Take a good look at the current cover of Alta Journal. You’ll see a giant woman lounging mid-span on the Golden Gate Bridge while engaged in a book. This isn’t an illustration—it’s a three-dimensional model created by artist Chris Sickels of Red Nose Studio. Sickels’s exhaustive process is a fascinating one, and we’re excited to welcome him to Alta Live to share his work on assignments like the ones he does for Alta, from beginning to end. Don’t miss the conversation, direct from Sickels’s Indiana studio, where he’ll answer our questions and see how he creates work that is terrific upon first glance and stunning when truly studied.

About the guest:

Chris Sickels grew up on a small family farm where working hard was the only option; things had to be fixed with what was on hand. Now he creates 3D illustrations and stop-motion animation with what is at arm’s reach in his studio, making his images come to life with textures, light, and elbow grease. Sickels’s illustrations and animations have been recognized by American Illustration, Communication Arts, and HOW. The Society of Illustrators has awarded him three golds and a silver medal for both illustrative and motion work. Sickels’s stop-motion animated films have screened at various festivals, including the LA Shorts International Film Festival and the Festival Stop Motion Montréal. Sickels has recently authored and illustrated the picture book BUILD! along with The Look Book, and he has illustrated the children’s books Here Comes the Garbage Barge, The Beginner’s Guide to Running Away From Home, The Secret Subway, and Elvis Is King!

Here are some notable quotes from today’s event:

  • On the cover’s subject: “As you draw, and draw, and draw, and try to work on compositions, these characters start to emerge. She just seemed to be a character that had all the properties that I thought a bookhunter, or this book fanatic, would have. She’s got a confident stance; her hair is kind of tidy. Then I thought for her clothes, if they could play off of the flag, the colors of the flag, maybe that would be a way to kind of throw tribute to California, to the region, but not be overly obvious. Even her green belt plays off, a little bit off, the green that’s in the flag, and her shirt and her earrings.”
  • On his world: “One of my main goals, like any artist, is to present the world through my own eyes. When I work in dioramas—and I have nothing against scale models—I really like to try to keep my world wonky. In my world, the perspective is always forced—or you could say off-kilter a little bit. Even the characters, their legs may be too long, or their faces may be a little too asymmetrical, but that’s sort of how I see the world. I try to fold that into the things that I construct.”
  • On different clients: “As a young illustrator, you have dream clients that you think will be the ones that will take your works to the next level. And when I got to work with some of those clients, it just was nothing. It didn’t quite live up to the hype. It always seems like the projects where you have a client that really has confidence in what you do, and you really admire what they do, there’s a trust there. That’s when the images that really work, work. That’s when things really come to life.”

Check out these links to some of the topics brought up this week.