Season's Greetings People!

Hi there!

Just wanted to wish you a very merry Xmas. Season's greeting to all of you art lovers and their families.
Pit Bull Friday has popped up too, just to wish you happy holidays :)

An Inside Look - Speed Painting a Cocker Spaniel (Demo Clip)

Hi there!

Recently I decided to capture my work, using a screen capture program. I wanted to give you an inside look at my Digital Finger Painting technique. I use this technique while I am painting my Custom Pet Art on DigitalDogPortraits.com.

I've edited 6 hours of work to 4 min, it took some time but I finally did it. I must tell you that the most challenging task was to find a proper sound track (just kidding :) but yeah, it was exhausting)

So take a look. I hope you'd enjoy it,  I think it's pretty cool :)

Top 5 Best Seller Designs in 2013

Hi there,

It's December, and 2014 is just around the corner. I decided to review, and take a look at my most popular designs, and best sellers of 2013.

I must admit, this list has quite surprised me. I've created hundreds of designs, some of them are pure illustrations, some are sophisticated, some are genuine art pieces. One thing is clear... silhouette figures are highly popular! I never would've guessed that :)

Just to be clear, I post these designs on one particular product, just for your convenience.  In my online store you can find those designs on numerous products and in a variety of sizes.

So, without further ado here are the top 5 designs of IBadishi Digital Art :

5. Jackie Chiles - Pop Art

People still remember and love "Seinfeld", even though it was off the air in 1998. The reruns and the legendary characters are still make us laugh. Jackie Chiles who was Kramer's attorney, was a funny parody on Johnnie Cochran, and was one of the funniest and memorable characters in the series. He was sharp, intelligent, good looking, and a damn good lawyer! His only downside was his client - Cosmo Kramer :)  

4. Life is too short to learn German

Life is too short to learn German T Shirt by IBadishi_Digital_Art

Funny... It is my best seller in Germany! I guess the Germans know best :)

3. Silhouette of 3 elephants holding tails

Silhouettes of 3 Elephants Holding Tails T-shirts by IBadishi_Digital_Art

This design is a heart warming one. It reminds us love, family, friendship - many qualities that we can learn from the elephants and actually from many animals. I created 2 versions of this design, the second one is colorful and vibrant : 

3 Colorful Elephants Pop Art Style Posters by IBadishi_Digital_Art

2. Silhouette of a Karate fight 

Silhouette of a Karate Fight. Red Sun Background Print by IBadishi_Digital_Art

Silhouettes of Karate fighters in front of the Japanese flag, apparently sparked the imagination of many marital arts enthusiasts, whether on a shirt or on a poster. I really like the composition of this particular design, simple yet sophisticated.  

1. Sihouette of Salsa dancers

Silhouette of Salsa Dancers Tshirts by IBadishi_Digital_Art

Definitely the most popular product on my shop. Salsa clubs, dance instructors and many Salsa lovers fell in love with this design. I think that this design is very popular, due to the ability to customize a text around it - this option is very appealing to many dance instructors and clubs.

So here you have it! My top 5 best sellers of 2013, silhouettes are the grand winners. As I mentioned before you can find those designs and many more, on numerous products in my online store. 

Until next time, have a wonderful day!

Cat Tie - Veterinarians and Pet Shop Owners Check It Out!

Hi there!

Two weeks ago I've created a funny, grumpy cat illustration. It was originally created as a Tshirt design, but I've checked the design on a tie, and I just loved the result! I think it would be great for people who work with pets, like veterinarians, pet shop workers etc. Check it out!

Grumpy and Confused Yellow Cat by IBadishi_Digital_Art
(Check out more Cat Ties at Zazzle)

I think it's supper cute and funny! What do you think?

The Lizard King - Digital Paint

Hi there,

As I told you in the last post, I am painting a series of different animals (besides dogs), I want to make them exceptional, crazy, fun and funky. This time I painted an optimistic piece of a green lizard resting happily on a rock in a field. The natural scenario accompanied by a bright wonderful day - blue sky and fluffy clouds.
I created the lizard, which some will say: a scary reptile, as a cool and smiling creature.

My initial thought was to create this lizard especially for T-shirts, but it turned out to be quite a beautiful piece, and can easily fit as a wall decoration.

Take a look :

Smiling Green Lizard on a Beautiful Sunny Day Poster

What do you think?

