More snow yesterday.
Haven't posted for a while. Busy getting over a cold
and trying to learn to draw and paint on the computer.
What little work is out there now goes to artists who produce their work on Adobe Illustrator or some
such program. Drawing and painting by hand is no
longer appreciated or desired.
The computer certainly eliminates the piles of sketches,
wet paint and dirty brush water (which cats will drink, if
left uncovered), sheets of handmade French watercolor
paper, eraser nubs and rulers and triangles and T-squares.
Trouble is, I LIKE piles of sketches. I am used to the
feeling and concentration of laying a wash on luscious
150lb hot press Arches water color paper with a Series
7 Winsor Newton sable brush and the feel of drawing
with a buttery F lead pencil. Its taken a long time
to master these tools. Not a computer phobe, I write,
communicate, research, shop, sell and alter my hand
done art all the time. All self taught.
But, so far drawing and painting on the
computer is a shallow mechanical exercise. All point
click and drag. Not an iota of sensuality or satisfaction.
Stay tuned.........
My illustration from FINGERPLAYS AND SONGS FOR THE VERY YOUNG, Random House
Heh heh, you're talking to a computer lover and Adobe Illustrator is my program. Guaranteed you'll learn to love it when you see how it works for you. I love hand work too and haven't left it behind. When you think of it, how more archaic can you get when you end up baking your illustrations. I'm so anxious to see what you'll do, can't wait. You'll surprise yourself. Look at it as a great opportunity. And it'll be fun discussing it all along the way. When I remember how I started—it's so funny to have that rock of a mouse in your hand to control something that happens on the screen. It really didn't seem possible to do anything worthwhile at all. And then little by little it starts to make sense.
ReplyDeleteWhat you need is a hug. Good luck.
Bea
I've given up trying to understand the mechanical language of Illustrator and am fooling around on a Corel draw and paint
ReplyDeleteprogram that uses plain English and artist's plain English at that.
It is all uninspiring and frustrating. I feel like I am wasting time that I could be using to make jewelry and/or cards etc. I will keep trying, but I need an attitude adjustment ;-)
Thanks for the hug, though. I can always use one.
Have you thought of getting a Wacom Tablet? You may already have one. You get to draw with a stylus. Amazing for photoshop and for Illustrator, depending on how you use it. I always think of Illustrator as completely premeditated with respect to my hard edge, stylized drawings. Though it may be a horrifying experience at first you can also draw freehand. Some people scan in sketches as a starting point. And some people just run for safety from drawing with the pen tool. I hear your frustration. Can I inspire you to take a look at the Photoshop WOW Books and the same for Illustrator where you can see what people make of these programs with explanations and step-by-step how to's. Stay with it. It will pay you off in spades.
ReplyDelete