Welcome to my blog! Today I’m sharing my painting of renowned artist, Jorge Colombo. He also took the time to answer some questions… 

1. What inspired you to take up iPhone and then iPad Painting?

Jorge: I used to work with ink and watercolors but it was complicated to paint on location. Finger-painting on screens made the whole process more immediate. And I always hated having to wash my brushes.


2. What was your first assignment for the New Yorker like?

Jorge: My covers for The New Yorker aren’t typical illustration assignments, there’s no story or theme to illustrate. I just present stuff I have painted, and they pick whatever they like. I knew Françoise Mouly, the covers editor, since the 90s, and when she saw some of my prints published by 20x200.com she though my NY vision would work well in the magazine. I remember her pulling out old binders with dozens of New Yorker covers painted by Arthur Getz throughout the decades, to place my own stuff in context. Getz was the real deal, man!


3. What inspires you currently?

Jorge: A photographer called Ray K. Metzker. Especially because I’m spending some time in Chicago, where he frequently worked, and the city’s geographic positioning and architectural proportions still offer the same theatrical shadowing he dealt with so well.


4. Does traveling to new places affect your work?

Jorge: It’s a bit like making friends: every person has potential and deserves our attention, but we only really click for life with some. In some cases it’s the shock of the new; in others it’s the confirmation of a preexisting perception.


5. Your iPhoneography is just as stunning as your illustration in my opinion. How do you compose your shots?

Jorge: Thank you! I’d rather call it Photography, brands are secondary (you don’t say Nikonography or Canonography, do you?) I photograph constantly but, more than composition, what’s key to me is patience: shooting as many frames as it takes till all elements are in place, directing my subjects til the pose is correct, waiting for the right cloud or passerby to complete the image, etc.


6. What have you been reading?

Jorge: Right now I’m reading a book about Ed Fella and Geoff McFetridge, two of my favorite artists.


7. Where can people find your work?

Jorge: There’s my website, http://www.jorgecolombo.com (with lots of extra links in the About page). And 3 photos every day athttp://www.instagram.com/jorgecolombo

About the painting: 

 I met Jorge at the MOMA for a workshop a while back. I knew of his work from The New Yorker and ABC News had a story on him using Brushes. We hit it off and he even penned a brief essay on one of my art books. When we hang out in the city he usually sketches me on his iPad. This time I thought I’d return the favor. The painting was created in Procreate on iPad over four days. In total this is a ten hour painting from start to finish. My process starts with a light blue sketch (throwback to my cartooning days at SVA.), a graphite sketch (to refine and check anatomy.), block in stage (to lay down colors for light and shadow while defining the figure.), and finally the blending stage. (Using the blender tool at a low opacity to smooth out the skin and clothes.) For me it’s always easier to create a portrait when I know the person. It’s like Jorge was staring back at me in the painting. When I get to that point I know I’m on to something special.