The Art of Christian Castro

2012

2012-01-26T10:53:00.000-08:00

Is it officially too late to say happy new year? Who cares... HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Here's my first of many many posts of 2012. Its a little something I did in my sketchbook. Yeah, I like drawing balloons. Many projects in the works so stay tuned.

Change of Location

2011-11-10T13:40:00.000-08:00

Hi people,

Sorry for lack of posts last month. I've had some computer troubles. But here's some hand-lettering I did not too long ago. It's a quote a read in a fortune cookie and decided to illustrate it!

Sometimes a change of location makes all the difference

News and updates...

2011-09-30T19:54:00.001-07:00

I havent posted much this month but not because I have nothing to show, but because it's not ready to be unveiled. I am officially going to be participating in the Sketchbook Project 2012 hosted by the Art House Co-op. For those of you unfamiliar with it, The Sketchbook Project is where a bunch of crazy artists are sent a sketchbook and they fill it with magical artwork. Then they send the finished sketchbooks back and the books are shown on display to the world! It is a sort of traveling sketchbook gallery that goes to different cities. Thank you to YuQUan Tan to convincing me to join. More info can be seen HERE

Here's a picture of me and my empty (for now) sketchbook.

I've also been working on some updates for my website and this blog, as well as adding new pieces to my portfolio (both editorial and children's book). PLUS I am working on a collaborative illustration with Charles George Esperanza. So please be a patient turtle (not to be confused with an awkward turtle) and stay tuned for more exciting art / news on the way!

Be good.

That girl on the subway (drawing)

2011-08-31T20:14:00.000-07:00

I'm giving fashion / lifestyle illustration another attempt. Here's the pencil drawing of the figure to be included in my illustration. I'll color it digitally on Photoshop along with the background. I'll be uploading the finished illustration as soon as I finish it. Be excited!

Experiment

2011-08-24T18:51:00.000-07:00

Hey folks,

In my previous post I uploaded a random drawing I had found in my sketchbook. This is the original image:

I scanned the pencil drawing and played around with it on Photoshop. This is the end result.

I definitely had fun experimenting with this one. I have a bunch of different color combinations but decided the black and white version looked the best. Art experiments are fun!

Sketchbook Stuff

2011-07-31T20:21:00.000-07:00

Here's some random doodles from my sketchbook that I usually don't share but thought I would today. Enjoy.

http://christiancastroart.com/

Get Well Soon Panda

2011-07-25T09:21:00.000-07:00

Hi there blog,

This post is dedicated to anyone who has ever been on crutches at any point in their lives (such as myself.) This is a greeting card design I worked on a few weeks ago. I call it Handicap Panda. Enjoy.

You Float My Boat

2011-06-16T20:05:00.000-07:00

I've mentioned before that I've dabbled in hand-lettering. I've decided to pursue it further since I'm working on a greeting card portfolio and because I genuinely enjoy doing it.Hand-lettering is a great fusion of illustration and graphic design. I was fortunate enough to meet with Art Director, David La Fleur from American Greetings who was gracious enough to give me a portfolio review (and a great one at that.) He suggested I put more hand-lettering in my portfolio since he had positive reaction to the work I showed him. Here's some of it now.

And since I'm in a giving mood. Here's two other color variations:

Expect more illustrated type soon!

http://christiancastroart.com/

C2 on FML

2011-06-07T19:10:00.001-07:00

Hi blog,

A while ago I contributed an illustration for one of my favorite websites, Fmylife.com. I illustrated one of their FML stories. The story was:

Today, my boyfriend and I were laying naked in my bed making out. All of a sudden, we hear "pop goes the weasel" outside my house. My boyfriend stops and excitedly says, "ICE CREAM MAN", flips me over, grabs his clothes, and runs out of my room. FML

Here is the my visual interpretation of the story:

It's not everyday you get to draw an ice cream truck, New York City, and a naked running man all in one illustration! Needless to say I had fun with this one. I got my inspiration for the ice cream blocking the man's "package" from the intro from the old Austin Powers movie

When I was done illustrating the story I was even interviewed by FML too! If you would like to read the interview click HERE

Thanks to Alice Amiel for art directing this all the way from Paris, France! Thank god for email and skype!

