Labeed Assidmi Design and Music Blog

Coolness on T-shirts

2011-12-27T11:49:00.000-08:00

A young man with great vision,smart, coolness, and add craziness! That would be the client I dealt with for this project. He is one of the coolest people I have come across. He just started his own business and following his dream by opening a clothing line of t-shirts with a very unique twist. Designing cool t-shirts that SCREAM your idea. Focusing on great concept ideas that touches our culture, trends, and sometimes our amazing childhood characters. Also one of his great aspects is that he features the artists and keep their logo on the design to promote them which I think is a very noble act from his behalf. The store is called "Qabila" and thats their website www.myqabila.com or their blog www.myqabila.blogspot.com

Below are two concepts we came up with and came to life.

In Arabic "Balout until death" balout is a very famous card game that people take very seriously sometimes here in Saudi. If you want to play it you have to really practice before you can play with experts or else your partner will yell at you for hours!

Mohammed Abdu is like the Michael Jackson of Saudi Arabia without the dancing of course. He has been around ever since I was born and his fans are loyal and love him. So we decided to give the fans a funky t-shirt that expresses their love to this man.

Hope you enjoyed the artwork!

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Saudi Royal Vectors

2011-12-21T11:37:00.000-08:00

Allow me to display one of the most time consuming projects I have ever worked on. It took me about 2 weeks non stop working on these illustrations. The amount of detail and exhausting but I enjoyed every second of it because I know it will worth it.

Illustrated are the Kings of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia starting from his highness King Abdulaziz to King Abdullah. I will take you in a quick design workshop, where I display only the stages of the first two kings so you understand the amount of work that has gone to produce each illustration.

First I create the outline of the illustration

I create a new layer, set my color scheme for the skin and start coloring the face.

I start coloring the (igal) adding gradients to create highlights and shadows.

The (Ghutrah) is colored with the different shades, and details.

coloring the rest of (bisht)

Adding highlight on the glasses and eyes

the detail of the glasses

That's me working on the illustration. (Thank you Sara for taking the pic)

That's me working on the illustration. (Thank you Sara for taking the pic

That's me working on the illustration. (Thank you Sara for taking the pic

Just like the first illustration - here is the outline

Please respect the hard work that has been put in these illustrations and dont copy them unless you keep my logo.

رجاءً احترام الجهد المبذول واحترام حقوق النسخ. يسمح استخدام الرسمات اذا لم يتم ازالة الشعار.

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Designer's mind! - comic

2011-12-16T12:10:00.000-08:00

This is a completely new field for me which is to COMIC!

alright I was having a conversation with my coworker and this idea came up and I usually write down any idea that comes to mind on my BlackBerry or iPhone. Every designer knows this feeling so much and understand that mood where you are so focused on your work and have this insane conversation with your self while working.

I am just sharing what happens inside the mind of a designer :)

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Newspaper article

2011-12-15T03:08:00.000-08:00

The article on the newspaper paper

على أنغام «الدو ري مي» يحلق الفنان لبيد السدمي بمقطوعاته الموسيقية بعيدا في جو كلاسيكي تخلقه لمسات أصابعة الرقيقة على آلة البيانو التي عشقها وأحترفها دون دراسه أكاديمية، فاستطاع بشغفه تأليف ثماني مقطوعات موسيقية مميزة ببصمة خالية من التقليد.

يقول السدمي: منذ الصغر وأنا أعشق الموسيقي ولم أكن أعتقد أنني ساحترفها في أحد الأيام، وكانت بداية التعلق بآلة البيانو بعدما أهداني والدي بيانو صغير أشعل الموهبة في داخلي، حيث إنني أصبحت أمضي عدة ساعات في اللعب على الآلة دون إدراك لألحانها الموسيقية، بعد ذلك أصبحت أعزف بشكل بسيط موسيقي أفلام الرسوم المتحركة، إلى أن استطعت تأليف لحن بسيط جدا مستخدما يدي اليمنى فقط.

وأضاف: بعد خمسة شهور أصبحت أعزف العديد من الألحان البسيطة ولكنني لاحظت أن كل ما أعزفه خال من الإيقاع فاكتشفت أني لا استخدم يدي اليسار وكانت تلك المرحلة من أصعب المراحل التي مررت بها في مسيرتي.. أدركت بعدها أن البيانو آلة تتكون من مجموعات مكررة فكل صوت له صوت مشابهة فوضعت عدة قوانين لنفسي لاستدراج الموسيقى من الأحساس، فتعلمت الكثير من أخطائي، ففي المراحل الأولى كنت أعزف لوحدي فقط وأمتنع عن العزف أمام الآخرين خوفا من النقد. وأشار إلى أن الموسيقى تبدأ بتأثير عاطفي إما عن حدث أو مشاعر متأججة أو موقف صعب، يجعل العازف يبحر في الخيال عند العزف.

وذكر أنه لم يلتحق أبدا بأي معهد موسيقي، لكن خلال إقامته في أمريكا (10 سنوات) كان حريصا على الذهاب إلى غرف الجامعة المخصصة للموسيقى وكان يمضى الساعات في التعلم على البيانو، وخلال السنة الأولى من دراسته الجامعية كان يعزف لمدة طويلة وعند نهاية اللحن سمع تصفيقا من خارج الغرفة من قبل الطلاب الذين استأذنوا للدخول وسماع المقطوعة، لافتا إلى أنه استطاع تأليف ثماني مقطوعات موسيقية.

رابط المقالة:

8 مقطوعات تحـلـق بـعـازف البـيـانـو فـي سـماء الإبداع

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Classic Saudi - illustration

2011-12-14T14:12:00.000-08:00

It has been awhile since I posted something and showed you the steps so here is a the stages this illustration has gone through.

Concept: After dealing with several closed minded people like this gentleman right here. I decided to come back at them with this illustration and express how I feel. I am not targeting a specific family name or something I am rejecting everyone who carries this mentality who thinks because he is the son of so and so he is better than everyone.

Translation::

title: I am a classic Saudi

fine print: warning this type of has surprising powers and hates everyone in the world except his family and tribe of course!

Now lets see how did illustration come together.

at first it was just a simple sketch using a pencil then I added think outlines with a black pen to give it depth. It was just a picture taken from my BlackBerry.

on photoshop I extracted the white shade of the paper, enhanced the contrast of the sketch, and deleted distracting lines.

Created a new layer behind the outline layer and selected a hard edged brush to give a grungy looking effect. Two shades of black were used to project the folds.

Still working on the (bisht) and adding the golden edges. As you can see I am being messy which is the style I am going for here. Also if you notice I am not paying that much attention to the inner edges because I will cover them with another layer later.

