Art to Aspire to

oomuroke: by 裏方

Thu, 16 May 2013 11:54:53 -0400

by 裏方

cheeseburgerdanvers: istehlurvz: Basically an excuse to draw...

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 14:50:14 -0400

istehlurvz:

Basically an excuse to draw some babes with hella buns and thighs

~~I fucking love Carol and Jen dont look at me sobbb~~

look it’s a drawing celebrating female superhero bodies that doesn’t feel demeaning

spader7: ponytails!

Mon, 25 Mar 2013 23:23:16 -0400

spader7:

ponytails!

littlefroggies: EDIT: This design is now available for preorder...

Sat, 16 Mar 2013 21:33:53 -0400

littlefroggies:

EDIT: This design is now available for preorder as a vinyl sticker

Finished, now to set it aside for editing for the stuff it’s gonna be slapped on when I get to them.

30 Days of Art Improvement Challenge

Thu, 17 Jan 2013 04:04:03 -0500

quisling:

pencilcat:

Are you tired of feeling like your art just isn’t improving? Do you want to do a 30-day challenge that’s actually useful? Welcome to 30 Days of Improvement Hell. >:D

I made this because I’ve been feeling super ‘blah’ about my art these days, and I needed something to kick-start myself. Who wants to do this with me!? Start now or whenever you can (now you procrastinators!). Challenge yourself and have fun at the same time!

Tag your posts with #Improvement Hell so everyone can follow along and see each other’s awesome artwork. I may even create a blog and reblog them! :D

What are you waiting for? START!

Self-Portrait - Introduce yourself

Draw a figure using a reference - link to reference

Draw a figure that’s in action, using a reference - link to reference

Draw a part of the human anatomy you have trouble with. x20, with atleast 5 being skeletal/musculature studies.

Draw more figures. Quick gestures and silhouettes. x20, with atleast 10 different body shapes

Let’s have some fun. Design a character from this character generator. (created by PreservedCucumbers)

Pick the weirdest object in your house/room. Draw it. Shadows and Highlights.

Find 2-3 objects, make a scene with them. Draw it. Bonus points for creativity. Double points for dramatic lighting.

Draw a landscape of a place you’ve never been or drawn.

Draw a BG with 1pt Perspective. Negative points if it’s a railroad or an empty street.

Draw a BG with 2pt Perspective.

Look out a window. Draw what you see. Bonus points for adding something interesting.

Draw an interior setting with the character you designed on Day #6 in it.

BG with either bird’s eye or worm’s eye view.

Halfway there! Draw three ‘action’ scenes with different compositions in each. Quick sketches are fine, just make them interesting and understandable! Bonus points if it’s the same scene, but different composition.

Draw a single page comic with 5-7 panels (the story begins and ends on one page).

Draw an animal you’ve never drawn before. x10 Link references.

Draw a car. Negative points for whining. Hint: Use a perspective grid.

Think of the thing you hate drawing the most. Guess what? Draw it! Negative points for lying to yourself.

Pick an object in your house/room. Now design a character from it, color scheme included. (often known as a gijinka). Also link/post the object you used. Negative points for using a humanoid action figure.

Draw a character/object/scene, and shade them using ONLY solid blacks and whites. Bonus points for good use of lights/shadows

Draw a different object/scene/character. Shade using hatching, crosshatcing, and/or pointillism. Bonus points for lights/shadows and textures.

Colors! Pick a color palette, and paint a scene/character/object using only those colors (some blending allowed). Bonus points for good use of lights/shadows.

Draw and color a scene/object/character - no lines allowed! (aka - lineless art). Don’t forget light and shadows!

Draw a scene/character in a style you’ve never drawn before. If emulating an artist, credit+link. Bonus for color style.

Draw a character. Draw 10 emotions/expressions. Bonus points for ‘uncommon’ emotions. (i.e. anxiety, guilt, despair, loneliness etc.)

Draw three random shapes using your opposite hand (or your foot). Now design characters from those shapes.

Turn on the tv (or load your illegally download movies). Pick an actor and draw them.

Almost done! Let’s have some fun. Draw some fanart. Bonus points if it’s super obscure and unknown. Make people guess what it’s from.

Last day! Find a drawing you did within the last year. Now draw it again using what you’ve learned! Link it for comparison!

Look at all that amazing improvement! Congrats!

homestuckresources: look how sophisticated that title is i’m...

Thu, 10 Jan 2013 18:04:45 -0500

homestuckresources:

look how sophisticated that title is

i’m pretty sure most people know of all this, but there’s probably the odd thing that people don’t know about!

littlefroggies: Just some really fast tips about designing...

Thu, 10 Jan 2013 02:43:30 -0500

littlefroggies:

Just some really fast tips about designing those acrylic charms. The subject came up with friends after seeing a LOOOOOOOT of proposed designs from webcomic artists and kickstarters and they all made me wince because they seem to just be designed to snap in half.