Stay tuned for more surprising art!

Funky Giraffe on a Shirt

Hi there,

Lately I've been sketching and painting many portraits, using old media techniques like watercolor, pencils etc. I wanted to create something new and fresh using digital painting. You may have noticed that I am painting a lot of dog portraits, I love it! But I wanted to do something different.

I've visioned a cool Tshirt with a colorful and funny looking giraffe on it, and it felt so right, so I started to work on it. I wanted the giraffe to be cool, I didn't want to use ordinary colors. The portrait is very "urban" and somewhat messy, not the neat portrait that I usually do.

Take a look, isn't it a cool shirt? :)

Vibrant Colorful Giraffe in Orange and Yellow Tee Shirts by IBadishi_Digital_Art

That's it for now, I intend to work on more funny looking animals, stay tuned!

Old and Blue

A few months ago I've stumbled upon an old book of a famous Israeli photographer, Rudi Weissenstein. He was capturing the Holly Land since the 30's or so... his work was mainly capturing landscapes and the ambiance of the early days in the new country. I really like those old photographs, imagining how was to live back then...
Everything looks more mysterious and magical in black and white, but clearly those people had the same emotions and everyday conflicts like all of us.

I was looking at one of Rudi's favorite portraits of an old man praying, and I thought that he actually looks tired and sad - he was old and blue.

Using watercolor and graphite I started to paint my own version, coloring it with the color of sadness - blue.

Take a look at the final result

Can you feel the emotion? Do you feel sometimes old and blue yourself?

On another note..
Lately I've created many new pieces that I haven't published yet... but I promise to publish them soon - so stay tuned :)

Hope you enjoyed this post, have a great day!

BTW : If you like this piece, you can purchase it on my Online Shop 

Sleeping Pit Bull Puppy - Watercolor Pencils

Hi there,

Here is a painted sketch that I've created using water color pencils and my new Aquash brushes by Pentel.

Isn't it cute?

Puppies are always cute! And Pit Bull puppies are even cuter :)

If you liked the portrait and would like to purchase it - You can find it on my Zazzle Shop

Have a wonderful day!

Innocent Looking Girl - Sketch

Hi there,

I've always thought that 'the simpler - the better'. You don't have to try too hard, just be yourself, try to keep things simple, and you'll see that everything is easier, beautiful, approachable and natural. I wanted to apply this thought on the following sketch. The subject is a young woman, sketched from behind. The lines are simple and clear, the atmosphere is innocent yet sensual, and it is just a simple classic beauty. I don't want to talk too much. So, just enjoy it:

Smiling Indian Girl - Watercolor Pencils on Paper

Hi there!

Lately I'm experimenting more and more with watercolor pencils, it's very portable and easy to use. The downside however (to my opinion) is the texture and the way it dries on the paper, it is not as smooth as regular watercolor, and the pencils don't blend so good (again to my opinion).

Anyway I decided to paint/draw another portrait, this time of an Indian girl. I wanted to use bold colors and to emphasis her smile. I used brush 4 on this painting and it was pretty ok, but not perfect. Luckily this week I'm going to get some watercolor supply including brushes, papers and colors from a relative who is a painter :)

Here is the portrait, hope you'll like it :)

Next time I'll use the new equipment I really want to see the difference - stay tuned!

A Day in the Life of a Pet Artist - Sketch

Hi there,

Last week I wanted to sketch something special, something different. I just sat in front of the table, and started to draw without thinking. I was sketching myself, in a point of view position - means I was sketching myself sketching. This unusual angle was very appealing and interesting, and I got a lot of nice comments on this draw.

In the little sketch that I was sketching, I decided to draw a portrait of a dog, as a symbol of my occupation - a pet portrait artist.

Take a look at the sketch and tell me what you think :)

By the way - if you want to see the actual dogs that I'm painting take a look at DigitalDogPortraits.com - Custom Pet Art.

Yoga - Watercolor on Paper

Hi there,

Lately I'm more focused on pencil drawings than digital painting. Last post I've mentioned that I love old school sketches, they are simpler, straight forward and have more soul. I began to color some of my sketches, and liked the results. So I decided to purchase some colored pencils and to use them more often, I went to the art shop and chose some. they looked normal and affordable, but to my surprise they were actually watercolor pencils - they work like regular colored pencils but they dissolve in water. I decided to take the chance and to try water painting for the first time.

