Art Summary 2019

Let's finish this year with two artwork charts: the Top Nine algorithm application for Instagram and the Art Summary from deviantART. The first depends only on your likes and for the second I get to choose only one favourite post for each month.


TOP NINE

Here are my top 9 posts for this year according to your likes on my Instagram account throughout the year! I waited this whole month to get the latest count, because three weeks ago I converted my IG account to a business account and decided to try out the promotion feature, which drastically changed the number of likes.

Before the promotion my posts didn't get that much attention. The first one on this list had 55 likes and the least one 42 and that was approximately the range of likes I got used to. But what really worried me was the fact that at the end of the year it became obvious the number of followers wouldn't reach my next milestone, 400 (it kind of stuck at 393 or so). But experimenting with promotion skyrocketed one of my illustrations to the magical number of more than 400 likes, and although it didn't affect the number of the followers, it changed the whole dynamic of my account. Before that it wouldn't have reached the best nine (it had 36 or so likes) and now it's on the first place. So I tried to do so with another of my favourite posts, but I broadened the audience (which wasn't limited only to my country like the first time) and shortened the time of promotion. It also got about 400 likes and it's now on the second place. You can see the number of likes in the top left corner of each image - the first two, which were promoted, have 425 and 398 likes, whereas the third one (without promotion) has only 55 etc.

On one hand, I'm excited my promoted posts reached so many new people, but on the other, the plan wasn't quite working, because they liked just these two images, but didn't seem interested in following me further. I reached my milestone - had even 403 followers, which meant that only 47 out of 800 people decided to visit my profile and only 10 decided my profile was worth following. Interestingly enough, I didn't get any comments at all (!?) and it seems like the number of followers is going down again (at the moment it's precisely 400). I got my first 100 followers some time in 2017 and it took me almost a year to get to 200. I reached 300 followers in November 2018, and now, finally, a year later, 400 (and probably only because I paid for that promotion).

I got my first 100 followers some time in 2017 and it took me almost a year to get to 200. I reached 300 followers in November 2018, and now, finally, a year later, 400 (and probably only because I paid for that promotion). I know the biggest problems of my account are different techniques and styles I use, different themes and irregularity in posting, so I get it why I can't reach more followers. All I know at the moment is that when I draw something I really like and find worthy seeing, I'll probably use that promotion feature again, maybe it'll change something in 2020.


2019 ART SUMMARY

This has been my favourite art review template for years, because I get to fill it in according to my own preferences (one for each month)! The author of this specific layout is AsterianMonarch from deviantART.

I know that sometimes it's difficult to choose just one drawing for the whole month, especially if you draw a lot. Although I can't say I was very productive, I'm happy to say that I drew more than last year, which means I fulfilled my last year's wish to some extent. There was only one month when I didn't draw any digital drawing (May), so I chose my DIY projects, but I'm happy that digital art is still the biggest category in my gallery. There were 37 digital drawings, 18 comic strips, 6 DIY projects and 3 watercolour pencil drawings.

For 2020 I hope I'll continue mainly with my digital art, but I also hope there will be time for my other techniques and projects. Thanks everyone for your support and I wish you a happy new year! 😊

Odd One #43

Happy... .. .

Yoda Ears

If you follow me long enough, then you already know that I usually make some kind of DIY projects (pins, keychains, hats etc.) for movie premieres that are important to me. This time, for The Rise of Skywalker, I made a headband with Yoda ears! It's actually inspired by Baby Yoda or The Child from The Mandalorian, and although it doesn't have anything to do with TROS, it's all about Star Wars after all.

I didn't have much time, but all I really needed was some green fabric and a headband, both of which I bought in a dollar store (I already had everything else that I needed i.e. green thread, sewing needles and glue). I was looking for any kind of green fabric, but was lucky to come across a green polyester pillowcase and all I had to do was cut one of its corners and then cut that piece into two identical parts. The fabric was so rough that it was enough to sew it to look like ears and glue it to the headband. I was actually surprised how easy it was to form it in a shape of ears without any stuffing or wires.

In the end I didn't wear it to the premiere, but let's just say that there was a photoshoot recreating the Baby Yoda sipping soup meme. Of course, I don't intend to post it, so I drew a little illustration instead. I tried to recreate Baby Yoda's cuteness by drawing myself as some kind of a Chibi character with big eyes, so the only question remains: who did it better? Baby Yoda or me? 😊

After The Horror

Finally, the time has come to post this drawing I made about a month ago. It was my entry for this year's (late) Halloween competition held by Josiah "Jazza" Brooks, but I didn't want to post it before he made his final video and announced the winners.

