#watercolor over the graphite and ink

[tomoleary]

Frank Miller (pencil), Tom Palmer (ink) and Steve Oliff (color) Amazing Spider-Man Annual #14 page 37 Lucius Dilby (1980) Source

[kafkasapartment]

The Great Red Dragon and the Woman Clothed with the Sun, 1805. William Blake (1757-1827). Pen and ink with watercolor over graphite.

[arthistoryanimalia]

#MonkeyDay 🐒:

Suzie Zuzek (American, 1920-2011) Trinket, 1971 watercolour, ink, graphite, white gouache on paper 38.1 x 55.9 cm private collection (photo via Christie's) “This watercolor is based off Zuzek's real life pet #monkey, Trinket, who lived in her backyard in downtown Key West. Trinket had run of the island and would come and go from Zuzek's house through his own personal door. Trinket turned up in many of Zuzek's patterns over the years, and here he appears making mischief and drinking martinis.”

[horses-in-art-history]

John Frederick Herring, Sr., Five Horses near a Brook, 1850, Yale Center for British Art.

Watercolor, with pen, in gray ink, over graphite on moderately thick, smooth, cream, wove paper.

(Picture source for Five Horses near a Brook)

[shelandsorcery]

for a while, my traditional art passions were all very intercompatible: watercolor, gouache, pen & ink, pencil crayons, graphite pencils, they all play really nice with each other not only on the same sheet of paper, but also in very similar workspace setups.

then I did that thing where I got into a few different new media, and it turns out that if you are doing oil pastels in a workspace, or at least if I am, because I'm quite messy, I really don't also want to have any of my water media brushes or substrates nearby in case they get greasy. which is to say nothing of the amount of space needed if I'm going to try and do any sculpting.

which is to say, I used to feel very comfortable making the most of my single work surface, and now, I really feel a lot more restricted! if I want to sculpt, I cannot also do painting on the same day, and the same with oil pastels.

It's not at all the end of the world, but I just really didn't realize this was going to be like this! and it's a bit of an adjustment. I usually like to chip away at things over a few days, and especially if I have a big piece on the go, usually really helps to break it up with a couple of small studies or other work. I'm going to have to get pretty creative to make that happen across these different categories nowadays.

if you're a mixed media artist with a similar set of challenges, I'd really love to know, how do you wrangle stuff?

[victusinveritas]

In 1913 in Leipzig, during a foggy night, a cage of lions from a circus caravan was hit by a trolley. Eight lions escaped and wandered into the streets. Artist Walton Ford interprets this event here, saying, “I wanted a decidedly undramatic moment, to show the curiosity and timid confusion of these lost lionesses, which don’t know where to go or what to do, and don’t know what they’re seeing. I imagined one of the hats that had been left behind: the lions approach it like a strange object, like a turtle or something.”

___

Walton Ford (b. 1960)

Study 2 for “Leipzig,” 2018

Watercolor, gouache, and ink over graphite

The Morgan Library & Museum

[bitegore]

if you want to get better at smoothly shading in pencil without smudging your graphite (which to me just never looks very good unless you're really good at it, whereas carefully-layered light shading with a pencil rarely looks half as amateurish even when it is measurably less well-done so i'd imagine it also looks that way to some others) the best advice i have is to use a ballpoint pen, like a normal office pen that you can get some gradation out of because the ink doesn't flow- don't use one of those fancy wet ink bic ones or whatever, and use it like it's your pencil for a few weeks and then come back to see what kind of control you have over your pencil lines, darkness, coverage, etc after. i was working with a mediocre ballpoint earlier (didn't want to ruin my good inks on the gritty as hell watercolors i use) and was reminded of how fast my ability to shade in pencil picked up when i ran out of pencils to doodle with during part of my sophomore year in high school and started doing ballpoint drawings the same way i did my pencil ones

[margindoodles2407]

ALL OF THEM!!! GO!!! :DDD

oh gosh cheeto. why would you do this to me. i love you my friend but whyyy (light-hearted)

alrighty let's go

----------------------------

1. what medium do you use most (if applicable, what software)?

