ArtShot Issue 02 - MONO by TheAbood

EDITORIAL

Artshot magazine is currently a non-profit publication of Kuwait University by a group of students in the College of Architecture of Kuwait University.

A PASSIONATE BOLD

NEW STEP

Welcome

dear readers to the second issue of Artshot. I’d like to kick things off by telling you about a little unforgettable event that happened in my life which makes all the difference. During the 3rd grade while living in Columbus, Ohio, the entire school attended a presentation of a guest artist showcasing some of his traditional paintings that were published in children’s books. After being mesmerized by the brilliant paintings I had just witnessed and bought one of his books titled ‘Stickeen’, I sat quietly in the classroom zoned out attempting to sketch one of his paintings that I had just seen until I was approached by my teacher and let in on some nerve-racking yet exciting news! And just like that, I was being escorted through the quiet corridors to meet him. Christopher Canyon was his name, and there he was waiting in the school art studio with my art teacher. This meeting I will never forget, even though the conversation is mostly hazy in my mind. I was able to show him my art where a heartwarming smile stretched from ear to ear after each drawing he saw. And just like that, it was all I needed to keep going. From time to time, I still look at the front page of Stickeen where he signed it specifically to me; one of my most well-kept possessions to this day. The point is that we all have something we’re passionate about, something that we really love. And regardless of the circumstances or what happens, you should never let that passion die out. Always look forward, aim higher and find that inspiration or motivation wherever it may be, as small as it may be, because that is the fuel for passionate creative individuals. And who knows? You might just stumble across it in the most unexpected of places. Well, I don’t want to bore you or take up your time anymore. Brace yourselves for a larger diversity of passionate and talented individuals in this issue as well as trends and forms of art taking over the local scene such as Digital Art. In addition, the main featured art pieces on the full pages are following the theme monochromatic as opposed to last issue’s vibrant. I hope you all enjoy this issue of the magazine with tons of new and exclusive content which hopefully represents a bold step towards something much greater.

Abdullah Ali Editor-in-Chief

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

The Artshot Team Abdullah Ali Abdullah Bukhamseen Diana Ashkanani Liali Nijem Moodhy Al-Bannai Salem Al-Khadhari

Contributing Writers Abdulwahab Marafi Abdulaziz Al-Enezi Ali Al-Shobbar Dana Al-Sharif Lujain Ben Hassan Mohammed Al-Mutairi Rashed Al-Owaisheer Sultan Al-Mutairi

Artist Participants Abdullah Al-Haddad Abdullah Ali Abdullah Bukhamseen Abdulwahab Marafi Afaf Al-Mutairi Ahmed Al-Refaie Ahmad Bodaham Ahmed Sadeq Ali Al-Shobbar Ali Al-Yousifi Bader Al-Mutawa Bader Shirawi Dana Al-Sharif Diana Ashkanani Dina Oyoun Al-Soud Eman Ben Bahar Fajer Al-Hassan Ghadeer Al-Hassan Hamad Al-Khaleefi Hashem Hajyah Hisham Al-Qanaie Humood Al-Megate Liali Nijem Lujain Ben Hassan Maitham Abdal Mariam Al-Mulla Mohammed Al-Douri Mohammed Al-Mutairi Moodhy Al-Bannai Naser Baqer Naser Al-Mutairi Nawaf Abdulkareem Noura Al-Hallaq Rashed Al-Owaisheer Salem Al-Langawi Sultan Al-Mutairi Wesam Ashkanani Yousef Al-Baqshi Thank you to all the supporters, contributions and artists participating or being involved with this magazine. If you would like to be a part of the next issue and have your name, work or writing featured in the upcoming issue of Artshot magazine, please don’t hesitate to email us at

artshot.mag@gmail.com Feel free to also send us emails regarding comments, inquiries or even feedback regarding the magazine.

@artshot_ku 03

ART DISCUSSIONS

CONTENTS

30 Doodling

Is doodling important to an artist? Or is it just a method to occupy yourself and waste time?

PARTICIPANT INTERVIEWS

32 Think Outside the Box

06 My Inspiration

Liali Nijem, co-founder of Artshot Magazine, discusses her artistic inspirations.

Using her brilliant artwork as an example, Dana Al-Sharif shows how any tool or object can be utilized to create an art piece.

08 Let‘s Talk Tools

34 The 3 R‘s

Take a look into what Ali Al-Yousifi uses to create his artwork.

09 Artist‘s Bonanza

The Editor-in-Chief, Abdullah Ali, talks about his favourite local art store.

11 Early Beginnings

Diana Ashkanani discusses her foundations and premature artwork.

Artshot Magazine #02

TUTORIALS & TECHNIQUES 38 Basics of Drawing Robots

Design a robot or mecha like the talented Rashed AlOwaisheer!

SPRING 2014

“To be a great artist, you must have the three r’s: Reading, Reference and Research” - Alex Ross. Ali Al-Shobbar delves into this statement explaning what it really means.

40 Sharpening Your Pencil... Without a Sharpener!

Moodhy Al-Bannai discusses some neat tricks to sharpening a pencil to acheive certain artistic effects.

PROFESSIONAL ARTISTS FEATURE

Interviews with three incredibly talented local creatives, each with their unique style, approach and vision. This section is not to be missed!

60 Humood Al-Muqate 66 Ahmed “Owaikeo” Al-Refaie 70 Salem Al-Langawi

97 Digital Art... Choosing the Right Tool! 98 Digital Art... Versus Traditional Art!

DIGITAL WORKSHOP

99 From Traditional to Digital Basics

Sultan Al-Mutairi gives a short yet insightful basic guide to converting a sketch into a digital art piece.

102 A Step by Step Guide on Digital Painting Learn the basic concepts and initial steps of how to become a digital painter with Abdulwahab Marafi.

LOCAL PROJECTS

THE DIGITAL DISCUSSION

This issue’s participants discuss their views on digital art and their experiences with this medium.

94 Digital Art... Should be Embraced as ART! 95 Digital Art... The Business Opportunity! 96 Digital Art... And the Busy Lifestyle!

102

126

128 Ali Al-Shobbar’s Graphic Novel

A first hand look at Ali Al-Shobbar’s promising Graphic Novel titled “Shadow of Death”.

& MUCH MORE! 128

INSPIRATION Interview with

LIALI NIJEM

Where and whom do you draw your inspiration from? The English children’s author and illustrator, Martin Handford, who is the creator of the “Where’s Wally?” series. Although I wasn’t intrigued by his style of drawing in terms of character design and environment, his overall content was a huge inspiration in terms of complexity of his art pieces, the effort and time spent for each piece. That’s pretty interesting, did not expect “Where’s Wally?” to be a major inspiration. So, I assume you discovered or heard about them as a kid? Yes, around the age of 6 or 7, I used to carry his books everywhere looking for Wally and his friends. Some of the pages would take me a longer time to find them than the rest, as tracing the story is what grabbed my attention rather than looking for the missing characters. How has this impacted your life since then? His work has inspired a theme in my drawings, a story, and a meaning. The level of details in his work, like I mentioned, would move my sight all over the page, creating a humorous story through clues. Finding out at that age that you will never run out of ideas once you get started made me realize that a piece of paper and a pencil are all I really need to fuel my imagination. Couldn’t have said it better. So, is there a specific piece by him you would say changed everything for you? Perhaps fascinated you the most? Wouldn’t really call it a piece, but his last book “The Wonder Book” was the most fascinating as well as being my greatest challenge in finding Wally! What advice or tips do you have for people looking for this source of inspiration in life? There is no right or wrong in art. No style is better than the other. No tool makes your work more special. Art within its variety is art itself. Each one of us has a style, and being different is not bad. If you like something, stick to it, improve on it, and find a way to make it your own thing. If you had to pick an all-timefavorite artist right now on the spot, who would it be? Handford? Probably not. Choosing one is tough, so I’d say a studio, and that would be definitely Walt Disney’s Studio.

