From Stephen and the Draw family to you,
Happy New Year (Eve)!!

I was running around the internet this evening, browsing through my standard art and design blogs to see what was new, and I came across Andrea Joseph.

Now, I love sketchbooks. They're the paths in and out of someone's mind, and they tell the gentle life story of just those few months which are included in a single book. Projects, thoughts, stories, words, doodles, pieces of inspirational work, photos, event tickets ... it's all part of the bigger picture. And it all tells a story.

Andrea Joseph has a sketchbook blog, where she puts up little bits and pieces of her sketchbook; some of her drawings I've included below. But now here comes an interesting part: there is a Flickr group where she contributes her drawings, a group entitled, "Everyday Matters". This group delegates an assignment each day of something incredibly simple. Whether it be assignment #1's "Draw a shoe", or assignment #200's "Draw something lucky", the array of style contributions is stunning. There are all skill levels, all medium styles, and a beautiful array of people submitting pieces just for the sake of creating.

Andrea Joseph's personal Flickr feed for this group can be found here, while Everyday Matter's pool can be found here.

The sketchbook is a powerful tool, and becomes a necessary companion to anyone who cares for creativity. I have between 6 and 10 sketchbooks, just for the past 5 years alone, but I know people who have 20 and more. It's one amazing thing to line all those sketchbooks up in my bookcase, see all their worn and loved spines in a row, and know that memories, frustrations and doodles abound are contained within.

For the love of creativity and fun, just
Draw.

(Images courtesy of Andrea Joseph's blog)

When I choose books to read, I usually go by the way that the cover is designed. I know this goes against the saying, "don't judge a book by its cover", but I can't help it. If I think the cover is interesting enough, I'll pick up the book for a read.

There's a book that I read earlier this year called "Hospital" by the British author, Toby Litt. This is a monster of a book, coming to almost 600 pages, and the cover is a chaotic mess of red, white and black with a clusterf**k of objects throughout.

The book was fantastic, but my focus wasn't there; it was on the cover. In 2007, the artwork won a V&A Illustration Award in the United Kingdom and has been interpreted throughout the world for the various language translations of Toby Litt's book.

But moreover, the award-winning artwork was based off of a doodle done by the author himself. Upon completion of his book, he drew out a simple idea of what he thought he wanted the cover to be. Then in collaboration with Paul Hornschemeier, an illustrator from Ohio, they formed the final design which was heavily influenced off of Toby Litt's sketch. Below is what was developed by Paul for "Hospital":

Below are also some images of the final cover, as well as a flat image of the full front and back design. But what I find the most impressive, is that the author not only wrote an incredible book, but also doodled out an award-winning cover design.

Toby isn't an artist, or an illustrator, or anyone with any kind of artistic training. He is a writer, and he paints pictures through words. But even he found something wonderful in the beauty of a simple doodle for his book and in turn, so did the the people at the V&A Illustration Awards.

I'm not saying that everyone feels the same, or that all doodles will win awards, but it's the idea that something so simple and brief on a napkin can grow to be something quite wonderful. It means that the boundaries are endless, and that there are hundreds of possibilities. It means that maybe, one day, your doodle has the potential to win an award.

Or it can be on a Draw t-shirt for people from all over the world to wear, and that's just as fantastic.

I know I want to wear your doodle.

So,
Draw.

(Images courtesy of V&A Illustration Awards and Flickr)

It’s frustrating when people think that they can’t draw, so they won’t attempt it. I often hear “I’m not a doodler” or “I’m not good at drawing” which is upsetting in a sense because no one is a bad drawer. We only perceive ourselves as so because say we don’t fit into the category of those like Degas, Monet, or Cezanne…but who said that in order to be an artist you have to fit the standard?

Look at Jackson Pollock for example, extremely influential man with his abstract expressionistic paintings, but they don’t look like art at all to many. Just a bunch of different colors splattered on a canvas really. However so so SO many people look at his work, me included, and see much more; he allows our imagination and creativity to kick in and interpret his art.

