Creating Kaleidoscopes

After completing my Unicorns Colouring Book, my publisher asked if I'd work on some sample pages for a potential, new Mandala / Kaleidoscope Colouring Book.

Pattern work isn't something I'm especially known for creating. I wondered, would I be able to create something worthy of being published? I was willing to give it a shot. Thankfully, after having now been producing artwork for decades, I felt like I've become versatile enough to tackle most styles of illustration. And so I began creating a short series of symmetrical patterns, kaleidoscope images and mandala artwork.

To try something new like this was great fun! The possibilities for creating unique, abstract images is limitless. Without the technical requirements of drawing, say, a figure or a scene, this type of line art is quick to create. It's artwork that can be completed in a matter of hours, as opposed to days or weeks.

I've never considered myself a particularly spiritual person so the religious or traditionally symbolic significance of the Mandala is somewhat lost on me. Although, once you spend some time immersed in these types of patterns, there is definitely something to be noticed. Something which has a sense of depth and meaning.

Here's some samples for the book:

[caption id="attachment_5347" align="aligncenter" width="918"] The cover art sample was provided to the client. Despite being a black and white colouring book on the inside, I wanted to give it a colourful, psychedelic vibe.[/caption]

[gallery type="square" columns="2" size="large" ids="5351,5350,5349,5348"]

You can't win them all:

As is the nature of these things, the book never ended up making it into production. My publisher had tried pitching it along with dozens of other titles to their customer (a big US- based publishing house). They liked the direction it was going in, but with so many similar books already available on the market, it made it harder to justify producing another.

I'd like to one day have the chance to pick up the project again. If there are any book publishers out there who produce similar titles, give me a call. I sure we can find a way to improve upon existing, similar books already out there!

Benefits to Creating Mandalas

I'd read that creating mandalas (and I'm sure is true of all self-repeating and symmetrical patents) can:

• Help reduce stress and anxiety
• Help connect with one's self and others
• Activate creativity
• Improves one's sleep
• Enhance focus
• Produce feelings of happiness and calm

Certainly it's something I found myself enjoying far more than expected. Even though I tend not to produce abstract art, there is something amazing about it. Well, some of it. Some abstract art can also be a load of pretentious, ugly-looking mess with the label "art" slapped across it.

If done well, a good abstract artwork can reach something deeper and feel more significant than illustration. Sometimes too much true-to-life detail can just get the in way of what is real and true.

Although there is an art to create good-looking patterns. What makes aesthetically pleasing shapes? It's difficult to put in to words. I found that the more of these kaleidoscopic patterns I worked on, the better they looked. Using a re-iterative process of trial and error is often the best way to hone in on what works. Or at least, that process works for me. It's very strange that certain shapes and arrangement of shapes are pleasing, while others feel unpleasant and disjointed.

Designing a set of Art Prints

I create several new mandala artworks. Each with a motivational message.

Sometimes life gets tough, and negativity limits our potential. Inspirational quotes can help remind us how to live or that adversity can be overcome. And so the idea to was to fuse these messages with a mandala. Something to help give the the message focus, while making for an aesthetically pleasing image. An image people might like to have displayed on their bedroom, kitchen or living room wall. Unlike the black and while line artwork for the colouring book, they were each given a unique colour scheme. Then converted to A3 size images suitable for high-resolution print.

If you're interested in buying one to decorate your home or give as a gift, they're now available for sale in the Shop. Each sale helps support my artistic endeavours and lets me know what type of artwork people like. 

[caption id="attachment_5355" align="aligncenter" width="900"] You only live once. But if you do it right, once is enough[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_5356" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Dream without Fear. Love without Limits.[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_5354" align="aligncenter" width="900"] The best way to predict the future is to create it[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_5357" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Turn towards the sun and the shadows fall behind you[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_5358" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Seasons change and so do we[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_5359" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Don't wait for the storm to pass. Learn to dance in the rain[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_5360" align="aligncenter" width="900"] To be the best, you must be able to handle the worst[/caption]

A final comment

Are you a fan of the mandala? Would you like to see me continue work on the Kaleidoscope colouring book? What's your favourite motivational quote you'd like to see turned into a kaleidoscopic artwork? Let me know 🙂

4 Months later

Continuing on from my previous post, I've continued work on my new card game Total Blast. It's a 2-player, duelling, lane-battler strategy game which takes around 30 minutes (providing you know the rules and are familiar with the cards).

