█▓▒░ Deselect's Little Black Book ░▒▓█ (Updated Nov 28 2006)

[Deselect]

ב״ה

After quite some time of lurking on these boards I have decided to post some of my own work.

To make a long story short, I have struggled with my art for years -- putting it off most of my life as I never thought I would get anywhere with it and became terribly uninspired.

All of that changed after meeting my wife Anja. She has been my muse ever since.

I was in a cast recently as the result of being hit in a head on collision from someone driving drunk. For four months for my broken wrist (dominant one, of course) prevented me from being able to persue my art. It has now been off for about a month and amidst all of the specialists I see to correct my injuries I have been feverishly catching up with all of the lost years and taking it seriously.

I am hoping to build up enough works soon to compile a portfolio and get out on the scene.

Anyway, on to the art work.

Disclaimer: Please excuse the terrible quality of these scans, I was using my friend's multipurpose scanner/printer/fax and discovered a few things. First, I discovered that HB pencil doesnt scan well on cheap scanners (my other pencils were stolen) and secondly, multipurpose scanner combos are bad ideas. Considering I do not have my own scanner, I cannot complain.


Here is one of my first serious sketch in many years. First one since my wrist has been freed. One hour foot study:

Http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-009.png

One hour study from reference. Trying to get better with contours and simple blocks of shade:

Http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-010.png

Most recent one from just a few nights ago. 2 hour study from reference:

Http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-012.png

Many of the pencil tones are missing from these images. I am going to try to hunt down a scanner more suitable to use. I have some more images to post if anyone would be interested in seeing them, along with paintings, etc.

Any feedback, comments, or critiques would be most appreciated.

Cheers.

[Jho]

Please do (post more). I'm intressed.
Love the foot.
Yup.
..
.

[glikster]

definitely post more!

[MattGamer]

Nice stuff! I really like the last one with the girl in the zorro mask. :) I like the tones you got on it and the way you drew it... with like strokes outward.
That foot study is swell as well. Wow, after years of not drawing, you're having a pretty good comback.

Post more!

[dead boy]

pretty sick shit.

[Orozc0]

Very nice. That foot is clean. And the third one's my favorite, love the eyes and expression. Also like MattGamer said, the strokes really bring it to life.

peace

[Deselect]

Thank you very much for all of the nice comments.

I have some older sketches from the book available to share. They are a bit explicit, so I am not sure if that breaks any of the rules for this board.

Once again, I wish I had a better scanner to show clearer images and details of those drawings, they look much better in person.

The last one was a lot of fun to draw. I am trying to really loosen up when drawing but still achieve realism in the tones. A problem I used to suffer from greatly was the fear of drawing or painting on good papers and canvases for fear of 'wasting' the materials on an end product I disliked.

I will update with some older sketches shortly.

EDIT: On a side note, would anyone be able to suggest a good value scanner that is very affordable? I really ought to buy myself a scanner but do not have a whole lot of cash to spend. Thanks.

Cheers,

[Deselect]

Old sketch, study for a painting:

Http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-006.png

Even older sketch:

Http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-004.png

Same as above, design draft for the construction of a table I am working on:

Http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-005.png

Cheers.

[Jens]

I like the decision making in the second and third sketches you posted here.. really show the essence. I like the third the most.

Plz show some more new work!

[Deselect]

Jens: Thanks. I would love to show some new sketches but no longer trust the scanner I had used before... I hopefully will find a new one to borrow or may end up buying one. I do have some paintings I can photograph.

[Deselect]

Two more pieces. Trying to get more accustomed to painting with various mediums.

Done during time when I was still in a cast (hence the name), acyrlic and oil, 16"x20"

Self Portrait with Broken Wrist:

http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/self-portrait_w_broken_wrist.jpg

And this is a house-warming present for a dear friends barron walls. 11"x14", Acrylics.

Kafka-esque:

http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/kafka-esque.jpg

[Deselect]

Does anyone know why my images are not consistantly showing up?
I used the same BBCode to share the images in my first post as I did the one previous to this message, yet the latter ones only show up some of the times? It's not a hosting issue.... It's really bothersome.

Thanks.

[Deselect]

Fixed image links.

[MrBobMarley]

Sorry to hear about the accident man. I'm a lefty and I almost lost my hand by getting t-boned a year ago by some idiot yapping on her cell. So cool that you picked up the pencil again. Your technique is top notch. I'd like to see more. Keep posting man!

[SpaceAce]

this is som cool shit man, love the table designs

[Deselect]

MrBobMarley: Thanks, man. Its been an emotional ride, for sure. I have been known to have some of my own internal struggles going on with my art and why it stopped, and this accident was just part of the equation that had me go full force... That, and Anja, as said. Best part of it is, where I live, I cannot sue her, I was given no compensation at all and now I am on small disability cheques... I need to find a new job.

