Stepping Out Of My Comfort Zone.

A few months back, children's singer DARIA, asked me for some help in generating the art for her groundhog day projects. She wanted something special and fun - just like her music. Whereas she loved the artwork that I used for her cd cover, she was thinking of something a little more unique.

She proposed that I draw the illustrations she was looking for and I wasn't sure what to say. I grew up dreaming of becoming an animator, but my days of drawing cartoons and made up characters seemed so far away.

I was interested though and so we both agreed that an attempt would be made. I would send my rough sketches to her and if she felt I was going in the right direction, then computer generated illustrations would be done.

Working with DARIA is always stress free and I think that helped in easing any fear I had about my ability. I had an incredible time working on these pieces and I can see traits in all of these drawings that I recognize from my style years ago. And it feels good.

I'm not about to run out and put ILLUSTRATOR on my resume, but sometimes working outside of one's comfort zone can be exhilarating and definitely rewarding. This experience taught me a little something about myself that's been hiding for awhile. I look forward to the next new thing that comes my way with even more excitement now!

It's amazing Mr. Groundhog didn't see his shadow this year! Look how fat I made him:)

Check out DARIA and look for all her
fun monthly projects - including art by yours truly!

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Print, Print and more Print!

Vinyl Banner designed by Madcow Designs
Outside vinyl with grommits for ease of use to hang

Over the years, I have designed for and printed on a lot of different types of mediums. And whereas some designers will carve out a niche for themselves in a certain print field, I like to leave my studio open to the ability to handle just about anything a client approaches me about.

But, because Graphic Design seems to be such an elusive profession to describe, sometimes when a person approaches me and says "well, what else can you do?" I'm not sure how to answer. A fellow designer and good friend of mine, Nicola Black, likes to say "If it can be printed, than I can more than likely design it"

And honestly, that is a perfect answer. I have created designs for items that range from your typical print ad to specialty stickers to temperature sensitve water bottle labels to vinyl floor decals. In fact, I've come full circle from being a glass decaler while in college to designing the decals that are now being used.

The list of printed items is incredible and some of the more common items that I have worked on include:
Ads (both printed and online)
Fliers
Posters
Postcards
Rack Cards
Billboards
Catalogs
Brochures
Business Cards
Spec Sheets
Stickers
TShirts
Banners
CD packaging
Menus
Invites (and boy does that cover a lot from weddings and baby showers to birthdays and Corportate events!)
Greeting Cards
Price Guides
Direct mail
POPs
Pocket Folders
Magazines

Whew...I could go on, but I think you get the point. So, if there is a special project you'd like to discuss, just contact me! I would love to work with you.

Dr. Sketchy South Jersey T Shirt
Design by Madcow Designs

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My Kardonne Experience

Original Sketch ©Joe Kardonne

As many of you know, I am the director for the South Jersey Branch of Dr. Sketchy's. We have many talented, and interesting people, attend every month. One of our most loyal monkeys is an artist by the name of Jim Penland.

A whole book could not begin to describe Jim. I won't even attempt too begin too in this blog. What I will say is that he is extremely influential as an artist and having met him has been a highlight of my creative career.

At the beginning of the summer, Jim went around and asked some fellow artists to participate in a retrospective show he is calling "The Kardonne Experience". Joe Kardonne was one of Jim's greatest friends and co-founder of Ocean City's Fine Arts League. It goes without saying that he was one of Ocean City's most prominent artists, but when he died he left all his paintings to the league in an effort to support and sustain the very organization he helped found..

Joe developed his style while working alongside renowned artists at The Art Students League in NY. He studied with greats such as B. Robinson, Thomas H. Benton, Jackson Pollack and numerous others. He was a prolific artist who worked constantly and when he passed away at the age of 94, he left 2 wet paintings in his studio.

Jim's idea was for everyone to take one of Joe's sketches and to reinterpret them in their own way. Feeling JIm's energy and enthusiasm for this project, I picked 3 of Joe's pieces in the hopes I would be able to participate. I was excited to get back to my fine arts roots and had my paints and canvases ready to go. It felt good to freely paint and the sound of the brush against the canvas was meditative.

I really enjoyed myself. Sadly I hated what I had done. It wasn't bad for the first painting in over...well, let's just say, in quite a few years. But, I didn't feel it was worthy of having Joe's name associated with it. Nor did it really reflect my artistic self as much as I would have liked.

