the art of carly monardo

Commission Update

2009-08-10T07:32:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! Just a quick line to tell you I'm still accepting commissions!

I thought I would share a couple of the drawings that already went out:

Hope you like them! :)

It's That (McNinja) Time Again!

2009-07-08T20:11:00.000-07:00

Yes, friends, it's here: the new and exciting third volume of The Adventures of Dr. McNinja! I was happy to repeat my duties as cover artist for the good doctor.

We did a lot of research before I started illustrating the cover this time, so we had a really clear idea of what we wanted. Basically, the cover is a recreation of two old movie posters:

We loved the composition of "Plan 9 From Outer Space", but preferred the toxic, fiery color palette of "First Spaceship On Venus". So we decided to combine these two elements into a new, more ninja-like design!

Dr. McNinja in the space helmet was a given:

But then we also had to decide which scenes from the book we wanted to showcase. We knew we had to feature the Ben Franklin Thriller routine:

(Incidentally, I don't think Ben ever looked better!)

Finally, we wanted to reference the training sequence with Gordito and Dark Smoke Puncher:

(Fun fact: I posed for both Gordito and DSP! I think I've found an alternative career posing as prepubescent/adolescent boys.)

All of these elements together made for a pretty cool front cover! After that, we just needed to design the back. I loved the colored squares on the bottom of the "'Venus" poster; apart from the aesthetics, I thought the captions underneath struck the perfect chord. I had a lot of fun writing the new ones for this book!

Last, but not least, title design was courtesy of George Baier IV, who also helped layout the interior of the book!

Put it all together, and what do you get?

Violà!

The book is up for pre-order right now at Topatoco.com! The pre-order comes with all sorts of goodies! Did I mention it's the biggest volume of Dr. McNinja yet? What are you waiting for? ;)

Darkstalkers

2009-07-03T07:50:00.000-07:00

I keep forgetting to post this! A while ago I tried to submit for Udon's Darkstalker book; I never really finished the image the way I wanted to, but I submitted it anyway (it didn't make it in, not surprisingly). I'm still fairly pleased with how the characters came out, though, so I thought I'd share them!

Wonder(mark)ful!

2009-06-26T12:38:00.001-07:00

I have a guest strip up today at Wondermark! Malki(!) is a great friend and considerate house guest. He's also something of a mad genius, so when he asks you to do something I find it's in your best interests to buck up and do it! I had a lot of fun with this, though it's a bit tinier than I originally wanted; I'll probably be posting a higher resolution version of it here soon!

Here it is!

Help Carly & Chris Get Hitched!

2009-06-13T10:05:00.000-07:00

As some of you may know, Chris and I are engaged! We'd like to get married next July, but money is very tight, and I'm currently unemployed. So I am turning to you, dear, sweet Internet, with the Help Carly & Chris Get Hitched Commission Drive!

Here's how it goes down:

I'll basically be following Dean Trippe's model for commissions, (with a few changes):

I will have 10 slots for orders, which will reopen at the beginning of each month.
I will only be accepting Paypal payments. (carly[dot]monardo[at]gmail[dot]com)

Here's what you can get!
$20 for an inked character drawing on bristol. ($8 for each additional character)
$100 for an inked character drawing on bristol plus full color print on stock - great for framing! ($18 for each additional character)

If you have something else in mind, but aren't sure it's applicable, just ask! We can definitely talk it over :)

If you don't have money, but want to help by spreading the word, that's great, too! Every little bit helps!

Thanks!

The Piece!

2009-06-10T13:09:00.000-07:00

It just occurred to me that I never posted a picture of the piece I did for New Moon! How silly!!

Here it is! (Sans frame)

And here's a lovely shot of it on the wall, next to Scott C.'s Dog Amongst Dogs, taken by Steve Talkowski (AKA Sketchbot).

The piece is still available on the myplasticheart website (cough, cough!), though I'm not sure for how long. Thanks again to John Wong, who curated the show, and to Kano for suggesting me!

Qwantz!

2009-06-08T08:24:00.000-07:00

I have a guest comic up at Dinosaur Comics today! When a fellow like Ryan North asks you for a favor, you don't even think about it. You just immediately say, "yes" and then silently expect compensation. (I have yet to receive any remuneration).

An Update!

2009-04-02T20:33:00.000-07:00

Guys, I am in ANOTHER show! I can basically not believe my good fortune, but there you have it.

I am really excited to be included with such talented artists, and I hope the whole internet comes to Myplasticheart Gallery in NYC on Friday, April 10th to ~~buy my piece~~ enjoy the opening!!

This, in combination with other projects I have been working on, is the reason I haven't been updating. I'm not allowed to show my piece online until after the opening, which is why you should all come to see it!!

I'll also be starting on a new Dr. McNinja book cover soon, so keep your eyes peeled!

2008-12-02T06:15:00.001-08:00

THIS FRIDAY!

for more information please visit

http://www.bunnycutlet.com/2A4TV

Opens Friday December 5th, 6pm at Erebuni in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

I hain't dead!

2008-11-12T06:27:00.000-08:00

Hey, guys! Did I mention that I'm going to be in my very first gallery show? And that I'll be joined by some of the coolest people in the animation industry? It's called Too Art For TV and it's curated by Liz Artinian. I'll be contributing a portrait to the show. I'm really excited! I'll post more info once the promotional cards are available, but in the mean time, here's a sneak peak.

UPDATE:
Check out the website for details!

There goes another t-shirt!

