Arch's Book of Stuff

[Lyraina]

Really happy to hear that you're getting client work and doing a good job networking and all - so exciting! :) Good job on keeping up sketches and (life) studies on the side.

Keep it up!

[Archreux]

smrr- Thanks! I was pretty fond of it myself, and I really didn't think they'd go for the design. It's so crazy, but I'm glad they did. Haha. I'll have more to show by the end of next week if all goes well! :D

Lyraina- Thank you, it really is. This is the only client I've got at the moment, so I'm still making time for all that fun personal stuff!

I should really be more serious with my time off. Instead of doodling, and doing miscellaneous studies, I could be chipping away at the backlog of personal WIP's that need to be finished. It's mostly to just keep myself sharp I guess, and to keep trying new things.

I've also decided that I'm going to try and pursue a small IP as practice in-between everything else. It probably won't be the best looking, but I'm working to make it something that might be interesting for others, maybe. :V

[Archreux]

I found some more time between client work to get another quick image out for ADS (Anti Devil Security), which will be the official name for the project at this point. I'd really like to keep working on expanding its universe, and figuring out the more detailed elements. There will probably be one more shameless "Oh cool, look, action-non-narrative" painting before any real synopsis based imagery.

I've also started doing quick daily painting warm-ups with the round brush. Supalette (William Chen) has a lot of work I've been looking through, and he has so many wonderful paintings that are inspiring, yet messy. 

Working to finish client work this week! :D

[wla91]

I'm loving what I'm seeing here man, great work! It just keeps getting better. Also that IP sounds pretty interesting, can't wait to see more!

[Gliger]

Reeeally digging the style, seriously, I'm getting inspired :).
Something that I've noticed with your latest pages is that you don't seem to play too much with the hips in your figures, , I'm sure you already know but you can make your figures much more dynamic and real by putting some more care into showing the weight through tilting the hips appropriately, which you've done in a couple drawings anyways.

[Archreux]

wla91- Thanks! Happy to hear the IP is somewhat interesting!

Gliger- Thank you! That's a fair point, it really got me thinking, and I've trying to get more expressive with my character work. So I'll have to do some stuff with that in another sketch or something some time!

More daily sketches! I'm still playing around with the round brush. Seriously, this guy is just great fun. My characters are still lacking. I should probably get on some studies soon. :[

[Lyraina]

You’re really good at conveying different light situations… very believable. Not sure how you do it (good value control?) but keep doing what you’re doing, I like it!
Just maybe be a little more deliberate with your light source when rendering forms (like a leg), and make sure you keep it consistent through the whole painting and all elements in there… can’t really point out an example, so that’s more of a heads up :P

Keep it up! You’re very productive, good job :)

[crackedskull]

Hey there, those characters look really sweet for a days work.

[Archreux]

Lyraina- Thanks a bunch! I honestly wish I had a real answer to give you aside from just doing A LOT of observation of life. I've been getting into the habit of taking a lot of pictures when I'm out and about on walks as well, so that's been helping I think. Also, thanks for the quick crit! You're definitely spot on in regard to the legs/lighting,  they were pretty troublesome, and it's something I'll be mindful of in the future! :]

crackedskull- Hey, thank you! I try to keep it between two to three hours, four at most. Otherwise I'm sitting on them all day and forget about work. Haha. :]

Here are some more daily things, and some studies. I'm stupid and lazy, so it might be awhile before I get to uploading my pencil stuff. Ever since breaking my last PS3 controller, games have pretty much been out of the question, so doing these warm-ups is the only other thing I have to keep myself entertained.

I think I may branch out a bit more and use a couple of other brushes, but Round'o-san will remain the same. The round brush is my God for the moment. Line work is something I gotta get back into, and daily studies. These recent ones were really challenging. :I

[DK]

This hydra? piece lookin great so far.

[Archreux]

Dennis- Thank you! I will probably turn it into a finished piece since so many people seem to like it.

Alright, here's so more card art for Caravan the Looting. I've got one more piece for them I'm still working on, but these were really fun, and it's been challenging in a good way. I was up late last night trying to finish these and hurt my arm a bit, so I'll be taking it slow for a while.

Also, there's a study! Haha. Expect more of those, and some more line work. I'm really hating my anatomy, heads, and all that again, so it's getting me really pumped to just kill it.

I'll also be planning another ADS piece soon!

[BenFlores]

Finish that hydra image! The colors, texture and brush work are all good.
Yeah, more studies like you said, get inspired outside of the same fashion photos you're seeing though.
You're on a roll man, constant improvement. Don't let up.

