Jason Irizarry Illustration

"Bordie & Sadie" - Commission Portrait Piece

2010-10-02T16:36:00.000-07:00

As we all may already know, people love animals, and not just any animals, their animals. My Barber Ed recently asked if I could possibly sketch a portrait of his boxer puppies for his wife. Now I've been recently working more animals into my portfolio so the job couldn't have come at a better time. I really enjoyed working on this because both dogs seemed to have had such adorable personalities that really came through in the photo reference he provided. He was thrilled with the finalized sketch and couldn't wait for his wife to see it.

-Stay Creative

Pastry Divas Logo - Commission Piece

2010-09-30T15:33:00.000-07:00

I recently reconnected with a childhood friend by the name of Tiffany that contacted me about designing a logo for her after she came across my work online. It just so happens that she runs her own pastry company by the name of "Pastry Divas", which worked perfectly with a lot of the sweet inspired work I've been doing recently. When she explained what she wanted I instantly had an idea of where I wanted to go with this piece. Above is one of three logos that I completed for her, the other two being a full color and black and white version. Tell me what you think.

-Stay Creative

"Little Miss Foo Foo" - Personal Piece

2010-09-04T01:09:00.000-07:00

For the closing event for "Rocket To Venus" I really wanted to present a new piece. Not only for those that have already seen the show, but also as a way to celebrate the occasion and keep up the productivity. The idea was to go for something playful yet unsettling, with a light touch of couture design. I've been really inspired by 80's fashion editorials lately, I guess that would explain the big hair.

-Stay Creative

I'm Not Dead... I Promise.

2010-09-03T22:27:00.000-07:00

I know, I know. It's been far too long since my last post, but it's with good reason. I was fortunate enough to land my first solo art exhibition with Naked Chocolate Cafe. So yes ladies and gentlemen, I was not off somewhere eating potato chips and watching classic reruns of The Golden Girls, even though that actually sounds pretty nice right now.

Maleka "Lady M" Diggs was sweet enough to offer me such a great opportunity, so I decided to mix together some of my new ideas along with some of the recent work I've been posting on here. More then anything else, I wanted this show to be fun and feminine of course.

Entitled "Rocket To Venus", the exhibit ran from July 19th to August 31st. Simple put, this was such a blessing. I honestly could not have asked for a better experience. Everyone was so wonderful, and I was even given both an opening and closing date. Because I wanted the show to have a fresh quality, I decided to wait until after the closing to post all of the new pieces. So here they are and please make sure to tell me what you guys think.

"Any Excuse For A Party"
"Doggie Style"
"Libre"
"On Wednesday We Wear Pink"
"Artificial Sweetener"
"Rocket To Venus"
"There's No "I" In Team"
"Make It All Better"
"She's Got The Look"
Thanks to everyone who supported, inspired, encouraged, listened, modeled, and celebrated such an amazing moment in my life. I will forever be grateful.

-Stay Creative

"Lions, Tigers, and Bears" - Fabric Pattern

2010-02-04T15:59:00.000-08:00

I know this isn't my usually brightly colored work, but I thought I would switch things up and have someone else pick the color palette for this one. I've been thinking about ways of expanding my portfolio so I decided to take a less feminine route. My friend Mary did a wonderful job at choosing a palette that was neutral yet bright. This time around there's no candies, no legs, and no eyelashes.

-Stay Creative

"Who's The Boss?" - Personal Piece

2010-02-01T18:13:00.000-08:00

I'm sorry. I have a way of beating a dead horse when it comes to my art, but I always tend to wrap myself up in interest. This time around it's legs. Don't ask me what it is but it's got me by a tight grip. I blame my personality. With music I'll listen to an album until I've felt like I've heard every sound there is to hear. So to keep up with tradition I present to you the piece above. I think I'll let this one speak for itself.

