Spirit Magazine portrait

This is the first of a monthly illustration assignment I'll be doing for Spirit Magazine. It's the in-flight magazine for Spirit Airlines. Each month will feature a different, prominent business-person (mostly company founders, I think), and some of the history and philosophy of their company represented by a sort of brain-map. The brain-map was the art director's idea, and took some time to get to work.. but I think I've figured out a good process for future portraits.

"The Scarlet Ibis" rum label

I designed this label/logo for my friend Dave Kaplan, owner of Death & Co. (see last post), for a rum he had produced. Here's what Style.com said about it:

"Boozing up the maxim "If you want something done right...," Manhattan cocktail den Death & Co has crafted its own brand of rum. Dubbed Scarlet Ibis—after Trinidad's national bird—the versatile 98-proof tipple can be mixed into citrus drinks and Manhattan-style concoctions with equal aplomb. To produce it, Death's Dave Kaplan enlisted importer Haus Alpenz to help him scour the Caribbean for a round-bodied, dry-finish spirit with a full burnt-caramel note. He settled upon a three-rum, 150-proof Trinidadian blend (hence the name), which he then cut with a hydrometer and good old NYC tap. Better yet, the bar isn't keeping it for itself—watering holes and retailers on both coasts have picked it up.
About $26, available in NYC at Grayz, the JakeWalk, and Elettaria; in San Francisco at Alembic, Absinthe, Bourbon & Branch, Forbidden Island, Slanted Door, and Flora; in Berkeley at Wine Commune; and in Washington, D.C., at Central Liquors; deathandcompany.com"

We had a very short period of time to get this thing designed (basically 2 days), and had some serious limitations put on us by the importer. I was hoping for special paper, offset printing, and foil stamping, but the labels ended up being printed digitally (far from ideal). I painted the bird in the background (a scarlet ibis) in gouache - If you see the actual label it ended up printing too pale and grayed out. But whatever.. the rum tastes great! I think you can also get it at Astor Liquor in NY, by the way..

Death & Co. cocktail drawings

I made these drawings for the bar Death & Co. to illustrate some of the specialty drinks they offer for their catering service. The drawings, along with recipes, were letterpress-printed onto cards for their cocktail catering launch party, as well as used on their website (click "Death & Co. Catering). If you find yourself in New York with an appreciation for refined cocktails, make it an urgent goal to try Death & Co. They truly have the best drinks in the city (sorry, no vodka drinks), and pretty amazing food as well.

Here are the names of the above cocktails:
*Elder Fashion
*French 75
*Rum Rum Mule
*Fresa Brava
*Mothers Ruin Punch
*Rye King Fizz

Friend & Johnson announcement

I did these portraits of Matt and Joe -- the dapper new agents at the NY office of Friend & Johnson (my reps) -- to accompany their welcoming announcement. Good to have you on the team, guys! Thanks to Rafael Macho at Propelo for the design.