Office Space

I have an office! Well, I share it and will have it only temporarily... You'd think that being in an office I'd have more space. Not the case in my situation. I miss my cube - more space and I didn't have to share it with anyone. Hahaha! But I do like that I can simply close my door if I need privacy. I especially like going in on weekends now cuz I can do my own thing and not worry about anyone bugging me. I don't get as many visitors now either since I don't want to disturb my director. Yes, that's him in the pic... Don Judge, everyone! Or should I say, Bossman?!

The Scariest Thing on Halloween...

Me and my big fat face staring at everyone in the art gallery/entrance to the garage.

But I did receive a lot of compliments. This picture of a picture doesn't do it justice with the reflection. Taken by the talented Andrew Overtoom, this photo is one of many that he put up... photos taken throughout his lifetime as a professional photographer. And there are many good ones (not just mine) that are up at the studio... one week left! You better hurry! Oh, and if you want to purchase this ginormous piece, it's yours for $300!

Now everyone at the studio knows me, more than they'd like, probably!

:)

Good Timing?

As many of you already know, I started as a Timer full-time three weeks ago. It's going great so far. I feel so privileged and lucky to be learning from one of the best in the industry. It's a give and take relationship. I make him look good, he protects me and teaches me something that will guarantee job security so long as there are traditionally animated TV shows.

What does this mean as far as my painting? Well, I still have my paints and supplies, and I can paint whatever I want; I just won't be painting anything commercially, at least for a while. I'm hoping that I can pick up some freelance color jobs, but jobs are kind of scarce now with the economy tumbling down the well. Hopefully I will be employed for a long time so I can focus my free time to the things I love: spending time with loved ones, writing, traveling, eating.

Freelance Cleanup and Color

I started to prove myself useful by freelancing while I was a production assistant. A lot of times people pigeon-hole you into one category. But I want chocolate AND vanilla. And even strawberry a lot of the time. Why can't I be a Neopolitan?

Let me tell you a story...

About my storybook position.

Here is the process:


Here are some samples:


* Images copyright Nickelodeon/Harringtoons *

Patterns

I helped to design some patterns for Nick Creative Resources in New York. Here are a few designs I did but I don't think any of them were used. As you can see, I took the design features of the dragon kite and came up with these patterns:



* Images copyright Nickelodeon/Harringtoons *

New style

This fascination with skinny long-leggeds has grown on me as I find myself doodling that style. I don't know if it was my preoccupation of squishing daddy-long-legs as a kid, or hoping that one day I would be a long-legged so I could be a supermodel (which, of course, never happened), but somewhere I thought that long lanky figures are fun to draw.





Tiny torsos... long skinny legs...

I can see why my favorite animal is the giraffe.

Speaking of Graphic Design...

My friend's parents had a coffee shop/Chinese restaurant next to a bowling alley. They were in desperate need to give their shoppe a new look. I offered to help, as it would give me experience working with a company, as well as force me to work on my design skills. This was done 3 years ago.

Menus, logo, and business cards.


And here is a business card/logo I did for a company I wanted to start. Didn't go anywhere, but it was a nice thought.

Fairy Tale Ad Campaigns

I've loved fairy tales growing up. So once I got to college I started taking some Graphic Design classes. Here is my first attempt using Photoshop:


Pizza Company - Goldilocks and the 3 Bears



Fraud Prevention - Cinderella



Airlines Company - Peter Pan

I had 2 more I was working on that never fully made it:

1. Diamond Jeweler - Snow White
2. Beauty Care Products - Sleeping Beauty

Bacon and Cheese

Just some doodles I did quickly... caricaturing me (as cheese) and Deane (as bacon).

Some Color Work for the Hour Special Show

I did the COLOR ONLY for these ones:

I'm on TV!

We recently screened the first episode for which I had done both cleanup and color: Episode 115 - "Rain or Shine." This episode is special to me in that I have credits as:

1.) Research Assistant
2.) Production Assistant
3.) Background Cleanup/Color

Also, as many of you remember from even my youth: I love rainbows! And in this episode, the sun has a special surprise for Kai-lan and her friends...

Check it out on Nick Jr. - weekdays at 11:00am.

*Note: Copyright Nick Jr./Nickelodeon

Cleaning Up...

Not only have I been cleaning up my house, but I've also been cleaning up artwork for some shows. Here are some examples:



"Dora the Explorer" and "Go Diego Go!"


