Follow Muddy Colors, filter it, and define how you want to receive the news (via Email, RSS, Telegram, WhatsApp etc.) https://follow.it/muddy-colors Tue, 30 May 2023 18:42:31 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8msC4FXTkhn6DHgrmwRGUK6

Pins! Why, yes, I do feel late to the game when it comes to making enamel pins. But, you know what, it turns out that I enjoy the process! What’s more, I enjoyed not working in Adobe Illustrator. In fact, that’s what held me up for such a long time. For years I could hardly stand the thought of dealing with solid lines and vectors. So, as much as I admired the pins that I…]]> Tue, 30 May 2023 11:00:34 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8msC4FXTkhn6DHgrmwRGUK6 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8nS1mE0KnW6kP9M7fKGWt0o

Please excuse us while we take today to honor our fallen Soldiers.…]]> Mon, 29 May 2023 20:10:18 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8nS1mE0KnW6kP9M7fKGWt0o https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8m_Vg-_d7du0XKSkciKEY1s

A more clickbait title for this post would be “the ONE TRICK artists use to make things look more polished!”. Luckily, I’m not here to write clickbait, but this post actually is about a trick I use to give my illustrations the finishing touch, so let me introduce you to the concept of… “floaty compositional bits”! Essentially, these are abstract graphical elements added to an image to create visual interest or noise. If an image…]]> Fri, 26 May 2023 12:00:11 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8m_Vg-_d7du0XKSkciKEY1s https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8lWH0XeE-bMee4sICfMfkNm

I’m excited to share that the opening for my solo exhibition “Bloom” is coming up on June 10th in a couple weeks. I’m currently finishing up, packing and shipping these new paintings out to Ryan Joseph Gallery in Denver, CO. The exhibition will run through July 12. I’m really looking forward to sharing these new paintings and wanted to share a sneak peek at a few paintings in their WIP states here before the show.…]]> Thu, 25 May 2023 12:30:29 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8lWH0XeE-bMee4sICfMfkNm https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8kuro-vd_-giclTP0vptTFR

When I was approached about doing this piece for Tor Books, the concept was relatively narrowed down. Essentially, the brief asked for a portrait of a woman covered in worms and noted some references to 70s and 80s horror posters. This was a strange crossroads for me as I feel very at home in horror and creepy art, I enjoy and was already familiar with most of the mood pieces sent, and I’m also really…]]> Wed, 24 May 2023 12:00:06 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8kuro-vd_-giclTP0vptTFR https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8nmPxmh-f0bIEoy9CZgXDJO

If you’ve been practicing drawing for years, a newbie or a seasoned pro you know that age-old advice, “draw from life.” It seems to be the answer for all sorts of art questions, like, how can I get better?  How can I draw faster? How do I find my style? First, what is drawing from life? Drawing from life, or sometimes called, “drawing from observation’ is a practice where the artist draws what they see…]]> Tue, 23 May 2023 12:00:41 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8nmPxmh-f0bIEoy9CZgXDJO https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8kuq1DeQeFDssqq6eZJzUh9

Above: Dave Stevens in costume for a signing in Las Vegas, circa 1983. “Well, I do expect a lot of myself. I’m a harsh critic because I know what I’m capable of. I have hit those occasional peaks amongst the valleys, but the peaks are so few-things like genuine flashes of virtuoso brush inking, like I’ve never executed before or since-I can count on one hand the number of jobs where I’ve been able to…]]> Mon, 22 May 2023 11:30:58 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8kuq1DeQeFDssqq6eZJzUh9 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8l2rk8b4e5X1WZMehmtHS8-

When it comes to a smooth, lightweight and rigid ground, an aluminum composite material (ACM) panel is the substrate to use. The surface is durable and versatile, allowing for creative applications in both drawing and painting media! For many artists, it is the working surface of choice. Typically, aluminum composite panels come in two options. For projects up to 24” x 24”, you can use a standard 3mm ACM panel that consists of two aluminum…]]> Fri, 19 May 2023 07:00:55 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8l2rk8b4e5X1WZMehmtHS8- https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8lkRf5UV8cVqAVLTsI7B9NX

It’s no secret that artists hoard art supplies like dragons. How many blank sketchbooks are sitting in arm’s reach right now? How many different colors of white paint do you need? How deep down the rabbit hole have you gone on pencil sharpeners? Well, I have a new spot for you to hang out, every Wednesday (6pm PST, 9pm EST) on Twitch, and talk about art supplies, office supplies, creative rituals, habits, and hoards…the Ink…]]> Thu, 18 May 2023 13:00:33 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8lkRf5UV8cVqAVLTsI7B9NX https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8nhbmdOF5VlAAm0QkxGtqLL

We just lost another of America’s great illustrators, again. Several years ago, before the pandemic, I’d written about Sandy’s death prematurely. I’d gotten word from a friend that he died. On the same day the post ran, I got a call from Sandy’s grandson, John, that Sandy was alive and well! I was embarrassed, but we celebrated, and planned to all get together, and toast his career and stamina. The pandemic struck and none of…]]> Wed, 17 May 2023 12:00:56 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8nhbmdOF5VlAAm0QkxGtqLL https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8mMoQBO_7ZGC-Gkz6RCC25z

