Shard Twenty-Two - Evolve/Advance

Let's talk art. (or specifically, talk about it in more detail than I normally do.)

Lately I've been noticing a lot of things about my own art. I don't know what exactly to attribute this to; perhaps it's the deviantART chatroom I've been hanging out in lately, perhaps it's connected to the changes I've been making in my style, or maybe it's just the weird mood I've been in. (which itself may be attributed to the long nights I've been having over the past few days.)

But whatever the reason, I've been having an easier time sitting back and looking at my art; not my artwork, but my art in general. my style.
One thing I've always been striving for is speed, as a matter of fact. My goal has always been to get comfortable enough with my artistic talents to be able to just sit down with an idea in my head, and within the day, have a finished piece of artwork. A result that I was actually happy with.

But looking back, I noticed a trend. Yes, my artistic talents keep getting better and better. More details, less mistakes, better quality in general. (nowhere near perfect, but progressing nicely.)

But I've also been getting slower and slower as a result.

<<><>>-------------------------------------------<<><>

It's brought me to re-think my goals a bit. Why am I getting slower, even though I'm getting better? It's my nature.

I'm learning new techniques time after time, and with every new tip I gather, I turn them into tricks to apply to my work.
And I've built up a pretty good pile of tricks.
Now, sure, I could probably emulate some of my older works even faster than ever. But it's not in my nature to "waste" my skills. So when I work, I apply all my tricks.
Now don't misunderstand me here; I'm quite happy with my style, no matter the speed. A few years back, I wouldn't have guessed I'd be working at this level. I still have even loftier expectations, but it is human nature to constantly want to be just a bit better than you are.
But the end result is, I have more skills. And I use more skills. And I take more time.

<<><>>-------------------------------------------<<><>

So here comes the re-thinking.

It's just not in my nature to learn skills and not put them to use. And for me to realistically just get faster, I'd need to not learn new skills, but simply master the ones I have.
Which is a great option, but not for me.

It isn't my style.

I'm constantly learning new techniques. Evolving my style, morphing it. My latest art project is an image of Myrkr-sefa; I've been working on it off/on for about two months now, and my art style has already changed halfway through the project. (I'll probably end up going back and re-doing some of the earlier sections as a result.)
And I wouldn't trade that advancement for anything. It's why I enjoy art. The feeling of learning something new - that sense of accomplishment when you stumble upon a new technique - it's pretty great. So what if it means your three-layer Photoshop project now has five layers in it, and takes an extra three hours to finish. (on that note, my Myrkr image currently has upwards of five layers, per finger, per hand, and a total of probably fifty-plus so far.)
The results are worth it. When you can put the final touches on a bit of artwork, sit back, and say, "this makes my last project look like crap in comparison."
And sometimes you can't top your last project that easily. But that just makes the next best artwork feel that much more rewarding.

So what are my goals now?

I'm not sure.
It's certainly not speed anymore. Sure, I want to be more comfortable with my style; but in the meantime, I'm perfectly happy with spending a few extra hours - or weeks - on a project to make it that much better.
I guess the one goal I had before, and still keep, is to just keep getting better.

And really, do I need more?

<<><>>---------------<<>>

ĜЄΘ.>

Shard Fourteen - Featured Artist: tsukijin

Alright everyone, I'd like a little change of pace now. Rather then focusing on me (to my rabid fans, don't worry, that'll still be a priority), I'd like to focus on some fellow artists and general people whom I know, like, or both. (yes, yes, it's normally both.)

Today's feature is a fellow artist I've known for some time on deviantART, and who I've had the pleasure of collaborating with before.
he was also the first person to support my idea of artist features, and as many of you know, agreeing with me is a very quick and easy way to get on my good side. Of course, I'm only featuring him because he's a great artist. =D

~tsukijin
<<><>>-------------------------------------------<<><>

tsukijin's got a really great drawing style; very detailed generally, with some influences from American comics, especially in the shading. His backgrounds are especially impressive; I remember first really seeing his work in an immensely detailed drawing of a haunted-esque house on a block... I can't seem to dig up the old image, but the detail in the sidewalks and the house itself was quite stunning.

But enough mindless flattery! We have an interview to get into now. I sent tsukijin a small list of questions, which he graciously answered.

Geo: What would you say was it that first got you into art and drawing?
tsukijin: hm... As far as I can remember, the thing that got me into drawing was a show called "knights of the Zodiac" and the posters that were for sale at the local store. Me and my friends would trace the images from those posters onto our notebooks. That was the first instance of me picking up a pencil for something other than writing. Then a few years later when I picked up a Spider-man comic... that sealed the deal, I knew I was going to draw for the rest of my life.

You have a very detailed drawing style. What would you say inspired your drawings to have such a level of detail?
haha, I suppose it all goes back to when I first picked up a history book and saw those old Portrait paintings that looked like they were photographs, there was one that really impressed me the most, It was a painting of King George the 8th, in the book it had so many details, the attention to light was amazing and over all the painting was extremely badass.

Then I got a chance to see it for real in a museum in New York city. And I was severely disappointed... The painting was like 12 feet tall, and all that amazing detail I saw in the book was nothing more than hastily applied smudges on the canvas, the whole thing was an embarrassment. All my life I had been trying to recreate the amazing detail of that painting only to see it be painted out of smudges. so I decided that if I was going to draw or paint, the detail would be cool to look at from up close as well as from far away.

I personally find it hard to spot mistakes in a lot of your work, but the artist generally disagrees with such comments. In your eyes, do you have any weaknesses in your art that you'd like to fix?
of course, there are many things that I would like to fix in my art. The most noticeable in my eyes is the hair, I've been struggling with drawing hair for many years now, and I still don't feel comfortable with the way I draw it, so that area is being currently developed the most.

I guess I also have to work some more on extreme perspectives. A lot of people(including myself) enjoy watching wicked action scenes with crazy cool camera angles so I'm working hard to be able to draw that type of thing with minimal effort.

Alright, that's about everything I can think to ask, now. Any parting thoughts?
Well, I want to thank you for interviewing me. haha I had never really thought about my origins of art and stuff, so it was refreshing having to reflect on that aspect of my life. I tend to let things happen and then forget about them, but it was nice to reminisce I suppose.

Oh, one last question. Geo; great person, or greatest person?

...hmm. I seem to have forgotten to send that last question. I'll mark him down as answering "greatest". bonus points to anyone who can tell me what that's a reference to.

A fun guy to talk with, and a great artist to watch. I don't think I can say much more on the subject, so I'll leave the parting comments to some of his art, which has happily volunteered itself as a final bit of flattery. (click on an image to view it full-size.)

<<><>>-------------------------------------------<<><>


<<><>>---------------<<>>

ĜЄΘ.>