SaintAsh's Sketchbook

[SaintAsh]

Hi everyone,

I'm trying to push my work with watercolor and graphite to a new level, so what better way than to practice daily? Feedback and critique of any kind is most welcome.

First batch:

[SaintAsh]

Sketching out ideas:




My latest in-depth graphite piece:


Having fun with watercolor:

[Boo!]

awesome style! great work so far... really enjoying it

[Icedearth15876]

Great stuff so far, you don't need much improvement but keep up the good work!

[FightingSeraph]

So far, I don't see what needs to be improved upon. I love your watercolor stuff, though.

[adammelo]

I appreciate the willfull-ness to really attempt to push watercolors, it seems like recently people have been setting it aside as "old" or "boring" mearly personal observations from my specific area though, not a world view lol Keep it up !


Sketch back if you'd like...

[SaintAsh]

Boo! -- Thanks for looking.

Icedearth15876 and FightingSeraph -- Psh, there's always room for improvement. Thanks for looking!

adammelo -- Unfortunately, that's an attitude I've run across; for whatever reason, some people think watercolor equates to a little old lady hobby. Go figure.

Anyway...



I love using the color blue, probably too much. Gotta move past that.


A quick experiment with letting colors pool together.

[SaintAsh]

Pushing myself to use some dry brush technique. Pose is referenced from Sarah Simblet's Anatomy for the Artist. Also, that FUCKING EAR. Argh.


The scanner butchered this, to a point; the rest was me. I was gunning for something more subtle than my usual globs of color, but I'm not happy with this. The background needs more changes in value. Also, next time I post, I'm going to have to show some hand sketches just to prove I'm not afraid of drawing them.


I like to warm up before painting any figurework with an abstract.

[Keeviin]

This is awesome. The last one in post #7 is especially trippy!

I'll be back.

[SaintAsh]

Keeviin -- Thanks for looking.

Hands, as promised:

I need to study the joints of the fingers more; some of these are dangerously close to tube-territory.


I've always been fascinated with shapeshifters and their connection with their skin, from the idea of a selkie slipping free of its entire skin to a more half and half, Navajo skinwalker deal. I don't like this sketch, but I see promise in it. Will probably poke at it more later.


My Achilles' heel: clothing. I'm dipping my toes into the pool in the easiest way possible: a hat, so there's still a lot of anatomy to work on. I used a direct reference here, some random photo on the 'net.


I was not in a good mood when I painted this. In case you couldn't tell.


Experimenting with laying down some initial, heavy washes and then pulling out a figure.

[qwerty12345]

These are absolutely great! Love the first one in #7 post.

[mariusz]

Hi man!

Great SB! I like to see more from you.

all the best,
Mariusz

[Greip]

Nice SB! Though I'd love to see some more loose watercolour paintings. Maybe It's just me who prefer a more rough style, but you should try to do some more loose paintings like this one.

Anyway, nice stuff!

[SaintAsh]

qwerty12345 and mariusz -- Thanks for stopping by.

Greip -- Aha! Some critique! I took up your suggestion of trying a looser style, and I'm really enjoying the results so far. Thanks!


Wanted to achieve a very raw, visceral feeling with this. I wish I'd left a bit more contrast in value in the iris.


Hmm. This was just a pure experiment in combining a portrait-like style with abstract puddling of color that didn't follow the planes of the face. The vacant expression irritates me.


Fighting my phobia of clothing.

[stragan]

Of course there's always something to improve on...
let me try to pick out a really bad mistake you need to fix..



.. oh wait I can't.
you're really good lol

[adammelo]

I like the blue watercolored concentration you did on the human form, keep it up!

[BriAppleTree]

I love your style so much, I love how you make the watercolors web out. So gorgeous. I also really like how the people sometimes turn into abstract lines.

[SaintAsh]

Thanks all.


A quick study of distant, foggy hills for a background. Meh. Need to practice more of these.


I realize the upper arm is extremely short and the lower part is grossly long, but I rather like the effect of the distortion.

[Greip]

Nice stuff!

[SaintAsh]

Thanks!

Tackling with clothes once more:


I got sloppy with the anatomy here. The face...ugh.


Another myth/concept I'm intrigued by is the Wendigo, a malicious spirit in Algonquian mythology that embodies cannibalism, especially in the face of starvation or famine. I'm thinking about doing a series around this concept, and this is an initial sketch. It turned out more insectile than anything, but my goal is more toward tree branches reminiscent of antlers.


Another Wendigo idea, this time of a modern day version. I want to make this piece more subtle than a hulking half-tree, half-man...maybe clawed fingers or an open-lipped smile revealing sharp teeth. More sketches needed. And that hat totally kicked my ass.

[mariusz]

very cool update!

all the best,
Mariusz

[Ricardo Robles]

Hey saint ash, I´m loving your water color work, I see you use diverse techniques..
paint anathomy with water c is such a difficult thing, you´re doing great!

[SaintAsh]

Mariusz -- thanks.

Ricardo -- It's definitely a temperamental medium; just the other day I attempted and ruined two paintings through bungled anatomy. Practice, practice, practice, I guess.


I dunno. I look at this and my mind goes, "Pissed-off Jesus". Was trying to mix loose, nearly chaotic strokes with a few areas of fine detail to create a focus.


Forcing myself away from copious amounts of blue.

[Greip]

I dunno. I look at this and my mind goes, "Pissed-off Jesus". Was trying to mix loose, nearly chaotic strokes with a few areas of fine detail to create a focus.

Nice mix of different techniques! Though the pigments look a bit dead, that happens to me a lot when I use cheap paper (I've no idea what you're using, but anyway...) or when I work too much with the brush. I mean, It's a really good piece but the colours could be a little more alive. I've no real advice, but better paper and colours usually do the trick, atleast for me! Great improvement anyway.

[Gilead]

These are cool. It's a very interesting style.
You said you have trouble with clothing, but I'd think drapes are a perfect opportunity to use your abstract notions. Like a tightly rendered head and shoulders with a gown that bleeds off into the background or something like that.

[PxelSlayer]

I absolutely LOVE your watercolor pictures! It is such a hard medium to use (for me), and you make it look so easy. Highly impressive!

[andres333]

Great! good use of color

[SaintAsh]

Greip -- As much as I'd like to blame the paper, the color muddiness was all me. I like to use Arches coldpress, and usually it shows off color like a dream. I'm thinking it was my using too much burnt sienna.

Gilead -- Ah, I like that idea! Thanks for suggesting it; my mind is already jumping up and down at the possibilities.

PxelSlayer -- Thanks for looking.

andres333 -- Thanks, man.


Testing out a type of watercolor paper that's not my usual Arches coldpress. I hate it at this point; the paper has little tooth, meaning it soaks up enough of the initial stroke to make scrubbing impossible while any remaining pigment simply slips and slides.


This was not a good sketching day.



Idea for a post-apocalyptic piece. I'm kind of tempted to see how "grungy" I can make my watercolors without killing the colors.


You gotta love crazy hair. The hand kills me. MUST SKETCH MORE HANDS.

[SaintAsh]

Meh. Another poke at my wendigo idea. Still in progress.




I've sworn to start daily posemaniac workouts. These are my first attempts. I think once I get past the initial "GAAAAHH ONLY 60 SECONDS TO DRAW GAAAAAHHHHH" panic attack, I'll actually be able to render the damn forms.

[tobbA]

Love your watercolors. Very inspiring.

I don't think your pencils are quite as impressive... perhaps work on your lines some more? Still cool to look at tho

Keep up the good work