SpaceAce: Thank you very much. Now just to find the optimal medium for my to start realising it soon. The table top is to rest from shoulder to the bum and it will be glass... The rest is to be decided.

EDIT: I have more to post, for sure... Problem at the moment is getting a decent scanner. I may just use my camera and have a go at it that way. Thanks for the views.

[gmags]

You got some kick ass skillz here Deselect. Keep postin and glad to see you recovered from your accident. :)

[Darktwin]

yeah keep posting, please keep em coming, I'm glad to see your able to keep your head up after your accident. Just always remember that I could be worse, thats what I always say. keep em coming bro

[Deselect]

Thanks, Gmags and Darktwin. Yeah things could be worse. Dont get me started on my luck, though. It would be the longest thread on CA.
Anyway, I just finished some nice 1 hr studies I am quite proud of, may upload tomorrow.

Cheers!

[Deselect]

Here's a recent 20 min sketch I did of a Shofar (a traditional jewish instrument made from a ram horn):

Http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-013.jpg

Trying to get better at using solid contour lines without erasing. From reference:

Http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-014.jpg

Here is an old design I did (back from 2004) when I was apprenticing to become a tattoo artist. The client wanted a gargoyle:

Http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-015.jpg

Here is a sketch I did in my sketchbook a few days ago. Finished all of the pencil in 3 hours or less and was quite proud of it. Then I decided to try to heighten it with coloured pencil and now I rather dislike it. Posting it anyway to show that I won't just post my more favoured sketches. Roméo Dallaire, Pencil, Tea, Coloured Pencil, ~ 3 hours:

Http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-016.jpg

Cheers.

[Darktwin]

omfg I just lost my post when trying to post it on your thread, damn. anyways what I said before was I really like your contour line drawing of the women, I need to do more of those to strengthen my line quality, did you use pen for that?? also I really like this last portrait of yours really nice rendering and color you washed it with is very interesting. My only crit would be I think there should be a little more contrast between the lights and darks of the portrat, unless thats what you were going for. the wash probably soften everything, its jus something minor, I really dig it man.

about my master copy drawing, I'll have to repost that today after darkening a few more values. right now I'm in a drawing slump, I have ideas but nothing really excites me right now you know. what do you do if you've experienced the same thing. Just curious to hear what other artist do when in this situation?

[Deselect]

Darktwin: Thank you very much. The Dallaire piece turned out a total disappointment. The problem with the tonal range is something I am aware of. It was partky due to the tea stain covering up a lot of the light tones from the HB and partly due to the fact that I no longer have any pencils besides one HB lead... I really wish I had some softer leads to have darkened it for sure. If I had gone over it any harder with the HB it would have started to cause nasty glare.

The contour of the woman is in fact pencil, pressed firmly (but not too hard). Lately, I have been completing a number of drawings making sure I do not use any eraser at all. The Dallaire portrait was one of these -- no eraser used at all.

Part of the reason why I am focusing on contours is due to my style of not using any form of measurement for images beyond simply visualising distances etc. So, where some may use grids, etc to do pieces, I try to nail it down properly right off the bat.

Erasers are annoying.

As for the stale times where I do not want to draw: I have had years and years of that constantly. I also face that with making music at times. I find I have two options; 1) Take some time away from it and decompress. Get inspired from something else or just take a good 30 minutes away from the task, or 2) Sometimes when you get down the best thing is to pick up the pencil and force yourself. This helps twofold -- at times you have no choice, especially if you want to make a career out of art so its best to face it now and force yourself at times, and the other is that sometimes out of some daunting or bland task you can really get into it. For me, sometimes just rendering some bland object really lets you focus on your ability.

One of my next such tasks will be to render an egg. Exciting, yeah? The important thing is to realise that a boring oval egg is in fact something of great difficulty to render and make it appear as an egg. The simple shape is decieving, nailing the tones, texture and shades are very challenging.

I would have done that last night, but I ate all our eggs.

[Darktwin]

haha, thats funny about the eggs, at least eggs are cheap so you can pick them up anytime. thanks a lot for taking the time and giving me your perspective on things. I think I'm going to have to force myself through it man, I'm going to a workshop today and I'll be sure to post whatever I come up with. Thanks again, and I'll talk to you later

[Deselect]

Sounds good. Can't wait to hear how it went and see some of your progress.

[Deselect]

Updated with Nudity in subject as per request.

