Between two lungs

Florence and the Machine again.  This whole album has been my inspiration for the last week. I love it. Music is a huge inspiration to my drawings.  I don't ever like drawing when it's silent.  Especially with Banjo Rat and Accordion Bear, I listened to so much banjo and accordion music.  How can I create these characters if I don't understand what makes them tick.

Don't really have a lot.  Winter break is going to be slow I think. Of course I have lots of sketches, but completed works are going to be few and far between I think. So first we have a little Lion King doodle. It's Nala and her mother Sarafina.  Nala is not pleased :P

Oh then we have a Banjo Rat page.  I love Banjo Rat and Trumpet Muskrat, they are so happy :)

Banjo Rat and Accordion Bear rockin' out! Banjo Rat is in the spotlight, I have to make him a more interesting main character. 

A very art nouveau sketch.  Graceful woman with graceful cranes is over done but I don't care.  I hate her face, but I like everything else.  I used two colored pencils, a marker, white gel pen and a black ball point pen. It felt good to make a (mostly) complete drawing traditionally.  I don't do that much anymore.  

I always have the most inspiration to work on art very late at night when I should be sleeping.  It's annoying.

No more dreaming like a girl

Florence and the Machine :)

I haven't done a lot this week. Have some sketches. Finals and what not...they are hard

Just some studies of Creepy Rabbit Guy.  Figuring out how he moves and how big he is. I like him.

Drawn from a photograph. I've decided I'm going to post things with nudity. I draw a lot of nudes, it's just art.  How else do you learn to draw the figure?

Heh, just a quick little doodle. I thought it was funny :)

Heh,  I was flipping through a J Crew catalog and this model seriously looked like she was dead so... I killed her.  It's me trying to be funny, but I guess it's pretty morbid too...oops. Maybe I feel like drawing things like this when finals are close

Monday....nope Tuesday again

I don't really have a lot this week.  I did finish the one of Accordion Bear being sad. I'm really really happy with it.  I downloaded smoke brushes and I LOVE them! I really like the cigarette butts too :) 

I wrote a little story to go with the image

Banjo Rat and Accordion Bear had been touring together for about a year. At first it was great, they were loved and their music was raved about in the press. Banjo Rat and Accordion Bear worked together on songs, wrote amazing music, jammed till three in the morning, it was all about creating. Banjo Rat loved it. 

But Accordion Bear definitely had some baggage. He smoked constantly, would get drunk, hit on women, and eventually started to take Banjo Rat for granted. He would accuse him of not being dedicated to the music, or being too much of an uneducated redneck. Banjo Rat put up with this because it only happened every now and then. But it began to happen more and more frequently. Accordion Bear would get smashed and end passing out in the gutter. Banjo Rat took care of him when he got like this, but it didn't matter, it just kept happening more and more. 

One day Banjo Rat finally gave up, after a particularly nasty fight they had. Banjo Rat left Accordion Bear and didn't look back. When Accordion Bear finally sobered up enough to realize that Banjo Rat was gone, he was devastated. He wallowed in self pity, hanging out at the back of a sleazy night club. Smoking constantly, making sad forlorn music, and just feeling like shit. He didn't know how long he would feel this bad...but he wanted it to stop. He realized that his music, his state of mind, his whole life was always better with Banjo Rat in it. He had to change. He had to change to keep his best friend, the only thing that really mattered, in his life.

Yep, he's a sleazy guy, but really has a heart of gold buried waaaaaay down there.

It's Mooooonday!

I think my art block finally ended. I drew pretty much all day last Wednesday and it was a spectacular day. This is the image I came up with.

I've actually got a fair amount of art for today's post.  First off we have the completed piece from last week.  I just downloaded firework brushes, but I'm pretty pleased with it. I like the lighting a lot :) They are all just so happy!

Then we have Accordion Bear alone in the back of a nightclub forlornly playing his accordion.  Accordion Bear is kind of a sleaze.  He likes women, smoking, alcohol and doesn't treat Banjo Rat all that well when they aren't jamming. Banjo Rat still loves him, but he can't keep dragging him out of the gutter. Banjo Rat leaves Accordion Bear and heads back to the Bayou after a year or so of touring. Accordion Bear is devastated when Banjo Rat leaves. He wallows in self pity for awhile before he realizes that Banjo Rat is really the only important thing in his life.  Those musicians- sure are a complicated bunch.