Created a new layer and started to color the face and added different shades and colors. I used the same brush but I only adjust the size to go into detail or color big areas. Knowing your shortcuts is extremely useful and makes things easier.

These are the layers behind the outline layer. And I also added highlights

This is the final sketch, then I placed it on textured paper and wrote my comments in Arabic.

Your feedback makes me happy.

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(video) acting on a little skit

2011-11-17T13:49:00.001-08:00

I was asked to do a little acting for a contest in our company. A project that got me involved with some talented people with the camera.

(video) Composing for a documentary

2011-11-16T16:16:00.001-08:00

A new challenging project that has pushed me to new boundaries. I always play piano and compose what I feel and whatever sounds good to my ears. This was the first time I am composing music with very strict instructions such as the length of the piece, the type of rythme, and tempo. It was a very different experience and made me look at music differently. I always thought of playing music to be the main element that people engage with. However this time I was assigned to compose music that is hopeful and significant yet not too dominating the visual to become a background music. In other words my music was a supporting element to the documentary and effects the viewer without realizing it.

hand drawn

2011-11-16T05:11:00.001-08:00

It has beed awhile since I have posted my artwork. I would like to thank all of you who have sent me messages and emails asking about me and requested to see more of my work. It makes me feel appreciated and it certainly gives me a one hell of a boost. I have been extremely busy with alot of exciting projects that will be posted very soon.

Today's post is different from the usual digital artwork. Here I showcase snapshot of my hands artwork using pens, pencils, charcoal, oil, colored markers, and other mediam. Some of these sketches are the beginning of a design project that you can recognize, some are art study cases, and some are just personal practice drills.

oil painting

colored markers

dry pen

pencil and marker

charcoal

fine ink

pencil and pen

marker, pencil, pen

pen

pencil, pen, marker

pencil, pen

pen

pen, pencil

pen

charcoal

pen

pen, pencil

pen

marker

عبد الله الحواس - illustration

2011-09-11T01:16:00.000-07:00

رسمه كاركاتوريه لصديقي الكاتب والمصور والفنان عبدالله الحواس
An illustration for my friend Abdullah Al-Hawwas.

Ethra School - logo and identity

2011-08-24T16:07:00.000-07:00

Ethra School was such a delightful project I had to work with a lovely client who is absolutly passionnent to make a difference in her students lives by offering the best methods in education. The school is designed to give the student a creative environment and appreciation. Even when I was providing options for the school she was sharing the options with her students to get their feedback that's how much she cared for them. After briefing me about the school and their structure I took a tour in the classes and I loved the decorations she set up. The place was colorful and makes you happy just by walking in the hallway you feel like a giant kid because the chairs are so small. The client was very clear from the beginning that she doesn't want a traditional logo. She was looking for something unique and attractive.

Anyhow I was looking for a common tool that all ages in her school must use. I was thinking paper, books, pencils, bags, and other school items but what got my attention was the colored pencils. Below is the logo chosen and I have to admit seeing my logo on such a great school as this makes me proud.

(video) Spirit of Wael

2011-08-21T23:43:00.000-07:00

A very special project to a very special friend of mine. Wael has been one of those rare characters that can win you in matter of seconds. Smartness, brave, kind, and easy going are just a few of things I can say about him. So as he confirmed with us that he is going to the states to do his masters his friends from everywhere gathered and planned an amazing fair well evening for him. It was an amazing group of talents put together to produce one of the most emotional nights of my life. During that event we laughed, cried, hugged and were just plain silly. here is the illustration that I did for the event to become the symbol and the main element. The typography was done by my talented Ali Al Hayan.

main logo

pullup and theme

Calligraphist/Designer Ali Al Hayan

Wael Al Othman (the man of the event) compare the illustration to him does it look like him?

and last but not least, I sat in front of my piano with all the emotions from that event still inside me and I played the piano. And in a matter of 40 min this piece was created. The quality isn't as I hoped but still holds the essence of the piece:

Eysh Elly? إيش اللي؟

2011-08-08T13:46:00.000-07:00

One of of what I call "Saudi Youtube Icons". I enjoy his clips and his humor so I just simply took one of my favorite scenes and illustrated it. Below is the clip where I got this frame from, its more targeted to the Saudi culture so if you dont speak Arabic the clip wont really mean much to you.

fighter - illustration

2011-07-30T13:41:00.000-07:00

A 40 min illustration. I just missed drawing characters.

رمضان كريم - امساكية ٢٠١١ Ramadan Imsakeyah 2011

2011-07-29T01:07:00.000-07:00

Below are two options for the Ramadan Imsakeyah 2011. They have approved the first option and that is what you will be seeing printed. Second one is another option that I wanted it to see the light. You can click on the images below and you can print them.

Click on image for detail

Saudi Aramco new website launch

2011-07-22T20:10:00.000-07:00

Saudi Aramco launched a new modren website that is fresh, modern, and effective. The old website looked like it was designed in the late 90's where FLASH was super cool! I was assigned to handle the advertising for the launch. Let's be clear on this I did not design the website, website is a skill I have on the list to develop and learn.

this is the first teaser ad, showing men working and constructing a huge plat form and you only see parts of the what they are working on. Keeping the viewer wondering.

After one week the ads change into this, which is more men working and constructing and here you see more parts of the project they are working on.

After one week you see the reveal of the project and it is completed with the man posing in a presentational gesture.

Saudi Aramco Cultural Program 2011 برنامج ارامكو السعودية الثقافي

2011-07-20T19:32:00.000-07:00

Saudi Aramco Cultural Program 2011, is certainly one of the most challenging projects I have worked on due to the size of this occasion. This year Saudi Aramco has pushed the envelop and made a huge leap in social responsibility by offering valuable media classes that lead by the best in the world, Barcelona Football Club training routines, amazing theater experience, and alot more. All of that is free of charge and to the public.

As a graphic designer being part of this huge public service that is appreciated by everyone makes me proud and seeing my logo and artwork worn by our hard working volunteers is every designer's dream.

This logo has gone through many changes and the team worked really hard to make this even happen. I will continue posting images that has been taken in the event on this post.