Graphite, ink, and/or colored pencils. Occasionally watercolors, but that's usually for my bigger pieces that I don't often post online.

2. most popular piece?

This one, apparently (yeah i'm still really proud of it though. it held up well. canNOT say that for some of my old star wars doodles.)

3. your favorite piece(s)?

In Chronological Order: Dryad!Deku Tree, Arwen, Hero of Winds: Conductor of Tempests, Twilight of the Republic, Evil Artsyle Challenge, Philomena, The Best Captain Rex I've Ever Drawn, Shinies, Sacred Heart, Experience, Fives and Echo Number ???, and Necrosis

4. piece you wish got more love?

In Chronological Order: Ninety-Nine and Hevy, Sun-Dragon Heart, Ahsoka and Shaak Ti (for #jedi june), and We're Going To Kill Dracula

5. how would you describe your art style?

Hmm. I guess... "Stylized Realism" might be the best way to describe it. I'm big on realistic proportions and detailing, but it still betrays the influence animation and storybook illustrations have had on me.

6. favorite thing to draw?

...take a wild guess (it's the clones)

7. easiest thing for you to draw?

People!

8. thing you struggle to draw?

Anything other than people!

9. whats something you always come back to when drawing?

Ahsoka Tano. She was one of the first characters I drew when I was getting back into Star Wars, and I literally measure my art progress by how she's changed in my style. I guess you could say she's my comfort character to draw.

10. how do you deal with artblock?

I don't.

11. do you listen to anything while drawing?

Yes! Actually I kind of need background music or noise of some kind while I'm drawing, otherwise I've found I just can't get into the groove. Mostly I listen to my various character playlists.

12. describe your process while drawing

I am granted a Vision (tm), I get my materials, I tear my hair out because my picture is not exactly how it was in the Vision (tm), and then I redraw it over and over until it slightly resembles the Vision (tm).

13. talk about a wip you like!

Oooh, okay! Right now I'm in the process of painting a watercolor of... Ahsoka... for my High Fantasy AU, and the drawing actually is turning out great! I just haven't had time to paint her yet.

14. whats your favorite thing about drawing?

I like to make stupid memes in my overly elaborate style. I think it's the best use of my gifts XD

15. least favorite thing about drawing?

I can only really draw when Inspired (tm), meaning I can go days or even weeks without anything getting put on the paper.

16. how do you motivate yourself to draw?

I sit and yell at myself in my mind. Just kidding. But again, I do have to have an inspiration for anything to actually happen; I can't just go in cold.

17. what is something youre confident about in your art?

I can draw people, and especially everything above the knees, really well. I know a lot of artists struggle with people.

18. something you feel like you need to work on?

Lower-leg anatomy, and literally everything other than people. There's a reason I usually draw memes.

19. where do you find inspiration?

Things I like, my faith, the world around me, and music especially. And memes.

20. is your workspace, digital or not, organized (not neat, organized)?

In a manner of speaking. Everything has its place, and I have a system for the order in which I draw.

21. what do you think your artstyle would taste like?

Well, @luke-shywalker once described it as looking like it would taste like candy. I personally think it would taste like. Woodsmoke. Or something like that. Maybe like,,, the smell of sawdust. If that makes sense. I dunno.

22. do you have a favorite color palette to work with?

Rich but muted colors. Or like, blacks and whites with a single splash of highlighted color. You know? Like this one.

23. how many artstyles can you work in confidently?

At least two: one that leans more towards realism and one that leans more towards the cartoonish side.

24. whats a compliment about your art that has always stuck with you?

I've often been told that my drawings look statuesque, like they were hewn from marble, but in a good, regal way. This is my favorite compliment to get.

25. what size canvas/paper do you use?

Literally all of them.

26. what do you physically draw with (pencil and paper, tablet, etc)?

Mechanical pencil or like, a very finely sharpened traditional pencil for all my sketches. For my more formal pieces, I usually go over the sketch with micron pens.

27. do you ever have multiple wips going at once?

All the time every day.

28. whats a piece you would like to redraw at some point?

THIS ONE :D

29. do you use a lot of references while drawing?

No. I have most characters committed to memory and I can usually figure out poses. That being said, I do use references for difficult poses or when I can't figure out what exactly to draw.

30. whats something youre proud of about your artstyle?

I alluded to this earlier, but I'm happy that I can have a realistic but still stylized art style. And I like how I draw faces.

31. which fandom have you drawn the most for?

Uhhhh I think it's Star Wars at this point. However, I did draw a lot of Gravity Falls art back in the day, so between that and The Legend of Zelda I think it's pretty close.

32. have you done a lot of collabs?

Unfortunately no :( If anyone would like to rectify that, I'd be more than happy to do stuff with you!

33. have you taken a lot of classes for art?

I am mostly self-taught, but I did take art classes from preschool all the way through eighth grade, and Intro to 2D, Painting I and II, Intro to 3D, and Ceramics I in high school.

34. whats something you still like from your old art?

I love my vivid colors (this is mostly in my old, unpublished art). And I think back in the day, my poses were much more dynamic.

35. if you had one piece of advice to give your younger artist self, what would it be?

Don't beat yourself up over your art not "being as good as everyone else's". I promise you, you'll get to their level someday. Just have fun and keep working hard. Also, your drawings aren't cringe, and you shouldn't be afraid to show them to the people you love.

OUGH that took. So long. But thank you! I genuinely appreciate it so much!

[savage-kult-of-gorthaur]

HER JOURNEY -- HER STORY -- HERO GIRL.

PIC INFO: Resolution at 1943x2573 -- Spotlight on a Steve Mannion piece titled "Hero Girl," c. 2019.

"A lovely and dangerous looking sci-fi female, as rendered in ink and watercolor over graphite on bright white 9" x 12" Bristol board."

-- HERITAGE AUCTIONS (Comics, Comic Art, & Animation)

Source: https://comics.ha.com/itm/original-comic-art/illustrations/a/121952-19126.s.

[mithclearwell]

Just out of curiouse, do you have any tips for beginner artists? I would really appreciate one

Of course! ^-^ I'm more than happy to help!

Let's see...without the ability to have a conversation, I'm not sure where exactly you are in skill level, so I guess I'll start with some basic quality-of-life tips.

General:

You don't have to go to college to get good at art. I didn't go to art school!

Watch youtube videos from good artists, or those you admire!

What kind of art do you ultimately want to produce? This isn't an instance of "I can only pick one thing", it's more like...each type of art requires different skills, and if you know ahead of time what you want to do FIRST, you can narrow down what you have to learn.

learn proper sketching and use of circles and other shapes to build the figure, don't just jump in making the final lines right away! It's not a "cheat", it's proper technique. It's "caring about your work".

Same for references. Google up some images of what you want to draw and look at them while you draw your own picture. It's not only okay, it's what professionals do. You need to train your EYE as well as your hand.

It's okay to mimic styles you like! But be aware that each artist may stretch or squish or exaggerate proportions to fit what they personally like to see. This is why it's IMPERATIVE that you learn realism alongside any manga style you want to try. Once you learn where the eyes sit on the face, the different facial planes and what bones they relate to, and different sizes and builds for the face, you can then manga them up to any style you want!

For real paper:

Use a protector sheet, or wear a glove on your drawing hand. You want to make sure you don't get graphite or colored pencil on the side of your hand, and then smear it on your drawing. Placing a piece of paper under your hand will protect your work!

Don't touch your art with your fingertips. Fingertips have oil and gunk on them, and will smudge your drawing. (If you're working with charcoal, this could work to your advantage! But you're probably not using charcoal. It's messy and usually limited to college art students.)

Get the right tools! You can buy a small eraser set in the art section of Wal-Mart for like $3 -- it has a polymer eraser, a smaller white eraser, and the all-important KNEADED ERASER. This thing can be squished and torn apart and it'll pick up graphite like a champ! Do not bother with hard pink erasers, they're trash.

You don't need special paper to learn. I used to draw on the backs of my dad's extra math photocopy papers. Copy paper is smooth and not too fussy and I like it. "Sketch pads" usually have a rougher grain, and I hate the way the paper feels. Also there's a lot of ugly white spots when you try to shade or use colored pencils. Only use that if you're keeping a cute little book or using pastel crayons or something (or it's all you have). Don't fuss over it too much while you're learning. It won't make much difference until you're ready to specialize!

Blending stumps are cool and even pros use them.

Get a small electric pencil sharpener. They're less than $10 at places like Dollar General, and those stores are literally everywhere.

If you get a manual sharpener in an "art set", that's fine, too, but it hurts my hand to do it manually. I like the ones that have little covers.

It DOES matter what kind of ink pen you use. Gel pens will smear. Most markers are washable, and you better believe they will run at the first hint of moisture. India Ink also smears and runs with water. I recommend Sakura Micron pens, Zig Mangaka pens, or my favorite --- the Kuretaki Bimoji felt tip brush pen. You can get all that on Amazon, and it's like $6. I got the superfine tip.

LET YOUR INK DRY BEFORE YOU PUT MARKERS OR WATERCOLOR OR ANYTHING AT ALL OVER IT. It takes maybe 20 minutes.

If you don't plan to color it, you CAN draw with a ball point pen and it'll look just fine.

Do a tiny little water streak test with any markers you plan to use with watercolor. Just brush a tiny bit of water over the mark after it's dry to see if it bleeds. I use that bleed to my advantage sometimes, but you just gotta be aware of what's what.

Digital:

You can buy a small, cheap tablet from HUION for less than $40. MAKE THE INVESTMENT. IT'S WORTH IT.

Clip Studio Paint is EXCELLENT. Well worth the $50-$60 price tag. I think you can try it before you buy it, too. It gives you access to the Asset Store -- which is the single greatest artistic sharing tool I have EVER seen, and I've used SAI for ...probably a decade... I've used dozens of custom brushes and even made my own, and I just can't even believe what is available with CSP. Do yourself a favor and get it.

"But I can't use a tablet! I can't look at a screen while I draw!" Yes you can. YES you can. Yes you can, if you'll just try it. "but I tried once and it didn't work" Well YEAH, if you only tried a handful of times, OF COURSE it didn't work. Do you know what practice is? HUION screen tablets are over $300!!!!! Do you have that kind of disposable income lyin around? (plz donate some to me if you do lololjk =u=; )

Start saving a folder full of refs.

Ask people to tell you what to draw. Let them request something for free. This makes you draw things you wouldn't normally draw, and there is INCREDIBLE value in stepping outside of your comfort zone. You will level up in no time.

Whew...that covers most of the basics, I think. If you have something specific you want me to go into more detail on, please let me know! I love helping ;w;

[dogandcatcomics]

Selections from the exhibit "Walton Ford: Birds and Beasts of the Studio" at the Morgan Library in New York City, USA @themorganlibrary. First image is Walton Ford (USA, 1960-), Study for Augury, 2018, watercolor, gouache, and ink over graphite. Second image is Walton Ford, Zürichsee, 2015, watercolor, gouache, and ink. Third image is William Nicholson (British, 1872-1949). Coursing, 1897, india ink over black chalk on paper prepared with a brown wash. Fourth image is Johann Heinrich Wilhelm Tischbein (German, 1751-1829). Mastiff in a Violent Landscape, c. 1800, watercolor, gouache, and pen and brown ink. Last image are cat sculptures at exterior of the building. I appreciate the canine and feline representation.

[tomoleary]

Jim Starlin - Drax the Destroyer Illustration Original Art (1970s) Source

[flowerstarpatch]

Can you make a step-by-step shading tutorial? It would be REALLY helpful.

Of course!! This will be a longer post, with a blend of text and images, so buckle in.

Shading can be difficult, so I mentally break it down from step to step. There are a few things to remember, which I'll state below.

There is also the medium that you're using to keep in mind of. Dry mediums (graphite, charcoal, pens, etc) work best with some shading techniques while wet mediums (watercolor, oil, markers, pastels, etc) are best with others. Digital is unique and honestly depends on the person and their preferences. <- keep in mind this overall point is dependent on the artist and some people like to use wet medium shading techniques for dry mediums (or vice versa).

All the works I have posted now have been with graphite or digital. At the moment I'm struggling with my digital style, so we will focus on graphite instead.

Before I even begin to explain my steps, there are some stylistic shading preferences to go over.

I'm a huge fan of hatching and cross-hatching, but they're not the only ways to shade in dry mediums or with ink. Above are two different images showing different ways to shade, one on a sphere and one as a gradient value scale.

I know many people might get annoyed by it, but I find making 5-value scales extremely helpful. It shows you which values you struggle with and could potentially practice with more. I always struggle with going dark enough (or hitting the 5th value) and it can be seen in my value scales before I practiced going darker.

////

Step-by-Step

Reference: Sebastian Stan behind the scenes in 'The Falcon and the Winter Soldier'

---

Step 1: Sketch. Establish forms & features. Lines are loose and angular, with minimal curved lines.

Step 2: Hatch in mid-tones lightly & loosely. (Sorry for blurry photo)

Step 3: Hatch in more detail in denser parts of the face & light areas' shading.

Step 4: Hatch in gradual curves to the face & block in clothing's shadows and darkest points. (Both photos)

Step 5: Finish hatching overall, add/adjust shading and lines around small or delicate features, remove hatching where unneeded

^ isn't the final product, i probably will take a kneaded eraser to it and adjust further. it also doesn't 100% match the reference due to stylistic choices & lack of some skill.

////

Well, that's as much as I can think to include that is my process or is necessary for shading in my eyes. Let me know if you'd like me to explain a step in more detail, or if something didn't make sense. Hope this helped!

drawn 11/4/2023 - instagram • patreon • carrd

[arthistoryanimalia]

#WatercolorWednesday :

John Leech (English, 1817-1864) Back View of the Elephant at the Regent’s Park Zoological Gardens, n.d. Watercolor & pen & brown ink, over graphite, on cream wove paper, 10.9 × 8.7 cm (4 5/16 × 3 7/16 in.) The Art Institute of Chicago 1940.891.6

[violet-talisman-art]

Cicada Boi

Acrylic on canvas 5”x7”

I hadn’t painted with oil or acrylic since, I think, 2021. I’ve mostly been drawing with graphite and colored pencil, although I have worked with inks and watercolors some. It was truly a joy to pick up my paints and brushes again. I had forgotten how much I enjoy it. Until I painted this, I’ve been working only on small thumbnails with mechanical pencil this year. Originally, I was doing old prompts from Drawlloweens of the past and that’s where the idea for this came from. Since this is the year of the return of brood XIX (and XIII, but not in my area), I felt it was an appropriate subject for a small painting. I’ll have more paintings to post in the future, but wanted to get this guy out while the cicadas were here. This is also the first post in, I think over a year, that is recent and not from old sketchbooks. Enjoy!Prints of my artwork available here: https://www.redbubble.com/people/HelenBaq/shop

Follow me: 

instagram.com/violet_talisman_art

www.threads.net/@violet_talisman_art

www.facebook.com/helenbaq.art

https://bsky.app/profile/vt-art.bsky.social tiktok.com/@violettalismanart

[serendipi777y]

Feelin' your Oats!

'Feeling one’s oats describes someone who is energized, enthusiastic even assertive. The phrase was originally used to describe a horse’s energetic behavior after being fed oats. The origins of the phrase are unknown but are found in English literature by the mid 1500’s.' “Bucking Horse and Cowgirl”, 1925 Ink with transparent and opaque watercolor over graphite underdrawing on paper by Charles Marion Russell