this contest or by going to your local apple store and buying one.

How to enter:
You can email your submissions to jdavidmckenney@gmail.com with "iPod contest" as the subject.
Any medium is fine (digital, pencil, ink, watercolor, acrylic, oil paint, spaghetti sauce, mashed potato sculpture, etc...)
There is no limit to how many wigs you can submit so please have fun and enter as many fancy wigs as you can think of!

optional template:

examples:

Remember: Go CRAZY! Have FUN!!

iPod cover contest?

2010-08-17T15:47:00.005-04:00

iPod owners: Would you be interested in a free J. David McKenney iPod cover?
Perhaps a drawing contest or a random drawing?

The Mermaid

2010-08-17T12:22:00.001-04:00

J-Girl sketch

Lollipop Bling augmented reality demo

2010-08-12T15:03:00.006-04:00

Below are the three images I did for Mariah Carey's new Lollipop Bling fragrance collection and above is a video I made showing you how to use the augmented reality feature on lollipopbling.com

Josh and Andrew's Ball Jointed Doll: part 1

2010-07-26T14:13:00.007-04:00

My good friend, artist, doll maker, and creative soul-mate Andrew Yang and I have ventured on a several doll making projects since we first became friends in December of last yer. This entry documents the first part of our most ambitious doll project yet.
It was inspired by a trip to KinoKinuya where we found the book Yoshida Style: Ball Jointed Doll Making Guide by Ryo Yoshida. The entire book is in Japanese but we are stumbling stumbling through it thanks to the very good instructional photos.

Our supplies:
Styrofoam, La Doll air dry clay, and sanding and filing tools.

designing the dolls proportionscarefully carving the foam support
refining the parts

more refining
The BJ Doll next to one of Andrews blank fabric Kouklitas. (We are hoping they can share clothes)

with hands
hollowing the limbs and sawing the joints
refining the face
Now she is completely hollow and ready for her ball joints!

Stay tuned!

Enchanted Doll charms

2010-07-20T13:49:00.002-04:00

ED charms
Originally uploaded by biscuitbear

Check out these charms I was commissioned to design, inspired by the work of one of my favorite doll artists Marina Bychkova.
http://enchanteddoll.com

Princess Academy charater drawings

2010-07-19T15:26:00.002-04:00

Bennie

Simone
Petunia

J. David McKenney ipod case!

2010-07-16T14:34:00.004-04:00

Hey Everyone!
Check out my very own Arts Projekt ipod case available very soon at your local apple store!
Get one before they run out!

The Vamp

New Paper Doll Tester

2010-06-21T11:32:00.003-04:00

tester

Give it a try and let we know what you think!
more shoes? more jewelry? more hair? let me know!!!

Play Art Director: part 2

2010-06-08T15:30:00.004-04:00

Okay so it's time for another phase of my "Play Art Director" blog project. The drawing most responded to, in comment and via email, was Mass Passion so I'm exploring that composition further with these new watercolor sketches. It was suggested that I should maybe replace the rose with a drippy Italian ice. Now for me, a cup of Italian ice doesn't evoke the romance and eroticism that I'm looking for with this particular piece but I do love the idea of sexy, drippy, red goo....so now the flower is dripping sexy, red goo.
For the next phase I'm going to work on a more finely tuned pencil sketch, and I'm sure the composition will evolve and become more complex as I do that, but I'd LOVE to hear your thoughts on the direction it's going!
Please tell me what you think! I LIVE for feedback!
J

3 Women

2010-06-07T16:37:00.002-04:00

process sketches:

Play Art Director!

2010-05-25T09:50:00.006-04:00

My schedule has cleared up for a little bit, which leaves me some much needed time to do personal artwork. I got the chance to sit down doodle last night, just to see what sort of imagery sprung up. I did about 10-15 different watercolor drawings and one of the themes that I was most drawn to is Objectum-Sexuality.

Objectum-Sexuality is basically when someone falls romantically, sexually, physically, and emotionally in love with an inanimate object. It is very rare that someone identifies as OS and usually only happens with women.
It sounds strange but is it really that different then a teenager kissing a pillow and thinking about a boy? Or a stadium full of little girls can love a heartthrob, to the point of tears, and not feel competitive with each other?
I find the idea to be very romantic; the need to love so badly that real emotions can be projected onto something/someone without any sort of actual exchange.