Not to be discouraged I sat down and started to research Joe some more. Maybe there was something that I had missed. Something that would speak to me and point me in the direction I should be taking with his work. This is when I discovered that Joe himself had, at one point, formed his own Advertising Agency and found much success in the commercial art field. I now felt that reworking one of his pieces digitally wouldn't be such a bad thing. Actually, it just made sense. I scanned Joe's original, dropped it into photoshop, and away I went!

Upon intial viewing, one might say this is as much an homage to Toulouse-Lautrec's Moulin Rouge as it is to Joe. But I implore you to research Joe yourself. Look at his works, talk to the people who knew him and you'll understand that everything done has been done for a reason....albeit, maybe tongue in cheek.

But, honestly, in the end, none of that really matters. Both Jim and Joe's purposes have been met. Joe continues to influence fellow artists and Jim opened up a whole new generation to Kardonne's work. My only regret is that I never got to meet Joe in person, but I should had fun learning about him! Besides, working on this project has brought me closer to understanding myself.

I thank Jim for asking me to participate and feel honored that he also asked that my piece be shown in the retrospective that started this past Sunday, the 12th of September. Right now the work can be seen in person at The Artist's Consortium in Millville. And I recently found out that the piece will again be hung during the 2011 Nov/Dec showing at the River Renaissance Center for the Arts.

Enjoy! I know I did.

Kardonne Interpretation ©2010 Madcow Designs LLC

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Madcow Designs - A testimonial

A small sampling of items included in DARIA's mailing

When one of my clients, Daria, was so kind as to send me a testimonial, I was delighted and a little overwhelmed. I mean golly gee whiz:) When someone approaches me for a job, I go at it full force. That is why they come to me isn't it? But to see it in writing, in someone else's words made me realize the experience and knowledge I bring to my clients.


In lieu of that, I wanted to be able to further explain one of the projects that Daria referenced. I thought it would help others in understanding just how I was able to help her and maybe the explanation would in turn help the reader move forward in their next project.


When Daria approached me with her idea of sending presenter packages to potential venues, I was all over it! Daria is an energetic performer whose colorful personality should be reflected in the materials she chooses to represent herself, so I knew this job was going to be a lot of fun.


As with all jobs there was a budget to stay within, but I knew that wouldn't be an issue. By making sure we got off on the right foot and made use of working with collateral she already had, we were well on our way to a very affordable solution to her problem. The widest piece that was being included was her postcard. Basing the rough measurements on this piece, I was able to find a mailer that was small enough to keep shipping costs down but large enough to accommodate her material and provide quite an impact when received.


Knowing that Daria is concerned for the welfare of all living creatures, I researched and compared the costs and types of various materials used in packing and shipping. This way we could implement products that were biodegradable, reusable or recyclable. Some of the materials could easily be used in one of her DIY musical projects!


There were also shipping costs that had to be considered, and this was a two-fold concern. For one, I had to make sure that the most efficient box used to contain the items also complied with shipping regulations. I was also going to be sealing the box with a sticker that was representative of Daria's World Travels. I needed to make sure that doing so didn't interfere with any shipping regulations or result in any returned packages.


Secondly, I had to make sure that the delivery method was affordable, convenient, efficient and trustworthy. Again after researching and comparing various providers, I was able set up a shipping account for her that allowed me to send the requested packages while the provider billed her directly. It also allowed me to set up a notification system so that when the package was delivered to the intended recipient, she was emailed the details. This enabled her to make a timely follow up phone call, thus helping her to establish another point of contact with the client.


As for the content of the packages, Daria knew exactly what she wanted to send and why. After reviewing all the pieces with her, I was able to make suggestions on packing materials that complimented the collateral and didn't overwhelm them. I was also able to suggest additional collateral and ways that all the included pieces would look consistent across the board. Daria in herself is a brand that is being “sold” in these packages and I wanted the recipient to walk away with a clear understanding of who she was and what she was about. We added custom letterhead that would be personalized for each mailing. Sometimes there were specific items added for particular venues and by taking her blank recycled water bottle rattler and adding a label that corresponded with the rest of her material, it helped explained what this water bottle full of spaghetti actually was and what was to be done with it. It helped the receiver understand what Daria's performances were going to entail without ever having heard of her or going online to research her.