Media Coverage:

Website:
www.saudiaramco-cp.com

Photos:

Camel Book cover design

2011-07-19T18:06:00.000-07:00

I was assigned to fix the photos and design the cover, and templates of this book. Editing the images were not challenging because images of camels and nature usually are not pretty for example you dont want to see a fly or saliva also beautify the sky and adding some fake clouds and sunsets. What is really fun about our jobs as designers we get to learn from the content we are designing for. Here I learnt about interesting facts about camels and behavior, just some extra knowledge while your doing your job. Well I leave you to it, below are samples of the design and the presentation of it.

click on image for detail

(video) درس ١ - الرسم بالفوتوشوب

2011-07-18T00:26:00.000-07:00

في هذا المقطع اشرح فيه اساسيات الرسم بالفوتوشوب وكيفيه التحكم بالفرشه ومن ثم نقوم بالرسم باستخدام صوره

علاء وردي Alaa Wardi

2011-07-13T18:49:00.000-07:00

A very talented man who I have been listening to his music and I made a quick sketch of him. He keeps coming with better music all the time and I wish him nothing but the best. This video is where I got the reference for the illustration:

Saudi Aramco History book options

2011-07-13T17:15:00.000-07:00

Samples of options for the Saudi Aramco History Book.

Saudi Aramco Cultural Program - kids zone

2011-07-13T14:07:00.000-07:00

A first attempt to do a Panoramic image. I used my iPhone and modified the image a little bit on photoshop. click on the image to see more detail.

Back and Now

2011-07-13T12:03:00.000-07:00

I remember having a picture with my cousin Ali and I thought it would be interesting to have him pose and take a seat my son Mohannad to duplicate the old and new.

it feels like that - self portrait

2011-07-06T14:22:00.000-07:00

I was once at a music store and I stood before a captivating keyboard that helped me to achieve things I thought it couldn't be possible without an expensive studio. I was playing on this machine and trying new things and my brain was just full of ideas that day. Anyway I was with my wife, and relatives so they left me at the store and continued shopping. Little after that my wife came and took the below picture without me knowing then waved her hand infront of my face. So I stopped playing and removed my headphones and came back to reality and she asked "do you have any idea how long you have been standing there?" and I said "what 20 min?" she's like "20 min?! you have been standing here for more than an hour!" and I checked the time and I realized that I was in my own little world for about an hour and 40 min.

So I took this simple image and I wanted to show how it felt when I was playing on one of the best instruments I have ever touched and one of my goals is to buy it. Just in case you are wondering what is it, its a Yamaha Motif XS8. If you want to hear some of the crazy things this machine does check this guy out Ronald Jenkees - Throwing Fire

share your thoughts!

Lamees & Osama - wedding logo

2011-07-02T06:39:00.000-07:00

This logo along with my piano performance were my gift to my dear sister Lamees. It really feels nice to be able to contribute in a special day like this with something you love to do.

Music Fusions DVD

2011-06-16T02:11:00.000-07:00

Illustrated the instruments and designs the package. The image on the cover have been great modified.

SheNail - logo + design process

2011-06-06T13:57:00.000-07:00

This project is one of the most feminine projects I have ever worked on. It was a very unfamiliar territory for my mind to think as a girl. The client contact me and briefed me quickly of the logo and she had an idea in mind already. She sent a rough sketch of what she wanted (on the right) and she said this is the idea but we don't know how to execute it. After I gathered all the information from my client to understand the nature of the business and the target audience and other aspects I moved to the next step.

My next step was to find styles of hands holding a pen or a brush. Also I was looking for styles such as illustrations, photography, cartoon, and iconic.

From the images gathered I illustrated a hand and picked a typeface that gives the feeling of a handwriting. The font was modified to show a fun teenaged girl persona. The feedback from these options was very positive but the client requested that the color is too teenaged and suggested a moroon color. Also to change the brush to have it look more like a manicure brush.

I had no idea what a manicure brush looked like so I searched and found alot of different types. So I asked Areej (my wife) to show me her manicure brush and to model. The image didn't need to be fancy I just needed a reference to trace. Below are the results of that image.

After I was done with those options I was happy but not not fully satisfied for some reason. So I starting looking for any inspiration around me and viewed many images to find a new approach. Then finally these images below sparked an idea!

I liked the image of the girl on the top and the shadows of her hand over her face gave me an idea. I illustrated the girl and modified it to fit my needs and I had to remove unnecessary details such as the hair and the ring. Then I picked a font I like very much but never had the chance to use it in any design. After that I developed an additional set of options with the new approach away from the hand that had been suggested by the client. I presented all the options all together as you can see it says (options 6).

The client completely fell in love with the additional optional and she picked the with option with the curvy brush stroke. Also she requested for the eyes to be removed because it is not allowed to have a logo of a human face in Saudi Arabia. Let us not get into this issue.

From left to right: original option, eyes removed, eyes removed and part of the face is removed to create balance.

Final logo and identity. Hope you enjoyed this post as much as I did working on the project it self.

Here are some images from the store after the grand opening:

(video) Lost in Dreams - Labeed Assidmi

2011-06-06T07:06:00.000-07:00

This is a melody that I heard while I was dreaming. I woke up and luckily I can still remember it so I played it and I polished it to become a complete piece.

It was a beautiful confusing dream.

The talented person behind the beautiful fotage is Hythem Daham. check out his work on www.hythemdaham.com/

Eid Adha - عيد الاضحى

2011-05-26T09:18:00.000-07:00

Designing for the Eid is a yearly challenge that I face because you almost every designer is going to produce something so you want to be unique different and most of all original. The design focuses on safety on that special day and it basically says "have fun but be safe". Safety should be always considered because one you ignore it your play time will end with a crises. In terms of design the style of this design is a very new approach for me and I loved pushing my limitations. I also got into alot of detail to create the buildings and environment. Although after surveying many audiences they liked the idea and the design and my immediate management as well. However; the decision makers thought it was "childish and people wont get it".

Well I hope you like it. Please share your input and feedback. I like criticism because it gives me a new prospective of the design and I considere it in my coming designs.

"I'm tired of being bad" Devil

2011-04-14T04:15:00.000-07:00

There was a time in my life that I had no faith in Love or pure innocent or and believing in them were considered a sign of weakness to me. I still see alot of people say " I trust no one" or " I depend on myself and I will never give in to anyone." Usually those are people who have fallen in love and have ben SLAPPED really hard by it, well guess what? everyone has. You are not the first nor the last you are just part of a very long chain that will continue until the end of time. Anyhow what happens after that SLAP is very interesting for girls. Most of them they start hating EVERY MALE on the planet thats why you hear "guys are jerks" after awhile they start to forget that slap and feel lonely again and go back to open their hearts but very carefully and wisely unlike the first time where trust was completely blind. There are alot of recovery methods but I am mentioning the most common.

On the other hand for guys when they get SLAPPED most of them turn into what is known as PLAYERS. To guys this is the highest level of coolness to guys where they turn into "hunters" and their target is to get as many girls as possible. To do that he would lie, cheat, fake, and back stap anything to reach his target. If you ask any player you know "ok so you dated all these girls , do you have a number you want to reach and then stop?" they will say no! They are simply just hunting as many as they can regardless to deseases, reputation, or even law ( I will not get into how it is a sin because that concept doesn't exist in a players mind). This "hunting" starts as a recovery method from the SLAP then becomes a habit and entertaining.