Take care everyone!

http://christiancastroart.com/

Mila Kunis Portrait

2011-05-28T18:59:00.000-07:00

Snapple Fact # 231" Mila Kunis has 2 different colored eyes.

Snapple Fact # 347: Christian Castro paints fast and meets deadlines.

OK so these aren't actual Snapple facts but they are indeed true. Mila Kunis is one of my favorite actresses and has what is called "heterochromia iridis" which is a fancy way of saying that her eyes are different colors. Pretty cool, right? Here's a pic in case you think I'm a dirty liar: CLICK HERE!! (Actress, Kate Bosworth also has this! Who knew?) Anyway, I've been busy these past few weeks with "art stuff" and have managed to whip out a lot of portfolio pieces lately including this portrait of Mila Kunis. I chose to make most of it black & white so more focus could be put on her colorful eyes.

I love combining vector shapes with photoshop textures. It's a great fusion. I'm also experimenting more with patterns for backgrounds. I see it used a lot in Fashion / Lifestyle illustrations and love how it looks. Here are some details of the illustration:

Even more art on the way! Make sure to follow the blog if you haven't yet! Till next time!

http://christiancastroart.com/

Twitter Illustration

2011-05-18T21:39:00.000-07:00

Hello Blog. How's life?
I recently finished an illustration about an article discussing how the 1st ever tweet was sent from the top of Mount Everest! Yes, the tallest mountain in the world officially has cell-phone service as of October of last year. Of course most mountain climbers don't bother whipping out their cell phones after making one of the deadliest hikes in the world... until now! Here is the process and final illustration.

These are the sketches I drew out to illustrate the idea of Twitter Scales Mount Everest.

The 2nd sketch was the one chosen. I went on to do a refined drawing of that sketch. Here is the final drawing:

I quickly did some color sketches on Photoshop to see which color palette would go best with the image. I am always very picky when it comes to colors. I think correct color choices are the most effective way to create emotion in an illustration. Here are the color sketches:

Of the above color sketches, the first one was too monochromatic. The 2nd was too dull. The 3rd was too warm for Mount Everest (but still fun to draw!). 4th was not Mount Everest-ish enough (yes I made up a word) but the last one was just right.

Here's the final painted Twitter-stration (Yes, another made up word)

Twitter Scales Mount Everest
Pencil drawing, Photoshop coloring

Speaking of Twitter, why not follow me on Twitter? You can see my profile by clicking HERE

Special thanks to YuQuan Tan for help on this project. The whole assignment was completed in a matter of days. I enjoy quick deadlines. It prevents me from over thinking things.

Everything is going to be OK

2011-04-25T21:34:00.000-07:00

Here's a quick illustration with illustrated type I drew in my sketchbook. It's a reminder we could all use from time to time. I know I can right now.

Everything Is Going To Be OK
Pencil, ink on sketchbook

http://christiancastroart.com/

That new NEW website

2011-04-11T18:48:00.000-07:00

Hi Blog universe. I've recently redesigned my website. It has a new layout, more recent illustrations and is easier for me to update now! Check it out! http://christiancastroart.com/

I'm currently working on my 3rd and final part of my Cultural Diffusion series. Plus I'll be contacting some of my favorite art directors and finishing up some personal projects over the next few weeks. Stay tuned!

Cultural Diffusion Part 2

2011-03-28T19:26:00.000-07:00

Here are the next pair of paintings from my series comparing Cali, Colombia to New York City, USA. In Cali there is a giant statue of Jesus on top of a mountain (similar to the one in Brazil). This monument is called "El Cristo Rey" which translates to "Christ the King." You can see a picture HERE if you are unfamiliar. It always reminded me much of New York's Statue of Liberty. Enjoy!

Éstos son el siguiente par de pinturas de mi serie comparando Cali, Colombia con Nueva York, Estados Unidos. En Cali hay una estatua gigante de Jesús encima de una montaña (similar al de Brasil). Este monumento se llama "El Cristo Rey" que se traduce a "Christ the King" en Ingles. Puedes ver una foto AQUI si no está familiarizado. Siempre me recordó a la Estatua de Libertad. Disfrute!