[Eriboss]

hey man - theres some really sweet stuff in here -
http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-012.png - this is cool, great tones and rendering.
http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-014.jpg - this is a really successful sketch too, great line - really cool stuff.
http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-016.jpg - this is beautiful and your most successful sketch I think, nice use of media, cool cool cool.
I would love to see you post some more stuff man, what you got in here is a nice diverse collection of work, keep sketching and post more!

Cheers

Eri :evilmustache:

[Deselect]

Thank you very much, Eriboss. Means a lot to hear from you.

Cheers.

[Andy P]

Hey man, great stuff, love that contour drawing! "Erasers are annoying", true that.
You form seems to be pretty top notch too, just keep it coming. My brother is pretty proficient in weird instruments and I'd never heard of a Shofar. Looks cool, would love to hear one.
About the Roméo Dallaire peice, agreed the tonal range is a bit one the light side, maybe more spot washes of tea would strenghten the darks? I don't know I've never worked with tea, but I imagine it's similar to ink washes. It's a fun drawing though.
Lookin forward to more.

[Deselect]

Andy P: Thank you very much. A shofar is not very well known to musical instrument folks (I am quite interested in a variety, as well) as it is more of a religious instrument. For more info check here (http://www.answers.com/main/ntquery?gwp=13&s=shofar).

As for the tonal range, I think I will go over it some more with softer leads once I have acquired some for myself. The tea won't get much darker but would rather buckle the paper quite badly instead.

I'll post more as soon as I can get around to it.

Cheers!

[redehlert]

Hey Deselect - sorry it took me a day to get in here after your request!
Sweet work - definitely go with the positive forward momentum you have in your fixed wrist and your muse - obviously there is something wonderful there. :) Keep on the anatomy work and life studies, they're wonderful. You have a good eye for contour and your tone work is pretty slick. Keep it real!
D

[Deselect]

Redehlert: Thank you very much.

I come bearing gifts.
Just finished this little sketch -- spent a few minutes doing some eye studies:

http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-017.jpg

[Extent]

As far as scanners go try and find one that can scan at more than 8 bits per channel. I don't know what if any current scanners might do that, but I've got an ancient Visioneer Onetouch that has a 36bit (12bpc) output mode . It makes it really easy to just scan a sheet in and then adjust the levels so it looks right without loosing light parts before squashing it down to 24 bits.

[Bad Brownie]

woah your table design sketch is awesome! You could sell something like that in so many places..;)

your pencils are very nice, I never touch them anymore...you have inspired me to try picking them up again and give my computer a break. Thanks! (I think!)

I very much like the idea of the self-portrait with broken wrist.

Hope to see you around!

[Deselect]

Extent: Thanks for the info, I will keep it in mind when that time comes. For now I am relying on my camera to do the capturing.

Bad Brownie: I am glad you liked the table design. The problem now is finding the appropriate materials for the construction (hard to do with my budget and location).

I am extremely complimented that my sketches have inspired you to start sketching again. With your excellent PS skills I just know you will produce some great stuff -- even if it takes a while to get accustomed to analogue art again.

I personally am not much of a fan of most digital art -- seeing pencil strokes and brush strokes, etc, just does something for my that feathered digital brushes and the like will never be able to compete with.

Just one tip about the pencils, make sure you get a few leads. Using just an HB is killing me.

I am also glad you liked my painting I did with the broken wrist. It wasn't the easiest to paint in that heavy cast. Unfortunately that photo is very blurry. If there is enough interest in that piece I will photograph it again.

Cheers.

[Dutton]

Hey Deselect, thanks for the comment on my SB. I really like yours as well. Seeing all that tight linework, then coming to the loosely painted self portrait stopped me in my tracks. Then reading right above it that it was done with a broken wrist really grabbed me. The result really compels me as a viewer to wonder about the things you were thinking about as you painted. I think that makes it a highly successful piece, even if SP's are generally done for our own personal and often times private reasons.

[Deselect]

Dutton: Thank you very much. Those were some very kind and well-put words. I am glad you liked the painting. I tend to paint fairly loosely at the moment -- mostly due to the fact that I like messy gritty acrylic painting right now, but I plan on getting back to a more realist approach soon... Oils are causing me much grief.

Yeah, it's funny that the piece seems to stir things up in such ways for people, I like hearing that. There was definitely a number of things going on through my head.

In fact, if it wasn't for Anja and my art, I would have completely lost my mind by now. You think those Boudelier children deserved the title "Series of Unfortunate Events"? Ha! My life story.

Cheers,

[Deselect]

Alright, some old (and very old) and some new (and new-ish).

