First Look: Dave Dorman Original Wizard of Oz Art Premieres This Weekend at VISIONS OF OZ Show in L.A.

LOS ANGELES, CA—March 1, 2013— Dave Dorman’s “Dorothy Daydreams” original painting will be included in the upcoming Creature Features Visions of Oz gallery art show being held at the Heritage Square Museum in Los Angeles, California from March 3 – 31. Dorman’s painting, rendered traditionally in oil and acrylic mediums, is a visual homage to the L. Frank Baum literary classic Oz books.

Said Dorman, “It was an honor to be invited to participate in this tribute. For Dorothy Daydreams, I returned to the spirit of L. Frank Baum’s young protagonist, capturing some of her desire to escape the harsh and desolate reality of her Kansas dustbowl farm for the fantasy of a much more colorful, imaginary world.” Dorman will be showing the art progressives from pencil illustration to final painting this weekend on this blog.

Dave Dorman’s “Dorothy Daydreams” Painting. Oil and acrylic on canvas. 24″ x 36.”

Creature Features curated this multimedia exhibit, showcasing more than 100 works from a diverse group of artists. The collection includes illustrations, paintings, sculptures and full-sized recreations of favorite Oz characters. Also included in the exhibit will be historical memorabilia such as rare editions of the original L. Frank Baum books, props, concepts and artwork from various Oz-themed film & TV projects and many more surprises.

Museum tours are $10; OZ exhibit-only admittance is $5. For more information, visit CreatureFeatures.com/VisionsofOz or call (323) 225-2700. Heritage Square Museum is located at 3800 Homer Street, Los Angeles. The museum’s website is http://heritagesquare.org.

About Dave Dorman

Eisner, Inkpot and Bram Stoker Award-winning illustrator, writer and creator Dave Dorman was voted the #1 Star Wars Artist of All Time by fans of the property worldwide, and his art book Star Wars: The Art of Dave Dorman was an international bestseller. His landmark, critically acclaimed graphic novel, Aliens: Tribes, won him an Eisner and Bram Stoker Award as well as changing the way the publishing ad entertainment industries viewed the medium. Dorman’s own critically acclaimed Intellectual Property,  The Wasted Lands—the Sergio Leone-meets-motorcycle western epic tale of good vs. evil in a dystopian society recovering from “the Iron Wars”–continued to raise the bar in the graphic novel publishing arena and set a new standard. Another Dorman I.P., Dead Heat, is the Bram Stoker Award-winning horror anthology of his tales of the protagonist motorcycle zombie known as “Hitch.” Dorman’s autobiography, Rolling Thunder: The Art of Dave Dorman (IDW Publishing/Desperado Publishing) encompasses an estimated one-third of his illustrious art career, which includes licensed works of such classic properties as G.I. Joe, Indiana Jones, Predator, Robotech, Batman, Captain America, Spiderman, Judge Dredd, Transformers, Green Lantern, Green Hornet, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica, Magic: The Gathering, Dungeons & Dragons, World of Warcraft and many more. Corporate clients include 20th Century Fox, Rhythm & Hues, Hasbro, Wizards of the Coast, Marvel, DC, Dark Horse, Image, IDW, Upper Deck, Topps, FASA Corp., and many more.

Dorman is a sought-after instructor who has taught at American Academy of Art, Savannah College of Art & Design, Reverie (Massive Black/ConceptArt.org), Columbia College and The Gnomon School. His video art tutorials are available at The Gnomon Workshop. 

 

Media Contact:

Denise Dorman, Publicist

WriteBrain Media

P: 630.845.4694

E: denise@writebrainmedia.com

– # # # –

Dave Dorman’s Quick Step-By-Step of Latest Star Wars Painting

Hey Everyone,

Happy Fall. If you’re not offended by vulgar language, check out this guy’s “Gourd-geous” blog. I think my wife is going to need oxygen soon, she’s laughing so hard: http://www.mcsweeneys.net/2009/10/20nissan.html This guy may replace the spot in my wife’s heart she has reserved for David Sedaris.

Okay, here is a quick step-by-step of the Star Wars Celebration 5 painting I did called “A Slight Disturbance on the Battlefield of Hoth.” Let me know what you all think of it. By the way, I’m using paint, not crayon, as many people seem to assume.

