The Infamous Five Squared

Before I got fired from my job - oh, did I tell you guys I got fired? I got fired. Before that, I was standing around drawing. This was not the reason I got fired. It was an art shop. We could, occasionally, get away with drawing. Occasionally. We just had to remember it was a shop sometimes.

We would demonstrate products to customers using a small pad of A6 paper. I'd often nab one of these pads to doodle in during quiet moments, and during one of these quiet moments I doodled one of The Infamous Five. Then I doodled another one. Eventually, I decided it would be a good idea to draw each member of the five, five times.

I stopped thinking this was a good idea by the tenth drawing, but I'd already started so now I had to finish. And here they are.



The goal was that each pose represents who they are entirely as a character, their personality communicated purely by what you're looking at. So that right away you would know the type of character they are. You wouldn't need to read a bio and could tell each character is vastly different to the other.

I didn't want to use too many props, to just work with body expressions. Complete improv using only their nature. Although at one point I got bored and went all in with the props. Ha. Each row has a theme.

1. Infamously Casual - How they mostly behave.
2. Infamous Hand Jobs - The hand gestures they use.
3. Infamous Stand Jobs - Even standing is unique.
4. Infamous Props - The shit they use.
5. Infamously Sexy - I kinda messed this one up...

...with the exception of Ant, the middle guy, who I imagine really would think rubbing his nipples is sexy to others, I just drew the rest in feminim poses. 'cos it amused me.

God Damn Horses

Horses are famously hard to draw. So when I was asked not only to draw horses but to give them charateristics, I was like "SHIT." Not in my correspondance, of course. Officially I replied "Of course. No problem. Sure thing."

Despite my panic, I've learned to loosen up in recent years. Just get that pencil on paper. Use reference photos, look at how other artists work. Stop focusing on making it 'look good' and enjoy making the lines. Basically, what you did as a kid. Enjoy making a god damn picture.

I'm way less upset these days about things 'not looking the way are in my head'. Now I'm just happy they're out. After all, these no reason I can't keep drawing horses. I mean I'm not gonna, but there's no reason I can't.

Flights of Thunder - Breakout Heroes

Last month, I shared the last pages of a sketchbook I’d had for the last 3 stages of my life. I shared the fact I don't know what the next stage is. This month, the only thing I know is that started a new sketchbook. Here are 3 more Breakout Heroes.

Super 13

I've been filling up a little sketchbook with superheroes and villains, though I haven't quite decided who is who yet. Regardless, I'm now going to share them with you. Why now? Just 'cos I needed to update this month, nothing special. No wait, I mean, uh, because YOU'RE special. Yes.

These characters share the same story as the ones I shared previously, here and here to be exact, though I'm not ready to share the story yet. Hopefully you'll find these guys and girls intriguing enough to eventually want to read it though.

The story isn't called 'Super 13', that's just how many characters I have in my current sketchbook. Coupled with previous updates, the cast currently looks like this:

I like a big cast.

Sketch Dailies

 @Sketch_Dailies tweets a topic every day for artists to sketch, then retweets the results. It's a good drawing community to be part of, where you can discover new artists and maybe be discovered yourself. I've built up enough of these sketches now to post a decent blog about it.

Kraken

The Topic here was 'Kraken'. I knew everyone would post giant tentacled sea creatures - because, well, that's what a kraken is - so I went the opposite direction to stand out. I... can't say this particular tactic has brought me much success yet.

Ghoul

This topic was 'Ghoul'. I thought that was just another word for ghost but apparently it's an evil spirit that eats corpses. I tried to draw loosely, hence the strange anatomy and weird eyes. I imagined he goes 'ngyun ngyun ngyun' as he eats. That was also the sound I made when I drew it.

Basilisk

This topic was 'Basilisk'. I assumed they were simply giant snakes but after checking, they're apparently smaller and with a white spot on their head shaped like a diadem. I also had to check what a diadem was. When I found out I had fun coming up with a design for it. Apparently Basiliks can have bird-like features too, but I went full serpant.

Kappa

This topic was 'Kappa'. I hadn't heard of a Kappa before, but after reading the Japanese folklore I was raring to draw one: a frog-monkey-like creature, with a tutle shell on its back and a pool of water in its head. It sounded really fun. I mean I did go on to read they sometimes attack, rape, and drown people but whatever.

