I wanted to post an update on the first five pages of my latest sketchbook, as I’ve been doing different things in both process and style than before. I’m not that pleased with the scan quality but I can’t do much about it. See the downstairs segment of the post for some thoughts and bonus arts!
1. The first drawing in the sketchbook was a self-portrait of a kind. I wanted to do some more high-fantasy style and I did draw the same outfit on a few different figures before I figured out that I’d sort of intended it for myself. I let the colors get away from me, and I think I could have done the lineart more justice, but it’s grown on me over the last few months. Here’s a closer look at a Bard of Lore’s bookshelf backpack:
2. The second is an outfit study on one of my characters from the Forge ‘Verse: Nicole C. Jones, a.k.a. the Fluctuation Force host. She’s always been a favorite of mine to draw, though her appearance has changed over the years. I like the 70s outfit the most, but I was pleasantly surprised by the cowboy look, as I rarely play with warm purples for her corruption rather than cool tones. This was a less adventurous drawing, but leans more into my costume design whims. Here’s a bonus Nicole that I drew and mailed to a friend:
3. This was a drawing I did for a dear friend’s birthday of him as Jotaro, which was a good exercise in both drawing real people and in using the exciting-but-difficult JJBA poses (I don’t know if you can tell how many times I redrew the hand). I don’t watch JoJo but I find the visuals stunning, so I enjoyed this one. It’s no longer in my sketchbook but I thought it was right to include it.
4. Oh, Hollis, another favorite character from the Forge ‘Verse. I wanted badly for this drawing to be more than a display of a character – I wanted it to be art by its own merits, something I’m not great at, because Hollis is a beautiful character and he deserves it. Honestly, I’m very happy with how it turned out. The background and props look like they belong, the clothing is at least passingly shaded, and he’s about as dynamic and anatomically correct as I’m capable of. You might notice this one features my signature, and I only stick that bad boy on the stuff I’m really proud of. I want to do more like Hollis.
5. The most recent page features Jericho, my minesona, and his menagerie of pets. I was again challenging myself, this time with drawing new animals. I could be happier with this one; I think it highlights the issues with the self-portrait and with the direction my style is going. I need to work on more consistent color schemes and planning my backgrounds better. Like with the first one, I’m not sure my coloring does the lineart justice. Here’s a breakdown of the layers Jericho has on (thank you to Ginmaart on DeviantArt for the base):
So that’s my essay on the start of a new sketchbook, I hope by the time I can post my next five you’ll be able to see improvement. I would be happy to receive criticism. I’m at a point in my journey as an artist where I know I have a lot to learn, but I’m genuinely proud to share where I’m at.