Go to the MOMA webpage and search “doodle” and see what comes up. Or just search around their collections and you’ll come to see that not every artist creates pieces that are shockingly realistic and instead are more childlike and playful. I found one artists by the name of James Debuffet, and this is a little blurb from what the MOMA wrote about him:
“It was not until he was forty-one, after a career in the wine business, that Jean Dubuffet turned decisively to art, and, during the next forty years he became a prolific painter, sculptor, printmaker, and experimental writer. With no systematic training, he railed against prevailing notions of good taste and official culture, preferring the spontaneous energy of graffiti and the art of children and the mentally ill.”

Let yourself go, stop thinking about it too much, and just put that pencil to the paper and see what you come up with. I love seeing my younger brother’s drawings, because even though they can be elementary, there’s something about them that draws my attention into them because of that very quality. When I draw, I don’t think about it and instead just let whatever it is flow onto paper, which is actually pretty fun because when you’re done it’s fascinating to see what it is you’ve come up with.

Hopefully this post is making sense, because I’m really wanting to encourage those who are not believers in that they can draw, to know that they can…you just gotta let go, relax, and just do it. Even if you are completely appauled by what you come up with, someone else may think it’s genius.

So please guys, don’t hold yourself back if you are and do doodle if you feel like it. Perhaps you can go a little crazy and show us by submitting to our next theme even.

DRAW

One thing we take a lot of pride in here at Draw is the attention to detail that we provide; that D.I.Y. mentality we possess when it comes to our shirts, our company and our lifestyles. All of us have roots in independent music, some of us have even been in bands before.

We know what it's like to do things ourselves versus sending it off to some outside source and having them do the work for us. We're not saying that it will always be this way, but we're going to try to keep it as close to us as we can. We've designed every piece of work you guys have seen, we even print the shirts ourselves.

Did you get a shirt where the colors are a bit off? That's Tim and I working until 2 am printing the shirts.

Did you get a bit of ink on the top of your shirt, a faded line here, a fingerprint there? All of those are the little imperfections of us doing this on our own.

Last night a few of us went to a really small house party to watch one of Albany's hometown bands, Caleb Lionheart, play a show. They were also followed by ICallFives and The Marine Electric; all three bands were fantastic and the show was in a kids' bedroom. It's weird to see music at that level, where the only people in the crowd are your closest friends, and it was a great contrast to the Fall Out Boy concert we went to earlier in the week. What really inspired me to write this post was a flier I found in one of the CD's I bought, and I feel like this captures Draw's mentality perfectly.

"I think we can all agree that music has taken a turn for the worst these days. We set out to move past the bullshit and get involved with artists that we believe are contributing to the scene in a positive way. LISTEN UP! is not only a D.I.Y. record label, we are also involved in booking shows in the New York Tri-State area.

Our shows are cheap, our merch is cheap, we're not about making money. If you're a touring band and need a floor to sleep on, even if we didn't book you, we want to help.

Between disinterested heads at shows, gas prices, promoters trying to fuck you, and getting a song on Rock Band, we know it can be hard out there for a band.

We're just trying to make it a little easier."

If you're interested in getting involved contact us at:

LISTEN UP! Records
173 Bleecker Street
Brooklyn NY, 11221

www.myspace.com/listenuprecords

We listened, and we sure had a great time last night. We want to spread the love and we want everyone who's supported us and our homemade shirts, to branch out and support local music too.

Oh yeah, and while you listen to your new local heroes,
Draw.

Music and art truly go hand in hand, they really do. So here at Draw Ltd., we can't sit here and talk about art and not veer off into the realm of music from time to time. So, such is this post.

Recently, as in last night, a few of the Draw staffers got free tickets to the Fall Out Boy show in NYC, the same night as their new CD was released. Now, having listened to the whole CD a few times over, I have to say though not my hands-down all time favorite record of theirs, the thing is pretty damn good. FOB are one of those bands that people LOVE to hate, and well…I just love to love them. They are wonderful live, I've enjoyed every show I have ever seen them in, and they pretty much have a fan for life because they have yet to disappoint me.

