ok life first, why the delay in the post and all that
well aside from work etc. i hit something of a revelation on sunday about me, my life and my work and how they all link.
the long and the short, i'm coming at it all from a new angle. my work adds to the already up and down nature of me and my life, real highs and real lows, something i may go in to a little more at a later date. but for now i just hot some real highs and some real lows... as i do in my work... but what i realised sunday is one of the reasons why.
looking through the sites of some of my favorite artists and link hoping like i enjoy doing for inspiration... something dawned on me while looking at matthew humphreys blog... all the people that inspire me the most stay true to their art and who they are... whether its for work or not. something i realised i dont do.
i've been working for quite a while and over that time i've grown accustomed to the client, be it an editor or company saying "can you draw like this, can you do it in that style" and as i need to pay bills and not live under a bridge i say "sure thing. no problem..."
well, what i've realised is its a pretty big problem, i've spent so long doing that, i no longer do my own art for work... i work in which ever style i think most appropriate for any given project, or whatever artist happens to be at the top of my influence list at that time. to the point when people ask me about my work i actually say "yeah its not really art though, its just work"
but no matter how much i might say that, truth is, in my mind, i know it is my art as well... and i realise how miserable its making me...
problem is if i try to work like anyone one, or combination, of my major influences and the work doesnt come out even close to being as good.... which it never does, i beat myself up over it, it makes me seriously miserable. my work sucks, why cant i do it etc. etc. the reason i cant do it... is because its not me, its them and i should let them be them, influencing me, inspiring me, but not try to be them...
so i was stuck in a cycle, look at peoples work to pick me up, do my own which was never as good which brought me back down... and so the cycle went.
so sunday, was kind of a big deal for me... and then, as i realised this and how much better it will make me feel if i go back to doing what i do, rather than trying to be something i'm not for everyone else, i came across sean murphys blog and whilst looking through his quite stunning art i find this line... and i quote...
"The style I used here marks the last time I tried a clean look with my art. From here on out it's no more compromise."
jesus... it was like reading my own thoughts... maybe not the clean line thing, my personal work is naturally clean anyway... but it was someone else saying they'd made the same realisation at some point i'd just made... then... on his deviant art page his latest journal entry repeated the sentiment and went on to say how much happier he'd been and how much more his work had come on and so how much more work he'd been offered...
i couldnt believe it to be honest.... here was a voice from nowhere at a time i was questioning my work and what i should be doing with it, basically saying it was fine to be yourself. then i went back to all my largest influences, the people i admire, respect and look up to the most... and you know what, they all stay true to themselves... of course they have influences, of course people inspire them, but they dont let what others are doing twist their own natural artistic style and ability... these people stick to their art, their style, no matter how outrageous and do not falter from their path
from now on, neither will i... love me for what i am... or jog on
so a big thank you to sean murphy and matthew humphreys for helping to wake me up this weekend. but also to ben oliver, jock, frazer irving, eric canete, lesean thomas, cory walker, dave johnson, jason pearson, mike mignola, alphonse mucha, cheeks, kelsey shannon to name but a few of the many people who stays true to "their" art, even while working. and opening my eyes to the possibility of a happier future in life, my art and so my work.
ok, thanks and bleeding hearts over...
ART
so another spiderman page... page 4, in a style which was far closer to what i would naturally do... but still not 100% comfortable... i was no doubt looking at the work of rob haynes at that time looking at the page...
in the near future i will post up all the pages in one hit and move on to posting new personal stuff... lets see if i can find my own voice again... enjoy
REVIEW
will still no reviwe, i might scrap this section, when the field is so open, picking something out of thin air to start waffling on about seems to be trickier than i thought but i'll keep adding the section for now, i might get my head round it...
and to finish us off... the new section
LINK OF THE WEEK
actually this week its going to be two for obvious reasons if you read above
seangordonmurphy
this guys work is amazing, i love it, the mixture of the realism in his backgrounds etc to the slightly caricature nature of his figures to the small details... the blend, in my eyes, is spot on. great work.
matthew humphreys
now this was the guy where i first thought, wait a minute, this guy stays true to his style regardless of the subject matter and it work fine. his work is stunning across the board, maintaining that friendly accessible feel, regardless of subject matter, it oozes atmosphere without being remotely disturbing... you be temtped to show kids pictures of girls in underwear as you forget exactly what you're looking at... see yikes, love 'em to death, patchy, oopsieism and goth girl...
the more adult themes combined with his style make them so tongue in cheak you cant help but love them...
this is great work
so thats me for another week, i will do a review soon... maybe gta 4, theres a number of films i could insult, maybe some tv shows... who knows... till next time...
3 comments:
dunno if it's just because it's done in blue pencil, but the spidey pages seem more in keeping with the sketches of your that I've seen at conventions (and been lucky enough to get a couple myself...)
although have you ever thought of having your pencils coloured? it's just that those spidey pages look as though that could be really, really cool.
So true, but thus far I am stuck at the realisation phase, where I realise I need to be mysel and let other artists influence me and not dictate my approach. I am not professional in any way, however, what you've been through, as experienced by me, has led to my not drawing almost at all. It helps to know that people I look up to/admire also experience the same.
Thanks.
I know exactly what you're talking about. Recently I have come to the realization earlier this year about staying true to my style. My influences ranged from japanese animators like Koji Morimoto and Kazuta Nakazawa to Lesean Thomas, Keron Grant and recently Sean Murphy Gordon.
I would always try to draw eyes like this artist, draw hands like that artist, and ink like that Sean Gordon guy and my work started to become and amalgamation of all the artist I was inspired by and what made matters worse, is that my work was still no where near the quality I was looking for.
I scrapped a couple projects because of that and started one over completely. Now I draw eyes how I draw them and draw hands the way I feel like, and I see myself starting to come into my own.
Though, I'm still influenced by the same artist, I'm not constantly looking at THEIR work to see if I'm drawing something "correctly" and it feels good.
I'm actually starting to have fun drawing again. It doesn't feel like a chore now and my work is starting to become more consistent in quality.
From now on, I will be sticking to my art as well.
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