Fantasy Week, Part 7

• The first creature uses its long scrawny arms to pull creatures into its mouth full of thick broken teeth, and pulverizes into them for food. Excess bones and blood get spat out the hold in its head. At this point I should tell you the theme for this page is monstrous horrors.
• To me nothing looks more lethal than something skinny and spikey, something that's too quick and nimble for you to fight back whilst it cuts you with every touch. I'm not even sure what this spikey thing is, a robot, a bug, an alien, just keep it away from me.
• A floating monster skull surrounded by spinning fire, should effectively frighten any adventurer, perhaps more so than it did whilst alive.
• Okay, this cloaked monster isn't quite so scary. It has a simple grumpy face and what looks like a dumpy lizard body. Whatever. It knows the crowd it wants to hang out with.
• Alright, I had a little bit of space at the bottom of the page and what happened was a dragon in the shape of glasses. Don't tell me you wouldn't be scared if you opened your glasses case and saw those staring at you.

The theme here was anthropomorphic, creatures that are more humanly shaped than animal.

• The first guy looks mean. The kind of mean that'll cause you problems whether you get in his way or not.
• Cyclops guy is angry. Judging by his dress, maybe he just lost a swim competition. Or won? Angry, cheering, it's always hard to tell with a cyclops.
• Originally I was going to write that the theme of this page was 'monster solders' but it's hard to imagine this pudgy thing with janky arms being a soldier. Imagine being told this guy was gonna defend you.
• I didn't mean for the last creature too look sleepy. I wanted narrowed eyes, but to convey thought and intensity. Instead, she looks, well... let's say that magic has a lot of slang terms and you feel hungry after performing it.

Guess the theme. Go on. I dare you.

• The first bird has such a bushy head and tail it could hide in an actual bush. Which seems odd, 'cos it doesn't seem like you're taking the advantage of flight if your camouflage depends on what's on the ground.
• I had the idea for this creature for a while but didn't get round to it for a long time. Why do we do that? Anyway, it's a wingless bird so tiny that it flies by gripping onto the spinning propeller-like blades of a certain plant.
• Almost every one of these birds have a unique pattern on their large, droopy wings. On the rare occasions that two birds discover they share a pattern, they fly off. Scientists aren't sure where, nor are they sure if they're flying off to fight or fu- the other thing.
• I suppose I like the idea of ear wings because I drew them again on this bird, with even more wings down its body. Without feet to land, it instead rests by dripping vines with its head feather and hanging from it.
• The last bird has a beak that beings from the top of its head, providing a sturdy helmet. What? You don't know how tough some of those clouds are.

THAT'S IT! The end of Fantasy Week 2015. Actually I've got a couple more pages like this but I need to save up for Fantasy Week 2016. I don't know what I'll be posting next... I hope you'll come back to find out!

Fantasy Week, Part 6

• It doesn't matter how beautiful the rest of your coral reef body is, if you start off with a giant clam for a head, people are gonna keep their distance.
• This fish-man looks like he'd be quite pleased if people kept their distance.

This page started with a lizard so happy I couldn't see how anything else on this page could be anything but smiling.

• The first creature, though clearly a demon of some kind, seems just as scared of Hell as anyone else.
• The centaur creature pushed itself onto four legs so as not to be defined as a bug. Bugs get squished. Centaurs gets bows.
• Werewolves belong in 'horror' more so than fantasy, in my opinion. Although, that's my opinion in blogger-mode. In drawing mode, my opinion is 'let me draw what I like, you internet twat.'
• The slab of rock with its crown-like head fancies itself a king. It could very well be a king, but no one's gonna take orders from a rock.
• I felt the last thing I drew should have as much energy as the werewolf. Or at least, more energy than the rock. So here's a running, flightless bird. It looks scared. It may be pissed I made it flightless. Hey, at least I put the wolf running in the opposite direction.

Fantasy Week, Part 5

• I don't know how much mischief that first creature can cause with just a head and four little legs but with an expression like that I wouldn't want to test him.
• Not many bears have a long flowing mane yet this one seems determined not to be thought of as less powerful.
• I asked my boyfriend to give me a word and I'd come up with a creature related to it. He said 'dront'. That made me think of a short, tough, aggressive creature so I drew this armoured horned beast. He later told me 'dront' was Swedish for 'dodo'. Oh. Well, I got the 'short' part right.
• A mechanical bug with fire coming out the butt. Who would invent such a thing? My theory is that it crawls around bars for all those people that ask "Got a light?" My second theory is that it incinerates anyone who asks "Got a cigarette?"
• Another fish with seaweed hair apparently, although this one has a shell hat. He appears to be on his way to a party. I certainly didn't plan to draw him that way. Perhaps I just wasn't invited.

• Two days ago I said I would include monkeys on these pages, but didn't really know what to do with them. Do you see what I mean now? I drew this guy and I liked it, but there's no fantasy element to here. It's just a monkey. I guess, subconciously, I think monkeys are pretty cool and varied enough as they are.
• Drawing wings on the side of that bird's head meant it was destined not to fly, but I don't care. I like it this way.
• This snake doesn't have eyes on its head, it has them everywhere else instead. That's a nice little rhyme, so I'll quit while I'm ahead.