I used to be one of those kids who would stand off to the side of the concerts, arms crossed, judgmental ears perked at each band that came and played. I was there for the music, I wanted to soak in the live music, and judge how good the band was from afar. I would always steer clear of the front, from the constant dancing kids, thrashing guys and overall human-to-human contact.

Then came the 508 crew.

The 508 crew is what my roommates and I call each other (it's the number of our house). It was there that I rekindled my adolescent love of pop-punk, and it was also there that I was forced to venture away from the side line and into the black abyss that is the floor. The concert in question is a GREAT comparison to the FOB one we went to last night, so it was last night that I gained comparison to judge what I had experienced.

The first band I ever ventured onto the pit/floor for, was the pop-punk/hardcore outfit New Found Glory. It's a great comparison because like FOB, NFG has members rooted in the hardcore scene. They combine pop-punk appeal with the subtle roots of hardcore, showcasing screaming and the overtly enjoyed "breakdowns" that frequent hardcore music. So at the NFG concert, and on the floor with my closest friends, it was a mess of a man ocean from the second the band got on stage, until they left the floor. It was a sea of sweaty, signing, thrashing, jumping kids. I remember times where I wasn't even walking on my own, but just breaking and surging with the mass around me. It was intense, it was claustrophobic, but in the end it was so, so, so, so much fun. For once instead of listening to the band live, I was experiencing the band live.

I danced my heart out to the songs I loved, I sang along with my best friends arms wrapped around me, and I finally saw why the pit was always the place to be. In going to shows for over 10 years now, you learn a few things:

I know that when in the heart of the pit, if ANYONE gets hurt or falls, you stop and help them up, we're all at the same concert here. It's common respect. I know that the floor will get crowded, that it will get hot and I am going to get hit by crowd surfers. I know that I'll get water thrown on me, and I know as a whole it's me that the band is truly playing for.

I also know that when on the floor, DANCE.

But apparently the FOB fans at the Nokia Theater didn't get that memo. Instead they felt the need to scream out in their pre-pubescent high pitched voices, "OMG, I LOVE YOU PETE!" while they all fumbled with their phones to snap as many pictures of the "front man" bassist as they possible could. It felt more like I was at a Joanas Bros. concert than at the pop-punk outfit that I had grown up with. If the NFG concert was a sea of moving sweaty bodies, the FOB concert was what it felt like to be stuck in a tar pit.

No one moved, no one danced, no one did anything but scream out names of who they loved more, and tried to take as many pictures their little fingers could snap. It was a race to see who could post it to their Myspace or Facebook the fastest. Let alone the complete and utter disrespect given to the opening act, a hip hop performer who IMO killed the shit out of it. I'm so glad there seems to be a lot of talent running in the McCoy family, because I'm pretty sure he was related to the Gym Class Hero's front-man extraordinaire, Travis McCoy.

Has FOB gotten too big for these clubs? Has their once strong fan base of hardcore/punk/pop fans totally disbanded and has thus been replaced with 12-13 year old kids who can only buy their shirts at Hot Topic?

I sure as hell hope not.

The band was AMAZING, their new songs are wonderful, and their older ones have become classics in my eyes. They FINALLY played "Chicago is So Two Years Ago", which is Mine and Sarah's favorite FOB song to date. As they hit the notes, and the breakdowns and the cues for us as a floor to dance, to thrash, to enjoy the show came and went, the Draw staffers had to instead represent solo. We had to be "those guys" who everyone around them hated because we were sweating, knocking them over, hitting into them, and thus ruining their perfect photo op.

I personally wish for the days of small basement shows where the bands and the crowds were/are one. I wish for the days where the fans actually danced, and as Pete, Patrick, Andy, and Joe played their asses off, asking us to dance with them...to "pretend its like Chicago for just one song", sadly the crowd just snapped more pictures while us here at Draw enjoyed the ever-living hell out of a band we all love.