Subway Comic

2011-03-17T16:13:00.000-07:00

I usually don't do comic strips but after years of taking the MTA (specifically the A train) I decided on whipping out a quick comic. Feel free to share with your friends! I'm sure many New Yorkers can relate. Enjoy:

Cultural Diffusion

2011-02-20T15:20:00.000-08:00

I am currently working on a series of digital paintings comparing New York City, USA (where I was born and raised) to the city of Cali, Colombia (where both my parents were born and raised). These paintings will be done in pairs and will show how I view the two cities' similarities and differences in lifestyles and culture.

These 2 pieces are a mirror image of each other in terms of composition but different in subject matter. I felt the similar compositions would be the best way of showing their similarities while the actions in the paintings would show the differences. Sounds cool right? Of course it does!

For those not familiar with the city of Cali, there are several mountains there. One of the more famous ones being El Cerro de Las Tres Cruces which translates to "The Mountain of the Three Crosses." It's exactly what it sounds like. Three giant crosses on top of a high mountain that can be seen from almost any spot in the city. You can see a picture HERE They reminded me much of the skyscrapers of Manhattan which like the crosses in Cali may also be seen from many parts of the city. Also, bullfighting is a sport that is still practiced in Colombia. A sport I'm not too fond of but still had fun drawing. Ironically one of my favorite landmarks in NYC is the Wall Street bull. I'm glad I found an excuse to draw both things. Enjoy the art and as always comments are welcome!

Photography VS. Illustration

2011-02-11T20:44:00.000-08:00

Why not photography AND illustration? I recently collaborated on a project with photographer, Alex Nu ñ ez Caba. He offered his photograph and I contributed my drawing of a figure. Together we created a collaborative fusion of photography and illustration. It was a fun experiment to be a part of and I look forward to doing another one with him or other photographers in the future. You can see more of Alex's work HERE

Photo by Alex Nuñez Caba
Illustration by Christian Castro

Handicap Art

2011-01-31T14:04:00.000-08:00

I've been on crutches for a little while now due to my injury. (More info HERE )
This is pretty much how I feel at times.

http://christiancastroart.com

Halo (not the video game)

2011-01-15T19:35:00.000-08:00

Hello world! I hope everyone is enjoying 2011 thus far! I've been away from the blog a bit longer than I had wanted but I'm back. Here's a new piece I just "finished" today. It's mixed media. I tried to convey as much emotion as I could. I remember when all my work had some sort of humor behind it. I guess your art changes as you change. I will probably go back and add some stuff to the piece. Constructive suggestions are welcome. More work soon to come so feel free to follow the blog if you haven't already! I'll be doing a lot more experimental art in 2011.

"Halo"
Mixed Media

http://christiancastroart.com/

Look At This F*cking Illustration!

2010-12-20T20:32:00.000-08:00

So Hipsters are all the rage nowadays! (Or at least making fun of them is)
I have recently become addicted to the site, Look At This Fucking Hipster. It's hilarious!
Spending a good amount of my summer in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, I've come in contact with quite a few hipsters. Whether you love them or hate them, you have to admit they are entertaining to look at!
I think it's time illustrators embrace Hipster-ism (i think that's a word?)
Even Superman has gotten a Hipster makeover! See it HERE or check out this simple yet great piece by illustrator, Alisa Yang HERE.

I think I'm going to call this piece, "Trapped by a Trend" since sometimes it seems like they can be incarcerated by their own lifestyle. I wish I could do another painting so I could fit the PBR beer and his Asian girlfriend. Anyway enjoy!

http://christiancastroart.com/

Passion for Fashion?

2010-12-13T18:09:00.000-08:00

I wouldn't call this a fashion illustration. It doesn't have the traditional fashion illustration body proportions. But I don't think that's always necessary. J. C. Leyndecker is famous for his Saturday Evening Post covers but much of his success came from his fashion illustrations. This includes his famous "Arrow-Collar Man" I''m sure he helped sell thousands of shirts with that one all while painting people realistically.

So I guess this is more of an image influenced by fashion illustrations. I've been looking at a lot of Cole Phillips works. I don't think I'll ever get tires of his fade away girls. Thus I made my own:

It's done in pencil with blue India ink in sketchbook. I keep painting in my sketchbook. It's just so compact and convenient! Till next week bloggers!

