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Michael Dashow

@mdashow.bsky.social

3.6K followers 1.1K following 1.7K posts

Illustrator, character designer, kidLit artist & gameDev art director. Rep'd by @vickyweberbooks.bsky.social‬ @ CMA Tetris-level ability to pack refrigerator & expert recollection of 80's new-wave song lyrics. He/him. https://linktr.ee/mdashow

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Michael Dashow @mdashow.bsky.social · Jul 9

Hi, #PortfolioDay !
I'm Mike and I like creating fun, colorful character-driven art. I make lots of art for video and tabletop games and would love to create some MG book covers. I am also seeking representation.
Cheers!

#kidLitArt #characterDesign #characterIllustration #gameArt #illustration

A girl is trying to walk two fluffy samoyeds but has gotten entirely tangled up in the leashes of the two dogs who are happily running circles around her.
The title reads "Zoey Crocker, Pet Walker" by Maureen Keene.

Two kids explore a hallway in a dark mansion. They look worried, and the boy holds a flashlight. The hallway is lined with paintings in ornate frames, all of the eyes of the paintings watching the kids. We can see the shadow of some sort of horned monster coming up the stairs.
The title reads "The Mystery of Mystic Manor" by Jo Barnett.

Sherrif Saguaro, an old-timey western sheriff who also happens to be a walking cactus. He's wearing a dusty leather coat and boots with spurs and a red bandana, and while he wears no hat, his cactus head is the shape of a 10-gallon hat. He's dashing through a dusty old western frontier town about to throw a lasso. In the background is his trusty horse, who also happens to be a cactus.

A panicked apprentice witch (she's human, with pink hair, glasses, and light academia clothing) makes a mess of her cauldron while being calmy advised by an older, wiser witch (who is a bear.) Aside from the exploding cauldron, the browns of the scene make it warm and cozy.
The cover reads "DeepWoods Academy for the Magically Inept" by Jo Barnett, book 1: Trouble Brewing

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Reposted by Michael Dashow

Gwen C. Katz @gwenckatz.bsky.social · 12h

It's closet cleanout time! I'm selling off all my one-off shirts for just $10 each. These are one-of-a-kind upcycled shirts, vinyls, and test designs. If you see one you like, grab it now--last time they went fast!

Proceeds will help me rebuild from the Eaton Fire.

www.etsy.com/listing/4384...

An assortment of shirts with phoenixes and Altadena heart motifs

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Reposted by Michael Dashow

Eek! Johnson Thrill-ustrator @illustratorerik.bsky.social · 16h

Post a mage! 🧙‍♂️

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Michael Dashow @mdashow.bsky.social · 13h

Ben Grimm as a jolly wizard in response to this thread is ridiculous and just makes my day! 😍

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Michael Dashow @mdashow.bsky.social · 15h

Like the thing says, "everything is criticized."

A meme format with the top panel showing hangs holding a jar of pills marked "hard pills to swallow." The second panel shows hands holding pills and above this lightly-colored illustration is bold black text that reads "Dark text reads better on light backgrounds. Light text reads better on dark backgrounds. Don't rely on a thin outline to make your text legible."

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Reposted by Michael Dashow

Michael Dashow @mdashow.bsky.social · 1d

Post a mage! 🧙‍♂️

A stylized illustration of Gandalf the Grey from 'Lord of the Rings' holding a staff and a glowing sword. The background is mostly black.

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Michael Dashow @mdashow.bsky.social · 1d

Post a mage! 🧙‍♂️

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Reposted by Michael Dashow

Jess O'Thomson @jessothomson.co.uk · 1d

It cannot be made clearer.

If you continue to support the Harry Potter franchise in any way, you are directly funding the removal of trans people's human rights in the UK.

JK Rowling pledges to keep up fight against SNP trans policies

Author vows to bankroll campaigners after Scottish government fails to pay group's legal fees in Supreme Court equality case

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Michael Dashow @mdashow.bsky.social · 2d

The game I've been working on
(or one of them, anyways 😄)

#indieGame #TBS #tacticsGame #indieGames #gameDev #gameArt

Ledgerbound @ledgerbound.bsky.social · 2d

Here at Heroes United Life Group, we like to get into the headspace of our policyholders when simulating their final battles!

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Reposted by Michael Dashow

Brooke Baum @brookebaum.bsky.social · 2d

LATE BIRD is sick of Early Bird getting all the worms--and all the glory. But don't worry, Late Bird has a plan. Forget the alarm clock, this calls for a catapult. Look out world, here comes Late Bird!

THE BAD SEED x THE VERY IMPATIENT CATERPILLAR

#DVPit #ND #PB

Images of LATE BIRD looking for worms and getting increasingly agitated as he doesn't find any. Another image of LATE BIRD sweaty and out of breath saying "I made it!"

