C H E T J E Z I E R S K I A D o g A r t i s t
· In 1999, Chet Jezierski’s illustrations of breeds recognized by the American Kennel Club were a monthly feature on the cover of the AKC Events Calendar. The complete series of 147 full-profile drawings were originally created for the first ever AKC Guide To Purebred Dogs Wall Poster, introduced in 1997. The artist worked closely with breed experts and licensed judges to achieve detailed renderings of quality dogs that accurately fit the written standards. Both the drawings and the poster were nominated for Dog Writers Awards that year. The popular reference tool is being used by teachers, librarians, veterinarians and shelter managers across the country. AKC Public Education booths at dogs shows nationwide also feature the poster prominently in their displays.
· The artist’s work has appeared regularly on the cover of the AKC Gazette, including the Bearded Collie, February 1998, which won the Dog Writers Maxwell Award for Best Illustration. The Weimaraner, February 1994, also won the Dog Writers Maxwell Award for Best Illustration. The Wire Fox Terrier, appeared in August 1994. The American Eskimo Dog, August 1995, won the Dog Writers Maxwell Award for Best Illustration as well.
· The artist illustrated the book Little Dog Lost, a Beardie story by English breeder Suzanne Moorhouse. The fourteen black and white drawings won the Dog Writers Maxwell Award for Best Series of Illustrations for 1997.
· The artist’s work created for the August 1999 AKC Gazette fold-out cover, featuring dogs engaged in performance field work, was nominated for a Dog Writers Award. The original piece subsequently became part of the AKC’s collection of dog art on display at AKC Headquarters in New York.
· The artist’s illustration “Dogs Serving Mankind” which appeared in the October 2000 issue of the AKC Gazette, won the Dog Writers Maxwell Award for Best Illustration.
· In March 2002, BEARDED COLLIE The Illustrated Breed Standard, published by the Bearded Collie Club of America, was introduced. It was designed and illustrated by the artist. DOG NEWS hailed it as “A Masterpiece of a Breed Standard.” It won the Dog Writers Maxwell Awards for Best Single Illustration and Best Series of Illustrations, ultimately receiving the DWAA President’s Award for Excellence.
C H E T J E Z I E R S K I P r o f e s s I o n a l E x p e r i e n c e
· Chet Jezierski has been an active professional illustrator for nearly thirty years and enjoys a national reputation for reliability and quality in his field. He is the recipient of awards from graphic arts organizations throughout the United States, including the American Institute of Graphic Arts, the Society of Publication Designers, the Art Directors Club of New York and the Artists Guild of Chicago. His dog related artwork has earned him ten Maxwell Awards from the Dog Writers Association of America.
· Included among his many past assignments for a wide variety of clients are the promotional art campaigns for two hit mini-series for ABC Television, “Roots” and “The Winds Of War.” His theatre poster illustration for the Academy Award winning motion picture, “The Deer Hunter” has been seen worldwide and currently appears on the video cassette box. He has created artwork for record jackets, book covers, magazines, greeting cards, games and high school textbooks. His designs have even appeared on four U.S. Postal Cards.
· The artist has documented America’s manned space program for the National Aeronautics & Space Administration since the Apollo missions to the moon in the early 1970’s. His current era Space Shuttle art is on display for thousands of visitors who annually visit the National Air & Space Museum in Washington, D.C. and the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Four of the artist’s many contributions to the NASA Art Collection were recently included in the new book NASA And The Exploration Of Space. One was also selected to travel across the country for 42 months aboard Artrain, beginning in July 1999, as part of the Artistry of Space exhibition.
· As a working professional, Jezierski is hired by clients who seek solutions to their communications problems. The many aspects of each job are first explored during discussions with those individuals representing the agency, client, company or institution involved. The best elements of a potential solution are then brought together and presented in a professional fashion for further evaluation, in the form of a sketch. Following a critique, during which changes are proposed and debated, the final art is created. The finished art combines the talent of the artist and the needs of the client to provide a successful solution for the assignment.
· The artist received his art and design training at the Rhode Island School of Design.
C H E T_ J E Z I E R S K I
Bid Proposal to Create Layouts & Original Art for the Samoyed Illustrated Breed Standard
· I was invited to submit this bid as a result of my work on BEARDED COLLIE The Illustrated Breed Standard, and the resolve that an IS publication exhibiting the same high quality should be produced on the Samoyed. Therefore, the degree of my participation in the Beardie project and the manner in which it evolved are primary considerations.