There’s a lot of stuff to consider, like optimizing space available and designing the charm to accommodate these considerations instead of be made clunky and chunky-looking because of them. You do NOT want the hole the charm uses to connect to the cord/ring/etc to be really thin or small or at the very edge of the design — these acrylic charms WILL snap in half if they catch on stuff and aren’t reinforced properly!

Just a super super fast slapped together example in the name of saving artists making merch and their fans a lot of headaches!

emmyc: Stumbled across this video and loved it. It’s a...

Tue, 08 Jan 2013 01:53:14 -0500

emmyc:

Stumbled across this video and loved it. It’s a step-by-step look at Andrew Loomis’s head construction technique, which is my FAVORITE way to construct realistic head proportions at any angle.

Looking at reference for realism is always a must, but every artist should know the basics of constructing a head from memory! It’ll enhance your realism AND cartoony styles a hundred-fold, trust me! Same goes for body construction, which I hope this youtuber will touch upon at some point! YAY LOOMIS

losthitsu: Frills tutorial - translated version. Also in a...

Sat, 29 Dec 2012 03:04:15 -0500

losthitsu:

Frills tutorial - translated version.

Also in a separate album for easier download.

fujo: SenshiStock’s gallery consists of millions of pictures...

Wed, 26 Dec 2012 16:56:07 -0500

fujo:

SenshiStock’s gallery consists of millions of pictures that are free to use as reference.

General Drawing Poses
Sit and Kneel
Dramatic and Reaching Drawing Poses
Magic and Hogwarts Drawing Poses
Staff Weapon Pose Reference
Hammer, Axe and Bat Pose Reference
Sword Weapon Drawing Reference
Small Bladed Weapon Pose Reference
Gun Weapon Pose Reference
Bow and Arrow Archery Stock
Foreshortening and Perspective Poses
Dynamic Flying Falling Action Poses
Deafeated or Laying Drawing Poses
Magic Crystal
Magical Girl Wand Weapon
Transformations and Dance
Cards
Back Pose Reference
Pin Up Inspired Poses for Drawing
Performances Poses
Life in General Poses
Fights and Fighting Pose Reference
Leaning Poses
Classic Sailor Senshi Poses
Wings
Sailor Moon Villains
Pairs
Romance or Couples Pose Reference
All the Male Stock
Hanging Stock Drawing Reference
Three or More Groups
Instruments
Mirrors
Whip
Technobabble

Getting to Know Your Characters

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 22:29:14 -0500

writeworld:

Anonymous asked: My problem is character. I have spent all this time developing the world and having fun imagining how it works (I am writing a YA science fiction novel), but now when I sit down to try and figure out my characters, I feel stuck and frustrated. People are complicated, and I don’t want to oversimplify them. I try to describe their personalities, but all I can come up with is, well, sometimes they are this way…but sometimes they are not. How do I define them without making them too 1-dimensional?

This is a great question! You’re very right: characters, like real people, can be complicated. Since all writers are different, there’s really no right or wrong way to go about character construction. With that in mind, this article will be aimed at suggesting things you can do to sort out all the people living in your head.

Let’s start with the character itself, and what a character is, exactly.

Character (n): The aggregate of features and traits that form the individual nature of some person or thing.

Literature also recognizes different kinds of characters. You can have a static character, or one who does not undergo major change throughout a story; or you can have a dynamic character, who does see major growth and change throughout a story. An interesting character is most often dynamic, because character growth is a good way to create and support strong themes, but this is not always the case. Well-developed, complex characters are referred to as round, whereas one-dimensional characters are known as flat or “stock” characters. Most main characters in literature are round because the reader gets to know them very well by the end of the story, and most minor characters are flat because it is not important for the reader to know much about them.

Whether static or dynamic, flat or round, characters are individuals with distinct thoughts, feelings, histories, and motives. The latter two are especially important in developing round characters because they (again, like real people) have rich, complex pasts and are driven to get what they want. The more you know about your character, the more believable they will appear to your audience.

Here are some questions to ask yourself when a character is proving difficult to develop:

What does my character want? As I said before, motive drives a character more than any other internal force. Figuring out what your character hopes to get out of his or her journey is useful because the goal itself can imply a lot of other things about the character that you can then use to build further. If your protagonist wants to save the city, for instance, you can ask yourself why she wants to do that. Does she have a hero complex? Is she driven by guilt because she’s lost a loved one? Does she want to save anyone at all, or is she interested solely in eliminating the antagonist? Your character always wants something, even if it is something as temporary and mundane as a glass of water. A character can have many varied motives and those motives can intersect, conflict, and change throughout the story!

Where has my character been? A character’s past informs their motive and core parts of their personality—their hopes and fears, their strengths and weaknesses, their loves and prejudices—so it is important that you, the writer, know your characters’ histories. What’s your character’s family like? What are his or her ties to the world’s politics? Has your character literally been a lot of places? Consider key formative events, like prominent triumphs and losses. A character’s history also informs their sense of morality, which is so complicated that we’ve covered it in its own article!

