new girl | Megan Coyle: Artist & Illustrator

January 12, 2025January 12, 2025

Coach

This weekend I finished the sixth and final (for now) collage portrait in my series inspired by the TV series New Girl. “Coach” (played by Damon Wayans Jr) was definitely a fun portrait to tackle. I’m noticing that when I actively work on several collages in a week, that I don’t feel as rusty when I make artwork. So here’s a reminder to all the other artists out there, that practicing your craft consistently truly is important. When I’m feeling rusty, it’s definitely a bigger struggle to complete these works of art.

With this particular piece, I focused a lot more on using solid colors with only some slight texture from the magazine cutouts selected. I also managed to complete this piece in a couple of days, instead of my usual process of slowly working on a piece over the course of a month (and by slowly, I mean only occasionally pouring time and energy into a piece).

So what’s next? I’m not sure what my next portrait series will be, but I do know that I’m going to work on a still life series on the side, outside of these portrait pieces.

January 11, 2025January 11, 2025

Nick Miller

This is the fifth collage portrait in my series in spired by New Girl, “Nick Miller” (played by Jake Johnson). I only have one more piece to go in this series before I move on to the next one. I’ve really enjoyed working on these portraits, although at times I’ve struggled to stick to a consistent art-making schedule. I’m hoping that this year I can get more consistent with my art. And I’m looking forward to continuing to work on several different series this year.

I’m excited to see how my process and technique improve this year by sticking to a better art-making routine. After all, that’s half the battle to being an artist – making time to actually make your art.

December 28, 2024December 28, 2024

Cece Parekh

The last couple of months of this year have been a bit busy with travel and celebrating the holidays. I managed to complete this portrait in between my trips down to Virginia. And this is the fourth portrait completed in my series inspired by New Girl, “Cece Parekh” (played by Hannah Simone).

This piece was a bit of a struggle since it’s been a while since I sat down and completed a portrait. In the New Year I’m planning to focus more energy on my creative work so hopefully these portrait will come easier to me in the future (with a lot more practice). I hope everyone has a Happy New Year and has a chance to start 2025 off wonderfully!

November 26, 2024November 26, 2024

Schmidt

Lately, I’ve been enjoying the challenge of tackling different portrait series. I’ve been pushing myself outside of my comfort zone, and I’m also excited to start some new still life and landscape pieces that have been in my backlog for a while.

This is the third portrait in my series inspired by the TV show New Girl: “Schmidt” (played by Max Greenfield). He’s one of my favorite characters from the show, which made it especially enjoyable to take my time and focus on capturing his likeness. I’m planning to create at least three more portraits in this series, making it a much smaller body of work than the one I created inspired by The Office.

September 17, 2024September 17, 2024

Winston Bishop

The other night, I completed the second portrait in my New Girl series: “Winston Bishop” (played by Lamorne Morris). I had a lot of fun working on the colorful pattern of his shirt and enjoyed the overall challenge of tackling another portrait.

Winston is one of my favorite characters from the show, so naturally, I had to create his portrait early on in the series. I’m planning to make at least four more for this collection. Right now, I’m aiming to complete one new collage each month, since my schedule has been pretty hectic lately. Keep an eye out for more New Girl-inspired collages!

August 14, 2024August 14, 2024

Jessica Day

New Girl has always been one of those shows that I can rewatch and still find myself laughing out loud. The characters are so unique and relatable in their own weird ways, and I knew I wanted to capture that in my art. So, I decided to dive into a new portrait series inspired by the show, and I kicked it off with none other than Jessica Day.

Creating this portrait was a bit of an adventure. I used upcycled magazines to piece together the vibrant, quirky essence of Jess. There’s something really satisfying about taking old materials and giving them new life in a way that captures the spirit of a character I’ve enjoyed watching for years. This portrait took some time, but it didn’t feel like a grind—probably because Jess’s infectious energy kept me going.

While I don’t plan on making as many portraits for this series as I did for my The Office collection, I’m excited to see where this journey takes me. I’ve got a few more New Girl characters in mind, and I’m looking forward to bringing them to life with this technique. Stay tuned—there’s more to come!