Jerusalem, January 2004, one of my few old doodles:

http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-018.jpg

Coping with Crohn's, February 2004:

http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-019.jpg

Old, quick sketch. March 2004, one of my many androgynistic-vivesected figures:

http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-020.jpg

Quick study for a painting from the days of old:

http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-021.jpg

Family Tree (study for painting), July 2004:

http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-022.jpg

Two studies, January 2006:

http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-023.jpg

Study of egg, last night. Wanted to do a study of egg in pencil, really trying to capture the texture. It was really late and since I only have one pencil, I was unable to do the study I wanted to. I also lacked anything to prop the egg up with, so I held it and did the whole drawing with one hand (not easy with a sketchbook). To make it worse, I had to keep losing my position due to having to get up due to my dog (...). No erasing. Not very happy with it (at all) but that's that:

http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-025.jpg

The World Keeps Turning, last night, from imagination (I am aware of the flaws in anatomy -- oh, well). Had some fun with rapido-pens:

http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-026.jpg

Mother, today, rehash of an old sketch, study for a future painting, from imagination (goes without saying!), really need to nail down the anatomy of such an awkward pose before painting but rather than getting models I just wanted to fiddle about with those pens again:

http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-027.jpg

Cheers,

[Deselect]

EDIT: Removed some images. Sorry.

[Bad Brownie]

You continue to inspire me, Deselect. ; ) your tree images have helped something in my mind click, a concept I have been mulling around in my head for awhile. Thanks! By the way, I HAVE been pencil drawing, like I said I would! I'm struggling a bit, but I will post when I have something reasonable.

Anyway, I look forward to your updates.

[Deselect]

Bad Brownie: Thank you very much for the kind words. I cannot wait to see your concepts laid out on paper and, as you know, I am definitely excited to see some of your pencil work.

Cheers.

[Fellah.]

Hey dude - not alot to crit here. You seem to be doing fine and making good progress. Very nice rendering on the head and foot studie - the girls eyes is a bit off, but its smalltime stuff. Yeah work hard to nail down the anatomy, so it will become easier to make noref drawings. I really dig the Roméo Dallaire drawing!

[Deselect]

Fellah: Thank you very much. The more I look back at some of them, the less and less I think of them. But the important point is that all of these are still just sketches, trying to erase as little as possible (or in the case of ink drawings, laid down without pencil sketches beneath them). So, with that in mind, I don't worry too much. Wot I am really looking forward to is when I get some space to do some real pencil renders and spending like 4+ hours on one piece.

[majinpunisher]

hey deselect, thanks for the comments in my sketchbook. just checked yours out, ilove it!

your eye studies rock my world, now I'm gonna do a bunch of those. I made some more 3d stuf, like you said. but now your thread makes me want to do more live model stuff!

great work!

-MP

[Deselect]

Majinpunisher: Thank you very much. Some of the most important things you can do to become a better 3d artist is to learn how to really see things and represent them with the illusion of depth in two dimensions. So draw, draw, draw (and then draw).

I have left some more comments for you in your thread.

Cheers!

[guggemmaneuver]

Nice work, Deselect! (http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-023.jpg)
I really like where you were going with this from imagination drawing (http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-026.jpg).... very impressive. and this (http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-016.jpg) is really amazing for two hours... I like how the faces that you do from ref or from life have so much amazing character. I will try to remember them as i go to figure drawing tomorrow and squeeze in my per session obligatory portrait.
thanks!
joel

p.s. this (http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-012.png)is hotness... it always catches me off guard with it's glance everytime i visit here! more chicks in masks please! :)

[Deselect]

Guggen: Thank you very much. Those are some kind words, indeed. I really feel that those ink sketches could and should be a lot better, but then again I was working with only ink (hard to correct mistakes, no?) and working with limited time frames. I managed to get some nice derwent pencils and darkened some of the tones of that Dallaire piece. May upload the new version soon. I look forward to more crits from you soon.

I haven't had the chance to draw in the past few days as all of my time has been taken up with other priorities, but I look forward to my next chance. I am really eager to get to the point where I feel I have a solid enough amount of proper works (not just wot I've shown here in this thread -- which is all doodles and quick works) to apply for some jobs. I live in a real drab city with no life, culture or economy for anything I am interested in.

Cheers!

[Mikko Voipio]

Hello there. Your studies are looking really good. You should really stick to doing those 'cause your skills seem to benefit from them quite a lot. Those inks are looking cool aswell though they are nowhere near your pencil drawings. I think that you have the same problem as I do with ink is that the line seems quite "dead". The one you ended up coloring and disliking would have to be my favourite. I will be back.

[Hunter610]

I love the sketches. Your pencil skill is incredible and I like the twist to the ink. It would be great to see a combintation of both

[vigostar]

great stuff here.... post more!

[Pesmerga]

Keep going man. You're looking good so far.

