Loosen Up

An experiment in spontaneity and speed.

Anyway. I have a manuscript. I am making art. Ironically, given that my education was in illustration, I am struggling with the art. And old dichotomy is rearing its head: either I can enjoy the product of my efforts, or I can enjoy the process. In college, and then after that in the games industry, I had a habit of knuckling down and grinding through to get the product that I was after. The actual art-making process could be so tedious, I had to actively use music to pound my brain into submission while I worked. This time around I intend to have a more healthy relationship with my art.

Coincidentally, if I expect to make more than minimum wage as an artist, I need an art style that isn't glacially slow. This is why your typical children's book looks more like Dr.Seuss than Dinotopia. Seeing as I learned how to paint by studying Dinotopia, I have to set out in a direction that is quite new to me.

College-me would have turned her nose up at choosing a simple art style for economy. The me of now is ready and willing! But where to start? I have been messing around with watercolors, gouache, pens, and pencils. Oddly enough, I may have to try black bic pen next. College me would have gagged. But if the ink can play well with watercolor, it's a process that I know would be fast. I drew a whole perspective tutorial for conceptart.org in bic, and much of that without pencil. So, it's worth further investigation.