What kind of person is my character? Human personality is complicated, but, thankfully, there are plenty of resources available online to help people understand and identify personality types. Writers can use these resources to learn about their characters! For example, there is the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, or MBTI, which assigns people one of sixteen personality types that break down the frameworks of their behavior. If you understand your character pretty well, you can fill out an MBTI questionnaire and read about the resulting type. Alternatively, you can start by reading about the various types and use that information to help you form a believable character. Once you have assigned a personality framework to a character, you can use it to make sure your character’s behavior remains consistent and believable throughout their story.

Whom does my character know? It’s important to remember that characters have influences on each other and that these influences can range from minor to formative. Explore the relationships between characters and you’ll find yourself thinking about motive and history and personality, and how these things will guide the characters’ behavior going forward. Also keep in mind that romantic relationships, while interesting, are not the only way to tie characters together! All relationship types can be compelling to your reader and teach you, the writer, about your characters.

Once you’ve got at least partial answers to some of these questions, you might feel you know enough about your characters to start developing them in writing. Just write and see what comes of it!

This writing does not necessarily need to relate to the main plot of your work as long as you are writing something that illustrates what you know about the characters. Retell that time that your protagonist got tea and gelato with his father; talk about sleepovers, about super secret cave explorations. about times of sadness. If yours is a story that deals with people of varied dialects and nationalities, consider the dynamics of those as you explore. If you’re feeling adventurous, pluck your characters up out of the comfort of their own settings and place them somewhere else.

What-ifs and alternate universe scenarios are a wonderful way to make sure you know who a character is, and hen you’re confident you could write the character reacting to any situation, you can be sure you are on the right track.

As you’re writing your story, remember to show, rather than tell the audience the things you know to be true about your character. Gene Wolf said:

“You do not characterize by telling the reader about the character. You do it by showing the character thinking, speaking and acting in a characteristic way. You simply show it and shut up.”

If your character likes coffee, illustrate that by having having her buy coffee! Do whatever you can to let your characters just be. The things they reveal about themselves might surprise you.

Some other useful references:

A character development chart

“Creating Fictional Characters” by Lillie Ammann

WriteWorld’s Character Tools page

This Is a Towel: Character Traits

WriteWorld’s “characterization” tag

WriteWorld’s “character development” tag

Thank you for your question! If you have any concerns or suggestions about this article or writing in general, hit up our ask box!

-Wes

very helpful art resource

Sat, 24 Nov 2012 23:56:39 -0500

very helpful art resource:

marcelinedrawsooo:

I stumbled upon a website that allows you to blend any colors evenly no matter how opposite on the spectrum they are.

sharing the knowledge

skybread: girlundefined2: channinglovestom: I WANT THEM...

Sat, 17 Nov 2012 16:20:21 -0500

skybread:

girlundefined2:

channinglovestom:

I WANT THEM ALL

FOR FUCKS SAKE, Someone make all of them!

I need the Fury one so fucking badly for prom

HAHAH They are so ace, the Fury one has a boobpatch-WHYISTHATSOFUNNYHAHAHA

melonenbrot: I made myself some Sai brushes for soft coloring,...

Fri, 16 Nov 2012 15:55:14 -0500

melonenbrot:

I made myself some Sai brushes for soft coloring, I thought I could share them :3

fictograph: abluegirl: silentstormshadow: Alexander McQueen -...

Fri, 16 Nov 2012 15:52:55 -0500

fictograph:

abluegirl:

silentstormshadow:

Alexander McQueen - “SAVAGE BEAUTY” {Exhibition} #2

I still feel so lucky to have seen this in real life.

Saw this in real life last year, and it blew my mind. One of my biggest inspirations.

dollyrotted: sugar-honey-iced-tea: Who wants this picture as a...

Fri, 16 Nov 2012 15:52:23 -0500

dollyrotted:

sugar-honey-iced-tea:

Who wants this picture as a T-shirt on my spreadshirt? I have been wondering if this one would be good. I might have to call it a “Pokemon fanart” shirt to avoid bumping into any copyright issues. What do you think? Yes or no?

YESYESYES

Photo

Fri, 16 Nov 2012 15:50:52 -0500

mcconaughey: mmmhhmm

Fri, 16 Nov 2012 15:50:27 -0500

mcconaughey:

mmmhhmm

massavage: Took a while but yeah, planning to sell all the...

Fri, 16 Nov 2012 15:50:00 -0500

massavage:

Took a while but yeah, planning to sell all the megukas as stickers!

notallpoetsaredead: Albert-Joseph Pénot “Batwoman” Thought...

Wed, 14 Nov 2012 17:21:20 -0500

notallpoetsaredead:

Albert-Joseph Pénot “Batwoman”

Thought Arielle might like this.

Oh I do! This is gorgeous.