UFO! - Inked!

And - tada! - here is the inked version! Could there be a color version on the way? Stay tuned.

P.S. - As you can see, the aliens are speaking a foreign language (because, really, you wouldn't theoretically be able to understand an alien if you met one), but I'm not sure if I should provide a translation (because I wouldn't understand them either, theoretically). Would a translation be helpful?

UFO!

So, the school I attend is doing this school wide Design project, working from the theme 'UFO.' These are the pencils of my take on it, working with the blue pencil method that I developed with the Karamazov illustrations. The final version will be inked, and (hopefully) colored. Keep checking the blog for future versions!

Brothers Karamazov-Ink Tests

Here are the ink tests I did using the Brother Karamazov sketches below. I used, from the left to right, Winsor & Newton Series 7 brushes (sizes 1 and 2), a Hunt 102 Crowquill, and a Niji Watercolor brush (somewhat like a Series 7, except you don't have much brush variation, but the ink is kept in a reservoir so you don't have to continually dip it in ink).

I think each has its own unique qualities and uses, but I think the strongest among these is the Series 7 drawings. They have a really nice, strong, clean presence. Not saying I'm perfect yet with the brush, but I think I have a good start.

A New Method of Working + The Brothers Karamazov

Blue Pencil. I've used it before, but only when I would transfer my pencil drawing to bristol board by way of light table. I've never used it for actual drawing purposes, for whatever reason, most likely my own comfort with my materials. However, after this weekends FallCon, and seeing how other people work with blue pencil in their drawings, I decided to give it shot with the drawings below.


So, what's the big deal? These drawings are a lot cleaner than the drawings I've been doing for years. The trick? You can't even see the blue pencil, which I used for the under structure of the portraits. This way, when I finally put an HB pencil to paper, my line was more assured, and I knew what I wanted to do. And when I scanned the drawing, the blue pencil either didn't show up, or just barely. A quick Levels adjustment soon made it disappear.

And who are these characters, you may be asking? They are the Brothers Karamazov, from Dostoevsky's novel of the same name. From top to bottom, they are Dmitri, Ivan, and Alexei. I've been slowly reading the novel, in between my work for thesis and school, and I've just had such a vivid perception of the characters, that I felt now was a good opportunity to draw them. We'll see how they look once I ink them.

FallCon Day 2

October 7-Fall Con Day 2. Just as hot and humid. *sigh* Oh well, a few more sketches came about.

The last of the Fantastic Four sketches. I really like how the Thing turned out, but I could never get a handle on Dr. Doom.

I've been thinking about a story where Tig and Rabbit, here in their early thirties, open up a coffee shop. I just drew out a quick scene, where Tig shows Rabbit a possible location, an old, abandoned diner. Rabbit isn't exactly pleased.
At MCAD, the Design department is doing a school wide theme entitled 'UFO.' I've decided to do something with teenage aliens, and these were some of my early sketches.
I'm not exactly a fan of this page, but this is where I ended my sketching. I decided to try and rework the design for Mary (from the wedding picture I did a couple posts earlier). The only drawing I'm really happy with is the three-quarter view at the top right, and looking at the original wedding picture, I'm not exactly sure why I thought her design needed to be improved.

FallCon Day 1

October 6-Fall Con Day 1! The weather was hot and humid, but I was able to do a good amount of sketching. I usually don't show my sketchbooks like this, but it might become a regular habit.
I'm not exactly keen on superheroes (my merch confirmed this), but this turned out to be a pretty superhero heavy con, so I gave in and did a bunch, mostly focused on the Fantastic Four. If I were to do a superhero comic, my choice would be Fantastic Four.
Of the Fantastic Four, though, I find Mr. Fantastic to be the most awkward. It's hard to make his power seem...'serious.' It can fall into comedy really fast. In light of this, I do find the top ink sketches to be fairly good. I made a first attempt at Dr. Doom at the bottom, and couldn't resist a Rabbit, Tigger, and Pooh sketch next to him.
The entire team!
I eventually broke away from the Four, and did a couple quick sketches of Dream and Death. I eventually made larger drawings of both of these, but I think I like the quick sketches better. The top sketch is of the emergency exit that was by my table.
This is probably the most awkward page. Basically, it's an array of hair styles, head shapes, and body parts that I caught over about a 10-15 minute period. Not much to look at, but some of you might find it interesting.