It's funny- initially I thought this project might get finished in 6-7 months. Month 7 has just passed! To be fair, since the last update, I got Covid and was out of action for weeks. Then took a few weeks break for Christmas Holidays. Plus I've been dealing with frequent migraines recently. For those that suffer them, you know how completely debilitating they can be. 

Thankfully there were a few months when I got the chance to crack on with the project. Mostly finishing card artworks. And they're looking great! All the Upgrade and Ability card illustrations are now finished for the core part of the game. That is to say, 17 unique illustrations. Many of the cards will be doubled up in-game to allow multiple uses. When I look over at the completed artwork I feel excited for what I've been working on here.

The Rule book is now on version 2.5 and I expect them to continue to refine as more play tests come in. Now that the card art is done, I can get the next prototype printed and tested in order to gather more feedback.

Art Development Overview

Here's a couple of 'Upgrades' examples showing sketches to finished card artwork.

I feel good to have broken the back on the artwork side of things and completed the majority of it. It was always going to be the most time consuming part of the project, with each card illustration typically taking several hours minimum. Now I remember why I'd been so adverse to working on card game art like this in the past! The graphics for the designs is not necessarily final, as I'm thinking of adjusting the card titles and perhaps the text layout.

Overcoming obstacles

Unfortunately it's not all been plain sailing.  For example, one of the card files became corrupt so had to re-create it from scratch. Luckily it wasn't the most complicated of designs, but still took a tedious 4 or 5 hours to recreate. What's going on with Photoshop these days? Frustratingly, I've had this issue 3 times in the last year on various files.

What's next?

1. I'll be designing the Characters in the game next. I've only tested a few of them, so will need more testing to find the right balance. Each will be lending a specific ability to help win the game. They will include: The Thief, Ninja, Mage, Merchant, Spy, King and an Alien!
2. The Rule Book's graphic design with diagrams.
3. Decide how the game will be packaged and then create relevant cover art/box art
4. Then comes my only real concern- how do I get enough eye balls on the project and market it effectively?

Where am I at?

Continuing on from my previous post, I've continued work on my new card game Total Blast.

The rules have been tweaked to the point where they're pretty solid now. I've finished all the Cannon cards and have begun creating Upgrade card illustrations. I feel as though I am trying to put a little bit more into each card illustration I produce. It's taking longer than expected, but I'm very happy with how it's coming along. It's been a while since I was excited to work on a new product.

The project has gone from simply a desire to just create a fun, little game for personal use to wanting it published, distributed and sold in shops. I'm usually very self critical, but I genuinely think I'm developing something of value here. When it comes to most art projects, I'd typically already have a publisher or client lined up with a budget agreed upon and money in the bank before even starting. This time all the work is completely speculative. It means devoting a lot of time to a project which may never see the light of day, despite my efforts. I'll discuss my concerns a little more below, but overall I'm trying to just stay focused on the work at hand.

What is Total Blast?

Here's an Intro from the rule book:

"In the kingdom of Blastonia warring armies settle disputes in head-to-head battles of firepower, strategy and cunning.

Unique, magical cannons are loaded with powerful, mana-infused ammunition. A range of upgrades, special abilities and some luck of the draw is thrown in for good measure.

As army commander, you’re in charge of selecting and loading cannon balls into their corresponding cannons. You aim to carry this out at the right time, reacting to each of your opponent’s opposing cannons. By sourcing supplies for the war effort you can increase your cannon damage score with more balls and upgrades in order to over-power your opponent’s cannons and become victorious."

What do you think? Something you'd be interested in trying out and seeing how it plays?