Still in progress, but I love how the bricks turned out.  Playing with colored light sure it a lot of fun :) There are going to be a bunch of cigarette butts on the ground and he'll have some alcohol dribbling out of his mouth maybe. I love how gritty this character is.

In a completely different direction, I finally got around to scanning my third Intaglio project. This one was done using aquatint. You basically spray paint the plate and the paint acts as a ground. That's how the splotchy texture was achieved.  The character is Creepy Rabbit Guy. I just doodled him in Art History one day and have been drawing this weird creature ever since. He's a mash-up of a rabbit, goat, greyhound, human, and a meerkat.  He has hands! I love it :)

Intaglio is a really neat process. I have to say, I feel pretty badass when I'm putting plate in an acid bath and adding all these neat textures through these awesome techniques. Yep, I'm one badass artist ;)

M m m m Monday, er tuesday.

Art block still going strong.  It's not a creative block, I've got lots of great ideas. My brain and my hand just aren't communicating so well and everything I draw just comes out terrible.  I think it's partially because of my most recent Intaglio print.  I don't have a copy of it yet, but when the assignment is graded I'll post it.  I drew this piece when I was at the height of my art block, and it looks really bad.  But I don't work on it everyday. I take a break, do some good drawings and I think I'm out of this funk.  Then I go back to this crappy piece and I get all frustrated with it.  Ugh, I wish the art department was forgiving when the students have blocks.

Oh well.  So here are somethings that I've been working on to try and overcome this block. First we have the whole Bayou Gang! Accordion Bear, Trumpet Muskrat, aaaaaaand Banjo Rat!!! Whooo! Rockin out! Clearly not finished yet, just the flat colors. I'm thinking there will be a bunch of fireworks in the background, I'm excited. I hope it turns out well.

I listen to a lot of music when I draw these guys, and my inspiration has been Mumford and Sons and Freelance Whales. Love them both, but Freelance Whales has an accordion and a banjo, way cool. 

The other piece I have is the continuation of the pirate piece I was working on.  It's going well, and I think it'll be really pretty....if I ever finish it.  Doing those ropes is going to take forever!

I love the colors of the ocean and sky. I really want it to be finished, just don't know if it'll happen :(

If anyone has any tips for getting over art block, I'd greatly appreciate them.

oy, monday

It's been a hard week. So I think I lied when I said my art block had ended.  I haven't been able to draw anything lately.  Coloring is different, it's so much easier to slap on some color and shade a drawing especially digitally. That's why I thought my art block had ended, I colored some pictures all pretty like, but I haven't actually drawn anything new for awhile. Being an artist is hard sometimes.

Well here's a pic in progress of Baby Banjo Rat, he's trying so hard to learn how to play the banjo, he can't be bothered with his silly siblings. No need to run around when there's a banjo to play! I dunno, I wanted him to be all focused on the banjo, but I think with the other characters in the background it draws too much attention away from the main character. Composition has always been the hardest thing for me to get right.

Opinions on this would be greatly appreciated.'

And here we have something I don't normally do, a sketch that I did entirely digitally. I always scan in my doodles and then trace the lines and color that way, but sometimes I do a very very rough digital sketch and keep refining it until it looks decent. 

I'm excited about this image, I imagine it looking  so pretty, with a pale orangey sunset and the wind blowing in the deckhand's hair. The imagery wasn't even mine though. A friend of mine told me about it and this is just what popped into my head.  I hope it turns out the way it looks in my mind. 

The thing about art block is that I can draw pretty much anything. I drew this fantastic lady that looked really realistic ( wont post it here since there's nudity and I dunno if that's okay)  I was so happy with it form a technical stand point, but it was just an exact copy of a photo.  There was no creativity that went into that drawing. That kinda concerns me honestly, I can churn out decent art but it will have no feeling and life to it. That's the main reason I do art, for the expressive qualities. If I can create "art" without putting any thought into it, how is it different from a menial desk job? I don't know if I'm making any sense, but I am having concerns about this. Oy...I think I should just go drink some tea and chill out. Stop trying so hard. Except...I'm an art major, I can't just take a creative hiatus. Tricky, tricky business indeed.

Whoops missed Monday again, here have some cute animals

Art Block has ended! Yay! I've started coloring Accordion Bear, which I'm really excited about.  He first showed up in my sketches a few weeks ago, ( scroll down, you'll see him) So I've done the line work and the flat colors for one of the images of him and Banjo Rat, don't know what to do for the background yet.

