Isolation May WIP - critiques welcome

[ArtofAleksey]

Havnt added the shadows under the couch or highlights anywhere but here are my values so far

[Jeremy Ross]

Hi @ArtofAleksey, looks awesome! I think many of us were thinking pirates! Yours is certainly well executed! Can’t wait to see your submission.

[ArtofAleksey]

@Jeremy-Ross thanks Jeremy! Yeah Pie-rats indeed

[carlianne]

@ArtofAleksey I love it! Reads really clearly.

My only comment is that the "mom" looks like a dad with long hair. I think it's the length of the nose and how sharp the shoulders are. Or you can just make it a dad shrug

[chrisaakins]

@carlianne @ArtofAleksey yeah, I am not getting a clear reading on gender, either. The hair and thinness says woman but the tie and hard looking eyes say man.. the adult's face in general does not seem as stylistically well developed as the kid's do. Also their head should be seen past the headphones in the back. I am looking forward to your development of this piece. I hope my nitpicking is helpful. I think you do great work. It always helps me when you give me specifics. But if I need to lay off, let me know.

[jdubz]

Ah, yeah I immediately read it as older brother (as opposed to a dad that may not have longer hair).

If it would be helpful I can take a picture of my own face this afternoon when I've finished home schooling all the kids and we've all been having such a magical time for the last 8 hours together... you could probably just copy the expression and it would be perfect.

[Johanna Kim]

@ArtofAleksey Love this concept. Your humor is so great!

[ArtofAleksey]

@jdubz @carlianne @chrisaakins i intentionally left it ambiguous. Unless theres a specific reason for gendering the character, like in last month’s “lisa” illustration, I leave it ambiguous because it really doesnt matter. This way also it can cover a broader scope of individuals that have gone through this time and experienced difficulties or know someone who did. Which also I realize isnt that important for the contest but it’s what i Wanted to do. Do you guys think this is a bad idea?

[ArtofAleksey]

@Johanna-Kim thanks!

[carlianne]

@ArtofAleksey I just mentioned it because you had written "mom" in an earlier post. I don't have strong opinions on being gender specific. As long as it doesn't make anyone feel confused.

[chrisaakins]

I think its distracting because it makes me focus on figuring out the puzzle I perceive rather than focusing on the story. The character is not ambiguous in a good way and does not help you tell the story. That's my perception anyway. You made the boy a boy, and the girl a girl, but the adult is confusing, and not for any compelling reason.

[ArtofAleksey]

@carlianne oh i did i totally forgot i did

@chrisaakins good point. Lets see what i can do

I think i have a solution but now im mad at myself

[ArtofAleksey]

Ok..
I think it’s done. I changed the hair and fixed the perspective

[chrisaakins]

@ArtofAleksey it looks really good!

[ArtofAleksey]

@chrisaakins thanks Chris. Sad to say this is gonna be my last contest entry for a while

[chachaarts]

@ArtofAleksey I think it's a great concept!!! Very nostalgic to the many forts I've built as a child! I will say to me some part feel a hair too stiff. Mainly just the broom and the lamp feel too straight in the air for inanimate objects interacting with couch cushions. I feel if you pushed those to be more offset then it would really make the whole fort feel more playful. Otherwise awesome! Cant wait to see the finish!

[chrisaakins]

@ArtofAleksey Why is that?

[ArtofAleksey]

@chachaarts it is finished, or rather i am finished with it. I dont think my heart was in this one.

@chrisaakins my subscription is expiring and i dont feel like kid lit is really where i want to go. I keep feeling like im forcing myself to draw in a style i dont like to draw in and it shows. and even the one piece that was called professional by jake himself didnt win the contest, and i didn’t really get any feedback as to why other than it’s not funny. I get frustrated when it feels like I’m putting in a lot of work and not getting out what im expecting. So im gonna shift gears for a bit and see where that goes. Maybe ill come back

[ArtofAleksey]

@gavpartridge Thanks, yeah graphic novels and comics is what I want to explore more of. I have a few scripts already written gotta develop the art more.

[chrisaakins]

@ArtofAleksey Well, I hope you stick around the forum. I appreciate your friendship.