Stan Prokopenko

Artist and Instructor

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Figure Sketches from Life

Here’s some sketches from my recent life drawing session. This is a 20 minute sketch focusing on shading forms. #butt

And here’s some quicker 5 minute sketches I did to warm up.

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Creature design artist Terryl Whitlatch has a history of creating iconic characters for Disney and Star Wars. She joins Marshall to talk about her career path, going straight from a student to working for Lucasfilm, her artistic influences, incorporating animal empathy into creature designs and her time working on Star Wars Episode 1.

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Knight Zhang critiques your Folklore character designs for April’s #prokochallenge! You’ll get to see a ton of creative entries, get tips on character concept design from an industry pro, and find out who the winners of the challenge are! All submissions were judged based on creativity, fundamental accuracy, and storytelling through design. If you’re interested in participating in the next challenge be sure to subscribe to the proko newsletter

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My first video I ever released on YouTube became a hit with the art community. This week, Marshall reviews a book that focuses on hit makers and how artists can use the lessons contained in the book to help them become more popular.

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My Mixergy interview is out now! Learn how I went from 0 to 2 million followers by teaching online!

https://mixergy.com/interviews/proko-with-stan-prokopenko/

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Antonio Stappaerts is a professional concept artist and teacher. In this video, he’ll detail his six steps on how you can learn to draw anything and provide you with a better understanding of form, design, and structure. You’ll learn how to break down complex subjects into simple shapes, the importance of shape design, and get some valuable tips on manipulating basic shapes to make them more dynamic and interesting. If you’ve been trying to draw the world around you (or from imagination) and your artwork is not living up to your expectations, then this lesson will really help you out.

Check out Antonio’s website for more content. 

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James Gurney is our podcast guest this week! He’s the creator behind Dinotopia and the author of “Color and Light” and “Imaginative Realism”. James talks with us about how he was able to succeed with his own art education and how it deviated from traditional art schools. We also take a look at popular art books that you can study from, try to imagine what the future of art education looks like, and talk about the struggles of using animals as live models.

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Pro concept artist Dom Lay teaches how you can create images that tell a story and have an emotional force behind them using dynamic lighting. Some of what you’ll learn in this digital painting demo is why lighting impacts storytelling, how dynamic lighting is used to influence mood regardless of how rendered the art is and tips for how to creatively apply lighting to your composition. Understanding light is a fundamental skill for artists and this demo will help you further understand it.

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Get ready to jump into the Metaverse as I take a deep dive into explaining NFTs to Marshall. I give an overview of blockchain technology, why some people associate NFTs with a pyramid scheme, how others think it will revolutionize the digital art world, and what can be done to improve the space for artists and the environment.

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Aaron Blaise sits down to judge artwork submitted for the January #prokochallenge! The task was to produce a pet portrait or portraits using any medium at your disposal. The submissions would be assessed on accurate anatomy, creativity, draftsmanship, and emotional impact. Now you’ll get to hear Aaron’s feedback, find out who the winners are and view a bunch of the contest entries!

Art by Aaron Blaise View Winner’s Here

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Knight Zhang presents an introduction to character costume design. In this lesson you’ll learn what your character’s clothing conveys about their backstory, how different design elements contribute to your character’s overall design and personality, and the steps Knight goes through when designing a character from scratch with tips on how you can apply her process to your work! Knight’s work has been influential on many game projects including big titles like Dota 2. Follow Knight’s Work Website - http://www.knightzhang.net/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/arucelli/ Twitter - https://twitter.com/arucelli Artstation - https://www.artstation.com/arucelli Twitch - https://www.twitch.tv/arucelli

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Just posted a new Draftsmen clip where I give advice about social media and how to avoid getting burned out.

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Illustrator and concept designer Steven Zapata gives a demonstration on how he draws in graphite from imagination! Using a harpy from “Dante’s Inferno” as his subject, he’ll walk you through his process from the materials he uses to adding intricate and detailed textures. Throughout the demo you’ll also get to see how he establishes the initial gesture and transitions from sketching to rendering to creating unique forms. Steven’s Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/StevenZapataArt Steven’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stevenzapata_art/ Steven’s Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/stevenzapata

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This is the 2nd part of Esben’s Leyendecker tutorial. In part 1 you got to see him sketch out the concept of the character in Leyendecker’s style. In this lesson he takes Jett and refines the sketch further before completing the piece by painting it. As you watch you’ll get insights into Esben’s thought process on painting along with style tips and photoshop tricks that artists can use to replicate a more traditional look. Esben’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/esbenlash Esben’s Website: http://esbenlash.net/

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Learn one method for how to analyze and apply another artist’s style to your own work. Esben Rasmussen teaches you the thought process of how he samples the style of JC Leyendecker and then shows you how to redraw a video game character in that style. This is a 2 part series with part 1 focusing on quick sketching a pose and in part 2 he’ll show you how to finish the piece by painting in that style.

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In this mini-lesson storyboard artist Rembert Montald shows you some hidden tips that directors and storyboarders use to help guide the eye through sequences. Whether it is with gesture lines or moving the eye effortlessly through shots and sound there are many ways to help the audience move through the story. To demonstrate this, Rembert will break down an animated sequence from the 1967 classic The Jungle Book.

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New sketchbook tour featuring the work of @jeffreywattsart! In this video you’ll get to see his personal anatomy, figure, and animal sketches along with commentary from him about his work - proko.com/12days Art by Jeff Watts Special Discount! Save 15% on Courses, Demos, Model Packs and Package Deals using code 12DAYS. Sale ends Dec 18th 2020