PARTICIPANT INTERVIEWS

lk a T s ' t e L

TOOLS Interview with

ALI AL-YOUSIFI

Your work is definitely unique and distinct in comparison to a lot of the contemporary art trends, and so is your choice in tools. Could you let us in a little on your preferences? Most of my pieces are done with pens and markers. My favorite pens though, are of the uni-ball ‘eye’ brand. When and how did you come across them as your preferred tools of the trade? I never thought of them as art tools. I already used to buy them to simply write with in school; and so whenever I wanted to draw, they were always the closest thing around. Is there a specific reason for the choice of that brand? Well, compared to other pens I found in supply shops, they looked the best! I really can’t claim that they perform better than other pens, since I didn’t put a lot of effort testing them out. But as far as I know, any other quality rollerball pen would work just as well. Have you tried drawing your usual art style with different tools? And if so, what were the results? I started with just pens. Then I tried markers of different kinds and water colored pencils. In most cases I liked the results; especially because it broke the monotony using pens all the time. It allows me explore different combinations and effects; but even with that said, I always go back to using pens. Have these preferred tools ever ‘let you down’ or restricted you from what you had in mind as an art piece? They actually have. Because I mostly use uni-ball pens, I’m restricted to limited set of colors. For example, because these pens are made for writing, they don’t come in the color yellow; so unless I use yellow markers I can never have a yellow sun in my drawings! It’s also difficult to fill large areas with writing pens, since the tip is very fine. But honestly these restrictions sometimes push me to think outside the box: so I try to invent new patterns to fill large areas, and sometimes try having a green or purple sun!

Do you have any tips on using them or from where to get them? What I love is that you can find them in any decent supply store, and you can use them like any other pen!

PARTICIPANT INTERVIEWS

Artist's

A Z N A N BO Interview with

ABDULLAH ALI

Where would you say is the best place, or places, to purchase art equipment? That would have to be the Mogahwi Stationary stores and more specifically the one in Sharq, Kuwait City. Always my destination for art tools and needs. Is there anything specific that draws you to this store over others? It has plenty sections full of a variety of office equipment, art tools, and even engineering/architectural tools. I usually struggle to find the exact art equipment I’m after here in Kuwait but Mogahwi is, for the most part, the one that has alternatives, like maybe a different brand. Which section do you mostly go to? Being an architecture student, I generally visit that section a lot for tracing paper, rulers, stencils, and other drafting equipment. But I also spend equal time, if not more, in their arts section. I love discovering everything they have to offer. Have you felt the store not supplying you with what you need or not having it in stock? Like I said, it is hard to find specific wants here when it comes to art tools. Mogahwi though, always seem to have an almost perfect alternative which satisfies me as an artist. Wait, white gel pens or white ink are some. But that’s something I can’t find all over Kuwait, which is so frustrating! What would be your favorite thing about this store? The staff there are pretty knowledgeable in art supplies and they’re a really friendly bunch as well as helpful. So yeah, that’s definitely something that’s a plus and makes me a regular customer. Prices are also quite reasonable. Oh, and my newly purchased LED light board which I’m loving! Favorite item purchased yet. Anything in specific you’d like people to know about Mogahwi stores? To all artists, this is the place to go for most your art needs! And that’s all I can say really.

S G N I N N I G E B

Early

Interview with

DIANA ASHKANANI

You obviously have a lot of fans with your stunning artwork. The readers are probably curious to know when and how did this all start? From the very beginning! I’ve been drawing for as long as I remember. Even in kindergarten drawing was my favorite thing to do and I always wanted to be the best at it. I kept on drawing every few months up until I was in grade 6, that’s when the practicing got intense! I met a friend who also loved drawing and we started to practice every single day.

It’s pretty incredible seeing how far you’ve come by comparing these examples of your work from 2002-2005 to your work now featured in the magazine. So you never stopped drawing or took a break all this time since then? No I never stopped. In high school, I got distracted by a couple of other hobbies of mine, so I wasn’t practicing as intensively. One of those hobbies was painting dolls, so this helped me improve in drawing and shading as well as made me come up with my current techniques in art. And now, since I got into architecture school, it has been taking up the majority of my time, so I can’t practice as much as I would love to, but I still manage to do so every now and then.

We can probably guess this from the work your showing us, but what were your preferred tools and subjects to draw early on as opposed to now? In primary school and until grade 7 I used only use colored pencils because that was the only medium I knew how to work with. After that, I learnt how to use watercolors and Copic markers and they became my favorite tools until now to date. As for subjects, I’ve always been obsessed with characters and character designs. I still like the same thing, but I prefer to do original works now rather than fan arts.

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

ABDULLAH AL-HADDAD @Q8mangaka @Arch_Alhaddad A 23 Years old Architecture Student studying at Kuwait University. I’m mostly interested in Japanese Culture and participated in several exhibitions inside Kuwait . I am the founder of ‘Q8Mangaka’ group for young manga aspiring artists in Kuwait.

THE BUSH BABY

20 x 30 cm Hot-pressed Arches Paper. Graphite Pencils.

LITTLE MIMI

CAPTAIN JIM HAWKINS

20 x 30 cm Canvas. Copic Multiliner and Watercolors.

SAMURAI

20 x 30 cm Canvas. Copic Multiliner and Watercolors.

20 x 30 cm Canvas. Copic Multiliner and Watercolors

ARTIST FEATURES

ABDULLAH ALI @theabood @TheAbood Drawing is something that has always been there for me, matured with me, and grown to be something I’m very passionate about. It has undergone many transformations in terms of styles, techniques, subjects, interests, and so on, just as I have, and probably reflects what I was like at that specific time. The feeling of selfsatisfaction when completing a piece, and the joy of making it is what makes all of this worth while. Of course, sharing it with an audience who love and appreciate my work, as well as being exposed to other amazing artists, brings it to an entirely new level of motivation.

A SERIES OF MARVEL BOBBLE-HEADS And I’ve made many many more! Vary in size, but none exceed 15 x 15 cm on Canson Fanboy Illustration Board. Sakura Pigma Microns, Copic Sketch Markers, White Gel and colored pencils.

WHEN TITANS COLLIDE!

THE KING OF THE ECHELON

Here’s a side of Marvel vs Capcom I’m sure you never thought to see. A4 size Bristol Board. Sakura Pigma Microns, Copic Sketch Markers, and white Posca.

When my music and art come together. 29 x 29 cm extra white paper. Colored pencils, chalk pastels, and white Posca.

ARTIST FEATURES

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

ABDULLAH BUKHAMSEEN @Bufifty @Bufifty Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m a 4th year architecture student at Kuwait University. I started to practice the art of graffiti 5 years ago and trying to spread the culture of street art in Kuwait and beautifying the urban environment in a positive way where I would revive a dull urban space with the art of graffiti and bring the people together. The idea is to send positive messages through graffiti and street art and encouraging society to always change for the better through the appreciation of art and our surrounding environment.

MONO BLUE ABYSS A4 size. Pencil, copic markers, pastels and ink.

Done using Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop.

ICED UP (RIGHT) A4 size. Pencil, copic markers, pastels and ink.

DRIVE A4 size. Ink and copic markers.

ARTIST FEATURES

IST T AR T EC L E S S IS

ABDULWAHAB MARAFI @wahaburger Sketching seemed natural to me growing up. I only recognized that it is a talent when other kids at school, along with teachers, stood in a semi-circle behind me just to watch me finish a sketch. Granted, now that I look at my work back then I can hardly call it ‘sketching’, let alone ‘art’. But I guess people saw the potential behind the sketch. I know I would. It would also seem rather natural that by the time I reached college that I would opt to study art. However, our society’s perception of art is that… well, there is no perception of art, even today. The only truth about those who get a degree in fine arts (within the confines of our community) is that they are destined to teach basic art classes to school students. So I followed the stream of high school graduates going after a degree in engineering. I stopped short of a full-fledged engineering degree in communication electronics because, well, I hated engineering! For a long time now I’ve had a diploma in engineering and a career in business administration. And that was probably as good as it got, until of course Instagram came along and changed the rules of the game. Now talents were pouring out for the world to see. All of a sudden, our community was shocked to see that we have talents! We have people whose skill is mind-boggling, to say the least! This significantly boosted every artist’s morale and a movement was started. Can we say it is the Arab renaissance? Who knows, but I know now that this is a giant leap for Kuwaitis.

EMMA STONE I’ve been wanting to draw a female celebrity but just couldn’t figure out who to draw. Too many options with too many cliches. I had completely forgotten about the big-blue-eyed girl, until I saw Spiderman on OSN. I admit it, no matter how long I stared at her face in this particular photo I couldn’t have enough. Had to be drawn if you ask me!. Done using Adobe Photoshop.