Art Development Overview

Here's an example showing the very first thumbnail ideas through to the finished cannon card artwork. It's come a long way and is fitting in well with the previous ball card art:

I've now not only completed all the cannon ball artwork, the full set of 7 cannons, but have started completing upgrade and ability card art also. It's looking great.

As with all the artwork I produce, it's never a quick process. Each card takes 4-10 hours to produce. The fact that the artwork takes so long to create is certainly one of the main reasons why I want to see this game published and not just become a hobby project that doesn't ever find an audience.

Although while time-consuming, the illustration process I use has it's benefits. I separately layer each colour so that amendments are relatively painless as opposed to a quicker single layer/canvas digital painting style. [See my book Digital Manga if you're keen to learn how I do it] No only are potential amendments a little easier, but my process allows for potentially creating line art only 'colouring book' designs of each card which might come in handy. And I could allow for simplified 'Print and Play' test versions of the game to be produced which don't have all the glossy bells and whistles of a finished, rendered card art.

Current Concerns

I've managed to find time to continue with art production by cutting down the amount of freelance work I'd usually be doing right now. I have enough content to see it come together and it's beginning to look like a real game. 8 play tests so far have proved I'm on the right track. The closer I get to the finish line, the more I want it to succeed.

Thankfully I've already got the ideal skill set for this type of product. I'm capable of tackling pretty much every aspect of board game development (concept, design, art, graphics, web design, logistics and admin. I could even produce an animated video trailer with, animation. sound and, effects without any assistance if I need to). And the satisfaction of tackling everything myself is fantastic.

However I'm discovering that I might be biting off more than I can chew. I don't feel like any aspect of the work is beyond my capabilities, but logistically speaking tackling a multi-facetted project like this takes a lot of time. It seems more often than not, a team of 4-8 contributors are typically involved with small to medium sized table top game projects. Yet there's only one of me.  And so my first concern is:

Do I have the time and resources to convert a game idea into a product and then turn a product into a success?

As I spend my days sitting in front of the computer screen, pushing pixels around and finalizing artwork, I'm often distracted by the realities of what it takes to bring products, especially a board game to market. It's not easy.

The market is seriously competitive, with tens of thousands of table top games already in existence and new games being published on a daily basis.  I'm coming to this venture completely blind and without experience of the niche. While I don't feel my product isn't and won't be good enough to compete, some doubts are beginning to creep in. My second concern is:

Will I be able to get enough relevant eyeballs taking an interest in what I'm producing? 

Like with most product niches, it's true that some games aren't particularly fantastic, yet become fairly successful, while other insanely underrated and unknown gems never get their chance to shine. And so it's evident that marketing and actually raising awareness of the fact that I have a thing, it exists and is good will be the biggest challenge ahead.

What's next?

I've still got months ahead of me to produce artwork for the core game's 'Upgrade' and 'Ability' cards, as well as seven character cards, which I've decided to add into the core game rather than have them as a separate mini-expansion.

The Rule Book is mostly there so far as text goes. I'll then start work on the book's graphic design, adding in diagrams to clearly illustrate how to play.

I'll need to finalize the game's logo and also work on the cover art/box art. For this I'll need to decide on the box dimensions first.

The creation of another planned 40 or so expansion card illustrations will have to come much later.

And along side of that, I'm gradually opening up myself to the business side of things. For example, considering publishers vs self-published via crown funding. In regards to self-publishing, researching manufacturing costs, marketing, distribution and order fulfilment.

Where am I at?

Continuing on from my previous post, I've further refined the rules for my new card game Total Blast. I've created some card art mock ups, and even gone on to finalize a full set of cannon ball cards. I'm making good progress. Although it's going to take some time. I've decided to move more towards illustrative card art as opposed to using basic icons and symbols, as per the first prototype. It's a good call from a visual standpoint and I'm hoping I can even develop a little bit more theme and back-story from the artwork to help give it some more substance.