The process was pretty easy : 1. sketch 2. fill with dried color 3. use the brush to actually water paint.

Here are the stages :

Sketch :

A friend's photo inspired me to sketch a yoga position, I liked the posture and the scenery, I really felt the spiritual uplifting. I imagined a free bird flying on top of a mountain, staring at the horizon... it was magical.

I loved the sketch, but I wanted to use the color pencils, so I didn't add more details with the graphite pencil. It was a bit risky to color the sketch with unfamiliar medium, but I took the chance :) (and took a picture of the original sketch with my camera, just in case...)

Coloring the sketch with the pencils:

Carefully, I started to fill in the sketch with some color,especially the main subject. The result was OK, nothing more. A little advice for those who want to use those watercolor pencils - use less color than you'd think! You can always add more color, but once the surface is fully covered, you can't undo it, and it might ruin your painting.

I wasn't too impressed with the result, but I knew that there is one more step...

Using the brush:

Using the wet brush on the paper has changed some things - first, the color, the tones were different and more intense, the other thing was the paper - it wasn't a proper watercolor paper so I had to handle it with extra care and try not to over abuse the surface. I had to use short and light brush strokes (and a lot of patience).

The sketch has become more colorful and vivid. Real watercolor paper and more brushes would probably help me create better paintings, however for a first attempt with limited equipment I'm pretty content :)  

The main advantage with the watercolor pencils is that you can carry them anywhere. You can sit in a cafe or in a park and just use them without any fuss or mess. You can watercolor on the spot, or just to fill the sketch with some color and finish it at the comfort of your own home. I think I'm going to carry them to the park next Saturday and try to paint some of the action!

Bananas - Colored Sketch

Hi there!

Using various graphic software and digital brushes is fun, but sometimes there's something about a good old, down to earth art, with some old school equipment like pencil and paper. Oh... and a live model (in this case my model was a banana ;)). It is very refreshing just to sit down and start drawing quickly, without any preparations or interruptions (when I'm using graphic software, sometimes it takes forever just to start painting). All I wanted to draw was a rough sketch of this glorious fruit, and to make it as interesting as I can. After I've finished the drawing, I thought that it would be a good idea to paint the bananas with vibrant color, just to stand out. I really like the result. It looks rough yet compelling.

Take a look :

If you'd like to purchase a poster or a canvas of this piece - you can find it here

While looking for a suitable quote for this sketch (like I always do), I've found those 3 funny quotations:
"Times flies like an arrow, fruit flies like a banana" - Groucho Marx
"Intellectual property has the shelf life of a banana" - Bill Gates
"I'm getting so old, I don't even buy green bananas anymore" - Chi Chi Rodriguez

And last but not least :) a cute Brazilian song by Jorge Ben - "O Vendedor de Bananas" - The Banana Seller

Have a lovely Day!

Contemporary Elvis

Hi there!

4 days ago I heard  some Elvis' songs in the radio, it was his 36th annual day of his death. I grew up listening to his music, and saw many of his shows on TV. He was kind of a childhood icon (though he passed away when I was an infant). I decided to draw him, but in a different kind of style. More contemporary, an alternate take if you will. His hair style and his general look were adjusted to the new millennium :)

His portrait and the previous Marilyn Monroe gave me the inspiration to sketch other super icons in non conventional way. Stay tuned!

Gloomy Marilyn Monroe - A Sketch

Hi there,

Recently I've stumbled upon some photos of Marilyn Monroe that were taken by Life magazine in 1953. The photos were taken in her home, she was 26 years old, and looked more comfortable and cozy. To me she looked a bit different from the glamorous Marilyn that we all know. I could sense the vulnerability and the sadness in some of the photos, and I really liked them. Those photos were interesting because you could see the human being behind the icon. She was still beautiful in those pictures, but not in a glamorous way, just a beautiful woman in her own home.

Her eyes reflected some sort of pain, even when she smiled, and that immediately caught my attention. I decided to do a sketch of her, and to present her to the world as I saw her - Beautiful and sad woman.

Here is the sketch, notice how her eyes talk

The sketch was created using Wacom graphic tablet.

