"E-Rik" ("Wall-E")


Pencil Marks: For "Wall-E" I decided to take a different approach that we've done before. I can't quite tell what inspired it or even what I was thinking when I came up with the concept of a Wall-E robot with an Erik paint scheme, but when I see this finished piece it all makes me smile. Of course it did take a heck of a long time to actually see the finished results, since Jake was taking his sweet time getting it done. But unlike the razzing I've given my buddy in the past this was one time I wanted him to take it slow.
I think it came out superb. Really one of the best actual works of art Jake and I posted on the website. Oh we post tons of pinups and pictures, but only rarely do we post something that approaches what I would call great 'art' and this is great art. - Tony

Ink Smudges: I don't know what else I could add aside from the fact I agree with everything Tony said. As soon as I heard the idea, I was on par with his enthusiasm in making this the best collaboration we could do. We also agreed unlike his usual line style, the nature of this picture required all the lines to be completely straight. That's why we didn't set a deadline on this illustration; I needed to redo every line in pencil with a ruler before I went back to ink it. But neither of us complained. It was as if we knew we couldn't drop the ball on this no matter what.
On a somber note, and one I'm attaching to this rambling years later, when Tony passed away in 2012, his wife asked if I could gather some of his illustrations so she could compile them into a book for visitors to skim through during his celebration. Even though Tony and I both worked on this, I had to include it given how incredibly proud we were of the finished result. And I am glad I did. Every time I look at this, I'm reminded of how we literally patted each other on the back afterwards for a job well done. If this isn't my favorite illustration in the entire gallery, it's pretty darn close. - Jake