When I normally work on a project for a client there are several phases of roughs, feedback, sketching, feedback, tight sketching, feedback, coloring, feedback, and then final. I did these four rough "concept" sketches and I'm interested in which ones stick out to you and why. I'm also interested in your suggestions and ideas on where I can take the idea.
These four drawings all evoke in me the "unrequited love" feeling I get from the concept of an Objectum-Sexual. I'm hoping they do the same for you.
Whichever drawing seems to be getting the most attention is one that I'll explore further.
Feel free to comment below or email me jdavidmckenney@gmail.com
looking forward to your feedback!

The Kiss (bleeding)
Satellite of Love
Mass Passion
Ladyhawke

Wigs, Wigs, Wigs

2010-05-24T11:33:00.007-04:00

In addition to my illustration work, sculpting, and doll/puppet making...I've been experimenting a lot with making Rococo wigs. My friends and I did a photo shoot with the very talented photographer Adrian Buckmaster for the next Dances of Vice Rococo dinner party on July 11th. I made all but one of the wigs shown here (I cannot take credit for the beautiful lace fronted red wig worn by Candace)
Going clockwise from the far left we have myself, my beautiful boyfriend Eric, Andrew, Jessica, and Candace. Not featured is Shien Lee, who's wig I also had no part in, but is the powerhouse behind Dances of Vice. She's quite a knockout!

Shien
Andrew
Jessica
Me and Eric

Powdered wig making process photos:

I like to start with a long wavy wig like this one (at this stage I call it "The Jerry Hall")

and then I slowly curl, sculpt, support, spray, and color the wig. Here is an early process shot.
It's easier to create a tall wig upside down.

On the far right is the same blonde wig, now colored white.

I'm not really sure where I'm going with all these wigs but they are so fun to make! I'm thinking of starting a small wig making business and selling them on the side. I've started decorating my house with them (on a beautiful stand they kind of work like a potted plant or bouquet of flowers)

It's so hard to find a good powered wig these days and I know a lot of you people out there want to be Marie Antoinette for Halloween this year.
Let me know! I'll start taking orders!

Wig and Wig-Stand making

2010-05-12T16:10:00.005-04:00

My friends and I went to a Swan Lake Masquerade Ball by Dances of Vice last weekend.
Amazingly fun

To get into the theme, I made a powdered wig for myself out of a long $20 white wig that I purchased on Fulton Street in Downtown Brooklyn, and a lot of matte acrylic spray. It turned out so well that I ended up making, or helping to make, wigs for almost everyone in the group.

Here is my dear friend Jessie and myself posing in two of the wigs that I made.

and here is the entire group shot and a video of the evening.

Rock 'n Roll eh?

Anyway I love my wig so much that I want to look at it always, like a fake plant or bouquet of flowers, so I decided to make my own wig-stand to display it. I hate the Styrofoam wig-stands you buy at the wig shops, so I 'm making one out of Water Putty.

It's an amazingly versatile material. I highly recommend it to any 3-D artist...It's cheap and you can get it at the hardware store.

I haven't been super good at documenting my process of the display stand but here are a few photos.

Day 1

Day 2

Day 3 (with little painted on lips)

I think I'm going to make her white and put a crackled paint finish on her.
She's almost perfect!
Stay tuned!

Beyoncé as Bettie Page

2010-05-07T21:38:00.002-04:00

sketch:

both created by building up layers upon layers of thinned out brown ink, then a little red ink, then black ink.

Fahsion Illustration: Alexander McQueen Fall 2010

2010-05-04T13:48:00.005-04:00

Sketch:pictured:

The entire collection can be seen here

The White Doe

2010-04-22T11:40:00.005-04:00

another fashion/fantasy illustration by J. David McKenney

clothes inspired by this look from Christian Dior Fall 2010

sketch:

It's also "sort of" a redo of this image I did a few years ago, when my style was a more graphic.
The theme and focus has shifted a bit.

Paper Doll Looks

2010-04-15T09:55:00.013-04:00

I like to make sure my doll has as many wearable and fantasy fashion looks as I can possibly fit onto the page.
Here are just a few of her many looks.

Country Bumpkin
Sexy Librarian
Pretty in Pink
Gold Amazon
Getting a bagel and a magazine on a Sunday
Queen of Chinatown
Disco Karate
It's Burrrrrr
Hungover at Brunch
I'm only going to the party because I want the gift bag
and Luau

Please be inspired and make many many more!!