2008-10-14T09:21:00.001-07:00

You know the story, friends! You can go here to vote! The previous design is still up for voting as well :)

Childhood Farewell

2008-10-09T10:04:00.000-07:00

Hello, friends! I have a new t-shirt design up for voting at Design By Humans! Please show your support and vote! :)

(http://www.designbyhumans.com/vote/detail/31801)

Polar Bears For Change

2008-09-16T17:20:00.000-07:00

EDIT: It's come to my attention that some people think I drew this little beaut. I wish I did! But my friend Zack is the genius behind the polar bear ;) Check out more of his stuff at zackgiallongo.com!

I try not to get political on my blog for the most part, but I think we can all agree that this upcoming election is an important one. My friend Zack is making stickers, and I told him I would spread the word. They're cute and they support polar bears! A percentage of the proceeds go to the Obama/Biden campaign. Go here for more information.

Vampirella: ReVamp!

2008-08-28T11:55:00.000-07:00

My entry for Project Rooftop's latest, fabulous contest: Vampirella ReVamp!

A lot of people kind of assume that Vampi is just some T&A queen, because...well...look at her! But there's a more to her than her sexuality. Did you know that she's a Vampire ALIEN? From outer SPACE? And that she hunts vampires here on Earth? I wanted to reflect her outer-space origins and give her kind of a fun, Barbarella look; still sexy, but more believable as a hunter.

I also have a nakeder variant. I am honestly torn, here, between staying true to the character and staying true to my own standards. Vampirella's been 3/4 naked for so long...maybe she's just one of those characters that's just SUPPOSED to be naked? I don't know.

Magnetic Cowboy

2008-08-15T20:18:00.000-07:00

I haven't painted a portrait in what feels like a very long time! (In fact I think the last time I did so for recreational purposes was the Thom Yorke portrait...and that was almost a year ago!)

This fellow here is Evan Johansen, aka Magnet, a Norwegian musician. I exaggerated his eyes a lot, making him appear somewhat wall-eyed; not out of any viciousness you understand. Actually I was thinking a lot about white rabbits when I painted him, how they have those far-set, red eyes. For some reason it made sense at the time.

Under da sea

2008-07-30T20:16:00.000-07:00

A design for a fish-type person!

UPDATE
The David Malki/Carly Monardo "Futurism" print that had everyone talking at Comic Con is now available for sale at the Wondermark website!

(Did we mention Wil Wheaton bought one? GO!)

Megaman!

2008-07-26T16:12:00.000-07:00

Almost forgot to post this! This is a Megaman pinup that the super-talented Zack Giallongo drew and asked me to paint. I had a lot of fun with this one :)

Retro Futurism!

2008-07-26T15:34:00.001-07:00

A couple of months ago, back around MoCCA, a fascinating gent named David Malki(!) approached me about painting a poster for him. He had visions of cigar-shaped rockets and chaps in fedoras and a city of lights and monorails! It was my pleasure to bring those visions to life :) Here are the preliminary sketches and studies...

And here is the finished product! It's currently making the rounds at San Diego Comic Con as a limited run print, but at some point in the not too distint future (ha!) it will be a poster available for sale on the internet :) I will, of course, be letting you fine folks know just as soon as that happens.

Concept, text, and typography by David Malki, sketch, design, and painting by me!

http://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifThe Mighty Monarch!

2008-07-26T15:17:00.000-07:00

I realize I haven't posted any of my Venture Bros. work since...ever? 99% of what I do is props and characters, but on Season 3 I had the opportunity to assist with backgrounds and, occasionally, even paint one of my own! Here are two Monarch interiors I painted for "Home Is Where The Hate Is" (alternatively "My Dinner With Hatred")!

EDIT: I almost forgot to mention the amazing background design team responsible for the original designs here! George Fort is the fearless leader, working with Ray Feldman, Denny Fincke, and Chris Palesty. (Guys, if you have blogs let me know so I can link them!)

And of course I am supervised by the crazy talented Liz Artinian and joined by the amazing Chris Fisher and Deo Pangandoyon (who never ever told me his last name so I had to go looking it up on Google. Thanks, Deo!)

Monarch's Sick Bay

Monarch Corridor

(this one looks like it was stretched and skewed a bit).

Hopefully I can dig up some more to post later on :)

May I direct your attention...?

2008-07-26T10:35:00.000-07:00

To my new blog/project? It's called Whirring Blender Weekly Design Challenge! Each week I take 2 or 3 designs and attempt to redesign them in another artist or property's style! This week kicked off with my challenge to take two Disney princesses and redesign them after the style of Hyung-tae Kim! Check it out!

Overcompensating for something

2008-07-22T07:15:00.000-07:00

I have a guest comic at Overcompensating today! And it's ANIMATED!!

85% true

2008-07-07T16:28:00.000-07:00

Baby Dog

2008-07-02T15:23:00.001-07:00

This is an illustration I did for a project that sadly never got off the ground. I still had fun with the drawing!

It's here!!

2008-07-02T07:01:00.000-07:00

Fat Chunk Volume One: Robots is here!!

Please help spread the word about this great anthology! Edited by Jamie Smart (http://www.bohdate.com/) and published by Slave Labor Graphics, Fat Chunk features 80 artists including moi!

The Diamond order code is MAR083402. Please tell your local comic shop to stock our sweet little comic baby :)

Twins!

2008-06-19T06:49:00.000-07:00

Another quick commission, for kind Canadian fan Peter Trinh!