The Artists Café! - You can do anything you want and it's always going to look good

Here's mine from a few months back, it might be a little different now, but I generally still agree with everything I have on there.


Ranxerox Drawn by master Italian comic book artist, Tanino Liberatore, Ranx in recent years has opened me up to seeing tons of Europeon comics and artists. The comic of Ranxerox influences my style and sense of character design.

Frazetta The grand Master of fantasy artwork should need to introduction. But I've taken many aspects of his drawings and paintings into my own style, from general, like the dynamic poses, to the specifics, like how he shades a knee.

Giger and Alien
Giger has influenced my sense of character design pretty heavily, especially with his biomechanical creatures and humanoids.

Liberatore As mentioned before, Liberatore is behind the comic, Ranxerox. Respectively dubbed "The Post Modern Michelangelo", Liberaotre has influenced my sense of anatomy, design, and style.

The Old Masters
Once again, these guys should need no intro. With limited technology, especially compared to tdoay, the Old Masters such as Michelangelo and Leonardo were producing pieces of art much beyond what anyone has done or will ever do.

Mutant Chronicles
Just in recent years, Mutant Chronicle's dark gothic atmosphere and characters have influence my character design. It also introduced me to one of my favorite artists, Paul Bonner.

Metroid
Not much of an actual influence, but it has had some influence on my art, especially for atmosphere, or lack thereof.

Moebius
Oneof the other great Europeon comic book artists, Moebius has influenced both my design sense and my line style.

Richard Corben
A true master of strong lighting and epic comics, Richard Corben has worked in many different mediums to that of his contemporaries. WHile most other artists were employing the usual colored pen and ink drawings, Corben was one of the first to make comics that were full rendered and airbrushed. His creature design has also influenced me.

Geof Darrow Geof Darrow creates picture with such insane, minute detail that it really messes up your mind. He has a great sense of design and perspective.

Horror
One of my earliest influences, the horror genre has interested me since I was a child. I've always loved movie monsters, and they've influenced my sense of character design over the years.

Capcom The undisputed king of 2D games, Capcom has had the highest calibre of artwork for many years. Series like Street Fighter, Final Fight and Captain Commando have influenced my character design and scenery design over the years.

Marathon
Bungie's predecessor to Halo, Marathon was not your average Shooter. Games like Doom had you kill enemies and blow up stuff just because, while Marathon had you perform various tasks like getting a power grid back online or sealing off doors to prevent more invasion. Marathon, while having influenced my alien and creature design sense, has really influenced me in the fact of how complex its story is. It taught me that intricate plots are very effective.

Katsuhiro Otomo
The famous creator of Akira, Otomo has really influenced me in his over technical style.

Dad
Easily my biggest influence, my Dad taught me how to draw from a very early age. If I could, he'd be one giant square taking up the whole space.

so I updated mine a little! I feel like this is a little more appropriate for myself in present day than that other one



I would explain all the ones I added and their reasons, but I'm a lazy bum I'll let the images do the talking

Originally Posted by Stormy

Alrighty, I've finished mine. :>



I decided to use my real name because I felt like it.

Well, since everyone's explaining theirs, I might as well explain mine too.

Fire Emblem: By far my biggest inspiration and influence, FE is my favorite video game series and I just love the art style used in the international games. I also like how there are parchment backgrounds for the character art sometimes that also tend to include a zoomed in watermark of the character.

My Friends: Naturally, my friends give me ideas at times and they encourage me to keep drawing. Falchion1984, as I've said on the previous page, is the one who influences and inspires me the most because of how great he is at writing scenes and stuff. He makes me want to draw stuff out of them! Des/Sardine is my bf and has always liked my art. I've drawn his BA characters in the past too. But it doesn't end there! All my friends inspire and influence me in some way! :>

Zelda: While it isn't a huge inspiration, I do like official Zelda art sometimes. I'm also very fond of the Four Sword games, even though I haven't actually drawn a picture of that style or the games yet. XD

Phobos and EL: Honestly, both of you are always making me want to draw because you always pump out great pieces. :3 And EL, your Ghost Hunter of the West piece is still my favorite artwork of yours. It's kind of ironic though, since I'm not usually interested in that stuff. XD

Pokemon: I really like the Pokemon art style. I've even drawn myself in it as a trainer! I also like how cute the Pokemon can look. It makes me want to draw a cute Pokemon too. :3 Same with epic-looking Pokemon.