BRUCE LEE Being the icon he is, Bruce continues to be a source of inspiration, dedication, and discipline. When I have a “artist’s block”, I watch a bit of Bruce Lee. He ought to be sketches, drawn and painted over and over again! The man is a legend. Done using Adobe Photoshop.

ARTIST FEATURES

JESSE PINKMAN

BREAKING BAD

Of course Jesse Pinkman! Like everyone else I was hyped about the show and thought, ‘well this guy has an Instagram account, let’s see what happens if I paint him...’ and sure enough, I was successful in making him like and comment! A small victory like this one goes a long way! Done using Adobe Photoshop.

Monochromatic pieces have a timeless effect, kind of like a renewable vintage piece. In Breaking Bad, you can see some monochromatic like effect going on with a green hue. However, when asked to do a monochromatic piece of anything I liked, I thought of three things: Breaking Bad is timeless, the meth was blue, and there is a Walter White & Hank Schrader within all of us! And this is what it looked like in my head. Done using Adobe Photoshop.

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

SEA LIGHT Digital work. Done using Adobe Photoshop.

HAUNTED AFAF AL-MUTAIRI @artist3faf

Monochromatic piece. 37 x 26 cm. Colored pencils.

A WOMANâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S PORTRAIT 37 x 26 cm. Colored pencils.

A self-taught artist. A traditional and digital illustrator. I use graphite pencils, oil paints, colored pencils and Copic markers. I use Photoshop, Corel painter, and a Wacom tablet in my digital artworks. My favorite medium is colored pencils. My passion for art began since my early childhood where I inspired by Japanese anime. My passion for art evolved over the years. My artworks vary from landscape to portrait to drawing as well as Japanese manga characters. Most of my artworks are expressed in light colors which reflect my positive outlook on life and optimistic nature. My goal is to develop my artistic skills from merely a hobby to a professional career. Making a career out of what you love is the most gratifying experience in life.

NAMIDA NO OHASHI Yabuki Joe, from the anime Ashita No Joe. F4 size. Colored pencils.

SUNSET ON THE BEACH Landscape piece. F6 size. Colored pencils.

ARTIST FEATURES

‫‪AHMED BODAHAM‬‬ ‫‪@a7med_84‬‬ ‫‪@a7med_84‬‬

‫مثل بقية االطفال‪ ،‬بدأت برسم‬ ‫الشخصيات الكارتونيه و نقلها‬ ‫كما هي حتى تطور املوضوع الى‬ ‫محاولة ابتكار الشخصيات‪ ،‬ثم‬ ‫تعلمت اساسيات الرسم في قسم‬ ‫الديكور املسرحي كاملنظور و الظل و‬ ‫النور‪ ،‬وفي اثناء ذلك تعلمت الرسم‬ ‫الرقمي و التصميم االلكتروني و‬ ‫الرسوم املتحركه بشكل بسيط‪.‬‬ ‫أح��اول في اعمالي باالستعانه‬ ‫بتفاصيل اعيشها او اراها قريبه‬ ‫مني بدال من استيرادها من اخلارج ‪.‬‬

‫‪MONOCHROMATIC‬‬ ‫‪20.5 x 15 cm grey toned paper.‬‬ ‫‪Graphite pencil and blank ink.‬‬

‫‪ARTIST FEATURES‬‬

‫‪Both pieces are Untitled‬‬ ‫‪20.5 x 15 cm grey toned paper.‬‬ ‫‪Graphite pencil and blank ink.‬‬

‫‪Both pieces are Untitled‬‬ ‫‪Done Digitally using Adobe‬‬ ‫‪Photoshop.‬‬

‫‪22‬‬

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

AHMED SADEQ @ahmedsadeq @yourstrulyahmed

When I was six, I used to draw on my arm and pretend I had tattoos. That was when the whole passion for art had started.

All pieces are Untitled tattoo designs. A4 size paper. Promarkers and uniball ink pens of various nib sizes.

ARTIST FEATURES

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

ALI AL-SHOBBAR @ali_alshobbar

Some great visual artists do art for the sake of art, but personally I see myself less of a visual artist and more of a storyteller. I like to tell stories using contours and colors, everything has to tell a tale in whatever I try to accomplish. The goal of my life is to be a Kuwaiti version of Hayao Miyazaki, or the great Kentaro Miura. Both of which, through their amazing storytelling skills, absorbed me into their creative worlds to live life through the eyes of their heroes and villains. My greatest wish is to have good financial security to just quit my job, and dedicate my whole time to doing art and producing graphic novels. And to let people live my own world and interact with it the way I did with the great comic, manga, and anime titles. I’ve done many scattered titles, contributed illustrations to a couple of books, and a couple of comics published in Egypt ten years ago. I have also illustrated in a couple of university marine biology master thesis projects as well as many more scattered illustrations for random clients over the years.

THE ROMAN ASSASSIN

SUBSTITUTE HERO

The subject was about a competition for Ubisoft, to create a historical concept for assassin creed. Done using Adobe Photpshop CS5.

Done using Adobe Photpshop CS5.

KUWAIT KYOKUSHIN

THE CURSE OF A SEED

A dedication for Kyokushin Karate Martial artists in Kuwait. Done using Manga Studio 5 and Adobe Photoshop CS5.

I’ve done this to illustrate a scene in my Brother’s Novel; Silver Torch. Done using Adobe Photoshop CS5.

MAD SALLEN

An illustration for a scene in my brother’s novel, Silver Torch. Done using Adobe Photoshop CS5.

ARTIST FEATURES

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

DOODLING

Text & Illustrations by

ABDULLAH ALI

f there’s one thing I can’t stop myself from doing, it would have to be taking hold of a drawing tool and just doodling. What I’m going try to convey is how important I honestly believe doodling is to artists and aspiring artists, as well as a means to generate ideas and let loose some creativity instead of letting it get all bottled up. First of all, what does it mean “to doodle” (for those of you unfamiliar)? It is basically a sketch or drawing done in a somewhat unfocused manner while the person’s attention is otherwise occupied with another task. The usual thing you might see someone doing while on a phone call or in classes, like myself, but not that I advocate getting in trouble with your instructors… So, why is this action so important? Well, for one thing, I find it to be tons of fun and it gives me something to do in situations where I might be bored senseless or drifting away in my head. Surprisingly, it does actually help me focus and keep my ear with what is being said and discussed in class, especially if I’ve had a sleepless night. Actually, there are studies that have proven doodling helps focusing attention on a specific task with the ability to recall information better. However, let’s move on to the really interesting and useful part in terms of art and the potential doodles harbor. A lot of artists from my experience, including myself, complain about there not being enough time to draw or hone and sharpen one’s skills. Well, doodling, I’ve found, has actually helped me come up with new techniques, try out different methods and result in interesting ideas that could get developed further. There have been instances where I attempted to trace over a doodle using a light board or graphics tablet. It really is something interesting when you think about it, how a piece that happened arbitrarily while your attention is dominated by something else, holds the capacity and potential to evolve as an idea. You might even discover a new tool or method of drawing in this arbitrary fashion as well. I have noticed it happening a lot actually, where I end up loving some doodles, and keeping them or taking photos for later use. A few are even pinned up on my home studio wall or kept in some of my folders as cut outs from my notebooks where they were conceived. I’d like to also point out what my favorite tool for doodling is, and this is just personal taste, you can pretty much do it with anything that can be utilized as a drawing tool. Anyway, getting to the point, it would have to be BIC ballpoint pens. They are absolutely fun to doodle and sketch with, and the results actually look pretty good! With all that said I hope all you artists reading this take advantage of doodling. Got no time because of work? Abuse the act of doodling! And just keep doodling, make a habit of it and see where it takes you. But again, don’t get in trouble during class! These little unexpected and arbitrary events, occurrences and actions in life, such as where doodling can lead you, are, in my opinion, an absolute joy and some of the most exciting aspects of daily life. And one last thing, the opposite page is all yours to allow your doodles to roam free! Enjoy!