Drawing from life is hard.  And drawing from life that insists on being alive and wandering off or slithering away is even harder. But it can be highly rewarding as well. There is a wealth of information that you glean from direct observation that you just can’t get any other way. Like that someone taught that miniature monkey over there how to make obscene gestures. But also more useful things like how reptiles breath, how…]]> Tue, 16 May 2023 12:00:00 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8mMoQBO_7ZGC-Gkz6RCC25z https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8l9mwCkuJXdGZJTpfXVttXD

Hello, back again, this time with the latest episode of Level Up, which will quickly be followed up with 2B.  Thank you, leave comments, enjoy, and stay creative.   I can’t seem to post video links so if the video is not yet here it will be within an hour or two.  Thank you for your patience.   https://youtu.be/242SL44MRfA      …]]> Mon, 15 May 2023 12:30:54 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8l9mwCkuJXdGZJTpfXVttXD https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8lmn0m0iv09KApx5_w21kha

So as anyone in illustration knows at least after a few jobs, not all seas are calm, not every journey without adventure. Sometimes the crappy kind you wish you could avoid, and often outside of your ability to control or be responsible for. Especially these days with the seemingly endless game of Crisis Frogger we all seem to be stuck playing. There are ways through and out of them, there are ways you could make…]]> Fri, 12 May 2023 12:00:15 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8lmn0m0iv09KApx5_w21kha https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8k0xowXnG4m6wm0QkxGtqLL

Happy National Twilight Zone Day! (Yes, it really is a thing…) In honor of this most unheralded of holidays, today we’ll be taking a quick visit to Paris’ Galerie de Paléontologie et D’anatomie Comparé – The Gallery of Paleontology and Comparative Anatomy. While Paris has no shortage of extraordinary museums – the Louvre, D’Orsay and the Jacquemart-André all immediately come to mind, the Comparative Anatomy museum ought to be on every figurative, animal, creature and…]]> Thu, 11 May 2023 12:00:40 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8k0xowXnG4m6wm0QkxGtqLL https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8kIvMxotxrXnLb9ICM-PHur Donato Arts OPEN STUDIO Saturday May 13, 2023 11am – 6pm 397 Pacific Street Brooklyn, NY 11217 This May will see the return of the annual hosting of an Open Studio here at our place in Brooklyn. Open to you, your friends, and the general public, we will showcase an abundance of new oil paintings, drawings, and projects as well as scores of classics from my 30+ year career as an illustrator. Stop by the…]]> Wed, 10 May 2023 09:01:18 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8kIvMxotxrXnLb9ICM-PHur https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8n2z4HF_zSF-yuZukmJ4mr4

I was a scrawny kid in the 80’s but I had the neck of a linebacker from all the headbanging I did. And though my tastes have certainly evolved in metal since the 80’s- (as they have in art), there are certain album covers that are seared in my retina. We are talking B.S. people- ‘Before Spotify’. You couldn’t listen to an album before you bought so you would have to go to the store…]]> Tue, 09 May 2023 12:00:21 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8n2z4HF_zSF-yuZukmJ4mr4 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8k7bRBlP7NMncfGo0LrnZNO

In my time working as an illustrator in gaming and as a concept artist in video games, I’ve encountered many different styles of assignment prompts. The most effective I’ve seen is the Magic: the Gathering system. Magic is fine-tuned for a very short pipeline. They commission so many paintings each year that there is almost no time for a feedback cycle, which means the art directors must be extremely skilled at picking the right artist…]]> Mon, 08 May 2023 12:00:03 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8k7bRBlP7NMncfGo0LrnZNO https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8m4dRSUdhlXTUTXPGaG87AR

The line between confidence and stupidity is the one I feel like I’ve spent my entire career straddling. I’ve bet heavily over the years with mixed results, but all in all it’s been a net positive. Or that’s what I tell myself anyway. I credit growing up with no real safety net with emboldening me to take big chances.  When you’ve got nothin’ to lose, I guess it’s easier to swing for the fences.There have…]]> Thu, 04 May 2023 11:00:08 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8m4dRSUdhlXTUTXPGaG87AR https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8kQYPL1-8JeNOifqJurszLU

-Guest post by Myles Wohl About 18 months ago I made the big leap from a corporate day job to full time freelance artist. As most Muddy Colors readers know all too well, it’s not something that happens overnight. It was a decision I made a decade ago and was only able to achieve after years of scavenging every hour, minute, and second I could find to practice my craft. For a long time between…]]> Wed, 03 May 2023 12:00:14 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8kQYPL1-8JeNOifqJurszLU https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8lEaxzVs5kJFPnNuMIJyU22

A while back I dropped in on Facebook conversation that artist and teacher Kristina Carroll and a few others were having about art education and visual literacy.  It sounded like a fantastic topic for a Muddy Colors conversation and I invited Kristina to reach out sometime should she like to talk more about it. Well, today’s the day! Kristina Carroll is an award winning illustrator and fine artist. She specializes in art with a Fantastic,…]]> Tue, 02 May 2023 11:00:25 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/CVlgRyURl8lEaxzVs5kJFPnNuMIJyU22