General and Portfolio Related Questions
Featured
Are you available for new commission?
Currently I closed for commissions until 2027.
How long does it take for you to finish an artwork?
It depends on the artwork's style and complexity. Some of them takes 1-2 hours, for more of them I give around 3-4 working hours but a colorful illustration with characters and environment can take either 10 or 16 working hours or more.
How can I follow you?
My preferred way to give updates is my newsletter - you can sign up here. I also have a Linktree where you can always find my active sites or profiles.
Technique and resources
Traditional tools
Sometimes I go back for the traditional way of drawing. Usually my first and preferred tools are graphite and colored pencil, ink pen, brush pen, and when I have the time I use watercolor. In my kid and teen years, I've experimented with many other techniques, and my favorites were dry pastel crayon and acrylic paint.
Software and app
For digital drawing and painting I prefer using Procreate on iPad Pro, and for design and editing, I use mostly Affinity-t. For video editing I like to use Adobe Premiere Pro and Edits and I plan to learn Davinci Resolve.
Wacom Drawing Pads, Wacom Products
The tool I started digital painting with - in around 2003 - was a Wacom Bamboo drawing pad, I still have it and it works. It is a way that you can draw on a drawing pad (with a special Wacom pen you get with it) but you need to watch it on the computer screen not on the drawing pad itself. I got used to it within some weeks or months but it is still more difficult than drawing right on the screen. Now Wacom has many different tools that I haven't tried yet but once I may get a Wacom Cintiq.
iPad Pro (compatible with!) Apple Pencil and Procreate app
For digital drawing and painting I have an iPad pro and I use Procreate app and with these together I can draw on screen with my Apple pencil. I have an old one from each so I use Apple pencil 1. I don't really have experience in the new generations. You can find other types of iPads and pencils online and in shops, the point is to make sure if it has a compatible Apple pencil.
Digital Brushes
In the past few years I've optimized some Procreate brushes and I've collected brushes from other artists. Then I've put my favorite ones into one group and I mostly use them. For nice brushset you may want to check out the following artists' sets:
Loish Brushset,
Macalabs Brushes,
Magdalina Dianova's Brush Pack,
Snatti Brushes,
Grutbrushes (also paper textures!)
Books
Books for learning
Mike Mattesi: Force Drawing Human Anatomy - My most-liked one from all the art-anatomy books I know. It is clean, practical and explains very effectively.
Scott McCloud: Understanding Comics - Incredibly good book not just about comics but visual communication in general.
Artists' books I like
I would recommend the following books if anyone needs inspiration, cares for developing, loves trying out new things, or just desires to see beautiful art. These artists are highly skillful, I love their styles, and the worlds what they create or resonate with.
Lois van Baarle: The Art of Loish
Djamila Knopf: Komorebi
Cassandra Calin: Still Just Kidding
Heikala: The Art of Heikala
Gretel Lusky: Wayfinder
Simone Ferriero: The Art of Simz
Devin Elle Kurtz: Windows to Worlds
AI art generators and NFT
I don't use AI art generators, except rarely to assist my ideas, and am not interested in NFTs, therefore I kindly ask you not to use or repost any of my artworks for such purposes and do not contact me related to these. Thank you!
Still have questions? Send me a message by filling the contact form
