Amber Markoto

I've been making art for over 10yrs. I'm a pansexual hispanic multimedia artist. I sell my work and take commissions.

[ambermarkoto]

Happy Pride Month! I know its been a tough/scary year for many of us, but I want you all to remember that you're still here. You're still alive! Even in our darkest days we persist, we continue to live.

If you want to show the world you're a survivor & support a queer artist at the same time, I've added a 10% discount to all apparel items throughout the month of June. Just use the code "LUVISLUV-HAPPYPRIDE" at checkout or click the link below 👇

10% discount off Amber Markoto's clothing

Visit Amber Markoto at Ko-fi for 10% discount off clothing

Also unlike all those big business's & corporations the LIVE shirts won't just disappear at the end of June, they're available year round (as supplies last of course). Also each one is unique & hand done by either myself or my husband.

Don't just show your pride this month, but everyday after. Be proud of who you are & how far you've come!

[ambermarkoto]

Today marks 7yrs married to the love of my life, but sadly it also marks the first year I failed to make a drawing of us together😥

Since our six month anniversary in the summer of 2014 I have made a drawing every year, first as gifts for David and eventually representations of our years together. Much like last year this year has been difficult, especially recently, but its also been very productive & exciting.

In the past year we were able to get a new car thanks to my dad. David also got a new job this past October and while we may have had a set back with our book, my art has been very productive. I sold over ten original pieces this past year & since January have received a couple cosplay commissions. Which is why I wasn't able to make anything this year, I'm finishing up the latest one.

I won't go into a lot of detail about our difficulties this year, as much of that is private, but I will say one of the hardest things we're facing right now is time. We're both extremely busy helping out with our families, & friends, & we're both building our careers, because of this finding time for just the two of us can be difficult. Yet somehow we still manage to do it!

Had I been able to make a drawing this year, I would have liked to show us holding hands, because no matter what we're both here for each other, through thick & thin. I love you David & I can't wait to see what this year has instore for us.

[ambermarkoto]

This past April you may have noticed I added a new character to the Winston & Friends universe. Their name is Alex, they are an intersex owlet. Currently we don't know much about this character. I like using they/them for their pronouns & I like the idea of Alex sort of being nonbinary at the moment. Maybe one day Alex's pronouns will change, but for now their happy just being a kid.

[ambermarkoto]

Did you that Winston's uncle Aster is actually trans? And would you believe it was a accident?

It all started when I made Celebration.

I was drawing so many different bunnies and when I got to this punky male bunny, I forgot to add his little whisker dots. If you didn't know whisker dots are how I show sexual dimorphism for mammals. All of them get whiskers but typically only males have dots.

As result of this accident, I thought why not use this opportunity to make a trans character. My goal with Aster along with my other characters in the WNF world is to show people come from all walks of life. So long as they're not hurting anyone it doesn't matter how someone looks, who they love, they're belief system or lack of, at the end of the day everyone is a person deserving of love, kindness, & respect.

[ambermarkoto]

Lets talk about some other queer characters I have, this time from Winston & Friends. Starting with Ben & Jerry, Mal & MeiMei's fathers.

If you didn't already know, Ben & Jerry met each other on blind date. Eventually they got married and fostered MeiMei which would eventually lead to her adoption. Soon after they took in an egg that would hatch Mal. From then they've been a happy little family.

Fun Fact: Ben & Jerry are inspired by real blue ducks.

[ambermarkoto]

After having spoken of Sheila & Lela, I feel I would be remiss if I did not mention this little bisexual brat. Now Gerald may not be the hero type, but he just exudes bi energy and I love him for that. Granted no one should like him at all, but you might just love to hate him, if you know what I mean.

You could say he's a... bi-baddie.

I deserve all the hate for that lol.

[ambermarkoto]

So its Pride Month, what better way to celebrate then to share some gay art, queer character lore, & rainbows!

Starting off with some couple art, featuring my first queer characters Sheila & Lela, from my Lost Memories webcomic (in hiatus). From the moment I started drawing these two I knew they had to be together. Both characters have tragic back stories regarding their siblings, which helped them to understand one another. Sheila (Angel) would give her life to protect Lela (Changeling) & Lela just wants nothing more than for Sheila to be safe & happy. Honestly talking about them makes me want to draw them again.

