Calgary's caricature artist

While the Comic Con has hit Calgary with more power than a winter storm, I was hired to draw at a party before The Comic Con parade. (yes...they have their own parade here!) I didn't include some of the more costumed caricatures as you literally couldn't make out their faces...these ones were.....tamer. I wish this lasted all year around...so much creativity all in one place.

Kelly Gannon, caricature artist in Calgary, Calgary characters, Kelly G

Just a couple samples that I have been asked to hang in a library, then give a talk to a group of young people. Instead of framing the cartoon-caricatures, I just bought foam-core, car pinstiping and hangers used for pants. ( I can see the puzzled look on your face now ). When the pictures were printed out, I put a border around them after gluing them to the board, I chose black for this. Then to hang them up, I bought the pant hangers, snipped off the wire part on top, painted it black, them used the clip part (to hold the trousers) to clip onto the board, added some wire behind it and now it has a different look to it. Below are just a few of the many samples that will be displayed on the walls.
Kelly Gannon

The pirate pics below will be on display in the library as well. I had to come up with an older look to the black frames and white matting, so first I took the matting out, poured coffee onto them, then rubbed the coffee grounds into them, then took a few brown Copic Markers and drew thin lines on them to simulate old wood...I think it worked. As for the frames, I took the black ones, painted them brown, then sanded them with a light grit paper so some of the black came through, took a small hammer and used the claws (back of the hammer) and banged it up a bit, then added some darker felt pen to the fram to also simulate old wood.

With these caricatures, for the display, I simply bought car pinstriping and applied to the matting and frame to add a zing to the caricature.
Kelly Gannon

Okay...this has nothing to do with drawing caricatures, instead, it's for anyone interested in weightlifting. I did something to my wrist lifting weights and it hasn't gotten any better after about five months....panic sets in then! Luckily for me, it isn't my right hand, or drawing hand, then I would stop lifting weights until it returned to normal ( if it ever would.).

But...I'm a great believer in when something goes wrong...it's usually a good thing. ( I know...sounds odd....stick with me bodybuilders.)

After much research and thought, I decided to change tactics instead of quitting. I bought a heavy-duty wrist brace that is reinforced with a steel band. Second, I thought about what kind of exercises I could do that would keep my wrist straight. Voila....more COMPOUND exercises. I had been doing far too many "isolation" exercises in the last few years and now am forced to get back to compounds.

So you know...."compound" exercises are the heavier ones that concentrate on major muscle groups, you can work a larger group of muscles in a shorter time, as well as burning more calories (takes a great deal of energy)....but....you need some serious energy, as it takes much more weight to lift to make it worth the effort. For example, today I worked my shoulders. These can be shoulder presses with dumbbells, military presses and Arnold dumbbell presses.

The "isolation" exercises work mainly one muscle at a time....maybe that's why my workouts were three hours long..

So.....the great lesson I was able to come out with after hurting my wrist and having to adjust my workouts with compound exercises was that I can have a more effective workout with less time involved. ( though, I will introduce the isolation exercises again after my wrist has healed.) I loved the feeling today of having my shoulders have that "good pain" feeling when trying to put my shirt on, and my wrists were no longer sore after the workout, and I knew I worked them far more doing these exercises than my old routine.....so something deemed to be bad, can be a blessing..................



Caricaturing female guests.

Personally, out of all the caricature situations we draw at corporate events, drawing the female is my all time favorite. Contrary to the male subject, the female usually DOES want to be drawn....a great start! I think "pretty" when drawing all females, prefering to cartoon as opposed to caricature the guest. My advice when drawing the female....draw cartooney!

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Calgary's Caricaturist

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Caricatures, Calgary

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Calgary Caricature Artist

Drawing caricatures of couples is a must when drawing at corporate events. First thing I do is see which of the two subjects are the tallest to get the heights right. I then try to put the heads quite close together to show a bond between the two...just my own personal touch...seems to work. The toughest part is when you get one drawing what you consider perfect, and the other drawing, well....not as good as you'd like it to be. My opinion...get the female caricature right!