New Additions

Speaking of adding depth, I've added in extra layers of complexity by introducing sets of optional expansions which can be added to the game to add more variety. These include:

• 'Power Upgrades' which can drastically power up your cannon's damage score.
• 'Power Abilities' which provide a one time use bonus
• Additional set of ball cards to help vary play
• Character Cards, which introduce an A-symmetric starting point giving each player an ability that the other won't have.
• Quest Cards (Or maybe I'll rename them to objective cards?), offering additional victory points for fulfilling certain conditions within the game
• Event Cards which introduce a small shift to the rules for each round.

It's getting exciting! The core game now consists of 101 cards. Adding in additional expansion cards means I'll now need to produce art for an extra 40-60 cards, (depending how many potential extra cards will work). Lots to be getting on with.

Card Development Overview

Here's an example showing sketch to colour mock-up to final card art. I may still tweak the layout, but it's as good as finished. The top portion of the card will remain visible when stacked underneath other cards. This helps calculate the damage score from each cannon at a glance. The bottom portion shows it's description.

Drawing this card helped decide on the theme and direction the game would follow. It'll be a medieval fantasy setting, with waring factions cannon-battling for supremacy. In this kingdom, rival mages and alchemists are summoned to infuse each ball with magical properties, increasing their potency. The balls now take on magical characteristics! I thought giving the balls some spice and character would look a lot cooler than a plain old cannon ball coated in red paint for example.

What Next?

I'm currently producing artwork for all the ball cards, then I'll move on to the Upgrade and Ability cards. Cards such as the "Coins" card and the "Gun Powder" card should be fairly straight forward. Others, not so much. There will be an upgrade card which allows you to add the damage score of your weakest cannon to the cannon it's applied to. I have no idea how to illustrate this!  Maybe I'll have to go a bit abstract with it.

In my last post I mentioned about getting a character art card and cannon card sample done- I'm more or less done with these also, so can post them in due course. Stay tuned.

My latest book is published!

A new project has been added to my Portfolio - A manga style Unicorns Colouring book featuring a selection of pages which glow in the dark! I'd considered the idea of creating a colouring book for at least a decade. In 2020 I finally got the opportunity to create one. Red Bird Book publishers asked me to work on a special Glow-in-the-dark book for their client Thunder Bay Press in the USA. 'Unicorns and Mystical Creatures' has been available to buy for nearly a year now.

It's sold tens of thousands of copies and has received a fair amount of praise and positive reviews since. While I've certainly drawn enough unicorns to last me a life time, I wouldn't say no to working on another colouring book whereby I get to pick the theme. Monsters perhaps? 🙂

When is the next colouring book coming?

Customers who'd bought the Unicorns book often ask when my next colouring book is coming out. The short answer - there isn't another book in the works as of right now. I've had a few publishers ask if I'd work on a number of other colouring books since finishing Unicorns. We got so far as producing sample covers and a few pages of content for books on the theme of: Tattoos, Dream Catchers, Kaleidoscope patterns and Horror. Although due to budget constraints we couldn't quite make it work.

I'd be happy to work on another, but because of the amount of artwork needed to produce a good quality 96 page colouring book, I'd need to make sure there was sufficient funds to make it viable. It's tough- the market is saturated with colouring book options. I even noticed one on Amazon the other day which used one of my artworks for the cover - illegally and without permission!

Although with so many sub-par books to choose from, it seems like a good idea to create a series of premium books. Books which have a lot of nice, high-quality drawings to colour on good quality paper. Perhaps also including how-to guides and advice showing how to use more advanced shading techniques? If you're a book publisher that wants to make this happen, let me know.

In the mean time I look forward to seeing what artists and colourists alike can do with the Unicorns book 🙂

Here's a few coloured samples from the book:

[caption id="attachment_5031" align="aligncenter" width="940"] Colours by @colorfulcarey on Instagram[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_5032" align="aligncenter" width="842"] Colours by @bizzie_lizzie.art on Instagram[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_5030" align="aligncenter" width="930"] Art and Colours by myself - Little tester with some new marker pens.[/caption]

Other designs:

I printed out a couple more of the illustrations I'm created from the book. A Mermaid and Harpy. These were added to A3 Bristol board so I could give them the marker pen treatment. I used a inexpensive set of bullet-point markers to colour these. While I prefer using brush markers, these can certainly do the job.

