Happy Holidays!

Happy Holidays!

– Merrill

Click on Image to enlarge.

Busy at work! 1

Sorry I haven’t posted in awhile but things are hopping here at LittleRainey! This post as well as the two below are part of a series of images for some educational materials for Harcourt, Inc.

- Merrill

Please Click on Image to enlarge.
copyright 2006, Harcourt, Inc.

Busy at work! 2

Please click on image to enlarge.
copyright 2006, Harcourt, Inc.

Busy at work! 3

Please click on image to enlarge.
copyright 2006, Harcourt, Inc.

On Sale Now! Spooky Apparel

Come check out the new LittleRainey Halloween store featuring your favorite LittleRainey Halloween characters! Click here to join in the Fun!

Hope to see you there!
Happy Haunting!

– Merrill

Boo!

Ahhhhhhhhhhh!!!

Trick or treat, smell my feet, give me something good to eat!

Want to trick or treat digitally? Come check out www.littlerainey.com and get all your digital spooky needs to create the ultimate Halloween computer desktop!

Come join in the fun!!!

Click on the image to enlarge

- Merrill

Don't Be Scared!!

and don't forget to come check out Halloween at www.littlerainey.com

- Merrill

Ps. check out the Monsters below!!!

Watch Out!

You never know who is lurking around the corner!

Happy Halloween!

Come check out a little digital Trick or Treat at www.littlerainey.com. Hope you will come join in the fun.

Happy Halloween
– Merrill

Check back as more Halloween Cards are added.

NOIS Annual Gallery Show

Come see me and my Chefs as well as many other great Northern Ohio Illustrators in NOIS's (Northern Ohio Illustrator's Society) annual fall show at the Edge Gallery in Cleveland Ohio. It starts this friday 9.15.06 from 6pm to 8pm through 10.06.06. Check out the NOIS web-site for more details. Click Here.

Hope to see you all there,

– Merrill

Chef 3

Number Three! Click on Image to Enlarge.

- Merrill

Chef2

Number Two! Click on Image to Enlarge.

– Merrill

Chef 1

First try at Chef 1. Gouache on bristol board.

Click on image for enlargement.

- Merrill

Chefs

Some new character sketches for a current project. Let me know what you think.

Click on image to enlarge.

– Merrill

Final "Clean"

Hey kids, keep those teeth CLEAN!

This weeks Illustration Friday's topic of the week “Clean” is in honor of my most recent adventure, A Root Canal. Ouch!!

Please click on image to enlarge.

Enjoy!
And have a great week.

- Merrill

Final "Sticky" or "Sticky Situations"

"Sticky Situations" are the tense moments in time that create the energy in any story. Peeking the interest of the audience.

Hope my image peeked yours!

Have a great week
- Merrill

Don't forget to check out some of Merrill's new work:
• Remembering The Fourth
• 4th of July

Remembering The 4th of July

As you watch fireworks this 4th, remember not only our service Men and Women serving our country (Past and Present) but also remember the folks who had to step up to the line and keep this country going during WWI and WWII.

This is another 4th of July illustration for another client of mine. It is based off of a woman who at nine years old had to work small jobs such as cherry picking to help raise money for the Men and Women fighting in WWI.

Hope you enjoy! Let me know what you think.

- Merrill

4th of July

Its that time of summer again. When the flags fly high, the grills are a flame and of course sparklers are lit.

This is a work inprogress for a client of mine. Let me know what you think!

- Merrill

Final "Jungle"

Happy mistakes!
A few weeks ago on a blog, I read that there were no happy mistakes in digital illustration. I had to laugh only because I see the computer as an illustration enhancer, an addition to my art arsenal, another tool in the art box and if you know how to work your digital tools and programs there is a bountiful amount of happy mistakes that can still happen. For example my original idea for this week Illustration Friday’s topic of the week had included scary eyes, little kids and a dark jungle. But while creating this image I accidentally started to see other possibilities on how I could enhance this image. So knowing how to work my tools in the art box, I stumbled upon an image that I think is quite successful.

To me digital illustration is not a downfall to this industry, I believe that it can take artwork to the next level and If you know what you are doing those happy little mistakes can still happen.

Hope you enjoy this week’s submission to Illustration Friday’s topic of the week “Jungle”. Let me know what you think.

- Merrill

Final "Portrait"

The race was on and when Maurice thought he had lost he noticed that Jean Pierre had two more portraits of Madame Amalia’s cat to go.

Let me know what you think! Also check out my newest illustration Home Improvement. Have a great week

- Merrill

Home Improvement

This is an editorial illustration for a client of mine on home improvement. Let me know what you think.

