Coral Beach Sunset

New digital fine Art painting done entirely with a custom knife brush, in photoshop..Hope you dig it! D

Crater Lake Mecha Foundry Concept

Heres a new one. Enjoy! D

Digital and traditional painting need not be separate. Sometimes it's best to shut of the computer and grab a brush

I think a lot of folks out there that work digitally these days start that way and never even pick up traditional painting at all. Some of them are quite exceptional and use photoshop or painter to great effect within their work. They are the exception, though and not the rule. For most of us a strong foundation in traditional painting and drawing is essential to creating compelling artwork that is full of life and energy. Sadly without the fundamentals traditional painting forces you to learn, digital work is mostly lackluster and often times simply mediocre simply by the artist missing something very basic within the painting. As time goes on, especially lately I've really bee putting down the mouse and stylus and picking up my painting knives(yes I paint with knives exclusively)The way you structure a painting traditionally is so much different that using the computer that it forces you to build your image through a set of(sometimes) logical steps. Making big decisions is also a must, for all of your Bob Ross fans out there you have heard it before. When you start to get comfortable and playful with traditional mediums your paintings start to liven up and get more engaging due to the simple energy and looseness of your stroke. There is also a benefit to painting traditionally that most folks never get which is the paint itself. That viscous goo whether it be oil or acrylic does magical things when handled correctly. Gorgeous blends, textures, light, etc are all easier to do on a canvas if you learn how. The paint has magic within, it just demands a bit of practice and it becomes second nature to an experienced painter. You will honestly be surprised by the way things work when you know how to work the paint on the canvas. Sometimes a crazy accident will lead to a style altering discovery as well. Photoshop and painter are great but they will never have what real paint has at best they are only an approximation of how paint works. By actually painting analog you will find that the ideas can really flow out more directly as well due to the fact that you are eliminating the tablet or mouse which are simply further approximations of your actual technique. Brain to hand/brush is simply better(in terms f directness) than brain to hand to stylus to tablet to driver to software. I think that if you really sit down and learn to paint that it will not only give you other avenues of expression within your work, but will make you a much better painter both traditionally and digitally. Eventually when you really study the craft of painting and apply good solid principles and fundamentals to you work it will cease to matter whether you paint digitally or traditionally, you will find that you are faster and more professional in your work and see a lot more demand for your work. Hope this is helpful for anyone out there in a digital rut. Keep checking back in the next few weeks we'll have some great new knife paintings from our Havana series that we'll be sharing. Best Wishes and a wonderful happy new year to all. D

New fast and furious concept environment. Urban Plateau

No not from those silly movies, although Vin Diesel is always awesome. I've been seeing some artist that I love do this so I wanted to give it a try and see why because frankly I've been getting really turned on by the hard edged and hard lit look of these paintings. For this environment concept I only used the custom shape tool and the line tool. No brushes at all. It took me about a hour to get to this point. Very pleased and had a lot of fun doing it. IF you dig that hard edged, kind of graphic look, you might want to give this a whirl.

Enjoy! D

New Painting-'Amaranthine'

Some space art did in my spare time.....Hope you Like it! D

I know it can be frustrating but If somebody doesn't hire you, don't feel bad.....

Keep going...Work hard...Get really good...and make them regret it someday big time... D

Sometimes it's easy to feel.....

Well to put it bluntly, like your are going nowhere fast as an artist. Maybe like you don't measure up, or your missing something. Maybe you feel like you aren't getting noticed and it frustrates you. I've felt all of these things and many more. It's easy as an artist today to let the doubts creep in. We exist in a digital realm where everyone out there seems to be an artist. Good, bad and ugly, you name it. It's out there. There are a lot of great artists who don't sell very much or any work simply because they aren't getting noticed. It is so easy to put your work out there that so many people are at present. We have all become needles in haystacks. You can paint your ass off, and still get barely noticed. A lot of this isn't your art, but rather how you are presenting it and more times than not, where. I've had pieces of art get no play on one website, and get overwhelming applause on another. Every website attracts it's own flavor of consumer. one of the biggest mistakes is to exhibit where other artists exhibit. Talk about fish in a pond. You have to your own thing in your own place, otherwise you just end up getting passed by for no other reason than numbers. Deviant art, fineartamerica, etc these are great places and great communities but don't rely on them for a second to sell your art. That will just frustrate you. People in those places are so overhwlemed with art and artists, they simply default to finding names they know, or picking out the first random painting they see to by. It is essential these days to have your own website, and more importantly to paint your own way, in your own style. Copying will get you shuffled to the back of the deck and unless you have something individual to offer the world at large, you won't find success as an artist, because nothing will ever set you apart. Subconsciously people will look at your work and say hmm, I think I've seen that before, or that looks just like so and so and he's famous, and you're not so I'll just go check out what so and so has to offer. Wow people with your individual style and creativity. paint along your own path. Walk your own road, however you say it. Quit reading tutorial and paint and draw, there is no substitute and failure only helps you learn faster. It's honestly one of the best teachers out there. Everyone you respect found their artistic voice through failure. Ask them, and they will tell you. Failure is a misnomer anyway. It's just something that didn't work as expected. As long as you learn from it, you're good. In terms of selling artwork. Try to think about the ways people aren't selling artwork these days and pursue them, it automatically makes you stand out. Schedule gallery appointments in person. Too many people only do the email and internet thing these days. You have to get out there and talk to people. Go to art fair, exhibit. Go to the cons in your region and get a booth. It gets your name out there. Art is no different than any other business and the same marketing strategies apply. No businessman ever got rich or even made a living sitting in his bedroom or home office. You might sell some work that way, but not nearly as much as you could by getting out there and meeting people. Don't get discouraged by the way the climate is today, buck the trends and get moving. You will find your way. It might take time and effort but nobody ever said doing what you love would be easy. Best Wishes and Luck to you all! D