Digital Art - Week Two

For this module I have to take some of the work I have completed in various sketchbooks and digitally manipulate it.

There are a number of ways and various computer programs I can use to achieve this result. 

• Photoshop - Manipulating and cleaning up images, digital painting and effects.
• Adobe Illustrator - Live tracing, patters and compatible with the laser cutter.

I am already familiar with both of these programs and know which to use to achieve a specific result.

First I need a sketch.

This one from one of the many life drawing work shops, is one of my favorites.

With the image selected, all I need to do is translate it into a format the computer can understand. I can either take a picture of the page using my phone, or scan it into the computer directly. Both will work, however the scanner will give the clearest result.

Once we have a digital copy of the work, we then need to open up this saved JPEG in photoshop, clean up the line work and brighten the background colour.

This is the result of the clean up process. I first brightened the original colours, until I had the cleanest black and white image. Then using the 'Magic Wand' tool, I selected each segment of white and 'cut' it away. (Making the background layer another colour other than white can help identify any unwanted white segments on the layer you're working on). I continued this process until I had nothing but the black line work on layer one. 

Photoshop has a number of tools which can speed the process along. The 'Magic Wand' tool is the one I have used the most to this point. With it I was able to select only the darker line work of the original sketch, and paint them dark green without smearing the rest of the layer.

Layers are also a wonderful asset to the digital artist. Having portions of the work on multiple layers allows changes to be made and mistakes easily corrected, without interfering with other sections, that do not need any alteration.

Here I have used the 'Magic Wand' tool once again to select the original line work and 'Copy and Paste' two more into the piece. Each copy is placed on a separate layer, allowing me to manipulate each one in a different way, without adversely affecting the others.

By creating multiple layers and altering colour, size, opacity and positioning, I now have this almost blurry effect.

Here I have added another layer, independent of the line work and painted in some tonal values to the skin using the paintbrush tool. The paintbrush took is one of the most diverse tools photoshop has to offer, with multiple options, brush types and additional settings to play with, one can create a truly unique effect.

At this point and with multiple layers to play with, it is always a good idea to change the order of these layers as the overall effect of the piece can be altered, sometimes for the better.

Now there are some tonal values to the face of the woman in the image, it doesn't feel so flat. Now it has a more 3D or lifelike feel.

Here is the finished image.

With the line work and the tonal values complete, the image still felt unfinished. The model who posed for the original sketch was very colourful, dressed in a multicoloured dress, large green wig and bright make-up. My original sketch (while nice enough) failed to capture the drama of these colours.

The final layer, I decided, should represent just how colourful she was.

I used the brush tool to create the splashes, before selecting these 'splash' shapes with the 'Magic Wand'. This allowed me to paint each splash independently with another brush type, one with a soft edge, creating a gradient effect and allowing the colours to bleed into one another.

Over-all I am pleased with his image. The end result is very dynamic, the softness of her expression invokes calm and stillness compared with the energy and motion of the paint.

Digital Art - Week One

Referred to in the 1970's as 'Computer Art' then 'Multimedia Art' digital art now falls under the umbrella of 'New Media Art'.

Early computer art was nothing more than generated shapes on a screen.

The foundations of the digital medium had been laid long ago with the invention of the first computer.

Poster for the Cybernetic Serendipity exhibition which debuted in 1968, by Jasia Reichardt.

But it wasn't until the 1990's and the emergence of the internet that the style really flourished. The internet made it possible to gain and share information and allow people with similar interests to work together.

The computer art of this time were 3D generated CGI (Computer Generated Imagery) that were more than a little bizarre.

As technology became more readily available to the man on the street, the art became more sophisticated as the tools the artist him/herself used.

Today we have some of the most beautiful art and vey talented digital masters. The work they produce is nothing more than perfect and the images that can be created is only limited by the imagination. The tools and software can imitate almost any medium but it is still ultimately up to the artist what they then create.

The Blue Lady - Richard Davies.

Richard Davies is a freelance illustrator and graphics designer and has been for over ten years. He works under an alias 'Turksworks'.

He has a very unique style, mixing still life with his very vivid imaginary aura. He has a good mastery of light and shade, making his work seem very real while at the same time, wistful and dream like.

Digital art might have made some art creation easier, for example, there is no danger of spilling a pot of ink all over the page and ruining the work. All the supplies you require lie within the computer software and digital art can be shared with potential customers/employers in an instant.