This topic is a very long one but I wanted to say to all of you who are playing around when are you going to stop and realize that you are wasting so much energy, money, focus, and life career opportunities just to have fun? Why most people are waiting for a crises to happen until they decide to stop? When is the devil inside you will understand that this joy is hurting himself and many people?

Take away the power you have given to your devil and brace your will power.

Make your devil confece " I'm tried of being BAD!"

2011 Saudi Aramco Diary

2011-03-24T01:18:00.000-07:00

The Saudi Aramco Diary book is a very famous product that a few people know who is responsible for it. Also the amount of work this product requires is beyond belief for you have to present themes, content, design for each month, cover material, Arabic and English reviews, and alot more. This year's content I developed and researched for the content and did all the illustrations. I am very proud of this product for it has improved tremendously in compression to the previous years.

Actual images

Main theme brief. Arabic

Main theme brief. English

Below are the separation pages inserted before each month. These separations were designed to give an interesting fact each month for the user. Also they were printed in Arabic and English but I am showing only one version to avoid repetition.

If you want to request your own diary for your company. You can simply send me an email at labeedoo@gmail.com

دام عزك يا وطن

2011-03-11T08:43:00.000-08:00

Let us mark March 11, 2011 as the Day Saudi Arabia stood together.

When I am on the piano ...

2011-03-10T13:14:00.000-08:00

The feelings that over come me when I start playing piano is a feeling I find very hard to express. It is amazing how pressing on white and black keys can change everything within me.

(video) Solitude - Labeed Assidmi

2011-03-02T12:13:00.000-08:00

I have been reading alot of inspirational books and the more I implement and experiment the theories and how they actually work and changes everything. How many of us feel some what confused of what is happening in his/her life? I encourage everyone to question your life and to bring out their inner child whom was ignored under the illusion that it is not an adult-like.
Here are some questions for you:
When was the last time you tired something completely new?
How do you feel waking up in the morning to go to work, collage, or school?
Do you learn something new everyday?
How many GREAT ideas you have thought of doing but you failed to do them because you convinced your self that you don't have time?(failures are great in finding excuses, successful people look for answers)

I gladly have arranged at least 30 min - 2 hours daily to sit down with myself in SOLITUDE and plan out my actions, study my thoughts, focus on my goals, and question myself alot of questions.

"The cure for too much to do is solitude and silence."
Ken Blanchard and Phil Hodges

الملك عبد الله - الحمد لله على السلامة

2011-02-25T00:53:00.000-08:00

Please respect copyrights, if you want to use this illustration keep my logo and my website

الرجاء احترام حقوق الطبع، اذا اردت حفظ واستخدام التصميم الرجاء عدم ازالة الشعار والموقع

Regardless to what is happening in other Arab countries. We Saudis truly love our king for what he has done for us. Once he took over he has done this nation great accomplishments. The list is long but one of the major proofs of his great vision is the amount of scholarships given to young Saudis who are studying abroad and will come back with valuable knowledge to lead this country to new heights.

This illustration is the least that I can do to show my appreciation to my leader and role model.

Ras Tanura - Saudi Aramco program

2011-01-16T13:11:00.000-08:00

I am simply living my graphic design dream. I get to be involved in noble projects and after a few days I see my design printed everywhere. It really gives me a sense of great accomplishment to see my work branded and appreciated and more so worn by people. This project was a Saudi Aramco CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) project, the event was huge and listed a great deal of activities but mainly focused on cleaning the beach, diving and cleaning the shores, and planting trees. Among those activities was painting on the benches of the Kornich to add a beautiful touch and to cover the volger words that has been sprayed on public property.

First I would like to take you a step by step of the main elements of the logo and then showcase some images from the event.

and here are some of the event images, try to find my logo:

thank you everyone.

Reading Campaign for kids

2011-01-08T10:25:00.000-08:00

A fun project went off my comfort zone and went crazy. I really had to think like a child to reach this artwork. I asked myself what would appeal to me as a child and this is what I came up with. I got into the detail to create a friendly cartoonish atmosphere. Displayed below is only the main theme artwork without any application.

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click on image

Desert Stars Identity

2011-01-04T12:05:00.000-08:00

Happy new year everyone this year I have set my definite purpose and setup a detailed plan to get there and I highly recommend you do the same and be sure to always remember your goal daily and have a burning desire that guides you there. If you ask most people what you want in life they probably dont have an answer and if they do you will probably get the answers of " I want to be happy" or rich, or fame and power. Well I want to confront those people with the fact that these are only wishes and LIFE doesn't pay back those wishes. So have a definite purpose then a detailed plan of how you will get there and focus all your energy to your goal and most of all never forget to be persistence. "failure can't exist where persistence is found."

This year I will begin with one of the biggest and last projects of 2010. I was requested to redesign the logo and identity of Desert Stars. Let the show begin.

(video) Satori - sudden enlightenment

2010-12-22T04:48:00.000-08:00

I can not tell you nor explain the transformation I have gone through this past year for it changed me completely and turned me into a new person that I've always wished to become. It happened in a very strange process and without warning. All my life I was searching for a reason to make me happy and wakeup with a sense of purpose. I always wondered why most people are annoyed and hate life and just can't find piece within them then look for means to harm themselves just to taste fake happiness even for a few hours like smoking, drugs, and sex. I was very fortunate to realize how it works and how you can control your life and achieve what you want. This is how it happened in a nutshell.

It started by looking for ways to improve myself and I decided to read books about self improvement things like "The 7 habits" but the fact that I hated reading was a struggle of its own. So I bought the book but left it to dust but I was determined to get some inspiration and find new ways to change my life and why do I feel unhappy and unsatisfied no matter what happened to me. As a solution I bought audio books to cheat myself from reading. I started listening to them in the car while going to work and coming back home and I was hungry to get more CD's so I bought 7 habits the audio book and other works like Anthony Robbins. It was a simple formula, the more I listened the better I felt and my mind started to find hidden powers I never knew I had. Then my mind was still not convinced about all this "control your mind means controlling your life" it all sounded like Micky Mouse talking to me.

Testing these theories is what I needed to do. I took the concept to pick a habit you don't like about yourself and you know your not supposed to do it but you do it anyway because you have convinced your self that this is the way it is and you are so use to this and you can not control it. Whatever excuse you give to yourself is a sign of weakness. I looked at my actions and I realized that I have many things I would love to change about myself like my extreme unfriendly mood in the mornings. I completely convinced myself for many years that I am not a morning person and I believed it to the core of my being. I never smiled in the mornings never talked to anyone and if you know me in a personal level you would know that I never answered my phone in the morning that's why people don't even think about calling me at that time.

