@Aleksey Do you think the second book would be valuable even if the environments I am trying to design are not fantasy environments? I have difficulty envisioning backgrounds and often rely on photos but would like to improve my ability to conceive fictional environments.
Laurie DeMott
instagram.com/demotlj
@demotlj hmm i dont think you need it if you’re not doing fantasy but it will help because they talk about gathering regerences, they talk about how to think about the ecosystems and the cultures you might find in those places. What’s really helping me with the fantasy book is seeing examples and steps of how he approaches his textures. Like when you try to do textures on your own sometimes you end up guessing on how to approach it but having clear examples of other artists’ approach really helps. So i guess as a reference book and for art studies it is very helpful even if you dont wanna do fantasy. Theres also a small page on different mediums and tools, i really want to try brown ink now. Like any book you kinda just get a little bit of something out of it for yourself.
@evilrobot thanks! Your art is looking mighty great as well. I love how clean your line work and textures are.
@burvantill This looks great! I love the composition and everything and totally understand the struggle with watercolour! I find sometimes the darks and glows of light are especially difficult to achieve.
I think it’s my version of fan art. Lots of feedback on my posts. I think it’s because we all love the lake and are ready for summer. All these bright colors are killing me. I like the look, but it looks so different from my other work. It’s for the nautical challenge for spoonflower.
Been working on my face structure and drawing a lot. Feel like I'm making progress but still struggling with some aspects.
Your first image has nice lighting that you have drawn well.
I was supposed to go out of town this week but due to a sick dog (not life threatening) had to stay home so determined to see new sights anyway I decided to pick random nearby towns and roads and find at least one thing a day to draw. I live in a very rural area but discovered if you have to you can find something anywhere! Here’s a dip pen and ink I did. Tomorrow I’ll try adding watercolor.
Did a watercolor wash on my chickens this morning. It’s a very old fashioned look.
Laurie DeMott
instagram.com/demotlj
Rough sketch concept for a fairytale mushroom village.
@demotlj i love it! I wish I had chickens near me to draw. I’m super into this because im also practicing my pen and ink skills right now.
instagram and twitter: @artofaleksey
alekseyillustration.com
@Aleksey And I wish I had something besides chickens near me! I ordered the books you had recommended and am enjoying them both especially the Rendering in Pen and Ink" by Guptill. I'm finding inking very zen like and relaxing. Thanks for the recommendations.
Laurie DeMott
instagram.com/demotlj
@demotlj nice yeah it really is! Pen zen
My husband is going to a mini reunion next week with his best buddies from the good ole days - some he hasn’t seen in over 20 years - and he asked me to design a t-shirt highlighting one of the stupid pranks they used to enjoy. I had never heard of this before but apparently it’s a whole thing. 
I don’t get it but it gave me the opportunity to design to a brief and practice drawing characters.
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!
Spirited Away was the first Studio Ghibli film I watched. Really loved the No Face character.
@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!
@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?
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.
@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.
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.
I was supposed to go out of town this week but due to a sick dog (not life threatening) had to stay home so determined to see new sights anyway I decided to pick random nearby towns and roads and find at least one thing a day to draw. I live in a very rural area but discovered if you have to you can find something anywhere! Here’s a dip pen and ink I did. Tomorrow I’ll try adding watercolor.
