the page below is beyond cool! i love concept designing for animation projects, you can really go in opposite directions when it comes to designing worlds. below that are some storyboards of concept backgrounds for the film, also very cool. i love the animation process and when i dive into books like these i get so motivated about my own work not to mention develop a greater appreciation for the film
On the Origin of Species by Charles Darwin pt.1
On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection written by, Charles Darwin
On the origin of species (as its commonly known) is a fascinating book by the one and only Charles Darwin. this was not Darwin’s first book, but its my first Darwin book. I am a big believer in reading and learning and this book has been on the list for some time know, one day i came across while searching the library shelfs for something new to read. its a beautiful big blue book filled with A LOT of words and quite a few beautiful illustrations. not sure if Darwin him self made the illustrations but he certainly made all the observations. If you like history and science and nature or just learning i highly recommend the book.
below are a few beautiful pages from the first few charters -enjoy
the book is a bit dry but its packed with amazing facts and observations, so much that its a pretty easy read, its just a lot of information
if you want to learn more about Darwin and what made him who he became, read the book Mastery by Robert Greene. Greene covers Darwin in one of his chapters. an amazing book! the audiobook is available on youtube. https://powerseductionandwar.com/ this is a link to Greenes website.
this illustrations are sooooooooo coooooool!
Big Beautiful Blue Book
The Art of WALLE pt.1
What of mankind had to leave earth, and somebody forgot to turn off the last robot?
That is the question that the creators at PIXAR kept asking while developing their amazing and genre defying film WALL E. This film is one of my favorite in the Pixar universe for many reasons, but mostly because its a great story told with out any dialogue. They went back to the student film days and made a silent film or as its known pantomine. This is an incredibly difficult thing to do on such a large scale but they proved why they are Pixar.
Anyway, this is such a beautiful film and I will be sharing a few images from their art of book. below is a link for anyone interested in buying the book
https://www.amazon.com/Art-WALL-Tim-Hauser/dp/0811862356
WALL E (WASTE ALLOCATION LOAD LIFTER-EARTH CLASS)
NYICFF 2020
If you haven’t heard about the New York International Children’s Film Festival you have been missing out!
It is a festival geared towards children with film’s from every corner of the globe, there is live action and animation. 2D, stop motion and 3D. some story driven and some experimental, the festival has something for all ages. I highly recommend everyone to attend a future screening if possible. It runs from February 21 - March 15. Saturday and Sunday screenings with opening night being a Friday.
This is my 3rd year volunteering at the festival. I love helping out at such a cool place. A few pics from the 2nd weekend.
happy alex
Spain 2019 trip
A recent trip to my favorite place Barcelona Spain. I really really really really love the city of Barcelona, this was my 4th time there with a 5th already in the works. It is a place rich in culture, art and architecture. Growing up I thought about being an architect life how ever took me in another direction but not to far. When I travel a must is to wonder the streets with my sketch book, I stop and I draw I observe and process. Drawing the city and trying to capture all its glory is a challenge but a fun and satisfying one. It is one of my favorite things to do even when Im in my home city.
A few pics from Valencia a city 4 hours south of Barcelona, It’s known for its City of Arts and Sciences which I must say is Spectacular!. A must visit for anyone, its architecture is out of this world. Its scale and design is something very rare. We need more gems like this. Talk about thinking outside the box
Oroboros art show
Showed some work at the Oroboros art show on the 22nd. Always a good time. New artist new connections
Read MoreKlee pt.2
More Images from Will Grohmann beautiful book title Klee. Below is a link, I highly recommend buying it, If that is not an option go to your local library and ask for it.
Klee pt.1
Paul Klee is one of the most well known figures from the bauhaus period. His painting and teachings on art and form and color are very interesting till this day. He experiment with some really interesting shapes, colors and lines. Although I find a lot of his work fascinating I also find plenty of it weird. Non the less I do enjoy certain pieces and its always a treat to flip through pages and study his work.
Below are a few scanned images from the beautiful book by Will Grohmann title KLEE.