ART DISCUSSIONS

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

Think Outside the Box

EVERY OBJECT IS AN

ARTTOOL

Text & Art Pieces by

DANA Al-SHARIF

VISUAL FINE ART does not necessarily have to be restricted to pencils, pens, markers and brushes. There are no set guidelines and rules, just open up your mind to it and have fun! A

lthough there are so many art mediums out there, people tend to stick to the typical ones such as acrylic or oil paint. But let’s all be honest here, that’s can get stale. Different is interesting. No matter how simple or complex the piece is, if an unusual material is used it’ll surely catch the audience’s attention. Some people may look at an unusual material used in someone else’s piece and wonder how they were able to think of using that specific material in such a way. It’s actually much simpler than it seems. Figuring out what random materials can be used is similar to cloud watching as kids. You look at a cloud and although it’s nothing more than a cloud you see it as a horse or an elephant or anything else. You see these clouds in these shapes not because they really do look like these objects but because you’re allowing yourself to think outside the box and see them as these various objects. I myself began using cotton in some of my pieces. Because of the texture of cotton I was able to play around with the shape of it and give it the illusion that it was smoke or even clouds. Although you can use the typical medium mentioned earlier to draw realistic looking smoke or clouds, the usage of an unusual medium is the creative part of the piece and at the same time it adds a twist or creative effect which is unusual and different. The material used in a piece can also add value to the concept behind the piece. A popular series of mine is the cassette tape series. For the cassette tape series I used the tape material inside old cassette tapes, shaping it accordingly to make portraits. I began using this material because of the identity of the very first portrait I made. The first person I used for this series is a friend of mine named Sarah. I chose Sarah because I wanted to work with a familiar face since Sarah is known to sing and play instruments. Making a portrait of Sarah out of cassette tapes is an example of how the material I used is relevant to the piece itself and with doing this I realized that the wider the range of your tools and materials, the stronger the message your piece will portray and the more creative you will find yourself as an artist thinking outside of the box.

ART DISCUSSIONS

FILL UP YOUR

L IBRARY

The Landscape Artist’s Drawing Bible by Hazel Harrison Full of all kinds of basic information about drawing media and techniques, supported with high quality photographs and illustrations. It is also an A6 size book, which is easy to carry around everywhere intended for constant use that it most certainly acheives.

Steal Like An Artist by Austin Kleon A brilliant short and concise book shows you how to construct a creative life in our current digital age where everything seems to have been done with “originality” being virtually inexistent. Well worth a read which will change the way you think.

Graffiti World: Street Art from Five Continents by Nicholas Ganz For those who are interested in graffiti there is no better book to start with then Graffiti world which consists a brief history about graffiti, and the massive variety of styles appearing from South America all the way around the globe to Japan.

Nostalgia: Original Illustration Works by Tsukiji Nao This Japanese artist has a ridiculous amount of details that are just stunning and mind blowing. This book will not only inspire you but also give you the motivation and patience to achieve greater art pieces as you learn from Tsukiji Nao.

Last Man Standing: Killbook of a Bounty Hunter by Dan Luvisi An exceptional example of contemporary digital art. Full of incredible sci-fi character designs that represent the true potential of digital art. There is also an interesting story within each flip of the page. It’s hard to believe that all this was done by one man, but it’s the truth, and it’s amazing as well as massive!

If you would like to recommend any art related books to be featured, send us the title and a small description of why you chose it at

artshot.mag@gmail.com Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

3R’s THE

Text by

ALI AL-SHOBBAR

Art Pieces by

ALEX ROSS

“How can I be a better artist?” “He’s not a creative artist because he drew his illustration using a picture!” “To be a great artist I must only rely on my imagination!” “To understand realistic lighting and shading I have to sit outdoors and observe passersby.” “To be a better artist you must feel it and not analyze it.”

t some point of our lives as artists, we said similar statements, heard them, or contemplated them. Well, dear folks, today we’re going to be introduced to Alex Ross, a well-famed painter and illustrator awarded the Will Eisner Award in 1997 and the National Cartoonists Society comic Book Award in 1998. His work as an illustrator and comic book artist has been notable for his stark photo-realistic art using traditional means such as watercolors. Alright, all is nice and grand, but what concerns us is a wonderful statement and the essence of his long years of experience as an artist which is as follows: “To be a great artist, you must have the three r’s: Reading, Reference and Research” On Reading Imaginary Mr. Z said to Mr. A, “Reading? You mean reading art books?”

E Y E

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@wilsonart

Mr. A replied with a smirk that would undoubtedly enrage someone, “No. Any book. In fact, any other book: philosophy, art, history, science”. Mr. Z was actually fighting the urge to high-five A’s face with an Atlas book to wipe the smirk off. “How does reading a philosophy improve my drawing skills? It’s like a surgeon reading a book about car mechanics before doing an open-heart surgery!” Mr. A filled out his pipe with tobacco to emphasize the effect of his proclaimed wisdom, and lit it off with a few puffs. “Look son …” BAM!! The Atlas landed on his face with an unexpected speed that would make superman green with envy. Anyway, continuing the vigorously interrupted conversation, a true artist is a thinker or a philosopher who expresses his or her thoughts through colors, shapes, tones, and contours. The more a person reads in any subject, the more doors or horizons open up; therefore, the more of an

@conradoalmada You will not be able to keep yourself from scrolling down through his photos every time you’re on

Instagram. His pieces are all done traditionally, mostly with colored pencils, and they look absolutely stunning!

With so many talented individuals on social media these days, it’s hard to stand out. But this guy seriously tops the list with his unique style and variety of subjects from architecture, to celebrities, to vehicles. You owe it to yourself to check out his work and maybe even give him a follow!

@becwinnel Her drawings are breathtaking and they have a gorgeous soft feeling. She mostly relies on soft pastels for coloring. Just looking through her account will inspire you to work harder and practice realistic portraits.

ART DISCUSSIONS

overview this person has of life, one’s surroundings and the inter-relationships, and in turn the more he or she will know and understand. This leads in the end to influence the quality of his or her art; after all, what is an art if not an expression of the artist’s persona and mind? Let us sum it up in a statement. Shallow minds express themselves differently than those with knowledge. On Reference Would you seriously think that Leonardo Da Vinci hallucinated the Mona Lisa after his fifth shot of espresso rather than drawing her from a live reference? Let us be clear on one thing, we’re not talking about figurative artists who draw portraits and scenery from nature. We’re talking about the ones who don’t, such as comic art, conceptual art, architectural renderings, character design, and pretty much anything that doesn’t strike direct roots to immediate reality or existence. Some artists have the notion that a talented artist must come up with his or her art piece without any sort of visual aid or else that person would not be a real artist. Does it sound familiar? First of all lets establish that imagination, is a machine, and any machine needs fuel. The fuel of imagination is abstract thoughts as well as visual fuel of the millions of images we see and store inside our subconsciousness every day. Every artist faces a few of these obstacles during a drawing: ‘Is the anatomy correct? I’ll just erase and redraw until it feels right” ‘The light and shadows look off. I’ll just experiment until it looks about right” ‘How on earth does this wool pullover crease at the shoulder and elbows? I don’t want it to look like cotton material! I’ll just try and imagine how wool crease’ And so on...

“…a true artist is a thinker or a philosopher who expresses his or her thoughts through colors, shapes, tones, and contours.” @rachelryle

@digitaldoes

@Elseed

@2dbean

Quite a smart illustrator and animator who is not only good in drawing skills but

Perfecting his craft since 1997, DOES is an international artist recognized

Incorporating elements of both the graffiti and Arabic calligraphic traditions, eL Seed is known

From cartoon creature creations to human characters, this guy has it all covered.

also bringing her drawings to life by using other animation programs. Each of her animated drawings tells a story or an event, done in very creative but simple way.

for his dizzying choice of colors, clean style and eye for detail. Only using the letters D, O, E and S as a foundation, he continues to elevate these etchings to new heights.

for his unique style of calligraphy, which uses intricate composition to call not only on the words and their meaning, but also on their movement, to lure the viewer into a different state of mind.

His illustrations range from traditional sketches to computer painting. Seeing his continuous improvement and excitement for his art is a great source for daily doses of inspiration.