THE J. DAVID McKENNEY PAPER DOLL

PAPER DOLLS!!!

2010-04-14T16:32:00.002-04:00

I updated my paper doll!

Brand new looks and the clothes now "snap" into place!

check it out!

http://jdavidmckenney.com/paperdoll.html

Black Doll Head

2010-04-13T10:34:00.001-04:00

Striped Ribbon

2010-04-06T17:42:00.004-04:00

I did another drawing today because I discovered this week that I LOVE working in ink washes and speedball pens!
I should be cleaning for our house guest but I just couldn't help myself. I'm obsessed

detail shot:

I based my drawing on this rough sketch I had hanging in the window on 42nd street last year.

Peace

2010-04-04T14:18:00.007-04:00

Here is my third and last painting for my tutormill class.
The title is Peace

detail shot:

It's a fashion illustration so the dresses are "inspired by" these dresses from Comme Des Garcons Fall 2010 collection.

and the shoes are by Rick Owens
FYI:I didn't do this on purpose but it's funny that the models hair and makeup is reminiscent of the girls in my painting, a total coincidence.

I'm so sad the class is over this week! It's been so amazing having Marcos' and Yuko's help as I work out my compositions and concepts. I really learned a lot and I HIGHLY recommend tutormill classes to any illustrator looking to bump up their portfolio.
I actually never studied illustration in college so it's been really helpful having some outside help refining my techniques.

here are some of my process sketches:

Fashion Sketches

2010-03-30T12:16:00.002-04:00

Happy Anniversary Mimi!

2010-03-26T17:33:00.003-04:00

One of my Mariah drawings is on her site:
www.mariahcarey.com

halfway down on the right

The Battle

2010-03-24T12:49:00.009-04:00

Here is my second illustration from my tutor mill class.

detail shot:

Here are two process sketches: (although the focus and composition went through a lot of big jumps)
special thanks to my wonderful teachers Marcos Chin, Yuko Shimizu, and my good friend Andrew Yang for helping me flush this one all the way out.

Casting Doll Heads with Andrew Yang

2010-03-20T11:53:00.012-04:00

Well hello there!
My good friend Andrew Yang and I are making dolls together.
After almost 2 months of sculpting and refining we have finally finished the heads.

Here is how we cast those heads:

First we hot glued the heads to a base board.
(My head is on the left, Andrew's is on the right)

Then we covered our heads in goo, waited, put on more goo, waited, put on more goo....and so on.
The whole process of gooping took full 2 days.

created a "cut seam"

We made an fiberglass shell for our mold to sit in.and cast our heads in resin!
Quickly threw on a little paint!
and some wigs.....and it's a photoshoot
Pretty Lady
Sexy Gibson Girl

Our new resin heads with their original sculpy mothers.

Sisters!
We still have quite a bit of refining to do but the molds turned out perfectly! Stay tuned for more dolls from J. David McKenney and Andrew Yang!!

Black Paper Doodle

2010-03-17T10:11:00.002-04:00

Doodle-A-Day w/ Speedball Pen (March 16, 2010)/

2010-03-16T15:17:00.005-04:00

Today's doodle took WAY too long because I'm trying how to learn to use a speedball pen:

They are very temperamental but I like the quirky lines they create. I'm not super fast with them yet but I think it'll come with practice.

I did end up really liking my drawing though. I liked it so much in fact, I made it into a beach bag!

check it out:
http://www.zazzle.com/j_david_mckenney_beach_bag-149201841870236375

Doodle-A-Day (March 15, 2010)

2010-03-15T13:55:00.003-04:00

Fashion Drawing

Doodle-A-Day (March 14, 2010)

2010-03-14T19:51:00.002-04:00

Doodle-A-Day (March 11, 2010)

2010-03-11T12:54:00.002-05:00

Jesus of McCarren Park

2010-03-10T17:56:00.003-05:00

I'm taking an online class called Power of Idea on tutormill.com, taught by two of my favorite illustrators Marcos Chin (http://www.marcoschin.com) and Yuko Shimizu (http://www.yukoart.com/) this month.

It's one of the best whim decisions I've made in a while. I'm really loving the class format and Marcos and Yuko have been amazingly helpful in encouraging me expand my portfolio out of my comfort zone.