I imagine their conversation goes something like: 

"Oh, Allo little rat.  You seem so happy with zat banjo sound" says Squeezebox Bear. (he's French) 

" Why yes indeedy, Mr. Bear. They call me Banjo Rat" Banjo Rat replies.

"I see. I play  zee squeezebox myself."

"Oh? Well then, I'd say we should jam together"

"Ah yes, zat would be most enjoyable"

EDIT: finished the piece today, I love how the trees turned out :)

They just have instant chemistry, and connect on a musical level that Banjo Rat has never really known. So here they are jammin' together, this piece was a lot easier to finish.  I just like the movement and and the action of the characters a lot. 

Drawing that accordion over and over again is going to be a paaaaaaaain. But look at them dance! They look so happy and cute!

Monday post slightly belated due to art block and sickness

Ugh, I have the cold from hell. My face hurts, and I kinda feel like I should just crawl in a hole and die.  It doesn't help that I have massive art block.  I have all these great ideas, but they just aren't turning out how I want them too.

First we have a doodle I did of Banjo Rat receiving the banjo from Papa Banjo rat.  I love the sketch, I love how scruffy Papa Banjo rat is.

When I scanned this image in to color it, I just had no idea what to do for a background.  Backgrounds are always the hardest part for me to finish, but very rewarding when they turn out nicely.  Still doesn't make me want to do them.

I just don't know of the background is overpowering the characters. I wanted to show where they live, in a neat little hollowed out log, but I thought if I cropped it then it wouldn't make sense.  But I don't like how small the characters are and I don't like the composition.  I don't know how to fix it either.  Ugh, I hate backgrounds. 

EDIT:

Finished this piece finally. I couldn't make a lot of the elements work, so I just decided to ax them.  I wanted to have all these cute homey things, like the rocking chair and a porch light, but I was so sick of this drawing I just wanted it to be done.  I'm still not super happy with how it turned out, but it's done and that's good enough for me at the moment.

I do like how the texture on the log came out though :) And I can't get over how excited Baby Banjo Rat is! Look at his big baby teeth! So cute :)

Creativity flows on Monday

Man, I've just been bursting with ideas about Banjo Rat! His story is developing quite nicely, it's nothing like I originally intended, but I'm diggin' it anyway. I need to animate this guy, he's just begging for it.

So first we have Banjo Rat beating up Scrawny Weasel for saying mean jokes about banjos. Banjo Rat does not tolerate banjo jokes. I was originally just going to have B.R. punching Mr. Weasel, but without his banjo he's just Rat and that just doesn't work. So he's smashing Weasel's face in with his indestructible banjo :)

I also finished this piece digitally, so here's that. My favorite part is the blood, I love splatter brushes :)

I've also been developing Banjo Rat's friend, Accordion Bear (or Sqeezebox Bear, I can't decided what to call him) He's a romantic black bear with a torrid past.  He came from France and immigrated to Louisiana when he was a young adult.  He smokes and wears a watch on left wrist.  He's remarkably  dedicated to his work and sometimes goes days without eating if he can't get a tune right. He sacrifices much of himself for his music, and you can tell when you hear him play. Banjo Rat is drawn to him because of this intense passion and they connect on a level that Banjo Rat has never really known before. They are great friends

I'm still figuring out his design, but I've got some concrete things there. Mostly I just need to draw more bears to get the anatomy right. I had reference for all the images in the second one, except the big dark one.  

I'm really enjoying developing this story, I don't know exactly what will come of this story, but I figure it can only get better and that it's good practice for Pixar :)

Mondaaaaaaaaaay

Banjo Rat makes a comeback! I seriously love drawing this guy, his story just writes itself.

So here's Banjo rat and his friend Trumpet Muskrat jammin' away in the Bayou. Looks like they are having fun.  I need to make an animated short of these guys, they are just asking for it.

They really make me immensely happy. They lend themselves well to the digital media I think. Some of the people I've shown this too think that the background looks to realistic and the characters too toony, what do you all think?

Monday is a day of doodles

Bunch of random sketches for this week :) One of the favorite things about my current sketchbook is the toned paper. I love the earthy color of the paper because I can go on top of my black sketches with a white pen. It adds a lot more depth I think. I'm also experimenting with markers and color fields.