Hope you liked it! See you next time :)

Citrus. Digitally Painted Still Life

Hi there,

The summer makes me feel so lazy, the heat kills my creativity :P
I can't stand it anymore. The other day it was so unbearable, I just stood there and fantasized about fresh cold orange juice, so refreshing...

Then, I had an epiphany! I should paint some oranges, slices, with all the juices. It was like having a boost of vitamin C. I just went to the computer and start painting some oranges on a kitchen board with my Wacom graphic tablet. All i could think about was orange juice, mojito and mimosa :)

I must say - I LOVE that painting. Refreshing, vibrant and different. I'd put it on the living room (or the kitchen) :)

Take a look :

What do you think? 

If you like it, and want to have a print of this juicy contemporary fruit art, you can get it on my Zazzle shop.

Until next time, take care! 

These Pretzels are Making Me Thirsty!

Hi there,

Woody Allen is one of my favorites directors and actors, I just love his comedy and his neurotic Jewish character. I think I saw all of his filmography (even the so called "lousy" parts) and just enjoyed every minute of it! As a little tribute to this wonderful artist (and thanks to a brief boredom), I drew a little sketch, nothing fancy, and I immediately remembered the unforgettable line from Seinfeld : "These pretzels are making me thirsty!"

Here's Woody!

Silhouette Fun - Stretching Dog

Hi there,

Looking back at all my graphics and designs, I've noticed that people really enjoy my silhouettes. I like to create them but it's been a while since I've made one. Lately I've been painting dog portraits, and I thought that a dog silhouette would fit perfectly. I've searched the web and found out that there are more cats' silhouettes than dogs... so I began to work on it :)

It's simple yet fun and sophisticated, take a look :

I think I'll do more of this style soon, I have many creative silhouette ideas, so stay tuned :)

Purchase a poster of this fine silhouette here :)

Johnny Winter's Show

Hi there,

Some of you may have noticed that I love Blues music. Fortunately I had the chance to attend the legendary Johnny Winter's show, in Tel Aviv. He looks old and tired, but I tell you, he still has the energy of a 20 years old. If you have a chance and you like Blues, don't miss his show. It's energetic and rough, like it should be.
I took some pics and I'd like to share them with you! Enjoy :)

Speed Painting Video of a Pug

Hi there!

I usually post this kind of stuff on my DigitalDogPortraits.com blog, but I thought you would like it too :)
This is a speed painting of a Pug, using graphic tablet and an old version of Photoshop (CS2). When I create a commissioned Dog Art I usually prefer using Vector Art on the outlines, and digital painting it afterwards, this time I just sketched a simple and loose figure, and then digitally painted it. The result - a beautiful Pug portrait, which is based on the original portrait (taken by Mike Wacht photography).

Check out the video

Here is the final version of the portrait

If you want to order your very own Custom Pet Art - Click here

Hope you've enjoyed this post, have a wonderful week!

My Latest Sketch

Hi there,

I was very busy the past two weeks, transferring my site (DigitalDogPortraits.com) from GoDaddy to BlueHost, it was a nightmare but it's all over now :)

Let me share with you a little sketch I made during one of the breaks.

The title is "Woman who seek to be equal with men lack ambition"-Timothy Leary.

I just love to sketch women and the woman's body, it is so beautiful :) Soon I think I'll sketch some more women, and be prepared for some surprises ;)

I'll see you soon! Have a great day!

A Saturday at the Local Dog Shelter

Hi there,

Last Saturday I've visited the local dog shelter, just wanted to help a little. I love to take pictures there, the atmosphere is great, and it is really easy to capture some lovely moments. I've posted most of my photos last week on DigitalDogPortraits.com, but today I discovered 2 more great photos, and I want to share them with you!

I think that the photos are very emotional and a little bit sad (take a look at the brown puppy's eyes).

If you want to see more photos from this session click here

Fluorescent Girl - Digital Paint

Hi there!

Yet another Digital Paint :) This time, a woman's portrait. I wanted to create a sensual and mysterious atmosphere, and to use some fluorescent colors.

This painting started as a simple rough sketch, but those outlines helped me painting the whole portrait.

Take a look at the sketch

Pretty simple huh? I'm not trying to capture all the details, just the general image. Later on, the painting will come to life and I would be able to change or tweak some misplaced lines.

During the painting process, I'm checking some color schemes and backgrounds (it's easy with digital painting :)).