I TOTALLY understand that as a band they have to grow, and not only do I love that, but I respect the hell out of it. They have not been afraid to grow, to know that as artists that it would be boring as hell to play the same CD over and over and over again. In all honesty this has nothing to do with the band or their music, and everything to do with the lack of energy from the crowd. That sadly, kids are so superficial that those old Chicago basement show fans have abandoned FOB. I had high hopes that seeing the band in a smaller setting like Nokia theater versus the MASSIVE Madison Square Garden I had seen them in a year prior would at least get me closer to the band. Maybe that I could get that same small, intimate feeling that comes with the smaller basement shows...but alas, I did not.

Maybe FOB has just outgrown the smaller venue.

If NFG fans can do it, why can't FOB fans do so as well? I'm sorry we couldn't make it feel like Chicago for at least one song guys...we really tried.

I know this seems to be more a sad/bitter post but it's not. It's just a recap of Draw's night last night. Now if you don't mind, I'm currently listening to the WONDERFUL (Coffee is for closers) off the new FOB album. You guys should give it a spin.

And as always, while rocking out to Fall Out Boy,
Draw.

It seems like nowadays everyone is a part of some sort of online social networking site. In today's modern world it's the best way to keep in touch with old friends, make new, and promote yourself to others. Look at all the bands, singers, comedians, and companies that have been discovered through sites like Myspace (which we are all perhaps familiar with). You should Google "social networking sites" and see just how many pop up.

For some time I felt like promoting yourself on such sites was a copout, seeing as in a way it's almost too easy to do. Yet if you think about it, our society is changing into a more technology based one.

So us here at Draw, if you haven’t checked them out yet, have jumped on that very bandwagon of promoting ourselves via those sites: Myspace and Facebook. However Jordan and I both don’t feel as though this is the route to shoot us to rich and fame, because that’s not our goal for this company. Instead it’s another way to get our message and company out there and for those who support what we’re all about to help us spread the word in a digital way.

We have other means of spreading our love to people who appreciate traditional art or just keeping the arts alive and are constantly brainstorming other methods. Remember guys, we thrive off you: your art submissions, purchasing tees, helping to let others know about us, and also just encouraging creativity through any means you feel.

So if you’re man/woman enough to admit you check your choice of social networking almost every day and want to show us your support (which I first and foremost will confess to), join us. Then after you join us, go out there and DRAW because it’s fun, hip, and sexy.

It's hard to promote a company, no matter how big or small. It can take millions, if not billions of dollars, months of organization and planning, teams of people coming together with ideas, designs and methods, international coordinating and sometimes celebrity appearances.

Or, it could take one random weekend in Albany and a simple idea.

Below are some of the Facebook status updates used to promote drawlimited.com, and some I have to say, are quite clever.

Enjoy,
Draw.

**********************************

Johnpatrick visited DRAWLIMITED.COM and five hours later found the girl of his dreams...try it out.

Johnpatrick wants to know whats rhymes with chmalimited.com?... drawlimited.com..now go there!

Johnpatrick is pumped for drake and josh [www.drawlimited.com].

Lynn asks: Why did the chicken cross the road? To buy a Draw shirt! Silly chicken! You could have just gone to www.drawlimited.com.

Lynn is wearing Draw shirts all week what what? [drawlimited.com].

Lynn took him down and said "boys like you are overrated so save your breath...but I love your shirt! Did you get it at http://www.drawlimited.com?"

Sarah-Briley is surfin her page, http://www.drawlimited.com b/c it's f'in awesome, kthnx.

Sarah-Briley is http://www.drawlimited.com.

Sarah-Briley is reading the new blog that's on her website at http://www.drawlimited.com/blog/ It's pretty much a big deal.

Sarah-Briley is new shirts at http://www.drawlimited.com ...they're pretty much awesome.

Sarah-Briley is stoked about our updated site at http://www.drawlimited.com.

Jordan just got diagnosed with a case of the "www.drawlimited.com"s. symptoms include: visiting the said 2 times an hour, buying every shirt there, and looking fresh.