Anime: I do really like some styles of anime, particularly Yu-Gi-Oh (my favorite one!) and the styles of some random images I've seen on the net. What's more, FE's art style somewhat resembles anime (it only takes a more realistic approach at it).

Crayola: I've loved Crayola ever since I was little. They always have fun products to play around with and I'm enjoying Crayola Art Studio for PC. :3 Heck, they still make me want to color in coloring books, let alone just draw!

Gaze into my mind.

Definitely more of stuff that inspires me/I turn to when I'm stuck.

Mucha <3

I had a huge compliment today... a student professor in my class said that my artwork reminded them of the work produced by the French Animation studio, Gobelins.

This is one of the tons he showed me... they have awesome stuff.

Originally Posted by deimos-remus

1. Frank Frazetta:
I was introduced to Frazetta's work through my Dad, and have been amazed by his work since. Every aspect of his art, he excelled in, composition, color, anatomy, you name it.

2. ~Laemeur
I found this guy on DA one day, and I just love his style. Very unique and very well done, and all in the retro comic style I've grown to appreciate very much.

3. Frank Cho:
Not sure how i found him, but his sense of anatomy is great, as is his inking style and powerful poses.

4. Science Fiction:
No doubt the biggest influence on my characters. I love the sci-fi genre of movies, games, and everything in between.

5. Tanino Liberatore:
Probably the Michelangelo of the comics business. His classical sense of anatomy is like no other modern comic book artist.

6. Adam Hughes:
One of the most talented modern comic artists for sure. His sense of color and style is really easy on the eye, and his superheroines are unrivaled.

7. Jean "Moebius" Giraud:
One of the most imaginative artists out there and a veteran in the european comics industry. His designs are so simple but so effective and creative. His style is also extremely unique. He's also worked as a concept artist for some of my favorite movies.

8. John Buscema:
In my opinion, the definitive Marvel artist. Very dynamic and gestural figures.

9. Dan Luvisi, `adonihs
Another fellow artist on DA. Has some of the most detailed and awesome character designs. He's been working on his project, 'Last man Standing' for over a couple of years now, and the universe is huge.

10. Graphic Art:
Bold designs and posters really intrigue me, I've always like the look of them.

11. Andrew Loomis:
One of the best instructional artists. Loomis has a collection of books ranging from Anatomy to Composition, and his books have helped me vastly improve my own artwork.

12. Burne Hogarth:
Another one of the great instructional artists. Hogarth's anatomy is very dynamic and easy to study. Once again, his collection of books have helped me improve.

13.The 1980s:
The 80s have been influencing my characters and art as well, a very nostalgic decade.

14. Gustave Doré:
With the help of his engravers, Doré's work is nothing short of astounding. I could spend hours looking though his illustrations, trying to let every last detail sink in.

15. Michelangelo:
No doubt, the best of the Old masters. His Larger than Life figures and dynamic settings, poses and the stories told by his work were unlike any other.

16: David Anderson, my Dad:
As some of you may know, my father passed away in October. My Dad was and still is the biggest influence on my work. He taught me everything I know now, and continues to inspire me.

TIME FOR AN ENORMOUS POST.
This is all of the stuff I put on my influence map, and why it inspires me. Not to be pretentious, I just like talking about stuff I like!

Spoiler:  

Friends
I'm not just being a nice guy here, my friends really do have a lot of influence on what and how I draw. The three here are pictures I drew of my three closest friends, James, Holly, and EL. They all give me great support and advice for my stuff, and I enjoy sharing it with them. James in particular is a major influence-- we've been friends for like seven years, and in that time have hit it off so well that we have so much fun bouncing ideas off one another and creating stories, characters, and anything else together. We have perfect chemistry for that sort of thing. There probably isn't a single thing I make that wasn't in some way influenced by my friends.