[Archreux]

Ben - Thank you! I'm planning on getting back to work on it, and I'll definitely have some time to soon! I'm pretty nervous, it's so small, I'll have to enlarge it and do a whole bunch of stuff with it. So, hopefully I'll be able to pull it off without ruining anything. I also agree with the fashion thing! Ultimately I'm working towards marrying both current fashion and traditional renaissance design. 

More anatomy studies, and not much actual anatomy application. Haha. I'm still trying to figure out how to actually make a structure properly, rather than focusing on the anatomy itself. There's still a lot of work to be done here, and I'll probably skim through some Hampton and Loomis. 

Aside from art stuff, I got some good news from my loan provider today, saying that I qualify for a payment plan that will really help me not become a complete and total debt slave. I don't gotta make any payments, so I'll have more time to work on myself and find work without having a heart attack! College is a worthless money trap. I pay $5 for 4 hours of life drawing at a local art academy, and I get 100 times the value out of that than I'd ever gotten in any "art" college class for a fraction of the cost.

Anyways, I'll talk less next time. I'm almost finished with my current client's final piece, so I will have that up within the week! :]

[Archreux]

Gotta get back into posting again as it always feels like forever. There's not too much I've been up to aside from studying and sketching, so I suppose I've been in a bit of a slump artistically speaking. Getting out of the house, going outside, spending time with friends, and figuring myself out is something I'd like to take more time to do. I've got some photos that I might post, and it's been a pretty fun activity to do aside from drawing.

Anyways, here's some studies and sketches I've done in the middle of everything else. I'm going to just take some time away from freelance, figure art stuff out, and get as good as I can before finding any more work. I'm going to work my way up to being more active here on CD, and other sites as well. Trying to build exposure is hard, but it's not easy when you don't talk to anyone, or do anything.

Also, gotta get better. Haha. :D

[ShinOkami]

Those lines man, so nice ! :D

For the gestures, they look a bit too stiff to me, try to implement that S curve just a tiny bit more. I don't know, maybe it's just me :s

Anyways, great stuff !

[Archreux]

Shin- Thanks! Yeah, I'm totally trying to loosen all of these things up so much more. I've been working on implementing more elements like that. It needs more work, but eventually they'll get less stiff. Thanks again. :]

Been dealing with hurt shoulder and stuff again, also been playing too many vidya. It's like falling off the wagon. Every time these things happens, I always ask myself "why?". Why do we lose focus and discipline? Haha. I'm just scared of not being able to "make the painting or drawing good". Which, really, is all apart of the journey.

Anyways, here are some studies. It's been forever since I painted anything, as I've been focusing on drawing, so these studies are pretty bad. I'll be doing more, and they'll all be faces. Those really need to look better.

So, more, more, more, more! I'm getting back on the ADS thing, which means there will be another piece like that soon. After I get enough of them done, I'll be trying to spread it around. :D

[Nowio]

Hey there, amazing sketchbook! ;;)

Great to hear that someone starts getting work! (Hoping that I will be one of those guys one day D: )

Love the gesture studies and the Freelance for hire chick is awesome! xD

So no crits ar any of this sort this time, just good vibes ;P
Pumped to see more ADS work ;)

[Archreux]

Nowio- Thanks! Nothing helps more than getting out and meeting the right people at events. I've gotta get off my butt and start looking for more work sometime in the near future. There will be some more ADS stuff coming, and I'm really happy to hear it looks interesting!

Okay, so I've got some more studies for the painting. After this I should be good to go on starting it. Ever since I started doing what felt best for me in terms of studying habits, things have felt less forced, and it's been feeling more like I'm developing my own relationship with the material. So many people tell you to read books, break things down, study-study-study, and then do. Those are all great, and I have tried most of those things.

Sometimes feeling out what works best for you, personally, may be more beneficial than what may be a tried and tested plan.

Honestly, I've found nothing better than just doing it, and most of the time I ask myself "How do I simply PAINT IT.".

As a little explanation: Each of these were done with a slightly different method and approach, but I am always using line work as a base to ensure a solid foundation beforehand. I'm still observing and taking mental notes while going through all of these. For the most part I am just learning the "how to" behind the subject matter, and going through that as many times as it takes to build a competent process/plan. Anything else that's more fundamental, I'll read a chapter in a book, or find a definition of it.

Making simple observations such as "Oh, this shadow is hard here, and then gets softer over there." is as complex as my though process gets. Haha. Sorry for so much text. Maybe this will help someone. :]

[VoodooMama]

heyy!
You have some nice character work in here.
The girl with the snakes is very cool. It has a really cool way of rendering.
keep it up! :)

[ramalooke]

damn, i love your work. those characters have a lot of personality. i digg that. wish i had something usefull to say, but i don't =D. keep dooing the good work! =D