But it also presents its own limitations and drawbacks. A drawing tablet won't create a thing without power or working hardware. A computer crash after several hours of work can leave a digital artist on the brink of suicide and a discarded mug of coffee could damage some very expensive equipment.

People and Characters - Week Two

During the last half of the first week me and my fellow group members began to draw our chosen designs on the wall. It was a little difficult for us all to get into the small space to complete the first stages of our work, but some how we managed with spirits and optimism still quite high.

 

Everyone chipping in to buy some paint.

Preparing the canvas.

Connor sketching out his character.

 With so many of us trying to work on such a small space, we have to take turns adding to the wall.

 

Once the preliminary sketches in pencil were done, we set about finalizing the design and making them bolder with ink.

 

At this stage our plan was to paint the entire scene in colour, sticking to the warmer shades of red, orange and yellow, in keeping with the fiery pits of hell theme. However, two members of the group had a change of heart about this plan just as paint was about to be applied. It was felt that there would not be enough time to paint the entire wall, but there was a lack of communication and not everyone was aware of the change in direction. As a result, paint was applied regardless, sticking to the original colour scheme. I feel it was at this point, when one member in particular, took issue with the work so far and interest on both sides seemed to wane.

 

Acrylic colour being added

 

Work continued, but there was a definite rift in the group, one that wasn't easily smoothed over. It became very difficult to focus on the piece as comments from one particular member were very negative.

 

Connor adding another scene on the ceiling.

The week seemed to drag on and more and more I wished it was over. I wasn't enjoying the work and started to feel very unhappy with our piece. All I could think about was what a huge mistake we had made by painting the wall white. We should have painted it a warmer shade of orange or red, that way we would have had the mid-tones in there already and not as much would have needed to be painted. It was frustrating me that I had this eureka moment a week too late.

My lino-print designs, testing before being transferred to the wall.

 

 

 

 

The finished wall, looks decidedly unfinished. I would have liked to have tried to paint the entire thing but the general feelings from the rest of the group was that it wasn't possible.

The entire experience has taught me a lot about the importance of planning and adequate preparation. I feel we were too eager to begin the process without having discussed and thought it through better. Had we done this we might have gained a better understanding about what everyone in the group wanted to do, instead we winged it and a few members vision of the work clashed. This led to an awkward situation and a severe lack of communication. I myself found it very difficult to talk about what we could do to put the project back on track, I was met with shrugs, muttered declarations of not really caring and an over-all desire to be done with it.

Over-all I have enjoyed most of this experience and while I'm disappointed with the finished result I feel better prepared for the next group task. I'm not prepared to see a repeat of the same problems.



People and Characters

For the next two weeks I am to be working with five other classmates in a project that has a live deadline of November 5th.

The idea is to study unique and unusual characters in and around the town of Hartlepool before incorporating what we have learned into an installation that will be on display in the folio of the college itself.

The work must include at least five characters and five prints.

During this first week we have been partaking in a number of life drawing workshops to help us build up a broader range of studies to base our work upon. I have always enjoyed life drawing and enjoyed these workshops immensely.

 

One of the first of the three life drawing workshops we met Nigel the biker. He pulled up outside of the college and still perched on his 'hog' we all started to draw his very intricate self. The above image is one of my favorites from the day. While the most interesting feature of Nigel had to be his jacket (which was covered in patches and badges) I've always enjoyed portraiture.

The next character we met, was Chalky the Yorkie. Chalky came in wearing many different layers all with different textures, patterns but all in black and white. It was a challenge to try and capture all of that information during the time scale we were working with. The above image was created using graphite and I used the pencil in different ways to generate differing textures and gradients.

This one is also of Chalky while he sat with a cup of hot chocolate and had a chat with us. Chalky done his art degree while he was in his forties, which just proves that you're never to old to learn. A sentiment Chalky himself said during this chat.

I went back to fine liner for this piece and while I am very comfortable with this medium it was much more difficult to properly communicate the intricacies of what Chalky is wearing. Still, he does look very cool and reminds of a character from the Matrix.

 

This one was done using fine liner and is a portrait of Chalky the Yorkie. Chalky was sat very close for this piece and I wanted very much to try and capture a likeness as exact as possible.

 

 

The next life drawing study brought a very colourful character. This lady was very slim and dressed in a variety of colours, the more predominant being green. She posed in a number of different ways, the one above and below are my favorites from that day.

