10.29.2008

Sketches: Movie Genres III + NYAF Commission

The third in the movie genres Lightning Round series at PE - this time, drama/romance for http://tinkerbelcky.deviantart.com . A period romance, at that!



Here's one of the sketch commissions I have left from the New York Anime Festival. My friend Annie asked for a "Cute boy. WIngs optional. <3" So, I drew some emo goth kid. She paid for halfbody, but I went a little over because I had the pose idea.

10.28.2008

Sketches: Movie Genres II

Myre, the classy yet innocent damsel seeks the attention of the dashing but tight-lipped detective, Tameron, whom the foreign seductress Ayelle needs to win over for valuable information before he reveals the dark secrets of the man she truly works for. I think I should have gotten rid of the elf ears, and the anatomy is pretty horrid. :(



Here's the piece I got in exchange - rich, diplomat's daughter like she is, Willow's managed to get herself in trouble. Luckily, there's a phone nearby! Where's Rivek when you need him, lol? From http://tinkerbelcky.deviantart.com .

10.26.2008

Art & Found: Hellgirl Progress

So sue me, I like watching people draw. Long video - I'd recommend downloading something to speed it up and watch.


Real Time Character Drawing - Hellgirl from Chris Noeth on Vimeo.


Hellgirl Colors - Part One (of two) from Chris Noeth on Vimeo.


Hellgirl Colors - Part Two (of two) from Chris Noeth on Vimeo.

I might do this one day, record myself paint, but it'd be like a couple hours as well.

That said, I also drew something for Private Exchange. Late. I'm horrible.


And here's the picture I got in exchange from http://myre.deviantart.com! :D I love the colors. And the bird looks great.

10.23.2008

Found: SketchUp and Massive Black

Undoubtedly, Massive Black is one of the most well known - and rightfully so - concept art groups today. Just found this bit on how they use Google SketchUp in their work.



I have to post more found things here. The internet's got some pretty interesting junk.

10.19.2008

Work In Progress: Horus

Almost done... Should be finished in the next 12 hours or so.

10.16.2008

Sketches: Movie Genres

At Private Exchange, we're doing a series of lightining rounds (a.k.a quick or sketch rounds) based around movie genres. Week 1 - Action/Adventure. I immediately thought Bond, James Bond. However, the rest of the world seems to have thought Indiana Jones. But that said, here's Sybil in a femme fatale outfit. Sybil beings to http://angelinme220.deviantart.com - check out her work. It's really lovely, especially how she uses color.


Also, we have the continuation of the Les Miserables cast with WIllow - a princess and thus somewhat naive, spoiled, and easily caught up in fairy tales - as Cosette. Even though, she has brown hair.



Oh, and I tried to do something really awesome but totally failed. This is why I actually go through a lot of drafting when I make my finished work, drawing . Because just going straigt to the paper leaves for a lot of distorted proportions.

10.14.2008

Sketches

It's been a productive week art-wise, relative to schoolwork. I think it's because I've been drawing in class again. It's such a bad habit, but it keeps me from sleeping.

This was inspired by some people I know, and situations I make up in my head. Try to exorcise demons, so to speak.


A couple nights ago, I had a dream about an internet-famous painter of androgynous, college, hipster, boys who simply disappeared one day. We all thought he was a guy named "Eddie Bauers," but really, once we did more snooping we found out Eddie was a 6'1" tomboy supermodel who liked to trick people online into thinking she was a guy. She also liked knife fights - we found a last note from her explaining to her best friend (and coincidentally, her second), how excited she was for the fight that night - the one that ended up being her last.

That said, I spent all of yesterday listening to the Les Miserables soundtrack, so I decided to try an idea I've had since high school - to draw my characters as if they were the actors. This is Kaiaden as Enjorlas - both idealistic, revolutionary, arrogant.


Also, here's a work-in-progress of this Horus-inspired picture I began much earlier this year (as it the week I started school).

10.06.2008

Site Critique: Twitter


http://www.twitter.com

I see Twitter as another embodiment of “Web 2.0” with social networking is taken to an extreme of constant access. Users upload 140-character messages via internet and cell phone, describing what they are doing or thinking at that very moment. This gives the internet public the ability to read and voice anything instantly, from the most profound to the most mundane, as long as it’s short enough.

The Twitter site has three menus – top, right, and bottom. The top deals with the site’s social networking functionality. From this one bar, users can edit their profile or search for each other (by name, location, or if they are on another networking site). This bar does not change anywhere on the site, meaning a user can always easily return to his or her home page. Next, a messaging sidebar lets users quickly access replies and recent entries from their list of friends. This sidebar may change or disappear depending on what is selected in the top menu. This presents users with information more relevant to the section of the site they are on. The links at the bottom lead off-site to company information like mobile downloads and site maintenance updates. This menu also does not change, but it often gets hidden beneath the fold. This is acceptable because most Twitter users do not need constant access to the information it provides.

Second-level navigation is represented by tabs. When the sidebar is in message-viewing mode, the type of message you are viewing is highlighted in white. Because the background of the content pane is white, this is similar to a “current tab.” Often, the tab system is used within the content pane itself like when a user is editing different aspects of his or her profile. Because the tab labels are explanatory, this is a convenient way to save on screen real estate and categorize information.

The grid layout of the page – where the content, company logo, and menus are - stays the same. The most prominent feature is always at the top of the content page, in the screen center. When a user is logged in, it is a comment box which asks “What are you doing?”. This box beckons to be filled in. However, it took me awhile to figure out that the number to its upper right was counting the number of characters in my message. Considering the importance length holds with Tweets, this should be clearer. On anyone else’s page, what stands out is their name and icon. If you are not already following them, the “follow” button appears under their image. This, combined with the comment box, serve as calls to action, depending on where the user is on the site. It also helps with social networking by focusing on the identity of the poster.


I dislike the default Twitter colors – cyan, light green, and burnt sienna. They are meant to be modern and recall birds, but I feel they reek of “we are so obviously Web 2.0.” Luckily, because Twitter is about social networking, the creators allowed users to customize their pages. Background colors can be changed, and the default “o_O” avatar can be replaced by a user image. However, for its customization, all content panes remain white for readability and consistent navigation. Also, users are not allowed to specify which fonts are used.
Concerning fonts, the site does not have much variation in terms of typography. The main font is the one user in the “Tweets,” a large sans-serif. Links are bolded. Post times, however, are displayed in a lighter, smaller, serif, font to prevent them from interfering with post content. They also add white space between entries which helps break the vibration when reading.

Overall, the site has a clear structure which maintains simplicity and brings user identity to the forefront. With Twitter, internet communication has been reduced to an incredibly simple form, and its users are always connected - online and off.