The title of the competition was "After The Horror" and the challenge was to draw what happens to monsters and villains after the cameras are turned off. For this scene I chose Freddy, Michael and Jason waiting by a phone, expecting their producers to call them and inform them about their next role in some new sequels of their horror franchises. 

I didn't really expect to win anything, especially If you know I've been feeling kind of stuck with my "art" lately. It would've been nice to get just a shout-out, but there were so many entries and I guess the choice had to be made.

As usual, I won't let this discourage me, and when I get this kind of silly inspiration, I'll just go with it, because above all it was very fun trying to figure out how to bring my idea to life, as well as getting through the whole creative process. 🎨

And not to forget, congratulations to the winners! 👍 You can check the video on Jazza's YouTube channel:

The Mandalorian Babysitter

Here's my version of the famous Mandalorian babysitter! I guess it would've been easier to recreate an exact scene from the show, but I wanted to do something different, which eventually turned out to be unexpectedly time-consuming. 🙄

OK, baby Yoda's flying crib is way more convenient as a means of transportation, but in my try to make it different, interesting and funny - and to include some of the iconic features of Star Wars - I created a baby stroller that looks like the Millennium Falcon with something like AT-AT "legs". The first obstacle was the design, because I've never drawn anything mechanical and to be honest this "vehicle" doesn't look very functional. I also added toys such as a C-3PO plushie and a R2-D2 baby rattle (there were also other similar toys, but I decided to delete them because the drawing was too crowded).

Although I was excited about the idea, I must admit it was a bit of a drag finishing this drawing. I kept changing and redrawing it and it took me much more time and research than usual (you can see how rough and vague my initial sketch was in comparison to the final drawing). But, finally, here we are and I hope it was worth it. 😉

My SkeksisSona

On my continuing mission to create different personas from geeky pop culture, the time has come for my - Skeksissona! I hope you've seen the 1982 movie and/or this year's Netflix adaptation of The Dark Crystal. If you have, then you surely know who the Skeksis are (and if you're an '80s kid, you may still have the nightmares because of them!).

There are so many amazing details, characters and puppets in Jim Henson's Dark Crystal world, but this time I chose the big baddies. I tried to combine as many elements in my creation as possible, from my occupation as a teacher to my favourite colours (and also my Doctor Who scarf). I call him "skekSchol the Teacher" and although this job is more suitable for the Mystics, I wanted to explore this idea.

The Skeksis are evil bird-like reptiles and their skin is usually in grey or green tones, but for my persona I used a more human colour palette. I also gave him hair and a beard to look more like me, as well as glasses with thick black frames like mine (the idea for multiple glasses comes from another character, skekOk the Scroll-Keeper). As for some teacher elements, I drew his hat, a book and an apple. I used some of my favourite colours (earth tones, red, green and orange) and added some spikes or horns on his back to make him look more frightening (also, I find them pretty cool and you can find them in a lot of my monster drawings).

Anyway, if you haven't seen The Dark Crystal and you like fantasy and amazing puppetry by Jim Henson's company, you can find both the original film and the new series (Age of Resistance) on Netflix, as well as documentaries about making the show. 👍

Odd One #42

Support. ✊

Chester, the Autumn Warrior

So, November is finally here and unusually warm first part of the fall seems to be over. I wanted to draw something special for the beginning of rainy, foggy and colder part of the season and I hope this little guy is it.

Chestnuts are typical for this time of year, so I created Chester, a brave little autumn warrior! I'm not completely sure where I was going with his design and I changed it a lot during the process. I found my inspiration in Roman warriors, but then I gave up on some initial features and ended up with this, let's say, Pokémon-like design. In one version he also had legs, but it looked a little bit weird.

I'm also not sure who he's fighting, it's just that chestnut's spiky husk looked like a good idea for a helmet with mohawk spikes and a shield, and a leaf like a sword or other similar weapon. Anyway, I'm mostly satisfied with how he turned out and hope you'll like him too!

#digitalart #illustration #drawing #characterdesign #autumn #fall #chestnut #warrior #november #croatianartist #selftaughtartist #grdilicious #grdi

Odd One #41

Have a nice Halloween... pumpkin stew!

Joker (Mirror)

Just a quick illustration inspired by Joker...

Disorder

October may be called the spookiest month and it culminates with Halloween, but this illustration isn't about that.

Today, October 7, is the International Trigeminal Neuralgia (TN) Awareness Day. If you don't know what TN is, consider yourself very, very lucky. Unfortunately, I'm one of the rare ones (or maybe not so rare anymore?) who aren't that lucky and who have been struggling with that annoying and extremely painful illness for the most of their lives.