 

 

Once again I found myself focusing on the face, trying to capture the likeness as well as the mood of the pose.

 

These final three were done using secondary source from photographs. I love the pose of the ghostly woman, while it was the intensity of the eyes of the two gentleman that I have tried to focus upon.

 

It is images like these which would fit with the theme that the group has chosen for our installation.

 

We will attempt to create a Hell scene, with demons, evil doers and those damned for eternity.

 

Wish us luck.



Animals - Artist Research

Mercy Kagia is a Kenyan born artist currently based in the UK. I featured her in my artist research during the Reportage module as that is her forte, but her work also encompasses drawing animals.

Her animal studies are quickly done, stylized pieces that capture the shape, mood and motion of the creature.


John Banovich is an American born painter with phenomenal skill at capturing the likeness of animals all over the world. He has travelled to Africa many times on research trips and tries to use his art to raise awareness for those species in very real danger or facing extinction.

His work is beautifully done, capturing the exact likeness and energy of the scene.


Donna Crawshaw is a UK born artist based in Wales who specializes in capturing creatures in as natural setting as possible. She has portrayed many different types of animals found in and around the UK whether wild or domestic.

Her paintings are realistic and the subjects appear to be posed rather than caught in a specific moment.


Jan Adgie & Yvonne Lamden Cooper are both UK based, self taught artists who are members of many wild life conservations. They both produce art in similar ways with identical mediums (pastel and pastel pencils on velour paper). They have sold work up and down the UK as well as abroad.

Their work is soft, warm and realistic.

Animals - Week Two

After drawing for a full week its time to start thinking about designing and completing my final pieces for the module.

We are tasked with completing five sketchbooks (all containing the animal studies we've been working on) as well as four A3 finished pieces. (This amount was negotiable, so long as the total paper size amounted to 4xA3. In my case I have decided to do 1xA2 and 2xA3.)

The completed works have to depict a mythical creature we have designed. This is easier said that done as throughout history, every possible weird and wonderful combination of the animal kingdom seems to have been done.

Still onward and upwards.

This feathered Monkey was the first idea I had. I loved drawing the Baboons back in week one, so it made sense to incorporate a primate into my finished work. I'm very fond of the smaller monkey breeds, those often found jumping through the tree tops, their aerobatics are quite spectacular to watch.

Many smaller creatures (like the flying fox) likely evolved into their ability to glide by starting out as jumpers, with this in mind, I decided to give this monkey feathers, bright a colourful as the parrots they share their jungle home with.

 

 

This is the completed design. Its A3 and painted using Gouache.

For my second piece I wanted to create something very large. I love owls and I adore how regal a stag can appear with that crown of antlers. So I endeavored to put the two together.

And this was the result. It took a phenomenal amount of time to complete, the antlers alone taking two hours to shade, to give the effect that they are so large, that they are more like colossal trees reaching out towards the sky. I added two normal size trees at its feet upon the cliff its perched on, in the hopes it would better communicate its actual size in comparison to the world around it.

Animals

Our next task for weeks three and four are to study and draw a variety of animals, some of which may or may not be real. Animals and creatures have been documented throughout the ages, many by artists who worked to create an image of a creature with nothing but eye-witnessed reports. The results were less than realistic but always interesting.

This is what those in medieval England thought a Crocodile looked like.

 

 

During the two weeks we had trips to Flamingo land zoo where we were able to view some of the more exotic breeds in their enclosures. We also had a trained handler visit the studio with some of his fury and not so fury friends.

 

These were some of my favourite days as I adore all animals great and small, even the eight-legged whopper I plucked up the courage to hold. Strike one off the bucket-list! Though I am still terrified of the smaller, scurrying buggers that continue to invade my house... Oh well.

 

 

 

 Above are the sketches when some of the animals paid a visit to our studio. The baby Meerkats while very cute, turned out to be the most difficult to draw, simply because they moved so fast. Luckily all the practice doing Reportage the weeks before came in handy and I was able to create some very nice images, that I think have captured the form and motion of the critter.

 

Flamingo Land zoo was a lot of fun which a lot of wonderful animals on display. Most of which where inside their enclosures but some (like the Peacock and Squirrels) freely roamed the park grounds. Others were part of shows that ran every few hours and I was able to watch at least one of those featuring some amazing birds. The Barn Owl was especially cute and a lot smaller than I ever imagined.

