StoopidFish: November 2007

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

Dr. Vial

For the GameArtisans comp located here : http://www.gameartisans.org/contests/competitions/4/readbrief/index.htm Added an updated version.

Lately I've been trying to push my drawings even further in terms of construction, shapes, proportions, expressions etc. Obviously, it's clear from my previous posts that I like drawing characters that are silly/retarded/mentally unstable or just plain weird and I'm always trying to find ways to come up with new character designs/illustrations that formulate some new approach to all of the latter.

Much of this recent output has been the result of pouring over the amazing art of Don Martin, my favorite Mad artist when I was a kid. His stuff is so dynamic and silly, and although he has a definite style and his characters look very similar, especially their faces, all of his comics and illustrations are so outrageous and fun to look at they seem brand new each time. I have been amazed at how much his style has influenced me, especially since I really haven't looked at his stuff in years. Here are some samples:

The drawings of mine I've added to the post are a few from my most recent batch of sketches that I felt compelled to ink just because they seemed interesting to me. Although most of them don't really break out of my "go-to" shape combinations, I felt there was something vaugely appealing about each to be inked.

Anyhow, I'm not really sure where I'm going with this other than I think it's interesting to talk about how people approach character designs and illustration in general---what their influences are, what the thought-process is, etc. I'm always fascinated to learn how other cartoonists, animators, illustrators, what-not, pull themselves out of a rut or how they approach problem-solving in their work.

Anyone want to comment?