– Merrill

Sparky's Drawings

In honor of Little Sparky. I thought it only appropriate to post some original sketches of the Peanuts Gang.
Enjoy

- Merrill

Charlie Brown

Here is a little story that can be an inspiration to all artist big or small enjoy.

- Merrill

There was a boy nicknamed Sparky, for whom school was all but impossible. He failed just about every subject in the eighth grade. He flunked physics in high schoolwith a grade of zero!

In sports, Sparky fared not much better. He did manage to make his high school golf team, but lost the most important match of the season. He lost the consolation match, too.

While he wasn't actively disliked by the other students, he was awkward socially, and it seemed no one really cared. Sparky never once asked a girl to go out in high school because he was too afraid of being turned down.

There was one thing that was important to Sparky -- drawing. He drew constantly and felt his artwork was pretty good. In his senior year of high school, he finally got up the nerve to submit some of his drawings to the yearbook.
Unfortunately, they were rejected.

Nevertheless, after high school, Sparky got up the nerve again, to submit some cartoons to the Walt Disney Studios.
Finally, the reply came ... Sparky had been rejected once again.

Sparky expressed himself the only way he knew how. He started drawing an autobiography of a little boy who was a
loser, a chronic underachiever, someone who didn't even have the respect of his own dog.

This autobiography might sound familiar to you. It's the story of the Peanuts cartoons, featuring Charlie Brown, a character based on the early life of his creator, Charles Schulz, who was known by the nickname Sparky, and whose work, when he died in February 2000, at the age of 77, had been known the world over for 50 year

Final "Sorry"

No matter what types of mischievous troubles our pets may get into. They are always very apologetic and sorry for what they have done.

This is my fifth installment for IllustrationFriday's topic of the week "Sorry". Let me know what you think.
Also, if you did not get a chance to see my illustration for last weeks topic "Angels and Devils" click here to view.

Have a great week,

– Merrill

To view all the images on Rainey Doodle click here or check out the new and improved LittleRainey Web-site

Final, "Angels & Devils"

It is nice to think that even Angels and Devils can still find Love!
This is my forth installment for IllustrationFriday's topic of the week "Angels & Devils".

Better late than never!

- Merrill

Final, "Fat"

Which is it you might say "Phat" or "Fat"?

This is my third installment for IllustrationFriday's topic of the week "Fat". This illustration was a prime opportune time to try something a little different. Let me know what you think.

Also, Don't forget to check out the new and improved LittleRainey Illustration Studio Web-site, www.littlerainey.com.

-Merrill

New and Improved LittleRainey Website

To all the LittleRainey fans out there. Please check out the new and improved LittleRainey Illustration Studios website at www.littlerainey.com.

Patience and hard work really pays off in the end!

-Merrill

Final, "Under The Sea"

"Under The Sea" — My second installment of the Illustrationfriday's topic of the week. Hope you enjoy!

- Merrill

Ps. Don't forget to checkout "Wood or Not to Wood" below and give me your opinion?

"A good thumbnail can go along way"

A good thumbnail can go along way. Throughout my career, the one thing that I have learned is that when laying out an illustration you really do need to work out your composition. With thumbnails you are seeing the positive and negative space, the different harmony within your shapes, light and dark contrast and much more. All of which, allows you to work out a visually appeasing image. To me thumbnails are the cornerstone of any good illustrated image.

- Merrill

Wood or Not to Wood?

To Wood or Not to Wood? During my illustration career I have always tried to mimic my traditional watercolor/acrylic styles throughout my digital work. Currently I am working on a new project for a client of mine, and I am trying to get that more folk like look. Let me know what you think whether I should use a wood texture to create the illusion of being painted on wood or whether the illustration is strong enough without it.

Or if you have any other comments or constructive criticism about this illustration, let me know.

Thank you for any input,

- Merrill

Final "Robots"

This is my final piece for Illustrationfriday's topic of the week, “Robots”.

-Merrill

Sketch "Robots"

Welcome to Rainey Doodle, "The Method Behind The Madness". This is an online sketchbook for Merrill Rainey, to keep his mind exercised in the field of illustration. Please feel free to comment on Merrill’s art and give constructive criticism as to what is good and what is not.

This blog was inspired by Penelope Dullaghan the creator of www.Illustrationfriday.com . Check back weekly as I post new sketches and or general info. or tips to see how my mind works.

This first preliminary sketch is for the Illustrationfriday's topic of the week “Robots".

-Merrill