Mighty Bee


*Note: All materials of this post copyright Nickelodeon and/or Nick Jr. *

May 9th - Nick University Art Show Gallery Opening

This piece is titled "Orchids in the Spring." Mind you there is only one orchid, I know. And the reason being is that I framed the backup version. The one I had originally intended to put up - the one with the plural "orchids" (2) - did not fit the frame I bought for the show. I ended up giving that piece to a friend and then framed this one instead. Hopefully this weeds out any confusion on your part.

A lot of fellow employees/classmates displayed their work in the art gallery last Friday. It was the most crowded gallery ever. They served a lot of kid-friendly treats like mini-cheeseburgers, chicken strips, mac and cheese, and root beer floats. The usual was also there: veggie, fruit, and cheese plates accompanied with beer.

Thank you to all those who came! If you wanted to and didn't have a chance, it will remain on the walls until the end of the month.

Nickelodeon Art Gallery

This Friday is the Nick University Art Gallery, where all of us who have taken art or craft classes have the opportunity to put out work up. Stop by if you can make it. There will be free food and drinks, and an opportunity to come inside the orange gates and into the playground we refer to as our working space.

I will post my piece soon. (The sister of the bamboo piece.)

My First Painting Sold!

So Nick offers classes of various sorts in what they call "Nickelodeon University." One of these classes was Chinese Brush Painting, which I took in the Fall of 2007. Fortunately it was a one-day class (it's tough to commit to a class more than two weeks, but at least they're economical and fun.) We started with the masculine "bamboo" painting, then moved to the feminine "orchids." Painting in this style soothed me from a stressful day. I was immediately sold on this medium and wanted to go out and spend all my money on supplies so I could paint more. What's so great about this is that it's like poetry. It's emoting through the brush versus the pen. So zen!

Anyway, the next day I tell my art director about the class. I was quite proud of my orchid and since most people at the studio hadn't taken me as an artist at the time, they humored me. And although I favored the orchid, one of my artist friends took a liking to the bamboo painting instead. First he asked for a photo copy. I was caught off guard, wondering why he'd want it. (This was my first brush painting ever and I was just warming up with this piece.) But after lunch, he asked me how much I would sell it for. He said to be reasonable. Was $5 reasonable? I wondered. He said he'd buy it for $100! and asked for my signature and a receipt. SOLD!

... It's since inspired me to paint more of these. Maybe do a whole show in this style. Who knows?

As an intern... continued

I went around to other productions at Nickelodeon and asked several artists to give me artwork with which I could practice my skills. To tell you the truth, these tests forced me to learn how to paint digitally, as well as cleanup rough sketches.

These are a few digitally painted BGs from cartoon called "Johnny Test" which aired on Kids WB for a season or so. These were my first BGs I've painted in Adobe Photoshop (CS2). My portfolio teacher from Woodbury suggested I do some light studies with these. So not only did I practice with a variety of fun photoshop brushes, but I learned how important it was that the color modes for both the monitor and the print job be in sync. Too technical for my liking.



Study of day and night for an Interior setting.



Study of day and dusk for an Exterior setting.


Study of the four seasons on one Exterior setting.

As an intern...

My first internship was at Nickelodeon, on a production called the "X's." It was a cool-looking show with a lot of very talented artists, many with whom I still keep in contact. Here are just a couple of the BGs I used as practice. The BG style was very monochromatic, much like Ragnar's style. These two were my first BGs I ever cleaned up using Adobe Illustrator (CS2). Now that I look at these, I notice where I can improve. But I guess it just shows how important practice is.

Inspiration

While a lot of people back in school were inspired by Ragnar, I was inspired one day by Michel Gagne (I have a link on the side to his page.) Gagne had released a book called Insanely Twisted Rabbits, which I had picked up in college one day. Because I wanted to practice my design skills and amp up my Illustrator skills, I produced these two twisted monsters.

Eyes Meet Tongue. Tongue Meet Eyes.



While in junior high and high school, besides all the Lisa Frank stickers I collected, I was also a huge fan of Mary Engelbreit. Here's something I made for my mom one year for Mother's Day:



Then, in college, I took another Art Appreciation Class, this time learning about Renaissance to Modern Artwork. So many pieces on the Maesta that I had to do one of my own. This one I also gave to my mother on Mother's Day one year.

