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Paint Me A Picture

Posted on July 18, 2018 by Loni Townsend

When it comes to hobbies and interests, I’m the type of person who starts something and usually abandons it half-finished. Girl Scouts, ballet, gymnastics, knitting, wire-working… Eventually, my love of the activity fades and I leave it by the wayside.

Thankfully, that hasn’t been the case with drawing (or writing for that matter). Back in high school, I was president of Art Club. Not due to any amount of skill I had, but because I was enthusiastic to take up the role. My friends all had paintings and drawings in library displays, while I did little more than draw cartoon characters with big eyes and no noses.

Exhibit One:

Almost a year ago, I mentioned a goal to create a portrait of all my many characters. I figured I’d hire out because my own digital work wasn’t up to my standards. I did find a Fiverr artist I really like, but at $25 per digital painting (which is actually a great deal), it would get expensive quick.

So I buckled down and returned to my practice of drawing characters. I finally started getting the hang of drawing them with some consistency, not in color, mind you, but still, you could tell it was the same character.

As I moved on to try to draw other characters beyond my four POVs, my husband made an off-hand comment about how my characters lacked expression. Beyond a hint of a smile on a couple of the faces, there wasn’t much beyond neutral in all my drawings. I sighed because I knew he was right. Like with previous projects, I scrapped my progress and started over, this time aiming to exaggerate.

I’ve completed eight portraits in the past couple of weeks, complete with color. This deviates from my previous drawings in that I did it completely digitally. I’m finally getting comfortable with my laptop with the pressure sensitive screen, so much so that I find myself reaching to the top corner to hit undo before realizing I’m using pencil and paper.

Here is my current progress, which I have to admit, I am pretty proud of.

Top Row: LaTonya (POV), Derek (POV), Alissandria
Middle Row: Naomi, Jebaliah
Bottom Row: Alistair, MaTisha (POV), Cameron (POV)

I’ve still got dozens of characters in my brain, and I’m not sure how to capture their personalities in simple portraits. But I’m sure going to try. Who knows, maybe I’ll be able to create my mega map of interconnected characters. πŸ™‚

I swear I am actually writing in addition to all this drawing. In fact, I finished another chapter this past week. I just can’t write while I’m conversing with my family because my brain can’t handle the interruptions. But I can draw and color while hanging with my kids or catching up on the day with my husband.

Do you have any character drawings you really like? Who are some of your favorite artists?

22 thoughts on “Paint Me A Picture”

  1. Arlee Bird says:
    July 18, 2018 at 11:15 AM

    Nice work! I wish I had that artistic talent. Two of my daughters can draw very well, but I don’t think they inherited that trait from me. Keep up the efforts as you definitely have a skill and eye for art.

    I’ve been much like you in dropping things that I’ve started. I’ve done it my entire life. I guess I just lose patience when I don’t see any immediate results from my work.

    Arlee Bird
    Tossing It Out

    Reply
  2. Liz A. says:
    July 18, 2018 at 11:28 AM

    Those are amazing. As someone who absolutely cannot draw, I am in awe. I know, it seems terrible to you. We are always so hypercritical of our own work. Glad yours are coming along.

    Reply
  3. Anna says:
    July 18, 2018 at 11:38 AM

    They are awesome. You’ve got talent. πŸ™‚

    Anna from elements of emaginette

    Reply
  4. Juneta says:
    July 18, 2018 at 1:08 PM

    Beautifully done. I would like to try digital drawing and painting one day.

    Reply
  5. Chrys Fey says:
    July 18, 2018 at 2:35 PM

    Oh my gosh. You’re so talented. One day, when I have money, I want to hire you to create cartoon images of my characters in my urban fantasy series. πŸ™‚ If they are ever published. lol

    Reply
  6. C.G.Coppola says:
    July 18, 2018 at 6:23 PM

    Wow, Loni, these are AMAZING! I wish I could do that (no, seriously. I do!) and you’ve definitely got the talent/skill to make them each their own characters. I LOVE MaTisha! Those nails…

    Reply
  7. Ernesto San Giacomo says:
    July 18, 2018 at 6:27 PM

    Wow Loni, they look incredible!

