http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis Art Analysis: What Makes Illustrations Tick Wed, 01 Sep 2010 02:04:30 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.5 en hourly 1 http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=1038 http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=1038#comments Tue, 31 Aug 2010 22:04:29 +0000 Scott McDaniel http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=1038 The Last Paladin by Tor books. We'll look at the picture's development and its use as a cover. Giancola likes to start with strong abstract compositions as the base and then work toward strong realism. We'll look at the abstract patterns he uses and how they guide the eye, and we'll also look at some of his finely detailed rendering. Finally, we'll look at the thought and research that went into the narrative and characterization. For example, Persian manuscript covers inspired the patterns on the shields, yet the armor styles are more western European. What does this tell us about the events in the scene, and how does it contribute to mood and theme?]]> http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?feed=rss2&p=1038 0 http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=987 http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=987#comments Mon, 19 Jul 2010 01:17:26 +0000 Scott McDaniel http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=987 Rackham and Dulac. (I just picked up a good book on Dulac, so I'll be doing one of his soon). Vess' book Drawing Down the Moon is a great overview of his work. (Great production values too - the chapter division pages are really cool.) I picked The White Goddess because it's a rare opportunity to see two finished versions of the same piece - one in color and one in black and white. What decisions does Vess make differently based on the choice of medium? We'll look at several examples, plus we'll check out the overall composition.]]> http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?feed=rss2&p=987 0 http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=932 http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=932#comments Fri, 07 May 2010 20:09:51 +0000 Scott McDaniel http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=932 Dover book, and it was hard to decide which one to look at for an analysis. If you're a fan of golden age illustration, you should definitely check this one out. I chose this one in the end for a few reasons. For one, we get a clear sense of character - to me this seems like more than just your generic old woman. She's been through a lot. Also, Rackham gives us lots of texture and line work that is fun to get lost in. The recent analysis of Dürer was an example of highly precise, controlled linework. This drawing, though, shows linework that is loose and flowing, yet still controlled. Rackham's picture has clearly separated foreground, midground, and background elements, and it also has an effective silhouette and composition.]]> http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?feed=rss2&p=932 1 http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=888 http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=888#comments Mon, 26 Apr 2010 21:00:23 +0000 Scott McDaniel http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=888 Cover for new album of some multiinstrumentalist. The idea of giant creature, ancient and multihanded with different instruments is clients idea. Ive done all in photoshop using some textures of stones and trees. Hope You like it C&C most welcome. Best Regards Torturr I'm particularly impressed by the sense of scale Sadlos gets into the picture. There's no doubt that this guy is huge, but in the wilderness setting we don't have normal geometric cues like vanishing points to help us. We'll look at the image's perspective, plus its lighting, colors, textures, and overall design. I'll also point out a probable mistake and take a guess as to how it came about.]]> http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?feed=rss2&p=888 3 http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=865 http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=865#comments Tue, 20 Apr 2010 18:24:33 +0000 Scott McDaniel http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=865 Snake Women, is from his book Mirage. Here he dispenses with the chain mail bikini level entirely to create fantasy erotica. Note: The image is Not Safe For Work.]]> http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?feed=rss2&p=865 2 http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=818 http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=818#comments Fri, 26 Mar 2010 20:35:42 +0000 Scott McDaniel http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=818 her entry in Wikipedia. Norman Rockwell painted this picture for Look magazine. Though J. C. Leyendecker did more covers for the Saturday Evening Post, Rockwell is best known for his long run with them. Their art direction and editorial guidelines constrained his work, however, and after his last painting for them in 1963 he moved in a more socially outspoken direction, and Look was buying. In this analysis I'll go over what makes this very simple painting so powerful.]]> http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?feed=rss2&p=818 2 http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=779 http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=779#comments Thu, 11 Mar 2010 20:22:26 +0000 Scott McDaniel http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=779 ConceptArt.org has, among other things, an activity called "Character of the Week." In November of 2009, one of the topics was "Steampunk Harem." Aly Fell (aka Poshspice) is a long-time participant in the Character of the Week activities and is one of the current moderators. This is the painting he did for the activity, and in addition to capturing the brief I think it's a fine example of the classic pinup. For this analysis, I'll look at several things, including what makes something a pinup, composition and rhythm, and the role of details in creating a finished piece.]]> http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?feed=rss2&p=779 1 http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=746 http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=746#comments Mon, 01 Mar 2010 03:37:25 +0000 Scott McDaniel http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=746 Ian Miller pointed me to Albrecht Dürer. He had a table at the first Illuxcon and had some of his fantastic ink drawings on display. It was great to be able to get up close to see just what was going on, because unlike most comics inking you couldn't really see the individual lines until you got up close. For example, I remember looking at Castles for quite a while. I'd like to thank him for providing a high resolution version of THD for the analysis. I first saw it on his web site, and he was kind enough to send a version I could use to take detail images. THD is an ink drawing, but then he colored it, I'm guessing with watercolor. I'll go into the color choices and linework, but I'll also touch on the composition, concept, and ways he guides our eyes through the picture.]]> http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?feed=rss2&p=746 1 http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=702 http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=702#comments Mon, 22 Feb 2010 19:37:07 +0000 Scott McDaniel http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=702 Ian Miller, like Trees and Insects. He was kind enough to do a portfolio review for me, and during the process recommended that I start with Dürer. So, here we are. I chose The Men's Bath because we can clearly see the techniques Dürer used in the linework. This in a medium in which the artist and craftsmen who then cut the blocks had to be aware of and consider every line, every mark. We'll look at examples of how Dürer handled form of the body, textures like wood and stone, and background elements like buildings and trees. He used hatching, feathering, and cross-hatching to establish values in what is basically a black and white medium. While that medium may be woodcut, the principles apply equally well to inking with brush and pen today.]]> http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?feed=rss2&p=702 1 http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=655 http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=655#comments Wed, 17 Feb 2010 00:55:18 +0000 Scott McDaniel http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?p=655 Museum of Bad Art. It fills me with wonder. Among other things I wonder what on earth the artist was thinking. Because I certainly can't tell from the painting. It's horrific. Yet... you can't look away. Like many good pieces of art, this image poses more questions than it answers. It's a visual train accident that spins our heads on their rubber necks. Somehow mixed metaphors seem appropriate. As its source implies, this is one bad painting, and I'll go into why below. But you know what? I'm glad somebody made it. That "somebody," according to MoBA is K. Koch. The museum got it at a yard sale in 2007, and that's all I really know about the painting itself. Well, OK, it also says that it's oil on canvas and 2 feet by 1.5 feet. We know in our gut that it's a bad painting the moment we see it. But why is it bad? What about it is so bad that it qualifies for the MoBA collection? Let's see.]]> http://www.scottmcd.net/artanalysis/?feed=rss2&p=655 1