Step One:

 

Here Is My Pencil Rendering Transferred to Illustration Board

 

Step 2:

 

See? It's PAINT, folks! Not Crayons! Dispel those nasty rumors!

 

Step 3:

 

Here I am finishing up the background layer. For you CG artists: It's like a layer in PhotoShop except it's not digital!

Step 4:

 

Eek! It's Darth Vader! He's a bad, bad man. I'm breaking the rules, baby! I'm using a black marker! I'm committing artist anarchy! Woo-hoo! I feel so FREEEEEEE. Where's the art police when you need 'em?!?

 

Step 5:

 

Darth Vader needed to be finished first to set the contrast of the piece, being so monochromatic in black & white. Now I can finish the rest. Cue in music: Dum-dum-dum, Dum-da-dum, Dum-da-dummmmmmm

 

 

Step 6:

 

I start working more traditionally now, from the background forward. You'll see more detail in the ships and some of the characters behind Darth Vader being finished.

 

Final Outcome:

 

And now, like magic, it's FINITO! Oh, and see the red stripes on Luke Skywalker's burning snow speeder? That's the work of the "Next Gen Dorman" (my son Jack) adding to his daddy's painting.

 

And here’s the cute anecdote that goes along with this painting:

So my son Jack likes hanging out in my studio, practicing his light saber moves that he’s learned from LEGO STAR WARS and THE CLONE WARS cartoon. I work on the other side of the studio, and in the middle, we have a bathroom.

I took a break from painting, grabbed a book and headed into the “porcelain library.” I kept the door open to keep an eye on Jack. All of the sudden, I looked up to see Jack running past the door, making a beeline for my drawing table. Thirty seconds pass and Jack appeared in the doorway holding a brush saying, “I’m going to go paint on your painting, Daddy.” I laughed and said “Okay,” thinking I was just going along with his little joke. Another minute passed, and Jack appeared at the door again with the brush, laughing, saying, “I’m painting on your painting, Daddy!” Again, I laughed and said, “Okay, Jack…” I continue reading for a few more minutes and then Jack popped in again. “I’m still painting on your painting, Daddy!” and I said with just a hint of a warning, “You’d better not be…” and he just laughed and declared “I am! I am!” I replied in an ominous tone, “Okay…” So I finished reading and I walked into the studio.

Cue the great reveal music here: Nothing surprised me more than actually seeing Jack sitting at my drawing table, brush in hand, happily painting away… in red paint, no less! After the cartoon scenario of the steam coming out of my ears and my eyes popping out of my head, I reigned in my temper and pulled the chair away from the drawing table to study the damage. Jack looked up at me innocently, with nothing but love and excitement and said, “I wanted to finish the red line for you, Daddy!” I looked at it and understood that the definition of “line” for a 5-year-old is much different than it is for me. I smiled and took the brush out of his hand, explaining ever-so-gently, “Daddy’s art is Daddy’s art. Jack’s art is Jack’s art. No more touching Daddy’s art.” He smiled and said “Okay,” grabbed his light sabers and went back to practicing his moves. The moral to the story is, when your son tells you three times he’s breaking the rules, believe him!” And now you know the truth. If you own this limited edition print, you own a historic piece of Jack Dorman’s worldwide art premiere as well.

Tomorrow I will post the iconic Batman painting I did that is now up for sale from my private collection. It’s hard to give up, but I am working hard to raise the money to take some time off of full-time commercial work and finish my passion project, aka Project 52. FYI, 50% of the profits for books and print sales from Project 52 will go to USACares.org, and 50% will go to 501st founder Albin Johnson’s favorite charity, the  “Make a Wish Foundation,” in honor of his daughter Katie. Here’s a link to check it out if you want to be named in the book (for just a $5 donation) or if you want 2 lines to commemorate a fallen soldier (a $25 donation). The 501st who donate will be listed in a separate chapter of the book.  Project 52 = http://www.indiegogo.com/Project-52

As always, I thank all of you for reading.

Dave

Some Dave Dorman “Gone-to-the-Dogs” Art…and My Upcoming Appearances

Dear Friends,

I just came across these pieces & am posting them, just because.

Dave Dorman's Alien-Meets-Dog

This one’s always been a fan favorite and people love to see it in person.