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

Lets take the ‘wool pullover’ as an example. If I happened to have the need to draw a comic or manga or any series of sequential images of a man wearing a wool pullover, of course he will appear at different angles, doing different actions, and the wool pullover would subsequently give a different reaction and shape in every image. Now let us analyze the act of using reference images for my task. I am not just drawing from them; I am storing in my sub-consciousness how the wool reacts to different body movements. So in the future, when I happen to need to draw a piece of wool, I would know precisely how to make it look and react realistically without the need of any reference, because I already had experienced it. It applies to fantasy creatures, anatomy, skin, exotic weaponry, mythical buildings and castles; they all have a base in reality. Let us examine dragons; they are generally illustrated as a form of reptiles with a Western mythology twist. Dragons have scales as reptiles do, and heads which are a can be a combination between dinosaurs and some mammals such as horses, or even back to reptiles such as the Komodo dragons. If an artist doesn’t take a reference from already existing illustrations and images of such creatures, the results might look nice, but definitely a lot less than if he or she took a reference or did a thorough subject study and analysis. To be a good artist one must anticipate such problems beforehand and have ready images as a back up reference before beginning a drawing. Every art piece is a learning process, and every image you absorb gets stored in your sub-conscious mind on way or another. Lesson learned here is no skill came to be without knowledge, no knowledge came to be without foundation, and no foundation without observation. On Research Two guys, Mr. Do-it-right and Mr. Know-it-All. They are trying to draw a legionary from the era of the late Roman

republic for a comic or manga, painting or any illustration. Mr. Know-it-All, well he thinks that he has seen enough movies and television series about such a period, Spartacus, The 9th legion, Gladiator, just to name a few. So there really is no need waste time and look further; he can rely on his artistic imagination. So, he started drawing skillfully. The posture is spot on, the direction is flawless, and the light plus shade makes you want to weep with joy! However, the supposedly glorious illustration of the Roman legionary turned out to be an illustration of a man who is wearing a Greek Hoplite helmet, with an armor plate, which belongs to the wrong era of the Roman history and dons Gallic shoes rather than Roman Sandals while holding a Viking Shield and Gladiator’s sword instead of the Roman legionary’s issued one. Mr. Know-it-All combined everything he ever saw in war movies and simply projected them down in one drawing. Mr. Do-it-right, on the other hand, before he draws, he Googles the ‘Roman Republic’ and read about the era a bit, and searches about the Roman legionary of this era and his gears all while gathering reference images. And then he starts to draw. Now, the million-dollar question; if you were a person who is about to commission one of those two artists for an art related project, which one of them would you rather call? Some artists might argue that ‘I don’t have to do research every time I want to do a blasted illustration or a comic or manga!’ No, it depends on your goal. Do it only if you want to change from being a good artist to becoming a great artist. All in all, there is no set path to be a great artist. We can only learn and shed light on the path that others paved before us; the artists that toiled to become great in hopes that we might achieve such greatness.

Basics Of

DRAW R O BOTS

ING

Text & Illustrations by

RASHED AL-OWAISHEER

Drawing mechas or robots is considered a complicated area in the world of art and design, but just like any other art form, the KEY TO MASTERING it is through the use of a proper foundation. T

he main reason drawing them is tricky is because of their high level of detail and intricacy which usually scares people off and makes them give up on the whole idea. I’m going to share with you some of the aspects that you need to put in mind the next time you start drawing your own robot. References First things first! Make sure you have enough references that can help you with your designs. Don’t feel ashamed or reluctant in using references because everybody uses them and sooner or later the references you use are going to be instilled in your head where you’ll be able to use them seamlessly. The Skeletal and the Muscular systems are two example references used that were acquired online. Anatomy Most designs require you to have a basic understanding of the structure and the type of robot you’re drawing. It’s entirely your choice whether you want it to look like a human, an animal or maybe even both. In this article I’m just going to show you the ones that are humanoid in form.

The Skeletal System Human anatomy consists of many aspects, but in this illustration we’re just going to focus on the muscular and the skeletal systems. The skeletal system doesn’t have to be too detailed. You can use shapes or even just a stick figure as long as it gives your design a proper functional base. In the examples shown (A, B, C) we see the different types of skeletal systems we can work on which all depends on what appeals to you. Personally, the one with the orb shaped head (A) is what I’d go for if I was drawing a human-sized kind of robot in my style, while the one with the pyramid head I’d use for a much larger robot. Additionally, the most important part of the skeleton is to add joints. Joints are very critical to make your design function properly, visually speaking when it comes to movements, especially the shoulder and the knee joints (but hey, no harm in imagining your robot as real). The earlier you apply them, the easier it will be to build up on them.

C TUTORIALS & TECHNIQUES

The Muscular System Moving on to the muscular system, the muscles in the human body serve as resistance powerhouses as well as connectors to all the joints and skeletal systems. They also give the body a bulkier more defined look, depending on the size of the muscles, which is why we’re going to use them in our design. You can see in the examples shown (D, E) how I built up more shapes on the previous skeleton I drew, and they resemble the ones we can see on the human body. We can also see how the upper torso looks like the human chest, same as the abdominals in the mid-section. The trick is to make them look similar but still maintain a mechanical look to it so it doesn’t lose its robotic feel. Superficiality This section speaks for itself. It’s basically what you can add to the surface of your design. You can go crazy and add whatever you want to make your design look special; afterall, it is your own robot. Just keep in mind that you shouldn’t add anything that would cripple your design’s ability to move, to make it look believable in a sense. You can also add weapons, lights, special paint-jobs. It’s all up to you. In my example (F) you can see how I added a lot of mechanical looking shapes on the surface of the base. It gives it a more dynamic look. The chest area’s also got a plate with the letter “S” as well as the worn-out cape just to add more character the robot ,which in this case implies the character of Superman. All you need to do now is to clean up your design and make it look more polished. In the end, all of the those steps might seem like a bit of handful, but eventually and with more practice you’ll be able to handle those concepts effortlessly. Also never be afraid of experimenting with different shapes, lines or even inner components. There is no universal “rule” for drawing these things, just draw whatever you think will look good. Now I leave you with the final result of our exercise.

F Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

Sharpening Your Pencil…

Without a ! r e n e Sharp T

here are several simple yet very effective techniques on sharpening your pencil that can offer a significantly different range of pencil strokes and highly improve the quality of your drawing. You might think this is a trivial matter, but trust me, sharpening techniques go a long way and you’ll notice a change in your work. So, I would like to take you through a short tutorial of these techniques and their uses.

Knife/Cutter:

These tools are the most useful way to sharpen a pencil into different tip points. It may take a little practicing over a bin, but it’s definitely a skill to master in less than a day! These are three basic, common types of tip points that can be achieved with a knife/cutter:

Text & Images by

MOODHY AL-BANNAI

Needle points: Works best for artists who want precise control over their lines and care for extra fine details. The main idea is that such a fine point can wear down a long way before it actually becomes too blunt to use. Notice that this technique is not as flexible as the chisel point, offering one type of thin line only and better to be used on smaller drawings or meticulous details. Make sure that hard pencils are used for this since the tip can break easily with softer ones. Pare the tip until 2.5 cm of lead is clearly shown, and try doing this without resting the tip on any surface for support; instead, rest the pencil on an incline to avoid the tip from breaking. (B)

B CHISEL POINT

NEEDLE POINT

BULLET POINT

Chisel points: The sharp edge offers a soft wide stroke

that is great for conceptual sketches, quick construction lines, and calligraphy. It has a “self-sharpening” feature that helps keep the edge sharp as you continue on using it; this means that you can spend more time drawing and less time sharpening, especially for softer pencils. Trim the tip until almost 1 cm of the lead is visible, and then sharpen the edge of the lead carefully until you reach the width desired. (A)

Bullet Points: Depending on the tilt of your hand, two marks can be made with this technique, a softer line from the side of the bullet and a sharp line from the point. Like the Chisel point, it has the “self-sharpening” property, and it’s good for both hard and soft pencils. It may take a little more time to produce this tip but it’s absolutely worth it! Rest the end of the pencil on any supporting surface, preferably on an incline. Show 1 cm of the lead and cut the very end of the lead into a sharp pointy edge. (C)

TUTORIALS & TECHNIQUES

Sand Paper: If you have less time to cut the edges with a knife or a cutter, then this technique of rubbing the sand paper against the lead is definitely faster. It is used mostly to refine a blunt edge into a pointier tip, but the drawback is that it won’t last longer than the needle point method. Also, you have to be careful with the pressure applied on the edge, specifically with soft pencils, to avoid over grinding or scraping. (D, E)

F Sand Paper Drill: My personal favorite! By using the cylindrical sandpaper tip that comes with any mechanical drill, you can shape the tip in any form you desire, including the shapes I mentioned above. No pressure is required for this method. It is a fun method than mainly depends on the tilt of your hand and the how accurate you are in reshaping the tip of the pencil. (F) Using the common sharpener that produces a conical tip doesn’t mean that it’s a bad method, as much as it’s limiting to the kind of strokes that you can produce with this tip. For large drawings, it is a time consuming way due to the tip getting blunt quickly, forcing you to sharpen the pencil many times over and over again. Remember, when you end up with a very short pencil, do not throw it away! Most artists prefer short pencils (G) because they give a less restricted movement of the hand; some of them even break new pencils in half! Just to have more freedom in making large, accurate strokes. Art techniques are endless, some prefer one technique over the other, and some have their own unique methods that they’re used to and most comfortable with. In the end, I hope you learned something new here!