[Deselect]

Placeboast: Thank you very much for the crits. My drawings from imagination sometimes are lacking, but usually not as much as the ones I have decided to post for some reason... I just really need to get back into the hang of things. Hope to see you around again soon!

Hunter610: Thank you very much! I have indeed done images in both, but my next adventures in ink will be with brushes, methinks. I am also working on a more graphic ink work with designing some ketubot (jewish marriage contracts, essentially, which are highly decorated works of art)

vigostar: Thanks, I shall soon.

Pesmerga: Thanks, I think I can. Choo choo!

[MattGamer]

Sweet updates since I was last here. That Family Tree is brilliant! Amazing stuff, keep it up!!!

[Deselect]

MattGamer: Thank you very much. Unfortunately it doesn't look like I am going to get the chance to draw or post new works for quite a while. When art is not something you do for a living and your life is as hectic as mine, it becomes very hard to keep up with. Oh, how I wish I was living somewhere else.

I will, however, have some more graphic work to show in the next month or so as I am designing my ketubah (I am getting married soon and have been busy planning it, one of many things taking up my time)

Cheers,

[redehlert]

hey m8!
i wanna see anything ya got, bud. graphic or otherwise. i make people suffer in my sb thread with silly tripe i'm doin' at work. i've been away too long...now give up some love!

hugs!
d

[Gridur]

Nice sb, love the style of your drawings with the rough and strong outlines, you got a strong artistic feel over it all to with nice imagenetive imageing, just love it! keep it up!

[Darktwin]

whats going on Deselect, good to see your sb, its been awhile, I really like your the family tree, amazing concept and excecution. the hand and egg study is really good, especially because you didn't erase. Your concepts have a realist quality to them, and I like that a lot. Like the guy who wakes up with a missing leg. That happens, good stuff

[Deselect]

Redehlert: Thank you very much. I promise to put aside some time this next week for drawing and updating. I have been busy updating my website this past few days... I could use the break.

Gridur: Thanks for the kind words. I am hoping to get more time for some serious art work and build up a portfolio. I would really like to start tackling some art job opportunities, but all I have at the moment is my little sketchbook. It's hard when you are struggling for a job in your spare time and working the rest of the time. It doesn't leave you much time for being creative.

Darktwin: You are too kind. I am happy you enjoyed my rough drafts of some pieces I plan on executing with a little more devotion. The family tree piece has a lot of meaning to me, so I am excited to finish a final version of it. The hand and egg is a piece I am not terribly fond of, but as you said, I can focus on the skill building it did for me.

And who hasn't woke up missing limbs at one time or another?

[Aether]

Good looking stuff here. Your pencils are great(more time spent on those?) while the inks seem to have some anatomy issues.
Your rendering is looking good so just push that anatomy up there and keep it up


+ points for the great avatar (ToL) :)

[Deselect]

Aether: Thanks for the kind words. I don't believe it is so much that I spend more time on my pencil pieces (many of those are very quickly executed) but a mix of a confidence thing (for sure) and also that the inks I posted had no underdrawing in pencil to form the basis of the image... This would explain why while ink doodling the anatomy isn't as strong as my pencils. See, with pencils I not only have a greater confidence but a flow I am used to to perceive proportions, etc.

I definitely need to keep working on my inks. I would like to start using them in different forms, though. Using microns or rapido's isn't great for sketches. If I get some time and space to get messy, I am dying to use a brush.

As for the avatar: I am glad you enjoyed it, thanks.

Cheers,
D.

[Dose206]

hey, great sb! those eye studies that you did a little while back are beautiful. i also like that chick in the mask way up in the first post. i do agree with aether, your pencil renders are beautiful, but there's the anatomy issues with the pens. but, i do understand where that's coming from, and since you do enjoy working with those pens, I'm forecasting that you'll get pretty comfortable with them soon and things will only get better from here.
keep it up!
chris

[Orm]

I like the concept of "mother". Very entertaining sketchbook overall.

[Deselect]

Dose206 & Orm: Thank you both very much. I find it interesting to see that my thread somehow keeps popping up here sans updates from me. Oh well, I won't complain. I'll take all the crits I can.

Cheers

[Darktwin]

Hey whats going on Deselect, I'm waiting for a huge dump from you man. Lets make it happen.

[Deselect]

Haha. I am not so sure if and when such a thing could occur.
Sounds like an excuse for the old subscribe feature, yeah?
I seriously regret making that promise for updates a few weeks ago as I have broken it in the worst way.
Choo Choo, I think I can!

[redehlert]

:( it won't let me enjoy your work....the link shows that it's forbidden to enjoy it.

[Deselect]

Redehlert: Fixed the issue. Once again, this explains why one must not create new replies whilst doing dishes without verifying links first.

