Inspiration drawings

I've been working really hard on my character design. Between Joe and stephens books, I've been disciplining myself to draw a few new zany characters each day. I'm not as free with the face parts as Stephen Silver is, but then again I just started doing these toon people back in January after I got Stephens book in the mail. These books really help alot, especially on days when you feel like you have no oomph to draw. Some days, It's like my hand has never used a marker or pencil before. It sounds crazy, but there are days like that. Some days when I don't even want to LOOK at a marker. But latley...that hasn't happened so much.



I've been using the Faber Castell Pitt Brush pens to color my characters. I'm not crazy about the way they blend, but it works for now. Just to get the idea's out of my head. I really don't want to get the copic sketch markers, or the prismacolors because of how bad they smell. I have enough headaches. So I've been doing extensive searches on Dick Blick and other websites, to find good quality artist illustration markers that DON'T SMELL. I found a few that I'm still thinking about. I did buy a couple different flesh toned Tom Bow markers. So far I like them mainly for the skin tones.

Tree grown into Heart

Yet another drawing done on a slow night, last winter.

Colored Caricatures

I drew these sometime in 2009 with sharpened art sticks. I didn't know about prismacolors col-erase pencils yet, so these were done without any pre-sketching or erasing.

Another goofy random caricature. Again, just playing around with exaggerating.

Goofy Caricature doodle

I've been playing around with imaginative caricatures from my head, between customers at the stand. I've also been experimenting with the prismacolor col-erase pencils, for backgrounds, but sometimes also for different shading techniques. Basically, whatever I'm in the mood for at that particular moment.

I see areas where I'm weak, and ones where I'm getting better by the day. I still have trouble with cartooning teeth, but I've been taking more risks on customers caricatures latley, trying to stretch myself beyong my comfort zone.

Either way, I'm having fun with it. :)

Cartoon Chick

This drawing I outlined with a brown scholastic kids marker. I colored it with prismacolor art-sticks and my prismacolor 24 colored pencil set. It's kind of funny....this cartoon actually reminds me of a photo of my late aunt, that was taken years ago.

My cartoons are inspired by Joe Bluhms "Sketch Infectus", and several of Stephen Silvers books. Since I've purchased these books, I've noticed a significant difference in how I approach a subject/sketch.

Practice Body from Magazine

So heres some new/old art that I've been promising. When I'm at work, it can get pretty slow sometimes. Especially in the winter time....and ever since the economy took a huge canonball down the crapper. So, between drawing customers, I'll either draw caricatures from magazine photo's, made up people from my imagination, or I just doodle random stuff in my sketchbook.

1. I did this cartoon from a magazine photo. Most people know who Ice-T is right? For those who don't, he plays Detective Tutuolla on Law and Order SVU. There was a photo of his wife Coco in one of the celebrity magazines we keep at the stand, and well....I couldn't resist drawing her. I was actually a pretty small photo, but the contours of her body just begged to be drawn. And I'm always trying to improve my cartoon bodies.

Rough sketch with Blue Col-Erase

Finished with Black Faber Castell Fine Tip Pitt Pen.

Art Update

Since I've been a caricature artist here in Las Vegas, I have passed out hundreds of my business cards. Sitting at my drawing table 855ft on the 108th floor of the stratosphere tower, I meet many people from all over the world. There were even a few countries that I had never heard of. As I'm sitting there stretching the limits with their faces, eventually they start to ask me questions like, how I got in to art, am I from Vegas, have I ever had people yell at me when they see the drawings, ect.

One question I do get asked alot, is if I sell my artwork online. So here's your answer. My website is still in the works, where you will be able to buy prints of some of my art. In the meantime, while you are patiently and anxiously waiting for my website to be be up and running, you can always email me at amandanikkiart@aol.com if you would like to order a custom painting. Currently, I have no originals for sale, and I do apologize.

So, if you would like to check out my albums of paintings, type in

http://www.myspace.com/amandanikkigallery

I also just signed up for facebook, but I haven't quite figured out how to change the name in the address bar. So when you go to facebook, just search "Amanda Nikki Art"

Hope to hear from you soon!
I'll be posting some doodles from my sketchbooks, so check back soon!

OOPs! No blogs for 6 months. WOW!

I know I know, Its been forever since I've posted. Six months. Thats terrible of me. Alot has happended in this time frame. January, I was made manager of the caricature stand, and we've had two new artists come in and go already, in a matter of 2 months. My mom had a massive heart attack on Super bowl sunday in February, and that was pretty nerve wracking. Tielman (The previous manager) hired and sent me a new girl, who has shown so much development in the past few months, its been mind boggling. Its amazing how fast she's picked things up.

In other news, I've been taking lots of pictures of my caricatures through out the work day, and I have to say I feel like I'm expanding more. I got a new sketchbook a while back, and I also purchased some faber castell brush pens from Dick blick around the same time. They had a big display of like every color you could think of...and well...I went a little crazy and bought almost every color. I can't resist color...and well..I have an unbelievably hard time resisting art supply store. Go figure, right?

Anhoo, In my next posts I will put up some of my latest caricatures.

Till next time.