art

Would You Eat At A Place Like This? I Sure Would!

2 Comments / Animation /

Tip of the hat to Pat Smith over at Scribble Junkies for alerting me to the really cool artist that is Timba.

When you think about it though, Hanna-Barbera did a really good job with the marketing for the Flintstones. In fact, you could argue that after more than 50 years, the very existence of products like Fruity Pebbles, vitamins and so forth is testament to the longevity of the show.

The art is awesome though, isn’t it? A part of me now really wishes there was a burger joint called Fast Freds…

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My favourite Piece of Art That I Own

Me /

I don’t have a lot of art and I sure wish I had a lot more, but with a small apartment and the school bills to pay, it can be tough to acquire pretty pictures to hang around the place. Thankfully, I purchased this piece before I started school, when I had a bit more moolah in the wallet.

As you can see, it’s clearly Roger Rabbit and it’s also painted by none other than Tara Billinger!!!

There’s a lot to love about this piece, it’s from one of my favourite movies, it’s in Tara’s unmistakable style, Roger is clearly going off his nut and there are some very nice shades of red to boot. Check out Tara’s creation process here.

On top of that, it’s all original. I’m one of those people who appreciate art because it’s nice to look at, not because it’s made by some high-flying artiste and I would much rather appreciate something like this than a run-of-the-mill poster or what have you. So she didn’t create the character, so what? She made this awesome picture from the film that inspired her and gives me something nice to talk about when we have guests over.

What I like best about it though, is the satisfaction I get from knowing that by buying it, I supported an artistic organization and artist. There was no auction house, no art dealer, just Tara and I (although the comic book shop in Philly along with The Autumn Society helped put together the show that the piece was in). Just knowing that I’m helping individual artists makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

There are literally tons of similar art being made out there right now, so before you consider dropping hundreds of dollars (or more) on that next “limited edition cel”, perhaps consider buying some real, original art instead.

 

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Anomaly Approved: Amy Mebberson

2 Comments / Anomaly Approved /

It’s been a while since the last one, but things have been busy and this type of post takes a wee bit longer than normal to accomplish. Anyways, today’s recommendation is Amy Mebberson. Who is she? Well, she’s an animation artist who has a lot of passion for all things Disney (and Pixar) and who currently gets to draw Pixar comics, how cool is that?

Amy likes to draw (a lot) and a quick check of her Flickr stream reveals a wide variety of works. There are plenty of work creations, but she is not shy about putting up her personal art either, be it from her sketchbook or her submittals to the Girls Drawing Girls blog.

While some out there will only be familiar with her Disney pin-ups collection, Amy is capable of so much more. It is safe to say that she has an exquisite eye for both character composure and design. While some artists are content to use similar poses over and over again, in contrast, Amy uses the opportunity to explore new and exciting poses that bring out the best possible expression in the character.

The vast majority of Amy’s works are what I would term cute. The characters are almost always smiling and look like they are in a good mood. Which, unless you’re a troll living under a bridge, will undoubtedly brighten your day.

Like most creative folks, Amy does plenty of doodling. Even though these are drawn quickly, with scant regard for perfectness, they still exhibit a great attention to detail and a dedication to excellent design. Since these are done in a relatively short space of time, there are plenty to be found over on Amy’s art blog, My Blue Sky. Even more of her stuff can be found in her deviantArt gallery.

Now I’m no great critic, but I know what I like when it comes to art. It is clear that Amy displays a true passion for her profession that shines through in the quality, calibre and variety of her creations. So what are you waiting, go check out her stuff!

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Animators and their Art

1 Comment / Animation /

I just realized that I have a lovely sketch by Lauren Faust hanging on my wall.  It’s not perfect and it’s in pencil, with plenty of rubbed-out corrections, yet I love it.

Right next to said sketch is a model sheet of Klaus from American Dad! signed by Dee Bradley Barker. Fair enough, he isn’t an animator, he’s a really funny voice-actor, but the drawing has the signature of Seth McFarlane.

The difference between these two pieces might as well be a canyon. On the one side, we have a unique, original sketch. On the other, we have a plain, manufactured sheet of paper with a fish on it.

Of course I like my Klaus picture. I received it as a present, but I still like it for what it is and for who signed it. Although in my mind, the sketch is by far the superior artistic product.

Unfortunately, animation art can get seriously expensive (like I could’ve bought a car for that type of money). Yet ordinary animators often have literally hundreds of sketches lying around. Some end up being coloured, others get tossed in the bin. Many of the bloggers I follow will post their recent sketches for all to see. Some are quite spectacular and make you wonder why they ended up on the floor.

I’ve noticed that lots of animators attend comic-cons around the country and sometimes they even sell stuff too! I’ve found this an excellent way to acquire stuff from artists I like, especially if you’re tight with the pursestrings. Many of the same artists also sell art via online stores, so you have no excuse if they aren’t coming to a comic-con near you.

Do yourself a favour and look into it, I promise you won’t be disappointed.

Here’s some of my favourites to get you started:

EDIT: I now also have a model of Linguini from Ratatouille signed by his voice-actor  one of my favourite artists, Lou Romano!

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