-Stay Creative

Lady Gaga & Young Lloyd Art Swap with Nazahah Yasin

2010-01-28T16:06:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone! I know it's been quite some time since my last update but I've been pretty busy lately. Since the computer labs at UArts were closed for the winter break, I decided to put down my micron pen and work on some sketching. I was so wrapped up in getting pieces completed for my professional portfolio that I didn't pay much attention to my pencils. I figured for my own artistic benefit I would only sketch during the holidays.

Last Sunday my good friend Nazahah Yasin and I decided to do an art swap. Being as though she is in love with Young Lloyd and Lady Gaga is the queen of my heart, we decided to exchange portraits of our celebrity obsessions. The only rule was that we each had to make sure our half of the swap would be in a mailbox and our it's journey by Wednesday (yesterday). Earlier today I felt someone at my front door and sure enough there was an orange envelope waiting for me. Before my fingers were able to open it I already knew that I was gonna adore what was inside. I pulled out the hidden treasure and my eyes were welcomed by an amazing portrait of the Fame Monster herself! The sketch is everything I was hoping for and more. I can only hope she will love my sketch as much as I love hers. Below are both pieces of our art swap.

Lady Gaga Sketch by Nazahah Yasin
Make sure to check out her art blog here!
Young Lloyd Sketch by me
I would advise every artist to do an art swap at least once. It's was such a great experience. We should all celebrate our artistic expression with one another. If anyone is interested in doing an art swap please feel free to contact me.

-Stay Creative

"I See London" - Personal Piece

2009-12-13T10:30:00.001-08:00

I'm not too sure where I was going with this piece, but it was one of those images that pops into your head and you can't quite get it out until it's on paper. I've been really looking into fashion and design lately so I guess that's the direction in which I was moving for this. Quite simply, it's a pair of nice shoes on a pair of nice legs.

-Stay Creative

"Maneater" - Portrait Piece

2009-12-02T17:24:00.000-08:00

I've been trying to step away from straight forward portraits and move my work into new directions, but I guess I simply had to get it out of my system. It's no secret that I adore drawing pretty girls, but for the last couple months I've been trying to build a whole new portfolio with a new outlook. I've been avoiding face portraits all together. But it just so happens I came across a photo of my friend Ana that really caught my eye. Her look was very feline and reminded of a predator on the hunt, so i quickly started sketching. There was also a strong sense of innocent that I felt in the photograph, so I tried to incorporate that into the final piece. What can I say, pretty girl portraits are my passion and I guess I myself became prey.

-Stay Creative

"Oh Baby, I Like It Raw" - Fabric Pattern Design

2009-11-23T09:26:00.000-08:00

Since I've been back from my adventures across the country I have been dying to find a place that serves great sushi. And since I have yet to come across the perfect sushi bar I figured I would put my taste buds into my art. This pattern was designed to be printed on a shirt, but I was also playing with the idea of placing it on some type of bag or wallet. Let me know what you guys think, and if you know of a good sushi place feel free to shoot me a line.

-Stay Creative

"Nature's Candy" - Fabric Pattern Design

2009-11-15T17:38:00.000-08:00

The last time I worked on a pattern design I was in my senior year of college and it was for the inner pages of my portfolio. Although I loved what I had come up with, my teachers felt that my work fit best against a solid black portfolio. I ended up not using it but it created a want to work on more patterns. When I was asked to design t-shirts this was the first patterned image I came up with. The idea is based on the hunger for air, knowledge, and love. I have a couple more coming soon so definitely let me know what you think.

-Stay Creative

"Male Determination" - Personal Piece

2009-11-11T19:50:00.000-08:00

I've been working on this piece for quite some time now and I have to say that I'm quite relieved that it's completed. I think every artist has at least one work that just never seems to get the amount of time which it deserves. Needless to say this one was definitely that piece for me. The image above is actually only one half of a pair of tattooed lovers. I was able to finish his female companion quite quickly (click to view), but when it came time for him I always had other images getting in the way of his completion. Either way I'm happy with the result (regardless of how long it took for me to get it done.)

