tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post8693717383158939548..comments2024-03-28T18:17:09.618-04:00Comments on ILLUSTRATION ART: ELBOW ROOMDavid Apatoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11293486149879229016noreply@blogger.comBlogger34125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-22756181935466453182010-09-19T20:46:10.775-04:002010-09-19T20:46:10.775-04:00Venusian, what I meant was that a computer can red...Venusian, what I meant was that a computer can reduce the size or the resolution of an image by applying a mathematical formula uniformly across the entire image. It doesn't discriminate between "bits"-- all binary digits are the same. But an artist reduces the image in a very different way, using judgment and taste and discretion to prioritize some things, do some things differently, find other artistic solutions.David Apatoffhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11293486149879229016noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-86030142949450278612010-09-14T15:02:47.098-04:002010-09-14T15:02:47.098-04:00" Here you see the difference between digital..." Here you see the difference between digital compression by a computer and artistic compression by a true draftsman." <br /><br />What ?Jeff Dotenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17323331318351157973noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-31916151195007170172010-06-13T22:54:33.353-04:002010-06-13T22:54:33.353-04:00Great stuff, whole stories in every panel!Great stuff, whole stories in every panel!Marcos Mateuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14740828780483716922noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-81545519805526010902010-06-09T05:26:46.562-04:002010-06-09T05:26:46.562-04:00I really enjoyed reading your art blog here, it wa...I really enjoyed reading your art blog here, it was extremely fascinating. If you are looking for an <a href="http://www.daggerroom.com" rel="nofollow">art community</a> to post it at, Dagger Room is where it's at.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-51438830016789327602010-06-06T10:17:06.094-04:002010-06-06T10:17:06.094-04:00Thanks, Richard.Thanks, Richard.David Apatoffhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11293486149879229016noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-19310255296927977642010-06-02T09:46:46.791-04:002010-06-02T09:46:46.791-04:00Heya
I got hit with an internet award, Kreativ Bl...Heya<br /><br />I got hit with an internet award, Kreativ Blogger. It’s intended as a viral meme and I’m expected to spread it to seven other creative blogs I find worthy of such. I figure your blog is easily in my top seven favorites!<br />http://burningmonster.blogspot.com/2010/06/kreativ-blogger-award.htmlAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00317124894602319823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-9185706061747886012010-06-02T09:15:06.861-04:002010-06-02T09:15:06.861-04:00ROb can't get over the fact that he's had ...ROb can't get over the fact that he's had decent training. He's so proud of this that it makes him forget that this blog is about artists who had other things besides just decent training.Anonymousenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-30166290421105916632010-06-02T03:07:23.578-04:002010-06-02T03:07:23.578-04:00Rob Howard wrote: "controlling scale is one o...Rob Howard wrote: "controlling scale is one of the '101' classes in a decent art school."<br /><br />Rob, I know that a mechanical application of the laws of perspective can make a flea look bigger than an elephant, but in my view not many artists can create the feeling of ponderous bulk of that battleship in such a small shape, or design pictures as intelligently as Drucker. There are an awful lot of graduates of those "101" classes who can't come close.<br /><br />Yuk, thanks for your kind comments. I enjoyed your blog, and appreciated your post about Frazetta. I've never been to South Africa but you sound pretty tough on them.<br /><br />Joyce, I know that Bierstadt, like Turner, did great thumbnails on site which he later used in the studio. There are some interesting stories about Bierstadt and his wife on the road. I always intended to write something about them. Maybe it's time.David Apatoffhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11293486149879229016noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-85926384713034482422010-06-02T02:25:08.298-04:002010-06-02T02:25:08.298-04:00Canuck-- I agree with you about the cinematic effe...Canuck-- I agree with you about the cinematic effect. Hard to say whether the artists influenced film or the film influenced the artists. A little of both, I'd imagine.