So anyway, I finished the first assignment today, and here it is. I'm not going to get too into the concept because I'm hoping the illustration speaks for itself. The assignment went from the word Utopia and ended with this image called:
Jesus of McCarren Park

process sketches:

Doodle-A-Day (March 10, 2010)

2010-03-10T10:25:00.002-05:00

Doodle-A-Day (March 9, 2010) (?/?/2003)

2010-03-09T12:14:00.006-05:00

Today we have a vintage doodle I found in an old sketch book of mine from 2003.

I like her face.

fyi: I didn't draw the card above. It's from my cousin and I had stuck it in the book with photo corners.
I used to be so good at scrap-booking.

Doodle-A-Day (March 8, 2010)

2010-03-08T08:38:00.000-05:00

J. David McKenney blog

New Work: Mermaids

Runway Looks: Christian Dior Spring 2012 Couture Collection

sketches:

The Tempest

More Personal Work

Personal Work

I have an Announcement!

Factory Girls

Dance Drawings

Dances of Vice: The Moonlight Circus Poster

My first Mermaid Ball-Jointed Doll is now available on ebay!

Hot Wheels: shoes from the Prada Spring/Summer 2012 sho

Princess Prep Fashion Contest Results!

Little 2" Beauty Cameos

Fashion Week!

Fashion Illustraton: Prada Baroque Sunglasses

Influence: Olive Oyl and Popeye

Doodle Series: Mermaid Hats With Large Hat Pins

Creating LoveChilde

Portrait of Amber Ray

Live Fashion Illustrations with Tommy Hottpants

Live Fashion Illustrations with Darian Darling

New Work: Moonstruck

Life in plastic, it's fantastic!

Sketches From The Alexander McQueen Exhibit At Metropolitan Museum Of Art.

J. David McKenney's Zodiac Girls are now available on T-Shirts!

Portrait of Darian Darling

OLD DRAWINGS FROM MY OLD SKETCHBOOKS 1999-2006

Eighties Glamor Pinball

The Paper Doll Fashion Design Contest WINNER is..........

Patrick Nagel inspried images

I LOVE Patrick Nagel!These are not a literal interpretation of course, just an homage.

La Mer- a new crest design

My "Drawn This Way" entries

Paper Doll Fashion Design Contest!!!!

Portrait of Jane Forth

The Witch

The Witch: black ink, yellow ink, red ink, and white ink on watercolor paper, 18"x24"

Blown Away!

Portrait of Shien Lee

Jessie in Boots

Showgirl in McQueen

Zodiac Girls *Cancer*

Gaga the Gray

Blow

Zodiac Girls *Taurus*

Zodiac Girls *Aries*

Zodiac Girls *Pisces*

Zodiac Girls *Aquarius*

Zodiac Girls *Capricorn*

Zodiac Girls *Scorpio*

Zodiac Girls *Libra*

Debbie's Flower

Airplane sketches

Josh and Andrew's Ball Jointed Doll: part 3

Strawberry J-Girl

Fashion Illustration

Black, White, and Red Fashion Illustration

Digital Color Tweaking

The Sea

The 3 winners of the J. David McKenney ipod case are......

Last Day of the Rococo Wig Design, iPod Cover Contest!!!

Tomorrow's the day! Send me your wig design submissions!

jdavidmckenney@gmail.com

3 days left to enter my ipod case competition!

What is J-Girl?

Josh and Andrew's Ball Jointed Doll: part 2

Blood Roses

Contest: Design a Rococo wig and win my iPod case!

iPod cover contest?

The Mermaid

Lollipop Bling augmented reality demo

Josh and Andrew's Ball Jointed Doll: part 1

Enchanted Doll charms

Princess Academy charater drawings

J. David McKenney ipod case!

New Paper Doll Tester

Play Art Director: part 2

3 Women

I LOVE Patrick Nagel!
These are not a literal interpretation of course, just an homage.

Zodiac Girls Cancer

Zodiac Girls Taurus

Zodiac Girls Aries

Zodiac Girls Pisces

Zodiac Girls Aquarius

Zodiac Girls Capricorn

Zodiac Girls Scorpio

Zodiac Girls Libra

I updated my paper doll!

Brand new looks and the clothes now "snap" into place!

check it out!

http://jdavidmckenney.com/paperdoll.html

One of my Mariah drawings is on her site:
www.mariahcarey.com

halfway down on the right