Digital Art - The Hummingbird

Hi there !

Many of us need to complete a task, finish an assignment, or just to be creative. Sometimes we just can't get it right. Our mind wanders to other places, and the muse been gone away. We know we NEED to do something, or to get it done, but the more we try, it looks more and more difficult. In these cases, sometimes it's better to relax, and to leave the assignment for a while. Go for a walk, drink a glass of wine and listen to music or just go to sleep. When your mind is relaxed - the muse/solution will come to visit.

It happened to me the other day, I felt like I have to create something, but I had no idea what to do. I was so frustrated and tired, so I decided to take a nap. While I was sleeping, I visioned a tattoo styled hummingbird, with red flames all over. I was so excited! Woke up immediately and decided to create it right away.

While I was drawing the sketch and experimenting with colors and tones, I've found out that I am going to do a little twist. The hummingbird will stay, but the colors and the atmosphere will be completely different. The hummingbird wanted to have it on its own terms, and made me paint it with vibrant psychedelic colors, in a green and tropical background.

I loved the result, and now I am thinking of making a whole series of tropical birds.


That's it for now :)

As always you are welcome to visit my online store and my portfolio at "The Untapped Source". Feel free to browse around, purchase something or just to enjoy the art.

Have a wonderful day!

Digital Art - The Dog Under The Blanket

Hi!

As promised I will post now the last line art of the Pit Bull series, and the 3 stages (photo, line art, colored line art).

This one is really cute actually. The dog has is own blanket, and he likes to stick his nose there. He looks very shy and gloomy at the same time.

Here is the photo :

The basic lines :

The colored Line Art :

This one looks much much better after the painting!

If you checked out the previous posts, you could see that the dog's expression was changing at each shot. Those expressions look human to us, and that fact makes the photos/line art extremely more appealing.

While I was looking at this portrait, I had an idea for a card/postcard, take a look :

I Miss You Card

Is this card cute or what? :)

Well I hope you enjoyed the last piece of the Pit Bull Line Art series! 

Have a wonderful day!

Digital Art - The Smiling Pit Bull

Hi!

As promised I'm posting another line art of my beloved dog.
On the last post I showed you the importance of catching the essence of the image. The previous portrait was about the sadness in the dog's eyes, this portrait will reflect happiness and a little bit of naughtiness.
This time I'm going to make it short, I'll post again only the three stages, and let you enjoy the process.


The photo :

The line art :

The line art painted :

Cute and crazy !

Smiling Pit Bull Shirt

Look how adorable it looks on a shirt :)  For real Pit Bull lovers !

Well that's it for now! short and sweet :)

'Till the next time.

Digital Art - The Sad Pit Bull

Hi There!

This time I want to show you my latest work, using line art. Line art is a fun kind of technique - if you want to transform a photo to a line art, you need to figure which lines are best defining your image, and to draw them. I won't give here a tutorial, but if you like to see one, go to melissaevans.com (the tutorial section).

As I told you in previous posts, even if you are not a professional, or don't have the best equipment, the most important thing in photography or digital art, to my opinion, is the composition. I don't consider myself as a professional in the line art field, but, I knew I could pull it off with a good composed photo.
so... I decided to make a line art picture of my dog. I have several shots of him in various situations, and I chose an emotional one. In this shot he looks very sad and sorry, you can really feel the emotion there!
take a look :

I pointed all the important lines, and drew them on the canvas, especially I tried to seize the emotion of the original photo - The secret is in the eyes, and the eyebrows. If you can deliver the emotion, you have done 80 percent of the work.
Take a look at the line art :

:

It was pretty good, with some basic lines I could deliver the emotion and the original photo's essence. I thought to myself, how can I improve it? should I paint the picture? I never done that - painting a line art, and I was curious how it's going to turn out.
Take a look :

I was really amazed, it was pretty easy, and now the dog looks more alive, the picture is much more vibrant and appealing! I was so happy that I decided to make some more line arts of this beautiful Pit Bull, and I'm going to publish them in future posts.

Hope you enjoyed the art!

If you like to see or purchase my art you are welcome to visit me on my online store or to check out my portfolio on "The Untapped Source" art gallery.


Have a wonderful day :)

Digital Art - Worn Vintage Style

Hi there!

Yesterday I wanted to create something different from the regular art that I usually do. So I played around, thinking and thinking, and finally I decided to create a Vintage pattern. I was using photoshop to create the basic pattern. I was thinking about circles, squares, some retro colors, and the final result was this :

I was quite happy, but I felt something was missing... the pattern, the colors and the geometrical figures were perfect for me, but I felt the the feel is not there yet, I wanted more used touch.

Suddenly it hit me! everybody is posting vintage-like photos, using apps like instagram or pixlr-o-matic, in order to create an instant retro feel. I don't like to use those apps, but just for this case, I thought, let's give it a try, let's see how those apps will work with digital art.
I just wanted the final touch, and after several experiments, I found the correct one, take a look:

The worn and used feel that I've been looking for!

I could really imagine this pattern on some products, and well... you'll be the judge :

Worn Vintage Style Pillow

Is it true vintage or what? :)

Thank you for visiting my blog, have a wonderful day!

