nathanaardvark

Tutorial 79 - Relative Color Temperature

Fairly simple concept here. I got quite confused when I was learning about color temperature. Some colors were obviously warmer than others but some yellows and deep purples I wasn't so sure about. Th...

Tutorial 78 - Color Definitions

Color definitions can get really messy, and on top of a tough subject, this makes applying color more difficult for the student.

For now, let's make some distinctions and define what we mean when we...

Tutorial 77 - Serious Comedy

In a previous tutorial (tutorial 8) we talked a bit about humor and how jokes often need contrasting elements to be combined in interesting ways that play with our expectations. We also know, in paint...

Tutorial 76 - Continuation

We can urge the eye to move around an image and follow a path of our design. The eye will naturally go from one area of interest to another, and another and so on, or simply straight to a single area,...

Tutorial 75 - Symmetrical Composition

Symmetry in composition and design has been used for centuries or more and is still used today to assist artists. Commonly used in book and comic covers but more generally through all types of creativ...

Tutorial 74 - The Fulcrum Principle

Balance is one of the principles of design which serves as a guide to painters, draftsmen and designers. 

Imagine balancing two weights either side of a pivot (the fulcrum is the pivot). We can...

Tutorial 73 - Highlights Align

Here's a quick tip on highlights, especially observed on the eye and eyelids. You'll notice highlights behaving in this way all over nature and the human figure, especially with indoor lighting. When ...

Tutorial 72 - Key

It's important to plan our values before we go ahead and render an image. Without good planning we're in danger of getting off on the wrong foot and most certainly will end up with a muddy looking ...

Tutorial 71 - Tonal Blocking

To quickly suggest tone we can block in our forms using rough directional strokes. They should be loose and don't necessarily have to follow the contours of the form. Very useful for quick observation...

Tutorial 70 - The Cross

Horizontal and vertical lines both have certain symbolic significance. The horizontal line suggests Earth, the ground, matter, life, the body. The vertical line represents Heaven, the path, spirit. Wh...

Tutorial 69 - Curves and Corners

Ok so the dude is way less sexy than Jessica Rabbit. I'm not sure if curves actually make men sexier. I think a sense of humor does that job with guys, and maybe if they've appeared in a Nespresso ...

Tutorial 68 - Curved Line

Curved lines can be aggressive or gentle, or both if flowing from one to the other. 

A gentle curve is generally pleasing to the eye and can represent many things. Curves are familiar to us as ...

Tutorial 67 - Character of Line

This tutorial is part of a series based on line and the symbolic meaning we attribute them. 

Simply put, line can be used to separate two areas or it can be a single expression, a direction, a ...

Tutorial 66 - Line Quality

Quality of line is so important, it can really make or break a drawing. 

It's something that will eventually develop if you draw for long enough. 

There are many different ways to us...

Tutorial 65 - Cross-hatching

Cross-hatching is an effective way to suggest tone using line. We can also do this with hatching, without crossing lines, and still communicate plane changes effectively but we'll leave that for anoth...

Tutorial 64 - Four Point Perspective

I bet you thought we were done with perspective - surprise!

Four point perspective is the curvilinear (curved lines) version of two point perspective, which is rectilinear (straight lines).

Tutorial 63 - The Pouting Muscle

The mentalis is so called because it was first attributed to an expression of thoughtfulness or doubt. You can see it in action when someone pauses for thought before speaking. The pouting expression,...

Tutorial 62 - The Stump Tool

The stump is a tool to assist in the shading of a drawing but we can also use the stump in our application of dry media like charcoal, Conté or graphite. 

The stump comes in a variety of sizes...

Tutorial 61 - The Kissing Muscle

The orbiculairs oris muscle encircles the lips and acts like a sphincter (though it really isn't) in it's opening and closing capabilities. Almost all the surrounding muscles of the mouth merge wit...

Tutorial 60 - The Frown Muscle

The frown is caused by this muscle, the depressor anguli oris. It pulls on the corner of the mouth, where many of the mouth muscles converge, and draws the corner of the mouth down towards the chin. T...

Tutorial 59 - The Elvis Muscle

The levator labii superioris alaegue nasi, or "Elvis Muscle" begins at the frontal process of the maxilla, runs down the side of the nasal bone and connects to the cartilage of the nasal wing, then sp...

Tutorial 58 - Anatomy of the Mouth

Ok, many muscles here. Actually, humans have the most complicated arrangement of facial muscles compared to any other mammal on Earth. Thanks to these muscles, we can make a large variety of movements...

Tutorial 57 - Planes of the Lips

Lips, equally as complicated as any other part of the face, come in many different shapes and sizes. 

I've tried to illustrate the basic contours showing the landscape of overlapping lumps and ...

Tutorial 56 - Anatomy of the Nose

Just to expand on yesterday's tutorial, Planes of the Nose, let's have a look under the bonnet, so to speak.

Complicated looking structures of bone, cartilage and fatty tissue can be simplified into...

Tutorial 55 - Planes of the Nose

There's so much to say about the nose, it deserves a number of tutorials, and that's before we even consider the variety of noses out there. The nose gives so much character to a face, so it's wort...

Tutorial 54 - Simple vs. Complex

The simple and the complex are two concepts we can try to understand and reflect on in our work. 

The simple is powerful in it's singular statement. Easy to understand, a simple line can commun...

Tutorial 53 - The Quick Pose

The quick pose is an exercise designed to force us to capture the spirit of a pose, to teach us how to identify the areas of most visual importance and to warm us up for the longer poses. 

The ...

Tutorial 52 - Drawing a Cylinder

The cylinder is usually the shape we use to visually describe the main parts of a figure or character after drawing the gesture. It's probably the most important shape to know how to draw correctly, a...

Tutorial 51 - Three Point Perspective

We have two vanishing points which sit along the horizon line, as in two point perspective. Though, unlike two point perspective, where all vertical lines are parallel, in three point all vertica...

Tutorial 50 - Two Point Perspective

When objects are placed at an angle, we use two point perspective. It's a common way to set up an even slightly technical drawing. For the concept artist, interiors, props and vehicles will all need t...