The expression and atmosphere change while I'm painting until I am fully satisfied with the portrait.

Check it out :

I really like the end result :)

If you like it too, you might want to check out the printed version of  "Fluorescent Girl" on my online store.

Have a beautiful day :) See you next time!

The Dark Flute Player

This one is going to be short :)

Just wanted to create a silhouette of a flute player, but it turned out to be a dark broken silhouette, not the regular neat stuff, it was influenced by Ian Anderson from Jethro Tull - take a look :)

Digitally Painted Self Portrait

Hi there,

I've created many portraits through the years, but most of them of other people or pets. I wanted to try something different, to digitally paint my own childhood portrait. I decided to use an old black and white photo as a reference.

At first I wanted to sketch the portrait with a pencil and to leave it like that, but I changed my mind and decided to use my Wacom graphic tablet and Photoshop's paint brush. I want to show you some screen captures of the digital painting, and talk about them a little bit.

1. The original photo and the rough sketch

Here is the first step. I took the original black and white photo and sketched it loosely. Usually when I'm starting to create a digitally painted portrait I use Vector Art in order to build the basic image, but in this painting I wanted to try a different approach. At this step the most important thing is to capture the general shape of the face, and the correct position of the eyes, nose & mouth. It's OK if it doesn't look exactly like the original, but I find it easier to work on a well drawn image. The great advantage here, is that you can change almost everything quickly and effectively, as you'll see further on. 

2. Starting to digitally paint the face

As you can see, the face looks a little bit more alive. I took my time and painted the eyes, and the lips. Actually,  the highlights and shadows are the most important thing here. They give us an illusion of 3D, and help the painting to look more "alive". To create the effect I use the burn/dodge brushes and use them in different exposures and range. In this portrait, the light comes from the front so we should paint the highlights in the middle of the face, and the shadows on the sides.

3. Painting the hair

I've painted the hair - nothing special, just simple brown color for now (no tones or other enhancements). I wanted to see the general appearance, later on I'll use the burn/dodge brushes on the hair too. If you'll look closely you'll notice that the face is a bit thinner. I found the face wider than the original photo and decided to trim them, luckily on Photoshop it's easy! And in a few seconds the result was more to my liking.

4. Hair, contrast, some tweaking... and we're done!

We solved the hair issue with some shadows and highlights, it was a pretty easy and quick. Next - I thought that the previous image was too "nice", which means not so exciting. I wanted  the shadows to pop up, to create a dirtier look, more special, so I adjusted the contrast and that did the trick. Some more tweaks : the right eye (our left) - I  balanced the angle a little, and the nose was resized a tiny bit.
I really liked the simple background and the sketchy shoulders, so I decided to leave them like that.

As I said before, sketching and painting with Photoshop (or any other program), gives us the opportunity to try new things, to experiment colors and styles and to correct mistakes fast. That's why I like to use this medium, especially with the graphic tablet.

If you have any question or comment, please write it down.  I'd be happy to read and respond :)

Have a nice day!

It's too Late Baby

Hi there,

It's been a long time since I posted here. I've been busy with my site DigitalDogPortraits.com, but I wanted to post at least one post here in march. So... I made a special sketch for you, it's an artistic nudity, very tasteful and feminine. I hope you'd like it.

When I was looking for a phrase that will go with the sketch, I was listening to Carole King's wonderful song "It's too late", and thought that this phrase will be perfect - "Though we really tried to make it. Something inside has died and I really can't fake it." I really think that this phrase gave a new deep meaning to the sketch.

I won't say goodbye before I'll post here this wonderful song by Carole King. Enjoy!

Feel and Smell the Land

Hi there,

Another refreshing Saturday photo shoot in nature, another close-by location, another simple yet wonderful captures :)

Feel and smell those everyday treasures - the mud, the oranges, the flowers. Your head can really spin out of joy!

Take a look :

Smell the Citrus

Scent of a Wet Soil

Flight of the Bumble Bee

I say, if you want to feel wealthy, appreciate the simple things! What do you think?

A New Sketch Category on my Store

Hi there!

Just wanted to share with you, I decided to put some of my sketches for sale on my online store.

Those sketches are bit on the bitter/sweet side and I think they are very soulful.
You are invited to browse around and take a look :)


Here are some of them in a collage