I do not own or claim any rights to any of the images from this book. I suggest buying it on amazon
( https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0810912082/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i2 ) or requesting it from your local library.
what a beautiful studio, the man was always working on different paintings at once
Mrs.Klee
Like i said he has some weird work, but don’t we all when we are experimenting
very interesting
beautiful!
there are many more beautiful paintings I will be sharing within the next few post, check back weekly for more. -thanks alex-
My trip to Costa Rica
Recent took a trip with 5 friends to the beautiful land of Costa Rica, America Central. We stayed by the beautiful Playa Hermosa and by the just "okay" San Jose capital.
The beaches are beautiful while the city has its beauty like any other city, but the pollution from gas powered vehicles is very high. I could feel the smog with every breath.
So if you ever get the chance take a trip to the beauty cost of Costa Rica.
We spent time in Playa Tamarindo, busting with young people, great tourists place, popular surf and many travellers especially around the hostels of the area.
first views of the country
sunset from the airbnb
wondering local
volcano
makers market
local restaurant
volcano irazu
these trees where so common
Playa Tamarindo
massive tree, so cool
sick guy all week
serious ziplining, so much fun
airport naps, get them where you can
Exploring some jungle
Soviet Union Documents and the Russian Revolution
A few scan images from David King’s Red Star Over Russia. An amazing book with so many beautiful illustrations and photographs. Below are a few documents from the book. I hope to share more in future post.
Blanton Museum of Art visit pt.2
A few other images from my recent visit to Austin Texas.
Blanton Museum of Art visit pt.1
I recently spent a week in Austin Texas. Let me say the weather was perfect and the city has something for everyone. From Nature to Night life, Art/music to food, Austin has it all. Also very very nice people. But any who I went to the Blanton museum of art located in the downtown area next to the Bullock Texas state history museum.
I high recommend visiting the Ellsworth Kelly building. If you plan it right you can catch some beautiful lighting. Check out their website for more information https://blantonmuseum.org/
Naturally I took a whole lotta photos, not because I was on holiday but because there was a lot and I mean a lot of work that really stood out to me. With the exception of a handful of contemporary pieces I enjoyed the whole museum. Everything form traditional to the abstract was candy for my eyes and sugar for my brain. So enjoy the slide show and hope you can one day visit the museum for your self.
P.s. there is so much that I will be making two updates for this. So half the pictures now and half next update
Ellsworth Kelly building
Stuart Davis
Blanton museum of art
Calvin and Hobbes the essential
This update will be a good one. I’ve got a lot of images of one of my favorite comics. I love everything about it. The style the colors the humor, Its all so so amazing and fun to read. A true fun comic that makes me laugh and puts a smile on my face. Enough said, enjoy the visual bliss!!
The Essential Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson. Publish by Andrews McMeel Publishing. LLC
Vassily Kandinsky le père de l'abstraction
I have a huge love for all Bauhaus art and artist that where a part of that 1920’s movement. I love Vassily Kandinsky work, some of it is really strange but I love the exploration of space, shapes and lines in his work.
Here are a few of my favorite works, enjoy!
How I made art for Mom, a short look into my process
What do you get someone for their birthday when they don’t really want anything and you don’t wanna show ur love through materialistic things cause you not about that life? well…I’m glad you asked… Well that someone was my mom, and so being that I am an artist, I was like duhh, I’ll just draw her something and frame it.
I spent about one week on the project in between work and being sick, so it took a bit longer than expected but I finally finished it up and I will say I am happy with the final out come.
I will share a the work that led to the final outcome. I usually do multiple drafts before a design is settled on. I started with some small thumb nails, right from the start I kinda new it would be a small project because I had done a larger of a similar idea. That project was for a friends wedding gift a few months ago and it took way longer and was with oil pastels (I will eventually upload the work) this one was with color pencil.
So here are a few of the thumb nails
This project was 8.5 by 11 inches. I did a few sketches on what it could look like and I add color
I moved on to the big framing, by this point I was not 100% on the design so I played around some more but the final design was found pretty fast. As the design evolved I played with color variations and some familiar shapes patterns.
This project took longer then expected and the main reason was indecisiveness on my part. I could not come to an agreement for a final color combo. I took a few days to think and the thoughts settled, woke up one morning and my first though while laying in bed where “ I am going to finish this today, no more indecisiveness, today we choose and live with those choices”. And so here we have the it the final design, all that remains is picking a proper frame.