Paper Mario
This is one I'm sure people that know me saw coming. Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door is my second-favorite game of all time (though I adore the whole series). I love it for many reasons-- its gameplay is very smartly streamlined and its visual style is creative, but what I love most about it and what left the biggest impact on me are the characters and dialogue. The localization team did an amazing job on the game-- every one of the characters is a complete joy to read (one reviewer in a magazine said that random villagers in this game have more personality than major characters in other RPGs, and he's right), and this game succeeds in being genuinely laugh-out-loud funny while keeping everything family-friendly. That's not a feat easily achieved. This game's characters turned a ho-hum story premise into one of my favorite video game stories of all time. The charm and personality of this game has stuck in my mind ever since I first played it.

Calvin & Hobbes
There is so much that is wonderful about Calvin and Hobbes I don't know where to begin. This is a comic strip filled not only with unique and hilarious antics, but also very strong messages and warm fuzzies aplenty. It perfectly captures the wondrous innocence of childhood that many people let go of or forget, and also captures the most important things that exist in the world-- namely, friendship and good old-fashioned exploration and imagination. Author Bill Watterson fought a tiring battle to keep the characters from being merchandised, and won an extremely respectable victory (so if you see any of those decals of Calvin peeing on logos, those are illegal). Calvin and Hobbes shaped a great deal of the things I value when I express myself.

"I'm not dumb. I just have a command of thoroughly useless information." -- Calvin

Animal Crossing
Animal Crossing? Well yeah-- I'm a huge fan of the GameCube game in particular (WW was meh, CF can go die in a hole). For a long time now I've had in mind an animated fan cartoon series revolving around my take on the world of Animal Crossing, and it's a very dear project to me. What I took most from Animal Crossing is, like Calvin and Hobbes, its focus on the value of childlike innocence and friendship. An extremely major focus in my cartoon about it is that really upsetting things happen to the three main characters on their own, but they come to meet each other because of those things, form a close sibling-like friendship, and have a whole new world of things to look forward to from that point.

It has two overt themes-- the first is that no matter how bad life seems to get, there is always something worth smiling about. The second is that people should never let go of that childlike sense of wonder, and should learn to see and appreciate the pleasure in the simplest of things, whether it's taking in the scenery on a walk or sitting by the fireplace drinking hot chocolate with a friend. To me, it always felt like Animal Crossing was about those things; enjoying the simple, innocent pleasures in life.

Ace Attorney
People that know me know I'm obsessed with this game series too. The Ace Attorney series satisfies my enjoyment of mysteries, but the most influential thing about it is the personality and dialogue of the characters, much like Paper Mario (though slightly less over-the-top with goofiness). The exchanges between the characters in these games are so much fun to read and brimming with well-thought-out dialogue. The series has also increased my fondness for puns.

The other thing I really like about this series is that it shows that you can accomplish a lot with a little. 90% of the game is simply reading dialogue. The animation is extremely limited, and the game recycles the same animations and sound effects over and over again. But it doesn't get old. The dialogue carries the game so effectively, I've even enjoyed replaying the series (the whole series) over five times at least. That doesn't normally happen with games that rely entirely on story. These games should have no replay value because they are linear, but they're such entertaining reads and the characters are so endearing that I can keep coming back to them.

Tom and Adam Vian
These guys may be better known as the Super Flash Bros. As their name implies, their program of expertise is Adobe Flash. Being such a fan of the program myself, you can see why they are an inspiration to me. Tom, the older of the brothers, is a whiz at programming Flash games, and has achieved some truly cool things I only wish I could do. Adam is the animator of the pair, and has created numerous cartoons using the program. Some don't quite hold up too well today, but others are still very inspiring and he's always improving. Most recently he's working on character animations for their new game, one that is inspired by games like Ace Attorney and Professor Layton (=D). These guys were especially a major influence when I was still starting to learn Flash.

