Marissa Louise Sketch Dump

Hey y’all, sorry I haven’t posted for a while. I got really busy. But I should have a few cool surprises up for you soon. I’m still taking tutorial requests, so if there is something you want me to source or create just let me know.

Posted 12 hours ago

frenden:

Photoshop doesn’t do well with light pressure recognition. Making thick-to-thin strokes requires a lot more fidelity than would even be necessary with a proper sable brush and ink in meatspace. It blows out pressure at the low end and makes soft lines blobby as hell.

You can combat this by turning off the lowest pressure settings of your tablet at the driver level, but you shouldn’t have to. I want a brush engine that senses those slight variances and accurately translates them.

It’s possible. Manga Studio, which I’ve used for inking since about 2006, does a stellar job at light pressure translation. Getting feathered strokes that look like they came from my Raphael 8404 #4 sable brush is no harder than inking in the real world. Painter does a pretty good job of this too. At the very least, both allow you to tweak how the brush engine interprets your strokes on a per-brush-setting basis instead of using a sledgehammer on a finishing nail by leaving you with an only recourse of neutering your full range of pressure sensitivity at the driver level.

Photoshop, Illustrator, and Flash all exhibit this problem. I don’t know if it’s an interpolation/smoothing issue or something larger, but I do know that the result is shitty lines.

Since around the time of the Photoshop CS6 Beta, I’ve been attempting to create a brush that combats these shortcomings by dropping out some of the lowest pressure mark-making with a combination of flow and texture settings. The result is a brush that, while not 100% opaque at the lightest marks, provides a hell of a lot more fidelity and control.

This is a quick video of the brush in action. Here is the sales link for this and several other inking tool presets.

# New tools photoshop tips Photoshop Shopping

Reblogged 1 month ago from frenden 2,507 notes

Frontiers | Navigating Comics: An Empirical and Theoretical Approach to Strategies of Reading Comic Page Layouts | Frontiers in Cognitive Science →

Frontiers | Navigating Comics: An Empirical and Theoretical Approach to Strategies of Reading Comic Page Layouts | Frontiers in Cognitive Science publishes articles on the most outstanding discoveries across the research spectrum of Frontiers | Navigating Comics: An Empirical and Theoretical Approach to Strategies of Reading Comic Page Layouts | Cognitive Science.

This is a study of how viewers read spreads. It can be very helpful when you are coloring, laying out or lettering. Understanding how a viewer sees is pretty key to getting your message across clearly. There are some really good examples in here which use confusing layouts to add tension. In particular it is the famous Jim Steranko image of a carnival:

This image is intended to be absorbed all at once. The color controls the tone and the Gestalt. Which is to say when you look at this image things are grouped very abstractly. Reading it in a clear order is difficult with the exception of the final panel. The terminal panel has a different palette than the other panels. Combining the “blockage” technique with the color theory in this creates an really amazing sense of chaos. Here is further reading on that spread http://www.emaki.net/essays/ECS_Supplement.pdf

Go get crazy!

# Comics Layout Gestalt Theory Advanced Reading

Posted 1 month ago
believermag: Ross Simonini interviews the artist, Chuck Webster on the process of making his painting “No Negative Style” (oil, spray paint and oil on wood panel, “60 X “84, 2013). See the final painting and the in-progress images above. Look at more of Webster’s work at his site and at Dallas Art Fair alongside the work of Forrest Bess and Chris Martin.  THE BELIEVER: The painting you began was radically different than the painting you finished. is this usually how it goes for you? CHUCK WEBSTER: It’s rare, but in this one I started off with one idea and the idea collapsed. I wanted to blow up a small drawing, which looked strange, as if the painting was trying to own up to something else besides itself. Too fussy. I like to work until the painting has gained a degree of self-knowledge, and tells me something.  That one said, “Uhhhh…. not happening.” There are a few messy moves missing in between, but i ended up with the yellow background after a few work sessions and a large amount of reducing, staring, refusing and turning around to the wall. I usually get 75% of what I want initially, and then there a large amount of see above, followed by a final few, brave moves. I often to reject a lot of my favorite stuff because I have so many ideas that I can easily make four paintings in one.  the picture always breathes better after I clean out unnecessary “chatter”, and find soemthing that makes sense simply. BLVR: What do you mean by “self-knowledge”? CW: The painting is starting to transform from set of raw materials into something else. As I work, references and new ideas will pile up, and ill try new things, like “oh perhaps red”, or “move this line over”, and so on. My goal is to work until the work starts to refer to nothing but itself; whatever easy references there could be fall away. It’s a living, breathing, knowing thing. It’s a combination of known and unknown things, of knowledge and mystery. BLVR: Do you ever feel regret after you’ve painted over a picture? CW: Oh yes.  It happens all the time.That’s a big test, knowing when to stop.  I think that’s partly why I keep a lot of surfaces around, in order to distract myself from destroying something that might be good, but I dont know it yet. BLVR: So distraction is a good thing for you? CW: I think so - I like the idea of looking at a picture through a filter, though another kind of narrative.  I love to flip through books or play DJ. I often come up with the perfect idea for finishing a picture while walking the dog, going to galleries or watching a movie.  There is a place in my brain for a painting flipbook, where the pictures stay and wait for a title or solution.   Attention is a very curious and wonderful phenomena. Near the end of a large picture the others fade and I’ll finish it with a few hours of concentrated attention, where I am thinking, feeling and doing at the same time. The picture has done its job and it exists, separately from me.  An exchange of energy has taken place. believermag: Ross Simonini interviews the artist, Chuck Webster on the process of making his painting “No Negative Style” (oil, spray paint and oil on wood panel, “60 X “84, 2013). See the final painting and the in-progress images above. Look at more of Webster’s work at his site and at Dallas Art Fair alongside the work of Forrest Bess and Chris Martin.  THE BELIEVER: The painting you began was radically different than the painting you finished. is this usually how it goes for you? CHUCK WEBSTER: It’s rare, but in this one I started off with one idea and the idea collapsed. I wanted to blow up a small drawing, which looked strange, as if the painting was trying to own up to something else besides itself. Too fussy. I like to work until the painting has gained a degree of self-knowledge, and tells me something.  That one said, “Uhhhh…. not happening.” There are a few messy moves missing in between, but i ended up with the yellow background after a few work sessions and a large amount of reducing, staring, refusing and turning around to the wall. I usually get 75% of what I want initially, and then there a large amount of see above, followed by a final few, brave moves. I often to reject a lot of my favorite stuff because I have so many ideas that I can easily make four paintings in one.  the picture always breathes better after I clean out unnecessary “chatter”, and find soemthing that makes sense simply. BLVR: What do you mean by “self-knowledge”? CW: The painting is starting to transform from set of raw materials into something else. As I work, references and new ideas will pile up, and ill try new things, like “oh perhaps red”, or “move this line over”, and so on. My goal is to work until the work starts to refer to nothing but itself; whatever easy references there could be fall away. It’s a living, breathing, knowing thing. It’s a combination of known and unknown things, of knowledge and mystery. BLVR: Do you ever feel regret after you’ve painted over a picture? CW: Oh yes.  It happens all the time.That’s a big test, knowing when to stop.  I think that’s partly why I keep a lot of surfaces around, in order to distract myself from destroying something that might be good, but I dont know it yet. BLVR: So distraction is a good thing for you? CW: I think so - I like the idea of looking at a picture through a filter, though another kind of narrative.  I love to flip through books or play DJ. I often come up with the perfect idea for finishing a picture while walking the dog, going to galleries or watching a movie.  There is a place in my brain for a painting flipbook, where the pictures stay and wait for a title or solution.   Attention is a very curious and wonderful phenomena. Near the end of a large picture the others fade and I’ll finish it with a few hours of concentrated attention, where I am thinking, feeling and doing at the same time. The picture has done its job and it exists, separately from me.  An exchange of energy has taken place. believermag: Ross Simonini interviews the artist, Chuck Webster on the process of making his painting “No Negative Style” (oil, spray paint and oil on wood panel, “60 X “84, 2013). See the final painting and the in-progress images above. Look at more of Webster’s work at his site and at Dallas Art Fair alongside the work of Forrest Bess and Chris Martin.  THE BELIEVER: The painting you began was radically different than the painting you finished. is this usually how it goes for you? CHUCK WEBSTER: It’s rare, but in this one I started off with one idea and the idea collapsed. I wanted to blow up a small drawing, which looked strange, as if the painting was trying to own up to something else besides itself. Too fussy. I like to work until the painting has gained a degree of self-knowledge, and tells me something.  That one said, “Uhhhh…. not happening.” There are a few messy moves missing in between, but i ended up with the yellow background after a few work sessions and a large amount of reducing, staring, refusing and turning around to the wall. I usually get 75% of what I want initially, and then there a large amount of see above, followed by a final few, brave moves. I often to reject a lot of my favorite stuff because I have so many ideas that I can easily make four paintings in one.  the picture always breathes better after I clean out unnecessary “chatter”, and find soemthing that makes sense simply. BLVR: What do you mean by “self-knowledge”? CW: The painting is starting to transform from set of raw materials into something else. As I work, references and new ideas will pile up, and ill try new things, like “oh perhaps red”, or “move this line over”, and so on. My goal is to work until the work starts to refer to nothing but itself; whatever easy references there could be fall away. It’s a living, breathing, knowing thing. It’s a combination of known and unknown things, of knowledge and mystery. BLVR: Do you ever feel regret after you’ve painted over a picture? CW: Oh yes.  