Pin it up!

Yeah, so remember when I said I was going to try to be pretty regular about posting? Then remember how I didn't post for five full months? Yeah...sorry about that.

Anyway, here's a painting I did for fun that will probably end up being a Valentine promo or something. I've also been considering an etsy site for some time now, so be looking for that in the New Year. Until then, may your cockles be warm and your holidays holly jolly!


EDIT 6/28/10: Every so often you'll look back at a painting and see something you've done horribly wrong. So after kicking yourself for not seeing it when you were actually painting it, you can either fix it, or leave it be and never speak of it again. This time I fixed a GIANT nose and weird ear. I like it much better. The end.

Awesomely Grosstastic

Last Tuesday, while waiting in an extremely long line for a free slice of pizza at Escape from New York's anniversary celebration, I had the great pleasure of meeting one of the most influential illustrators for kids in the '80s. His name is Tomas Bunk and he was one of the original and principal illustrators for the Garbage Pail Kids. Yes that's right: Those disgustingly awesome trading cards you used to secretly collect and swap with friends in the shadowy recesses of the hallway. Basically the closest thing to contraband a ten-year-old could get their hands on, the GPK elicited only slightly less fascination than an older brother's pilfered porno mags.

Anyway, Tom is a god damned legend if you ask me. In fact I'd even call him an American hero, if he wasn't German. Best of all, he's still at it and is even going to have some illos in this upcoming Mad Magazine, a regular client of his. Check out some more of his work here: http://www.spalato.net/port.asp

Oh Yeah, and I also got to meet a llama named Rojo. Just goes to show you that waiting for an hour and a half to save yourself 2 bucks on a slice of pizza (despite the fact that an hour of work, even at minimum wage, would buy you at least 4 slices) can be totally worth it.

First Thursday Show or "Why I Have Umpteen Pictures of Doughnuts and Octopi on my Desktop"

OO-DA-LOLLY! I'm gonna have myself a paint'n in a show at Floating World Comics this upcoming first Thursday! Check out the poster with my art on it:


I gotta say there are few things more satisfying than painting doughnuts and octo-somethings. For more info on the show go to Floating World Comics web site (www.floatingworldcomics.com) or MySpace page (www.myspace.com/floatingworldcomics). See ya there!

Booze and Biozombies

Let me start by explaining why exactly I'm posting about beer on an illustration blog. Well, for starters, it's because I can. Secondly, it's a well known fact that all illustrators love beer, and thus I consider it a sacred duty to share this experience with my fellow drawerers. Whats that you say? You're an illustrator who doesn't like beer and you resent being lumped in with the rest of us borderline alcoholics? CURSES UPON YOUR HEAD, ye vile abomination! Slither back to the pit whence ye spawned and trouble me no more!

Anywhooo, back to the beer. On a recent trip to the neighborhood booze hut to visit a friend, I was pointed in the direction of Ale Smith Brewing's "Speedway Stout", which has apparently been rated "BEST BEER IN THE WORLD" three years running. I had never heard of this beer, but at that moment I knew that no matter how much wealth, power, and love I amassed in my life, I would die a bitter and unsatisfied man if I did not try this beer. That being said, me and Erin (my lady friend to those not in know) purchased the one bottle allowed per customer and trotted home in a giddy stupor.

So was this beer the end all, be all of beers? Did it take me levels of beervana before unknownst to the mortal coil? Was it indeed, the best beer I had ever tasted?

Short answer: No. Now don't get me wrong, it was a great beer and at 12% apv, totally worth the somewhat hefty price. Still, it wasn't anywhere near what I would call the best beer in the world, and it tasted pretty much like any other uber-powerful stout. My disappointment, however, was quickly doused by the fact that it got me trashed and allowed me the poor judgment to finally watch Biozombie; a Chinese horror (?) movie we picked up at the library, featuring optional English or Engrish subtitles and zombies eating sushi. Not exactly the life changing night I'd hoped for, but still pretty damn awesome.

The Graveyard

Every so often inspiration comes and kicks me in the groin. It gives me an idea so awesomely brilliant that it is all I can think about. I obsess about this idea. I gather mounds of reference, do tons of sketches, and ready myself to make illustration history. And then I am distracted by something shiny and completely forget about the hours of work I have just put in, and the idea goes to what I guess is best described as my idea graveyard. I have decided to post a few of these forgotten ideas that made it so far as the thumbnail or preliminary sketch phase, in hopes that through some voodoo magic I may get the urge to bring them back from the dead. Enjoy!


This was one of my favorite ideas that never made it to finish. I was so excited until everyone told me it was too random. Too random? I thought that was what made it funny....

Test tube babies...get it? Get it!?

I have about a zillion photos of swimmers in goggles because of this one...

Look a giant robot head...This one actually made it to the illustration board, but then I decided I was doing too many robot paintings. I now know there is no such thing as "too many" robot paintings.

Holy Moley, I'm blogging!?! (But only because I have to)

So, I started this blog some time ago, with every intention of writing fascinating stories of intrigue on a weekly basis and delighting all with my wit and fabulous life. However, being that my life is rather dull and I hate writing about myself, this is my inaugural post (about 5 months after this blog was started). So what, you ask, finally forced me to divulge the inner workings of my oh-so-normal life? Well a recent move is partly to blame, but more so is the infuriating saga of my missing website.

About two months ago my website ( www.johnnyacurso.com ) vanished from google. Long story short, no one can give me a clear answer as to why, and because I am somewhat clueless when it comes to the inner workings of the web (I use a fantastic program called Freeway, which even a monkey could use to design a site ) it has remained missing. Needless to say this has driven me somewhat insane, but even during my decent into madness I was able to come up with a few ideas to at least direct a few fans to my site, this being one of them.

And thus my blog comes to life! I will now try to diligently update this with images and stories and other fun doodads as I run across them. Also, if anyone wants to help my site come back to life, link me or mention me or PLEASE tell me what "robots.txt unreachable" means so I can once again become a googleable man!!!

Love and monkeys,
Johnny
www.johnnyacurso.com