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Michael Dashow @mdashow.bsky.social · 3d

Thanks so much for sharing those, Brian! (My kid will love them too!)

Michael Dashow @mdashow.bsky.social · 3d

I can't see them without logging into FB and joining the group, but I'm sure it's cool! 💀

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Michael Dashow @mdashow.bsky.social · 3d

Holy cow! I'm used to stepping on Lego pieces but less used to seeing ones that can step on you! Is that Lego maxi-fig something you can buy at a store or did they make it themselves?

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Reposted by Michael Dashow

Bookshop.org @bookshop.org · 3d

Can’t decide what to buy on Prime Day?

Try: absolutely nothing, and then go support indie bookstores instead 📚

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Reposted by Michael Dashow

André Cardoso @andremc.bsky.social · 4d

Recently had the opportunity to build 3 demos to demonstrate the power of game feel!

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Reposted by Michael Dashow

BAD Collective @badcollective.bsky.social · 4d

We are a friend group from the Bay Area, California supporting each other through the game of game development.

We call ourselves the BAD Collective: BAD for Bay Area Developers.

Follow to keep up!
@digitaliliad.com
@mdashow.bsky.social
@waltdestler.com
@evolutionary777.bsky.social

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Michael Dashow @mdashow.bsky.social · 5d

I always forget I already have that app. 😅 How do you make it display in a grid view like that? 🤔

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Reposted by Michael Dashow

M.A. Zavala 💖💜💙 @megzavala.bsky.social · 6d

Sometimes I question whether I should go back to instagram to keep up with old friends, but then shit like this happens and I’m reminded why I refuse to touch anything Meta

truthout.org/articles/tru...

Trump's ICE Has Started Targeting Activists, Not Just Immigrants
ICE demanded Meta hand over personal information attached to Instagram accounts that track immigration raids.

"I feel like it's getting lost in the shuffle here, but Meta is the subpoenaed party," Kellegrew told The Intercept. "Meta is in the best position to resist providing this information, and the fact that they appeared willing to comply without any thought for the constitutionality of the request essentially leaves it up to the individuals targeted to have the wherewithal to contact lawyers to intervene on a very tight timeline."
Meta did not respond to a request for comment by the time this story was published. The company announced on September 23 that its signature artificial intelligence service is being used by the military and intelligence community as well as multiple private contractors to bolster "national security" under Trump.

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Reposted by Michael Dashow

Puzzle Spy International @agentepsilon.bsky.social · 6d

What could this new game location be? A secret base, of course! This is what the whole game is building to! I talk more about it in my new blog post on Steam:
store.steampowered.com/news/app/340...

#ScreenshotSaturday #puzzleGame #indieGame #thinkyGame #gameDev #gameArt

A scene all in teal and orange: A giant building with 1950s "googie" architecture sits in the middle of a rainforest. It has a sharply triangular roof, a radar dish, and off in the distance some sort of observatory with a laser nozzle sticking out of it. Agent Epsilon isn't shown here but you can read her dialogue: "This is definitely... the base I’m looking for... but that’s a lot more hiking... than I usually do on a mission!"

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Reposted by Michael Dashow

Puzzle Spy International @agentepsilon.bsky.social · 7d

A reminder that this is tonight from 5 - 8:30. 😁

Puzzle Spy International @agentepsilon.bsky.social · 8d

For anyone who happen to be in the SF Bay Area, tomorrow night we're bringing TWO new puzzles to The MADE for playtesting. Come check them out, along with the dozen or two other indie games that will be playtesting & demoing there. 5pm to 8:30.

#indieGame#Dev #puzzleGame #indieGame #indieGames

It's Paris at dusk and Agent Epsilon is standing there, a pretty sunset behind her. She's smiling and gesturing at the bright yellow and orange text on the screen: "Live playtesting Friday October 3 Oakland, California at the MADE."

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Michael Dashow @mdashow.bsky.social · 7d

Congrats on both the book (which sounds adorable) and the second book sale as well! 👍

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Reposted by Michael Dashow

Zohran Kwame Mamdani @zohrankmamdani.bsky.social · 7d

On October 3rd, I’m asking you to register to vote.

zohranfornyc.com/register

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Michael Dashow @mdashow.bsky.social · 7d

My wife and I saw DVN in Berkeley CA years ago. It was the funniest concert I've ever seen and we still think fondly of the various on-stage antics, which included stealing an audience member's seat when she went to the bathroom and placing it on-stage so she'd have to sit up there on returning. 😆

Michael Dashow @mdashow.bsky.social · 7d

Nope. My top was 9 or 10 interviews for an AD position at [big mobile company] before being told they didn’t have the headcount to hire me for the role they’d been interviewing me for. What a waste of time, including the team’s.