In my previous post, I mentioned a public drawing board where people can go and draw online and instantly upload and share the image with others on the board. This is by no means a independant, or unique occurance. These public drawing boards, also known as oekaki boards, are the perfect place to go to kill some time and share some art. They are very addicting, and if a good board is found, can be frequented for years.
There are countless of these boards on the internet, catering to all kinds of styles, subjects, and skill levels.
Things to consider when you're picking a board:
a) Activity - there is no way around this one. Either the board is hopping, or its dead. I prefer a more active board, where at least 2 oekakis are completed a day. Anything less than this leads to absolute boredom (at least for me). There is nothing wrong with a slow board, but don't expect much feedback on them. Also beware boards that move too fast. Some are so fast that your image is off the front page in a matter of minutes after being completed. Find a good balance.
b) Skill Level - pay attention to this! You don't want to accidently post on a board that is way above your personal skill level. Not only will your art be removed in a flash, you'll become the target for being absolutely shredded. Also, you don't want to end up posting on a board thats far below your skill level either. You'll never get any constructive feedback, and you run the risk of being flamed to death. Take this will a grain of salt. If you want to post with the heavy hitters and give it a shot, go ahead. You might just stumble on a board that has friendly people who will help you grow. If you want to post with the newer users, that's cool too. Help them learn, or just feed your ego for a while. Just realize the context of it all yea?
c) Theme - most oekaki boards have a specific theme. Some are fanart boards, while others cater to a specific subculture. Always check the theme before you post. Most themed boards are pretty strict about content, so unless you want your art removed and your account deleted, read the rules.
d) The Rules - Seriously, just read them. Every board has its own set, and usually they're there for a reason. Unless you're a troll, then you deserve all the negative consequences.
e) Personal Preference - Keep in mind, oekaki boards were originally meant to be fun and a place to draw/doodle. Try a board out, and if the community is too uptight for you, just leave and vise versa. With the amount of boards out there, you'll be able to find the right board for you. So even if your first choice wasn't a great one, keep looking until you find that perfect match.
Popular Boards:
- 2draw
= Great place to draw. Features Lascaux Sketch, one of the best online drawing tools out there.
- Oekaki Central
= Great for all skill levels. Good community, though has a high turnover rate.
- NeonDragonArt Boards
= Great for most, though its users tend to be younger with a lower skill level. Also a very high turnover rate.
- Suta-Ratio Oekaki
= Great community, has different boards for different skill levels and a friendly staff.
- Bakaneko's Oekaki Boards
= Good community, just very anime centered.
- Endless Oekaki
= Another great communtiy. Also anime centered.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Watching the Dragon
Jessica Peffer. A young woman who has acheived internet fame and glory after years of having a sucessful website, and a few abandoned comic projects. From interent star, to a popular How-To-Draw author Jessica Peffer aka The NeonDragon has had a huge influence on the internet art world.
Her website, NeonDragonArt has been a staple for countless budding artists. From this homepage, you can find her personal portfolio, her free online tutorials, the archives of the now dead TimeScapes, a very active forum, and finally the public drawing boards. The most active sections of her site are the forum, which recently had to be completely revamped to hold all of the people who frequent it, and of course the public drawing boards. The drawing boards are a place where small, purely internet pieces of art can be created by anyone with a quick enough internet connection and a Flash download. Artists of all ages, styles, and skill levels are welcomed to draw, chat, and genarally have a good time.
Personally, I have been using Jessica's artwork as a learning tool since I began drawnig seriously. I even found printed out NeonDragon tutorials from 2000. She has been a huge influence, and even inspired me to tackle the world of digital art. To this day, I follow her activity on her LiveJournal blog, Neon Dragon;s Supa Big Exciting Journal That Holds the Key to Universal Harmony. Here, one can keep up with her current drawings from sketch to finished piece, and even watch an upstream of the entire process live.
Her work has been inspiring me for years, and I intend to spread the word of her work as far as I can.
Her website, NeonDragonArt has been a staple for countless budding artists. From this homepage, you can find her personal portfolio, her free online tutorials, the archives of the now dead TimeScapes, a very active forum, and finally the public drawing boards. The most active sections of her site are the forum, which recently had to be completely revamped to hold all of the people who frequent it, and of course the public drawing boards. The drawing boards are a place where small, purely internet pieces of art can be created by anyone with a quick enough internet connection and a Flash download. Artists of all ages, styles, and skill levels are welcomed to draw, chat, and genarally have a good time.
