On the banks of the Little Sioux River near Spencer, Iowa, stands a memorial to illustrator Gary Jacobsen. Many of you will remember Gary, who passed away in 1994, for his lovely pastel and scratchboard illustrations. One of Gary’s dreams was to return to his hometown and convert an old Episcopal church into a studio and loft residence. He died before he could do that; but last summer, in an effort spearheaded by his brother, David, Gary’s family moved the church to a hillside overlooking the river view. Called “Gary’s on the River,” the church forms the top story of a restaurant and retail complex. The walls of the restaurant, which opened last December, hold a lifetime of Gary’s original artworks, many of which were donated by clients who learned of the project. The formal dedication will be held early this summer, and I hope to be there. See the project and Gary’s work at http://www.garysontheriver.com. Two links follow, one of which is a report by Iowa Public Radio, which covered the church’s move down main street:
http://iowapublicradio.org/single_story.php?storyid=288
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=weHUMqLFxVs
For some fun, check out Bryan Ballinger’s work on the Drawn! blog. He’s been featured twice!
Bryan Ballinger has been promoted to Associate Professor of Digital Media Arts at Huntington University in Indianapolis, IN. A professor there since 2005, Bryan also contributed his illustration and writing talents to a new book on illustration called “Drawing Inspiration: Visual Artists At Work,” by Michael Fleishman. And, as if he’s not busy enough, he’ll be speaking to the Indiana Siggraph chapter later this month. Topic: how traditional illustration feeds into digital illustration.
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