As Tall As Lions

2010-12-06T19:03:00.000-08:00

For those of you who don't know, one of my favorite bands is As Tall As Lions. You can listen to some of their stuff HERE. I was lucky enough to watch them perform back in the summer of 08.
Unfortunately a few months ago they announced that they were breaking up and are currently doing a farewell tour . So I pay my tribute to them the best way I know how- by painting their portraits.

So Cheers to a great band with great music! Best wishes to Julio, Saen, Cliff and Dan on their future projects!

http://christiancastroart.com

NEW WEBSITE!

2010-11-29T20:57:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone! After months of hard work mixed in with procrastination, my new website is finally up and running! So make sure to check it out when you get a chance and tell all your art friends about it!

CLICK HERE or even HERE to see it or just go to http://christiancastroart.com

Frustration

2010-11-23T00:07:00.000-08:00

The past few weeks have been pretty difficult. I injured my ACL in my right knee and had to go to the emergency room, thus forcing me to stay home and be unable to work. Therefore I'm currently unemployed (again). Plus I missed all of Illustration Week.

But on the bright side (if any) I've found more time to work on my portfolio as well as some personal pieces. This mixed media piece I did in my sketchbook pretty much sums up how I have felt these past few weeks. It's pencil, and acrylic on gessoed sketchbook.

Until next time...

Society of Illustrators Lecture

2010-11-04T22:03:00.001-07:00

So last week I was asked to give a lecture at the Society of Illustrators regarding interning at the Society and what I have gotten out of it. I was accompanied by former interns and now illustrators, Jess Yeomans, and Johnny Dombrowski as well as current interns Kerry Campbell and Darci Shea.
We had a great turn out form dozens of college students. Hopefully my speech was helpful!

This picture was taken as I was speaking. I'm the one in the front wearing the plaid shirt. My head is tilted. That's how you know I was in the zone!

EPIC Design

2010-10-04T19:32:00.001-07:00

So there's this amazing place called the Society of Illustrators for those of you who live under a rock. This place has a new group called the Empowered People of the Illustration Community (EPIC) Students and recent graduates from several art colleges around the country were asked to design an illustrated version of the EPIC logo (or the "pencil E" as I like to call it)
Here is my design I submitted to represent FIT:

The design was inspired by the airforce art show which was showcased at the Society this past month. The above illustration will be showcased during the 2010 Educators Symposium at the Society of Illustrators taking place this upcoming weekend! Stay tuned. I will have a lot more information about EPIC coming soon including how you can join. Feel free to follow this blog!

Picasstro

2010-10-02T13:02:00.000-07:00

I think one of the best things an illustrator can do is not just look at the work of other contemporary illustrators but the work of fine artists from the past. I was fortunate enough to see the Pablo Picasso exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art a few months ago. (It was great) While there I viewed Picasso's "The Harlequin" which is my favorite painting done by him. I think its a good exercise to create your own version of a classic work of art so that's what I decided to do. This is what happens when Christian Castro's art and Pablo Picasso's art have a crazy love child:

Castro's Harlequin

Original "Harleguin" by Picasso may be seen HERE

I took some artistic liberties and changed some of the colorss / shapes. After all it is MY version of it. (In case you are wondering- Yes I gave him a shape up) I might do another one of somebody else's painting. Its a fun exercise to do in between working on illustration commissions or portfolio pieces.

**Please follow this blog if you would like to see more random works of art! Take care**

Shakira = Muy Bueno

2010-09-22T17:42:00.000-07:00

Here's a drawing I did of Shakira. Why? Because it's SHAKIRA! Enjoy : )

That should keep you entertained while I work on my website a bit more.
**SPEAKING OF AMAZING ART, check out my untitled piece being displayed on the Creative Quarterly online gallery HERE. **

Tin-Tan T-shirT

2010-09-12T21:07:00.000-07:00

I recently did a quick commission for a T-shirt design. I did a portrait of iconic Mexican comedian / actor, Tin Tan. If you're unfamiliar with his work, here is a quick video. Enjoy:

http://christiancastroart.com/

ISS: India

2010-09-03T21:32:00.000-07:00

Here's another piece from my International sketch series (ISS) This one is of a statue from India. I usually find a statue I like, draw it for a few minutes and move on to the next one. Enjoy:

International Sketch Series

2010-08-23T20:45:00.000-07:00

I've decided to start a new series of drawings within my sketchbook. I spend so much time drawing the sculptures at the Metropolitan Museum of Art that i might as well post them up. My goal is to draw something from as many different countries as possible. Since I can't afford to travel around the world I can at least draw things from around the world. So here are the first 2 from my International Sketch Series (name subject to change)
Lets begin with a sketch of a Greek sculpture:

Now lets jump to Africa! Here is one from New Guinea:

More sketches to come. Please feel free to suggest any countries you would like to see!