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Caricatures in Calgary

Kelly Gannon, chacters in Calgary, Alberta caricature artists

Cartoon style caricatures.

As a caricature artist in Calgary, part of my career in drawing caricatures at events are drawing cartoon style caricatures of  kids. I do know a few caricaturist colleagues that limit their career to only drawing adults, but reflecting back on the last few years of business, I realized that about fifty percent of my business are kids events. ( my next three events coming up are kids events). There are tricks to having the caricature look the same age as the subject, as I've seen many artists drawings make the subject look about ten years older. One secret....keep the chin small....forehead area larger. Another...the distance between the eyes and bottom of the nose should be kept a fairly short distance, even if the nose is long....I know, doesn't make sense, but it does work. To sum it up...you can't always draw exactly what you see when caricaturing kids...but it does work!

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Calgary Caricaturist Drawing Kids

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Calgary Caricatures

Sunday evening had me drawing caricatures at an event at The Banff Springs Hotel. My gosh...what an attractive group of people....I felt like I was drawing at a modeling convention....doesn't the gentleman above look like Michael Buble? Fun night for me...thanks Stephanie!

Kelly Gannon, caricaturist in Calgary, Calgary characters

I surely won't win any photography awards with this picture....but Sunday night was a cold one up in The Rocky Mountains drawing caricatures at an event held at The Banff Springs Hotel. This shot here is one-third of the size of the hotel, feels like you're drawing in a combination of a palace/castle.

On my way to a caricature event in Banff on Sunday, I met up with fellow cartoonist Patrick LaMontagne. I had seen one of Patricks incredible totem prints of a parrot and like the professional shopper says..."just had to have it!"

I'm so glad I did....it looks as great on the print as it does on his website. Our house is decorated with the "palm tree" look and we've been looking for just such a print for years...thank you Patrick! To view more of Patrick's wonderful work and online prints, simply visit...    www.cartoonink.com      you'll be pleased!



I was asked by an entertainment booking agency that hosts kids parties to come up with a number of "foto frames" that had a theme incorporated into them. The child then dresses to match the theme ( costumes supplied by the ent. company) and photographs are then taken. There are princess frames, beach frames, superhero frames (such as the one above), etc. They were fun to create but I think I've learned not to have reflective material on the frame itself.

Cartoons Gone Wild! Kelly Gannon

Okay...the cartoons I've drawn below are not pretty....but just like my cat does, every once in a while, a cartoonist has to cut loose a bit. Actually, with about ten more of these cartoons and quite a few of my caricatures, a library has asked that I have on display a variety of cartoons and caricatures. There are so many more "Cartoons Gone Wild" samples that I have,if I posted them all, I could get "put away" for a while...........
Kel Gannon

Kelly Gannon

Cartoons Gone Wild! Kelly Gannon

Kelly Gannon

Cartoons Gone Wild! Kelly Gannon

I finished recording a demo cd for the band "Yesterday" about three weeks ago. Quite proud of this as the band did some Paul McCartney and Frankie Valli covers as well as a number of Motown tunes, helps when the singer of the group owns a working recording studio.

Kids birthday caricatures

Just a novel idea for a parent looking for an idea for their childs' birthday party. Kel Studios Entertainment hired me to draw the cartoon caricatures of the kids, sent over some frames and matting with me as well as scrapbooking material and let the kids decorate their own frames, then insert the cartoon caricatures. Sorry, had to leave before I could see all the frames decorated and the ones that were, the kids were picked up by parents while I drew the rest of the party....but you get the idea.

Fab Friday

In keeping with my "Fab Friday" posts what I consider "cool"......here is the penny car ( or as some refer to it..."the copper car"...), covered completly in pennies. Total cost....$380.00...MUCH cheaper than a new paint job....though because of added weight, in the long run, more expensive at the price of gas........but wouldn't worry about any one's car door hitting it in a parking lot......