Illustration Friday » everyday art http://illustrationfriday.com/blog Tue, 22 May 2012 11:56:07 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 Neato | otaeN http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2012/05/03/neato-otaen/ http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2012/05/03/neato-otaen/#comments Thu, 03 May 2012 12:36:36 +0000 colin http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/?p=4256 Wow. In three simple steps, Flickr user cshimala blew my mind.

1. Drive around Chicago with a video camera on windshield

2. Speed up resulting footage in video editor

3. Apply mirror effect with same editor

It’s crazy how a simple mirror filter can transform a video into something else.

Check out when he drives under the L.

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]]> http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2012/05/03/neato-otaen/feed/ 0 Draw Something – Illustrate Everything http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2012/04/26/draw-something-illustrate-everything/ http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2012/04/26/draw-something-illustrate-everything/#comments Fri, 27 Apr 2012 01:37:17 +0000 colin http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/?p=4143 Have you played this Pictionary-like, turn-based, quasi-illustration game yet? If you’ve got an iPhone, iPad or iPod touch, I guess the answer is “probably.” I actually just found out about it recently, but according to the developers it’s “***The #1 Free App, #1 Paid App and #1 Word Game in over 80 countries!***”
I don’t know that I’d classify it as a word game at all — though you are indeed given a topic to illustrate and a forum in which to share it (which reminds me of something else, actually).


To me, it’s more of a drawing game… conceptual illustration, to be exact. It works like this: The turn starts when you’re given three choices of words to draw. You take your pick and make your pic — crafting the best sketch you can muster within the confines of your screen and digital-screen drawing ability. Then you hit “Send.” Presto: Your drawing is whooshed off to your friend, whose job it is now to try and guess what word you were drawing. The better they guess, the better your game. So it’s kind of a collaboration.


One fun thing is that your friend doesn’t just see the finished illustration, but rather gets to “watch” you draw it as each line and dot falls into place. This turns out to be a big help to both the illustrator and the guesser, in my experience — you can infer a lot from what your friend chose to depict first and last. It’s also fun that the words you draw are categorized by difficulty when you choose them, so a beginner can work on an artistic rendering of something simple like “Cat,” while more experienced Draw-Something-ers can opt to take on, say, “Socialism.” I think you get more coins, or something, for drawing the harder words, but so far I haven’t found much use for the coins.


The most fun thing though, to me at least, is getting to see your friends’ drawings. My friends — even the ones who aren’t artists — are *fantastic* artists if you ask me. Part of it is that a tiny glass screen is a great leveler of artistic skill, and while there are certainly folks who can do amazing things within the i-devices’ constraints, most of us just try to get by on our cleverness. Or that of our friends. But the fun also comes from seeing how your friends see things.


If you’re given, for example, “seasick,” do you draw a person with a green face and hope your friend will know it’s not a martian? Do you draw the sea, *then* some image of illness? Or will your friend get hung up and think you’re imagining some kind of underwater hospital? Also, they’ll be guessing your word based on not just the picture, but a jumble of letters that includes s-e-a-s-i-c-k. What if they get confused and think you meant to draw the suggestion that they “ask ice”? Unlikely, but still.


It’s really fun to factor in not just what something looks like, but how well you can draw it and how well your friend can guess it.
Once you’ve played a few rounds of Draw Something, you begin to conclude that it’s actually not a word game at all — in fact, using words in your drawings is kind of a last resort. (I’ve done it; I’ll admit, but I try not to.) Rather, it’s a fun distraction that makes a game out of illustration itself. Oh, and if you can think of a good way to draw the idea of “Frenemy,” please let me know. It’s my turn, and I hate keeping my friend waiting.
Here are some of my favorite illustrations from my games so far. I thought I did a particularly nice job on “Floss.”

I just wish I could get Penelope to play me.

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]]> http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2012/04/26/draw-something-illustrate-everything/feed/ 0 Andy J. Miller http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2011/05/18/andy-j-miller/ http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2011/05/18/andy-j-miller/#comments Wed, 18 May 2011 15:04:35 +0000 admin http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/?p=2688 Designer and illustrator Andy J. Miller showcases his work at Design Koma

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]]> http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2011/05/18/andy-j-miller/feed/ 0 Junyi Wu http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2011/05/17/junyi-wu/ http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2011/05/17/junyi-wu/#comments Tue, 17 May 2011 15:00:14 +0000 admin http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/?p=2683 Freelance illustrator Junyi Wu shares her portfolio with us. It’s like walking into the middle of an epic fairytale in progress.

