Decaying Wonderland - Oldhammer meets Secession

[AranaszarSzuur]

So yeah, I finally managed to finish it. Took me 1h37m to draw in 3 sessions, 41m in the last session. Had to wait for over a week to finish it because I was out of work budget. 2h13m of work budget remaining.

Sakura Pigma Micron 02 on on 350gsm Koh-I-Noor artInk paper.

Decaying Wonderland
Everything decays…
The gold has rotten!
Platinum has rusted!
And the sun!
Even the sun decays!

Due to mystery country's governments deliberate and genocidal policy of starving disabled and unneeded people I need community's help to buy food and medicines, if you're opposed to genocide, please help. Right now I'm temporarily getting more help from my mother but she's just one person.
https://ko-fi.com/illuminationsofeternalwarfare
Has a side effect of enabling production of more artworks.

 

[twisted moon]

looks good.

 

[AranaszarSzuur]

looks good.

Thanks. I was managed to re-discover and imitate the formula of three drawing sessions I discovered in the end of the first stage of Quest to Git Gud.

 

[AranaszarSzuur]

A new drawing, made for Inktober - day 7 - Drip.

Took me 24m to draw, 3h38m of work budget remaining.

So, that's the conclusion of the first week of Inktober 2023. I had a pretty stressful day since there was a big internet outage in my city and it only got restored in the evening.

Thanks to "all" who help and make it all possible XD .

This one was somewhat faster due to being an Inktober drawing. Like I have to draw something every day and I don't have much work budget. Also, forgot the helmet light thing for some reason.

Due to mystery country's governments deliberate and genocidal policy of starving disabled and unneeded people I need community's help to buy food and medicines, if you're opposed to genocide, please help. I keep having to ask my mother for money lately and she only temporarily has money due to the contract nature of her work.
https://ko-fi.com/illuminationsofeternalwarfare
Has a side effect of enabling production of more artworks.

I wasn't doing much lately as I started feeling very ill on 20230925 and only started getting better around 20230930 and only now I'm somewhat back to form. Except for forgetting helmet lights.

 

[AranaszarSzuur]

Took me 1h14m to draw in 3 sessions and 11m drawing a sketch. 3h4m of work budget remaining.

uni Pin Fineliner 02 on on 350gsm Koh-I-Noor artInk paper.

Haven't drawn much lately because because of being very sleep deprived since the end of last month. Only yesterday I managed to do more sketches and do a new high effort artwork based on a sketch I did yesterday. I'm also struggling with creativity lately. Yesterday I had my first productive day in a long time. Managed to get 4h of sleep and then 1h nap during day so I was somewhat in working condition.

Decaying Wonderland
Everything decays…
The gold has rotten!
Platinum has rusted!
And the sun!
Even the sun decays!

Please consider donating to support my work. I'm disabled due to chronic health problems and lower back injury and I can't get disability pension or unemployment benefits because the country I live in has deliberate and genocidal policy of starving disabled and unneeded people.
https://ko-fi.com/illuminationsofeternalwarfare

 

[AranaszarSzuur]

Took me 1h10m to draw in 3 sessions and 17m drawing a page of sketches. 1h47m of work budget remaining.
Sakura Pigma Micron 02 technical pen on on 350gsm Koh-I-Noor artInk paper.

Decaying Wonderland
Everything decays…
The gold has rotten!
Platinum has rusted!
And the sun!
Even the sun decays!

Heh, I sort of forgot about the decaying part.

Please consider donating to support my work. I'm disabled due to chronic health problems and lower back injury and I can't get disability pension or unemployment benefits because the country I live in has deliberate and genocidal policy of starving disabled and unneeded people.
https://ko-fi.com/illuminationsofeternalwarfare
Has a side effect of enabling production of more artworks.

 

[twisted moon]

nice work.

 

[AranaszarSzuur]

Took me 1h32m to draw in 5 sessions and 15m drawing a page of sketches. Out of work budget.

Sakura Pigma Micron 02 technical pen on on 350gsm Koh-I-Noor artInk paper.

Wanted to draw something darker reflecting my mood.

Decaying Wonderland
Everything decays…
The gold has rotten!
Platinum has rusted!
And the sun!
Even the sun decays!

Please consider donating to support my work. I'm disabled due to chronic health problems and lower back injury and I can't get disability pension or unemployment benefits because the country I live in has deliberate and genocidal policy of starving disabled and unneeded people.
https://ko-fi.com/illuminationsofeternalwarfare
Has a side effect of enabling production of more artworks. Out of work budget.

 

[AranaszarSzuur]

I'd probably give it one more pass but I ran out of work budget.