Here’s another:

Dave Dorman's Wasted Lands: Anna Leigh & Dogs

This piece was a published book cover and is also my character Anna Leigh, from The Wasted Lands. BTW, if any of you are on FaceBook, would you and your friends please be so kind as to join the FaceBook page “Dave Dorman’s The Wasted Lands”?  Here’s the link:

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/group.php?gid=116672708382673

I really need to show strong fan support for my own comic book series property.

DAVE DORMAN’s UPCOMING APPEARANCES:

I wanted to let you know about my September appearances in case any of you can join me. Both will be in Northern Illinois.  On September 9-12, 2010 I will be joining the Chicagoland Entertainment Collectors Expo, and here’s a link for time & location: http://www.nonsportcardexpo.com/ It will be held at the Holiday Inn on Gary Avenue in Carol Stream, IL, which is a Chicago suburb about 45 minutes west of the city.

My 2nd appearance in September will be a book signing for my new book, ROLLING THUNDER: THE ART OF DAVE DORMAN on September 26th from 1-3 p.m. at BLICK ART SUPPLY in Wheaton, IL.  The address & phone # are as follows:

Blick Art Materials

79 Danada Square East (Northeast Corner of Butterfield Road & Naperville Road)

Wheaton, IL

Their phone # is 630.653.0569. Ask for my good friend Kevin  Sandstrom, who is the manager there.

Note: Don’t be surprised is you see some Stormtroopers on guard.

For those of you waiting on books & prints, I’m doing the sketches this weekend. I’m still finishing up my World of Warcraft project, so this is the reason for the delay. I’m always thankful for a holiday weekend – although it’s never time off for me!

Thanks for reading,

Dave.

Judge Dredd: Dave Dorman-Style

Dear Friends,

As promised, here is my oil painting of Judge Dredd, which doesn’t appear in the new book, so you will only see it here.  I did this piece in the early ’90s as a graphic novel cover. It was a lot of fun for me to do, as I’ve been a fan of the Judge Dredd series for a long time.

Judge Dredd by Dave Dorman, Cover Art from Early '90s

Now I’m going to tell an embarrassing tale on my wife. When Denise and I first started dating, my post-divorce home was pretty much bachelor pad decor, so this very painting hung in my breakfast nook. Denise, who had never even heard of Judge Dredd, glanced over at the painting one morning and said, “Why is that muscle-bound guy in front of a sign for ‘Hee Haw’?” I rolled my eyes so far into the back of my head, I feared I was permanently blinded. Once my baby blues refocused, I patiently explained, “It says ‘The Law’.,” “Oh.” was all she said in return, not even mildly embarrassed. Needless to say, Denise has had a masters degree-level schooling from me in licensed properties since that day. Now she even knows the difference between Little Nemo and Captain Nemo, and that a true representation of Captain Nemo is of an East Indian man, as it was in the really fun 2003 film “League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.” Her gaffe was very nearly a deal breaker, but we trudged ahead, and here we are today, married 7 years on August 9th and blessed with a beautiful son.

I guess for my fellow pop culture authorities, the parable is that if you date someone who is new to the geekier side of things, have enduring patience with them. If they love you, they’ll eventually find it as interesting as you do. And let’s face it, your significant other has to love it to have the high level of energy required to enjoy the convention scene.

Well, thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoy the art. Let me know, okay? I’m about to close down the survey on LinkedIn regarding whether you enjoy more doing traditional art, digital art or a combo platter of both. If you want to take the survey, you will need a LinkedIn profile (and be sure to link with me if you have one), and here’s the link: http://polls.linkedin.com/p/91557/nthen

For those who have ordered my new book directly through me, I’m finishing up World of Warcraft artwork and plan to do the personalized sketches & ship the books out at the end of this week, just so you know my schedule.

Thanks for reading,

Dave.

New eBay Items Are Up

Dear Readers,

It occurred to me that some of you may want to know when I post items on eBay, so I will start posting those links on my blog for you. I just posted a few pieces tonight, and here they are for your shopping pleasure:

TRIXIE
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=270615839571&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT
IRRADIATE Magic card
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=270615843031&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT
Unpublished Fantasy
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=270615845448&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT
AVP#4
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=270615830815&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT
AVP Captured
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=270615833689&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT
AVP Movie
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=270615836275&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT
Dorman book
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=270615850597&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT