2017 has been a mixed bag for me art-wise. It felt like I slumped most of the year but looking back I did still produce a lot of work - only it was largely for class projects.
January:
I chose this picture for January because it shows an example of something I don't always feel confident in: background art. This, along with February's piece, was something I produced for my A-level graphic design. I was making a fantasy themed pop-up book, which required backgrounds in a range of locations, including forests and caves. The style I used for the backgrounds was largely inspired by some of Tom Siddel's work creating the backgrounds for
his webcomic 'Gunnerkrigg Court.' I was pleased with how this scene came out in the end, despite my initial trepidation.
February:
This piece was also a page from my pop-up book, and you'll notice the dragon is missing his head. The dragon's head was the pop-up piece for this page, and was therefore drawn and printed seperately to the main bulk of the picture.
March:
This is the first piece of work in the list that I did purely for myself. Noelle is a recurring character of mine, and you may have seen her on my blog a few other times too. I was pleased with the lighting effect that I achieved in this piece, although it was before I had quite worked out a proper style (or how to draw eyes in a way that I like).
April:
This piece was again produced for my A-level graphics class, this time on the topic of Ethical Graphics. My project was an informational campaign on the inclusion and safety of transgender students, and my friend Teddy modelled for me. This piece is inspired by the work of Vince Low, and is in a style that I love to work in since discovering it at GCSE.
May:
This piece was also produced for my Ethical Graphics project, designed as a poster for school hallways. I enjoy the simple, clear colour blocks that come from working in vectors, as well as the calmer feeling created by the loose lineart.
June:
I didn't actually do much drawing in May it turns out, probably due to exam stress. What I did produce though is a map of the starting town for a D&D campaign I am running for friends back home. This was my first time creating a full map, and it was an interesting learning experience.
July:
Speaking of D&D, this piece is of the original four player characters in the campaign. The green elf on the left was retired before the game began and we acquired another player, but I still like this piece. It was based on one of
cROXover Goddess' 'Draw the Squad' bases.
August:
This is a piece you've already heard a lot about if you've been following this blog from the beginning!
Read about it and see the progress here!
September:
Once again on the D&D train, this is my character from the first campaign I ever played in. Her name is Tye, short for Tyviana, she is a tiefling wizard, and she likes fire. A lot.
October:
This piece I produced in life drawing class when my shoulder dislocated and refused to go back to its socket (not an unusual or hospital-worthy occurrence for me, don't worry). Laptops and graphics tablets are not made for life drawing. Particularly a vertical pose on a horizontal screen. This meant that the legs and the torso became a little out of proportion with one another sadly. Aside from that though, I'm quite pleased with the results.
November:
This was a fun one! I have a selection of ridiculously coloured cartoon cats that I like to doodle from time to time, including the above Spark (left) and Mesetan (right). This is coincidentally almost a perfect redraw of
a piece I produced in 2013, and you can see the improvement. I love the bright and fun designs of my cats, so this piece was very enjoyable to produce. I was quite disgruntled to realise that they look better in each other's clothes than their own, however.
December:
This is my first self portrait with a mobility aid, as well as a look to a future where I can hopefully present more masculinely. I wanted to capture the full extent of my ridiculous posture, with a sway back and hyperextended knees and hips, and I think I did quite well in that aim. Of course, what better way to finish a picture than with super intense moody lighting though?