 

[symphonicpoet]

Those three are all pretty nice. The one with the half moon light has some good use of light and shadow, of positive and negative space. The white spaces really draw my eye, and the shapes are solid, and geometric, and really quite fun. It's a neat combination with the round light, the square column, and the triangular helmet, but the light also has the line down it, and the perspective compresses the square into a diamond that points at the helmet, which of course also has a sphere and some interesting dependencies and the somewhat sad, downcast eyes. I also really like the flowers in the second one. The flowers speak to light, and hope, and beauty, which is a refreshing change from the violence and suffering of the guns and armor. Great contrast. Good work.

 

[AranaszarSzuur]

Gave it another 20m pass.Took me 1h52m to draw in 6 sessions and 15m drawing a page of sketches. 1h16m of work budget remaining.

Those three are all pretty nice. The one with the half moon light has some good use of light and shadow, of positive and negative space. The white spaces really draw my eye, and the shapes are solid, and geometric, and really quite fun. It's a neat combination with the round light, the square column, and the triangular helmet, but the light also has the line down it, and the perspective compresses the square into a diamond that points at the helmet, which of course also has a sphere and some interesting dependencies and the somewhat sad, downcast eyes. I also really like the flowers in the second one. The flowers speak to light, and hope, and beauty, which is a refreshing change from the violence and suffering of the guns and armor. Great contrast. Good work.

Thanks. Where did you learn this kind of art analysis? Are there any textbooks for it?

I sort of created Decaying Wonderland taking inspiration from my high school fascination with Secession. It was back in 2012. I had Nightmare 3000 (back then just called Nightmare) which was ultra-grimdark and A Twisted World which was super intense brutal but I wanted something that had potential for wider appeal and which was somewhat more decadent and surreal. It was also somewhat inspired by local decadent metal bands Furia, FDS and Cssaba.
Though even without weapons the full armour suggests that the environment isn't quite friendly to human life. Perhaps it protects from Decay.

 

[symphonicpoet]

^I think so? But I'm strictly an amateur. I've sat through some lectures at a local photography club, and I read the little labels in museums and talk to artist friends, but that's about as close as I've come to a formal art education. I enjoy composition and the way light and shadow flow through a frame, so I kind of play with it in my own photography. I suppose I worked too many years as a stagehand, so formal discussions of throwing light around were a professional hazard. I guess it's hard to have a more basic experiment with light and void than physically throwing light around on a big, empty black stage. Not really a lighting designer, mind. But lord knows I've worked with enough, and helped them execute their vision, so I did pick some things up in that regard, I suppose. But there's other people that can tell you a lot more about drawing. I've always heard How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way is a great source, and was something of a bible to the GW crowd back in the day. Would probably be very useful for what you're trying to do specifically.

 

[AranaszarSzuur]

^I think so? But I'm strictly an amateur. I've sat through some lectures at a local photography club, and I read the little labels in museums and talk to artist friends, but that's about as close as I've come to a formal art education. I enjoy composition and the way light and shadow flow through a frame, so I kind of play with it in my own photography. I suppose I worked too many years as a stagehand, so formal discussions of throwing light around were a professional hazard. I guess it's hard to have a more basic experiment with light and void than physically throwing light around on a big, empty black stage. Not really a lighting designer, mind. But lord knows I've worked with enough, and helped them execute their vision, so I did pick some things up in that regard, I suppose. But there's other people that can tell you a lot more about drawing.

Interesting. How did you get into being a stagehand?

I've always heard How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way is a great source, and was something of a bible to the GW crowd back in the day. Would probably be very useful for what you're trying to do specifically.

A bible to the GW crowd? I don't think I have ever heard any of GW artists mentioning it. Is it mentioned somewhere in Talking Miniatures or something like that?

 

[symphonicpoet]

An artist named Matthew Street recommended it to me, stating more or less that. I believe he's friends with John Blanche. (They game together.) I think Ramshackle Curtis would probably back that up as well, and he regularly games with all the classic GW old breed in Nottingham as well. Not sure if it'd be in talking miniatures or not, as it'd be the bible for the folks making the character art. It's certainly a very highly recommended book in the sci-fi fantasy art community, since so many folks there are comic book geeks at heart. Mind you, I'm strictly a hobbyist. Not a pro in any way at all.

 

[AranaszarSzuur]

An artist named Matthew Street recommended it to me, stating more or less that. I believe he's friends with John Blanche. (They game together.) I think Ramshackle Curtis would probably back that up as well, and he regularly games with all the classic GW old breed in Nottingham as well. Not sure if it'd be in talking miniatures or not, as it'd be the bible for the folks making the character art. It's certainly a very highly recommended book in the sci-fi fantasy art community, since so many folks there are comic book geeks at heart. Mind you, I'm strictly a hobbyist. Not a pro in any way at all.

