Category: Art: Painting

June & Squirrel

Post author By Chad Frye
Post date March 3, 2014

This past Saturday night, March 1, was the opening of Moosylvania: A Group Art Show Tribute to Jay Ward (curated by Phillip Graffham) at Van Eaton Galleries in Sherman Oaks, California. Hundreds of people came to see the art by many local Los Angeles creators.

My Jay Ward Studio tribute piece focused on Rocky & Bullwinkle, but instead of “moose & squirrel” as so eloquently referred to by Boris Badenov, I painted “June & Squirrel”. My friend June Foray created the voice of Frostbite Falls resident Rocket J. Squirrel all those years ago, and continues to perform him today at the age of 96. She recently recorded him for a short cartoon that will run in front of Dreamworks’ new Mr. Peabody & Sherman movie. (June was also the original voice of villainess Natasha in the classic cartoons.)

“June & Squirrel” was created entirely in gouache with the big circles and necklace details in colored pencil.

June had asked me earlier in the week if I had a piece in the show, and I told her, “Yes, but you will have to come see what it is.” It was thrilling that she came out to the show Saturday night, and equally thrilling that she seemed pleased, and not offended, to have been portrayed in paint.

Chad Frye with the grand dame of voice actors, June Foray.

In case you are curious, perhaps you would like to see the preliminary drawing made in the planning of the painting. I usually work out my ideas in Photoshop where this was sketched and colored. Then I print it out and trace it down onto watercolor paper where it gets the full-on traditional treatment. And no, no compass was used for all those circles. They were hand painted and painstakingly outlined in freehand with a Lilac Prismacolor pencil on the final piece.

This is the rough concept of “June & Squirrel” worked out in Photoshop.

If you are in the Los Angeles area, please swing by Van Eaton Galleries to see all the art. Some amazing creations are on display until March 15 (beware the Ides of March). My favorite is a seven foot tall sculpture of Rocky & Bullwinkle carved out of a tree with a chainsaw by artist Johnny Daniels.

Also, please check out The Art of Jay Ward Productions book by Darrell Van Citters with a forward by June Foray. Darrell and June were both signing the book at the show, but you can also find this great tome on Amazon!

And Now Here’s Something You’ll REALLY Like!

Post author By Chad Frye
Post date February 26, 2014

A few months back, I was invited to create a fresh and tasty piece of art for an art show to be held at Van Eaton Galleries. The show opens this coming Saturday in Sherman Oaks, California. Naturally, I put it off until the last minute and finished my painting just this past weekend.

The show’s theme is “the Jay Ward Studio”. Ward was known for television shows such as “The Bullwinkle Show”, “Mr. Peabody & Sherman”, “George of the Jungle”, “Crusader Rabbit”, “Dudley Do-right” and many more. They even were responsible for television commercials and character designs for Capt. Crunch and Quisp cereals.

While I shan’t reveal the whole 13×17″ gouache and colored pencil painting today (although it IS pretty epic), I will share a snippet…

This Rocket J. Squirrel is just a smidge of my original painting in the show.

The show features the work of over 100 of my entertainment business colleagues, and promises to be memorable. All are invited to come to the opening reception THIS SATURDAY!!! Along with all the great art, they will also be hosting TWO book signings that night: Darrell Van Citters will be signing his great new book The Art of Jay Ward Productions, and Jerry Beck will be signing his new tome The Art of Dreamworks’ Mr. Peabody & Sherman.

So if you are in the Los Angeles area and want to have a good time and meet a LOT of cartoonists, come on out to the show! Details are on the poster below!

Jay Ward group show

Animals Art: Animation Art: Painting Chad About Town

Happy Presidents’ Day – 2014

Post author By Chad Frye
Post date February 17, 2014

Hope you are having a fun time celebrating Presidents’ Day. Have you gotten those presidential decorations up? Have you chopped down a cherry tree to put in your living room? Are you having a Weapons of Mass Destruction hunt in the backyard with the kids? What a FUN holiday!

Bet you didn’t expect a greeting “card” for THIS holiday, but why not? All the popular holidays get a card like Christmas and Valentine’s Day. Where is the love for Presidents’ Day, or Labor Day, or Flag Day? (Of course, sending a paper card on Arbor Day kind of defeats the purpose for that one.)

So, whether you are celebrating by fearing fear itself, playing with wooden teeth (watch out for splinters!), or telling your next door neighbor to tear down his wall, stay safe and rest in the knowledge that all of our Presidents deserve to be celebrated for every little thing they have ever done.

Oh, and take it from me, stay far, far away from all balconies.

This is one of very few pictures of President Lincoln and the missus NOT snapped by famed Civil War era photographer Matthew Brady.

Art: Colored Pencil Art: Painting Art: Watercolor Caricature Cartoons Character Designs Illustrations

Merry Christmas 2013

Post author By Chad Frye
Post date December 17, 2013

Christmas creeped up on me this year. I would love to share with you a brand new Christmas card, check but alas, life and work prevented me from being able to sit down and create a painting this year. These past few months have provided some freelance work, a vacation to Eastern Europe, long hours at the animation studio, and trying to prepare my home for a parental Christmas visit. So, for the first time in almost twenty years, a new card is not to be.