It happens all the time.That’s a big test, knowing when to stop.  I think that’s partly why I keep a lot of surfaces around, in order to distract myself from destroying something that might be good, but I dont know it yet. BLVR: So distraction is a good thing for you? CW: I think so - I like the idea of looking at a picture through a filter, though another kind of narrative.  I love to flip through books or play DJ. I often come up with the perfect idea for finishing a picture while walking the dog, going to galleries or watching a movie.  There is a place in my brain for a painting flipbook, where the pictures stay and wait for a title or solution.   Attention is a very curious and wonderful phenomena. Near the end of a large picture the others fade and I’ll finish it with a few hours of concentrated attention, where I am thinking, feeling and doing at the same time. The picture has done its job and it exists, separately from me.  An exchange of energy has taken place. believermag: Ross Simonini interviews the artist, Chuck Webster on the process of making his painting “No Negative Style” (oil, spray paint and oil on wood panel, “60 X “84, 2013). See the final painting and the in-progress images above. Look at more of Webster’s work at his site and at Dallas Art Fair alongside the work of Forrest Bess and Chris Martin.  THE BELIEVER: The painting you began was radically different than the painting you finished. is this usually how it goes for you? CHUCK WEBSTER: It’s rare, but in this one I started off with one idea and the idea collapsed. I wanted to blow up a small drawing, which looked strange, as if the painting was trying to own up to something else besides itself. Too fussy. I like to work until the painting has gained a degree of self-knowledge, and tells me something.  That one said, “Uhhhh…. not happening.” There are a few messy moves missing in between, but i ended up with the yellow background after a few work sessions and a large amount of reducing, staring, refusing and turning around to the wall. I usually get 75% of what I want initially, and then there a large amount of see above, followed by a final few, brave moves. I often to reject a lot of my favorite stuff because I have so many ideas that I can easily make four paintings in one.  the picture always breathes better after I clean out unnecessary “chatter”, and find soemthing that makes sense simply. BLVR: What do you mean by “self-knowledge”? CW: The painting is starting to transform from set of raw materials into something else. As I work, references and new ideas will pile up, and ill try new things, like “oh perhaps red”, or “move this line over”, and so on. My goal is to work until the work starts to refer to nothing but itself; whatever easy references there could be fall away. It’s a living, breathing, knowing thing. It’s a combination of known and unknown things, of knowledge and mystery. BLVR: Do you ever feel regret after you’ve painted over a picture? CW: Oh yes.  It happens all the time.That’s a big test, knowing when to stop.  I think that’s partly why I keep a lot of surfaces around, in order to distract myself from destroying something that might be good, but I dont know it yet. BLVR: So distraction is a good thing for you? CW: I think so - I like the idea of looking at a picture through a filter, though another kind of narrative.  I love to flip through books or play DJ. I often come up with the perfect idea for finishing a picture while walking the dog, going to galleries or watching a movie.  There is a place in my brain for a painting flipbook, where the pictures stay and wait for a title or solution.   Attention is a very curious and wonderful phenomena. Near the end of a large picture the others fade and I’ll finish it with a few hours of concentrated attention, where I am thinking, feeling and doing at the same time. The picture has done its job and it exists, separately from me.  An exchange of energy has taken place. believermag: Ross Simonini interviews the artist, Chuck Webster on the process of making his painting “No Negative Style” (oil, spray paint and oil on wood panel, “60 X “84, 2013). See the final painting and the in-progress images above. Look at more of Webster’s work at his site and at Dallas Art Fair alongside the work of Forrest Bess and Chris Martin.  THE BELIEVER: The painting you began was radically different than the painting you finished. is this usually how it goes for you? CHUCK WEBSTER: It’s rare, but in this one I started off with one idea and the idea collapsed. I wanted to blow up a small drawing, which looked strange, as if the painting was trying to own up to something else besides itself. Too fussy. I like to work until the painting has gained a degree of self-knowledge, and tells me something.  That one said, “Uhhhh…. not happening.” There are a few messy moves missing in between, but i ended up with the yellow background after a few work sessions and a large amount of reducing, staring, refusing and turning around to the wall. I usually get 75% of what I want initially, and then there a large amount of see above, followed by a final few, brave moves. I often to reject a lot of my favorite stuff because I have so many ideas that I can easily make four paintings in one.  the picture always breathes better after I clean out unnecessary “chatter”, and find soemthing that makes sense simply. BLVR: What do you mean by “self-knowledge”? CW: The painting is starting to transform from set of raw materials into something else. As I work, references and new ideas will pile up, and ill try new things, like “oh perhaps red”, or “move this line over”, and so on. My goal is to work until the work starts to refer to nothing but itself; whatever easy references there could be fall away. It’s a living, breathing, knowing thing. It’s a combination of known and unknown things, of knowledge and mystery. BLVR: Do you ever feel regret after you’ve painted over a picture? CW: Oh yes.  It happens all the time.That’s a big test, knowing when to stop.  I think that’s partly why I keep a lot of surfaces around, in order to distract myself from destroying something that might be good, but I dont know it yet. BLVR: So distraction is a good thing for you? CW: I think so - I like the idea of looking at a picture through a filter, though another kind of narrative.  I love to flip through books or play DJ. I often come up with the perfect idea for finishing a picture while walking the dog, going to galleries or watching a movie.  There is a place in my brain for a painting flipbook, where the pictures stay and wait for a title or solution.   Attention is a very curious and wonderful phenomena. Near the end of a large picture the others fade and I’ll finish it with a few hours of concentrated attention, where I am thinking, feeling and doing at the same time. The picture has done its job and it exists, separately from me.  An exchange of energy has taken place. believermag: Ross Simonini interviews the artist, Chuck Webster on the process of making his painting “No Negative Style” (oil, spray paint and oil on wood panel, “60 X “84, 2013). See the final painting and the in-progress images above. Look at more of Webster’s work at his site and at Dallas Art Fair alongside the work of Forrest Bess and Chris Martin.  THE BELIEVER: The painting you began was radically different than the painting you finished. is this usually how it goes for you? CHUCK WEBSTER: It’s rare, but in this one I started off with one idea and the idea collapsed. I wanted to blow up a small drawing, which looked strange, as if the painting was trying to own up to something else besides itself. Too fussy. I like to work until the painting has gained a degree of self-knowledge, and tells me something.  That one said, “Uhhhh…. not happening.” There are a few messy moves missing in between, but i ended up with the yellow background after a few work sessions and a large amount of reducing, staring, refusing and turning around to the wall. I usually get 75% of what I want initially, and then there a large amount of see above, followed by a final few, brave moves. I often to reject a lot of my favorite stuff because I have so many ideas that I can easily make four paintings in one.  the picture always breathes better after I clean out unnecessary “chatter”, and find soemthing that makes sense simply. BLVR: What do you mean by “self-knowledge”? CW: The painting is starting to transform from set of raw materials into something else. As I work, references and new ideas will pile up, and ill try new things, like “oh perhaps red”, or “move this line over”, and so on. My goal is to work until the work starts to refer to nothing but itself; whatever easy references there could be fall away. It’s a living, breathing, knowing thing. It’s a combination of known and unknown things, of knowledge and mystery. BLVR: Do you ever feel regret after you’ve painted over a picture? CW: Oh yes.  It happens all the time.That’s a big test, knowing when to stop.  I think that’s partly why I keep a lot of surfaces around, in order to distract myself from destroying something that might be good, but I dont know it yet. BLVR: So distraction is a good thing for you? CW: I think so - I like the idea of looking at a picture through a filter, though another kind of narrative.  I love to flip through books or play DJ. I often come up with the perfect idea for finishing a picture while walking the dog, going to galleries or watching a movie.  There is a place in my brain for a painting flipbook, where the pictures stay and wait for a title or solution.   Attention is a very curious and wonderful phenomena. Near the end of a large picture the others fade and I’ll finish it with a few hours of concentrated attention, where I am thinking, feeling and doing at the same time. The picture has done its job and it exists, separately from me.  An exchange of energy has taken place. believermag: Ross Simonini interviews the artist, Chuck Webster on the process of making his painting “No Negative Style” (oil, spray paint and oil on wood panel, “60 X “84, 2013). See the final painting and the in-progress images above. Look at more of Webster’s work at his site and at Dallas Art Fair alongside the work of Forrest Bess and Chris Martin.  THE BELIEVER: The painting you began was radically different than the painting you finished. is this usually how it goes for you? CHUCK WEBSTER: It’s rare, but in this one I started off with one idea and the idea collapsed. I wanted to blow up a small drawing, which looked strange, as if the painting was trying to own up to something else besides itself. Too fussy. I like to work until the painting has gained a degree of self-knowledge, and tells me something.  That one said, “Uhhhh…. not happening.” There are a few messy moves missing in between, but i ended up with the yellow background after a few work sessions and a large amount of reducing, staring, refusing and turning around to the wall. I usually get 75% of what I want initially, and then there a large amount of see above, followed by a final few, brave moves. I often to reject a lot of my favorite stuff because I have so many ideas that I can easily make four paintings in one.  the picture always breathes better after I clean out unnecessary “chatter”, and find soemthing that makes sense simply. BLVR: What do you mean by “self-knowledge”? CW: The painting is starting to transform from set of raw materials into something else. As I work, references and new ideas will pile up, and ill try new things, like “oh perhaps red”, or “move this line over”, and so on. My goal is to work until the work starts to refer to nothing but itself; whatever easy references there could be fall away. It’s a living, breathing, knowing thing. It’s a combination of known and unknown things, of knowledge and mystery. BLVR: Do you ever feel regret after you’ve painted over a picture? CW: Oh yes.  It happens all the time.That’s a big test, knowing when to stop.  I think that’s partly why I keep a lot of surfaces around, in order to distract myself from destroying something that might be good, but I dont know it yet. BLVR: So distraction is a good thing for you? CW: I think so - I like the idea of looking at a picture through a filter, though another kind of narrative.  I love to flip through books or play DJ. I often come up with the perfect idea for finishing a picture while walking the dog, going to galleries or watching a movie.  There is a place in my brain for a painting flipbook, where the pictures stay and wait for a title or solution.   Attention is a very curious and wonderful phenomena. Near the end of a large picture the others fade and I’ll finish it with a few hours of concentrated attention, where I am thinking, feeling and doing at the same time. The picture has done its job and it exists, separately from me.  An exchange of energy has taken place. believermag: Ross Simonini interviews the artist, Chuck Webster on the process of making his painting “No Negative Style” (oil, spray paint and oil on wood panel, “60 X “84, 2013). See the final painting and the in-progress images above. Look at more of Webster’s work at his site and at Dallas Art Fair alongside the work of Forrest Bess and Chris Martin.  THE BELIEVER: The painting you began was radically different than the painting you finished. is this usually how it goes for you? CHUCK WEBSTER: It’s rare, but in this one I started off with one idea and the idea collapsed. I wanted to blow up a small drawing, which looked strange, as if the painting was trying to own up to something else besides itself. Too fussy. I like to work until the painting has gained a degree of self-knowledge, and tells me something.  That one said, “Uhhhh…. not happening.” There are a few messy moves missing in between, but i ended up with the yellow background after a few work sessions and a large amount of reducing, staring, refusing and turning around to the wall. I usually get 75% of what I want initially, and then there a large amount of see above, followed by a final few, brave moves. I often to reject a lot of my favorite stuff because I have so many ideas that I can easily make four paintings in one.  the picture always breathes better after I clean out unnecessary “chatter”, and find soemthing that makes sense simply. BLVR: What do you mean by “self-knowledge”? CW: The painting is starting to transform from set of raw materials into something else. As I work, references and new ideas will pile up, and ill try new things, like “oh perhaps red”, or “move this line over”, and so on. My goal is to work until the work starts to refer to nothing but itself; whatever easy references there could be fall away. It’s a living, breathing, knowing thing. It’s a combination of known and unknown things, of knowledge and mystery. BLVR: Do you ever feel regret after you’ve painted over a picture? CW: Oh yes.  It happens all the time.That’s a big test, knowing when to stop.  I think that’s partly why I keep a lot of surfaces around, in order to distract myself from destroying something that might be good, but I dont know it yet. BLVR: So distraction is a good thing for you? CW: I think so - I like the idea of looking at a picture through a filter, though another kind of narrative.  I love to flip through books or play DJ. I often come up with the perfect idea for finishing a picture while walking the dog, going to galleries or watching a movie.  There is a place in my brain for a painting flipbook, where the pictures stay and wait for a title or solution.   Attention is a very curious and wonderful phenomena. Near the end of a large picture the others fade and I’ll finish it with a few hours of concentrated attention, where I am thinking, feeling and doing at the same time. The picture has done its job and it exists, separately from me.  An exchange of energy has taken place. believermag: Ross Simonini interviews the artist, Chuck Webster on the process of making his painting “No Negative Style” (oil, spray paint and oil on wood panel, “60 X “84, 2013). See the final painting and the in-progress images above. Look at more of Webster’s work at his site and at Dallas Art Fair alongside the work of Forrest Bess and Chris Martin.  THE BELIEVER: The painting you began was radically different than the painting you finished. is this usually how it goes for you? CHUCK WEBSTER: It’s rare, but in this one I started off with one idea and the idea collapsed. I wanted to blow up a small drawing, which looked strange, as if the painting was trying to own up to something else besides itself. Too fussy. I like to work until the painting has gained a degree of self-knowledge, and tells me something.  That one said, “Uhhhh…. not happening.” There are a few messy moves missing in between, but i ended up with the yellow background after a few work sessions and a large amount of reducing, staring, refusing and turning around to the wall. I usually get 75% of what I want initially, and then there a large amount of see above, followed by a final few, brave moves. I often to reject a lot of my favorite stuff because I have so many ideas that I can easily make four paintings in one.  the picture always breathes better after I clean out unnecessary “chatter”, and find soemthing that makes sense simply. BLVR: What do you mean by “self-knowledge”? CW: The painting is starting to transform from set of raw materials into something else. As I work, references and new ideas will pile up, and ill try new things, like “oh perhaps red”, or “move this line over”, and so on. My goal is to work until the work starts to refer to nothing but itself; whatever easy references there could be fall away. It’s a living, breathing, knowing thing. It’s a combination of known and unknown things, of knowledge and mystery. BLVR: Do you ever feel regret after you’ve painted over a picture? CW: Oh yes.  It happens all the time.That’s a big test, knowing when to stop.  I think that’s partly why I keep a lot of surfaces around, in order to distract myself from destroying something that might be good, but I dont know it yet. BLVR: So distraction is a good thing for you? CW: I think so - I like the idea of looking at a picture through a filter, though another kind of narrative.  I love to flip through books or play DJ. I often come up with the perfect idea for finishing a picture while walking the dog, going to galleries or watching a movie.  There is a place in my brain for a painting flipbook, where the pictures stay and wait for a title or solution.   Attention is a very curious and wonderful phenomena. Near the end of a large picture the others fade and I’ll finish it with a few hours of concentrated attention, where I am thinking, feeling and doing at the same time. The picture has done its job and it exists, separately from me.  An exchange of energy has taken place. believermag: Ross Simonini interviews the artist, Chuck Webster on the process of making his painting “No Negative Style” (oil, spray paint and oil on wood panel, “60 X “84, 2013). See the final painting and the in-progress images above. Look at more of Webster’s work at his site and at Dallas Art Fair alongside the work of Forrest Bess and Chris Martin.  THE BELIEVER: The painting you began was radically different than the painting you finished. is this usually how it goes for you? CHUCK WEBSTER: It’s rare, but in this one I started off with one idea and the idea collapsed. I wanted to blow up a small drawing, which looked strange, as if the painting was trying to own up to something else besides itself. Too fussy. I like to work until the painting has gained a degree of self-knowledge, and tells me something.  That one said, “Uhhhh…. not happening.” There are a few messy moves missing in between, but i ended up with the yellow background after a few work sessions and a large amount of reducing, staring, refusing and turning around to the wall. I usually get 75% of what I want initially, and then there a large amount of see above, followed by a final few, brave moves. I often to reject a lot of my favorite stuff because I have so many ideas that I can easily make four paintings in one.  the picture always breathes better after I clean out unnecessary “chatter”, and find soemthing that makes sense simply. BLVR: What do you mean by “self-knowledge”? CW: The painting is starting to transform from set of raw materials into something else. As I work, references and new ideas will pile up, and ill try new things, like “oh perhaps red”, or “move this line over”, and so on. My goal is to work until the work starts to refer to nothing but itself; whatever easy references there could be fall away. It’s a living, breathing, knowing thing. It’s a combination of known and unknown things, of knowledge and mystery. BLVR: Do you ever feel regret after you’ve painted over a picture? CW: Oh yes.  It happens all the time.That’s a big test, knowing when to stop.  I think that’s partly why I keep a lot of surfaces around, in order to distract myself from destroying something that might be good, but I dont know it yet. BLVR: So distraction is a good thing for you? CW: I think so - I like the idea of looking at a picture through a filter, though another kind of narrative.  I love to flip through books or play DJ. I often come up with the perfect idea for finishing a picture while walking the dog, going to galleries or watching a movie.  There is a place in my brain for a painting flipbook, where the pictures stay and wait for a title or solution.   Attention is a very curious and wonderful phenomena. Near the end of a large picture the others fade and I’ll finish it with a few hours of concentrated attention, where I am thinking, feeling and doing at the same time. The picture has done its job and it exists, separately from me.  An exchange of energy has taken place.

believermag:

Ross Simonini interviews the artist, Chuck Webster on the process of making his painting “No Negative Style” (oil, spray paint and oil on wood panel, “60 X “84, 2013). See the final painting and the in-progress images above. Look at more of Webster’s work at his site and at Dallas Art Fair alongside the work of Forrest Bess and Chris Martin. 

THE BELIEVER: The painting you began was radically different than the painting you finished. is this usually how it goes for you?

CHUCK WEBSTER: It’s rare, but in this one I started off with one idea and the idea collapsed. I wanted to blow up a small drawing, which looked strange, as if the painting was trying to own up to something else besides itself. Too fussy. I like to work until the painting has gained a degree of self-knowledge, and tells me something.  That one said, “Uhhhh…. not happening.” There are a few messy moves missing in between, but i ended up with the yellow background after a few work sessions and a large amount of reducing, staring, refusing and turning around to the wall. I usually get 75% of what I want initially, and then there a large amount of see above, followed by a final few, brave moves. I often to reject a lot of my favorite stuff because I have so many ideas that I can easily make four paintings in one.  the picture always breathes better after I clean out unnecessary “chatter”, and find soemthing that makes sense simply.

BLVR: What do you mean by “self-knowledge”?

CW: The painting is starting to transform from set of raw materials into something else. As I work, references and new ideas will pile up, and ill try new things, like “oh perhaps red”, or “move this line over”, and so on. My goal is to work until the work starts to refer to nothing but itself; whatever easy references there could be fall away. It’s a living, breathing, knowing thing. It’s a combination of known and unknown things, of knowledge and mystery.

BLVR: Do you ever feel regret after you’ve painted over a picture?

CW: Oh yes.  It happens all the time.That’s a big test, knowing when to stop.  I think that’s partly why I keep a lot of surfaces around, in order to distract myself from destroying something that might be good, but I dont know it yet.

BLVR: So distraction is a good thing for you?

CW: I think so - I like the idea of looking at a picture through a filter, though another kind of narrative.  I love to flip through books or play DJ. I often come up with the perfect idea for finishing a picture while walking the dog, going to galleries or watching a movie.  There is a place in my brain for a painting flipbook, where the pictures stay and wait for a title or solution.  

Attention is a very curious and wonderful phenomena. Near the end of a large picture the others fade and I’ll finish it with a few hours of concentrated attention, where I am thinking, feeling and doing at the same time. The picture has done its job and it exists, separately from me.  An exchange of energy has taken place.

(Source: rosssimonini)

# Process post Chuck Webber Abstract Oil Painting Oil Painting Interview The Believer

Reblogged 1 month ago from believermag (Originally from rosssimonini) 25 notes
batdepression: nezua: thismonkey: likeafieldmouse: Late Bloomers of the Arts For all of you who’ve felt even for a second that it’s ever too late:  1. Charles Bukowski had his first book published when he was 49 2. Leonard Cohen was 33 when his first album was released 3. Marina Abramovic’s career as an independent artist wasn’t solidified until she was 42 4. Julia Child’s career started when she was 36 5. Van Gogh started drawing when he was 27 6. Monet painted Sunrise when he was 33, but wasn’t producing his best work until his early 40s 7. Kazuo Ohno started dancing when he was 27 8. William S. Burroughs had his first novel published when he was 39 That at least takes care of some of that anxiety welled up inside me. america is so weird with all its rush rush vacuous notions about being superstars by 22. how on earth can taking time to live and cultivate your mind and heart be anything but good for your development? if you put out your best work by 30, then you peaked way too early. It’s like a huge weight has been lifted of my shoulders.  Sometimes I forget this. But you grow at the rate you grow. And to be fair, making art successfully takes a lot of sacrifice. Sometimes you are not ready for that before you are older. Maybe when you’re 22 you need to focus on paying the rent & getting food because you don’t have wealthy parents. Maybe you want to find a life partner. Maybe, just maybe, you are still a dumb ass. But once you are ready it can still happen. Lots of outsider artists didn’t start until their 40s when they were committed (therefore food and rent were taken care of).batdepression: nezua: thismonkey: likeafieldmouse: Late Bloomers of the Arts For all of you who’ve felt even for a second that it’s ever too late:  1. Charles Bukowski had his first book published when he was 49 2. Leonard Cohen was 33 when his first album was released 3. Marina Abramovic’s career as an independent artist wasn’t solidified until she was 42 4. Julia Child’s career started when she was 36 5. Van Gogh started drawing when he was 27 6. Monet painted Sunrise when he was 33, but wasn’t producing his best work until his early 40s 7. Kazuo Ohno started dancing when he was 27 8. William S. Burroughs had his first novel published when he was 39 That at least takes care of some of that anxiety welled up inside me. america is so weird with all its rush rush vacuous notions about being superstars by 22. how on earth can taking time to live and cultivate your mind and heart be anything but good for your development? if you put out your best work by 30, then you peaked way too early. It’s like a huge weight has been lifted of my shoulders.  Sometimes I forget this. But you grow at the rate you grow. And to be fair, making art successfully takes a lot of sacrifice. Sometimes you are not ready for that before you are older. Maybe when you’re 22 you need to focus on paying the rent & getting food because you don’t have wealthy parents. Maybe you want to find a life partner. Maybe, just maybe, you are still a dumb ass. But once you are ready it can still happen. Lots of outsider artists didn’t start until their 40s when they were committed (therefore food and rent were taken care of).batdepression: nezua: thismonkey: likeafieldmouse: Late Bloomers of the Arts For all of you who’ve felt even for a second that it’s ever too late:  1. Charles Bukowski had his first book published when he was 49 2. Leonard Cohen was 33 when his first album was released 3. Marina Abramovic’s career as an independent artist wasn’t solidified until she was 42 4. Julia Child’s career started when she was 36 5. Van Gogh started drawing when he was 27 6. Monet painted Sunrise when he was 33, but wasn’t producing his best work until his early 40s 7. Kazuo Ohno started dancing when he was 27 8. William S. Burroughs had his first novel published when he was 39 That at least takes care of some of that anxiety welled up inside me. america is so weird with all its rush rush vacuous notions about being superstars by 22. how on earth can taking time to live and cultivate your mind and heart be anything but good for your development? if you put out your best work by 30, then you peaked way too early. It’s like a huge weight has been lifted of my shoulders.  Sometimes I forget this. But you grow at the rate you grow. And to be fair, making art successfully takes a lot of sacrifice. Sometimes you are not ready for that before you are older. Maybe when you’re 22 you need to focus on paying the rent & getting food because you don’t have wealthy parents. Maybe you want to find a life partner. Maybe, just maybe, you are still a dumb ass. But once you are ready it can still happen. Lots of outsider artists didn’t start until their 40s when they were committed (therefore food and rent were taken care of).batdepression: nezua: thismonkey: likeafieldmouse: Late Bloomers of the Arts For all of you who’ve felt even for a second that it’s ever too late:  1. Charles Bukowski had his first book published when he was 49 2. Leonard Cohen was 33 when his first album was released 3. Marina Abramovic’s career as an independent artist wasn’t solidified until she was 42 4. Julia Child’s career started when she was 36 5. Van Gogh started drawing when he was 27 6. Monet painted Sunrise when he was 33, but wasn’t producing his best work until his early 40s 7. Kazuo Ohno started dancing when he was 27 8. William S. Burroughs had his first novel published when he was 39 That at least takes care of some of that anxiety welled up inside me. america is so weird with all its rush rush vacuous notions about being superstars by 22. how on earth can taking time to live and cultivate your mind and heart be anything but good for your development? if you put out your best work by 30, then you peaked way too early. It’s like a huge weight has been lifted of my shoulders.  Sometimes I forget this. But you grow at the rate you grow. And to be fair, making art successfully takes a lot of sacrifice. Sometimes you are not ready for that before you are older. Maybe when you’re 22 you need to focus on paying the rent & getting food because you don’t have wealthy parents. Maybe you want to find a life partner. Maybe, just maybe, you are still a dumb ass. But once you are ready it can still happen. Lots of outsider artists didn’t start until their 40s when they were committed (therefore food and rent were taken care of).batdepression: nezua: thismonkey: likeafieldmouse: Late Bloomers of the Arts For all of you who’ve felt even for a second that it’s ever too late:  1. Charles Bukowski had his first book published when he was 49 2. Leonard Cohen was 33 when his first album was released 3. Marina Abramovic’s career as an independent artist wasn’t solidified until she was 42 4. Julia Child’s career started when she was 36 5. Van Gogh started drawing when he was 27 6. Monet painted Sunrise when he was 33, but wasn’t producing his best work until his early 40s 7. Kazuo Ohno started dancing when he was 27 8. William S. Burroughs had his first novel published when he was 39 That at least takes care of some of that anxiety welled up inside me. america is so weird with all its rush rush vacuous notions about being superstars by 22. how on earth can taking time to live and cultivate your mind and heart be anything but good for your development? if you put out your best work by 30, then you peaked way too early. It’s like a huge weight has been lifted of my shoulders.  Sometimes I forget this. But you grow at the rate you grow. And to be fair, making art successfully takes a lot of sacrifice. Sometimes you are not ready for that before you are older. Maybe when you’re 22 you need to focus on paying the rent & getting food because you don’t have wealthy parents. Maybe you want to find a life partner. Maybe, just maybe, you are still a dumb ass. But once you are ready it can still happen. Lots of outsider artists didn’t start until their 40s when they were committed (therefore food and rent were taken care of).batdepression: nezua: thismonkey: likeafieldmouse: Late Bloomers of the Arts For all of you who’ve felt even for a second that it’s ever too late:  1. Charles Bukowski had his first book published when he was 49 2. Leonard Cohen was 33 when his first album was released 3. Marina Abramovic’s career as an independent artist wasn’t solidified until she was 42 4. Julia Child’s career started when she was 36 5. Van Gogh started drawing when he was 27 6. Monet painted Sunrise when he was 33, but wasn’t producing his best work until his early 40s 7. Kazuo Ohno started dancing when he was 27 8. William S. Burroughs had his first novel published when he was 39 That at least takes care of some of that anxiety welled up inside me. america is so weird with all its rush rush vacuous notions about being superstars by 22. how on earth can taking time to live and cultivate your mind and heart be anything but good for your development? if you put out your best work by 30, then you peaked way too early. It’s like a huge weight has been lifted of my shoulders.  Sometimes I forget this. But you grow at the rate you grow. And to be fair, making art successfully takes a lot of sacrifice. Sometimes you are not ready for that before you are older. Maybe when you’re 22 you need to focus on paying the rent & getting food because you don’t have wealthy parents. Maybe you want to find a life partner. Maybe, just maybe, you are still a dumb ass. But once you are ready it can still happen. Lots of outsider artists didn’t start until their 40s when they were committed (therefore food and rent were taken care of).batdepression: nezua: thismonkey: likeafieldmouse: Late Bloomers of the Arts For all of you who’ve felt even for a second that it’s ever too late:  1. Charles Bukowski had his first book published when he was 49 2. Leonard Cohen was 33 when his first album was released 3. Marina Abramovic’s career as an independent artist wasn’t solidified until she was 42 4. Julia Child’s career started when she was 36 5. Van Gogh started drawing when he was 27 6. Monet painted Sunrise when he was 33, but wasn’t producing his best work until his early 40s 7. Kazuo Ohno started dancing when he was 27 8. William S. Burroughs had his first novel published when he was 39 That at least takes care of some of that anxiety welled up inside me. america is so weird with all its rush rush vacuous notions about being superstars by 22. how on earth can taking time to live and cultivate your mind and heart be anything but good for your development? if you put out your best work by 30, then you peaked way too early. It’s like a huge weight has been lifted of my shoulders.  Sometimes I forget this. But you grow at the rate you grow. And to be fair, making art successfully takes a lot of sacrifice. Sometimes you are not ready for that before you are older. Maybe when you’re 22 you need to focus on paying the rent & getting food because you don’t have wealthy parents. Maybe you want to find a life partner. Maybe, just maybe, you are still a dumb ass. But once you are ready it can still happen. Lots of outsider artists didn’t start until their 40s when they were committed (therefore food and rent were taken care of).batdepression: nezua: thismonkey: likeafieldmouse: Late Bloomers of the Arts For all of you who’ve felt even for a second that it’s ever too late:  1. Charles Bukowski had his first book published when he was 49 2. Leonard Cohen was 33 when his first album was released 3. Marina Abramovic’s career as an independent artist wasn’t solidified until she was 42 4. Julia Child’s career started when she was 36 5. Van Gogh started drawing when he was 27 6. Monet painted Sunrise when he was 33, but wasn’t producing his best work until his early 40s 7. Kazuo Ohno started dancing when he was 27 8. William S. Burroughs had his first novel published when he was 39 That at least takes care of some of that anxiety welled up inside me. america is so weird with all its rush rush vacuous notions about being superstars by 22. how on earth can taking time to live and cultivate your mind and heart be anything but good for your development? if you put out your best work by 30, then you peaked way too early. It’s like a huge weight has been lifted of my shoulders.  Sometimes I forget this. But you grow at the rate you grow. And to be fair, making art successfully takes a lot of sacrifice. Sometimes you are not ready for that before you are older. Maybe when you’re 22 you need to focus on paying the rent & getting food because you don’t have wealthy parents. Maybe you want to find a life partner. Maybe, just maybe, you are still a dumb ass. But once you are ready it can still happen. Lots of outsider artists didn’t start until their 40s when they were committed (therefore food and rent were taken care of).

batdepression:

nezua:

thismonkey:

likeafieldmouse:

Late Bloomers of the Arts

For all of you who’ve felt even for a second that it’s ever too late: 

1. Charles Bukowski had his first book published when he was 49

2. Leonard Cohen was 33 when his first album was released

3. Marina Abramovic’s career as an independent artist wasn’t solidified until she was 42

4. Julia Child’s career started when she was 36

5. Van Gogh started drawing when he was 27

6. Monet painted Sunrise when he was 33, but wasn’t producing his best work until his early 40s

7. Kazuo Ohno started dancing when he was 27

8. William S. Burroughs had his first novel published when he was 39

That at least takes care of some of that anxiety welled up inside me.

america is so weird with all its rush rush vacuous notions about being superstars by 22. how on earth can taking time to live and cultivate your mind and heart be anything but good for your development? if you put out your best work by 30, then you peaked way too early.

It’s like a huge weight has been lifted of my shoulders. 

Sometimes I forget this. But you grow at the rate you grow. And to be fair, making art successfully takes a lot of sacrifice. Sometimes you are not ready for that before you are older. Maybe when you’re 22 you need to focus on paying the rent & getting food because you don’t have wealthy parents. Maybe you want to find a life partner. Maybe, just maybe, you are still a dumb ass. But once you are ready it can still happen. Lots of outsider artists didn’t start until their 40s when they were committed (therefore food and rent were taken care of).

(Source: likeafieldmouse)

# unsolicited advice

Reblogged 1 month ago from ralfvdhoeven (Originally from likeafieldmouse) 20,226 notes

Process Post- Marte Gracia

Marte Gracia is a Marvel colorist in Mexico. Marte has a pretty interesting technique to share. Marte works all in photoshop, which is pretty normal for  colorists. You can follow Marte on twitter, facebook (where you will find everything here), deviant art and by getting All New XMen and NOVA. 

Here is a complete before and after. I really like the precise blue outline. I would love to see how the color hold is set up on this. Or how the printer processed it, the mysteries of printers….

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This kind of gives an idea of how Marte imports textures like galaxies and clouds into the background and foreground. 

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Here is an XMen WIP where you can clearly see the background to foreground progression and layer setup. It’s a very simple layer set up. I’d like to know how that affects the inevitable changes. 

You can also see in this WIP how Marte uses varied greys as flats to control the space. This is an old oil painting technique that you may not have learned so I’ve included this lovely video about old school grisaille. 

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Here is a WIP before and after of an XMen two page spread with lines by  Immonen and Von Grawbadger. You can clearly see the process of coloring from the background to the foreground. It is also nice to see how the grey tones translate to colors.

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Finally here is some fan art of Teen Age Mutant Ninja Turtles. I think there are some wonderful and interesting choices in here. Certainly a lot more freedom than is available in mainstream comics.

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Here is Marte’s brush set up. 100% opacity and 100% flow. 

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If Marte using only a soft brush, how are all those hard lines coming into existence? I wondered that too. Fortunately for all us fools Marte put up this video. The process is pretty amazing, it’s lasso based. I am miserable with the lasso. I will never use this technique, but it may work for others. There is some pretty cool texture technique at 5:30 and some cool lasso flatting/painting at 11:00 and beyond.

Thanks for letting me share this, Marte! 

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# process post coloring photoshop tips Marte Gracia Marvel Colorist

Posted 1 month ago 12 notes
Look at this beautiful process gif. Thank you, Simini! siminiblocker: Made a process GIF of the latest piece. Which I’ve always wanted to try but forget to save all the layers. Though watching this now makes the perfectionist in me want to go back a few steps on some areas… Anyways, my basic process: 1. quick, loose thumbnail  2. Sketch in black in white. Working digital, I like to sketch with values instead of line- really more painting than drawing.  3. Add a layer set on “color” to get a loose idea of color direction. And then probably a “multiply layer to adjust values. 4.Paint! 5. Add a texture layer, usually set to “overlay” but on this one I used “divide.” Turn the opacity down, Erase it out in some places as needed. 6. Paint some more! Over-work it! Flip layers on and off making little adjustments! Erase! 7. Finally decide I’ll ruin it if you work on it anymore. Post to tumblr, otherwise I would repeat step 6 ad infinitum. *Not sure why the GIF is so grainy? oh well.

Look at this beautiful process gif. Thank you, Simini!

siminiblocker:

Made a process GIF of the latest piece. Which I’ve always wanted to try but forget to save all the layers. Though watching this now makes the perfectionist in me want to go back a few steps on some areas…

Anyways, my basic process:

1. quick, loose thumbnail 

2. Sketch in black in white. Working digital, I like to sketch with values instead of line- really more painting than drawing. 

3. Add a layer set on “color” to get a loose idea of color direction. And then probably a “multiply layer to adjust values.

4.Paint!

5. Add a texture layer, usually set to “overlay” but on this one I used “divide.” Turn the opacity down, Erase it out in some places as needed.

6. Paint some more! Over-work it! Flip layers on and off making little adjustments! Erase!

7. Finally decide I’ll ruin it if you work on it anymore. Post to tumblr, otherwise I would repeat step 6 ad infinitum.

*Not sure why the GIF is so grainy? oh well.

Reblogged 1 month ago from siminiblocker 466 notes