There may have been a theme attempted here, to make each creature on this page a monstrous beast. It starts off strong enough with the bat creature, but then the wolf I followed it up with looks rather fluffy and wide-eyed. No claws, no snarling teeth. The demon creature has those, but his stance isn't imposing, he could be waiting at a bus stop. Then there's a little bug, simply keeping company. Don't get me wrong, I ilke these guys. But the theme that started with the bat, seemed to end with it.

Fantasy Week hasn't ended though. More tomorrow!

Fantasy Week, Part 4

• You've heard of the Three Wise Monkeys, right? Avoiding evil by covering their eyes, ears and mouth with their hands? Well this monkey is a little more proactive and prefers to use his giant hands to give evil an old fashioned beat down! Or steal bananas, I forget which.
• The fat fish is in fact mostly air, floating about the ocean and gulping whatever comes its way. The obvious course of action is, of course, not to go its way but it somehow always needs to be where other fish need to go.
• Bugs thought they'd have an easy time when they heard one species of frog ditched two of its legs as 'fuck you' to the whole jumping thing. It was a nasty surprise when they discovered the frog had instead developed a far superior tongue to its cousins.
• The hairy thing with the horns leads a primarily sedantry lifestyle and as such can mislead others into thinking its harmless. Just remember, it has those horns for a reason.
• Here's the first machine of these fantasy-filled pages. So exciting! It's purpose? It fills awkward space left by artists making up composition as they went along. The next machines are more interesting.

This is the first time I set myself a goal on one of these fantasy pages, a little theme. I wanted each creature to be made of something different to the other. I ended up with something mechanical, biological and then a spooky thing. I hope I don't lose your interest for the rest by saying this, but, this is one of my favourite pages.

• Machines are becoming a regular feature now as I go with another robot, only this has much much simpler shapes. He's not actually smiling, that's just how the two halves of his head fit together. It's easy to forget that though and find yourself charmed by him. Some people deliberately forget.
• Despite his giant sharp teeth, this creature is more grouchy than dangerous. Smaller creatures like to relax on its huge fluffy body, and though he finds it annoying the grouchy creature always misses them when they're gone.
• If I recall correctly, I started drawing this plant creature thinking 'Don't just draw a flower person, do something more creative'. I was left with a flower person. I love it anyway.
• The fish came about from the thought 'What would a fish with seaweed hair look like?' The answer was just dandy. It looks just dandy.

More tomorrow!

Fantasy Week, part 3

• The first creature looks like it's from space, and it looks like it was a mean creature in charge of something. At his current size, that probably won't carry over here. But the floating cloak is a neat trick.
• Sometimes when I make up birds, I like to go crazy with the beaks. This bird's entire face is a beak, with similar material on its legs. Maybe it has run-ins with that dragon from yesterday, or feeds on a rather tough worm.
• The smaller bird next to it can't fly as high or as far but it's happy to get any lift, even if its tail still drags along the ground.
• Despite the popular myth, cutting a worm in half does not give you two worms. This one, however, is already two worms. Good luck getting near it with a blade.
• A trend starts on this page where I include monkeys on these monster-filled pages but don't really know what to do with them. I think the reason for that is that I peaked with this monkey that is also a banana.
• The bat? I'll be honest with you, there was space in the middle of the paper which I just decided to fill with a bat.

• Snakes think slithering is the best method to get around but this one discovered springing.
• Bees dies when they sting someone, this one had the good sense to grow more than one stinger.
• The horns on this slug's shell would make great handles if you wanted to ride it, although the compromise is that you wouldn't get anywhere particularly fast.
• See what I mean about going mad with beaks? This one's got a whole headress thing going on with his.
• I imagine this petal-headed reptile camoflauges itself by hiding in a bunch of flowers, and hopes no one notices one of the flowers has a long green lizard face poking out. 
• I based the last one on a lynx. Lynxes are beautiful and I'm not sure why I don't draw them more often.

• You'd think being a dinosaur-dragon would be more exciting than what this one's facial expression is currently protraying. Maybe he thinks his pattern of square makes him boring, like that famous expression "Be there, or be a square-patterned dinosaur-dragon."
• This duck-like creature is just happy, and that makes me happy.
• I'm annoyed that the hairy little mammal is apparently staring up at the dino-dragon, I didn't want anything on these pages to be intereacting with each other. But at least someone is interested in those squares.
• I'm rather fond of this chunky fish. I don't think it'd be nimble enough to strip off your flesh in seconds like a piranha, but it'd give you a decent tug-of-war with your leg. Or boat engine.

More tomorrow!