    Reply
  8. Erika Beebe says:
    July 18, 2018 at 6:44 PM

    I love your drawings! I think drawing out characters help too. I used to draw tons and kept a magazine binder of character sketches from both pencil and magazine clippings. My favorite artists have changed considerably and it’s been so long since I’ve thought about them. I love Van Gogh’s landscapes of the wheat fields. I love swirls. I love Gaughin because of his bright color choices. At one point I know I loved a painter who studied horses but I can’t remember his name πŸ™‚ Happy Wednesday and enjoy your family πŸ™‚

    Reply
  9. Elsie says:
    July 19, 2018 at 5:22 AM

    This really made my heart happy, Loni. I know that sounds super cheesy because we don’t know each other, but it’s true. To see you nailing your artwork and reaching your writing goals, hanging with family and doing well, yeah, it made my heart happy. Good for you! And your drawings rock. πŸ™‚

    Elsie

    Reply
  10. Joleene Naylor says:
    July 19, 2018 at 2:10 PM

    I love your style! I’ve drawn many of my own characters, too, though they’re in a more cartoon style as well, though I did paint them for the new covers, however I had to use reference material for them because I’m not good at “real” color – I can do cellshaded coloring, but when it comes to mixing blue or yellow in to make skin tones on their cheeks or chins… yeah, it all just looks skin colored to me, LOL!

    Reply
  11. Patricia Lynne aka Patricia Josephine says:
    July 19, 2018 at 2:38 PM

    Those look great.

    Reply
  12. Krista says:
    July 19, 2018 at 4:02 PM

    I’ve been meaning to stalk you a bit since we’re always interacting so well on my blog, and I can relate entirely. I was so ‘halfway’ for years and it frustrated me that I was never offering anything to show for it. I didn’t want to lose any of my many hobbies, but had to crack down on deciding what I wanted from them and finishing things. Like you, drawing and writing seem to come in at the top these days and even then, it’s a matter of finding the discipline to hammer them to completion. It’s always inspiring to know it’s not a journey we face alone. Keep it up!

    Reply
    1. Loni Townsend says:
      July 19, 2018 at 4:20 PM

      Hey Krista! Thanks for visiting me. ^_^

      Reply
  13. Roland Clarke says:
    July 19, 2018 at 6:19 PM

    Awesome artwork that you should be proud of. My art is still at the stick stage – unless I trace a master. Naomi reminds me of my main protagonist.

    Reply
  14. H.R. Sinclair says:
    July 19, 2018 at 10:37 PM

    Wow! Very nice. I can see their personalities. What hardware/software do you use?

    Reply
  15. Lori L MacLaughlin says:
    July 20, 2018 at 8:35 PM

    That’s some amazing artwork! All those long, spiky fingernails. I always wished I could draw like that, but sadly I was never that good at it. I love looking at fantasy artwork, though. Just think, you could create a wall mural of all your characters. That would be really cool.

    Reply
  16. M.J. Fifield says:
    July 23, 2018 at 11:57 AM

    I love your character portraits. They look amazing! As someone with no artistic ability whatsoever, I always have to rely on searching for images on Pinterest.

    Reply
  17. J.H. Moncrieff says:
    July 25, 2018 at 5:12 PM

    Those are awesome! I wish I had your talent. These ones definitely aren’t lacking expression.

    When I was a teen, my bf at the time was an insanely talented artist. He drew a big mural on my bedroom wall featuring Thor, SpiderMan, Batman, Robin, and Wolverine. SpiderMan looked 3D, like he was about to leap off the wall. I’d say Spidey and Thor are still my favourite characters.

    Reply
  18. Lee Lowery says:
    July 27, 2018 at 2:36 PM

    So apparently hard word and practice practice practice really does take talent to the next level. Awesome progress! I especially love MaTisha and her missing finger. Will it grow back? πŸ™‚

    Reply
  19. Raimey Gallant says:
    August 1, 2018 at 4:16 PM

    Beautiful.

    Reply
  20. Elizabeth Otten says:
    August 6, 2018 at 10:19 PM

    Those are amazing! Their personalities do seem to show and I find myself wanting to learn more about them πŸ™‚

    Reply
  21. Sarah says:
    August 12, 2018 at 10:27 AM

    Nice! I love that girl on the top right (saw her somewhere…an old gallery of yours?) but they’re all pretty awesome. I’ve always loved your sketches but have to admit those last digital ones are amazing.

    Reply

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Welcome to my blog. I post here on Wednesdays most of the time, but you can find me on social media any day of the week. My topics include my stories and writing, life at the Town's End, creating and tinkering with graphics, things I learn and think might be helpful to others, and the occasional amateur photo. Thanks for stopping by! I hope to see you around.

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