In 2006, Christopher moved to Southern California to look for new inspiration. Filled with best friends, mortal enemies, summer popsicles, freshly cut lawn, gossip, laughs and the obligatory robot factory.Įventually, Christopher developed The Urbanites into lovable characters, each with a unique personality and back story. Populated together in that tight knit community you’ve grown to love and hate. In 2004, Christopher started a conceptual pet project dubbed The Urbanites - a friendly bunch of characters that are almost like the rest of us:

“The Best Is Back,” has some pretty impressive commercial gigs to his credit: Lucas Arts, TBWA, Disney Consumer Products, Vodafone and Honda, to name but a few. They then set up an auction for the work, benefiting, of course, the orphanages.Ĭheck out Tad’s blog for more about his work, his inspiration, and his rather exciting artist life.ĭesigner and motion graphics artist Christopher Lee, a.k.a. Tad recently collaborated with a few other artists on a philanthropic project - after visiting 9 orphanages in Vietnam to help paint some murals, they got inspired by the kids’ drawings and paired each kid with one of the artists, who later did his own version of the kid’s drawing. Between his day job at Design Ranch and his personal work, Tad also co-runs Vahalla Studios, a top-notch screen-printing shop. Tad’s work spans across posters, identity, installations, packaging, painting, and more. Kansas City designer Tad Carpenter‘s character illustrations are what one would call “unique” - the bold colors, crisp lines and subtle 2D texture, combined with the expressive minimalism of the characters’ faces, make for a signature style you couldn’t mistake for another. And we love these 5 incredibly innovative illustrators. He continues to do summer workshops and clinics around the globe.We love illustration. Tad is a clinician for Yamaha Drums, Evans Drumheads, Avedis Zildjian Co. Tad served as Vice President of the California Chapter Percussive Arts Society and hosted the PASIC convention for marching percussion in Anaheim. Tad has instructed the Sacramento Freelancers, Glassmen, Velvet Knights Drum & Bugle Corps, and was a marching member of Disneyland’s Magic Kingdom Korps.

Tad has written music for USC Band performances in the Grammys, Academy Awards, the Guitar Center Drum-Off, and a multitude of other band and percussion performances. Tad was also a featured performer and clinician for Remo in the 19 Southeast Asian Educational Tour. He instructed and composed percussion music for the 1984 Olympic Band, 1991 Olympic Sports Festival, 1992 Democratic National Convention, 1994 World Cup Opening Ceremonies, Spirit of Tanjong Katong in Singapore, as well as various Super Bowls. Tad has marched the Tournament of Roses Parade 37 years in a row with the various ensembles. Tad is also the Director of Percussion Studies and Assistant Band Director at Pasadena City College. He received his Music Degree and Teaching Credentials from California State University, Northridge, and received his Master’s Degree in Percussion Performance with Honors from the USC Thornton School of Music. Celebrating his 37th year with the USC TMB as Head Percussion Instructor and arranger, Tad is one of the busiest percussion instructors in Southern California.

Tad carpenter animation