Media (Digital Art 1)

I have recently discovered digital art but only on the level of Microsoft Paint and a very rudimentary exposure to the free online program GIMP. I love digital art and wish I could afford a proper rendering program and a course in utilizing it. One of the aspects of digital art that I really appreciate is that you can upload any of your "real" art or even a doodle and work it further ad infinitum in digital. This allows for even the oldest or most arbitrary scribble to be photographed with your phone and then to be worked into the phenomenal piece it was meant to be. I also appreciate the process as you can save at every pivotal junction leaving a series of artwork as the art develops. Lets see what I mean in visual by looking at some of my digital attempts. 

In my Spanish dance digital project already blogged before I reached several significant juncture of this was one. the picture evolved from a pen and ink sketch into the final artwork that I sold to a paying client. 

This was the final product. 

After the sale I decided that I'd like a full length version. This is its current state and as far as I'm concerned its not finished. this is the wonder of digital. you can keep going and save at any stage, leading to many different artworks.  

I often doodle, especially in ballpoint pen, my favourite medium. Digital allows me to use my phone camera to take these doodles to a much further level. 

This pen drawing was destined to be turned into a digital artwork. 

The digital rendering of the lion done in pen seems more like a real painting now. 

This artwork is one of my favourites. It started as an acrylic painting. I hate acrylics and gave up even though I loved the concept. So my Blackberry camera and MS Paint and GIMP came to the rescue. I loved doing it. 

Digital really is the future, but don't think lack of skill for actual art principles will help you if you can only work the program. You must still be a real artist, digital is just a tool. 

Work Classification (Illustration Art)

I do not consider myself an artist or fine artist, I think of myself as an illustrator and that three main fields of illustration exist. Let us look at the three as I have explored it through the years.

First we have the obvious field of illustrating what exists in the physical. This is merely a copy or representation of something recognizable from what we see daily. 

One of the first things we ever draw as kids, is a tree. Obvious in its simplicity and clearly from the physical world. 

I have done some work for educational books where basic sketches of existing concepts are needed to explain life skills or other principles. 

We might not see a skull every day but it exists and can be "copied" easily in an artistic illustration. 

The physical world around us abounds with inspiring topics to illustrate from the the mundane....

...to the passionately exciting. Often the more inspired the artist feels, the more glorious the final work might be. 

Second we have a slightly more abstract field of illustration. However this field of illustrating moods and atmospheres is still something recognizable to a degree. This field may seems to deal with the obvious as it may contain, faces or poses that are clear to the eye while it depicts a mood but it also uses abstract concepts of artist techniques like line or colour to emphasize the atmosphere. 

This pencil drawing clearly illustrates a frustrated anger with perhaps some arrogance also present. The face is recognizable but the stark tones and aggressive use of line add to the overall idea. It clearly also touches on a masculine expression rather than feminine and perhaps an older rather than a younger look.

Despair as a mood and state of mind is what is being illustrated here. It may be successful or not. What do you see? The balance between the obvious and the emotion can be a precarious one. The monochrome use of purple seeks to emphasize the depressed mood. 

Thirdly we attempt to reach into the entirely abstract or conceptual but may still use recognizable elements to illustrate sometime entirely fanciful ideas. Illustrating ideas, ideals and concepts that do not exist in the physical but affects or inspire the viewer is what the main goal is here. Take note in the following pictures what you recognize visibly but also seek to "see" what you do not see or recognize visually but rather emotionally. These kind of illustrations may even entirely neglect to depict anything in the physical reality, no objects or forms but may just use colour or lines to evoke a feeling. Even though jewellery manufacture is my bread and butter, I would consider this aspect of my skill set to be my most skillful talent. Ironically, it is this skill that allows me to conceptualize designs out of thin air, from the abstract reaches of my mind and to put it down on paper in order to stimulate a client emotionally and visually in order to create what they will enjoy. 

This water colour picture seeks to express a specific person's personality unfettered by the restrictions of worldly expectations and limitations. She is sporty, physically fit, exuberant yet pensive and dedicated. She needs to trust her heart and not what she thinks she sees. The picture attempts to illustrate that. 

This acrylic painting has the purpose of overwhelming the viewer with a cautious but explosive commission of inspiration. If God had to manifest and tell you who you are, this image would appear in the mirror to remind you of where you come from and where you should go. 

The time is right, the time is now, the time is running out, the time is up. Forever in a moment. This is to depict the relationship of our free will in an uncontrollable universe. Our structured limited time versus the eternal singularity. We choose where and how we live in this relationship. Pencil and water colour combine to create the effect of separation yet being a part of the whole. 

This is a pen and ink drawing of an angel, if ever there was one. 