This is a just a little swimmy amphibian guy. He's got a snorkle mask and an over excited beaver :)

 This one was just what I doodled while listening to Arcade Fire's "We Use to Wait" 

I like what the white pen does when I draw over the markers :)

Playing around, getting use to the markers and white gel pen. I love the grace and slenderness of cranes

I had this image in my head and it didn't quite turned out like I envisioned it, but I still like how it came out a lot 

Monday Monday Monay

Here are some of the things I've been working in school lately. The first two are for a my printmaking class, Intaglio. It's done on copper plates and you put a wax over the plate, draw into it, then put it in an acid bath. The acid eats away at the exposed copper, the lines of your drawing, and the you ink up the plate and run it through the press. It's a very long and laborious process but it makes some neat images.

This one is for my drawing class. This here is Banjo Rat. I doodled him up one day and fell in love with him. I just love his relaxed smile and his noodley arms :D He lives in the bayou and just plinks away one his trusty banjo. It's been a lot of fun developing his story, he's got a cousin- Mariachi Mouse and his best friend is Trumpet Muskrat. He' a laid back lil' feller but if you say anythin' unkind about banjos, he'll have to kick your ass.

Fun stuff this week, makes me happy as an artist :)

Slightly Belated Monday Post

Whoops, missed Monday :P This weekend was crazy! I got to see The Lion King at the Capitol Theater on Saturday.  I have wanted to see this show ever since it came out in 1998. I know it sounds ridiculous, but The Lion King has actually had a huge influence on my life as an artist.  It got me drawing animals all the time, I continually go to it for inspiration, and it really got me into digital art. So seeing the play was just a bounty of creative energy that I had to use.

So here's a little doodle of Simba and his mom, Sarabi, cuddling. It's very sketchy and is riddled with anatomy flaws. I fixed it up in photoshop though :)

Here's the final product, I'm pretty happy with it 

Pretty big difference.  I know it's silly to be so inspired by a kids movie, but I love it and I'll take what inspiration comes to me- in any form.

Another Monday, another post

For this week we have the progression of a drawing from original sketch to finished product.  It starts off with this old gypsy lady I doodled one day. I wanted to focus on character design and push my comfort levels. I usually draw animals so I wanted to do a human, and old people are more fun to draw. So I did a giraffe as a warm up and then just had fun with it and doodled away :)

Then I came back to the old lady in a more realistic style. I was drawing her while talking to some of my friends and they started talking about Brazilian bulls and I drew a picture of one so they could see what they looked like. Having the old lady and the bull there, it just clicked, and I thought of her story. She's on old Hungarian Gypsy and wanders around leading her old zebu ( an ox that's commonly found in Myanmar) I also decided that for the final piece I would do it in watercolor pencils so I was playing around with them a little too. ( and a naked lady just because they are good space fillers ;) )

This is the thumbnail for the final piece, working out the character design more and the composition.

When I went to start on the final piece I couldn't make the woman look right with the watercolor pencils and after much frustration I just decided to go back to my strong point and just do animals. I was really happy with how the ox came out so I just decided to draw some oxen floating around.  Since they are from Myanmar I gave them so colorful facial decorations. I was going to do stars with white acrylic, but when I showed it to my drawing professor he said I could go in with glitter. I absolutely love glitter and for a professor to suggest it just made my day. So there you have it, from Old Hungarian Gypsy Woman to Magical Flying Space Bulls in four easy steps :D

Happy Monday!

Alrighty folks,

So here we have some sketches that I've done and their progress thus far in photoshop. First we have a creature I made up, a Corse Hat. It's really just a horse and a large cat smashed together. I was drawing with my friend and I said the only things I can draw without reference are horses and big cats. She suggested I mix the two and this was the result. I really like how it came out. Inventing new creatures and playing with their anatomy is really fun.

Next we have a drawing I did of a dragon. I use to draw this guy all the time in high school and I was going through my old sketchbooks and decided to come back to him. So here's the sketch and the progression in photoshop.  I use to always use Corel Painter, but my computer crashed and I lost the program so I'm trying to teach myself to be more proficient in Photoshop. It's slow going but it's not too different from Painter. Clipping layers rocks my socks

So it's all rough sketches and in progress work this week, hopefully I'll have more finished stuff next week.

Emily's art blog

Welcome to Emily's Art blog! I'll be posting some of my artwork on here every week. It'll mostly be doodles I do through out the week. I'll also  be posting the progress of some of my bigger pieces and then the finished piece. Here are some doodles to show you what you're getting into :)