Curse of the Zombie Witch

| M. R. Kessell

Greetings friends!

Sorry it’s been so long since my last post. There was a lot going on recently.

For one thing, I now have an actual art space/office where I can physically put paint on canvas like this:

You can check this out over in my portfolio.

“Curse of the Zombie Witch” is the temporary title I’ve assigned to this piece. I’m open to better suggestions.

I hadn’t really planned out this post, so I will leave it there. Maybe I’ll show you my new art space in the near future.

Talk to you guys soon!

Don’t Forget to Like and Subscribe

| M. R. Kessell
Illustrated headstone, with decorative carved skull and flowers with an epitaph that reads "Don't forget to like and subscribe."

I don’t often like to promote my own merchandise, it just feels dirty to me, I don’t know. But the image above has been added to my shop at redbubble, you can pick up a print if you so choose.

Or just enjoy it on your screen.

Of course I provide many, many illustrations on my website or on social media for free, you should, uh, not forget to like and subscribe.

cartoon batboy looks out an old victorian stained glass window on a rainy day, the quote below reads: "Rainy days are a relief, I suffer no guilt about remaining indoors."

For instance, have you seen the latest installment in my original Batboy series? You can find him on Instagram and Twitter, hopefully he’ll make you laugh.

Until next time!

Enter Sadman

| M. R. Kessell
A sad batman turns his back on the bat signal because he feels they only call when they need something.

Ain’t that always the way?

We all know people like that, or we’ve done it ourselves. Make sure to check in with your friends and family just for the heck of it. It’s as simple as a text (although a phone call is good too.) Ask them how they’re doing.

BS with them a little bit.

They will appreciate it. And you’ll feel better too.

This is my message to you, internet. Now excuse me, I have some calls to make…

Coffee is for Closers

| M. R. Kessell
Illustration of a business man emerging from behind an office plant and a filing cabinet, he seems to be spying on someone.

I’m super excited to share this album art I created for CODE OF THE JAGUAR, a punk band from the “old, weird Philadelphia.”

This two-song single is streaming now, you can listen on bandcamp , and also preorder a physical 7″ record.

While you’re there, I recommend checking out their whole oeuvre, you’ll have these songs stuck in your brain for days.

And speaking of weird, old Philadelphia, in the 80s and 90s there was an all ages nightclub in the area called Pulsations, which featured a dancing robot. Take a look if you don’t believe me.

Introducing Batboy

| M. R. Kessell

A few weeks ago I created a random, ten-minute doodle. It was intended to relieve some pressure in between other more serious projects.

It turned out to be a new character. I call him Batboy.

He is able to voice some of my worries, my boredom, and other ridiculous thoughts in a single panel.

I have been posting him every other day on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

Follow me there if you’d like to see more!

All Hail The Cube!

| M. R. Kessell

Hey everybody!

I only have one piece of art to share with you this week, but it’s kind of a doozy.

I wanted to create an epic, science fiction/fantasy style illustration. You know the kind, it’s usually set in a desert landscape, there’s a giant monolith or mystical crystal floating in the center while human figures scurry about in fear or awe.

I inserted a Rubik’s Cube in lieu of an alien spaceship or a cyclopean monolith.

I’m not sure why. Maybe because the solving of this puzzle eludes me. Maybe because it’s a great Hungarian invention and that fills me with pride as a Hungarian-American. Maybe it was just a random thought. That’s probably it.

Take a look below at the finishing touches I put on this digital oil painting.

I’ve also added the above piece and a bunch of other things to my Redbubble shop, see below if you’re interested in prints, magnets, stickers, mugs or various other products.

I think that’s about it for now. I have a few new exciting commissions I am working on and I can hardly wait to share them with you!

Until next time!!

Inking a Sci Fi Illustration and Stuff

| M. R. Kessell

It’s a new week and I have a few new items for you.

Their meeting place has to be kept hidden. The robots that stalk the upper surface of the Earth would never understand. The kids would be laser blasted on sight. The kids’ mission? To read and discuss all the classics of human literature. That’s the basic idea behind this illustration that I have tentatively titled “The Book Club.”

Below you can watch as I ink this rough illustration and you can chill out to the hypnotic soundtrack.

Come for the robots, stay for the hypnotic soundtrack.
killer robots stalk the surface while kids meet below ground in a bunker to read and discuss books
The overall work-in-progress.

Greetings from Asbury Park, NJ!

Also this past week I revamped an old design and added to my Amazon T-shirt shop. You might recognize this slightly more macabre version of the grinning face of Tillie, an iconic sight from Asbury Park in the old days.

Click on the shirt to visit my shop or click here!

Asbury Park's Tillie as a skull on a tee shirt.

As a nerdy kid, being not super athletic or interested in super athletes, I kinda felt left out when others showed their support for their football or baseball or hockey teams. Below is a shirt I designed for other nerds like me. People who think they’re funny.

funny blue tee shirt that says "Go local sports team!!!"
groundhog celebrating a birthday with a party hat and a piece of birthday cake

Celebrate a Groundhog Day Birthday with these cards, magnets and mugs from my RedBubble store.

I think that’s about all I have accomplished this past week. I’m trying to keep busy and not let the stress of daily life derail anything.

How about you? Where are you at with your projects? Your goals?

I hope you’re kicking ass!

Until next time.