sharpi joins and they watch tiktoks-that-feel-like-vines compilations
(btw i'm slowly building the sharpi-comic treasure trove... the page is still a WIP but...)
I've uploaded two FULL SKETCHBOOKS for you to download!!! HERE! I fell in love with filling up sketchbooks to the brim in 2020 - these are the first two I ever finished!
01 sketchbook - 02 sketchbook
As of writing this, I have 14 sketchbooks. I'm working on digitizing + uploading them all, but it takes a while! The newest addition will always cost 5$, the rest are free with optional donation. This means that every time I add a new sketchbook, the previous becomes free. Stay tuned for more! I hope you enjoy!!
What keeps you going? What sort of habits do you keep so you don't fall off the art wagon?
scribbling with paint/markers without sketching, like, just patterns and shapes that are pleasing. I'll fill out a whole sketchbook page, or several. write words and whatever comes to mind... maybe put stickers on it or glue stuff onto it...! it keeps the art-muscle engaged without tiring me out/forcing anything. Once it's dried, I sometimes draw stuff on top of it as well. i took some pics for you:
and of course, remind myself to draw indulgent/comforting stuff. sometimes i'll feel embarrassed, or like I've drawn something too many times. But I havta tell that voice that it's not helpful, it's just anxiety !!
sometimes i take a break as well. it's okay not to draw for a while, but of course if you feel like it's becoming non-helpful / fear-based, then giving yourself a nudge is nice !!
You don't have to answer this one but how do you survive as an artist.......i've always wanted to be a full time artist but i fear risk and instability. I really admire your artwork and your multimedia mastery. And I'm happy that you can share them with us!
Thank you so much! I love sharing my art, creating it is a very social behavior for me hehe
As for your question... well, there's a lot of aspects to this! what do you mean when you say, 'full time artist' ... is it, working in a studio? alone? with others? or do you mean, being able to create freely without worrying about money? or perhaps creating your passion-project and then finding monetary success?
for me, i want to create art freely, and I'd like to find a niche (or a couple of niches) that sustains me financially. I still experimenting, I'm not at the point where I'm 'safely full time' ... my wife is employed, they make the majority of our income. However, this luckily ties into your question ---!! because they are also looking to find a balance re: money VS art. Their current approach is to work as few hours as possible in order to still make rent. And then spend the majority of their time making art! it's a work in progress, but it seems promising right now.
my roommate has a more traditional place in the 'full time artist' category. he has found a publishing house + agent, and his income consists of his book salary; he makes long graphic novels, which makes him a big(ish....) amount, then lives off of that until his next salary, + does teaching on the side. It's more stable, but I wouldn't want that kinda lifestyle, cus I don't enjoy working on the same thing for 3 years haha. that's why figuring out what kinda 'full time' you want is important...!
something sorta odd I've noticed is, whenever I prioritize the things that seem a bit risky but also seem right, the outcome tends to be in my favor. idk if it's just a coincidence, but I try to follow that pattern, and so far it pays off. Being scared of risk and challenge is normal, but there's also a risk in staying in our old pattern; regret. Which is awful, but capitalism rewards stagnation... so it feels like it's worth it to just fit in, to minimize ourselves... there's a false sense of security, while we abandon our dreams... i think we all deserve to fight back and carve out our own lives.
there's so many things to consider... privilege ties into this big time as well, the journey becomes harder depending on your situation, timing, etc, and there's a lot of fears to face. i don't have a clear answer for you... it's not easy to figure out. but one of the most rewarding things about being an artist for me, is that i'm not allowed to dissociate and forget myself... i have to stay true to my soul or whatever, cus otherwise creating art just doesn't feel good! and then what am i even doing !!!
i hope this makes some sorta sense... my art practice is sorta holistic in a way so ... all my thoughts and advice are very "introspective"... lotsa love to you !!!!! here's a drawing i did a while ago:
what is your advice for colour? Especially how to keep colours bright while still being pleasant to look at…
My go-to technique is, I don't use that many different colours in one piece. For example, this piece basically just uses pink/purple hues, green/yellow hues, and blue. It makes stuff feel cohesive!
I do like going more wild with coloured lineart, then all bets are off haha. But generally, I tend to keep within a limited amount of colours - And I tend to use my favourite colors the most haha :-)) I don't worry too much honestly, I just keep going and have fun with it..
Oh, and another thing that makes stuff feel balanced: values..! that's a whole topic in itself, look it up if u'd like - if im unsure, i snap a pic with my phone, and turn it grayscale, to check if everything looks alright haha
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