"Welcome to Disney!"

2010-08-01T20:51:00.000-07:00

Happy August bloggers!

So about 2 weeks ago I attended ICON 6 in Pasadena, California and it was amazing! While there I was lucky enough to meet Dawn Rivera-Ernster who happened to be the Talent Development Director at Disney Animation Studios! She was nice enough to invite me and my friend, Yuquan Tan on a tour of the Disney Studios! Here I am at the main entrance:
During the visit I was fortunate enough to be joined by a group of talented illustrators including Hanoch Piven, Edel Rodriquez, Yuquan Tan, and my former professors, Melanie Reim and John Jay Cabuay. Here is a picture of all of us:

Photographs weren't allowed inside so I could only take some outside the studio. But inside the studios were covered in murals, original sketches of Disney characters were taped to the walls, arcade machines were found randomly throughout the building, free coffee, water bottles and fruits were set on tables for the taking. I saw drawings for my favorite Disney movies (Lion King, & Aladdin) along with concept art for movies still in the works (which I don't know if I can mention) In the lower levels there were even painting studios where a live painting class was taking place. (Their saw horses were a lot better then the ones I used while at FIT) Even as we walked down the hallways, we would be greeted with friendly faces saying, "Hi, welcome to Disney!" It was an amazing experience. I would love to work in an environment like that and if character design, concept art, animation or character art is your thing than I highly recommend working for Disney (eventhough I'm sure you all already knew that.)

Till next time, bloggers!

Tiny sketch

2010-07-26T20:11:00.000-07:00

So I usually draw in my 9x12 inch sketchbook but lately i've been experimenting with a smaller more "travel sized" book. It's only 4 x 6 inches. It felt awkward at first but I'm getting the hang of it. I visited the Society of Illustrators sketch night a little while ago and tried some figure drawing. Here are a few. The poses range from 1 minute to 15 minutes. More posts coming soon, including one about my trip to the Disney Animation studios and my trip to the Bronx zoo.

ICON 6

2010-07-19T14:32:00.000-07:00

Hey bloggers,

In case you're wondering what I've been up to, I just spent the week in the Los Angeles / Orange County area visiting, exploring, learning and most importantly, attending the 6th Illustration Conference (ICON 6). It was an AMAZING experience and I highly recommend it to anyone serious about illustration.

While there I met tons of great people all part of the illustration community including some of my favorite illustrators such as Istvan Banyai, and Hanoch Piven (Here's a picture of Piven and Myself) Plus I met some great new professional artists such as, Angela Dominguez and Sam Werczler. Along with some great up and coming illustrators such as Alisa Yang and Michael Olivo. Check their work out. It's awesome! There are so many others too. I wish I had the time to mention them all!

I even played some soccer with Hanoch Piven, Kyle T. Webster and Edel Rodriquez. ( I managed to score a goal)
There were great lectures that discussed self-promotion, building portfolios, dealing with art directors, and the future of publishing. As a recent graduate It was a great educational experience. I also was lucky enough to receive a free tour of the Disney Animation Studios! Its a long story but a great one. It's worthy of its own blog post so I'll post up pictures next week. It's gonna be a busy week for me now that I'm back so check back often for new updates.

Day and Night

2010-06-12T22:10:00.000-07:00

Hi Bloggers! Like most artists, I get inspiration from the sights, sounds, and people around me. Also like most artists, I notice I never really mention my inspiration when displaying my artwork. So that's what I'm doing right now! I'm sure you've all heard the song, "Day and Night" by Kid Kudi a thousand times. It's pretty catchy and has a lot of imagery within the lyrics. I decided to illustrate the song and let everyone see what I see when I hear this song.
In terms of inspiration, I love that video D.A.N.C .E. by Justice. See it HERE in case you don't know what I'm talking about. I love how they use T-shirts to animate the lyrics of the song. Why not use that element in an illustration?