LEARN FROM

THE

BEST

Isabella Morawetz on tumblr

Her digital work is brilliant, but what is the most amazing part is how helpful she is to all her followers and fellow artists on the web. Revealing tips, tricks, techniques, brushes, everything! Just go on her tumblr page and absorb all that well explained information. Check out her website too: http://morawetzart.com/

http://imorawetz.tumblr.com/tagged/tutorial

http://www.youtube.com/user/markcrilley

If you would like to recommend any art related tutorials to be featured, or have your own tutorial you would like us to spread the word about, send us the link and a small description of why you chose it at

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

Mark Crilley on Youtube

Being a children’s book illustrator and manga creator, this guy is definitely someone to learn from. His tutorials are very clear, to the point, and teach you lovely techniques and tips to draw manga, landscapes and more.

artshot.mag@gmail.com 41

DRAWING KUWAIT

is a monthly casual gathering for architects and artists to draw, and learn from the built environment. Attendees are only required to bring medium to draw with and on. i.e. a sketchpad and pen.

OUR VISION:

• To learn more about Kuwait ’ s architecture by drawing it and being physically by it. • To connect the architecture community.

OUR GOALS:

• Learn about architecture, urbanism, and structure in Kuwait. • Meet and discuss these subjects to expand our architectural knowledge. • Observe and critique these buildings to be able to design a brighter future. • To get inspired by fellow attendees and guests of honor.

COLOR WHEEL EMBRYO This drawing shows an unborn artist at the earliest stages of development. 12.5 x 12.5 cm. Ink pen, colored markers and water colored pencils.

ALI AL-YOUSIFI @aliucv91 @Aliucv91

Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m a fifth year architecture student at Kuwait University. Art for me is a way to relax and have fun. So since 3D/ perspective drawings and representational art (like portraits and still life) require a lot of concentration and trial and error, I completely avoid them. Instead I like to draw 2D flat images, made up of simple lines, patterns and geometric shapes. I usually start my pieces by drawing a geometric outline and hatching it, not knowing the subject or even the orientation of the artwork.

STRANGE WORLD This drawing shows a man and a woman in a strange world. 17.4 x 21.5 cm. Pens, india ink, markers and water colored pencils.

FAILED UFO ABDUCTION This drawing shows a UFO having a hard time trying to abduct an earthly castle. 12.5 x 21.5 cm. Colored pens and markers.

ARTIST FEATURES

BLACK IS NOT A COLOUR Black and blue patterns. 15.4 x 25.5 cm. Colored pens and markers.

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

BADER AL-MUTAWA @_bader_almutawa_ Art is something I found deep within myself a long time ago and my family supported me since then. I believe every artist was once an amateur.

LV BAG

THE TIGER

40 x 20 cm. Oil painting on canvas.

160 x 90 cm. Graphite and Charcoal.

THE TERMINATOR: RISE OF THE MACHIE

THE HULK

90 x 60 cm. Oil painting on canvas.

An attempt at a 3D like effect. 160 x 90 cm. Oil painting on canvas.

ARTIST FEATURES

UNTITLED 70 x 70 cm. Oil painting on canvas.

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

ST I T I AR T ES GU U SS

PARASITE (PAGE OPPOSITE) Inked on SAI PAint Tool. Colored on Photoshop CS5.

RISES Inked on SAI PAint Tool. Colored on Photoshop CS5.

BADER SHIRAWI @shirawi @Badershirawi

Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m a 22 year old artist working as an architect Architect at MSCEB. I do freelancing with my art. My inspiration is mostly from comics and Japanese animation. My hobbies are collecting high quality airbrushed figures and reading graphic novels, mainly Batman.

KINGLER TAKES THE STAGE! (BOTTOM RIGHT) Inked on SAI PAint Tool. Colored on Photoshop CS5.

ZEPHER Inked on SAI PAint Tool. Colored on Photoshop CS5.

PUNK ROCK Inked on SAI PAint Tool. Colored on Photoshop CS5.

ARTIST FEATURES

DANA AL-SHARIF @Daxna @theDaxna Throughout a two year IB art course, I began to develop my artwork. I gave my work a twist it needed by mixing the two things I was interested in: pop art and cultural art. The focus of my work is the Arab culture but I approach it by using the pop art style and having a deliberate color choice. I want my work to look appealing and at the same time have my viewers relate to it (assuming they are Arab). Yet if the viewer couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t relate to the Arab culture I want them to be interested in the culture behind the piece. As an artist, my main purpose is to show the beauty of my own culture by giving my viewers a new and unique way of looking at it and to make sure it is not forgotten.

UNTITLED

Monroe Tarboosh. 40 x 30 cm. Mixed media.

The One With the Afro 50 x 50 cm Cassette tape on canvas

Um Da Vinci 100 x 70 cm Mixed Media

GUN: Untitled, 17 x 20 cm, mixed media

17 x 20 cm. Mixed Media.

MONROE TARBOOSH 40 x 30 cm. Mixed Media.

ARTIST FEATURES

SEE NO EVIL, HEAR NO EVIL, SPEAK NO EVIL 60 x 80 cm. Mixed Media, acrylic paint and spray paint.

UM DA VINCI 100 x 70 cm. Mixed Media.

THE ONE WITH THE AFRO 50 x 50 cm. Cassette tape on canvas.

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

RED

DIANA ASHKANANI

30.5 x 22.9 cm (300 gsm) watercolor paper. Watercolors, ballpoint pen, and a white pen.

@Dannyvanilla @Dannyvanila

Ever since I was in kidergarten, I knew that art was my passion. I am very competitive and Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve always wanted to be the best at it. I experimented with digital art, but I found myself more with manual drawing techniques. Growing up, I was always fascinated with character designs in video games and animations. Thus, my earlier drawings were mainly about that field. With time, I learned to take risks with colors and techniques that combine character designs and many coloring techniques which became my favorite direction in art. Drawing has always been a type of stress relief for me and I practiced it whenever I needed a break from studying.

MONOCHROMATIC (PAGE OPPOSITE) A3 size Fabriano Accademia (224 gsm) paper. Pan Pastels, soft pastel pencils, colored pencils, and a white gel pen.

HUMMINGBIRD (RIGHT) 21 x 26.4 cm sketch paper. Watercolors, colored pencils, and white acrylic.

PORTRAIT (LEFT) 24.2 x 33.6 cm. Soft pastels, colored pencils, white acrylic paint.

ARTIST FEATURES

HARA OF BAB TOMA (OPPOSITE) A4 size. Pencil, ink and watercolors.

DINA OYOUN AL-SOUD @dinoo123

I walked in the streets of Damascus three years ago but in a different lifetime. I washed the dust of those ancient alleys from my feet at night before falling into bed. But I probably still carried some with me, past the borders, in the cracks of my shoes and folds of my scarf and creases of my heart. My pockets and sketchbooks held the scribbles of memorable moments spent in the city. With a pencil and paper, I witnessed those streets that I walked. This was the air I breathed. This is the history that I waded through, not leaving my mark but letting it leave its mark on me.

THE SYRIAN FOUNTAIN IN THE HEART OF THE HOUSE A4 size. Pencil, ink and watercolors.

THE RINGING SOUND OF ROMAN-SYRIAN BELLS (RIGHT) A4 size. Pencil, ink and watercolors.

THE MINARET WITH THE JASMINE SMELL A4 size. Pencil, ink and watercolors.

ARTIST FEATURES

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

EMAN BEN BAHAR @faaaith87 @faaaith_1987 From the moment I held pencils as a kid I started to express myself and thoughts through drawing. I love to observe human facial expressions especially when it tells stories and emotions. Pencil is my favorite tool and medium as it gives me precision for details, which is one of myfavorite characteristics. I also enjoy learning to work with other colors such as oil and colored pencils. Currently I am in the stage of developing myself in classical portraits and studying this great world of realistic art before I create my own style.