TN is a chronic pain disorder that affects the trigeminal nerve in your face. There can be either episodes of severe, sudden, shock-like pain in one side of the face that lasts for seconds to a few minutes (groups of these episodes can occur over a few hours) or a constant burning pain that is less severe. Episodes may be triggered by stress, touch or even by changes in weather and it's one of the most painful conditions a human can feel. It can affect your life quality, result in depression and even lead to suicide (that's why it's also called "the suicide disease").

It usually appears when you're over 50 years old, but can occur at any age and women are more commonly affected than men. I was unlucky enough to be the exception to the rule and get my first painful episodes when I was about 14 years old. I feel pain in the right mandibular nerve and still, about thirty decades later, don't know the exact cause of it. I'll likely have it for the rest of my life and as time goes by, it doesn't seem to get any better. There are some medications and treatments, but you'll likely have to endure the seizures while they last. When it comes to raising awareness of this disorder, there's also a ribbon you can wear - and it's teal.

A big thank you to all people in my life who understand and put up with me when I'm in painful phases (they usually last continuously for half a month, although it varies), especially to my parents who must have had a terrible time coping with this situation, mainly during my teenage years when we didn't know what it was and how to react (I was diagnosed much later).

I'm sorry if this illustration is disturbing for some of you, but I believe it perfectly depicts the message I'm trying to send when I talk about this condition. Some of you might even recognize my inspiration for it - a Stephen Colbert's quadruple facepalm meme - sorry, I hope I didn't ruin it for you. 😜

Arsus (SeptemBear Challenge)

The SeptemBear challenge is behind us, but as usual, it won't stop me from participating with - again, as usual - only one illustration! I mean, one mermaid for MerMay, one dragon for Smaugust and now SeptemBear - see the pattern here? Anyway, until drawing becomes my only full-time job (yeah, right 🙄), you'll have to settle for rare posts and partial art challenges, sorry.

Since I already drew my favourite bear last year - that mutant zombie bear from the movie Annihilation - for this year I chose Arsus, a Hulk-like character, from the Russian movie Guardians (Защитники). It was the Russian answer to Avengers and other similar team-up superhero movies, and although it was a box office bomb with "a derivative plot, bad acting and direction, cheap CGI, plot holes and overall low quality", I thought it was entertaining enough.

Gravity Fish (Angry Birds Space)

Let's be honest, I've got some weird hobbies and interests for my age. So one of my many guilty pleasures has always been everything related to - Angry Birds! I think I played all their games, depending on how much space I had on my phone. And they were usually the last to go when I needed more storage space (which happens unusually often 🤔). Just last week I was... well, forced... to delete Angry Birds 2 from my current phone. RIP. 😢

One of the most memorable characters from Angry Birds Space that I really adored were some kind of fish-like planet cores in aquatic levels that I named - Gravity Fish! I said "characters", because they were alive, but they didn't really have any role in the gameplay. They would sleep and then open their eyes if Angry Birds hit them and that was basically all. They were just like little living aquatic planets with their own gravity. In my opinion, they don't get the fame and glory they deserve, but I guess that's just me, I often love such weird stuff that other people rarely notice.

Anyway, I fell in love with their design and it's been my plan to draw them for years. I'm actually glad I waited so long, because I'm very satisfied with this new style I've been trying out and the time has finally come to add them to my gallery. So... does anyone know what I'm talking about at all? Are there any other Angry Birds enthusiasts here?

Sad Pennywise

Don't be sad, Pennywise, you'll get a new balloon... 🎈

Ughhh, because of some unexpected problems at my workplace, I won't be able to finish some of my scheduled drawings. 😡 I'm not sure if IT Chapter 2 is still in cinemas, but I'm obviously late with this illustration, it should have been posted about two weeks ago. I agree, it's not unusual for me to be late, but I had a plan that also included another drawing for that Area 51 raid thing, which was - yesterday! - and I haven't even started my drawing (I guess now I won't have time to draw it at all)!

I try to plan ahead, but you know, life happens. 😔

Zlotvornjaci

Upoznali ste već dvije generacije Zdravoljubaca, plišane igračke inspirirane voćem i povrćem, koje bi vas trebale podučiti zdravoj prehrani. Ja vam predstavljam opasne i otrovne biljke s naših prostora, koje biste pod svaku cijenu trebali izbjegavati, kao što su mrazovac, otrovni bršljan, kužnjak, velebilje, zelena pupovka, muhara i ludara! Pripremite se, jer dolaze ZLOTVORNJACI!

