Ten Reasons the World Would be a Better Place if Everyone Was a Quaker: V

Reason 5
World peace.
Quakers are pacifists. They believe that fighting violence with violence is wrong. They believe that human life is sacred - no exceptions. The pacifism of many Quakers is very active: they're peacemakers, and work for peace using nonviolent resistance and other methods, methods that halt the spiral of violence rather than perpetuate it.

Ten Reasons the World Would be a Better Place if Everyone Was a Quaker: IV

Reason 4
No singing "liar liar pants on fire."
One of the oddities of Quakers is their refusal to swear. Not swear as in cuss words, swear as in "I solemnly swear to tell the whole truth..." Odd as this sounds, it's based on a simple premise: Christians shouldn't lie. When someone has to swear to tell the truth, it implies that the person doesn't always tell the truth. Quakers strive to be truthful always, so swearing a special oath is not needed.

Ten Reasons the World Would be a Better Place if Everyone Was a Quaker: III

Reason 3
Every one of us would be a minister.
Okay, so that doesn't sound like the world would be a better place - everyone preaching and no one listening. But that's not what Quakers mean; they mean every Christian is called to be a minister, to minister to the needs of a very needy world. Having a bunch of people helping meet the needs of those around us sounds a lot better than a bunch of preachers, huh?

Ten Reasons the World Would be a Better Place if Everyone Was a Quaker: II

Reason 2
We'd all be Friends.
The official name of Quakers is "the Religious Society of Friends;" the name Friends comes from Jesus' statement to his disciples that "I have called you Friends..." The kind of close personal relationship reflected in the word "friend" is the kind of relationship Quakers seek to have with Jesus.

Ten Reasons the World Would be a Better Place if Everyone Was a Quaker: I

Reason 1
You wouldn't see any lists like this.
That's because Quakers are pretty inclusive of other traditions. They tend to look for common ground rather than differences. They tend to focus on essentials rather than peripherals. So they wouldn't necessarily wish that everyone else was a Quaker.

Quaker booklet

A little booklet I wrote, illustrated and designed called Ten Reasons the World Would be a Better Place if Everyone was a Quaker (subtitled A Paltry Primer of Quakerism). I sent it out as an illustration self-promo piece. I'll post all ten reasons in the coming days.

Fame is fleeting

Another old drawing around a postage stamp, this one featuring Charles Evans Hughes. This drawing comments on the fact that people are famous enough to get on a postage stamp at some point, but no one remembers who they are several decades later. Click to enlarge.

Geez 11 music experiments

This image accompanied one of several music experiments in Geez 11. For this experiment, a pop song formula was given to a couple of musicians, and they each wrote a song following the formula. You can listen to their songs and check out the other music experiments here.

Geez 11 subscription card

For the Geez music issue I designed a subscription card that looks like a concert ticket. Concept by guest editors Bucky Driedger and Aaron Epp.

Geez 11 section pages

Geez 11 is the music issue, and for the section divider pages we used records, tapes etc. to indicate the new sections, with article titles as song titles. For the bottom spread I got to crush and crucify some iPod earbuds. From the accompanying story by Will Braun: "By turning off as many outer and inner distractions as possible, one can create space within, a space into which the needs of the world can be received, and a space from which one can respond with something deeper than momentary hype, easy anger or overly busy activism."

Geez 11 (rocks)

This is the cover of Geez 11, which is pretty rockin' sweet, to quote one of my favorite people. Photography by Janelle Townsend with direction from me. My friend Amy Lutz was the tennis racquet guitarist.

Grand Duchess Charlotte, overprinted

This postage stamp from the 1920s featuring Luxembourg's Grand Duchess Charlotte is overprinted with the word Officiel; I like how the dot of the "i" lands right in her eye.

Envelope doodle

Envelope I doodled on while on the phone.

Always the best

Photo I took in Winnipeg, Manitoba on a beautiful day downtown.

Saturday sketchbook: Zucchini man

Great art comes unacknowledged and unwanted. And so does stuff like this. Click to enlarge.

