HOME | DD

Description
How I normally present my artwork: "Here's my garbage, and now allow me to read from my new novel, 'Every-Tiny-Mistake-In-This-Piece-And-Why-I-Should-Never-Touch-A-Pencil-Again.'"
How I'm presenting this one: *holds it out, screaming*

Don't get me wrong. There are several things I'm not happy with.
But there are SO MANY THINGS that I AM happy with!

This is honestly the best I think I've ever done on a legitimate background, one that the character is supposed to be a part of instead of simply decorated by. They're not blending into the background, which is something I have a lot of trouble with, but they're also not completely apart from it, which is what I normally end up with! They feel like they're IN it! The lighting matches and they have cast shadows and just *writhes on ground in joy* The background itself is based off the MTG "Rest in Peace" card featuring the monument for Gideon. I think that's why I'm so thrilled with it: not only was it a fantastic reference to work from, but I was working for something that looked like art, not a photo, so having it look like art was a goal met instead of a failure. (I know I'm gushing about the background when it takes up hardly any space but I'm just so thrilled with it let me have this LOOK AT THE MOUNTAINS THEY LOOK FAR AWAY AND THOSE TREEEEEEEEEEES!!!)

I suppose I should talk about the commission itself instead of just the background then, eh? (MTG spoilers within!) The commmissioner wanted a scene that would portray the loss Chandra experienced when she lost Gideon, and how close they had been, hence his selection of the monument and Chandra clutching the shield while he stands behind her with a DBZ-esque halo.

The polished sketch alone took a full two days to do, as the details in the armour and sheild, the placement of the background, and other factors resulted in a LOT of erasing and re-drawing to get it to where it is now.

"So how long did it take, from starting the sketch to finishing the colouring?"
Exactly three seasons of Dragon Ball Z. (I finished the last marker stroke as the narrator finished his last line ending the final episode of the Cell saga.)

I learned a LOT on this piece! I've been fighting with colour theory for ages (it's one of those things that I understand it academically but understanding how it actually applies in the world just evades me) but I found a way to apply it to distancing the background to give the mountains two layers of depth (YES I'M TALKING ABOUT THE MOUNTAINS AGAIN LEAVE ME ALONE) and oh my goodness I GET IT! I finally get it! (For distancing objects significantly, at least). I also found a new technique for adding light lines with the colour (such as her tear, which isn't as obvious, and the pattern on his...skirt? thing?) that looks, in my mind, far more natural than adding an underlay or overlay of white gel or using the colourless blender. I tried out some 3D effects on his shoulder armour and am really happy with it. I learned that the expensive washi tape I picked up for holding marker paper to drawing paper is absolute garbage (the paper moved so many times during the transfer) and we'll be sacrificing it to my Copic collection later now that my new cheap stuff arrived in the mail (seriously I ended up gluing the sketch to the back with masking fluid and it was a nightmare to get off). I tried to get a worn-metal look on his armour but it didn't go as well as I'd have liked, so that's something I'll be working on in the future.

I just...I'm thrilled, guys. I know there's still a lot for me to improve on but as I stand right now this is a leap forward in my eyes and I'll take the victories when they pop up.

Whole piece is done with Copic markers, lined with Copic fineliners, with little bits of white Gellyroll and white pencil crayon here and there. Done on Stathmore marker paper.

Magic: The Gathering, Gideon, Chandra, and the monument are all owned by Wizards of the Coast.

Description
How I normally present my artwork: "Here's my garbage, and now allow me to read from my new novel, 'Every-Tiny-Mistake-In-This-Piece-And-Why-I-Should-Never-Touch-A-Pencil-Again.'"
How I'm presenting this one: *holds it out, screaming*

Don't get me wrong. There are several things I'm not happy with.
But there are SO MANY THINGS that I AM happy with!

This is honestly the best I think I've ever done on a legitimate background, one that the character is supposed to be a part of instead of simply decorated by. They're not blending into the background, which is something I have a lot of trouble with, but they're also not completely apart from it, which is what I normally end up with! They feel like they're IN it! The lighting matches and they have cast shadows and just *writhes on ground in joy* The background itself is based off the MTG "Rest in Peace" card featuring the monument for Gideon. I think that's why I'm so thrilled with it: not only was it a fantastic reference to work from, but I was working for something that looked like art, not a photo, so having it look like art was a goal met instead of a failure. (I know I'm gushing about the background when it takes up hardly any space but I'm just so thrilled with it let me have this LOOK AT THE MOUNTAINS THEY LOOK FAR AWAY AND THOSE TREEEEEEEEEEES!!!)

I suppose I should talk about the commission itself instead of just the background then, eh? (MTG spoilers within!) The commmissioner wanted a scene that would portray the loss Chandra experienced when she lost Gideon, and how close they had been, hence his selection of the monument and Chandra clutching the shield while he stands behind her with a DBZ-esque halo.

The polished sketch alone took a full two days to do, as the details in the armour and sheild, the placement of the background, and other factors resulted in a LOT of erasing and re-drawing to get it to where it is now.

"So how long did it take, from starting the sketch to finishing the colouring?"
Exactly three seasons of Dragon Ball Z. (I finished the last marker stroke as the narrator finished his last line ending the final episode of the Cell saga.)

I learned a LOT on this piece! I've been fighting with colour theory for ages (it's one of those things that I understand it academically but understanding how it actually applies in the world just evades me) but I found a way to apply it to distancing the background to give the mountains two layers of depth (YES I'M TALKING ABOUT THE MOUNTAINS AGAIN LEAVE ME ALONE) and oh my goodness I GET IT! I finally get it! (For distancing objects significantly, at least). I also found a new technique for adding light lines with the colour (such as her tear, which isn't as obvious, and the pattern on his...skirt? thing?) that looks, in my mind, far more natural than adding an underlay or overlay of white gel or using the colourless blender. I tried out some 3D effects on his shoulder armour and am really happy with it. I learned that the expensive washi tape I picked up for holding marker paper to drawing paper is absolute garbage (the paper moved so many times during the transfer) and we'll be sacrificing it to my Copic collection later now that my new cheap stuff arrived in the mail (seriously I ended up gluing the sketch to the back with masking fluid and it was a nightmare to get off). I tried to get a worn-metal look on his armour but it didn't go as well as I'd have liked, so that's something I'll be working on in the future.

I just...I'm thrilled, guys. I know there's still a lot for me to improve on but as I stand right now this is a leap forward in my eyes and I'll take the victories when they pop up.

Whole piece is done with Copic markers, lined with Copic fineliners, with little bits of white Gellyroll and white pencil crayon here and there. Done on Stathmore marker paper.

Magic: The Gathering, Gideon, Chandra, and the monument are all owned by Wizards of the Coast.