From the moment the recipient received this box with its world travel stamp, to opening the box and interacting with all the pieces within, everything they ever needed to know about Daria and how to contact her was there for them. And it had arrived in one convenient package.


Daria and I worked closely together on this project, but when it came down to it, she knew she could trust me to handle whatever she wanted. Daria is an amazing person in her own right and I'm proud to be able to say that she is one of my clients. Working with her is always a treat. The jobs are interesting and I know that she is ready and willing to trust me and my experience. I look forward to many years of my relationship with her and would like to thank her for the wonderful testimonial she penned:


If you are a small business owner – you’ve probably done a lot of adjusting in the past year or so. For me, the changing economy has made me much more frugal in my advertising and marketing budget and I have found myself working more closely with Tracy at Madcow Designs to come up with some, creative ways of reaching my target audience. The results are the good news. I have actually been spending less and getting better results!


For instance, I used to do an annual postcard mailing to between 2,000 and 3,000 potential customers and simply couldn’t afford it this year. So, instead, Tracy and I designed special marketing kits in small boxes that arrived like presents and I got amazing feedback. People stopped, looked, read, listened and ... booked me! We thought outside the box, came up with a creative plan and went for it!


One of the things I like most about Tracy is that she takes a creative idea and makes it better. She adds her own design input or ideas about shipping, handling and tracking. In the end, we come up with a campaign that brings results.


So, if you are considering thinking outside the box, I encourage you to spend a bit of working creatively with Tracy. She can really make a difference in coming up with inventive solutions to help you survive and thrive in these changing economic times.


DARIA
Children’s Musician and Multicultural Performer

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Introvert or Extrovert?

Those words get thrown around a lot and in the field of business, being labeled an introvert can be damaging. But should it be?

I've been having this discussion with a few of my fellow colleagues lately and have given it much consideration. You see, I would be one labeled as an introvert.

So, what does that mean? I don't want to talk to you? That the mere thought of speaking in front of large crowds makes me run and hide under the bed? That I would rather scoop out my eyes with a rusty spoon rather than participate in any sort of social gathering?

Au contraire!

It seems that the general consensus of the masses is that introverts are shy awkward creatures likened to a nervous chiuaua. That we are full of anxiety and have no social skills to rely on. Where in fact that is a total misconception.

Introverts do enjoy the company of others and love participating in lively discussions. We just might not jump in right away because we are taking our time to mull over what has been said and are formulating a response that we feel would be intelligent and well thought out. We reflect inward to make sure what we are saying truly represents our thoughts and feelings and are not just paying lip service to the most favored opinion.

Introverts think before they act and because we process most of our emotions, thoughts and observations internally, we find our energy from within. We recharge by being alone again with our thoughts and personal activities - typically things we can do solo.

But, what in essence happens is our personality comes across as odd or abnormal. Because most introverts don't see the need to participate in "water cooler" talk or telling jokes to large crowds, less of ourselves are revealed publicly. Other, more extroverted people take this as an offense or that we have no interest in them. And this can be detrimental to ones' business.

Potential clients can see an introvert as a sign of someone who might not be competent or who doesn't know much of what they are doing. And where there is validity to hiring someone that you will personally get along with, don't count those introverts out just yet!

One of our strongest traits is research and analyzation. We like to find the answers to problems and enjoy thinking, exploring and delving into the concepts behind ideas. When handed a job, the first step I take is researching the client behind the project. I study the notes from our meeting and create a list of associated colors, words and images that all relate. Everything that goes into my design is thought out and has meaning.

We operate best when left to ourselves. Working in one's own office, be it from a home-based operation, or a single office amongst many, we have total concentration on the task at hand. Social interaction doesn't distract us, we don't feel the need to go find what everyone else is doing. We are intense and passionate, abstract ideas are sought after as we look inward for answers to projects we are involved in.

And I could go on. The traits associated to introverts are all fantastic ones to be held by a self employed creative: responsible, flexible, studious, smart, able to maintain long term relationships and creative out of the box thinkers. But this post wasn't written with the intent to justify myself. My work should stand as a testimate to the job I am capable of. Instead I felt the need to make others aware that what you might see as a quirk, is in essence a fantastic trait to have in a designer.

So, the next time you see me, say Hi. I'll only be more than glad to talk to you:)

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