Its still a work in progress (as most of my pieces seem to be nowadays) As always, feedback is appreciated. Should I make the arms more realistic or keep it stylized? Is the Day/night theme clear enough? Let me know what you guys think. Enjoy : )

"Day and Night" Photoshop

The Process

2010-05-27T10:58:00.001-07:00

So I realized I should start posting more than just finished pieces on here. A little while ago I did an illustration assigned to me by illustrator / art director Nate Williams a.k.a. Alexander Blue a.k.a. creator of Illustration Mundo. My mission was to illustrate an article describing the Texas Board of Education enforcing religion into their curriculum. Here are the sketches I showed him:

The 3rd sketch ended up being chosen. The only changes requested was that the priest not be a Catholic one since Catholicism isn't the predominant religion in Texas. Its Protestantism. I made the necessary changes and finished the final illustration shown here:

State of Religion
Photoshop / Illustrator

The entire project was executed within 7 days. I love working under pressure in tight deadlines. It prevents me from over-thinking things or getting bored. Special thanks to Nate Williams for all his helpful advice throughout the process.

ILLUSTRATION FUTURO

2010-04-25T19:52:00.000-07:00

After several months of planning, last Thursday was the opening reception for Illustration Futuro at the Illustration House. The purpose of the gallery was to promote the future of illustration in a venue famous for showcasing the history of it. I was fortunate enough to have TWO of my illustrations accepted into the show. The opening was a major success and the place was jam-packed! Special shout out to Yuquan Tan and Charles George for helping me in planning the whole event and a thanks to the judges of the show: Melanie Reim, Vincent Difate
and Eric Fowler. Here are some of my favorite pictures of the night:

The gallery filled up fast with eager supporters.

I was also fortunate enough to have the first ever digital illustration to hang on the walls of Illustration House! Here is a pic of me standing next to it.

Special thanks to my friends Kate Feirtag and Tom Stavrinos from the Society of Illustrators as well as Society President, Dennis Dittrich who came to show their support.

Even illustrator, Rich Tu (in red) stopped by at the end of the night to check out the art. It was great talking to him. His advice to Charles and myself was helpful as well as motivational.

I can't say thank you enough to the friendly and generous staff of Illustration House for all their help in setting up this show. While we were hanging the show we had the honor of taking a picture with Illustration House founder, Walt Reed.

For everyone who couldn't make it to the opening, the show is up until April 30th. The Illustration House is open Tuesday- Saturdays. Check website for more info. This was one of the bext experiences in my young career thus far and I know more great things are yet to come. SO STAY TUNED!

MUSICA!

2010-04-16T14:03:00.000-07:00

Hi bloggers,
My digital painting entitled, "Painting on Silence" will be exhibited TONIGHT at the PICK music and art festival at Pace University. If you're in the neighborhood make sure to stop by.

ALSO- My piece entitled "Pinata = Happiness" (as seen in previous blog post) was selected to be exhibited in the Illustration Futuro exhibition at the famous Illustration House along with my ferris wheel digital painting (still untitled). Which goes to show you- never underestimate the power of a single image! The opening is this Thursday at Illustration House from 6-9pm. Heres the blog for more info:

http://illustrationfuturo.blogspot.com/

Wall Harmony

2010-04-10T20:25:00.000-07:00

Hey blog! So last year I donated an image to be hung in the patients' waiting rooms of the SUNY Optometry Center along with a few other illustrators. After many months of waiting the pieces were finally framed and hung. I visited the location a little while ago with Melanie Reim and Caitlyn Dailey (shown here).

The pieces were printed on 18 " x 24 " paper and hung around 2 floors of the Optometry Center. Many people were already admiring the wide range of art when I arrived there to photograph the pieces. One of them being a little girl who was there with her grandmother. She took quite a liking to Caitlyn : )

Here's a shot of some of the pieces on the wall.

After searching for a few minutes I found my piece! Here's a picture:

Special thanks to Melanie Reim for telling me about this opportunity and for the photographs. I'll never say no to doing art for a good cause. Before we left that day we took a group photo with Caityln, Melanie, the little girl and one of the Directors of the SUNY Optometry Center.