Sorry.

[redehlert]

lol! that's a good one, m8!
i'm enjoying it right now!
cheers,
d
i liked it...there were some definite beats in the lower decible ranges that were well conceived and the grittiness of the higher pitches, although a tad much at times, did carry throughout in fine form. the marriage between the two was a bit off kilter for me, but again, i did enjoy it! ;)

[Deselect]

That's hilarious. Thank you very much, Redehlert.

Shabbos soon, must clean. See you lot in a few days.

Cheerio and toodle pip!

[guggemmaneuver]

ha ha music criticism by dave cab for vectors

checking it out please update soon deselect.

everything here is selected and it's becoming hard to work without creating a new layer.

:P

[redehlert]

roflmao!!!!
oh joel....you're a riot act. thanks man.
don't make me get all postal service on ya now. ;)

[Darktwin]

Damnit Deselect, where are those damn updates!!!!!!!!:P

[Deselect]

As promised many moons ago, I have updates (albeit, only two).

A few days ago, just trying to warm up my drawn hand again. Felt it went well for the short amount of time spent (I was having difficulty getting back into drawing and was desparate to not let it overcome me).

Pencil, maybe 30-45 minutes?

http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-028.jpg

This one is from today, spent some more time on it.

Pencil, maybe 1 and a half hours.

http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-029.jpg

Both from reference.

I am trying to finish the last few pages of this sketchbook as it is becoming very restricting due to its small size. It is about 12.7cm x 17.8cm (5"x7"). I find it too small for my skill level right now. I want to be able to move more, have more space to draw larger and "feel out" my sketches. It doesn't leave enough drawing area to experiment with mediums or give comfortable hand space.

Once again, thanks for all the encouragement and kind words. It's been very inspiring and motivating.

Cheers,

[redehlert]

stellar - that torso's line work is great! some of the hilites spot on the chest and abs are a bit distracting...think it would play out better if they had some lines etched in. keep the ones on the neck though!
cheers!
d

[Deselect]

Redehlert: Thanks for the kind words! Yeah the highlights look really distracting in the photo and aren't as obvious in real life, but I am going to fix them again anyway. The reference was rather shiny and oily... Glad you liked it!

[guggemmaneuver]

very nice deselect, and thanks friend!

you have some amazing ability to render things out to a three dimensional way... If i had to crit these... on the first picture of the girls face, i think it would work better if it were zoomed out just a little to see a little more of the face... on the second, it seems like maybe the outline around the outside of the body is slightly too dark. Though that said, I realize that these were ref photos and you were dealing with what you had.

excellent work friend, and thanks for the update... will be eagerly awaiting more when you get the opportunity to drop some on us. :) :yayca:

joel

[Deselect]

Guggen: Thank you very much for the helpful critiques. As for the outline of the torso, I kept it like that as I was planning on filling in a dark background around and behind the image, but never got around to it. I may still add it once I have fixed the torso highlights... It' hard to say if it would look good now, though.

I will try to work more steadily at my art. I have setup time lines for my completion of a portfolio and trying to get shown in an exhibit in the next while with fully completed works so I can apply for some grants.

[Sopor+Aeternus]

great shading in your work, really like the pics on your first page, the originality combined with your technique, magnifique.
on your lates update, it seems like there is something wrong with the girls upperlip, think it was your intention ( or the ref you used attention) to make her lips look natural.. well bla, thats what I think..
keep it up

[MattGamer]

wow. i love how you make the images the size of the page... and the time you take in your pictures... awesome stuff! post more, please! :)

[Deselect]

Sopor+Aeternus: Thanks for the critiques. I am overall not very happy with the portrait of the girl, but as I said it was simply a warm up session to help rid myself of the stress.

Mattgamer: Thanks. As for the comments on the size I make my images, I take it you mean that I try to cover up the entire piece of paper? With a sketchbook as small as this one, I haven't much options. Not to say I wouldn't normally do it, but the size of this book is pretty restricting. Mind if I ask what you meant by the time I take in my pictures? Do you mean that I post the duration of time it took me to complete?

Thank you both, once again. I will try to post more. I will definitely have more free time for art after the wedding. Priorities first, boys and girls.

Cheers,

[rivka]

hey Akiva!
really nice to see a frumy posting!!
beautiful work, love it!!

[Deselect]

Rivka: Thank you very much. I am suprised to be referred to as "frum", especially when looking at my art. I take it as a compliment. I am glad you enjoyed it. Thank you.

B'Shalom

[redehlert]

what's a frum? and i want an update to this sb. :)

[Deselect]

Red: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frum

[redehlert]

eeeeenteresting.
ok. ;)

[rivka]

bs'd

what is 'your art'...can you define it?