Colored pencil on 8.5 by 11in paper
Landmarks of the Skeleton
The Skeleton is very complex but at the same time its only 206 bones. Like anything else when you don't have a strong understanding you will most likely struggle with it. It is strongly recommended that the time is put in for any serious artists to learn the bones, not all 206 bones are necessary but the more you know the better it will serve you when it comes to drawing them.
A good way to start is with the simpler more popular bones, like the ribcage and hips, arms and legs. The body has certain landmarks that can help you start a drawing, these landmarks very but for the most part, they are noticeable on all people. Below are a number of images from Roberto Osti Basic Human Anatomy book. This book has rich images and in chapter 3 he focuses on labeling the bones to a great degree. I Highly recommend this book.
All Images taken from Basic Human Anatomy by Roberto Osti
The Structural Skeleton
In the 2nd chapter of Roberto Osti book Basic Human Anatomy an essential visual guide for artists, a Hybrid conceptualization is explored in great detail. What is meant by Hybrid conceptualization is a combination of the Stereometric approach (which involves geometric solids such as cubes, spheres, cylinders, tetrahedrons etc.)
Conceptualization the skeleton according to its basic structures gives us an idea of how it is built, how its parts are joined together, how it moves and how the weight is carried and distributed.
Hybrid conceptualization offers advantages, its easier and faster to draw and they create a more realistic figure. When studying these proporttions remember that they are generalization, actual proportions will vary somewhat from person to person.
Once you understand the method of analyzing the body you can come up with your own approach.
A few things about the rib cage, the 7th and 8th ribs are the widest point of the ribcage. The 11th and 12th ribs are barely visible from the front, they are referred to as "floating ribs" in this book.
The female hips will be typically wider especially at the pelvic brim which tends to have a more oval shape. Whereas the male tends to be narrower and have a more heart shape.
ALL text and Images are taken directly from Roberto Osti Basic Human Anatomy
Basic Human Anatomy
Basic Human Anatomy and essential visual guide for artists by Roberto Osti is as good an anatomy book as you can find in the market. With simple explanations and rich visuals it's a great book for any young artist trying to learn more and sharpen their fundamentals.
The Fundamentals of drawing are very simple, Anatomy and Perspective are certainly in top 5 most valuable skills for improving. Learn some Anatomy and draw better right, sounds simple but the reality is Anatomy alone takes years if not a lifetime to master, that's why it is important to start educating your self as soon as possible and as much as possible, going to your local library and checking out some of their art books is in some ways better then clicking through the endless internet
The Stereometric Method
The Stereometric Method was devised during the Sixteenth century in a period know as the Renaissance, Italian Mannerist painter Luca Cambiaso created many sketches and compositional studies with many levels of schematization. Painter Piero della Francesca, Paolo Uccello, Albrecht Durer, and Leonardo de Vinci all used this method before starting and big work.
"The artist with a good knowledge of Anatomy will be able to create more beautiful and accurate artwork because he or she will have the means to better understand the forms of the body" -Roberto Osti
Stereometric rendering can be used for compositional purposes as well as for studying light and shadow. Because the moving figure is such a challenging subject to draw or paint, it can be of great help to subdivide the figure into various components and then reassemble them. The Stereometric approach employs boxlike shapes, it can be slow and impractical so as you progress more organic forms closer to the human body can be used.
"Once you understand how the segments of the body relate to proportionally and how they are connected you can start to create a variety of poses" -Roberto Osti
ALL text and images are taken from Roberto Osti Basic Human Anatomy
Art Trip to Cleveland
i took a solo art trip in early August, wanted to do something different and so i went to Cleveland for "The Jass Age" exhibit. Well, funny thing is, i was so excited i forgot to check dates and so it was quite funny when i showed up asking about it. But i enjoyed myself so much while out there that it didn't matter, excited to go back and see it for real this time, the Museum was really great and FREE!
HoJo Art
Spent the weekend in New Jersey. At a hojo, the art on the walls was such a treat. 3 floors of mostly old photos and from around the world. The 2nd floor was paintings, big ones. Beautiful stuff, a few Kandinsky I did not catch but these others where nice
