The Commission

I was never fond of doing commissions...mainly because I didn't like the fact that I was 'selling' art...things that I grew used to and attached to over the course of me making it. And also, I feel that some people just don't have the same appreciation for certain things like I do. I perceive my own artwork as thoughts and feelings drawn out on paper...and it means alot to me. And truthfully, its kind of heartbreaking and discouraging when someone begs and pleads for my art and I give it to them, only later to see that its balled up in a wad somewhere or folded in half on the floor collecting dust...but thats just me.

Also, I don't really like drawing things for people because I never really know what they want. It helps if they sketch out a thumbnail for me so I can see their idea, but most of the time they leave it up to me. And I don't like it when I give something my all, and they don't even like it or its not what they want.

Then I thought to myself that artists have to live and survive too, and eventually I would have to get over that commission thing...so thats what I did...sorta. I'm like one of the only artists that I know who does commissions and doesn't get paid for them. Right now, I view art as something that I love doing, and love getting better at. And as long as things are simple and reasonable, I don't mind doing freebies. But I'm gonna start doing more detailed and intricate ones that go beyond the definition of sketches, and those I will def. charge for.

So with that said, on to the commissions that I've recently done (for free!! yay!!). They've all been watermarked because I feel that I drew the picture for that person and that person only, so they're the ones that get the pristine versions.

1. This is a drawing that I did for someone who's writing a book. From what I've read so far its a very interesting read. The picture of the main character's other entity that she communicates with. She's made up of fire, and it was hard trying to find a mix of the different colors that she described her character was made out of, but I tried my best.

2. This one was done for a fellow blogger. I'm not going to put his name here right now because I know he probably wants to keep this under wraps until he's ready to post it on his blog. I'm not going to post the total image, just a brief snippet of it. This is part of a larger image.
3. This next picture was also done for a fellow blogger. She showed me some images of what she liked and asked for something similar. I wasn't familiar at all with that art style, but I gave it a shot and infused some of my own in there as well. I hope she liked it alot and its what she wanted.4. This is one that I drew for a special friend of mine and is loosely based on her. This was supposed to be a beach scene and very simple. Still don't know if she liked it or not...but I guess she got her money's worth (especially since it was free)
So as of right now, I'm willing to still do 'free' sketches, as long as they're for the most part simple...all I'm willing to ask for in return is that you are able to post them online to your respective blog and link back to this site, Illuminate Darkness. If you are looking for something a little more involved, email me at IlluminateDarknessComics@gmail.com, or twitter me at IllumDarkness and we can definitely work something out from there.

Marvel Ultra War Series: Iron Man

"Tony Stark, makes you feel...he's the cool exec with the heart of steel.
As Iron Man all jets a blaze...he's fighting and smiting with repulsor rays.
Amazing armor...its Iron Man...a blaze of power...Its IRON MAN!!"

Sorry had to do it.

I was sketching Iron Man one day last week...and it came out pretty decent, so I was like, "you know what would be cool...if I inked this and colored it..." So I did that, and I really liked how it came out...but I couldn't think of a background to use. And I sat on it, and thought about it...and then a great idea jumped into my head. What if I draw all of these Marvel heroes singularly, then add them all together to this big mural type picture at the end? That sounded great, but I don't think I was thinking big enough. What if I drew not only heroes, but drew villains as well on the other side...like they were about to throw down for the biggest Marvel mashup ever?? That sounded too great to pass up. So thats the plan...and if this turns out decent like I'm crossing my fingers that it will, I'll do one for the DC characters too.

So with that said...here's my first hero...my favorite hero (move aside Spiderman, Spiderman 3 tarnished you beyond repair...) Iron Man, aka Tony Starks.

Focus Shift

Having 'sketch ADHD' like I do, its hard to sit down and narrow my mind on one topic, one task, sometimes just one line. I try and take on too much, try to learn stuff too fast, and I just want things done almost as soon as I start them. I think that's my biggest flaw when it comes to sketching, artwork and anything that's related to that. My main focus at first was creating a graphic novel...but that was taking too long, so I tried to do a web comic concurrently, all while still trying to sketch on the side. It was frustrating, and doing all that work with minimal gain was even more infuriating. So, I'm taking a step back...way back...and doing what I was doing at first...just sketching. But this time, I'm going to be doing ALOT more sketching than what I was doing at first. So, from this point on, Redux Deluxe! is going on an indefinite hiatus. I still want to do it, but I can't right now and have it come out how I want it to come out. I will still post comics there spradically, but it won't be a consistent thing like I was planning. Not many people were reading it in the first place, so I'm assuming that won't be such of a big deal. And as of right now, my untitled graphic novel is on an indefinite hold as well...until I can get comfortable with exactly it is that I want to do. Ever since I came to this conclusion of taking a step back and slowing everything down, I've been more satisfied with my artwork, so I think this is exactly what I need.

Going along with this shift mantra, I'm changing this blog around. There might be some major changes as far as layout is concerned, but more subtle though will be the change in content. I just think that for right now, it will be better this way for me.

I'm focused man.

Redux Deluxe

I've been rather busy as of late trying to get one of my projects off of the ground. I had to delve into learning CSS, PHP, and reacquaint myself with FTP stuff....to launch my own website on my own domain, on my own server. So, I have a new website...which is dedicated solely to my new project...a webcomic entitled Redux Deluxe. I can't give away everything as of yet to exactly what its all about, the characters and everything else, but I can tell you that its progressing along fine. I wanted to start a comic strip in my university's newspaper, but I got an email back saying that it wasn't appropriate for the newspaper. No other explanation, just that it was inappropriate...when other people were using vulgar language and drawing stick figures and what not. So, I guess, this is like my start up of what was to be that comic that never got off the ground.

So, I made this non-cannon strip (meaning that it doesn't really change the story) to showcase what my comic will be about. Its still incomplete and alot of things will change before I make it finalized (like the text, the layout, and even the artwork...). So, let me know what you guys think, and then I'll give out the URL to my actual webcomic. Much appreciated.

Coming Soon...

I've been slightly frustrated as of late with artwork...and I was going to take a brief hiatus from drawing, when something dawned on me. An idea jumped into my head, and it just 'clicked'. I can't say specifics as of yet, because its still a work in progress and in the planning and development stage, but I'll definitely let you know when things are up and running. But until then, you get the teaser for the promo...