This started as a rough sketch in pen and then was taken further in Microsoft Paint. It is very effective to combine and mix media to gain interesting results. This is very abstract but still allows for the recognition of spirals, and ultimately a Rose. Above all the picture is to draw the viewer in almost like an invitation to a dance, an eternal dance. Everything living, spirals on a microscopic level. Our DNA spirals, plants screw out of the ground very slowly. This picture seeks to capture that eternal, spiral dance of life. 

It deeply fascinates me how an artist can conceive of something that does not exist but through recognizable components and the skill of drawing can convey that non existent concept to somebody who has never seen anything like it as a reference. So also a message is transferred from one individual to another. I consider it great power to be able to reach into another's mind and to leave a picture/though there. 

Work Classification (Comic Book Art)

When it comes to producing a comic book or graphic novel one realizes very quickly that it requires a team and is almost impossible to produce fast enough and on a level of acceptable quality without two or three people working on the same project. However, the writer/story boarder/character designer is the guy with the vision. Its his project, his story, he is the producer. He directs others on the project like a brain directs the hands and eyes. 

Here follows a project I produced, some character concept designs (100% my work), some final character sketches (100% my work), some story boards (collaborative work under my supervision) and some final pages (collaborative work under my supervision). To acknowledge some people who have worked with me on this project I will mention where they have contributed.

Character concept designs done in pen.

Final design sketch done in marker pens and ball point. 

Character concept sketches done in pen. 

Final design sketch done in Copic marker and ball point pen. 

A story boarded page inclusive of the designed character, done in pen and marker by Pitshou Mampa and myself. This character has not been in a final rendered page yet. 

This concept sketch is for the head of a dragon done in pen. 

This story board done by Pitshou Mampa and myself uses the designed dragon's head. 

This "final" page meant for printing was not of good enough quality. 

This photoshop rendering by Paul Loubser was redesigned by me but still failed to satisfy. 

This photoshop by Paul Loubser came very close to what my designs required but it we never completed it.

This level of hand drawn quality only touched up in computer is still the best as far as I am concerned. Here Pitshou Mampa reached my specifications perfectly. This page was signed off for printing. 

This was the original cover design concept for the comic but it ended up not being so scary. 

This was the final cover chosen. 

Work Stages (Concept Development 2)

Designing a piece of jewellery also requires stages of development leading to a final work which in this case is the actual piece of jewellery and not a final painting or picture. One also begins with rough concept sketches that the client views and chooses from. these are normally derived from a discussion or even extrapolating varying ideas from many pictures on google and in magazines. Sometimes one tries to capture a mood or a symbolic message inclusive of colours or other sentimental factors. Often men's jewellery will be bulkier and mor angular with straight edges and women's will be more delicate with rounded edges and lots of detail. But these are generalizations to a degree, one needs to "read" the client and be specific to them. This is easy when they know what they want and how much they want to spend.

Rough concepts drawn in pen for a client in a few minutes building up towards the final idea as the client's desires were understood and correctly interpreted. Notice the distinct development. 

A technical schematic explaining exact widths and sizes in order for the client to clearly understand what he is going to get and to cost the piece. 

A 3D sketch is the clearest way to help a client to "see"the piece in their mind's eye as technical drawing can be confusing. This one is done in water colour and pen and took about 20 minutes to do. 

A 3D rendering of the un-set piece done in Rhino CAD for the sake of learning the program. My hand drawing goes much quicker so I never used it again. 

The final piece in silver, set with garnets can be made for around R4500. 

Sometimes the concept development goes far quicker when the client knows what she wants and perhaps comes prepared with example pictures that can just be altered to suit her specific idea. This all happened on one page combining all the aspects in a few drawings. 

The final ring of the above design.

Sometimes this is all that is required when a long standing relationship exist between jeweller and client and they come to trust your eye for design and understanding of their needs. 

The proof is in the pudding. 

This is an easy enough concept design to understand.....

...the result (slightly altered) speaks for itself. Obviously the drawing was coupled with a written quote for gold, diamonds and labour. 

We hope this blog post helps our friends, fans and clients to understand the process behind our service and product. Hopefully they will also gain a greater scope of the skill and possibilities my experience brings to the table at a cost far below standard shops. 

Work Stages (Concept Development 1)

After the initial concept drawing stage has set down some ideas these need to be developed into a final idea and composition in order to begin the final work or in the case of jewellery, the technical drawings. let's look at concepts and concept development for a single artwork. 

First up three very loosely drawn concept drawings.

In Pen. 

In Pen.

In Pen.

In Marker Pen.

Now developed further. 

In Pencil. 

In Marker Pens. 

Futher development lead to what I considered final works in Water Colour but more was to come. 

Water Colour and Ball Point Pen.

Water Colour and Ball Point Pen.

The final work was rendered in Digital by mixing Microsoft Paint with Gimp. The development in digital we will share on separately but her is the final work. (In far less resolution than the original.)

"An artwork is never completed, it is merely abandoned." - Da Vinci