Our SVS Virtual Studio 2019!

Susan Marks

Hello-I'm posting the work I'm most proud of this month. I always wrap up my month with "what was the best this month"-it's been a great way for me to do a bit of reality-checking on my growth.

While working on other harder things-I've been making these single-pane comic panels of a artist wrestling to write and draw a comic. I read @Heather-Boyd's feedback in another thread about how to treat the word-bubbles in a panel-how they automatically become the focal point so use them to draw the eye around the image. I'll try that next time.

I'm open to feedback-composition, images-have at it. I can only learn from you all!

Buddy Skelton

Spirited Away was the first Studio Ghibli film I watched. Really loved the No Face character.

Whitney Simms

@demotlj we need to paint together one day! You know I love this! Just charming! Hey @Will-Terry can you guys orginize a conference so we can paint with all our svs friends! Thanks!

demotlj

@Whitney-Simms Absolutely! What a great excuse for a road trip! I agree that the SVS triumvirate should organize SVS meet-ups. Wouldn't that be fun?

Coreyartus

Every month, on the 2nd, I post my latest project from my "sketchbook" (i.e. Procreate app) that I'm working on in this thread. This time, it's the costume design renderings for a show I'm working on--Stupid F##king Bird by Aaron Posner. Yes, that's the name of the show. It's an adaptation of The Seagull by Anton Chekhov from 100 years ago, which made the Moscow Art Theatre (and Stanislavsky) famous.

The play is both confrontational and provocative, heartwarming and sad, joyous and tragic, hilarious and shocking. There are times when the audience has to participate (Con says the first line of the play which is: "The play doesn't start until someone yells, 'Start the f**king play!'") and other times when the audience is a silent witness to the events unfolding in front of them.

It's an examination of how we judge our own successes and failures. It's about how we define our own happiness and what it means to give up. It's about narcissism, parenting, friendships, and falling in love. It's really a great show. Done by the first year students of the Old Globe/University of San Diego Shiley Graduate Program in Theatre.

My job is to create the costumes. As the Costume Designer at USD, I design the look of what the actors are wearing (in collaboration with the director and actors) then purchase/build the pieces, fit them, & supervise students doing alterations. It's a long process and requires a very wide range of skills (sewing and drawing--who knew?). But it all starts with the text.

These are simply tools that are a means to an end--the actual "design" is what ends up on stage. And I'm studying to get better at my capacity to illustrate things (that's part of why I'm here at SVSLearn). Slow and steady wins the race.

JerrySketchyArt

@Aleksey I bought the Fantasy World-Building book based on your recommendation. It looks great on the initial flip-through! Thanks for sharing. Can't wait to get deeper into it.

Jon Anderson

I'll jump aboard! Our youngest was born last November and I haven't had much time to pursue anything art related until recently. Our oldest turned four not long ago and requested that I make a painting of her and a butterfly so that's the WIP on the left and the WIP on the right is a "pallet cleanser" after the book cover contest. I wanted to do something simple while continuing to find the brushes and techniques that work for me in Procreate.

ArtofAleksey

@SketchyArtish oh im glad you like it. I’ll be frank with you I bought it mainly because i like his style and I’m trying to learn how to improve my ink skills. The things he talks about are kinda general.

JerrySketchyArt

@Aleksey I had to stop cold on a few pages to admire the line work while flipping through. It could be a pure picture book and it would have been worth the money.

ArtofAleksey

@SketchyArtish totally

braden H

Doing a 30 days 30 characters challenge at a webcomic hosting site. Using it as an opportunity to do design work for a short portfolio comic, so I'm doing locations as well as characters

This is a roost for riding bats (because bats are cool). The tower sits over a good ol' pit for catching guano, which gets shovelled out on a regular basis.

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Heather Boyd

@Braden-Hallett

Your process is top fabulous Can you design and build my house lols.

braden H

@Heather-Boyd Only if you want it to immediately collapse

burvantill

@ShannonB Thank you. You make it seem easy.
My problem is I never learned how to be loose with watercolor. I can be loose but it’s always contained within the lines. Incidently, it’s the way I used to color in my color books too. Don’t color outside the lines!
So I put tidy glaze after tidy glaze on hoping to eventually get what I wanted and it didn’t work. Normally I paint fairly bright. And coincidentally with this image, I was trying to reach the same look that you have in your paintings. You are able to light your focal points well, Without losing the brightness throughout the painting.
The second I figure it out I’m going to redo this one.

braden H

Really tryin' to put that environment course to work

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Heather Boyd

@Braden-Hallett You are a powerhouse man hahaha!

uzma

WOW love seeing all the great pieces - 3D, 2D, digital and traditional!

I recently started a 30 Day Challenge on my IG - Instagram.com/uzma.b.ahmad. Hoping it helps me improve on perspective, tone, and lines. This one was Day 3 - Thoughts on a Cliff.

Kat

@Whitney-Simms this is beautiful!

demotlj

I was stuck in a parking lot waiting for 45 minutes for someone but fortunately had my sketchbook and pens with me. Here is the tree next to the lot. (Note that spring has yet to arrive here.)

Whitney Simms

This is my art student. I teach Kate and her mom (my good friend) once a month. She’s homeschooled, so we do art for four hours together one day a month. I can teach watercolor, but I wanted her to get a good foundation that I am a bit rusty on. My friend subscribed to SVS and Kate has already taken three classes. I’m so excited to watch her grow. Guess I’ll get better too, i need to watch the classes in the curriculum too!

But check out her painting! She sat for four hours today and knocked it out. I told her that she needed a setting for her girl on the bike from last month. 4 HOURS! Y’all, she’s 12. I’m so proud of her. And glad that SVS can really teach her the things I can’t. Thanksfully, she still values my critiques and wisdom (you know I don’t have any wisdom).