Thing about GW is that it had multiple people who were actual comic book artists, including some 2000 AD ones who were pretty much drawing in similar style as in comics. I saw some previews and I'm not impressed. But then I consider Marvel style to be degenerate art. Though from the more classical art influenced crowd, I guess it could have had influence on Tony Hough since his more dynamic pieces seem to be somewhat influenced by comic books.

 

[AranaszarSzuur]

Took me 1h2m to draw in 2 sessions and 21m drawing a sketch. 2h27m of work budget remaining.

uni Pin Fineliner 02 on Bristol.

Again a dark Decaying Wonderland artwork that reflects my rather gloomy mood lately.

Please consider donating to support my work. I'm disabled due to chronic health problems and lower back injury and I can't get disability pension or unemployment benefits because the country I live in has deliberate and genocidal policy of starving disabled and unneeded people.
https://ko-fi.com/illuminationsofeternalwarfare
Has a side effect of enabling production of more artworks. I have enough work budget left for 1 to 2 more artworks.

 

[EricF]

Not sure if it'd be in talking miniatures or not

One interview to go and I've not seen it mentioned. The Marvel book is good, I remember my brother using it a lot when younger.

 

[ManicMan]

I got that book.. as with all 'drawing books', they aren't really for developing your own style BUT can be used as a rough guide. Of course, Marvel never had a 'house style' when it came to art. they had a rough guide when it came to layout/design but that was more due to the works of Jack Kirby, Steve Dikto, Don Heck and a couple of others. DC had a house style for a while, going into the 70s, which is why they kinda .... butcher some pieces by Jack Kirby (like pasting new heads on his superman drawings cause it wasn't Curt Swan style.. Not that Curt Swan was bad, he is the superman artist I think of when I think Superman, but sticking a Curt Swan head on a Kirby Body.. yeah... not really the best.

 

[AranaszarSzuur]

Took me 1h11m to draw in 3 sessions and 25m drawing 2 pages of sketches. 16m of work budget remaining.

Sakura Pigma Micron 02 technical pen on Bristol paper.

Wanted to draw something weirder.

Please consider donating to support my work. I'm disabled due to chronic health problems and lower back injury and I can't get disability pension or unemployment benefits because the country I live in has deliberate and genocidal policy of starving disabled and unneeded people.
https://ko-fi.com/illuminationsofeternalwarfare
Has a side effect of enabling production of more artworks. Practically out of work budget.

 

[AranaszarSzuur]

I have a bit of a slowdown in art production since I started suffering from Vyrus MMXIX 9 days ago. Really nasty. I don't have fever and much aches any more but I still haven't recovered and I feel weak and have to spend hours in bed. So, getting back into form will take me some time.

IMPORTANT: So, yeah as 3 months have passed since my mother has finished that large commission, the scale has slid again from "SAFE" to "DANGER". I feel really distressed lately. Pretty much whole 20231215 and 20231216 was one big panic attack. Knowing that the society wants me dead for being disabled and that if I won't find help I have a few months left to live is unbearable.
So please consider donating:

https://ko-fi.com/illuminationsofeternalwarfare

^I think so? But I'm strictly an amateur. I've sat through some lectures at a local photography club, and I read the little labels in museums and talk to artist friends, but that's about as close as I've come to a formal art education. I enjoy composition and the way light and shadow flow through a frame, so I kind of play with it in my own photography. I suppose I worked too many years as a stagehand, so formal discussions of throwing light around were a professional hazard. I guess it's hard to have a more basic experiment with light and void than physically throwing light around on a big, empty black stage. Not really a lighting designer, mind. But lord knows I've worked with enough, and helped them execute their vision, so I did pick some things up in that regard, I suppose. But there's other people that can tell you a lot more about drawing. I've always heard How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way is a great source, and was something of a bible to the GW crowd back in the day. Would probably be very useful for what you're trying to do specifically.

Thanks to your comment I ended up deciding to look more into composition. I got The Painter's Secret Geometry: A Study of Composition in Art by Charles Bouleau and then after I realized it's very advanced, I got Pictorial Composition: An Introduction Henry Rankin Poore, both of which were recommended by a classical painter youtuber I watch.
I got to page 20 of the first but got interrupted by the Vyrus.



I'm currently reading Pictorial Composition and doing exercises in composition. This one is much more accessible so I'll read it first:





I hope it will help me to make better Oldhammer artworks.