FELIX BAUMGARTNER Graphite pencil.

IF MY FATHER WERE STILL ALIVE Graphite pencil.

SHAME OF MY SINS A3 size. Graphite pencil.

ARTIST FEATURES

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

FAJER AL-HASSAN & GHADEER AL-HASSAN @25amesha_spenta @xroboartistx Ghadeer and Fajer Al Hassan are two young Kuwaiti artist sisters who love art and started drawing at a very early age. As they grew up their passion for art increased, so they decided to study art. They joined PAAET and specialized in art education. They finished their bachelor degree and now looking forward to taking higher education programs in art. Their favorite style is drawing portrait and they mostly utilize using soft pastels as their favorite medium. Inspirational artists include William Adolphe Bouguereau, Sir John William Waterhouse, and Iman Maleki. The romantic era in Europe in terms of fashion and style is also a large influence and inspiration.

PORTRAIT by GHADEER ALHASSAN

PORTRAIT by FAJER GHADEER AL-HASSAN

A3 size. Charcoal.

A4 size. Grey Toned Paper. Charcoal and white pastel pencil.

A4 size. Pastel pencils and chalk.

ARTIST FEATURES

MONO PORTRAIT by FAJER & GHADEER AL-HASSAN 27 x 21 cm. Colored pencils.

PORTRAIT by FAJER AL-HASSAN A4 size. Grey Toned Paper. Pastel pencils.

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

PAINTING REALITY Interview with

Professional Realist Painter

HUMOOD AL-MUQATE Dr. Humood Al-Muqate is a professor at the College of Education, Kuwait University. His first national recognition as an artist was after receiving a first place award during participation in a local youth art exhibition in 1980. That led to many exhibitions, events and art galleries of his work in the years to come as well as additional prestigious awards, even with his temporary break from painting between 1989 and 1996 in pursuit of higher education. Today, his work is well recognized, appreciated and displayed by various local councils, municipalities, and companies. We are thrilled to have you as a part of this magazine. So, first of all, when did you first start drawing and what was your main source of inspiration? Since elementary school, “Al-Arabi” magazine was the main stimulus to me. It was a rich magazine with all kinds of information. I used to jump to my favorite section, under the name of ‘Arts and Artists’, where I read about the local artists and their drawing techniques briefly through interviews attempting to imitate their art, but it was never enough. So, I started to copy every illustration of the magazine but not alone, my brother and I were challenging each other to see who can draw the best and our sisters were the judges, which was a great motivation that kept me going.

PROFESSIONAL ARTISTS FEATURE

Sounds like fun! What about school, did you learn more from the art classes there? Yes indeed. In fact, I never knew my level in art until the first class of “still life” drawing. I remember our teacher placing an apple on a table, asking us to draw as much details as possible. When he saw my drawing, he was truly impressed with the result of the skills of a second grade student, and decided to choose me and another student among the others as representatives of his class. By then my art instructor began teaching me different methods, improving my skills and encouraging me to never stop drawing. In college, I sold my first painting in one of the local galleries and won prizes in several competitions along with my peers. Those are unforgettable memories!

Which art movement or scene do you see your work belonging to? Realism, or what they would call it in the 60s and 70s by ‘Photorealism’, or ‘extreme realism’, and that’s due to the point that I like to challenge myself in mimicking reality as much as possible.

Do you have any specific local or international inspirational artists? Definitely, from Kuwait. I’ve always admired Ayoub Husain’s traditional art, and the fact that the old typical Kuwaiti houses and other important vernacular buildings were drawn from his memory, which was beautifully vivid and nostalgic. Abdul Ridha Baqer was another Kuwaiti artist whom I also appreciated. Other international artists like Leonardo Da Vinci, the genius Renaissance man who as you all might know wasn’t just an artist, but a sculptor, architect, musician, mathematician, engineer, inventor, anatomist, geologist, cartographer, botanist, and a writer. I also like the Rembrandt’s brush strokes in his famous portraits. Another similar artist, Johannes Vermeer, and his magnificent portraits are also inspirational.

We understand that you’ve tried out many art mediums over the years. How has the use of different art mediums changed for you overtime and why? I used to draw with pencil, since it’s the fastest and easiest medium, and overtime I moved to watercolor, then gouache and oil, and finally acrylic. I found myself more in acrylic because my only issue with oil is that working in layers is a bit more difficult, since the paint is still wet, and when another color is applied it could be mixed easily with the existing layer applied two days ago. Besides that, the smell of the turpentine is too strong, and the process of cleaning the brushes is a little annoying in my opinion. Unlike acrylics, only water is used, and I could easily fix my mistakes by waiting a few minutes for the layer to dry in order to apply a better one over it.

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

But acrylics usually dry quickly on the palette, so how do you tend to avoid that problem? To preserve the moisture of the color paste on the paint palette, I usually stack several napkins over each other, soak them with water, and then squeeze the paint over the napkins, and splash it with water spray every 5 minutes or so, therefore It would extend the period of dryness. I don’t use that much of the other helping mediums, such as extenders or retarders, but if I did, I would use a very little amount to certain areas. You might find this funny, but if I want to take a break from the painting for couple of days, I usually cover the paint and the wet napkins, spray them even more with water, cover the whole thing with any lid and place it in a refrigerator, believe it or not, it works well for me!

That’s a really interesting thought and technique! About the canvas or surfaces you paint on though, professionals, such as yourself, spend a long time in preparing them. Does this preparation process

affect the final result of the painting? Yes absolutely, the preparation of the canvas is extremely important, and it highly affects the final quality of the drawing. Some artists prefer a rough finishing for their art, others, like me, prefer a smoother result, since my art ought to end up like a photograph. I usually prepare multiple MDF boards next to each other, then I would apply a liquid medium called ‘Gesso’ carefully on the front face of the board, wait for 30 minutes and then sand it gently to enhance the uniformity of the surface. After it dries completely, I flip the board and repeat the process on the backside of it. Yes, you might say “who cares about the back side?” well, professional artists do, and that it is to avoid expansion and shrinkage of wood due to moisture or heat exposure. Other artists repeat this application on the same board twice, I usually repeat it six times to have a finer result, 4 times on the front side, twice on the back. When working on canvases, I always buy the ones used for drawing portraits, because they have a much finer and smoother texture, which usually works well with my realistic art.

PROFESSIONAL ARTISTS FEATURE

Your pieces are breathtakingly beautiful. Can you explain briefly the process of achieving a photorealistic drawing? Well, with acrylics, patience is the main key. The second key is to work in layers. Mistakes can always be covered if you wait for it to dry and go over it again with another layer. For me, mixing water with acrylics works best for base colors as an initial sketch of the drawing, since it gives a nice translucent sketchy beginning of outlines with proportions. Then I would work my way through the painting with multiple layers of paint. Notice the process of the camelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s face (page 65) and the details drawn from dark and light areas and all the way to the very tiny details of hair, with the eye as a focal point in the painting. Hopefully this example show cases this method of how I paint.

We all know how artists get that constant question regarding time frame, so let us try to answer it for Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

them. How long does it roughly take to finish one of your art pieces? Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s really hard to say, because it depends on the size of the piece, and how much details are in it, and as I mentioned before, working in layers needs a lot of patience. While working on the painting I always question which layer comes before what in order to reach the needed color value. Some of my paintings took several months, a few took a year to finish, and sometimes even more, for example the beads painting took a lot more than a year to finish it completely.

Wow, that is incredible! You werenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t kidding around about having patience! Here is an interesting question; generally, what do you find most annoying in art or in being an artist? Well, for one, not having any motivation to draw is pretty annoying to me, and I mean not having anyone around me

minor issue, is the lack of drawing tools in Kuwait, and what I mean here is that it’s hard to find the best brands of color tubes or paint brushes, so sometimes I had to order online for the tools I need.