Pumpkin Patch

Since I love watercolors and I love digital painting, here is a comparison between the two. I designed and painted these years ago... back in college. The assignment was to create a design for a napkin.

I guess I veered away from the traditional and into the digital because there is just more of a demand for painting in Photoshop or Illustrator nowadays. However, I feel like I need to learn about painting in Maya because so many jobs now are turning CG. But for now, the Creative Suite still overrides the traditional ways.

Another practice session

Yet another one I did in my college years. Oliver did the line art because he was practicing bg layout. He gave it to me to color for him. This one was meant as another study of the seasons: Snowy vs. Sunny.

I only finished the snowy version.

My First Pitch

Back during my internship years, I met a lot of fellow artists who were pitching to Frederator. They're the ones who produce the Oh Yeah! cartoons, now Random cartoons. Such toons that got famous from their short cartoons were Fairly Oddparents, Teenage Robot, Chalkzone, and now Fanboy. Yes, it was at this time I worked with Eric Robles on the X's. He was a character designer at the time. He was pitching Fanboy, and just seeing his artwork and hearing his premise inspired me to pitch my own. So I teamed up with Oliver and pitched a story called "My Pet Peeve." I pitched it two times, both pretty much completely different stories, but keeping the same style and characters. Oliver did such an awesome job with the pitch boards. Maybe it was my delivery that needed work. But it was my first time, I was still a student and didn't know much professionally, so it was a great, if daunting, experience. You know how on Mario Party they have the computer difficulty level as being easy, medium, hard, and brutal? Well, I think they were on Brutal-mode.

Anyway, here is a sample of the artwork. I should include some character designs Oliver did. This is just the exterior of Pauline's house, day. Oliver did the black and white sketch. I cleaned it up and colored it.

Maybe I'll return to this one day.

My Passion

For those of you who know me, you know that I've wanted to write. Since I was a kid I've dreamed of writing and illustrating my own children's book. In junior high and high school I started writing a story called "Visona." It ended up turning into a series. I've written the first drafts for the first 3 of 7 YA novels. I've envisioned a fantasy-type world, and a friend of mine from college helped me come up with a few character designs. Here are a few that I've worked on throughout the years.


The protagonist. (My first attempt at coloring in photoshop - 1999.)


Her guardian angels. (My first attempt at coloring in illustrator - 2004.)




Queen of Fairy Queendom - Flioran (2 Versions)


The Equine Family - Defenders of the Fountain of Youth

My first watercolor painting

I painted this back in high school when I was a junior. It was the first watercolor class I'd ever taken, and I fell in love with the medium. It's beautiful if you apply it right, but it can also be unforgiving, which there are a couple areas where my teacher had to help me save the piece. I love fruit!

Really really old... like high school old....

As you can tell, much of my inspiration came from anime and video games. And the occasional fantasy novel through which I had been perusing. I was in junior high when I had this idea for a fantasy novel of my own. So I created a girl much like me in many respects, and I named her Rachel. (Can you see the similarities already?) Rachel travels to an unknown land called Visona, and there she encounters friends she never dreamed she'd ever have. She goes on adventures with them, and in so doing discovers herself and her true gift. Yes, very typical premise to many in the fantasy genre.

Here are some images from my beloved story:

1. Rachel solo
2. Woodblock Print

3. Collage - Rachel vs. Relic

4. Relic Face
5. CD cover

As far as the book series goes... I've completed the first three, though I revised the first one three times thereafter, and then I outlined the last four. I feel it will always be my work in progress, much like the life I lead.

* Note: "Visona" images and story copyright Rochelle Perry *

Pigment of the Imagination

Welcome to my site. It's been a long time in the works - at least in my brain - and I can now finally say I did it. Not only is this a way to display my work (so I can keep getting jobs in the industry) but it also motivates to create at least one new piece a week.

For those who I haven't spoken to in a while, I am now officially working as an artist full time at Nickelodeon. It's been a long time coming, with a few freelance gigs here and there, so I am super excited to share the good news with you. I have gone through many ups and downs since living on my own and "growing up," but it's good to finally say things are looking up. I feel super grateful for all the wonderful things I have been blessed with.

This site is dedicated to displaying all sorts of pigments of my imagination. I like that we have been blessed with a world of color, and I love being able to color between the lines for a living.

If you have any artwork you would like me to cleanup and/or color, please let me know, as I am trying to stretch my abilities and work in as many styles as possible.

Thanks for the support!
- ROchelle