Hey, I'm gonna be real quick here and say that I think you're a fab person and your art's pretty cute - but there's something you asked of us.
(By the way, Ness' waving hand looks fine to me...? It's just a really odd and a bit out-of-character, but there's nothing wrong with that hand per se)
I'm a pretty tough art critic. I'll try to keep it worded properly so it doesn't sound like I'm pickin' on you, but there's somethin' else first:
Yyyyeah, to start: if you're going to college for an art program, submitting a folder filled with anime illustrations isn't going to cut it. :/ I'm sorry, but it's the truth.
Typically, in an art portfolio you'll want to show your ability to make a variety of things: well, besides anime, you may want to try cartooning, still-life, and observational drawing. You might also want to try using different mediums - brush art, charcoals, and of course, graphite (like you're using now) Of course, if there's a particular style you're proficient at, it's perfectly fine to show a few examples in your portfolio - just remember to show your "diversity" with art, that you're confident with experimenting and that you're excited about improving!
(Hell, if you have an interest in pottery or costuming, it might not hurt to have a photo of that in there as well. Don't just take a photo of you in cosplay though; put it on a mannequin. Which by the way, only add the cosplay to the portfolio is if you made it completely by hand; not a bunch of things you bought online)
Now, as for art: the good news is that it looks like you've got a grasp of foreshortening in some of these drawings! I still can't foreshorten properly, so kudos to you!! It's kinda hard to get used to, but it looks like you've got the gist of it!
As for things to improve - there's...a bit.
- A lot of your illustrations appear like Naegi, Headphones Guy, and Ness look like you drew the headphones first, then said "Okay, this is neat, now it's time to flesh out the torso...all right, onto the arms..." and just drew things sequentially. I noticed you drew a "wire base" for Ness - try using that to "plot out" the pose and position of the character, and even the muscle form of the character. It looks like you had the foundations of that with Ness - but try to draw it all at the same time and you'll be glad you did, as the character's proportions will remain consistent and the character won't...lean.
It looks like you did that for the other characters - but basically, just stick to it. You're heading down the right path!
You'll also want to try doing that on character's faces, so it'll give you an idea as to where facial features fit on their big anime skulls.
Oh, yeah - plotting things out beforehand will also allow you to add feet to your illustrations - which we'll talk about next!
- It seems like you hate drawing feet. Either that or it's just coincidence that many of your images don't have feet, and when they do they're pointing straight down.
Drawing feet is actually easier than drawing hands, just fyi - if you're using a wire-base guy and sketching out the whole character, draw a circle where the ankle would be. When I draw feet, mine look a bit cartoony - I usually put the ball at the very edge of the calf, and I use it to dictate where the ankle's going to be. From there, I can figure out just how I want the foot to sit on the ground - be positioned in midair, and then draw the bizarre-looking shape that'll later be fleshed out and made into a foot.
- Your fabric creases in almost all of the images are kind of...random. It's like "Yeah, I guess this material creases, here I go"
You can literally google references for this one, and try to figure out exactly fabric creasing sits in the material and how the twist of the body influences the way the fabric's manipulated. Now, there's different types of fabric - so leather's gonna look significantly different than silk, which is going to look different from chainmail!
I have a feeling someone's gonna come in here and one-up me on this, which is fine. I have no freaking idea how to describe this part.
To be fair, most of these were drawn without references, so it's a little unreasonable for me to harp on you over fabric creasing I guess. But when you're home and doodling just keep it in mind!!
But yeah, yer comin' along! Just take a second look at what I mentioned, and give them a shot! Good luck on your artsy endeavors
c
(By the way, Ness' waving hand looks fine to me...? It's just a really odd and a bit out-of-character, but there's nothing wrong with that hand per se)
(06-23-2015, 05:21 AM)Izumi Wrote: If it's not too much to ask, could you guys rip apart my art? Like if you see any serious continuous errors or things that need significant work, please point it all out. Suggestions on what I should do to better myself would be nice, too. Trying to spend the next 8 months in mega improvement mode to prepare for my portfolio for college.
(06-23-2015, 05:21 AM)Izumi Wrote: If it's not too much to ask, could you guys rip apart my art?
I'm a pretty tough art critic. I'll try to keep it worded properly so it doesn't sound like I'm pickin' on you, but there's somethin' else first:
(06-23-2015, 05:21 AM)Izumi Wrote: Suggestions on what I should do to better myself would be nice, too. Trying to spend the next 8 months in mega improvement mode to prepare for my portfolio for college.
Yyyyeah, to start: if you're going to college for an art program, submitting a folder filled with anime illustrations isn't going to cut it. :/ I'm sorry, but it's the truth.
Typically, in an art portfolio you'll want to show your ability to make a variety of things: well, besides anime, you may want to try cartooning, still-life, and observational drawing. You might also want to try using different mediums - brush art, charcoals, and of course, graphite (like you're using now) Of course, if there's a particular style you're proficient at, it's perfectly fine to show a few examples in your portfolio - just remember to show your "diversity" with art, that you're confident with experimenting and that you're excited about improving!
(Hell, if you have an interest in pottery or costuming, it might not hurt to have a photo of that in there as well. Don't just take a photo of you in cosplay though; put it on a mannequin. Which by the way, only add the cosplay to the portfolio is if you made it completely by hand; not a bunch of things you bought online)
Now, as for art: the good news is that it looks like you've got a grasp of foreshortening in some of these drawings! I still can't foreshorten properly, so kudos to you!! It's kinda hard to get used to, but it looks like you've got the gist of it!
As for things to improve - there's...a bit.
- A lot of your illustrations appear like Naegi, Headphones Guy, and Ness look like you drew the headphones first, then said "Okay, this is neat, now it's time to flesh out the torso...all right, onto the arms..." and just drew things sequentially. I noticed you drew a "wire base" for Ness - try using that to "plot out" the pose and position of the character, and even the muscle form of the character. It looks like you had the foundations of that with Ness - but try to draw it all at the same time and you'll be glad you did, as the character's proportions will remain consistent and the character won't...lean.
It looks like you did that for the other characters - but basically, just stick to it. You're heading down the right path!
You'll also want to try doing that on character's faces, so it'll give you an idea as to where facial features fit on their big anime skulls.
Oh, yeah - plotting things out beforehand will also allow you to add feet to your illustrations - which we'll talk about next!
- It seems like you hate drawing feet. Either that or it's just coincidence that many of your images don't have feet, and when they do they're pointing straight down.
Drawing feet is actually easier than drawing hands, just fyi - if you're using a wire-base guy and sketching out the whole character, draw a circle where the ankle would be. When I draw feet, mine look a bit cartoony - I usually put the ball at the very edge of the calf, and I use it to dictate where the ankle's going to be. From there, I can figure out just how I want the foot to sit on the ground - be positioned in midair, and then draw the bizarre-looking shape that'll later be fleshed out and made into a foot.
- Your fabric creases in almost all of the images are kind of...random. It's like "Yeah, I guess this material creases, here I go"
You can literally google references for this one, and try to figure out exactly fabric creasing sits in the material and how the twist of the body influences the way the fabric's manipulated. Now, there's different types of fabric - so leather's gonna look significantly different than silk, which is going to look different from chainmail!
I have a feeling someone's gonna come in here and one-up me on this, which is fine. I have no freaking idea how to describe this part.
To be fair, most of these were drawn without references, so it's a little unreasonable for me to harp on you over fabric creasing I guess. But when you're home and doodling just keep it in mind!!
But yeah, yer comin' along! Just take a second look at what I mentioned, and give them a shot! Good luck on your artsy endeavors
c
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