Viva Los Angeles! Viva Nathan Fowkes! Viva Drawnight!

I flew to L.A. over an extended weekend for a much needed mini-vacation. Attending an art workshop taught by Nathan Fowkes (Blog 1, Blog 2) was the perfect excuse to get away. Many thanks to my buddy Philip Vose for being my gracious and generous host and thanks to Jason Boesch for hanging out. It was also really great to meet so many other awesome artists at Disney Feature as well as the workshop itself.

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Anyhow, first up are the workshop paintings.

After the lecture and demonstration we started with quick abstract color studies using the color from the model in front of us; good lord it had been so long since I had painted traditionally. Took me awhile to get warmed up.

Then the idea was to take what we learned from the abstracts into a more representational color sketch, again the focus was on color and not drawing or detail.

With the remaining time we were given the choice of more studies or a more finished study, I opted for the latter. Still a color study but a little more emphasis on drawing and detail.

I couldn't recommend the workshop more. I was incredibily impressed with Mr. Fowke's knowledge and ease at which he conveyed it. He answered the hard questions and even the silly questions expertly. Needless to say, I've found my much needed inspiration and refreshment. :)

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I had some time to kill at Los Angeles International before my flight home, been too long since I've drawn from life as well; need to fix that.

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Lastly, some thumbnails from the past few drawnights. Still a focus on structures, in part to strengthen a weakness and in part because it's a good change from when I work with more organic and natural subjects all day at work.

Mirrored in Photoshop ;)

Tewsday

Tonight's battle of graphite and sushi amongst friends, comrades and one robot ninja.
Only 4 tonight, decided I really need to buck up and draw more buildings. I need practice :)

Pancakes sans Waffle, A Series of Misdemeanors

Here is some recent drawnight shtuff :)

Drawnight, Meeting doodles and Color Comps

First one started out in acrylics. Was focused on nothing more than getting a better feel for the medium really. Still though, thought it would be fun to play with a little more digitally and then go back in acrylics to see what I could do.

I've really been enjoying pencil and have been doing the majority of my work in them lately.

Playing with some more efficient ways of conceptualizing as well, you'll see a few color comps mixed in with these thumbs (well, I've been doing the majority of my sketches lately just shy of A4). Really quick gradients and blocks of color; I've really been wanting to focus more on concepts and ideas more than technique and rendering lately as it's a definite weak point of mine.

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Oh, you all should check out One Swoop Fell
It's a comic I'm loving done by a friend, Mr. Mike Dutton.
Tell him he should make a book already ok?

Collaborations

:O I need to do more Collaborations. Only three from the past few weeks? Guess I haven't been doing as many drawings...

Collab with Alan Tew
(Giant naked dude or small environment?)




Collab with Alan Tew
(we were both a bit drunk here... yup. ) :)



Collab with Alan Tew
(woohoo! Naked swinging ... err, naked on a swing?)

Guys standing on Rocks ...

Lots of guys standing on rocks this post ... am I the only one who does this when I'm out and about? Case in point ...

Anyhow, some recent scribbles and such.

Oops, was going to finish this one...
Something about threes...


This one is much less rendered than usual, trying
to work in line more but I also wanted to paint this one
up. Been thinking a ton about value patterns...


Two Threes ... Rock standing party.


The O.G. rock standers.


Uhhhh, not much to say here. I need to do more trees.


Canyonnnnn.


So lonely, needs 2 more. Meeting doodle.




Collab with Brent Critchfield
(Congrats on being a new father buddy!)