Jordan is wondering if you guys ever saw this really cool clothing company before (www.drawlimited.com) It changed my life.

Jordan's girlfriend just took a pregnancy test and it came back "www.drawlimited.com," did he just become a father?

Jordan just totally earned a free ticket to falloutboy next Tuesday. Ritz covered chicken anyone? (www.drawlimited.com).

Cassie is the one eating Jordan's Ritz covered chicken .... no one else. [http://www.drawlimited.com].

Cassie is LEGEN ........ http://www.drawlimited.com.

Cassie wants to naked woman Amanda because she saw her wearing a tee from http://www.drawlimited.com and wow, she looks good.

Cassie wants to naked woman http://www.drawlimited.com because it's just that good.

Cassie has a bunch of Draw tees to sell. Buy some. [http://www.drawlimited.com].

Cassie is Spider Pig, Spider Pig, does whatever a Spider Pig does. Can he swing, from a web? No, he can't, he's a pig. LOOK OUT!!!! It's http://www.drawlimited.com!!

Cassie is the new www.drawlimited.com.

Cassie sucks at being clever, so she's just gonna put this right here instead: http://www.drawlimited.com.

Danni is http://www.drawlimited.com changed my life.

Greg is really scared guys, i just saw a ghost. it told me to go to http://www.drawlimited.com so i did and now its spirit can be free.

Greg is pretty sure gray or blue is the cutest song ever [drawlimited.com].

Greg is just gonna leave this right here [www.drawlimited.com].

Zach can visit www.drawlimited.com multiple times a day without chafing.

Courtney is diggin the draw page. check it oooout {http://www.drawlimited.com}.

Amanda found out my girlfriend is cheating on me with a guy named Lenny >=[ at first i was pist then i looked at his pic on www.drawlimited.com & he is REALLY cute!!!

One of the über fun things that happen when you work with friends, is that it's just a ton of fun all the time. And when friends slip up, we're always there for one another to make sure they don't forget it.

Here are some photos from one of our most recent photo shoots that didn't make the cut. Every photo shoot Jordan makes a playlist to coincide with that good vibe feeling, and no matter what, that playlist is named

Draw.

I'd like to explain our logo, aptly named Stephen. He's a special guy, and someone who has undergone a lot of revisions from day one.

Stephen came to be after a few weeks of research, a lot of meetings and proposals, and about half of a Moleskin filled with sample prints, experimental treatments, and comic strips. There was actually a page with food experimentation on it, and it was to see how organic elements could work together to help create the identity for an organic company.

The ideas were whittled down, sorted out and a final direction was chosen during a meeting with one of the owners of Draw, Jordan, at a thai restaurant in NYC. Over a plate of classic steamed dumplings, we had the very beginnings of our stick figure logo decided on.

Using a stick figure to represent a company that's founded off the idea of universal drawing skills seems kind of like a no-brainer, but believe us, it's no easy task to flesh out.

Now we fast forward a few weeks later to windows and folding doors covered from floor to ceiling in yellow sticky notes. Each and every one had a slightly different look than the one before it, and all were possibilities. Teaming up and experimenting with Jordan and Sarah directly, we explored everything from calligraphy Stephen to burning Stephen, marker Stephen to ketchup Stephen and finally about a month after the initial pitch, and 3 months after the project began, we had our final Stephen logo.

Why is he named Stephen?
Because Jordan didn't like my name choice in name being Winston.
And also because it's a known fact that everyone in Draw loves Stephen Colbert.

Now every day that we find a stick figure on the streets, on a subway pole, sketched randomly on a bathroom stall, we take a photo. Stick figures now permanently mean Draw Ltd. for us, and for every stick figure we see that is rendered carelessly, or with love and attention, it reminds us of how such a simple drawing can represent such a big idea. Maybe one day in the future, we'll show off those photos and accept user submissions of their own "found Stephens".

Have you drawn a stick figure today?

Draw.