Btw : If you like to see or purchase my art, you are welcome to visit my online store or my portfolio at "The Untapped Source".

Pop Art - Afro American TV Stars of the 70-90s

Hi there!

Lately I've been busy creating Pop Art figures of some famous people (as seen on the previous post). During this work, I found myself creating more and more Pop Art portraits of African American TV stars, mostly from the 80s. I couldn't understand why, but soon I've realized that it was reminding me my childhood, when everything was simpler, when all the family gathered around the TV set and watched those classic shows. Most of the 80s kids will have warm feelings toward classic shows like "The Cosby Show", "Diff'rent Strokes" or "Family Matters". Even today those characters can make every 80s kid feel like a child again, and for a moment to make him laugh and to forget the everyday worries.

I wanted to make a tribute, and to create some fun and warm Pop Art portrayals of selected Afro American TV stars, who may have been forgotten, but still exist in our hearts.

B.A. Baracus - Mr. T.

"I Pity The Fool!" Mr. T.

Everybody knows who Mr T. is, his funny looking haircut and those fancy jewels are still his trademarks. His adventures on the A-Team, and his famous catch phrase were an 80s classic! Yes we laughed at him at times, and we couldn't call his performance - acting. But he was one of the most beloved TV personalities in his time.

Arnold Jackson - Gary Coleman

"Whatchu Talkin' 'Bout Willis?" Gary Coleman.

His cute chubby cheeks, and his feisty personality were his charm. Gary Coleman as Arnold Jackson was THE star of NBC hit show "Diff'rent Strokes". Unfortunately, due to awful financial management, and serious health issues, Coleman had lost all of his money, and had to work in many low paid jobs just to make a leaving. After falling down the stairs at his home, he was rushed to the hospital in a critical condition, being unconscious and on life support, his family decided to pull the plug. He died at 28/05/2010.

Heathcleef Huxtable - Bill Cosby

Bill Cosby

Bill Cosby was one of the most beloved American comedians ever. His "Cosby Show" was an immediate hit since day one, according to the "TV Guide" it was TV's biggest hit at the 80s. The show was about an African American family, and its everyday situations and problems. The chemistry between the characters on the set was astonishing, one could really believe that he was watching a family. There were no catch phrases or one punch-liners like other Afro-American sitcoms ("The Jeffersons", "Family Matters" etc.), and still, the show was very successful, some might say it saved the sitcom business with its freshness, and its absence of structure, the show was just about a life of a normal family (eating dinner, or going to a goldfish funeral) which opened many doors for new creative sitcoms.


Steve Urkel - Jaleel White

"Did I Do That?" Jaleel White

Cool hipster? Geek chic? Make a room for the super geek, the father of all nerds, and the official hipsters' stylist - Steven Urkel. Starting as a side character at "Family Matters" and finishing as the biggest star there (and a fashion icon). The nerdy Urkel set his hopes high from the beginning, and aimed for Lisa's heart. His love for her, got him in troubles, and has created a genuine slapstick comedy. He was quite irritating and over doer, but... we learned to love him, and to miss him when he wasn't around. 

If you want to see more of my Afro-American TV stars project, you are welcome to visit my portfolio at "The Untapped Source"

If you'd like to purchase or to see more of my art , please visit my online store.

I would love to read your comments, or questions!

Thank you for visiting have a wonderful day :)

Vector Art - Some Famous Faces

Hi there!

This time I decided to dedicate the post to some famous faces. Using Vector Art I recreated their portraits, and made them more colorful and vibrant.

Bar Refaeli - A Model
In my opinion Bar Refaeli is one of the most beautiful models ever. I decided to recreate her portrait, and tweak some elements, for example her hair color. The change has made her more mysterious and enigmatic than the cute blond typecast. Do you think that this new look fits her?

Charlie Sheen - An Actor
2011 was all about Charlie Sheen, he was involved in so many scandals, was kicked from his own show, fought with the producer, and began a weird tour - "Violent Torpedo of Truth". All and all we almost forgot that he is a very talented actor, and the truth must be told, "Two and a Half Men" will never be the same without him. Hopefully his new TV show "Anger Management" will succeed, and will give us the opportunity to see his talent again.

Woody Allen - An Actor and a Film Director

Woody Allen is one of my favorite directors, I can see his films over and over. It makes me very happy, knowing that he is still very active and keeps on making new films, even though that some of the recent movies weren't very good. Luckily he made the excellent "Midnight in Paris" in 2011, and won back the audience's trust and the reviews. 

Alpha - Our Pet Dog
Last but definitely not least, Alpha the friendly pit bull! Alpha is our pet dog, he is very friendly and loves human company, sometimes too much! He was found in a carton box outside the dog shelter, 3 months old puppy with his ears cropped. Since we took him in, he makes us laugh, takes us for long walks, and sometimes just being annoying :) When he wants my attention he likes to stare at me and to push my arm, he is so powerful that you can not ignore him. When I give him a mad look, he always give me an innocent look back. I just had to make a picture of him.

That is it for now!

Hope you enjoyed the portraits :) If you want me to create your own portrait or to surprise your loved one, send me a message via Facebook, Twitter or just leave me a comment, and I will gladly contact you back.

Make sure to visit my Online Store for more art and surprises!