Sunday 13 February 2011

What am I into? Let's take a Peak!

So basically I recently discovered (and instantly got into) the work of Bob Peak. Well maybe I didn't discover him so recently . Rather, I became aware that all this amazing work was made by this one guy named Bob.


Yeah so, amazing much? Clearly the quality of drawing is crazy good. On the one hand bold and aggressive, but also totally delicate and sensitive. And then there are his compositions which are just so cool.

See?

Also I don't see how he can paint so accurately whilst maintaining that roughness? Curious. The colours also are pretty great in their simplicity. I tried painting in my sketchbook yesterday using some of these principles. It didn't work. (which reminds me, I really need to buy a scanner soon...) Possibly I put this down to my relative inexperience in using paint/colour and thus a lack confidence. The shoddy shoddy brush didn't help either...

Oh well. I have to admit it's getting better (or easier at least). Must keep using things that aren't pencil.

Thursday 3 February 2011

Author: Too Much Research?

Alright so here's a slightly more proper post.

So I'm making a costume, using my 5 primary needs as a starting point. What are these needs you ask? Well, they keep changing for some reason! But at the moment they are; sleep, walks, dreams, food and simplicity. I imagine they'll change again before long but the gist is basically there.

Anyway, so I've been looking at the kind of things that are basically useless. You know those sorts of animals that don't seem to do anything? I imagine that's what my animal would be like. Just mulling about, eating, sleeping, staring into space. So kind of like a cow. Or a sloth. Or a panda. Or, obviously the best animal ever, a manatee.


Yeah they're pretty great. I like the fact that these animals survive without actually being especially well equipped to do so. That is until people come along and cut them into burgers or cut up their homes or accidentally cut them up with propellers.


Which leads onto:



Yeah that's right. Slowpoke. This is pretty much the same kind of thing as the animals, except, it isn't real... Same kind of problems though! Like when Team Rocket cut their tails off and they're too dopey to do anything about it! As a side note, I think I've been playing too much Pokemon.

And back to the real world for a moment, but following this theme, I was thinking about hippies. Basically they would seem to be the human equivalent of these sorts of creatures.


And so I was thinking about taking some of their visual aspects to try and show that kind of slovishness and thoughtfulness. Mostly this is evident in the looseness. Like the way their clothes drape rather than cling, and their hair is long and droopy, and their posture's relaxed and slouchy rather than straight and alert. It kind of adds up to this shapeless form that I think would fit my creature.

And then! This lead to me thinking of that one thing from the Moomins! I only really know the Moomins from the animated series of the 1990s but I remember that one thing. That thing is apparently called 'the Groke' and it basically seems to follow on from the previous creatures but with a slightly darker, less dopey tone.


It's sort of embodies the loneliness that obviously isn't a primary need but kind of comes about as a result of them. In a way? I think because my needs are all kind of solitary (at least I think of them of solitary) and it's kind of the negative aspect, like whatever needs I chose, something would always be missing.

So that's that.

Not entirely sure how it'll turn out. I admittedly didn't get much done today, my mind wasn't really in the right place, but I did get some designs down and now I've got some thoughts written here and it's all a bit clearer. Shouldn't be too hard to get it done. If it's not there by the end of Friday then definitely by Monday it'll be finished.

Wednesday 2 February 2011

Author

Yes we have a new(ish) project. So far I have to say it's not my favourite. Same time, it's not terrible! Anyway, this is mostly a post to remind myself that I have a blog. I am actually so bad at adding stuff here. I'll add something more substantial tomorrow.

Also I need to update the header and such. It's not 2010 anymore! Also it's all rather dark. It isn't very appealing.