[glikster]

top notch updates... and I automatically assumed you were frum as well, from the original bs'd...
although I can see why some of your pieces wouldn't fly in the frum circles...
;)

[Kman.]

http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Sketchbook-28.jpg I LOVE this. Excellent work here. Inspiring!

[Deselect]

Rivka: No, I cannot really define "my art". I would like to think that most of it has a particular style or emotions in them, but who is to say? What I mostly meant was the fact that not many yiddishkeit would consider my art, which may be somewhat lewd at times (depending on the viewer) to be very frum or proper. Once again, I thank you for the kind words.

Glikster: I would like to think of myself as frum... I am pretty observant and only becoming more so with time. Torah runs in my blood and in my heart.

Ksama: Thank you very much. I only wish that piece was a little more finished, but being that it was only a warm-up session for my poor broken wrist, it served it's purpose.

I would like to thank those who have offered their kind words. I would love to update this thread soon, but chances of any art being completed before my wedding are very slim. After my wedding, I shall post some more work.

B'Shalom,

[rivka]

......my understanding of the essence of 'being' frum is how fast you're moving in which direction....
art and the creative process is a deep and fundamental axiom of the whole of creation as described in the written Torah and Kabbala.... it may be worthwhile (if you haven't already) to investigate the parametres and concepts according to the system which brings us into being.
...i really like the idea of not using the eraser, i thought about it for some time...there are different forms of teshuva,that, like the eraser, affect a cleansing on a certain level as yom kippur or even death (chas v'shalom) ....the ultimate knowledge though is that everything is just part of the process....beyond having to rub it out.
i've been trying to get back into some form of creative expression myself after a very long break....just starting to get into it.
...a heart felt MAZEL TOV to you, your Kalla and all of your mishpocho on your wedding!!!
...i wanna see more of your work soon!!

[Deselect]

ב״ה

Hello again! I am back after my lengthy hiatus and intense wedding planning as a married man!

As some of you have requested, I am showcasing some images of my Ketubah, the Jewish wedding contract given to the Kallah (Bride) by the Chatan (Bridegroom, aka. myself).

These images are a little dodgy as the gold doesn't render so well, as always, in photographs. Also, please excuse any shaky line work, there are a few places that will be touched up since these photographs took place as the wedding was, as is typically the case, a rather hectic time of planning and lovely madness.

Here is an overall photograph of the Ketubah, the Mogen David and line at the bottom will not remain white:

Http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Ketubah-004.jpg

There is a lot of symbolism and mystical meaning behind the design of the Ketubah and wedding overall. Here you can see a close-up from the central work:

Http://www.tribal-treble.com/sketchbook/Ketubah-003.jpg

This also will most likely mark the end of this sketchbook thread. I will update it with the link to the new one when it is available.

b'Shalom

[Deselect]

Corrected image links. Have a good Shabbos and/or weekend everyone!

[Deselect]

Hello everyone, new sketchbook thread should be posted in about 2-3 weeks when I am back from my "family"moon trip. Until then, I wish you all well.

b'shalom.

[redehlert]

Have a good moon!! And congratulations, my friend. The Ketubah looks beautiful, btw.
Hey...do you listen to Matisyahu at all? Awesome tunes.

Cheers!
Dave

[Deselect]

Red: Thank you very much. I am glad you like the Ketubah design. The text really needs some final work; I will most likely not post those updates though, being so minor.
I do own Matisyahu's albums. His latest album has certainly, and rather controversially, become a huge commercial success. I am interested and curious to hear what the next will sound like.

Stay well,

[Deselect]

Hello everyone, this is my first post here in a while.

As I said before, I am in the midst of working on a new sketchbook, but I just finished a painting for a friend and thought I would share it with you. I posted it in the "Finally Completed" forum as I figured it made more sense but I will share the link here, as well.

It can be found Here (http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?p=966831)

I hope you enjoy, please share your comments and critiques.

Cheers,

[Listing]

some nice work. Do less from photo refs and more from life.

[Deselect]

Listing: Thank you very much. I didn't think I would see this thread renewed at all. I am planning on posting some of my newer work once I have time in front of my computer at home. You are right, life studies is something I really lack here and have been starting to work on them and plan much more. Working from 2d to 2d is a bad idea but most of my work shown here, and is in general, that of whenever I may get time and it's not always an option.

[JoeHell]

some really good stuff in here..

[Deselect]

Thank you, JoeHell. Should have some work to upload in the next few weeks. Cheers.

[Halifax]

Good but I agree with listing
some nice work. Do less from photo refs and more from life.