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]]> http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2011/05/17/junyi-wu/feed/ 0 Carl Has the Funk! http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2011/05/16/carl-has-the-funk/ http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2011/05/16/carl-has-the-funk/#comments Mon, 16 May 2011 19:59:52 +0000 admin http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/?p=2679 The fun blog of student Freya Hartas houses a collection of her doodles and collages.

 


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]]> http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2011/05/16/carl-has-the-funk/feed/ 0 Vin Vogel http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2011/05/03/vin-vogel/ http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2011/05/03/vin-vogel/#comments Tue, 03 May 2011 16:30:45 +0000 admin http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/?p=2638 Vin Vogel, illustrator of over 35 books,  shares his work in progress at his blog, but don’t miss his professional portfolio.

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]]> http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2011/05/03/vin-vogel/feed/ 0 Inbox (12) http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2011/04/04/inbox-12/ http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2011/04/04/inbox-12/#comments Mon, 04 Apr 2011 16:49:09 +0000 admin http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/?p=2581 Announcing the launch of Inbox (12), a new publication where you receive 12 postcards drawn and written by 12 illustrators about their favourite city spots.

Inbox (12) is a sample of the work of amazing illustrators from major cities all around the world as well as a guide to the special spots that a friend who knows the place would recommend to you… and they’re not always in the usual travel guides!.

Inbox (12) is a fanzine for those who enjoy having a beautiful object in their hands.

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]]> http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2011/04/04/inbox-12/feed/ 1 Weekly Dr.’s Column http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2011/03/22/weekly-dr-s-column/ http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2011/03/22/weekly-dr-s-column/#comments Wed, 23 Mar 2011 05:48:43 +0000 Fernanda Cohen http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/?p=2548 For the past 2+ years I’ve been illustrating a weekly Dr.’s column for the most popular Argentine newspaper’s Sunday magazine, Clarin.

Readers send their concerns- which all too often seem to be way too similar- and Dr. Abdala offers his medical advice.

I truly love doing this column every single week. It challenges me to find all kinds of different ways to illustrate depression, anxiety, aging, phobias and complexes, over and over again. Needless to say, no reader ever sends a concern about how to stop being so incredibly happy.

Moreover, because they know my work quite well by now, and I assume they like it enough to keep me this long, I have the unusual freedom to experiment and try out new approaches to my work. So I often adapt my style to the concept, instead of always adapting the concept to my style for the sake of style consistency, which is what often happens with illustrators but not so much with graphic designers.

So, my friends, here is a selection of my 10 favorite illos from this column that keeps me busy- and on antidepressants (FYI, yeah, that IS a joke)- every Monday of my sweet existence.

Hope you enjoy them… and that, whenever and wherever it is you get to see them, it’s a sunny day outside.
{¡Gracias Jorge, Gustavo, Diego & Marina!}

- Fernanda

“Suicidal Thoughts”

“Panic Attacks”

“The Narcissist”

“Upbringing Gets and Stays in the Way”

“Envy”

“Temperamental”

“Recharging”

“Post-Abortion Depression”

“Depression” (again)

“Vicious Eating Cycles”

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]]> http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2011/03/22/weekly-dr-s-column/feed/ 5 poketo wallets for spring http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2011/03/09/poketo-wallets-for-spring/ http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2011/03/09/poketo-wallets-for-spring/#comments Thu, 10 Mar 2011 00:11:11 +0000 admin http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/?p=2540

Poketo, a designer of limited edition art products, accessories, apparel, and decor has super cool spring wallets available on their site. The two shown above are from Eleanor Grosch and Jennifer Sanchez.

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]]> http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2011/03/09/poketo-wallets-for-spring/feed/ 0 Every Day in May http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2009/04/30/every-day-in-may/ http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/2009/04/30/every-day-in-may/#comments Thu, 30 Apr 2009 19:30:47 +0000 brianna http://illustrationfriday.com/blog/?p=1641 A 24hr. head start! Élena Nazarro writes: “I’m starting up “Every Day In May” again, where I (and others who join in) are committing to paint/sew/write/create for 31 straight days. We’d love to have you join, especially if you think you need a kickstart. Goodness knows I do!”

everyday

More info at her blog, French Toast Girl, and a Flickr group too!

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