<br /><br />Tom-- good point about the functions of the two heads. <br /><br />Stephen Silver-- I am looking forward to seeing your interview with Drucker. I've made no secret of the fact that I think the man is a genius. Are there any stories you can share with us about the filming experience?David Apatoffhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11293486149879229016noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-1253655996429874662010-06-01T12:31:53.702-04:002010-06-01T12:31:53.702-04:00Very interesting, David. Yes, this is a skill to b...Very interesting, David. Yes, this is a skill to be considered and admired. Nevertheless I would just like to add a bit of information to your thumbnail of Bierstadt and his abilities. Before he began to do the big, fill-the-room paintings, he took his traveling paint box into the western wilderness along with the Landers expidition in 1857-58, and while on the road (so to speak since there was no road, yet) he painted very small oil sketches of his experiences of the west. These paintings tend to be in the 6 inch by 10 inch range and are some of the most beautiful and compelling things he ever painted. They are tiny clear views into the vast western landscape.Joycehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12842860906627601448noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-22794555388068610172010-06-01T06:27:45.754-04:002010-06-01T06:27:45.754-04:00Dear David, thank you. Having only recently discov...Dear David, thank you. Having only recently discovered your blog, it sits at the top of my favourite's list for one very simple reason. <br /><br />My eyes have been opened. WIDE!<br /><br />I've been filled with self doubt and a not too small measure of self-loathing for many years. All because I was searching for perfection in my work. I too like a great drawing. Probably more than anything. <br /><br />I've been drawing ever since I could hold a pencil, and I humbly submit that I can hold a candle too a great many of the illustrators you have featured in your blog. Ever since I saw Mort Drucker's illustrations as a small boy in MAD in the early 60's I wanted to be able to do what he did.<br /><br />Unfortunately, living in a backwater like South Africa, especially at that time and then later during the apartheid years, the opportunities for an angry young artist who could out-draw just about anyone simplt weren't there. And while I did some studio work and even worked as an animator for awhile, my enthusiasm for drawing waned. Africa ain't a place for sissies!<br /><br />Anyway, I'm rambling...simply put, your insights have delighted me and given me pause to reconsider my future with regard to 'illustrating'.<br /><br />Like Goines, I don't consider myself an 'artist'. I've never really understood what it meant to be one and since I'm not particularly good at playing the game or swapping small talk with a pretentious bunch of bullshitters, the 'fine art' community represented a club of which I wanted no part. As a result I did not draw regularly for many years and became rustier then I thought possible in the process. But I'm slowly crawling my way back, and as a result of your musings, I'm more determined then ever to exceed myself!<br /><br />My wife often walks into my office/studio early in the morning, where she finds me smiling quietly to myself and nodding my head in agreement to some profound new understanding which has jumped off the screen and whacked me in the head!<br /><br />I'm learning to see things with a fresh eye once more. And to find someone whom I consider a kindred spirit, someone who can appreciate when a line is a thing of beauty, when a simple black and white illustration makes one feel glad to be alive, is a rare find indeed.<br /><br />Please visit my blog if and when you get a chance. I would love to hear your thoughts. Sincerely yours, Jacques Stenvert. <br /><br />http://yuksworld.blogspot.com/ or go to www.stenvert.co.zaAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-28082588213096104582010-06-01T04:06:20.703-04:002010-06-01T04:06:20.703-04:00David, controlling scale is one of the "101&q...David, controlling scale is one of the "101" classes in a decent art school. It's so basic that I am surprised that anyone doesn't know how to draw a flea towering over an elephant.<br /><br />Very, very basic stuff and hardly magical.Rob Howardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07587811799010051018noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-69321643639136955862010-06-01T00:34:28.864-04:002010-06-01T00:34:28.864-04:00These guys are legends. have you heard about the d...These guys are legends. have you heard about the documentary film I made on mort. you can see the trailer here.<br />http://bit.ly/mortdruckerfilmstephen Silverhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06204457070527546519noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-61451188280785772182010-05-28T18:45:01.775-04:002010-05-28T18:45:01.775-04:00Yes Norm, he seems to just change proportions, wit...Yes Norm, he seems to just change proportions, with black and grey in the foreground, the black being dominant and black and grey in the boat, with the grey dominant and the white of the water line contrasting the saftey of the foreground and the fear of the middle ground. He also nicely keeps bumping a strong black against a white from front to back. First the sailors head against the white water line, then the hole in the hull aganist the water line and finally some of the ships rigging aganist the sky, like stone skipped across a pond.Tomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04641223414745777056noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-90393366907437859482010-05-28T18:11:54.652-04:002010-05-28T18:11:54.652-04:00One more thing...
