Larry Ross

Mailer, from the day...
Posted by Larry Ross at 10:08 pm on November 11th

He approached life and his career as a competition. This was from when he went a few rounds on the Dick Cavett show.

He was a rough and tumble, bigger than life character who never hesitated to say what was on his mind. Above all he was a great writer. They don't make 'em like him anymore. He'll be missed.

A book review cover. In this case, I did the McGovern and Nixon.

For the book review section of The Washington Post.

Comments (9)

Some recent business illustrations
Posted by Larry Ross at 3:04 am on September 23rd

For an article about difficult customers and busianess associates.

Using a predetermined bottom line to spur better business.

5 ways to attract the middle aged baby boomer market.

Comments (8)

I splashed into the Drawger Community Pool a year ago today!
Posted by Larry Ross at 10:45 am on August 28th

I've gotten to know the work and the personalities of a bunch talented illustrators and made some new treasured friendships. It�s been fun, educational, and inspiring. Thanks Zimm for putting it all together and thanks fellow Drawgers.

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Sailing anyone?�
Posted by Larry Ross at 9:31 pm on August 7th

I don’t know the first thing about sailing but when the publisher of a sailing magazine emailed me asking if I’d become one of their regular cartoonists I jumped on the opportunity to try it out. Most of my career has been as an illustrator and/or humorous illustrator. Most of the cartoons I’ve had published were in the purely conceptual visual-only vein. I had hardly ever done a gag cartoon and that’s what they wanted so I took the challenge. They’ve given me free reign and I’ve been enjoying myself doing them every month for 3 years. I’d have thought I would have run out of sailing ideas long ago. Here are some of them. (see more in my sailing gallery on the right.)

"Just out walkin' the dog..."

"I guess the honeymoon is over, Gladys!"

It always took old Smithy awhile to get his land-legs...

Walter always felt that the size of his dinghy really did matter.

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A few weeks ago we flew out to Colorado for my son, Ben's graduation..
Posted by Larry Ross at 2:14 pm on June 12th

I had my sketchbook with me on the trip and a couple of different size felt tip pens. This was in the Newark Airport waiting for our flight to begin.

I had a window seat and as we flew over the Midwest there were all these puffy little clouds floating over the landscape. I always love seeing the geometric patterns on the land defining the various farms, etc. As we flew farther west more and more of these irrigation circles that look like “crop circles” get mixed in with the rectangular divisions.

After flying over miles of flat, flat, land, the Rockies just seem to jump up out of nowhere and form an abrupt line of mountains on the distant horizon.

The day before the graduation we went hiking in the foothills of the Rockies above Boulder, Colorado.
These are my two sons, Max and Ben, sketched from memory (later that evening) on top of a large mound of boulders

The big day arrived. My son was graduating from Naropa. A Buddhist-philosophy inspired college where he obtained his Masters in psychology. He�s not a Buddhist, pre se, but he appreciates that approach to life and to psycho-therapy. I sketched this from my seat while the author of The Color Purple, Alice Walker, gave an inspirational commencement speech she titled, A Human Sunrise. While acknowledging the tremendous current problems of the world it was optimistic and full of humor and warmth.

Here�s Ben, the happy graduate on graduation day standing with his proud family. He�s next to me in the picture, and his brother, Max, is on the other side standing next to my wife, Nancy.

We celebrated that afternoon and evening�

Our flight was delayed a couple of hours at the Denver airport. A sign of the times is how many people were using their laptop computers all over the place while we waited

We had a safe flight home. Ben stayed in Colorado but he�ll be moving to Massachusetts to work and continue his life.

Comments (23)

This one's for JD....
Posted by Larry Ross at 12:21 pm on June 4th

...the city boy who loves his farm life, all his animals and his roosters who "make a racket all day long"...

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Ideas about learning to read....
Posted by Larry Ross at 9:12 pm on May 22nd

Here are some simple, direct pencil line sketches that the client used as finished illustrations. We were working under a tight deadline for a grade school teacher’s guide book and I was glad she agreed that this would be an efficient approach. I think it’s a gratifying way to get very close to showing the raw unembellished concepts.

This one illustrates a quote by Ambrose Bierce which poetically suggests that when Kant wrote he rode a house...

...and when Locke wrote, he lived in a horse.

Quote by P.J.O'Rourke: Always read stuff that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it.

read out loud...listen...

Comments (11)

PLAY BALL!
Posted by Larry Ross at 6:05 pm on April 1st

These color pieces were done on used pallettes.

Spring training is overe and the official Major League Season begain today! Here are some color and B&W sketches that I've been doing between jobs over the last few weeks.

Comments (10)

A couple of recent business illustrations
Posted by Larry Ross at 2:50 pm on March 2nd

The article was how to answer difficult questions during presentations.

These ran relatively small on the page and therefore required simple and direct concepts. I like the challenge of condensing everthing down to the essential elements and summing up the intent of the article in a humorous direct manner.
These are also the first two illustrations that I've had published that I did all the color in Photoshop. I might transition over to doing more stuff that way and I figure, I'll start out with smaller jobs.

Here are some thumbnails and sketches.

Articles that feature lists of "ten ways to", or "12 reasons for", can be deadly but, at the same time, I enjoy turning numbers and/or letters into characters and giving them personalities, if the art director is open to that kind of solution. This one was 12 reasons why it pays to hire older ,"Golden Aged" ,employees.

Comments (10)

Pitchers and catchers report this week.
Posted by Larry Ross at 10:50 am on February 13th