Personally, I have been using Jessica's artwork as a learning tool since I began drawnig seriously. I even found printed out NeonDragon tutorials from 2000. She has been a huge influence, and even inspired me to tackle the world of digital art. To this day, I follow her activity on her LiveJournal blog, Neon Dragon;s Supa Big Exciting Journal That Holds the Key to Universal Harmony. Here, one can keep up with her current drawings from sketch to finished piece, and even watch an upstream of the entire process live.
Her work has been inspiring me for years, and I intend to spread the word of her work as far as I can.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
A World Without Media
Media. We all complain about it and the effect it has on society. Almost everyone I speak to wishes the news wasn't so grim, or wants magazine adds to be less provocative. Have you ever thought about what the world would be like without media? To take the US, and take away every kind of media, leaving only bound books in libraries. What would that be like?
Imagine this:
There is no news. No way for the government to communicate with the populous except for written books. The skies are free from billboards, advertising, and no posters line the streets anywhere. People walk around, speaking with each other to find out new information. Word of mouth is the only advertising anyone can employ, leaving countless events unknown. Information passing is stunted, current events encompassing events that happened months ago at the earliest.
The Bad:
There would be no way to actively protest or support anything. By the time news hit the street that a law was going to be passed, is when it is already enacted. As much as we hate advertising, how else would we know what was out there beyond going out to find it. The only way we would know what was happening in other countries would be to actively search for it, or physically go to the other country. If something went wrong, we would have to trust our government completely to handle the situation, and to accurately tell the public what happened. When public officials run for office, the public has to trust what they here and see for themselves, and nothing else.
People would be easier to fool. Without a constant stream of information coming from multiple sources, would we be able to pick out the lies from the truth?
The Good:
With no news, there would be no bad news. There would be no constant stream of information to change and affect how we think. There would be no pressure from the media to fulfill an impossible ideal. There would be no confusion about who to trust, and what to trust. The decision would be simple, to trust books or to trust other people. Our minds would be free from the constant bombardment of imagery, and our streets would be free from the obnoxious billboards that line the sky. Stress would be greatly reduced, for the world would move much slower.
Would you trade knowledge for peace of mind?
Imagine this:
There is no news. No way for the government to communicate with the populous except for written books. The skies are free from billboards, advertising, and no posters line the streets anywhere. People walk around, speaking with each other to find out new information. Word of mouth is the only advertising anyone can employ, leaving countless events unknown. Information passing is stunted, current events encompassing events that happened months ago at the earliest.
The Bad:
There would be no way to actively protest or support anything. By the time news hit the street that a law was going to be passed, is when it is already enacted. As much as we hate advertising, how else would we know what was out there beyond going out to find it. The only way we would know what was happening in other countries would be to actively search for it, or physically go to the other country. If something went wrong, we would have to trust our government completely to handle the situation, and to accurately tell the public what happened. When public officials run for office, the public has to trust what they here and see for themselves, and nothing else.
People would be easier to fool. Without a constant stream of information coming from multiple sources, would we be able to pick out the lies from the truth?
The Good:
With no news, there would be no bad news. There would be no constant stream of information to change and affect how we think. There would be no pressure from the media to fulfill an impossible ideal. There would be no confusion about who to trust, and what to trust. The decision would be simple, to trust books or to trust other people. Our minds would be free from the constant bombardment of imagery, and our streets would be free from the obnoxious billboards that line the sky. Stress would be greatly reduced, for the world would move much slower.
Would you trade knowledge for peace of mind?
Monday, March 2, 2009
Crazy Origami
Recently in another art class, paper was a media choice. Normally my interaction with paper is drawing on it, painting on it, and/or making a paper airplane. Never did I really consider its worth as a media in itself, until one of my professors showed some crazy art using solely paper, and maybe some glue and scissors. I started getting curious. What else was out there?
The two art styles I found the most interesting was high level origami, and paper sculpture. I've been trying a few different techniques recently, and finding it quite fun. I personally love origami, just because I am so mystifyied by how much can be done with just folds~.
Here is some link love:
Beyond the Paper Hat:
Richi89
Shuki Kato
Chad Killeen
Joseph Wu
More than Snowflakes:
Peter Callesen
Jen Stark
Clive Steven
Paper Forest
When all else fails, google it. ;3
The two art styles I found the most interesting was high level origami, and paper sculpture. I've been trying a few different techniques recently, and finding it quite fun. I personally love origami, just because I am so mystifyied by how much can be done with just folds~.
Here is some link love:
Beyond the Paper Hat:
Richi89
Shuki Kato
Chad Killeen
Joseph Wu
More than Snowflakes:
Peter Callesen
Jen Stark
Clive Steven
Paper Forest
When all else fails, google it. ;3
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