Ryan Miller
Better known as rtil, another Flash artist I've been following for quite some time. (He does other kinds of art as well and is very good at it.) His character designs are stylish, and he's done some truly impressive animation in Flash in partnership with his friend (who did the backgrounds I believe). He's had a history of being a bit of a troll due to his numerous satirical Flash animations, but when he does put out his original work, it is something to behold ( and though it's hit-and-miss, his satire is sometimes good for a laugh).

Studio Ghibli
Not much to be said here! I say "Studio Ghibli" as a whole, and not just Miyazaki-- Ghibli has put out some very good films that didn't involve Miyazaki at all. They produce wonderful stories and art-- and one thing that strikes me about their movies, especially for Japanese animation, is their attention to detail. Not necessarily "realistic" detail mind you, just attention to small things that make a difference, such as the hard work they put into the backgrounds and the very impressive animation that captures believable nuances in how someone might move. A very different flavor of animation than the Western giants like Disney, but one that captures just as much wonder.

The Legend of Zelda
Derr. Ever since I first played Link's Awakening as a kid, I got really into the series. I've kinda been much more distanced from it ever since I got halfway through Twilight Princess (truth be told, right now I don't give the slightest **** about Skyward Sword), but as a whole I really appreciate the world Zelda throws us into. Games like the Wind Waker and the nostalgia-laden Ocarina of Time have been very prominent joys and influences throughout my life as a gamer.

Majora's Mask is my absolute favorite game not only in the series, but of all time. Whether you like the game or not, it was something all its own.The worst thing about the game was its save system. That sucked. But now that I got that out of the way, it had really deep character interactions (for the time, but that still hold up better than most things today), and made me care about what happened to the characters should I fail to stop the Moon from falling. The gameplay was largely carried over from Ocarina of Time, but with a time quirk and lots of cool masks that endowed you with different abilities (not the least of which was transforming into one of four different playable characters).

But the story... This is one of those games that makes up for a lot of its shortcomings with the fantastic experience it immerses you in. It's (in my opinion) the darkest Zelda game, but it's because of the severe emotion and extreme sense of weight involved with the characters in the game, not because it was trying too hard to appear more mature (looking at you, TP). There are so many scenes in this game that left a huge impact on me because of the characters (such as the scene with Pamela and her father, or Cremia and Romani in the barn on the third day)... and when you've only got a few minutes left before the Moon falls, the atmosphere is just incredible (made even better by the fantastic music). Never before have I felt such a sense of doom and hopelessness in a game, or such care and sympathy for the characters, and it is excellent. As far as atmosphere and emotional investment go, Majora's Mask gets an A+.

I guess I just kinda rambled on about Majora's Mask rather than how the whole series influenced me, but, well, there you go, that's how much of an impact it left on me. There's a lot more I could say about that one game (much more the whole series), but I can't even remember it all and I'd go on forever. And it's not even one of the biggest squares on my grid.

Pixar
It's just... PIXAR. Nearly everything they do is great (their worst movie was Cars easily though). I'm not an aspiring 3-d artist but their films influence me all the same in all the other ways that matter. I don't have much to say because most people know where it's at with Pixar. Toy Story will always have a soft spot in me (the third movie was timed so excellently to grow up with its audience, so kids like me really got to appreciate that part of the story).

Cartoon shows
I spent so much time watching television cartoons as a kid. Specifically Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network (back when, you know, they showed cartoons). Sometimes Disney ones, although much less so those. There are too many to pick from so I just lumped them into one. Although I picked Darkwing Duck for the poster boy because, well, Darkwing is ****ing awesome.


Professor Layton
One of my (relatively) newer influences, Professor Layton couples delightful characters (sorry, but the whole gentlemanly British stereotype is just so charming) with great artistic direction and character design (especially considering the fact that it's Japanese). The character designs here are fantastic, each one unique, and it's a joy to see them in animated cutscenes in the games as well. And I like the European flavor to all of the artwork, utilizing sepia-heavy palettes and stylized architecture to give it an intentionally antiquated European vibe.