Anyhow I decided to change this about me as a test to this idea that what your mind projects and attracts what it feeds upon. I decided the next morning is to talk to my wife in the morning just by saying "good morning, I hope you hope your day goes well" then I tell her something about what is about to happen today at work. If you only could see how surprisingly happy she was. She kept on asking me about when did I sleep and what I ate last night so I can be like this in the mornings. I told her I just decided to change this about me and guess what ladies and gentlemen I carried this new habit to work and everyone suddenly noticed, Everyone was guessing about what happened yesterday to make me feel like this. It felt really great and realized that I was a slave to my own idea of I'm not a morning person and I thought I had no control over it. After this I tackled the I hate reading idea and I started reading regularly from there one bad habit after the other until I reached a very comfortable place where I found piece. One of the most astonishing theories I experienced was the more I appreciate my life and love it the more I was given. Also began to translate failure as lessons and tests to make me stronger not to weaken me. Some of these challenges were extremely hard and it tired my mind to control myself especially to those things that I was very famous for and I was a mere slave to those thoughts. Now I am still reading and I am still improving. I truly wish you all the best in your lives and find your true selves and unleash the hidden powers within you. Do not become a slave to your thoughts and challenge yourselves. I will leave you with this quote " the mind is a great servent but a terrible master."

Areej (my wife) has stood by me through depressing times and I guarantee you that if any girl was put in her shoes she would have not put up with half of what I used to do. She believed in me that one day I will change and she saw something I never knew about me and that day has come and I am glad it did.

On another note, Satori means sudden enlightenment. I found this word very suitable for what I experienced and this piece of music.

This piece was composed to capture the battle I won against my old me and my journey to satori (sudden enlightenment)

Marlon Brando illustration

2010-12-19T11:37:00.000-08:00

In this post I will take you through the process of an illustration of the legendary Marlon Brando.

establishing the outline of our subject (click image)

setting the ground color (click image)

simple separation between light and dark areas (click image)

adding more detail and variations to create depth (click image)

more detail and enhancing lighting and reflections (click image)

coloring the tuxedo and adding shadow (click image)

defining details and adding texture (click image)

Traffic Safety campaign

2010-11-28T00:33:00.000-08:00

This project was initiated to win a traffic safety ad design "LSLAMTNA". After at least 2 weeks of searching for ideas and planning on how to do it by sketching and brainstorming slogans. I have finally produced a structured plan and contacted the people needed for the project. I contacted my good friend Ibrahim (excellent photographer) and couple of kids parents and I have explained to them what I will be doing with the images. It took awhile to convince parents but once they realized it is for a good cause they agreed.

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I brought a clear glass and placed my models faces on it to show the effect that I am looking for which was to get that flat face on glass feel. Here are some of the raw images taken:

[click on image]

This is the selected image for my first option. I like the eye looking away and the flat face effect is very clear.

[click on image] Added: bruises, cuts, blood, background and outline mask

[click on image] color correction and lighting effect

[click on image] the image used to achieve the shattered glass effect

[click on image] Added shattered glass

[click on image] Final: Slogan, logos, background, enhanced highlights and shadows

[click on image] Option 2: took the same steps as the first option

[click on image] This is to explain the main idea behind the ad.

Arabian Animals - Watercolor Illustrations

2010-11-22T13:21:00.000-08:00

The task was to provide the client with illustrations to be placed on a booklet. The briefing for this assignment was very challenging because the client request was to have illustrations that looked like actual watercolor drawings but done digitally on photoshop. Once the first options were presented the client disagreed on the style because it didn't have enough detail. So as a solution I recommended to have and ink-like pen over the water color illustrations to give it more detail and to define the subject. After the ink outline was introduced and the water color splashes on the background and textured paper the illustrations came out very nicely and I am very happy with the final result.

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wallpaper -Experimental project

2010-11-20T05:45:00.000-08:00

This project is purely experimental. I was following a tutorial but towards the couple of steps I completely ignored the steps and started playing around with colors and effects. Besides I wanted to make a new wallpaper.

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detail

100 Patents Theme design options

2010-11-07T08:05:00.000-08:00

Saudi Aramco is celebrating its 100 patents and they have requested a theme for the event. After couple of meetings we have established that the main idea we want is to highlight is the idea of being proud and to make it a memorable experience for visitors. My main focus for this design is to develop some sort of a symbol or a badge that will be branded throughout the event and place it on the inventors who will be present to identify them among the visitors and in the end have something to go home with. Later on whenever they see this badge and colors they will link it with a satisfactory experience and achievement. Below are the options for the event:

click to enlarge

Well after all these options have been presented. The event team members were indecisive on which option to select. Each member of the group favored a particular one but never agreed on one and this debate kept on until the deadline approached and they never had time to execute any of the options you see before you. I would like to note that I am not complaining for I know each experience in my life holds a lesson within it and trust me no design goes to waist.

Thank you for reading.

My very first animation attempt- testing

2010-11-01T13:04:00.000-07:00

I have been wanting to learn animation for some time now and I finally made the time to make try out my first testing subject which is a tiger running cycle. The program used here is a very simple software called Pencil. This clip contains 15 illustrations put together in sequence to create this motion you see before you. Here is the clip.

tٍ-shirt design Rock and Fever روك فيفر

2010-10-30T10:51:00.000-07:00

This t-shirt is one of those out there for me. I have been thinking about doing illustrating it for awhile but when my client heard the idea he said it is a must! so I did it. The idea is having a traditional Saudi band one on the Oud and the other on the drums. All of a sudden the guy brakes into a ROCK AND ROLL FEVER and starts banging on the Oud and smashing it on the floor just like the ending of every hardcore Rock band. The twists of the two cultures is what makes this illustration interesting.

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Blackberry covers

2010-10-21T06:20:00.000-07:00

Displayed are the steps for a customized BackBerry cover. The client/friend requested the cover to be green and said "I want it to be something feminine and do what you think looks good, I trust your taste." so I did couple of sketches and I liked this one and then drew it.

Outlining the sketch with a pencil (click for detail)

Starting to go over the pencil with a permenent marker (click for detail)

More marker outline (click for detail)

Marker outline completed (click for detail)

done with coloring (click for detail)

The final artwork after spraying the cover to protect the colors

Here are some tryouts. Starting from the left, the orange one was mainly inspired by my London's visit back in March 2010. The second one which is the green cover, is just writing random words it doesn't make any sense if you read it. The yellow one has my name LABEED written in arabic.