My favorite drawings from that day had to be of the Baboons. They are a wonderful animal with so much character and an adorable facial expression. I was lucky enough to witness a female carry one of the troops younger members and parade right by where I sat.

The rest of my research came in the form of books and images found on the internet as well as some family pets.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reportage Artists

I've posted this a little late, really I should have done the research before doing any of the work, but I was eager to get the work done and considering I only had two weeks to fill ten sketchbooks, research was the furthest thing from my mind.

I'd like to start this blog with some information on an artist I recently discovered during the course of my Reportage work. So I guess that means I've been doing the research while doing the work.


Greg Betza is a talented Illustrator from New Jersey in America and is quite versatile, producing work that caters to his clients requirements. He has worked for NBC Sports, E&J Gallo Winery and The Wall Street Journal.

He also has a wonderful Reportage section on his blog which displays work he done in the middle of Times Square on a traffic free day. The work is beautiful, full of motion and life in a memorable, colourful setting.

He seems to draw just about everything and every where he goes, his interest stretching into live music performances and sporting events.


Eddie Pena is a storyboard and comic book artist who also specializes in Reportage. His work is bold and flowing, capturing everyday occurrences with ease. His use of colour is subtle, leaving much of the scene black and white.

Mr Pena has worked for Jib Jab Media, E&J Gallo Winery and has exhibited art in the London Regional Art Gallery and The Metropolitan Museum of Art.


Mercy Kagia is a devoted Reportage artist who was born in Kenya but who is now based in London, England. She had a love of drawing since being a girl and that love took her through her Degree.

She is an avid people watcher and takes great pleasure in drawing the often unnoticed everyday life. In 2013 she took her passion for drawing and started to research, gaining her a practice based PhD as a reflection on Contemporary Reportage Drawing. Her thesis Documenting Daily Life Through Reportage Drawing went hand in hand with an exhibition of her work 'Drawings of Kisumu'.


Rob Conway is an artist based in London who specializes in Editorial and Reportage illustration, utilizing a variety of mediums including acrylic, water colour, photography and digital manipulation.

His Reportage is impressive and the motion and lively nature of the scenes is present in the application of the colour as well as the initial drawing.

Rob has an extensive client list which includes BBC Wildlife Magazine, E3 Productions and the Health Service Journal.


Anna Cattermole is a UK based Reportage artist with dreams of travelling the world to document the world in the form of her Reportage work. She has worked as a freelance illustrator and has completed work for WH Smiths, Marks and Spencer, Smythsons, Boots and many more.

She never works from secondary sources, insisting on being able to see the subject of her work first hand.

Reportage - Week Two

Week two and everything seems to have just clicked into place. I realize now that what I need to do is just draw and not to think to much about it. I have stuck mostly with the fine liner as my primary tool but have added some colour to my work.

  

 

 

 

The fine liner I feel works very well with the water colours. I've tried to keep the addition of colour as subtle as possible, so they compliment the monochrome of the black ink which has also been washed lightly with water to blend it. The result is a much softer line and subtle midtones that blend into the shadows.

 

 

Times Square by Greg Betza

http://www.gregbetza.com/traffic-free-times-square-reportage/

 

 

The above picture comes from Greg Betza who captured this scene during a traffic free day in Times Square. I adore the way he's used the colour to highlight the part of the scene where the colour is at its brightest, in this case it is the posters and lights that adorn the square. (I'm fairly sure that one of the posters is for Wicked and Phantom of the Opera, and to be able to pick that out just shows the skill of the artist and the level of detail he was able to capture.)

 

The rest of the picture is the simplicity of the black ink on white paper. He's captured the motion of the scene very well and it gives a sensation of being a busy, living, breathing street. The piece is quite simply brilliant.

 

It was hard going, but I got the full ten sketch books filled! I really feel this exercise has helped me tremendously with my drawing. Even though this particular module is now technically over, I find myself looking around for interesting places to sit and sketch.

 

Reportage became some-what tedious and I won't lie, I'm glad its over! But I look at my work and I feel very proud of (some) of the pieces. Almost all of the subjects and settings are things I would have never considered as material for my work, but I now realize that all these things and places are part of a world I may one day be asked to capture in a drawing.

 

 

 

 Above are some examples from my sketch books. Below are work from the Still life workshops we've had during these first two weeks also.