Pizzicato catering ID

The first job I did for Pizzicato Pizza while working for Staccato Design was this identity for their catering services; I worked on it with fellow designer Christopher Douglas. It went with these posters, which featured the tuxedoed catering man somewhere on each poster.

University Players poster

Poster I designed for the University Players, a George Fox University acting group that tours the Northwest putting on shows.

Word of faith

Photo for Geez magazine. Concept and art direction by me, with the photo taken by Janelle Townsend. Click to enlarge.

Stand Alone book cover

The most patriotic-looking book cover design I ever hope to do. Mark Hatfield was a rare critter in the American political scene: both evangelical and progressive. Book cover design for Barclay Press.

Grounded

Corey Beals has an exhibit of his photography opening this Thursday (Sept.11) at the Lindgren Gallery at George Fox University. Corey half buried me in his front yard to take some photos for the exhibit, including this one.

Update: I went to the show this evening; nice reflections on our connection to the soil, with some good (verbal) thoughts displayed alongside the pictures.

Geez issue 10

Cover photo I shot (with the help of Bryan Boyd) for Geez magazine, the "sermons you'd never hear in church" issue. This is probably my favorite piece in this issue.

Saturday sketchbook: vegetarian

A nuanced commentary on eating meat. (Click to enlarge.)

Rock out with your broom out

I did a photoshoot with my coworker Janelle Townsend for an upcoming issue of Geez magazine; these are some test shots of me done while waiting for our model to show up. Cool lighting to capture the movement and energy.

Pizzicato gourmet pizza identity

Identity I designed for Pizzicato Pizza while at Staccato Design. The identity, which was applied to stationery, menus and gift certificates and cards, is illustration-based to work with the poster series we did.

Saturday sketchbook: Ricotta Marilyn

An oldie but weirdie drawn around a Marilyn Monroe postage stamp. Original stamp art by Michael Deas, who also painted Columbia Pictures' torch-bearing lady. Click to enlarge.

Brainy treats

Kind of goofy, kind of fun photo-illustration for Geez magazine, featuring my dad. Click to enlarge and read the details.

Faculty art exhibit poster

This is a poster (and postcard) for an exhibit at George Fox University of the work of the art faculty of Willamette University. Confused yet? The artwork shown is a sculpture by Andries Fourie, and it was just begging for a head made out of a headline, so I obliged.

Madonna and George

The true "reason for the season"? Illustration I did in pen and ink, watercolor and collage. The materials for this image cost me one dollar.

Geez rocks

I'll be working on Geez magazine (the music issue) for the next 10 days, so I won't be posting for a while. It should be a fun issue.

This is a drawing I did; it won't be in the magazine, but it rocks, man.

Consumer or consumed?

I originally did this illustration in black and white for a magazine in Indianapolis, then later colored it for another client.

Pizzicato posters II

The second poster series I designed and illustrated for Pizzicato while working at Staccato Design, with copywriting by Tim Cobb. These posters featured new menu items at Pizzicato.

Saturday sketchbook: stamp accident

Another drawing done around postage stamps, starring Mary Lyon (a pioneer in women's education in the 1800s) and two Margaret Mitchells (author of Gone with the Wind). Tapping into an adolescent enjoyment of kind of gross stuff. Click to enlarge.

Geez blog

Geez magazine now has a blog: check it out.

Geez issue 9

Geez 9 is the art issue, with cover art by Dominika Dratwa.

The spread shown is an illustration I did of a agricultural worker (click to enlarge).

Antler house

I photographed this house a few years ago between Tillamook and Oceanside near the Oregon coast. It was leaning a bit then, and is no longer standing.

Saturday sketchbook: seasick

Not my favorite of my drawings, but I do like that the water glass is just a little indent in the table filled with water.

Business tot

Illustration I did in gouache on scratchboard.

CD wall

For the George Fox Marcom office redesign, I created this wall installation of recycled CD-ROMs. My coworkers Janelle and Jeong helped paint the CDs; we tried to achieve a hand-done, painterly effect.