Saudi Aramco Operational Calendar 2011

2010-10-20T09:56:00.000-07:00

I have been responsible for the Saudi Aramco Operational Calendar since I joined the company in Dec 2006. Therefore I designed it for the year 2008 which was the 75th celebratory color scheme that fits the bright colors of the 75th logo. Then 2009 which was an image taken from the grand celebration of the 75th where King Abdullah Al-Saud visited Saudi Aramco. After that 2010 which was the focus on CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) legacy. All those years I had to design at least 40 options before our management is happy which was challenging but a great way to learn what they like and work on the feedback.

Designing the 2011 calendar was a very interesting story. First I was given the Saudi Aramco Diary 2011 to work on the content and gather information and I was informed that the calendar was to be handled by my co-worker and I supervise since I am too busy with the diary. To make the story short the calendar had three graphic artists and then it came back which makes me fourth designers. In the end I suggested this option you see before you and with different colors and it was selected and approved without changes! which is a miracle in our business if you're a designer.

After the selection was made we had to implement the artwork on the other items which were:
Arabic side
Pocket size
Contractor Operational Calendar

(video) THIS IS SPARTA!!!

2010-10-17T09:52:00.000-07:00

Just enjoying the blessings of being a father and playing with my son. I was fooling around and I saw him trying to copy me so I did the THIS IS SPARTA then I kicked the closet. So he did it after me and got on cam.

Sponge Bob for the kids

2010-10-16T11:11:00.000-07:00

I was once playing with my nephews and nieces and I was teaching them a little bit on illustrator some basic stuff. In the end they wanted me to draw this character so I did. The funny part is the number of times they said it looks so REAL lol.

You are what you eat

2010-10-16T02:27:00.000-07:00

An illustration was used part of an Obesity campaign. A very simple and straight forward concept.

halfpage AD كل يوم سيارة-مع خالد الحازمي

2010-10-13T10:17:00.000-07:00

This halfpage advertisement was designed back in 2010 Ramadan for my dear friend Khalid al Hazmi. He has daily tv show during Ramadan called "كل يوم سيارة" which translates into "Everyday a Car." the show basically is a game where people participate and answer questions and if they answer them correctly they qualify for the final draw. Everyday they give away 2010 Sonata which is a pretty sweet deal.

Traffic Safety logo concept

2010-09-25T21:38:00.000-07:00

This was one of the favored concepts for the Signature Traffic Safety Program. What you see before you is the logo design and the meaning behind the elements.

Just for fun

2010-09-14T23:47:00.000-07:00

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Just fun.

(video) When Everyone Leaves-piano

2010-09-14T17:25:00.000-07:00

A very close piece of music to my heart.

Dream Tree theory

2010-09-14T09:33:00.000-07:00

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In the beginning of its progress it grew wonderfully nurtured by positive thinking, happiness, joy, and laughter. As the dream tree took its time to manifest and it was about to give its miraculous fruits, the person lost hope and allowed negativity, depression, and anger to settle in his mind ruining what could have been the turning point of his life.

Although the is damaged and weak it is not a complete lost hope. It needs work but there is always hope if you believe in it.

wallpaper هدية العيد - كل عام وأنتم بخير ٢٠١٠

2010-09-08T20:24:00.000-07:00

Displayed below are two options of your choice. You can click on the image and have it as a wallpaper. Consider it a small token of my appreciation and a gift to all my friends who have supported me along the way and encouraged me to do more and push my limits. I wouldn't have reached where I am without you. Thank you all.

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Abdel Halim Hafez, Mohammed Abdu, Islamic patterns - T-shirt design

2010-09-05T13:58:00.000-07:00

This my first official attempts to have a batch of t-shirt designs as a request. My client is a young daring person who is targeting our youth section of our community. Below are different section we have worked on and there many to come but I thought I should show these designs in batches just like the requests workflow.

First: The updated Mohammed Abdu design:

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Second: Islamic patterns design options:

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Third: Abdel Halim Hafez designs: (here we see them in progress until the final chosen option this design required many tiring hours to achieve this final look. The detail was exhausting but in the end I believe it paid off. It is one of those designs I will always remember because I spent almost 35 on and off hours on the design.)

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There you have it

(video) Saudi Aramco TV ad

2010-08-12T02:22:00.000-07:00

I was fortunate to participate in this video. It was a long sleepless weekend but through it I met many good people who became my good friends. Although the ad is kind of quick but find me if you can ! :)

I am the guy who is in the middle of a fighting scene! 0:29

Bird illustration - textures

2010-08-12T00:57:00.000-07:00

This is an illustration that took me about 6 hours to make. The idea was to draw with a realistic touch but keeping the artsy elements like the texture of the canvas and messy water color strokes. The challenge for me was the use of textures because I want to give it a real life-like feel to it. Well share your comments and tell me what you think even if there are things you think would improve the illustration. Alright lets get to it:

Outlining the bird

Setting up the color palette and adding colors

Applying the outline to the colors

creating a background for the bird

placing the bird in the middle to have the V shaped center our bird (creating a focal point)

adding light water strokes and messy artsy splash effect

A close up of the canvas effect and paper textures mixed

final result click image to view the details

birthday gift for Dana Assudmi

2010-07-30T03:45:00.000-07:00

a birthday gift for my niece

is this art? هل هذا فن؟

2010-07-19T06:42:00.000-07:00

This artwork just an experimental try out. It is really not my style but I wanted to try something different. As I was working on this I was asking myself the whole time " is this art? " It was on repeat in my head until I got done! And I still don’t have a valid answer.

Traffic Safety Game Characters

2010-07-16T04:28:00.000-07:00

The first option

A rough sketch

game set

A rough sketch

I was assigned to create a game set to be animated for the Traffic Safety campaign. So I looked around and tried to mix the Saudi police uniform and make a character at first I wasn't sure if I can make an animal as a character so I figured which animal would suite the saudi police. A camel because he is saudi nah! overused. A Tiger !! nah not Saudi and character conflict. How about a Lion ! nah just like the tiger reasons. Then I thought a turtle would be perfect because thats how I see most of them. I am not saying all of them but most of the ones I encountered are just like turtles. They are just safe in their own little shells, slow to response to any danger, and figure out the best ways to get what they have to do in the most effortless way again I am not complaining I know there are good ones out there but they are out weighed badly. Any how after I got done I thought " Oh man this is going to offend people" so I took a different approach and said alright just draw a Saudi police man and do the cute template which is giving your character a big head and big eyes.

Quick Vector - Self Portrait

2010-07-11T11:11:00.000-07:00

I was showing Areej (my wife) some Illustrator tricks and I liked the end result. Actual time for this is 40 min.

father son kiss

2010-07-11T10:55:00.000-07:00

I have so much love for this man I don't have a heart big enough to contain it. He is everything to me.