[gallery size="medium" type="rectangular" ids="4609,4608,4606"]

[gallery size="medium" type="rectangular" ids="4615,4613,4612"]

Horror Book:

As mentioned earlier, I didn't end up working on a sequel, although here's some work-in-progress images for the Horror colouring book which didn't quite happen. I hope you find these interesting. I like the first Haunted Horror sketch, although it was deemed too sexual even though it's for an adult colouring book. I guess the client felt ghouls looked as though they were preying on the girl?

[caption id="attachment_5037" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Horror Cover Sketch 1[/caption]

I then amended to the second Hellish Horrors sketch. I like this one even better and makes it clearer that the girl is the one in charge here! Again, client not convinced. I needed to try again with a different idea.

[caption id="attachment_5038" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Horror Cover Sketch 2[/caption]

I designed the 'Head full of Horror' illustration. I liked the pun for the potential title and thought it would be impactful. It wasn't accepted.

[caption id="attachment_5039" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Horror Cover Sketch 3[/caption]

Eventually the corpse/ ghoul bride and skeleton groom below was deemed a little more wholesome. They loved it! I especially liked the 'Eyes-cubes' in the glass.

[caption id="attachment_5036" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Horror Cover Final with Colour[/caption]

Making use of colouring books

With books like this, I always wonder how much detail is too much detail to include in a drawing? I've seen some colouring books which are effectively fully-rendered, grey-shaded pencil drawings which are presented as colouring pages. I'm not sure I like this idea. What do you think?

Someone choosing to colour a single page from the book might take several hours to finish. With close to 100 pages in a single book, it becomes a project which could take several months. With so many pages one could potentially colour, it seems to be the case that a colourist will more typically choose to work on just a few pages from each colouring book they buy. In the end I guess it's best to have a variety. Lots of details on some pages and not so much on others. If you like colouring books, let me know in the comments below what kinds of themes and styles you like colouring best.

Unicorns & Mystical Creatures was available to purchase via this site's Shop [Edit: I've now sold out! Sorry]. For Americans- you might find it available on Amazon, Wall Mart and Barnes and Noble. The Project / Case Study about this book can be found in my Portfolio here. If you'd like to share your coloured pages from the book, send me a message or link to your social media. I'd love to check them out 🙂

It was about time I created some new artwork. This time, an anime style school girl; A design I thought might work well as on a T-shirt or Art print with appeal to fans of Japanese anime and video games. I needed an object or symbol floating between her hands in the middle to denote a video game theme. A '1-up' mushroom (an in-game asset granting 1 extra life as originally seen in the Super Mario games) was added. The piece then gained the title 'Get a Life'! To start with, here's some progress images explaining the process.

Digital Sketching

The digital sketch was created to begin with. As with other recent works, I'd use multiple colours to separate out different parts of the image. This makes its easier for me to read should the line work start getting too messy and complicated. I also sketch the clothing and hair on different layers in Photoshop just in case I decided I wanted to change the hair style or outfit to something else, but still didn't want to lose the pose information. Then the outlines were digitally inked with a thin brush. The original canvas is big- About 12,000 pixel height. this means the image should like sharp even if printed out huge.

Adding Colour

Next I added the flat tones, followed by the first layer of shadows. For a higher quality 'cel' style (using flat tones) I'll usually add at least 2 tones of shading for added depth. Sometimes I'll add another layer of highlights as per the hair in the second coloured image. As mentioned earlier, the 1UP mushroom was added in and some Kanji added to the background. Time-wise I think it took around 20 hours to complete. 15-40 hours for a single character illustration is pretty typical for me.