· Once selected as the artist for the Beardie IS, I envisioned a booklet with illustrations that would not only be informative, but also interesting and exciting to experience. Layouts based on innovative interpretations of the selected text passages were sequenced and sketched out. These were conceived in a way to take advantage of the expansive horizontal format selected for the publication. Realistic finished drawings that bleed off the pages and run across the gutter were then accomplished using tonal variations instead of line work to define subjects. The reproductions were duo-toned when printed to add depth. A panoramic double-gatefold was implemented to display the full-color watercolor painting depicting the breed’s four colors and what constitutes a mismark. The front cover features a full-color reproduction of a traditional oil painting of three sitting Beardies in a natural setting.
· Following two years of intensive work, and with the approval of the club’s membership, the resultant 8˝ x 11 inch, 32 page booklet was introduced in March, at the AKC’s Advanced Herding Institute. It immediately received rave reviews from both judges and the media. Matt Stander of DOG NEWS hailed it as “A Masterpiece of a Breed Standard.”
· Envisioning and executing the special series of Beardie illustrations was made possible by the quality and variety of photographic reference material from which I worked. Much of that imagery was shot by me specifically for the project, due to the necessity for correct positioning of dogs depicted in the layout sketches. It is probable that I would need to photograph subjects for the same reason for this project as well.
· The creativity featured in the Beardie booklet is a direct result of allowing the artist to conceive the format and overall layout. My initial sketches, or pagination, consisted of thumbnail drawings along with type placements for every page. Numerous montage illustrations which merged multiple elements into single compositions were proposed. Everything visual was based on the Standard’s text and approved expansion commentary, with attention given to defining breed type, highlighting specific problem areas and portraying ideal and faulty dogs. Following an evaluation of the layouts by the club’s IS Committee; I was directed to proceed with all finished art. The final drawings were accomplished using graphite pencil on high-quality erasable vellum, mounted on heavy-weight Bristol paper. This allowed me to make any changes or corrections if required.
· All finished artwork would become the sole property of the Samoyed Club of America, and could be reproduced or published at the club’s discretion. I would be granted limited reproduction rights on artwork produced for the project, and on the final product, pertaining to advertising, self-promotion and portfolio presentation.
· A credit identification line stating, Illustrated by CHET JEZIERSKI, will be displayed prominently on the Title Spread, within the first two pages, in all published versions or editions of the Samoyed Illustrated Breed Standard. This credit line will also be required for any instance of any future use of any individual drawing or group of drawings by the club or publication. I will be provided with twenty ( 20 ) copies of the booklet as published, at no charge.
· With the understanding that your club wishes to publish an Illustrated Standard of the same quality, complexity and illustrative content as the Beardie booklet, I submit a fee stipulation that will enable me to help you reach that goal: $18,000.00 to be paid in three ( 3 ) installments of $6,000.00 each. One upon signing of a contract, one upon delivery and acceptance of half the finished art and one upon delivery and acceptance of all remaining final art. All fees and expense reimbursements will be paid in full regardless of the decision of the club’s membership to approve or reject the IS.
· This fee covers all photography accomplished by me specifically for the project, the conception of an overall design direction for the publication, the complete pagination in the form of thumbnail sketches which will include text placements, all finished artwork to include the full-color gatefold watercolor painting of coat colors and the full-color illustration to be featured on the front cover.
· Not included and considered as billable are all expenses relating to shipping, traveling to meet with IS Committee, traveling long distance to accomplish special photography and the costs of acquiring color transparencies of the finished paintings needed for reproduction. All costs associated with the reproduction of the artwork and printing the booklet, including pre-press electronic scans created for final layouts, are not covered by my fee.
· Significant contributions which proved instrumental to the success of the Beardie project were made by its Graphic Designer, Cynthia Mahigian Moorhead. Talented, knowledgeable and well-schooled in pre-press preparation of art and design, she was responsible for the creation of all final type elements, as well as the electronic page files combining text and drawings which were then turned over to the printer. In addition, she supervised the printing of the booklet, on-site, maintaining overall quality in the finished product. Her services for the Samoyed IS would be covered under a separate contract arrangement, for a fee of $1,500.00.
· I urge your club to consider the advantages of employing the combination of organizational, art, design and production skills offered by Ms. Moorhead and myself. We have demonstrated our capability to take raw input from an IS Committee, and through our creativity and experience, enable delivery to be made of an Illustrated Standard publication that sets a new standard for quality and educational value.
· Enclosed, you will find biographical information dealing with my background as an award-winning dog artist and as a professional illustrator for over twenty-seven years.
Recording Secretary Note: Please see the artwork from the cover of BEARDED COLLIE The Illustrated Breed Standard on their website: http://beardie.net/bcca/