[ambermarkoto]

Okay this is officially the last mermaid drawing for the month of May. For this one I decided to make a flirty little seen, between a Tang fish inspired merman & Orangetail Damselfish mermaid. The Tang fish is probably my favorite of these two, but love the Damsel's face. Sadly due to the limited supplies I carry on me, her hair didn't turn out quite how I would have liked.

Question for you all, what's sort of art would you like to see me focus on in June?

[ambermarkoto]

I managed to make couple more mermaids before the end of May. These two are inspired by Betta fish. Honestly the pink one might just be favorite, she turned out so elegant & regal looking 😍

[ambermarkoto]

Lastly we have these two cuties. These two are inspired by random fish I found online, because of this I sadly don't know what the merman is based off. I do however know the mermaid is inspired by a Queen Angelfish, but if you look up that particular fish you'll find her blue doesn't match as I only had a limited amount of colors to work with. I do however love the color pallets for both of them, they're so vibrant & cute!

Sadly this is the last of my new mermaids, for now at least. However there are a few days left this month so I might make more, we'll just have to see.

By the way what kind of fish would you like to see turned into a merfolk?

[ambermarkoto]

These two were suggested by my husband. I asked him what fish I should make into mermaids, he suggested a goldfish & a minnow.

Fun fact: I showed these to my abuelita last week and she said the goldfish was her favorite! Honestly I have to agree it came out pretty good. Which one do you prefer?

[ambermarkoto]

Hey everyone sorry about the silence this week. I was visiting family last week in Nebraska and didn't get back till Monday. Needless to say I was exhausted and sadly I couldn't catch a break until today. So lets get back into some Mermay posts, while we still have a week left.

Since its the last week of May we're going to do things a little different, by sharing some new sketches I've made this month. I made these lovely ladies in my car while waiting for a friend. There isn't much to say about them, but you may recognize the mermaid on the right as the Angler Mermaid I created a few years back.

[ambermarkoto]

Here's another concept vs final design. I remember struggling with this one. I think the bubble was giving me problems & the sweatshirt. If you haven't noticed I don't tend to clothe my mermaids often as I feel it takes away from their fishy look & I find it very unnatural. I mean when you think about it clothes would seem very restrictive for mermaids as it could make breathing & swimming difficult.

If you like this mermaid & other fantasy creatures in general, might I suggest checking out my fantasy sticker pack. The pack contains 12 stickers featuring a variety of fantasy creatures, two of which are this mermaid & the Oscar mermaid. Just check out the link below & get yours pack today 👇

Fantasy Sticker Pack - Amber Markoto's Ko-fi Shop

Are you a fantasy nerd? Do you go larping on the weekend? Can you dream in elvish? No matter if you like high fantasy, dark fantasy, or anyt

[ambermarkoto]

I found the original concepts for this pencil drawing I made years ago. The theme was pearls and I tried various ways to draw it. My goal was to make a mermaid that gave a feeling of style & wealth.

Fun fact I sold the original drawing a couple years ago to an old friend of mine, but I still have prints available if anyone is interested. Link below 👇

Pearls - Amber Markoto's Ko-fi Shop

An illustration of a fancy mermaid covered in pearls.

[ambermarkoto]

I rediscovered this glitter covered mermaid drawing I made a while back. Surprisingly the glitter didn't get everywhere, unlike when i made it.

[ambermarkoto]

Who remembers that time I decided to try the Scribble challenge and made this interestingly shaped mermaid? Not going to lie I'd forgotten about it myself, but I do remember the snail 😂 Still cracks me up to this day.

[ambermarkoto]

I was searching through some of my old drawing & sketches and found an old sketch of my OC Coral as a child. Which reminded me that I had once sketched her older sister Star as a child too.

Its interesting that both Coral & Star are Angel & Pearl's sisters, but I don't draw them nearly as much. I think its because while I enjoy their designs they're both very introverted characters unlike their more extroverted siblings.