Now available to buy

[gallery link="none" size="medium" type="square" ids="4963,4964,4965"]

If you like the artwork and would like to support my artistic endeavours, I've turned it into an A3 print, available to buy on my store. It'll be hand signed and shipped internationally. Alternatively, the design is available on a T-Shirt in either Men's or Women's fit. All shirts are currently on sale in the site's shop at a reduced price. Thanks for checking it out :)

Draw and Chill

Growing up as a kid I'd always be creating my own monsters, mutants and robot characters. Now, as an adult, whenever I have a few free hours to draw something, I often turn to my 'Monsters and Mutants' sketchbook to see what I can come up with. The aim isn't to create anything glossy and polished like a lot of my typical digital work. Instead, it's just about having fun and seeing what ends up on the page.

Creation Process

Most of the time I'll just start drawing random shapes and a creature seems to emerge from the page. Occasionally I'll have an idea to begin with. It might be to re-work one of my childhood drawings, or I'll use something from a film, or game as a starting point.

No-Pressure Drawing

To be honest, I never intended to share any of these. Whenever there's an intention to show off my work it creates an added pressure to try harder or even be more self critical. That's not the point of this sketch book. It's all about drawing to relax and have fun with it. If you're an artist or creator, perhaps it's worth also considering the idea that just because you made a thing, it doesn't have to get posted online. It's quite freeing. But if you decide at a later date to share what you do with the world, there's no harm in that either.

Pen and Ink

For some reason I decided to stick with black and white pen drawings for these. Each image starts off as a pencil sketch. I use my trusty Pentel mechanical pencil with a 2B lead. After I've got the basic gist down, I take over with a Zig Manga Ka Flexible pen. I use Fine for the lines and Medium for larger areas of black. Occasionally I'll use black Kuretake Fudegokochi Brush Pen. Although the Fudegokochi pens have a nice flow of ink, sometimes they can over-flow and spill out a bit too much. I've quit using them as I don't want to wait for ink to be drying. I've recently bought a set of white Gel pens, which I expected to use on these, but not had too much opportunity soo far.

These are all drawn in an A5 Molskine sketchbook:

[gallery size="medium" columns="2" ids="4823,4821,4824,4822,4857,4856,4855,4854,4853,4852,4851,4850,4849,4848,4847,4846,4845,4844,4843,4842,4841,4840,4839,4838,4837,4836,4835,4834,4833,4832,4831,4830,4829,4828,4827,4826,4825,4820,4819,4873,4864,4872,4863,4865,4866,4867,4868,4869,4870,4871,4862,4861,4860,4859,4858,4818"]

More creatures to come...

I'm just over two thirds through my sketchbook so far. I intend on finishing it, even if it takes another year or two! If you're interested in commission me to draw you a creature of your own like the above, let me know. Otherwise, I'll continue to rely on what my crazy mind can come up with :)

Enhancing Old Art

There's nothing wrong with returning to your older artwork and attempting to improve it, right? Sometimes old artwork just needs a little tweak or a few small changes to make it significantly better or more consistent.

I decided to amend and update my previous frog girl illustration to give it a Sugar Skull twist. I also limited the colour palette with some tonal adjustments. It matches some of the other, recent artwork in my gallery a little better. Plus people have told me they're liking my skull related artwork, so now here's another to add to the collection!

Maybe one day I'll figure out how to match this stuff up with the all the various manga styles I like playing with also? Producing a consistent gallery or range of images is always going to be a challenge when you love producing so many different types of art styles.

Decorate your walls

A3 size prints are now available of this one to buy via the site's Shop. I decided to give the option to purchase this new version along with the original no-make-up version plus the marker version I'd create a while back. Do you have a preference?

[gallery type="circle" link="none" ids="4548,3540,4554"]

If you're interested, check of my Traditional Vs Digital: Frog Girl blog post to see some work in progress shots of this one.

New Product Updates in the Shop:

Many of the large / A3 prints in the Shop have now been amended to include Matt, Gloss and a Special Metallic paper finishes. Although the print company I just started using for these is currently closed due to the pandemic lock-down, so frog girl will temporarily remain as Gloss only for the time being. I'll take some photos of the new metallic prints in due course. For now, you'll have to take my word for it but they look fantastic! And managed to put a smile on my face :)

There's something really cool about an physical piece of art be it a print or original. You just can't get it looking at it on a screen. Especially these metallic prints which have light bouncing off them as I move them in my hands.