A childish look

2010-07-08T15:41:00.000-07:00

Today I will be sharing with you a thought that I have been following for some time now. One of my daily things I do is to wonder and question. I question my life and my surroundings questions like (why haven't I called my mother in 2 days? how did I become an artist? Why am I taking this road to work?) They might seem silly to some people but these questions keep my brain working and my ideas flowing.

Sometimes I get confused by one of my questions because I have been approaching the answer the wrong way. Once I changed my approach I found the answer and one of the amazing approaches I discovered was to view the problem in a childish point of view and it all makes sense. Upon this concept I drew this illustration of my son Mohannad and my quote. "when I have a question, first I look at the world with a wondering childish eye to help me understand."

(video) Into my life

2010-06-17T06:39:00.000-07:00

I will let the clip do all the talking. A father son moment and a little piece of music. I placed the camera on top for those who would like to see the chords and they keys I am playing on. hope you like

Sunset Forest - my escape

2010-06-15T04:45:00.000-07:00

This is probably the first time I project what I see as I am playing piano. The fun part about this illustration was when I was drawing it I already had in mind exactly how the colors will be and I gladly to projected exactly what I saw in my mind.

A detailed view

Another detailed view

Here is the final illustration

Click on image to enlarge

Summer Theme 2010

2010-06-13T06:31:00.000-07:00

This event theme was designed for the Saudi Aramco Summer Program 2010. The event will cover many major activities but one of the major activities is having the Arsenal official coaches to train kids. The theme was chosen but went through many changes and I feel like it lost the original concept. However I would like to share it here with you my people. I would like to hear your feedback.

Car illustration

2010-05-31T11:35:00.000-07:00

This post will feature the process of a car illustration. I really like how it turned out at the end and my friend has this artwork as a wallpaper at work. Here are the steps:

Outlining the car

Adding headlights and tires and body lines

filling the mass with color and placing mesh points to add a 3D effect

Adding light reflections and a shadow

Finishing up the details ( click image to enlarge)

I hope you enjoyed the illustration. I accept all types of comments and critics.

Chinese Style Painting

2010-05-31T05:51:00.000-07:00

I was inspired by a Chinese painting and loved how simple the ink strokes were yet so rich and expressive. This is a quick sketch and it was originally illustrated for a magazine cover.

Click for details

(video) Composing for a short movie

2010-05-20T04:53:00.000-07:00

me in the zone

This is a new type of post. My friend Abdulrahman Sandokji and I finally had the chance to work with each other on one of his short clips. He contacted me and showed me the video and music started in my head. It was an interesting experience where he is talking about the type of melody he needed for the scenes and my brain taking notes and translating them into music. although I think if we had more time we could have done better. I have been known that I am the hardest critic for my work I'm never %100 satisfied with any work I do. I most likely love it when I am done but after a while I always get the " oh if I did that it could have been better" or " maybe a little of this would settle the mood" ideas don't stop in my mind at all. Here it is:

BlackBerry handmade illustration cover

2010-05-12T18:05:00.000-07:00

This is one of my handmade illustrations done for my BlackBerry cover.

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Abstract theme design

2010-05-11T04:25:00.000-07:00

For those who contacted me to make sure that I am ok and how come I haven't uploaded any art lately. Thank you very much for caring and as I have replied to most of you that I have been very busy lately with work and going to a trip to attend a course in London. It was great and I met alot of great people there. Photos of the trip will be uploaded soon.

Well here is one of the latest projects I worked on the first day I came back to work. I was given an image and have been told " do something pretty with it".
Here is the image I have been given:

and with about 13 layes this the final effect:

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(click on image for detail)

This is an idea of the package that has been produced

Saudi Treasure OIL !!

2010-03-24T12:27:00.000-07:00

My friend saw me working on this and he thought it was cool and he asked me when is he going to see it on my blog? I answered "really? you think its good enough to be posted?" he said " hell yeah!" so here it is. I was given the task of taking an old image and turning it into a colorful and dramatic design to be used in an article. Here is the design process.

The original image

blurring out the background ... adding colors effects...

enhancing the light and dark contrasts

I added more dirt on his shirt and I kept the grunge effect ...

the final image after adding blurred typography, glow, reflection light, and enhancing metal objects.

Traffic Safety Campaign

2010-03-22T14:28:00.000-07:00

Along with huge effort Saudi Aramco is doing to promote Traffic Safety in Saudi Arabia, I have been assigned to brand five vehicles with the slogan provided. The idea was to make it eye catching and appealing to the youth. This project was a success and I got plenty of appreciations from all sorts of audience which was surprising. Besides, the fact the you drive around and you see your designs on the street and you see people enjoying the design and taking pictures of it makes me feel satisfied, proud and happy. Designers know what I am talking about when they see their work is being appreciated by the public. Tell me what you think I like hearing from my visitors.

The design element (click on image)

display of vehicles (click on image)

detail on one of the vehicles (click on image)

actual vehicles after wrapping took place (click image)

Character Design

2010-03-05T07:48:00.000-08:00

Click on image for detail

Character design displaying the sketching then the outline and finally colored and detailed.

محمد عبده Mohammed Abdu t-shirt design

2010-03-01T13:05:00.000-08:00

This project was a lot of fun and I enjoyed it very much because I was free to be as creative and crazy as I want. In fact I was directed to do so by the client. I was requested to do more t-shirt designs so this is just the beginning. In order to read the content of the image you should click on the image. Hope you like this one it's kind of different from the other posts.

Click image for detail

Can't Believe my son is 1 year old

2010-02-09T07:45:00.000-08:00

click on image for full view

I still cannot believe my son is one year old ALREADY! I designed this from some pictures I have taken of him last weekend. Artistically I have collected some textures and I wanted to use some of them.

Some Funk with my logo !

2010-02-09T07:38:00.000-08:00

love playing around with colors and my logo

الخط العربي Samples of Arabic Typography

2010-02-03T00:33:00.000-08:00

I was trying new color schemes, different textures, types of styles, and this is some of the samples I liked.

click image for detail

(video) Januay 20, 2010 a day I will never forget

2010-01-25T08:41:00.000-08:00

January 20, 2010. This is a day that will live with me forever. It marks the very first time my son sees me on stage and his first birthday. Not only that, it is also my parents’ first time to attend my concert and see me on stage. They looked so proud and they were overwhelmed by the appraisal they received after the concert. My cousin Nadiah Assidmi and Areej Assidmi (my wife) supported me by coming and taking care of the camera recording.

(video) Practice - Labeed Assidmi improv

2010-01-17T07:28:00.000-08:00

This is a short clip recorded while I was trying new stuff! bytheway dont be fooled by the notes! I still can't read music :)

Snake- lighting study

2009-12-23T05:33:00.000-08:00

Just trying out different brushes and I wanted to focus on the idea of one source of light. No images were used this is just out of my mind. The illustration’s steps were demonstrated for kids during the event.

