Scott DuBar Illustration

Category: Editorial Illustration

  • Meadow Skipper | Ascent

    Meadow Skipper | Ascent

    Mock magazine cover for Meadow Skipper show a middle-aged man skiing gentle slopes meant for kids.
    An avid ski enthusiast imagines a magazine for middle-aged skiers.

    Latest editorial illustration for Ascent Backcountry Snow Journal. For an article imagining what a magazine (called Meadow Skipper) aimed at middle-aged skiers would be like, even suggesting various article topics like “How to make your beacon harness fit around your belly.” (My personal favorite!) Not being a skier myself, I had to do some research on what exactly a meadow skipper is. Turns out it refers to skiing gentle slopes and is something that many ski resorts offer for families with kids learning how to ski.

  • Magnetism | Private Commission

    Magnetism | Private Commission

    Two androgynous figures attached to magnets feeling their own magnetism towards each other. Illustration by Scott DuBar.

    Here’s a fun, little private commission I did recently. Two androgynous figures attached to magnets feeling their own form of magnetism. I’ve been using Clip Studio Paint a lot lately, and have really been getting into the awesome vector tools it has. Right now, the only drawback to CSP is that I have yet to find a set of brushes that can match the ones from Kyle T. Webster’s Megapack so I find myself still going back to Photoshop to add all my finishing touches. One of these days I may just have to roll up my sleeves and learn how to make brushes of my own, but until then I’ll have to settle for using Photoshop as a backup.

  • Ski The Sahara | T-shirt Design

    Ski The Sahara | T-shirt Design

    T-shirt illustration depicting a man wearing a headscarf and Berber robe skiing Saharan sand dunes under the Moroccan flag, and "Ski the Sahara" written in Arabic.
    Skiing Saharan sand dunes in Morocco.

    I’ve done a lot of skiing illustrations for outdoor magazines like Utah Adventure Journal and Ascent Backcountry Snow Journal, but this is the first time I did an illustration of someday skiing down a sand dune in the Sahara desert! Ascent publisher Paul Oelerich asked me to do a t-shirt design for him after his recent trip to Morocco. He had originally planned on the more traditional mountain skiing, but due to a lack of snow, he decided to improvise and ski the Sahara instead.

    Turns out sand dune skiing is really a thing. And, yes, people really do ski while wearing headscarves and Berber robes while their camels lazily gaze into the distance. I couldn’t be happier to get to illustrate a ski scene that takes place somewhere other than a field of white snow.

  • Look Up | Client: Utah Adventure Journal

    Look Up | Client: Utah Adventure Journal

    Look Up! Skier taking an avalanche rescue course has trouble finding where the instructor hid the avalanche beacon as a squirrel looks on. Editorial illustration by Scott DuBar.

    Editorial illustration for a Utah Adventure Journal article called Look Up about the lessons learned while taking an avalanche rescue course. The instructor hid the rescue beacon up in a tree, but the student is so fixed on staring at his beacon that he fails to notice it.

    This was my very first 100% digital illustration done using Clip Studio Paint, my new favorite drawing program. Better than Photoshop in every way! And much more affordable. I was able to get the EX version for 50% off, so for $100 I now have streamlined my whole working process and get to forever avoid Adobe’s ridiculous subscription scheme.

  • I Ski Because … | Client: UAJ

    I Ski Because … | Client: UAJ

    "I Ski Because" Skier making a heart shape while laying in the snow. Illustration by Scott DuBar.
    I Ski Because …

    Happy Valentine’s Day! This illustration, I Ski Because, was for an article on one man’s lifelong love for skiing, but I think it also works nicely for Valentine’s Day. Here’s hoping your Valentine’s Day is filled with the people, places, and things that you love most.

  • Alpine Mediocrity | Ascent

    Alpine Mediocrity | Ascent

    Alpine Mediocrity. Skiing enthusiast relaxes in a custom La-Z-Boy with skis. Illustration by Scott DuBar.
    Avid skiing enthusiast relaxes in the pleasant bliss of his average skiing skills.

    Recent editorial illustration for Ascent Backcountry Snow Journal. The article, Alpine Mediocrity, is about an avid skier accepting that he will never become the world-famous professional athlete he once dreamed of becoming. A bathrobe and La-Z-Boy recliner seemed a nice way to communicate that idea quickly.

  • Quintessential Utah Moments | Client: UAJ

    Quintessential Utah Moments | Client: UAJ

    Quintessential Utah Moments. Swimming through freezing cold water covered in algae, sticks, and dead bugs while hiking in Egypt 3 Canyon, Utah.
    Swimming through freezing cold water covered in algae, sticks, and dead bugs while hiking in Egypt 3 Canyon, Utah.

    Latest work for Utah Adventure Journal article titled Quintessential Utah Moments. I have to say it’s not often I get an opportunity to draw pond scum and dead bugs, nevertheless, I enjoyed it immensely.

  • The Vicious Gear Cycle | Ascent

    The Vicious Gear Cycle | Ascent

    Editorial illustration by Scott DuBar.
    “New gear always leads to more new gear.” How buying new ski gear can spiral out of control.

    Editorial illustration for Ascent Backcountry Snow Journal for an article titled “The Vicious Gear Cycle.” I had a lot of fun going for a more retro look and adding the hypnotic spiral in the background.

    Pencil drawing for Vicious Gear Cycle by Scott DuBar.
    Work in progress.
    Inking my illustration.
    Inking with my Pentel brush pen.
  • Night Riders of Utahvania | Client: UAJ

    Night Riders of Utahvania | Client: UAJ

    Night Riders of Utahvania. Illustration by Scott DuBar.
    Dracula taking a moonlit mountain bike ride along a spooky forest trail.

    Latest work for Utah Adventure Journal for an article called ‘Night Riders of Utahvania,” on the joys of being a Night Rider (ie: riding your mountain bike along trails at night) and imagining Utah as “Utahvania.” This was so much fun to illustrate! I guess it’s still a bit early for Haloween, but I’m not gonna pass up an opportunity to draw Dracula, ghosts, a haunted house, and all the rest.

    Night Riders of Utahvania: work in progress.
    Work in progress.
  • FOMO: Stop And Smell The Reno Hotel | UAJ

    FOMO: Stop And Smell The Reno Hotel | UAJ

    Outdoor enthusiast is afflicted with FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) while his little boy delights in their cheap Reno hotel.
    Outdoor enthusiast is afflicted with FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) while his little boy delights in their cheap Reno hotel.

    Editorial illustration for Utah Adventure Journal article titled Stop and Smell the Reno Hotel. A selfie addicted dad experiences Instagram-induced FOMO (the fear of missing out) at the end of his family vacation of hiking and biking in the California Redwood Forest. Meanwhile, his little boy declares that their stop in a cheap hotel in Reno is the best part of the whole vacation.

    As a former kid, I can relate. I remember spending most of my time outdoors in nature, both at home and while on family vacation. Hotels, even cheap ones, were always fun. I can’t say I ever actually preferred them, but the novelty factor alone made them stand out. Who doesn’t love tiny little bars of soap?