brain-jump
What a month...
Aside from dealing with a semi-traumatic anxiety ridden "social" thing; and general job-dissatisfaction; I've of late been having a bit of an existential crisis about my art - which is kind of funny, because it's happening for once in a time when I'm actually making art, and also kind of sad, because I'm trying to figure out whether I think what I've been making is art, or is merely a bunch of semi-decent line drawings.
Is it illustration, or cartooning?
Why do I look down so on cartooning anyway? There was a time when I very much wanted to be a political cartoonist, what's changed? Also, since I'm not doing any paid illustration work at the moment, I'm a little concerned about whether my style, as it does seem to have become my style, is actually good for. It's a bit creepy for children's book, and I'm no good at sequential art; it's not refined enough it seems for any of the spot illustration work in magazines....
So what am I doing? And did I waste four years in art school which could have been better spent studying genetics at Hope College?
"What if?"s aren't going to get me anywhere.
And if I'm so unhappy with my art, and what I'm apparetly not doing with it, something has got to change, and I'm the only one who can do anything about that.
The thing is, I'm pretty happy with my drawing style. It's a bit distorted and creepy, and I like that!
So what do I change?
Perhaps...it just needs more finishing, like color.
Like watercolor, and perhaps even some pastel work over that.....or collage, and printmaking on top of that.
Yes, this is something I've considered before, but I don't think I was quite ready for it. Now I am.
However, I'm crap with color.
Fortunately, my digital art skills don't suck, so I can practice at color before I actually apply any paint to the original!
Zoomy!
So I practiced with color a bit. And think I know what I'm going to maybe do.
When I have time....next week.
Results!
And I think the color makes a HUGE difference.
Hell, it might just work out to stick with digital color manipulation...
We will see.
Aside from dealing with a semi-traumatic anxiety ridden "social" thing; and general job-dissatisfaction; I've of late been having a bit of an existential crisis about my art - which is kind of funny, because it's happening for once in a time when I'm actually making art, and also kind of sad, because I'm trying to figure out whether I think what I've been making is art, or is merely a bunch of semi-decent line drawings.
Is it illustration, or cartooning?
Why do I look down so on cartooning anyway? There was a time when I very much wanted to be a political cartoonist, what's changed? Also, since I'm not doing any paid illustration work at the moment, I'm a little concerned about whether my style, as it does seem to have become my style, is actually good for. It's a bit creepy for children's book, and I'm no good at sequential art; it's not refined enough it seems for any of the spot illustration work in magazines....
So what am I doing? And did I waste four years in art school which could have been better spent studying genetics at Hope College?
"What if?"s aren't going to get me anywhere.
And if I'm so unhappy with my art, and what I'm apparetly not doing with it, something has got to change, and I'm the only one who can do anything about that.
The thing is, I'm pretty happy with my drawing style. It's a bit distorted and creepy, and I like that!
So what do I change?
Perhaps...it just needs more finishing, like color.
Like watercolor, and perhaps even some pastel work over that.....or collage, and printmaking on top of that.
Yes, this is something I've considered before, but I don't think I was quite ready for it. Now I am.
However, I'm crap with color.
Fortunately, my digital art skills don't suck, so I can practice at color before I actually apply any paint to the original!
Zoomy!
So I practiced with color a bit. And think I know what I'm going to maybe do.
When I have time....next week.
Results!
And I think the color makes a HUGE difference.
Hell, it might just work out to stick with digital color manipulation...
We will see.