EarthBound/Mother series
This is another big game influence for me. It would take forever for me to go over everything I love about the series, but I'll actually start by saying that I dislike the gameplay in EarthBound, and hate the first game (Mother 1 or EarthBound Zero) almost in its entirety. (Mother 3 improved on that very much.) But the series as a whole encompasses fantastic personality in terms of the characters and worlds (which are influenced by what the Japanese think America is like... and they're not all that far off ). Back around the birth of this series, it was a new thing to play an RPG in a modern setting, fighting hippies, retrieving money from an ATM machine, suffering from asthma attacks and homesickness, and hitching a ride with a band on their tour bus.

The games are "kids against the world" stories, but they are believable kids (well, with psychic powers). They get homesick like regular kids, they can order takeout like regular kids, Ness's father is away at work all the time like some regular kids' parents, his sister has a part-time job and can help you by delivering items to you, they go to school like regular kids, and they even get colds as a status ailment like regular kids. Things like that are what add the extra touch that enables you to relate to the characters-- especially Ness, who has to overcome some heavy things for a kid to have to overcome (as you progress and visit your Sanctuaries, you recall memories from Ness's childhood, and at one point you literally have to fight his nightmares inside his own head with the help of some subconscious entities).

The series has some extremely touching moments, and also very surprisingly dark moments. Mother 3 in particular went nuts with this (to great success, in my opinion), although the previous two games also have such moments in spades if you take the time to think about them. Mother 3 was fantastic, but I also appreciate that in EarthBound, such touching and dark moments weren't served to you on a silver platter-- it was more subtle, it made you think to appreciate some of it. Poo's Mu training sequence is particularly unsettling, and the way you beat the final boss is one of the most emotionally powerful things I've seen in a video game. The music of the series is also close (and sometimes emotional) to me-- EarthBound's Sound Stone melody is beautiful, and Pollyanna (from the first game, although it's heard in all three) is one of the happiest songs on the planet (it actually has a lyrical version that perfectly describes the attitude of my Animal Crossing cartoon). Fourside's theme may be one of my favorite location theme songs in any game ever. There's a lot from this series that left an impact on me, and it's one of the very few examples where, with EarthBound for example, I will say I can't stand the gameplay but I love everything else about the game.


Stylish games
I love games with style. Specifically games that have unique and stylish art direction and music coupled with a neat and equally-stylish gameplay concept. De Blob is my biggest example here, with the fantastic funk-influenced soundtrack that dynamically changes with your actions, a colorful look, and a fun gameplay focus (painting buildings to give towns their color back). Games like this inspire me to add similar flair to some of my own projects, depending on what they are. Other such games I'd put in this category include Locoroco, Chibi-Robo, Parappa the Rapper, Kirby: Canvas Curse, and Katamari Damacy.

Classic Disney/Warner Bros.
What else is there to say here? Gotta love the classics. I count myself fortunate that I've been able to grow up watching classic Disney and Warner Bros. animated shorts, especially considering the fact that those have been around for so long they transcend generations. I've always especially loved Donald Duck and Yosemite Sam. But now that I'm in an animation school and learning from these very shorts and ideas now, they influence me in more ways than one.

I'll also include classic Disney movies in this too, such as their 2-d animated features (I'll even throw something as recent as Princess and the Frog in there, that movie was pretty alright). I've been watching Disney movies just as anyone else my age likely has. Some of it is really amazing stuff.

Digimon
I'd be lying if I ignored this one. Digimon (specifically the very first season) was a HUGE influence on me when I watched it as a kid. I had been drawing before then (I had to have been, like, six), but Digimon was the first thing I can remember that really inspired me with its sense of adventure and scope, as well as with all the (surprisingly deep) attention they paid to each of the main characters and their development. It was also the first thing that really got me into anime (though I had watched Pokemon prior to this). THAT is not such a good thing. Anime in general was an enormous influence on me all through as late as senior year in high school, but I'm lumping "anime and manga" in here with Digimon, namely for the fact that Digimon started it and anime in general is not much of an influence on me anymore. At least, not like it used to be (thankfully).