-Stay Creative

"Let The Music Play" - Shirt Design

2009-10-30T17:30:00.000-07:00

The piece above is the second shirt design that I've completed and I must say that this experience has been nothing but fun. I've tried to switch gears a bit and focus in on objects. With this piece specifically, I experimented with emotional tone and tried conveying the texture of music and sound as I myself visualize it. I'm really excited to see what's next for this collection.

-Stay Creative

"Sweetheart" - Shirt Design

2009-10-22T15:58:00.000-07:00

Maybe it's the Halloween season that has my mind wrapped in sugary sweets? Whatever it may be, when I was recently asked to create a couple shirt designs for a friend's screen printing company this was the first image that appeared in my mind. I've always wanted to have my work printed on fabric, so I couldn't be more excited to see what this will look like on clothing. As soon as the first shirt is produced I'll make sure to post pictures. Wish me luck!

-Stay Creative

"Oh, How The Cookie Crumbles" - Sugar Rush Series

2009-10-07T19:43:00.000-07:00

I'm not too sure if this will be the last image of this series, but overall I'm pretty happy with the way it turned out. For the piece above I switched gears and had a friend pick out the color palette. I figured I would give myself the challenge of working under a restriction to create habit of working under client direction. I'm a little concerned about losing some information when having these printed at such a small scale, but I'll put that in the back of my mind for now and just be happy with they way they are.

-Stay Creative

"I Scream, You Scream..." - Sugar Rush Series

2009-10-06T18:25:00.000-07:00

Above is the second piece of my Sugar Rush series. I'm beyond excited to see how they actually look when made into buttons. I've been trying to change my color choices and use ranged palettes. I couldn't be happier to be back amongst artist and creative energy. HOME SWEET HOME!

-Stay Creative

"An Apple A Day" - Sugar Rush Series

2009-10-05T15:10:00.000-07:00

After giving it much thought, I decided to start designing specific pieces around the idea of eventually have them printed on pin back buttons. The piece above is the first of a series of mouth portraits entitled "Sugar Rush". Who doesn't like a nice pair of lips right? And if your fat like yours truly, you prefer them accompanied by an amazing desert. I was able to complete all of the line work for this series while traveling. Meaning I can focus on color choice for a change. I'm excited to see how they all work together. As well as making sure to eat plenty of sweets while I color.... for inspiration of course.

-Stay Creative

"Male Determination" Line Work

2009-09-16T14:58:00.000-07:00

So as you guys may already know, I haven't been able to work on any digital coloring while I've been traveling. But the good news is that it's given me time to really focus in on my line work. The line work above is the last half of my tattooed lovers project. I already finished the female piece and you can view that a couple post below this one. I thought it would be a great way to show my process. As you can tell, I still have a good amount of tattoos to finish up on this guy. After that's completed I'll scan him in and start working on coloring. I have a couple ideas towards color palettes and I really can't wait to see how the two pieces look side by side.

-Stay Creative

Figure Studies Sketch Book

2009-09-13T15:14:00.000-07:00

Lately I've been mistreating my poor blog by not paying it the attention that it deserve. The reasoning behind my lack of updates is more then just my average adventures in potato chip bags. It's been a little over two months since I've actually been in Philadelphia. I set out on a journey across the states to catch a glimpse of life outside of the projects and so far it's been amazing. I'm currently in Arizona and will be leaving in a couple days to go pay a visit to the always colorful city of sin Las Vegas.

It's all been so inspiring towards my art work and although I haven't been able to work on any finalized pieces, I have indeed been keeping up with sketching. Above are a couple of the pages I've worked on in my anatomy sketch book and I hope to continue keeping this little visual journal. Pictures are so much more interesting then just hearing a person go now and now about something right? :)

-Stay Creative

Jonas Brothers - Portrait Sketch

2009-05-26T23:58:00.000-07:00

If you know me, then you probably know of my fascination with the world of celebrities. I admit to reading such respected publications as US Weekly and checking PerezHilton.com more than 4 times a day. I can't name the root of this admiration towards Hollywood, but I can say that it's pretty damn entertaining. I did this sketch of the Jonas Brothers a couple months back and I plan on doing a finalized piece of Disney's most famous siblings in the near future.

