Justin

While we're taking a breather from my extensive coverage from the Ottawa Animation Festival, I thought I'd direct your attention to my dear friend Justin Winslow, who is leaving for the bright lights of the big city, New York, later on this month. He was hired at Primal Screen as a designer the same year as me. When I came onboard later, I was immeditately drawn to his fun, lovable characters and incredible linework. He and I hit it off right away -- talking about art, life, and everything in between. Since then, he's become a very close friend, probably the closest I have here in Atlanta. Although he lives the single life, partying and living life to the fullest on a daily basis (ha ha!), he always finds time to come by and check out the latest oddities in my cubicle, to check up on his favorite female friend -- my wife Andrea, or to see the latest creation Ava has bestowed upon me. And visiting Justin's cubicle was one of my favorite things to do each day. His workspace rivals mine in the sense that there is so much crazy goodness surrounding you that it's hard to take it all in at once. Needless to say, we spend more time in each other's workspaces than in any other at Primal. I will sorely miss my daily visit to Justin's.

He and I share the same sensibilities when it comes to drawing -- the way of creating and forming characters, the importance of design and composition, and the joy of color. Justin has a great sense of wonder about him and he even has a funny dark side, which I adore. Demented humor can go a long long way, I always say. There were many times I would find myself wandering the aisles of some dusty flea market and stumble upon a strange little nick-nack that I knew only Justin would love.

Justin has this amazing ability to draw these wonderfully complex compositions in ink, without sketching anything out. Just straight from his head, onto the paper. He'll create these masterpieces right in front of you, but never does his mastery ever go to his head. He's the most modest artist I've ever met, making you think that what he did was just some doodle. "Oh, it's nothing," he'll say. Yeah, right. His "nothings" are brilliant, and I've been trying to save as many of them as I can before he leaves!

Justin, here's to a new start, a new life. Whatever you do -- even it it is "nothing" -- I'm sure it'll be brilliant.