Zlotvornjaci is my parody of Zdravoljupci, a campaign to encourage children to eat more fruit and vegetables. In my version there are some dangerous plants that should be avoided, from poison ivy to poisonous mushrooms. In the original, every fruit and vegetable has a cute name and a song, so I also tried to think of interesting names and write a few verses (in Croatian only, because a lot gets lost in translation). The most important part of the original campaign are plush dolls you can buy if you collect enough stickers. Of course, kids are crazy about them and make their parents spend more money, which is - truth be told - the real aim of their campaign. And no, I don't have plushies of my poisonous plants, this is just for fun. 😜

Odd One #40

Back to school! 😭

Summer Aftermath

Another summer is almost over, so let's see it off with one more illustration.

Yep, this happens when you decide to take a careless short stroll around a lake in the burning summer sun, wearing a T-shirt, some cargo shorts and sneakers. Obviously, I didn't use any sunscreen or even better sunblock and the (un)expected result was this sunburn (or farmer's or redneck suntan) that marked me for the rest of the summer (and no, I don't usually go sunbathing or swimming, so it'll probably stay like this for some time after the summer is gone).

As for the drawing, I'm pretty satisfied with this style. I'm using some ideas and advice from other artists I'm following and watching on YouTube and just combining and experimenting a little bit. I hope you like these small changes (black and white outline, rim light and simple background).

Ode One #39

Not The Chosen One? 🤔

Smaugust & Shape Challenge 2019

I know the point of the Smaugust challenge is to draw one dragon for every day of August (it's named after the dragon Smaug from J.R.R. Tolkien's mythology), but I'm aware I wouldn't be able to keep up with the schedule, so I drew only one and I believe it's the first one I've ever drawn!

If it looks somehow familiar, it's because I actually combined it with another challenge - the shape challenge! Namely, many people think that the shape of my country looks like a silhouette of a dragon, so I decided to give my best to maintain Croatia's general shape (minus the islands and some peninsulas) and create a believable dragon. Well, it's actually a wyvern, but I think it's acceptable.

As for the colours, I used red, white and blue like our national flag. I decided that flames should be blue, because they kind of represent the sea here and I also believe it's an interesting change from usual dragons/wyverns. I know the wings/arms don't look functional, but it was a real challenge to incorporate them into the task. Maybe I should explore the possibilities and draw it again in some other, usual dragon-like poses.

I guess there are others who tried to draw similar versions, but I hope I made a very good job! Here's my work in progress:

Odd One #38

Priorities 🕷🕸

Captain America (Endgame)

Finally, after so much time, here's my Endgame fan art! And knowing me and my obsession with Captain America, it's not hard to guess why I chose him! The reference for this drawing comes from Hot Toy stills I found on the Internet. I'm very happy with the final result, especially because I used some new features, such as rim light and thick outline.

This movie was everything I had hoped for, but it also left me a little bit worried. Although the superhero movies fatigue was "predicted" by some movie critics about 3 or even more years ago, new movies and TV shows and MCU "phases" keep popping up, but with the last Avengers it feels like one significant era has finished. I know there are too many stories from the comics to tell, but I'm sorry that some of them will never be told or they were slightly adapted in some of the previous movies. But it's OK, they're called adaptations for a reason and you can't expect to see all your favourite storylines from the source material. I'll live, somehow.

As for the next phase of the MCU, I'm looking forward to Black Widow, Doctor Strange and Scarlet Witch and Thor, as well as further sequels of Guardians Of The Galaxy, Captain Marvel and Black Panther, but I'm also interested in Eternals and would love to see The Fantastic 4 one day. And when it comes to "new" characters, among many interesting names, I really hope to see Nova (Richard Rider) and Namor.

Umberto & Espina 2019

Does anyone even remember my OC Pokémon trainers Umberto and Espina? Here they are again, this time frolicking with Umbreon and Espeon in the summer sun! And what's up with that drawing style, you may ask? TBH, I'm not sure... Just applying some new tricks I picked up bingeing several artists' YouTube videos.

I realized I don't actually have a drawing style and I don't know how to find it. I just get an idea and start drawing without thinking if I can really pull it off in the end. This one was about perspective and foreshortening, but I guess I spent too much time on unnecessary details. Also, I didn't draw a "real" background, not only just because it would be complicated and take me even more much time, but it's also some kind of experiment I picked up from the videos I mentioned. I kind of like it, I believe it makes my job easier (although, I agree, it shouldn't be a "job", it should be my passion, but oh, well...). And it looks kind of dynamic. Kind of. 🤔

There are so many things that went wrong (just to mention my inability to draw faces and hair, although there's so much more 🙄), but I already spent too much time on this (I think it was the whole week 😱), so let me just leave it here and move on with, hopefully, something easier or something I'll be more satisfied with.