Does anyone else find it interes...One more thing...<br />Does anyone else find it interesting that the Sickles illustration uses the same range of values in the foreground, midground, background and sky....like there's no atmospheric perspective?normnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-30577577118144514072010-05-28T17:58:03.285-04:002010-05-28T17:58:03.285-04:00The two guys in Drucker's helicopter almost ex...The two guys in Drucker's helicopter almost exactly mimic the two sailors in Sickles lifeboat, one head directing us in and one head directing us left.Tomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04641223414745777056noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-56544956922439095082010-05-28T17:52:18.869-04:002010-05-28T17:52:18.869-04:00...also, I think composition and value (and color)......also, I think composition and value (and color) are things that help make the space work...so I think they could still apply.normnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-33044644557218179332010-05-28T17:51:06.143-04:002010-05-28T17:51:06.143-04:00The forgrounds in all three pictures also set or s...The forgrounds in all three pictures also set or start the pictures off beautifully, they immediatly set up scale relations to the great distances.Tomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04641223414745777056noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-20799313168512076232010-05-28T17:49:10.197-04:002010-05-28T17:49:10.197-04:00David,
True, I was just thinking most, if not all ...David,<br />True, I was just thinking most, if not all of the artists who worked out big space on big canvases probably did some small studies of it first....but, I suppose their studies may not have communicated the space as well as their finished pieces.<br />Or, am I missing the point here, and Tom is right that size is irrelevant. You can either convey space well, or not...the size of your canvas isn't going to help you much.normnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-81882407388493073622010-05-28T17:30:40.104-04:002010-05-28T17:30:40.104-04:00Etc, etc. said: "Don't most seasoned illu...Etc, etc. said: "Don't most seasoned illustrators and artists do this?"<br /><br />In my judgment, the good ones know they are supposed to, and a subset of that group can actually do it. I hate to pick at an old wound, but Jeff Koons couldn't do it if his life depended on it. <br /><br />Tom, I think you are exactly right about Sickles. He used to stare at an object real hard until he understood how it came together, and then he could quickly draw it from any angle. Jeff MacNelly's analytical brain apparently worked the same way. <br /><br />Norm, I suppose it all depends on what the small study is designed to do. If it is a plan for a composition or values, it wouldn't necessarily address the "scale" point we're discussing.David Apatoffhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11293486149879229016noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-54739135379661969192010-05-28T17:06:06.597-04:002010-05-28T17:06:06.597-04:00I think once one is thinking spaitally, size is ir...I think once one is thinking spaitally, size is irrelevant. Like Drucker, Turner did entire harbor scenes on paper a couple of inches high and wide-he had no problem taking things up to movie screen size. Prespective forces proportion and scale, if like David says, the artist thinks out the space his drawing decsions are already decided or force upon him once he decides where he is going to put something in the picture. It a great point he is making good artist are powerful conceptualizers.Tomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04641223414745777056noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-30734534560131403872010-05-28T16:26:35.291-04:002010-05-28T16:26:35.291-04:00Sorry if I'm being too contrary here...but, I ...Sorry if I'm being too contrary here...but, I might agree with etc etc, since most artists do small studies to get ready for large pieces...but not so much the other way around.<br />Though, I think there is something to what you say. I vaguely remember a story one of my teachers told in art school of someone looking at the work of two famous artists. One artist did a huge painting and the other did a smallish but more dynamically composed one. The viewer innocently asked why the small painting looked "bigger" than the huge one.<br />(is anyone familiar with this story or who these artists may have been?)normnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-78820496370388939142010-05-28T16:17:49.058-04:002010-05-28T16:17:49.058-04:00I think you are right David, Sickles concived the ...I think you are right David, Sickles concived the <br />side plane of the battleship, more then likely he could tell you how many men could occupy that plane and how far the life boat is from the sinking ship. Even the angle at which it is sinking. That is the differnce between between trying to be accurate and comprehension. The convctions of the proportions and volumes alone in the drawings tells the viewer that the entire space has been mentality thought out.Tomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04641223414745777056noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-8694597060036050742010-05-28T15:31:26.955-04:002010-05-28T15:31:26.955-04:00"We are talking instead about the ability to ..."We are talking instead about the ability to conceptualize a scene, isolate the crucial ingredients and find creative ways to alter and prioritize them to create the illusion you want."<br /><br />Don't most seasoned illustrators and artists do this? Working in a confined space would certainly force one to edit even more, no?<br /><br />According to mosts artists working in a larger scale is far more challenging because of the difficulty of preserving pictorial unity and cohesiveness.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12189014.post-16591959790797189762010-05-28T14:28:48.421-04:002010-05-28T14:28:48.421-04:00This comment has been removed by the author.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com