Originally when I created my Mt. Whitney images, I did a Google search for the elevation. The source I found had it listed at 14,497 or 4418 meters. Apparently it was incorrect. That might have been the original assessment when it was measured in the 1800s.
Raise a glass to the brews from California’s Central Coast. This image was created as signed limited edition print for the Just Looking Gallery in San Luis Obispo, California. It is available in three different sizes: 12″ x 18″ on paper, 24″ x 36″, and 40″ x 60″ both on canvas. Click the link to contact the gallery. Read more
Naturally Elegant is the companion piece I created to pair with Simply Sophisticated. It celebrates the magnificent white wines from California’s Central Coast. This image is of a red glove holding a glass of white wine, Read more
“Simply Sophisticated” is a new image I created for the Just Looking Gallery in San Luis Obispo, California. Everyone is familiar with the Napa Valley and their world class wines. California’s Central Coast is an up and coming wine country with wines that rival those from Napa and Sonoma counties. Read more
This is my second piece in the exploration of classic neon signs. Imagine a liquor store that opened up in a 1950s strip mall in a Southern California suburb. The neon letters gradually spell L-I-Q-O-U-R one letter at a time. The sign then blinks three times before going blank and starting the sequence over again. Read more
Post World War II roadside Americana is a subject that has always caught my attention. Having grown up in Southern California in the 1970s, these signs, many of them neon, were are fixture on the landscape.
Yosemite National Park is one of my favorite places in this world. I’m an avid backpacker, so I’m lucky to live around 3-4 hours from the park. A recent visit inspired me to create these posters. Read more
The idea for this image just came from out of nowhere. A lightbulb went off in my head. A compact fluorescent light bulb, to be exact. That seemed like a clever twist to put on the visual metaphor for an idea. I always been a fan of Jean Carlu’s posters and have studied them in detail. Perhaps they are absorbed in my mind and now one is manifesting itself as a poster. Think Green! Created in Abode Illustrator.
When making the transition from traditional to digital media, the first program I learned was Adobe Photoshop. It came the closest to replicating the gritty airbrush texture. The problem with Photoshop was the files could get huge. For example, a 16″ x 24″ image with multiple layers would be come an unwieldy monster that taxed my computer’s hard drive. Also, a Photoshop image could not be enlarged much without distorting the resolution. In contrast, Adobe Illustrator files were much smaller and retain their quality if enlarged. The problem was that earlier versions of Illustrator were great for smooth gradations, but were limited with creating texture – at least I thought so. Read more
Standing at 14,497 feet, Mt. Whitney is the highest peak in the lower 48 states. It was named after Josiah Whitney, the California State Geologist in 1864. If you’re up for a challenge then go for the 22 mile (35 km.) round-trip hike to the summit starting at Whitney Portal. It’s on my to do list.
These images are inspired by the great WPA National Parks posters of the 1930s. Both were created in Adobe Illustrator using a minimal palette of flat color, similar to the traditional silkscreen process. At first I created the daylight version but then thought that a nighttime full moon version might work. Speaking as one who started his illustration career using an airbrush prior to the digital revolution, it was nice to be able to clone the original work and adjust the colors instead of creating a whole new separate piece of art.
Both Mt. Whitney night and day images are available at Steve Forney’s poster store