Fall, Winter and the Holy Grail








Here are a few promotional illustrations I did for my wonderful agency, New Leaf Literary & Media, as well as a character sketch to test out a digital painting technique.

Finding a method of digital painting that's easy, loose and works well with my sketchy style has always been a holy grail for me. I can spend a kazillion hours and paint something that looks like an oil painting, but I don't have a kazillion hours these days. Besides, that sort of approach doesn't lend itself to the children's books I write, and is far too labor-intensive for comic work -- other than covers. The above technique feels comfy, cozy and very me. And even better, it's super fast! I don't want to jinx it, but I think I possibly just "chose wisely." We'll see as I continue to test it out... :)

Comments

Ricky Montero said…
Are there any sort of story behind your paintings? Or are they purely spontaneous thoughts?
6:23 PM
andreamichelle said…
I love your use of color. I feel like I need to take classes on color theory, because I really seem to struggle in this area. I can see what I like in others work, but doing it is another thing.
7:27 PM
adreanaline said…
What program and brush do you use for the effect at bottom? It looks like watercolors -- very impressive! :)
7:00 AM
sarah said…
Ricky - Often they are. These, though, were for seasonal themes, and the last one was just random. :)

Andrea - Thank you. I struggle with color, too. I find a big help to me is to use mostly colors in the same family (like blue or green) and then use a bright complimentary color as an accent. Starting with a color wash in the background helps me too.

Adreanaline - Thanks. It's actually mostly a photoshop pencil brush I found online. I like the watercolor effect, too. :)

8:05 AM
Robert Trujillo/Tres said…
Ahh the turquoise colors are magnificent Sarah. And I really dig your sketchy style, it shows how you think and lets me know its alright to be sketchy at times too. Hope you are well.
9:51 AM
andreamichelle said…
those sound like good ideas. I find I'm getting better with practice and learning through my mistakes...
9:27 AM
The Wise Serpent said…
I guess I hadn't realized you started updating your blog more often, because this is the first time I've seen these. I love love love the fall and winter drawings especially! I'm glad to see more of your artwork.
9:39 PM
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