The future is here!

2010-04-03T20:36:00.000-07:00

For the past few weeks, I have been trying to put an exhibition together along with fellow Illustrators / friends, Yuquan Tan, Charles George and William Chung. The purpose of this gallery is to showcase the future talent of illustration in the historic location of Illustration House. Here is the link to newly formed blog and the Call For Entries Poster:

http://illustrationfuturo.blogspot.com

It's only the beginning

2010-03-18T21:22:00.000-07:00

So for those of you who remember my ferris wheel digital painting that I blogged about a few months ago, it was accepted as a runner-up in the Creative Quarterly 19 student illustration competition. Here is the piece one more time and the link to the site that shows all the winners in all the categories:

http://www.cqjournal.com/winners.html#runnerup

The forgotten borough

2010-03-13T13:51:00.000-08:00

So a few weeks ago I went on the Staten Island ferry for the first time! I've been living in NYC all my life but never had a reason to go on it. To celebrate the occasion I decided to draw one of the people on the boat in my sketch book. More updates coming very soon!

Dick

2010-01-20T19:38:00.000-08:00

So here's an illustration I did based on an article about former Vice-President, Dick Cheney. The article discussed how Cheney was interviewed by the FBI and responded to 72 of the questions with, "I do not recall."

I don't recall, Mr. Cheney

Photoshop, illustrator

ALSO- Make sure to vote for my fellow illustrator and friend, Charles George Esperanza in a national art competition he is currently taking part in. Click HERE to vote. 5 stars is a nice number.

I'm not lazy

2010-01-04T16:32:00.000-08:00

So I know I haven't posted anything in forever and a half BUT its ok. Its a new year and now I have more time to dedicate to this blog. I find myself working on projects but not posting them up. I'll make sure to be more consistent with this thing. So check back later tonight and I'll post something... JUST KIDDING. Here's a little something right now:

This is a personal project I did as a Christmas gift to my friend / interior designer, Elizabeth Vergara. It's a tribute to Cole Phillips and his fade away girl. I know it

has been done by everyone nowadays but its good to be inspired by those great artists of the past. Liz is a black belt in Tae Kwon Doe (might be spelled wrong) and karate. Plus she is Peruvian so I tried to incorporate that in the background. More art is on its way. I promise! Its going to be a productive month for me.

Going International

2009-08-31T18:18:00.000-07:00

So the ferris wheel piece i was working on earlier in the summer needed much more work. Thank you all for your comments and suggestions. I changed quite a bit of things about it (including the proportion) I was approached by my friend Akari to display my art in an art & music festival held every year in Sapparo, Japan. Unfortunately I couldn't attend the gallery but here is a photograph of some of the works displayed along with my piece:

If ya smell what BARACK is cookin!

2009-08-04T22:56:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Obama! or at least it was his birthday yesterday. I decided to do a quick (emphasis on quick) portrait of President Obama in celebration. I've been wanting to draw him for a while. I guess drawing him in November would have been cliche? This started off as a quick blue monochromatic portrait then i added some random splashes of orange and brown (maybe it was too much?) Either way this was fun to do. I might go back and finish it later on. I have other projects in mind right now and even a few I have already started including a portrait of Tito Puente. Keep an eye out for new updates from me! I'm going all out until school starts again in a few weeks.

Jungle fever?

2009-07-29T15:13:00.000-07:00

Here's a t-shirt design I did for an internship I applied to. It was a jungle theme for boys using a limited color palette and a style I don't usually work in. Luckily I'm flexible. I used some Rudy Gutierrez inspired background patterns (except digitally painted with actual African patterns I researched) along with some Christian Castro drips and a Charles George elefante. Suggestions are welcome (even though they will be useless since I already submitted the design a while ago. Sorry) Enjoy it anyway!

Flat is the new black

2009-07-13T19:35:00.000-07:00

Bye Bye Balloon
Digital

So I've been working digitally lately. It goes well with the graphic style i'm going for. Flat is the new black afterall. Heres a concept I've had in my mind for a while now that I finally painted just today!The ferris wheel took me the longest to get down correctly. Luckily I managed to this whole piece in one day. I'll convert it to an illustrator version later. It still feels kind of empty to me. I might add clouds. I might not. Any suggestions are welcome. Enjoy!