To end it on a lighter note, who says it has to be perfect? It's cartoony and goofy and it's OK to be flawed. Maybe, if I hadn't written all this, you would have thought I planned to draw it this way and wouldn't have known about all the struggle I went through. 😉

New Glasses

It's time for new glasses! Which... look almost exactly like my previous ones? 🤔

Actually, I change them every 5 years because of my driver's license. They examine my sight and if everything's OK, set a new expiration date. But it was time to get the new ones anyway, because these are in a pretty bad shape. There are surprisingly many scratches and I don't remember the last time I managed to damage my glasses so much. 😔

As I 'm not brave enough to wear contacts, I chose the model with magnetic clip on sunglasses for the first time ever. I used to order two sets of glasses - ordinary and sunglasses - but instead of spending my whole salary on them, I decided to try out these clip on glasses. So, only the time will tell if I was right (BTW, I still haven't got them, I have to wait for a week or two).

I need my glasses constantly, because I'm practically blind without them, but why do I need sunglasses so desperately? Well, I spend a good portion of time driving and they help me not only during summer months, but also when it's snowing and there's a white nothingness around me, or even when it's foggy. You'll rarely see me in my car without them, except during night, of course. 😁

The Unlucky Snake Charmer

I wasn't sure if I should post this digital painting, because it's something out of my comfort zone and I can't decide if I'm satisfied with the final result or not. I drew it about a month ago during a digital art workshop held by @ypgd.vukovar volunteers and I named it "The Unlucky Snake Charmer". The task was to reproduce one of the images we were given and then add anything we want. I chose a photo of a sandy tropical beach and added the items you can see in the sand: the skull of a snake charmer, his flute (pungi) and the basket for a cobra. It's up to you to decide what had actually happened. Did the cobra bite the charmer and leave? Did he die because of some other reason and the cobra is still hiding and waiting in the basket? What do you think?

It was my second YPGD workshop, but this is the first drawing I feel somewhat comfortable to show (unlike the last year's illustration, which was a little bit disappointing, especially because it was my first encounter with new programs and techniques) - or, although it's kind of a stretch, we could consider it the second drawing, because the "Snail Condition" I posted on July 7 was originally a doodle I made during that workshop. 😁

So, it's no secret I like this more "cartoony" style, and I must admit I feel more satisfied with the items in the sand than the rest of the drawing. Backgrounds are just not my thing, I guess. Anyway, I'm grateful to mentors at YPGD, because they encouraged me to explore Photoshop and get my first drawing tablet two years ago. I've been using them for all my illustrations since then. 👍

Rampage Babies

Growing up in the 80s and playing arcade games on my Commodore 64, Rampage was definitely one of top 5 video games of my childhood. So when I saw there would be a modern movie version (2018, with Dwayne Johnson), I was a little bit sceptic, but all in all it was fun, especially if you like kaiju movies. The whole gang was there, although they changed them a little bit, as well as their origin story.

In the movie version, George isn't an ordinary gorilla, but an albino gorilla (I guess to avoid comparisons with King Kong), Lizzie isn't a lizard, but a crocodile (also I guess to avoid comparisons with Godzilla), but Ralph remains a wolf, and Larry (although in a very small role) is a rat like in the original. Everyone except George also has "secondary mutations", but I don't want to spoil the move in case you'd like to watch it.

As for the illustration, here I go again with my "silly animal style". They're based on the movie versions rather than the original video game and I drew them as harmless babies, playing with LEGO bricks, building a city and later destroying it, of course. 😝

Odd One #37

A toxic person ☠☣☢

Area 51

This "Lion King"-esque scene is my contribution and reaction to that funny trending Facebook event for storming Area 51 in Nevada this year. It's scheduled for September 20th early morning at 03:00 and many artists illustrate their try to save aliens that are supposedly kept there. 😂

So this is me, saving a little alien and imitating that famous scene with Rafiki and Simba. There's also an alternative version with the fence and stuff, which was supposed to be the original version, but then I fell in love with the idea of standing on the iconic rock from the movie and giving the little guy back to his family in the spaceship, with transporter beams instead of usual sun beams. That's why shadows don't match the light source, but I already spent too much time with this illustration and just decided to leave it as it is.

Here's that alternative version:

And here's the basic version: