Graphite - Laura Roslin

Hey all!

Hope your week has been cool. I know a lot of people were getting their miniature humans settled in the schooling routine this week. In my house, not so much that, though there was adjustment, chaos, and evolution! I know, vague, right? But I'm not going to write it all out! This isn't Facebook, silly!

What I DID get done was some work on a piece that I've been wanting to start for a LONG TIME NOW.

If you're unsure, I'm a geek. Figured I'd clarify. And one of my favorite geek institutions is the show Battlestar Galactica! Not the one from the 80's. Sadly, I couldn't watch that with a straight face, even though I DID have a crush on Noah Hathaway as a child.

 Not THIS Noah!

 As a child, THIS Noah. How many preteen girls can really appreciate a bare chest... c'mon!

There we go... Much improved with time.

...But I digress.

Because of my near-obsession with Battlestar Galactica of now, I've already drawn Starbuck, and I really wanted to capture the characters Laura Roslin and William Adama. Preferably in the same piece. I love the dynamic between these two, and I really enjoy how those actors pulled those characters off! Their tension and respect are palpable, and by the end of the show (no spoilers) I was bawling like a 4 year old without a nap!

I began my Piece with Roslin, in hopes to have a message of her looking directly at the viewer, and Adama looking away. This is in contrast to current marketing in ads that usually has the woman looking away, and the man looking at the viewer. 

Unfortunately... my lack of spatial perception led to Roslin taking up the whole paper. D'oh. So this will end up as two complimentary pieces, side by side.

For now, the work in progress:

I'm working with this source:

I'm not sure how I feel about it quite yet. I'm not truly comfortable with how my eyes turned out. However, I'm not sure if they'll shape up once the hair is in. Thoughts? Opinions? Let me know! Comment here, and I will definitely appreciate the criticism.

-Me

Art - Work In Progress! Commission, Pt. 2

Some shots of the last part of the work, and the finished piece. Again, crap camera. It couldn't get the whole piece in the shot.

 

01

 

02 - Skull 

 

03 Final

 

04 Final Left

 

05 Final Right

This is ink outline with graphite detailing on illustration board.

 

Better photo.

Art - Work In Progress! Commission, Pt 1

This will be updated a couple of times throughout the night, until this piece is done. So come back to see if there's anything new. (Or better yet, follow my blog, and you'll get a notification anytime I update. :D )

Here's the first shot. This is on illustration board, and it going to be graphite and ink. Again, taken with my crappy camera, so it doesn't look like what *I* am looking at...

01

This is grayscale as well (again... shitty camera jacked up the slight sienna colour of the board)

 

02 

 

03

I may go back and add more dark to this. It looks dark in the pic, but it's really not. Lilies done, now moving on to the skull. Bwahahaha!! 

 04

Last update tonight. Heading to bed, and will have more tomorrow. :)

-Me

Art - Commission: Rams Skull Drawing and Products: Graphite Pencils

So after drawing the Ram Skull Tattoo piece for my buddy, I got a TON of requests on Facebook. Apparently, it was a very sought after piece. So I'm working on a commission for the concept of a ram's skull, but I'm seriously thinking about doing this one in ink. I've been craving working with ink for a bit now. I'll post progress pics on here (and should probably move my OLD progress pics off Facebook).


This piece will be brought to you by coffee in a can, by Starbucks,  the number 7, and orzo pasta with alfredo sauce.

In other news, I decided to track down some information about the supplies I use, and just give everyone a head's up about what I work with.

When I first started out, it was to draw characters for my games. So I began drawing about the same time I started gaming. My supplies were easy:

and

That's it, folks. A kid who really wants to draw will not need an arsenal of drawing supplies. It takes motivation, and I was very motivated to put an image to the characters in my head that I was rolling dice for. I started off with profile images of faces. And OH DAMN, did they suck. I'm glad they don't still exist, because I would be mortified.

Nowadays, I have a whole desk crammed with stuff. Brushes, pencils, paper, canvases. Some things I'm cheap about (acrylic paint) and some I'm not (coloured pencils). I buy the bulk of my supplies from Blick's Art Supplies, and use their website, which is easy to use, and their deliveries are always top notch. I've even ordered frameless frames from them, and they were in amazing condition, packed with care. My paper from them, always beautiful.

To start off my "these are my supplies" segment, let me talk a little about pencils. I know, I know, what a boring subject. Really? Pencils?

But what can I say, it excites me. To get a good graphite pencil, for me anyway, it has to meet some basic needs:

1 - Fluid, unhindered motion of the graphite onto the page. Ever had a pencil where it feels like something is stuck on the paper, stopping the pencil from moving? Add a little force, and it moves like a small earthquake, leaving a gouging dark mark in it's wake. Other who work with graphite know EXACTLY what I'm talking about. The lead should be smooth, consistent, and buttery almost in it's application to the paper. The only resistance I want is in the paper itself, when I am working with textures.

2 - Ease of sharpening. How many times have you sharpened a pencil and the lead breaks? Or maybe you sharpen it, and the wood comes off in clumps? This can have to do with a dull sharpener, or a cheap one, but also it can be the pencil itself. I used to ADORE the pulp pencils when I worked with the standard yellow number 2. Smoothly sharpened, and not broken. Oh yeah. I've since learned that the high pressure pulp pencil isn't the best for graphite quality. So if it sharpens decently, that's fine with me.

3 - Can I drop it? This is important for me. When I'm knee deep in a piece, and I decide to take it everywhere with me with the tenacity of a mother taking her ill tempered four year old into EVERY Walmart to find a specific cheap romance novel, I want to know that I can accidentally drop my pencil and not be ruined for the day. I've tried woodless graphite, and while the graphite itself is AMAZING quality, the fact that they break when I so much as look at them cross eyed is enough to make me pass.

4 - Is it decently priced. Nuff said here. I'm not selling my car to buy this thing. Sorry.

For my recommendations, I like the Prismacolor Turquoise graphite the best, I suspect. Originally Berol Turquoise, produced by Sanford, these are made now by the Prismacolor name (coincidentally, also owned by the same people who make Rubbermaid, Graco, and Papermate products). I have some originals (or vintage) displaying the Berol name, and also some newer Prismacolor. They're both exceptional for the job. I rarely have issue with the graphite quality, or the wood. Other names I use from time to time are Staedtler Mars Lumograph and Derwent Graphic. Staedtler is produced in Germany, and Derwent in the UK. Both are decently priced, however.

The brand I do NOT use is General. While I'm sad to say that it's a choice that takes business from the "Made in the USA" market, I can't abide supporting a product that I feel is inferior. And that's what General pencils are for me. Now, everyone has preference, but for me, the above standards that I need in pencils are consistently not met by General. I especially have issues with the pencils falling apart while being sharpened, even with a new sharpener. The wood quality and graphite is not worth it to me when I end up just throwing it away, and reaching for one of my other pencils after minutes of frustrated sharpening.

So that's my "review" for this post. I will have work in progress photos up (with my awful camera) once I get started on this newest piece!

-Me