-Stay Creative

"We Should See Other People" - Personal Piece

2009-05-19T15:33:00.000-07:00

Although I myself can not afford high end fashion, I'm definitely trying to incorporate more designs into my work. The piece above came from an idea sparked by my admiration towards women (and in some cases men) who wear such excruciating accessories. If the shoe fits then you must wear it, but always make sure it looks painfully good.

-Stay Creative

"From Birth To Blossom" - Personal Piece

2009-05-07T13:35:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe that a year ago I finished what seemed to be the longest four years of my life. College, just like High School, left me with a bitter sweet taste in my mouth that still lingers till this very day. My supervisor Maria Blando was a constant helping hand, so I decided there would be no better way to say "thank you" than to give her a piece to show her how grateful I truly am. The double portrait above is of her two beautiful daughters. It depicts the ever growing gift of beauty a child is for a parent.

To every beautiful mother in this world, I wish you a Happy Mother's Day.

-Stay Creative

"Female Intuition" - Personal Piece

2009-05-03T20:59:00.000-07:00

One of my biggest inspirations for my work would have to be culture. I would love to travel the world and soak in every inch of it that I could find, but since I don't have that ability I'll stick to incorporating it into my art. The piece above is actually one of a set of two. I've been really interested in body modification and it's visual impact for quite so time now. This piece not only is a representation of the artistry of tattooing, but the comfort and pride many hold towards this ever growing culture. I myself don't have any tattoos, but I do have such an admiration for this art form.

I also have great news! Last Friday I attended Lady Gaga's Fame Ball tour at the Electric Factory and not only did she give us an amazing show, but I was given the chance to give her the sketch I posted on this blog not to long ago. She thanked me by giving me a kiss and telling me that she loved me. Needless to say this night meant the world to me because I witnessed first hand the difference art makes in our lives. Thanks again to Ms. Gaga, may you remain the living legend that you are.

-Stay Creative

Figure Studies Sketch Book

2009-04-20T20:34:00.000-07:00

If there would be one thing that I miss the most about the Illustration department at the University of the Arts it would definitely have to be my figure anatomy studies. What was first welcomed with the painfully awkward feeling of looking at someone naked, quickly became one of my favorite practices. The human figure for me is one of the most interesting subjects to capture, so when my four years came to an end I decided to independently continue my studies in the shape of a small sketch book. Here are a couple of it's pages.

-Stay Creative

"Pride" - Portrait Commission

2009-04-08T13:48:00.000-07:00

This is a portrait of a young marine by the name of Juan Torres who found me after viewing some of my work on the profile of a mutual friend. Needless to say I couldn't be happier with the outcome. Not only because Juan was wonderful to work with, but also because I've been trying to add more "male" portraits into my portfolio and this job worked perfectly.

-Stay Creative

Happy Valentine's Day!

2009-02-14T08:37:00.000-08:00

If you haven't already give your mom a big hug, your significant other a big kiss, and if your single like me throw rocks at all the couples you see walk by. So in honor of all that is hearts and Hallmark, I leave you with a quick sketch I did this morning of the love of my life Ms. Lady Gaga.

-Eat lots of chocolates and Keep Creating!!!

Took a While, But I'm Here...

2009-02-12T20:44:00.000-08:00

After searching endlessly for HTML codes and what have you, I'm finally ready to get this thing going. I'm glad to have a space to lay out all the ideas that are floating around in this head of mine.

The piece above entitled "Dust" is one of my most recent. It's a portrait of an up and coming Latino Vocalist, Artist, and friend Angel Sanchez. Working with a more neutral color palette was a bit of a challenge for me, but in the end I couldn't be more happy. The results of breaking habit I guess. The piece was featured in F.U.E.L Gallery's Grand Small Works last month.

-take care and keep creating