Land of Fantasy

2009-12-19T05:52:00.000-08:00

During an event at work they gave me my own booth called "Digital Art" where it was supported with a mac brought from my office and a plazma screen for people to see what’s happening on my screen. This illustration was drawn in front of audience to have a look at the development process and to use the computer as an art form. When I started this illustration I really had no idea that this is how it will look like, I simply keep adding elements as I go along. I will take you step by step to see how this illustration came together.

establishing the background with different shades

outlining my subject

getting an idea of where I want the light to hit on my subject

filling my subject with volume and reinforcing the highlights

developing the background and highlighting a one single source for the light

creating the clouds effect and giving a sense of depth with darks and lights

Adding detail to the sky. I added here little flying birds and shining stars

Establishing a water fall in the dark area

a closer look

Another closer look

Adding light rays to add a more dynamic look and feel

I hope you enjoyed the illustration. thank you for reading.

First Impression

2009-12-09T02:47:00.000-08:00

click on image to enlarge

If you have been following my artwork you would notice that this is a completely different style of what I'm used to. I am not afraid to try new things and to experiment when it comes to art. Personally I am really satisfied with this piece because I had to get out of my comfort zone be bold with style with this style.

This piece was created to represent mixed emotions during moments of first impression episode. Everyone must have had experienced this at one point, where you have very limited topics to talk about with this person keeping in mind so many filters are censoring your words. You are not being fake you are just being your “polite” self and examining the person you are facing.

(video) To Be a Father

2009-11-20T15:43:00.000-08:00

This is a little clip for my son Mohannad (Hanno). He brightens my day and inspires me in every way to become a better person.

Eid al Adha 2009

2009-11-20T11:36:00.000-08:00

In the real world sometimes you work on a design and give it all your time but in the end it dies. Whether the idea wasn't presented well or the receiver has a different point of view, well no matter what the reason is these things sometimes happen and when it does you just have to focus on the next project and do your best again. Let it be a lesson to understand your client and work harder. Below are options that have been disqualified and didn't make the cut. At least I have my blog to show what I have been working on. The assignment is to design a piece to celebrate the Eid al Adha in the newspaper. The restrictions were images of children, and illustrations are not allowed so I chose typography as a style.

What you see here is typography piece that took me about 16 hours. Every little detail you see was typed and placed to illustrate the required shape. Here is a little detail of the piece.

here we have another color scheme for the design

Displayed below is another direction for the assignment which is to keep it modern and simple:

Now this is another option which is to convey a safety message within the design.

Baber's Services!

2009-10-26T06:49:00.000-07:00

Click on image to enlarge

This was a quick job done for my favorite Barber. No matter who I try I always have to go back to them. they are artists when it comes to fine beard details! If you go to the place you will see this poster on the wall!

Nicole's Birthday card

2009-10-26T05:07:00.000-07:00

click on image to enlarge

Every year we welcome a number of summer students in our office and give them a taste of how the environment is when working with big clients. It's anything but like collage trust me! Nicole was one of the summer students we had this year and her birthday occurred while she's with us so I made this illustration that was printed on her card. She makes amazing muffins and she is a young graphic designer who is going places that explains the muffin and the laptop.

Colors of Arabian calligraphy

2009-10-05T08:18:00.000-07:00

This was a personal request and it was designed as a wallpaper. I had a lot of fun designing this one, I just went crazy with the colors.

Peeling the Globe !

2009-09-30T05:14:00.000-07:00

The concept is here is that we are ready for the change and always updated with the most advanced technology in the field.

Proccess:

The images used in the concept:

Here is the final image

detail of the finished image

The finished concept and how it appeared on the applications.

أحمد الشقيري the Great Visionary

2009-09-14T06:30:00.000-07:00

Ahmad Al Shugairy is one of the most inspiring people I have ever listened to. He is out there with a strong belief that one day he will make a difference. Ever since I came back from the states he keeps improving and he impacted my life immensely.
For those who don’t know him! He has a show called “Khawater خواطر” that airs everyday in Ramadan, what he does in a nutshell is sharing his ideas and thoughts to the whole Muslim world and sometimes the Arab world in particular. These thoughts are presented in a documentary style with a short straight forward messages.

He became a very important part of mylife and his teachings make so much sense and so easy to digest. Here is the illustration and as a simple thank you for this man who his work will help generations to come.

Step 1 outline

Step 2 layout

Step 3 coloring and polishing details

(video) White Lies-Labeed Assidmi

2009-09-13T06:27:00.001-07:00

On the 9th or July, 2009 I performed at a good bye party for my friend Faisal Badughaish. It was the first time I play it this piece in front of an audience and I’m glad people enjoyed. I remember how it was really hard to get people to be quiet that night they were just a little too hyper.

My son's Song! أغنيه لمهند ولدي (video)

2009-09-09T07:26:00.000-07:00

My nephew (7amoody) and niece (Dana) were at my place and they really wanted to do another song and asked me to upload it on youtube awww I'm so nice !! lol. Anyway I wrote the AMZING lyrics so you can sing along if you feel like it. This time no one falls

هالمره محد طاح!؟
عيال ولد عمي كانو عندي وطلبوني اسوي اغنيه جديده واحطها على اليوتوب وهذي تعتبر اهداء لولدي مهند في نفس الوقت

اليوم الوطني السعودي Saudi National Day/KAUST 2009

2009-09-09T05:36:00.000-07:00

The concept here is that King Abdullah will have the KAUST enagoration ceromony on the same day of our National day 23rd of September. Therefore, we want to link the two historical events together and present it graphicly and thats the challenge.

This design and concept took me about a week and a half to establish. I'm talking about since the second I started working on it including brainstorming, collecting images, gathering information, concept design, samples, and excution. I wanted the artwork to have an artistic hand sketch touch to it. So I collected images and this image I thought it was suitable for this occausin. (displayed on your right).

I took that image and sketched it. This illustration you see here took me 3 days to do.

That's me working on it. My friend Ahmed at work took this pic.

detail of the hands

detail of the face

Here is the finished illustration now I'll walk you through the steps of finishing the design.

For the record, did I mention that comments make me happy ?

Creating a see-through shirt

2009-08-30T06:51:00.001-07:00

I was given an image and asked to cover the girl in the image. Our publications must be suitable for our audience and the culture. here is the before and after.

Click on images to enlrage

Washington DC

2009-08-30T06:42:00.000-07:00

I'm just telling the guy that we have better tech!

Click to enlarge

I took this photo when I was in Washington DC back in 2008