[Deselect]

I have finally decided to update this thread with some somewhat recent images.
Once again, these are are quick sketches and studies, done in either ballpoint or pencil.
The first few are from a while ago and the last are from the last few days.
Please critique honestly.

[AztcFireFlower]

Hi Deselect, Thanks for the stars! Very generous of you and I appreciate it. Looking through your posts and stopped at the eye studies. These kind of beautiful studies is what charges me up to keep on the goal.

Interesting comment on wanting to nail a life drawing immediately. Same philosophy. Never much went in for sight-sizing and tapeing etc. Want my brain/eyes to judge from anywhere in the room as I go. Learned a sort of constant measureing from my illustration teachers, just not in the strictest academic sense. I think eventually your mind hits on a workable path.
Like the latest updates. Pencil work is strong and nice control of subtle values. I think as you continue your anatomy studies the little disparages in proportion will disappear, so no critique, at this point because you're doin it. You're studying!
Hope the studies become easier to pursue as the wrist heals.

[Deselect]

AztcFireFlower:
Thank you for the kind and encouraging words. My wrist will never fully heal back to what it was, which is a concern. I have been practising new techniques and working on some things that I will update with as soon as possible.
I must say, my biggest hinderence to advancing is something I never considered and hope my posting it here will be of some help to others: paper size.
My black sketch book is only about 4.5x6" (estimated guess) and it really makes it difficult to not only get a good pencil flow and area to work with but also makes it difficult to render with pencils. I know some people here on CA.org do not suffer from this problem regarding size, but I most definitely do (at least at this stage). With a larger work space I feel I can work more freely and I start to get a natural flow not only with my line work but my shading as well.
That and having very sharp pencils.

More soon.

[AztcFireFlower]

Deselect Can totally understand the size issue. I've only worked on 18x24" pads all my study days. It's not an anomaly that more space allows bigger sweep of strokes, and one is supposed to work from the shoulder down anyway. If your wrist is not totally flexible at the moment, then this, I believe, is an excellent approach.
For concept and critter sketches am now using 9x12's, 9x9's for line work mostly, which is fine and compact, but for life studies, I've always preferred the larger pads.

[Ben_Olson]

Hey Deselect

Thanks for the comment on my sketchbook, I'll take it as a compliment.

Many of your drawings are really good. especially sketchbooks 005, 010, 012.
sketchbook027 is very punk-rock. I love it.

Hey, are you familiar with an artist named Hans Bellmer. He was a surealist.You might like his stuff. Unfortunately it's hard to find his stuff. I hope you don't mind me posting some for you here. It's weird stuff.

[Deselect]

Hello, Ben.
I have not heard of Hans Bellmer, but from what you posted it looks like some rather interesting stuff. I would like to see more of his work.
Did my table designs remind you of his work or were you simply sharing a rare gem? Thank you either way.

[Deselect]

I felt like doing some quick Munch studies the other day: The Sick Child (coloured pencils), and Loving Woman.

[Deselect]

Study of Ms Hepburn, roughly 4 hours.

[Deselect]

Mr Bloch, maybe 2 hours? This one was pretty free-handed compared to the Hepburn. Now that I look at it as a photo I can see a few errors, but it was meant for as practice...

[Darktwin]

Nice deselect good to see you posting man, really loving the last two portriats a lot. The hepburn is beautiful, time well spent my friend. Can't wait for the next update man. How is life these days?

[Deselect]

DarkTwin:
Thank you for the kind words. I will hopefully be updating for frequently.
As for life, things are going well. My kallah, Aniya, and I are expecting a baby! Other than that, it has been a pretty busy time in my life--getting a lot of old things wrapped up and a lot of new things started and underway.
Right now I am trying to decide if I should dare pursue art and choose to go to an art school (which causes a number of issues that would need to be addressed) or if I should take Computer Sciences and take what may be a more sure career path and not worry about the art. It is a complicated issue which I am not addressing fully here, but it serves as an idea.
How have you been lately? It certainly has been a while, my friend.

More updates in the next short while...

[MattGamer]

really real nice mate!! loving those pencil renders and the detail... oh my, such awesome detail ;] keep it up always! cheers!

[Deselect]

MattGamer: Thank you for the kind words. I have a long way to go yet, although I am happy with the amount of progress I feel I am making in the small amount of time I have had to dedicate to it.

[thirdeye]

Damn you're sketches are so clean. The torso study from top of the page looks incredible :)

[Deselect]

Thank you, Thirdeye. You are too kind.

[Reika]

I enjoy the detail in your renderings, and the smooth lines. :) I notice you're into kabbala(i assume so i mean), and thats very interesting :D Keep up the beautiful work, and maybe you can show us some color!