At the time of posting, prices for most of the A3 prints are:

£11.99 for Matt: Satin smooth paper avoids reflections
£12.99 for Gloss: Deep colours with a sheen
£16.99 for Metallic: Special finish for spectacular effect when in the light

Shipping here in the UK is: £3.40 per print. Europe: £5. USA and rest of the world is: £8.

For a limited time I'm running the promo code 10OFFPRINTS at the checkout stage. It allows 10% off when spending over £30 on art print orders.

I'd recently finished binge-watching the first 4 seasons of super-hero anime 'My Hero Academia'. Despite initial reservations after the first episode, I ended up getting into it and really enjoying it. My goal was to create some All Might fan art in a similar style to the Tattooed Goku I'd created a few years back. Here's some work in progress images to show the process:

Digital Sketching

I started with a digital sketch using reference from bodybuilder Jay Cutler who reminded me of All Might. This was then refined and tidied up, adding his "I am here" catchphrase to the banner- a line he must have used a million times in the My Hero Academia anime!
Time: 7 Hours to draw

Adding Colour

The first image on the left is probably around 60% through the colouring process. It was getting a bit dark, so brightened it up and added colourful background splatters to finish. I'm very happy with how it it turned out- makes a nice little tribute piece to the series 🙂
Time: 10.5 Hours to colour – 17.5 hours total.

Own The Art Print

As the icon of virtue, hope and strength, All Might can remind us to do good, help others and be strong. Would you'd like the symbol of justice to hang on your walls? And would rather display art which looks a little prettier than a copy-and-paste screen capture from the My Hero Academia anime? I've turned it into an A3 print, available to buy on my store.

[gallery type="square" columns="2" link="none" size="medium" ids="4387,4390"]

Buy The T-Shirt

I'd thought about creating and offering shirts featuring this and other designs in my store for some time. There was enough interest to make it happen, so have also now added All Might:

[gallery type="square" columns="2" link="none" ids="4683,4702"]

Thanks for supporting my artistic endeavours, and if you're a Hero Academia fan, let me know. See you next time :)

I wanted to create a couple of new fan art pieces for fun. This year I decided to take a crack at Bowsette and Boosette (aka Booette)- a couple of spin-off meme creations from Nintendo’s Mario game series. The goal was to go full-on kawaii manga style with these two- huge eyes and small mouths.

Digital Sketching

I started with a digital sketch. Using multiple colours helps prevent getting confused by too many messy lines all over the place. After Bowsette was finished, I used her as a template for creating Boosette.
Time: 16 Hours

Neat Outlines

Then came time to clean up the artwork by digitally inking it. I kept the line work pretty thin for this project and not using thicker, heavier lines for the outside or varying line weighs like I might do in previous images.
Time: 11.5 Hours

Flat tones

The next stage is laying down the flat tones. The process of sketch, ink, flats and then rendering the flats is a technique and workflow I’ve been using in digital artwork since the late 90s. It’s a process that works out great for being able to isolate certain colours and parts of an image, keeping the artwork looking tidy and smooth, while retaining the line art, rather than painting over it.
Time: 1.6 Hours

Colours and Shading

Then it’s time to choose colours and a light source. This time light is coming from the centre/ top left. I start with an ‘anime cel’ style to figure out how much shadow the put down and I could leave it at the cel stage by sticking with the flat tones but I’m always too tempted to start rendering and adding gradation to tones. As much as I love anime, I thing I prefer a more rendered artwork look aesthetic.

Finished Artworks

Lots of rendering time later and both are finished. They make a good pair- by having opposing colour schemes- one with red/orange and the other with purple and blue. The artwork is tight and polished, making it suitable for large scale printing with the original images each being close to 14,000 pixels high.
Total time: 56 Hours – 28 hours each.

What’s next? I love experimenting in different styles, so I’ll probably take a break from the Kawaii manga look for a while and try something else. But this project showed me if I ever want to create more artwork in this style, I know I can nail it successfully 😊