It's art you can wear!

2009-07-09T10:20:00.000-07:00

So here's some t-shirt designs I've been working on. Theblack and white one is still a work in progress. It's based off of a linocut portrait I did earlier in the year. I'm still playing around with the layout. I prefer the second of the two options. Let me know what you think.

The magic of Crayon

2009-06-17T21:23:00.000-07:00

So I havent updated my blog in quite a while, but that's because I was busy organizing trips, events and galleries. Now that summer is here I promise more art is soon to come. In the mean time, here are some nice quick drawings I did during the 2009 Drawathon in Pratt. I used the old-school method of crayon with the new school method of micron pen on top. Enjoy.

Thinking outside the box and inside the square

2009-03-09T21:31:00.000-07:00

So I participated in a gallery show in the APW gallery in Long Island City, Queens. The theme was that all participating artists had to create art on a square foot canvas. As an aspiring children's book illustrator I wanted my piece to have that childlike feel to it. This picture was taken of me and my piece by a friend during the reception. It was done with acrylic on square masonite board. Sorry no title for it yet. Enjoy. I'll upload a better picture later.

Pinata = Happiness

2009-01-31T18:02:00.000-08:00

Optometry Pinata
Adobe Illustrator

I don't think it's possible to not have fun with a pinata. This is a digital painting I did for the SUNY optometry center in NYC. I am happy to see I pulled off an illustrator painting without using one transparency or gradient. If I had more time I would have added more eye glasses and candy. Enjoy.

Here's a link to a well animated movie I came across online.
It's called: Gentelmen's Duel

Making things happen

2009-01-08T16:53:00.000-08:00

I've recently become a bit fascinated with those toy mannequins people use to draw from. . A friend gave me a sketch book for Christmas and I have been drawing in it lately. I want to see if I can make my sketchbook have the feel of a children's book. To see if thats possible and to appease my interest in mannequins I have painted one in the sketchbook as my opening spread. More projects soon to come. I've been busy taking a course on Art of India while painting a mural.

ALSO: I have decided to from now on post a link to something interesting i happen to find on the internet with every blog post I submit. Here is the first. It's clever advertisements used on park benches along with some street art:

illusion.scene360.com/?cat=cat=133

Welcome!
Colored Pencil in Sketchbook

Reinvention

2009-01-01T21:13:00.000-08:00

Everyone has had a so called, "bullshit class" or a "bullshit professor" including myself. But I try to get something out of every situation. Even if the situation seems completely useless and a total lost cause. I have recently had one of these "bullshit classes" but i did finish it with something- a concept. A concept that I was not able to execute the way I intended on doing so while taking the class. Luckily that is what vacations are for. I know people always say they are going to touch up a painting or even do it over all together but they never get around to it. I'm happy I actually have.

This piece is different then what I usually would do, but is still painted in my style. My biggest goal was to portray some emotion in it. I hope I've succeeded. As always critiques and compliments are welcomed : ) Special thanks to Alex Ariza for posing and for giving me the wood i painted on.

Untitled
Acrylic on wood

You Rock My Socks

2008-12-22T09:08:00.000-08:00

So heres a holiday card I designed and donated for a holiday card sale that the Under Ground League of Illustrators (UGLI) hosted. Its obviously just a literal interpretation of a commonly used expression. (Notice the sock mosh pit and crowd surfing sock) Maybe next time I should do "You float my boat" Happy Holidays!

You Rock My Socks Holiday Card

Cover done in Colored Pencils

Confusion

2008-12-11T21:37:00.001-08:00

So many decisions, so little time. So many styles, so many techniques, so many mediums. It doesn't make much sense for me to choose just one. Maybe I have commitment issues.

"Let Go of Your Addiction"
Mixed Media

The Art of Story Telling

2008-11-30T18:05:00.000-08:00

Captain Phat Vs. Bamingo
Oil Paint

Jamie the door knob
Acrylic

Introduction

2008-10-24T17:20:00.000-07:00

My name is Christian Castro- Illustrator in the making.
My goal is to make the world smile one painting at a time. Telling a good story is more difficult than one would imagine. I have much respect for those who can do it properly and will slowly master that skill as my art develops.