However, I would like to dust off one of my previous cards created before this blog ever existed. This is one of my favorites first seen in 2001 by maybe only 200 families. It really gets to the essence of what Christmas is all about – that God willingly came to earth in the form of a man ready to save mankind from our sins if we let Him.

For God so loved the world, even that fella in the lower right corner making a cameo in his own painting.

Merry Christmas

I know not everyone celebrates Christmas for one reason or another, but I do. Christmas is a holiday that means very much to me as one who believes the words of John 3:16-17. It is sobering to truly realize that Christ was born for us. From the bottom of my heart, I hope that wherever you may be in this world, and wherever you may be in this life, the reality of Christ will be yours. Merry Christmas.

Art: Inking Art: Painting Art: Watercolor Bible Art Illustrations Self Portrait

Happy Birthday Jack Davis!

Post author By Chad Frye
Post date December 2, 2013

One of my artistic heroes is the inimitable Jack Davis. Oh, many have tried to copy him artistically, but no one can come close to the master both artistically AND personally. While Jack’s art style is an island unto itself, his easy-going Southern gentleman personality sparkles as a rarity amongst cartoonists. When you first meet him you just want to be his friend instantly. That moment for me came in 1997 when I first met Jack at a Reuben Awards hosted by the National Cartoonists Society at the Grove Park Inn in Asheville, NC.

Many years have past since then, and I am privileged that our first handshake turned into an actual friendship. Back in 2006 when I was president of the Comic Art Professional Society (CAPS), we created an award called The Sergio (designed and named after Sergio Aragonès) to be given annually to a cartoonist whose body of work the cartooning community feels is invaluable and inspiring. Our very first recipient had to be no one other than Jack.

Today happens to be Jack Davis’ 89th birthday, yet somehow his work remains as youthful as the day he started. He is STILL showing us how it is done.

The art I share with you today was my tribute to Jack that appeared in the program book from that Sergio Award banquet. Many cartoonists created little pieces for Jack who not only took home a nice statue, but also a nice portfolio of all the original tribute art.

As a die hard Southerner, it has always been nice that Jack has overlooked the fact that I am a Yankee…unless he actually never realized that.

So, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Jack Davis! And if you don’t know the work of this great man from MAD Magazine, movie poster illustration, TIME Magazine covers, TV Guide covers, books, advertising art, Wacky Packages, U.S. postage stamps, and just about anything else you can think of, please do yourself a favor and Google his name!

Animals Art: Inking Art: Painting Art: Watercolor Caricature Cartoons Illustrations Self Portrait

2013 Monster Month: Day 15 – The Monster Manipulator

Post author By Chad Frye
Post date October 31, 2013

Welcome to the grand finale of 2013’s Monster Month! This piece was painted as a cover this past August for the National Cartoonist’s Society (NCS) magazine The Cartoon!st that featured an article about yours truly. I was honored to be invited by editor Frank Pauer to be interviewed, and had a great time creating this monster menagerie to accompany the issue. I have been a member of the NCS for eighteen years, and am proud to be a part of that fine professional organization.

The Monster Manipulator with his league of out-of-the-ordinary gentlemen.

This piece was created mostly the old fashioned way – with real watercolor paints and colored pencils! Only the bookcase eye glow and the haze on the glass dome were manipulated digitally. The hard part was in getting the fellas to all hold their poses for me while I painted them from real life.

I hope you have enjoyed this creepy time together over the past month. I truly had a blast creating the creatures. Bookmark my blog to make it easy for you to see more fun art being posted throughout the year!

Art: Colored Pencil Art: Painting Art: Watercolor Caricature Character Designs Illustrations Monsters Self Portrait

2013 Monster Month: Day 13 – Mr. Hyde

Post author By Chad Frye
Post date October 29, 2013

Dr. Jekyll’s famous alter ego still roams the streets of London at night, but it’s not what you think. He derives great pleasure from sneaking rides on the ferris wheel when it is less crowded.

London shouldn’t be too afraid, unless that London fog is really Mr. Hyde’s personal fog.

Whaaa? Can it be? Another new monster is coming tomorrow leading up to the Halloween grand finale!!

Art: Painting Art: Photoshop Character Designs Illustrations Monsters

2013 Monster Month: Day 7 – Web Footed Wonder

Post author By Chad Frye
Post date October 16, 2013

Most monsters really aren’t scary – just misunderstood. Granted, you don’t see a furry web-footed critter like this every day (unless you hang out in the places where I hang out), but it doesn’t mean he is a ferocious killing machine. Maybe he’s just looking for a friend to hang out with. Then again, I don’t think he has those claws just to spear vegetables.

On second thought, maybe you should just remain misunderstanding with this one.

The good news is that you can hear him coming when his feet slap the ground.

The undead come alive on Friday!

Art: Colored Pencil Art: Painting Art: Watercolor Character Designs Illustrations Monsters