I do have a soft spot for the first season or two of this show, as it was a really fun kids' show with a surprisingly epic scope and unusual amount of character development. I also still draw one of my longest-running characters with goggles because of this show, and draw headgear in general a lot as well.

So yeah.
That's a lot of ****.
None of you read it.
I understand.
=p

Too lazy to make an influence map, so i'll just listen my influences.

Moebius


Paul Bonner


Simon Bisley


Brenden McCarthy


The Legend of Zelda (pre-Wind Waker)



Earthbound 64 Concept Art


Early CGI




Howard & Nester


Super Mario Bros. The Movie


Batman

I didn't know you liked Moebius, Leeno! You have good taste.
Paul Bonner and Simon Bisley are awesome as well!

Originally Posted by Phobos-Romulus

I didn't know you liked Moebius, Leeno! You have good taste.
Paul Bonner and Simon Bisley are awesome as well!

Actually, you got me into Moebius. I was introduced to him through your Moons of Mars blog.

I think it's amazing that one of Vynrah's influences is pin up girls. :3

I'll show you guys my influence map once I'm done it!

You guys have any favorite art museums?

<3

Originally Posted by Jehanne

You guys have any favorite art museums?

<3

The Detroit Institute of Arts



Definitely one of the most underrated art museums in the nation. There is an AMAZING collection here; and a very broad one at that. Everything from a gorgeous Caravaggio to a post-modern collection full of... post-modern things!

Here are some of my favorite pieces in the museum:

Judith and her Maidservant by Artemisia Gentileschi. (that is actually a horrible repro of the painting- there's a lot more color) I could babble about the artist, since I've studied her quite a bit, but I'll let you guys do the research. But this painting is beautiful, and very big. Definitely one of the museum's pride and joys.

The Nut Gatherers by mister Bouguereau. Yet another jaw-dropping piece. Another prized possession for the museum.

The Beach Hat by Robert Henri. This one's just a personal fave. I've always been drawn to it.

Along with these, there is an amazing collection of Van Gogh, Degas, Cezanne, Whistler, Renoir.
And last but not least, Diego Rivera's 'Detroit Industry' mural, which dominates the second biggest atrium on the main floor.



If you ever find yourself in the city, this place is a must-stop.
It also helps that this is practically in my backyard; just a 5 minute walk for me. And students at my college get in for free when you show your ID

And I'll let you in on something else- the Cafe DIA makes the greatest grilled cheese sandwiches in the universe. Your tastebuds can thank me later :>

^Hey! I've been there!

Originally Posted by Jehanne

You guys have any favorite art museums?

<3

Sure I do, but none of them are man-made. Strolling through the park or a natural area is my kind of art museum. It's like seeing the natural history and story that took place on how the landscape is today.

I would state an actual art museum, but living in a small town almost my whole life where there are more WWII things and art is just not appreciated in the area (except for things I can't really classify as art under my own taste), I can't say that I've been to an art museum before.

Guys - I am *so* sorry for not being so active here lately, so many things keeping me busy IRL.
But will sit my ass down and do my "reply to al threads" thing for much deserved recognition for al your arty goodness <3

I just bought myself a copy of this:



for 4 dollars off amazon. Hardback. Full of completely awesome images by the wonderful Tony Diterlizzi.

I think I have found my new art love. Seriously. I love this guy and his work! I looked through this book almost every other hour of the day and I find that I was just meant to enjoy his artwork... I relate to it I suppose.

I sound so weird and philosophical lately.

I also just bought this as well for kicks:



I like Peter Pan?



<3

lol.

Not the Disney movie though - I never quite liked Disney's interpretation of Peter Pan.

I've never read the book(s); in that drawing, he looks like quite the trouble-maker.

XD

I really like the style of that Peter Pan! It's playful, yet not super cartoony.