Kevin Hulsey

Kevin Hulsey - Radiance of the Seas Cutaway Illustration

Kevin Hulsey - Radiance of the Sea Process

“Any subject-matter is no more, or less, complicated than any other if you break it into small enough sections. A big, complex object like a car, plane or ship is just 30 or 40 small illustrations that happen to occupy the same space.”

The career of technical illustrator extraordinaire Kevin Hulsey is nothing short of prolific. His client list reads like a roll call of the world’s major transportation, technology, manufacturing and entertainment companies. His work has been recognized with numerous awards from Belding, Best in the West, Communication Arts Magazine, and the Art Directors Club Of Los Angeles. He began his trade with an airbrush in hand, then traded it in for a Wacom tablet and made the leap to digital media. And his website is an abundant source of inspiration, with illustrations of mind-boggling complexity and accuracy and myriad resources, articles and tutorials.

This all keeps Mr. Hulsey rather busy—unfortunately for us too busy for an interview. However, with his permission, I’ve collected some links to images, resources, and an interview he did with another site:

Kevin Hulsey - Pickup Truck Cutaway

Pickup Truck Cutaway – Copyright © 2010 Kevin Hulsey Illustration, Inc. All rights reserved.

Kevin Hulsey - Automobile Motor Illustration

Motor Illustration – Copyright © 2010 Kevin Hulsey Illustration, Inc. All rights reserved.

“Even after nearly thirty years, and thousands of illustrations, it is still fun to see your work on a billboard or in a magazine, particularly when you aren’t expecting it.”

Big thanks to Mr. Hulsey for sharing his time and work with us, and all the amazing resources on his site!

Update: Wacom case-study on Mr. Hulsey. (now on Internet Archive)

All images copyright © 2010 Kevin Hulsey Illustration, Inc. All rights reserved.

Auto Show Eyecandy

Most people go to auto shows to see the latest bunch of cars they’ll never be able to afford. I go for things like this:

Bugatti Veyron - Máté Petrány

Bugatti Veyron - Máté Petrány

That’s a Bugatti Veyron stripped of it’s panels, and displayed in all it’s glory.

To me, displays like this are the best part of auto shows: the exploded and animated engine, the gutted drive train, the new Mustang that’s been cut in half  so that you can walk between it.  Seeing into everyday objects and learning how they work has always fascinated me.

I’ve also found that auto shows are a great opportunity for photo reference. Not only may you find a gem like this, but you can also observe all the various textures on the car under ideal lighting conditions.

You can see the rest of the pictures over at Jalopnik, here.