NannerSpaceMan

Inspired by TheFoxIsBlack's spacesuit of the week feature, I decided to draw a chibi astronaut. Got to try some new things with stacking order, unenclosed shapes, and working out of my usual order. The shapes weren't as precise as usual and some parts are a little funky, but it was fun and challenging to do. The other sticker was inspired by a vignette on a Pokemon-related print I've fallen in love with.

I've drawn a ton of circles today. I'm trying to re-train myself to draw using my entire arm in broad strokes rather than just my hand. It's the first time in a long time I've ever even thought about picking up vine charcoal again. Standing up at the easel again is kind of weird - I have no idea what I'm doing there.

NannerKirby

Kirby turns 20 this year. That's pretty crazy to me. Not as crazy as all the game characters turning 25 last year, but still pretty insane. I've been going around in circles about what stickers to make, and I'm glad inspiration finally struck. I've featured Kirby and Waddle Doo here, but I think it may be fun to explore some of Kirby's other forms ('Beam' from Superstar is one of my absolute favorites).

When facing one's demons, it's important to have a distraction or two. Art should be a pretty good one, but I actually find it much harder to work when despair and worry set in. Right now, I'm finding myself really drawn to game design - specifically card games. I have no plans to sit down and actually create a game at this juncture, I'm just really in love with the process and ideas behind it all.

My focus as of late has been UFS. It was a collectible card game with some really interesting mechanics that took characters, moves, and locations from a bunch of rad fighting games (Street Fighter, Soul Calibur, Tekken, Samurai Shodown, King of Fighters, etc.). I had a blast playing the game with my friends despite some balance issues (it's really tough to explain concepts of ratios and synergy to anyone who has only a passing interest in such things). My obsession with game design has lead me down the rabbit hole of creating a series of balanced decks that distill the fun and craziness of the game into a contained experience that can be played as easily and readily as a non-collectible-card game.

I was inspired by the ideas and games of Dave Sirlin. He's a mad genius. I plan on owning all of the games he makes one day. Please check out Flash Duel to truly understand what I'm talking about.

InkMonster

Inkscape features a 'trace bitmap' tool. I had no idea this feature even existed until yesterday. Adobe Illustrator has a similar thing called 'live trace' that will basically take a raster image and turn it into a vector illustration. The results vary from image to image. I think this one turned out pretty good.

Today's piece is something of an abstraction. I took some freshly made ink from an ink-stone, poured it onto some low-quality cold-press paper, and moved it around the page by blowing into a straw. Once that was dry, I added some features with a marker to create what you see here. It reminds me of some kind of spider or fungus. Not really sure, but it was fun to do.

I am currently in the process of setting up a drawing space that can be taken down and put up with relative ease. I have all kinds of crazy materials and equipment given to me throughout my life. Finding subjects shouldn't prove to be too hard. Setting up independent drawing study is the tough part for me. I know where some of my weaknesses are, but I'm not sure the best ways to tackle them.

Nanner Half-tone

Half-tone definitely fits within the boundaries I set initially on this project. Properly utilized half-tone can create the illusion of continuous tone when needed. Plus, it just looks cool. I have been wanting to do some 60's pop-art stuff for a while, and this will help get me on my way.

In my search for artistic inspiration, I ended up at the park on one of the nicest days of the year. I went to the middle of a grassy field and sat down with my tiny sketchbook. The people there were all so focused on their own lives, they didn't even notice me trying to record everything I could. I walked away with some neat sketches of poses and some interesting thoughts to chew on.

The change in perspective opened my senses a bit and allowed me to escape from my thoughts. That was just what I needed.

On Texture

Photoshop's threshold mode can create some incredible textures. Basically, it allows you to take a picture of a texture and remove all of the grey color. What you are left with is a black and white version with an adjustable level of detail. Using opacity and layer blend modes, you can then add subtle texture to anything.

I couldn't get blend modes to do exactly everything I wanted for this piece, so I ended up just creating what I needed in Photoshop. It feels a bit like cheating, except for all of the work I still had to do.

I've set a schedule for myself. It's amazing how easy it is to lose track of time when you're on your own. My mission is to rediscover my passions and get involved in something. Guess we'll see what happens.

Times...

...are tough. I'm not in the best place right now. My motivation to do anything wanes too quickly. I am not well.

Thinking back on the first days of this project, though, reminds me of where I was at the time. I was heartbroken, confused, and lonely then. I started this project to prove something to myself - that I could get back on my feet and overcome some of my worst habits. I created a venue where I could express myself on a daily basis and learn some new things along the way.

I am scared. I feel like I can't do anything right. I can't tell if I'm moving forward (or where forward even is). This project is one of the only things that sort of makes sense.

I posted two stickers today because I'm a little behind. I'm learning about how Inkscape handles layers, blend modes, and live path effects. My computer doesn't seem to have enough memory to handle a lot of that stuff. Oh well.

I'm not done yet. I may not feel up to it, but I will try to press on.

Geometry Hipster

A weird batch of sketches today. Mostly faces. Not sure where this one came from, but it was fun to do. Also good to have out of my head. Doesn't look impressive. Wasn't a real challenge. But it was a post.