Richmond Illustration Inc.

Tom's Mad Blog

Monday MADness: MAD #5 Sneak Peek!

December 10th, 2018 | Posted in MAD Magazine

Here’s a sneak peek at one of the panels from my piece in the next issue of MAD, dues out Wednesday! READ MORE

Sunday Mailbag: Art Books?

December 9th, 2018 | Posted in Mailbag

Q: Besides your book, what books do you think should be on any artist/cartoonist bookshelf? It can be instructional or inspirational. A: Like many artists I’m a bit of an art book junkie, but like many artists far too many of the books I get end up decorating a shelf and and only skimmed or read once. There are a few that are pretty well thumbed on my bookshelves though. Here are some that I consider classics, and which are not left collecting dust on a shelf. I have included only instructional or reference books here, as “inspirational” books would be too numerous to list… READ MORE

Ultimate Live Caricature Book Is Out!

December 7th, 2018 | Posted in General

Way back in February I posted a rare link to a Kickstarter campaign for a book that was to celebrate the art of “live” caricature, meaning the kind that s done in quick fashion from a live model at a theme park, fair, festival, event or on the street. The brainchild of artist Manny Avetisyan , “The Ultimate Guide to Modern Live Caricature” features multiple caricatures of the different subjects that show the incredible diversity of the artform. You’ll see caricatures that range from cartoony to realistic to the bizarrely abstract, and anywhere in between. It’s really cool to see how different artists interpret the… READ MORE

A MAD-ly Good Trend!

December 6th, 2018 | Posted in MAD Magazine

MAD #5 is the last issue of 2018, and as such it includes public disclosure of stats like circulation figures. According to the figures (via Mike Slaubaugh‘s excellent MAD Lists website), total paid circulation increased for the fourth straight year (122,908 to 133,924 to 139,725 to 150,195). A modest increase but still a nice trend upward, and an increase of almost 30,000 since 2015. More people reading is always better than less. In other list news, I still remain 373 issues behind leader Al Jaffee for most appearances in MAD (Al’s at 505). Assuming Al retires after this new issue is out, that I am… READ MORE

Stuff from my Studio #12: Saddam’s Marble!

December 6th, 2018 | Posted in Stuff from my Studio

Many of the items in my studio are souvenirs from my travels here and there, and this ubiquitous piece of broken marble is one of the oddest of the bunch. Back in 2009 I was honored to be one of ten cartoonists who traveled to Iraq and Kuwait with the USO to visit U.S. troops stationed there. One of the stops we made on the tour was Baghdad, where we drew for military personnel at various locations in the Victory Base Complex. Among the places in the VBC we visited was Camp Slayer, which contained Saddam Hussein’s very optimistically named “Victory Over America” palace. Saddam ordered… READ MORE

Sketch o’the Week- G.H.W. Bush!

December 5th, 2018 | Posted in Sketch O'The Week

My Phoenix workshop group did a sketch of the late president George H.W. Bush as one of our warmups on Saturday morning after the news of his passing. Here’s mine after a little tightening up. READ MORE

Misadventures in Animation

December 4th, 2018 | Posted in Freelancing

I haven’t done much work in the world of animation, just having done some simple character designs for segments on the “MAD” show on Cartoon Network and for a film called “I Want Your Money” in 2010. More recently I did a bunch of “turnarounds”, both full and partial, for a pitch for an animated show that didn’t get picked up. I thought I could now share a little of that artwork here. READ MORE

Monday MADness: A Favorite Panel from MAD #2!

December 3rd, 2018 | Posted in MAD Magazine

Here we go again with another ridiculous choice for one of the panels that was my favorite to draw in a given parody, this time from MAD #2’s “Xander and Kam’s Sneaky Previews” written by Ian Boothby. Anyday I get to draw Harrison Ford‘s crooked nose is a good day. Also ALF! READ MORE