dvdhddlstn

Illustrator from Liverpool, UK. For enquiries contact [email protected] E-mail Facebook Instagram Twitter

[dvdhddlstn]

Finished these smaller pieces today with some paper I had left over from a messed up sheet. Pretty happy with how they’ve turned out.

[dvdhddlstn]

Messed the eyes up on this one (I was fucking FURIOUS at the time) so I’ve kept the linework so I can go over it again another time. Think I’ll add another rose and I’ve ordered some new pens and colours from eBay so I’ll crack on once they arrive.

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Butterfly girl

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Short video of me lining the rough sketch for my last piece

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Flash Painters!

What does everybody line their work with when they’re using heavily textured paper? I’ve tried CD marker pens but they tend to dry out quickly, dip pens/Indian ink belong in one of the outer rings of hell (although <i>sometimes</i> they’re great; they work well when they feel like it) and using a Sharpie on textured paper gives a really uneven line. Some pens that have the greatest line consistency like Pilot’s V-Sign pen aren’t waterproof so I could only ever use them for my older dotwork stuff, not for watercolour.

Any suggestions?

[dvdhddlstn]

So this one pissed me off no end but I am so happy with the result! This is huge for me because this is the first piece I’ve painted that I’d actually be happy to include in my portfolio; and after a run of half arsed paintings and smudges and mistakes and shitty colour blending it feels such a relief to be able to say that.

So the first image is my initial sketch, I think I remember doing two more that I ended up not using because I couldn’t get to grips with the dip pen/Indian ink and another that I smudged everywhere, middle piece is one I lined in a non waterproof pen so when I began to use lifting prep it smudged and then finally the right one is the final piece which I lined with a Sharpie.

I’ve salvaged some textured paper from those pieces that didn’t go to plan so I hope to use them for smaller pieces. It’ll be a lot easier to sit down and paint something little if I’ve been in work that day since I can probably finish it in an hour or so and then go to bed.

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Had really high hopes for this one but messed it up badly when I painted it. Loads of paint got mixed in where it shouldn’t have and I just did a bad job of blending the brown. Oh well!

[dvdhddlstn]

Followed a YouTube tutorial for this one. Annoying that I smudged Black where the eagles foot is. I think what I take away from this piece is that

1. be patient and wait for the paint to dry

2. I will always ruin a painting with my clumsiness

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Plenty to learn in terms of shading and blending here but was really pleased with some parts - namely the dagger handle (yep just the handle) and the heart/rose piece.

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Another. Quite pleased with the linework but the colours feel a bit “much” 🤷‍♂️

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Sketch and then final. Ended up quite pleased with this one.

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Just doesn’t look right does it? Look at the rose, it should have stayed black and grey. The shading covers too much of it. Next time I’m gonna leave the shading concentrated to a smaller space. I’m gonna leave this painting in the scrap heap ‘cause I can see myself running out of that 5A Scarlet really quickly, and it was humiliating using the pipette thing trying to suck up the bits I’d put down on the palette like the poverty stricken man I am. 

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Here’s a bit of a better snake with a bit of a better rose next to it. Those smudges from the dip pens wind me up something rotten so I’ve bought a normal permanent marker (probably the same one your dodgy uncle has for writing on pirate DVDs) hoping it’ll stop. I ended up attempting to colour this one and...

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Here’s a snake. It’s hard to get used to the dip pen sticking to the side of my little finger which is why there are a few smudges. Also, the snake’s tongue is fully at the side of its mouth ‘cause I forgot that the other fang should be behind the tongue. Anyway, third go, a wonky snake.

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Here’s a slightly better rose, with the really shitty one shown next to it for comparison. Wasn't keen on the text ‘cause it was a fucking nightmare with the stupid dip pen. I remember thinking the shading should be heavier but cover less area on this one.

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So this is my first attempt at painting. It’s fucking awful, I can see that already and I only painted it a few weeks ago but I want it up here so I can see where I’m going. The audacity of me even putting my initials next to it like anybody would copy it. Anyway, first piece. Thanks for looking.

[dvdhddlstn]

I forgot to get a picture of my original sketch for my first rose so this is it after I’d used it as scrap paper.