Anniversary in Lake Bluff

The daughter found me. We were celebrating her parents’ 40th wedding anniversary. My caricatures were perfect for this occasion. Why would caricatures be such a good idea for this celebration? First, they lived in a cul-de-sac where the neighbors were so neighborly that the turn-around had an island with a fire pit and a permanent circle of chairs. Hanging out was a way of life with these people. They knew each other well, which made them comfortable with funny drawings. People who were not neighbors, were old friends, going back to their school days. Everybody, in other words, was super comfortable. Teasing was part of their grammar. Second, the seventies look funny now, not only to the kids’ generation but to the people who got married then. Everybody pointed and chuckled at the displayed wedding picture: the ruffled shirt, the white suit, the mustache, the hair, the HAIR! Somebody get a caricaturist for this party! I’m glad you found me, Katie, thank you. This party was a blast and my markers just took off, as you can see from the drawings and the reactions when people first see them.

For a wonderful documentation of this party, see Eva K Ho’s slide show, https://vimeo.com/135575425.  Contact, (312) 752-8583 eva@evaho.com,  www.evaho.com

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Union Railroad Museum

The Union Railroad Museum in (guess where) Union, Illinois, held a huge family day early in June. I was there for six hours, drawing dozens of visitors, both local folk and those who drove in from the south suburbs and from Wisconsin. The railroad has a romantic, nostalgic aura. The day was an opportunity for kids with iphones to learn a bit of American history as their parents took them to sit in an old train station and in hundred year old cars. Here are a few of the drawings from that wonderful day. Thank you, Jeanne.
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Birthday Party in River Forest

Fiona turned twelve. Mom was planning a small party for Fiona’s closest friends. There would be good food and some games and what else. The party needed some focus. Ah! We have that caricature of Fiona framed in the family room. Who was that artist? Oh, the name is on the drawing and it’s clear: “Hilden, 2009.” Let’s call her and see if she’s still doing this. Oh, yes, more than ever! My drawings get framed and my name is out there. There are always new clients but I do get called back often.
Here’s the drawing I did of Fiona when she was seven. This was a Halloween party at another child’s house and she came as a bumblebee. I remembered!  Love it!

Thank you, Josephine!

 

 

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Colleague in Human Resources at DePaul University

A co-worker in human resources is leaving for another job.  What can the head of the department do to show that Julie was terrific and will be missed.  Ta-tah!  Let’s give her a caricature by that famous Chicago caricature artist.  My instructions were clear:  put her on a balance beam and show her juggling.  Juggling is a great image for what a lot of people in offices do, even though they actually sit and look at computer screens all day.  Thank you, Stephanie!  Best to you, Julie!

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International Youth Hostel Chicago

It’s nice to be asked back.  I was there for the first annual party last June and now I got to draw some of the staff again, always interesting.  The guests, of course, were new, this being a hostel for international travelers.  What a great gift from Chicago!  Notice the tattoos saying “Chicago” in a heart with an arrow through it. I’ll keep that in my bag of tricks. They loved it. I’ll show a few of the drawing here.  The reactions were priceless.  Thank you,  Sharday, and watch out for the corner of Addison and Broadway!

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Classy Cars and Classy Caricatures

The Victory Center is an extensive,  well-appointed senior living complex in Bartlett, IL.  Now picture the large parking lot full of vintage cars: Model T, ’56 Chevy convertible, finned Cadillac, De Lorean’s sea gull, et al.  Spectacular. This was the brain child of the activities director who somehow had persuaded the owners of these fabulous cars to come on by—drive in your precious vehicle. (I heard that somebody drove a fifty’s Ford all the way from Ann Arbor, MI.)   Party time in the parking lot!  And golden oldies on the turn-table.

Thank you, Rose!

Because of threatening rain drops,  I was set up inside in the lobby, where I drew twenty-eight people in two hours.  Featured above and here at left  is “Pat the Cat.”  She called herself that because, she explained, like a cat she has nine lives, she keeps coming back.

Here are a few more of these good-humored people, starting with a fire cracker who has always been called “Button.”  She told me about her adventures as a model in art classes, and that would be life classes.  Gotta love it.

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Power of Logo

When pre-printing the drawing paper with the company’s logo, I recommend that it be clearly legible, but not obtrusive.  The point of the logo is to have it there as a reminder of your generosity, so that when the picture is framed, you get your message across, subliminally.  If the logo is too big, it’s likely to get trimmed out of the picture before the picture is framed.

In this drawing, the woman’s hair actually overlaps the logo in the upper right.  That’s the idea, can’t cut it out.

This was an event at the Victory Senior Living Center in Bartlett, IL.  More in the next post.

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Prom at the O’Hare Marriott

All satin and rhinestones.  The guys played along by wearing matching vests or ties.  What a great event!  For school, it’s the frayed jeans and now this!  Wow!

I drew fifty-two people in four hours, all full body, of course.  That’s a pretty clipping rate, considering that there was time out for moving the set-up from the cocktail lounge (ha, soft drinks only) to the grand ball room and later,  time out for speeches.

There must have been some sore feet by the end of the evening, what with those ridiculous platform sandals. But clearly everybody had a blast.  Look at these radiant faces!

Here’s a small selection. It’s hard to choose.

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Enlarged and Framed

At Michael’s party (see previous post) the grandparents recognized my name.  They saw it every day on the wall in their house.   I had drawn them back in 1995 at a posh private party in a condo at the top of the Four Seasons  tower.  They told me that they enlarged the drawing to double its size and framed it.  It must be about 30” high, judging from the photo they emailed me recently, which shows the 2012 drawing (14” high) next to the framed drawing from 1995.  They love it!

(For my part, I remember the fabulous art collection in that condo.  I was set up near a huge Ed Paschke, horizontal format, showing two masked faces, with green as the dominant color. How could I forget.)

This is most rewarding for me.  Sure, keep inviting me to draw at your parties, keep throwing money at me, thank you very much.  But this!  You enlarge my work and frame it beautifully and love it every day—this truly means a lot to me.  Here’s me taking a bow:  Thankyouthankyouthankyou!

 

(The paper is always a bright white.  The yellow or gray tone in these photos is due to the lighting in the room and the fact that I’m too casual about camera settings.  No time for that.)

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Encore! Twenty-three Years Later.

When the Human Resources people at Intellegrated were planning the company picnic during the summer and they wanted a caricaturist, one of the engineers  mentioned me because I had drawn him and his wife, oh, years ago.  When would that have been, gotta check the date on the drawing, by the signature.  Oh, here it is…1989!  That was the year I jumped in, both feet, both hands, into the business of calling myself a professional caricaturist.  I was, hmmm, pretty good, but I worked with a limited repertoire of poses, let’s say.   I had drawn them separately, faces and shoulders only, avoiding the challenge of the whole body pose.  But, hey, it was good work, good enough to be framed and it had been hanging in their home for twenty-three years.

So here they were again and I was thrilled to draw them again and this time with all the flair that comes from experience, after having drawn thousands of people over the years.  Both of them were clearly tickled to share this moment with me.

Thanks to all the people at Intelligrated who celebrated that bright October day with me this year!

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