afrika_lirika

[neon-african]

🌿 Nature is healing...

I finally finished all of my nighttime Alhaitham sketches and I'm jumping straight into the final big illustration! 🌚✨

[neon-african]

🌿 I'm not completely happy with how all of the "evening" Alhaitham sketches turned out, but I had an amazing time drawing them—and that's a win too. 🌚✨

[neon-african]

These evening sketches have finally led me to a workflow that feels both enjoyable and genuinely useful.

They've also become my favorite way to deal with the fear of the blank page.

Thumbnails should be tiny—no bigger than your thumbnail, really.

And somehow that makes the fear of making mistakes tiny, too.

By the time I start drawing larger sketches, I'm already relaxed, warmed up, and having fun.

As a bonus, thumbnailing has done wonders for my compositions. Everything feels more balanced, more readable, and more cohesive.

I love this method so much that I'm pretty sure I'll be using it forever. 🌚✨

[neon-african]

The biggest challenge with this commission is remembering that I'm not drawing separate illustrations—I'm building one larger composition.

I have to keep the whole picture in mind while working on every single piece. 🌿

I added a grid to the background just to help with the layout, but then I fell in love with how those green lines looked against the black.

Now they're staying. Somehow they just fit Alhaitham's vibe perfectly.

[neon-african]

🌿 All of my Alhaitham sketches for the "daytime" segment 🌿

Out of these four, I feel like two turned out pretty well, while the other two... not so much.

Still, every sketch teaches me something, so it's all part of the process. ✨

[neon-african]

🌿 Alhaitham, daytime sketch #3 🌿

I genuinely have no clue which version to go with, but I have to make a decision eventually. 😭🌚

[neon-african]

🌿 Alhaitham, daytime sketch #1 🌿

Honestly, I can't decide whether I like this one or sketch #3 better (I'll post that one later 😭).

[neon-african]

🌿 All of my Alhaitham sketches for the "morning" segment 🌿

I redrew the original version. The changes aren't so visible, but they make a difference.

I see this as a small victory over my impatience and my urge to jump straight to the final piece. 🐋💨

My favorite is the sketch in the top left. It's funny that it was also the very first idea I had.

It kind of reinforces my belief that your first instinct is often the right one.

There are exceptions, of course, and I'm trying to leave room for them too. ✨

[neon-african]

Hahahahaha sorry not sorry

[neon-african]

Alhaitham, morning sketch #4 🌿

[neon-african]

Alhaitham, morning sketch #2 🌿

This one probably won't make it into the final collection, but it's my favorite as a study so far. ✨

Trying to think in big shapes and simple forms instead of getting hopelessly lost in the details. 🐋💨

[neon-african]

Practicing thumbnail sketches. Definitely messing up along the way, but I'm sticking with it 🐋💨

One of four morning sketches — before & after.

Still a long way from the kind of quick sketches I want to be able to do, but every little step counts ✨

Finally started an Alhaitham commission, so you're about to get flooded with WIPs 😎

[neon-african]

Al Haitham Morning sketch var.1

[neon-african]

Этот персонаж мягко но верно вытягивает меня в более активное и увлечённое рисование, лублу её 😭❤️

This character is slowly but surely pulling me back into a more active and passionate drawing flow. Luv her so much! 😭❤️

[neon-african]

Let’s talk about making peace with preliminary sketches... 🌿

For the last 5 years, I’ve been guilty of one major artistic sin: jumping straight into the final piece. No references, no color planning, no composition studies. My logic was: “Why waste time on tedious prep? I need to craft a masterpiece right now!” 💅

But whenever the "Expectation vs. Reality" meme happened, I’d get so discouraged. In my head, I saw an epic Renaissance painting, but the result was... well, a total flop. Over and over again.

I’ve always understood the classic workflow—loads of sketches, gathering material—but I intuitively resisted it. It’s one thing to do quick doodles for fun, but big, serious pieces are much more demanding.

Now, it’s finally becoming easier for me to accept the necessary routine, even if it feels tedious at times. The reward for patience is quality and new skills.

I’d been putting off these "morning sketches" for Alhaitham, but I finally did them. My brain is absolutely reeling: “Wait, so out of four sketches, only ONE gets to be a final piece?? Did we draw the others for nothing??” And I’m just like: “Yup, get used to it.” 🌚🌚🌚

Surprisingly, the process has become genuinely enjoyable. I can't believe I was so stubborn about not doing this before! The sense of control over my work is much stronger now, and I really hope it shows in the final result. 🌚

[neon-african]

Нежная, могучая Тартская дева ✨✨✨

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Soft light of a mighty heart. The maid of Tarth ✨✨✨

[neon-african]

дарова, бандиты Харренхолла 🌚

это скетч-коллаж, но его отдельная часть мне слишком понрав чтобы не выложить ✨

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oh hi there some baddies from Harrenhall 🌚

it's gonna be sketchy collage, but I love this part and can't help but post it ✨