On that note about young artists, what do you advise the young artists who would like to pursue the path you’ve taken in photo-realism or are showing an interest or potential in this style of visual art?

who can support me and encourage me to continue drawing. Selling art pieces is not my priority, I draw mostly to satisfy myself before anything else, but it’s nice to share it with others and learn from other talented artists as well. But sadly, here in Kuwait, there is not much of art appreciation, there are many talented young artists who need to have their artwork displayed, and deserve to win in drawing competitions, but unfortunately, what they call “Wasta” comes into the picture and destroys everything. Another

For beginners, I highly recommend not to start with large canvases, because imitating reality needs a lot of focus and attention to details, and one need to be careful in applying layers to achieve a realistic result. Therefore, using the right tools on a well prepared canvas and not rushing into things is the most essential thing to do. Also, using acrylics alone sometimes doesn’t help in achieving a certain detail, in this case it is okay to use other coloring mediums for certain areas. Overall, practice make perfect. In art, you can always be good with anything if you practiced enough for it, so keep practicing and good luck!

And have patience! Of course! And have A LOT of patience!

PROFESSIONAL ARTISTS FEATURE

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

DIGITAL Interview with ART

IDENTITY THROUGH

Professional Digital Illustrator

AHMED "OWAIKEO" AL-REFAIE

A hmed

Al-Refaie, aka Owaikeo, is a talented local creative immersing his talent and unique style in the digital realm. He is a creative director and the co-founder of Studio AIO (studioaio.com) which provides various design services. Here, we get to see some of Owaikeoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s latest digital pieces as well as get some exclusive content on his work and thoughts about the current digital art scene in Kuwait. It is a pleasure to have you as a part of the magazine. So tell us a little about yourself and Studio AIO. And how is your art playing a role in your life currently? It is a pleasure being on the magazine and thank you for having me. I am a simple person. I loved art at a young age and started pursuing it and trying different styles along the way. Art to me is a huge chunk of my life. I create art for fun and at other times I create art for a living together with my business partner at our company Studio AIO. It makes me happy when I create art and it is a thrilling experience when we bring a clientâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;s business to life through the art we create.

PROFESSIONAL ARTISTS FEATURE

Talking specifically about your artwork, what is the inspiration or motivation that pushed you in this direction? For most these days it seems to be Japanese manga or comics and the likes, but with your work, the style is so unique and stands out. Though I love Anime, Manga and Comics and wish I can create art like it, I still think there are vast styles and a lot of variations of them that I have seen other artists create which I think are outstanding. My take on my art is based merely on the fact that I want to create something new. It happened through coincidence and practice. It isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;t an easy task and of course I am always eager to change things up and improve upon it. I will continue to define and redefine my art every time I see the chance in order to make it better and enjoy it more.

What intrigues us the most personally as aspiring artists, is to figure out or see how the mind of such talented pro artistsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; works. Could you give us some sort of inside on that? Like, where does your mind wander off to? How does the art process start? How do you come up with your work? My art process over time has changed over the years and as of right now everything starts on a blank A4 paper with an HB pencil, as simple as that. A lot of the time I start off not knowing what I am going to draw but one stroke leads to another and an artwork is born. Other times I have a clear idea of what I want. I recently travelled to Turkey and I was always fascinated by their markets and architecture, so I drew a character that is basically in shape of a mosque and gave it a moustache. As you can tell, the inspirations vary; perhaps a movie, game or shows that I am a fan of inspire me. Things I see or observe too, like one time it was very windy and a man with a long beard was walking towards the wind when suddenly I saw his beard split in half, I never seen such a sight before, and it most definitely intrigued me, so I drew an old man on a beach tanning with a rather funky beard that was also split in half. It really depends on the situation; however, it doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;t always work and a lot of drawings and ideas get dumped during the process.

Of course, you have your final pieces on your website or being sold, but you also have very interesting doodles and sketches you do, like the ones on your Instagram account. What exactly happens to those? And is there some sort of importance to them as you do them on a regular basis? Since colored digital art takes a lot of time, I kept that part of my art for the special ones. I draw with a pencil on a weekly basis and every now and then I select one and color it. The reason for this is also the fact that the pencil drawings take a day and I want to focus my efforts onto improving my style and the more characters and settings I create, the better I get. I love the digital art and it is the highlight of my work and will always try to make more time for it.

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

what you want to create and executing it. This makes room for so many possibilities. At the end of the day, people see the end result and that is what matters most. I myself like and use both traditional and digital methods and I think they complete and complement each other.

Tell us about your own style, technique and tools regarding digital art. Why do you use them and prefer them? I generally use Photoshop for my personal art along with a mouse, though there are easier methods such as tablets. It is just a matter of preference. I could change though and adapt to things that would make my ideas easier to execute as long as I do the work myself and not the other way around. My art is simplistic in form yet takes a long time to create as they are detailed and each shade or tone of each color is drawn individually. I would say my art is a happy marriage between realism and cartoons. I like both but I like the combination much more.

Also, last but not least, could we perhaps get an inside look of a few steps or general process of one of your art pieces? Or perhaps just a specific

For this question, we’d like to know your view on the digital art scene currently in Kuwait. For example, we’ve all witnessed this current trend of anyone getting access to a pirated copy of Photoshop from Hawally believes he or she is a graphic designer. These notions, as well as others, contribute to the thought that digital art or painting is not “sincere”, but rather just computer magic with no skill. That obviously is not the case, and just like traditional art, there are different forms, styles, techniques, as well as ways or tools to go about it. What are your thoughts on this? It is true. A lot still consider digital art as the work of the computer and look at it as inferior to its counterpart, traditional art. Their lack of understanding of the process is what I think is the issue. I don‘t think either is superior to the other. They are tools that are subject to change. People shift the tools but the artist is what controls them. Yes digital art does simplify some things but also bring out new tougher challenges. So the question here is why not take advantage of the technological developments that make our lives easier in many aspects so that there is less of a barrier between

PROFESSIONAL ARTISTS FEATURE

portion that identifies the highlights of your technique. Like all my current art, I start with an A4 paper with a pencil, and after completing it, I scan it and redraw all the outlines again in a single color. I then start filling in the base color for the head and work my way by creating each skin tone layer by layer. There is a lot of back and forth and the same process applies to all areas of the artwork. As a final step I improve on the overall colors, polish bits here and there and color the outlines to match that of the area. The process takes time and sometimes drives me crazy, but I am always eager and happy to see the end result. (see below)

We appreciate you taking your time for this interview, and thank you for sharing all this great artwork! My pleasure.

You can check out more of Owaikeoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s artwork on his website (owaikeo.com) or Instagram account (@owaikeo).

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

TAKING ON THE

DIGITAL SCENE Interview with

Professional Digital Painter

SALEM AL-LANGAWI Salem Al-Langawi is a local creative taking the initiative to shed some light on the notion of digital art in Kuwait through workshops and involving the youth in this contemporary art form. Salem has offered many digital basic painting workshops and the future looks even brighter for his art career. It is a pleasure to have you as a part of this magazine. Tell us a little about yourself and aspirations that led to where you are today and the success of “Salem Al-Langawi Art”. I’m a self-taught artist and illustrator. I’ve created my unique style of art through years of practice, experimentation and studying great masters. In the early stages of my art career, I was able to grasp the medium of charcoal, gouache, graphite and pastel. After that, due to the condition of my busy life with college, then work, and supporting a family, I took the initiative and was able to successfully transfer my years of caricatures, portraits and illustration skills to the digital world. My aim for art as a career is to create unique high quality dynamic portraits, landscapes, cartoons, caricatures and illustrations to meet the need of new comers and art lovers. And this is what brought about the whole “Salem Al-Langawi Art” office and art career.

Digital art is clearly important to you and a means or tool to do what you love. So, how does digital PROFESSIONAL ARTISTS FEATURE

art make a difference in your life as opposed to the other methods and art forms? And also, what exactly lead to you being passionate about digital art? Actually Digital art made me unleash an extra artistic potential that I had, especially the times when there’s no time or enough space to work. For example, when the tools of digital art became mobile, unlike traditional art where can‘t carry around all your tools to work with anywhere, with technological developments such as smart phones, tablets, laptops. It’s actually amazing how technology served my needs when it comes to my passion as an artist. Now with a tablet I can paint, draw and fix my mistakes in seconds instead of over painting or erasing and ruining my paper. My art studio is literally in the palm of my hands, so to speak. Not to forget that now a days technology has reached the point of being able to print and reproduce your artwork on almost any medium with the highest quality. And I’m sure every artist appreciates the ability to have a backup of your art work incase of selling or losing it.

Digital art is currently taking the world by storm with what you can do by utilizing it as well as the endless possibilities. Art is becoming easier to access and to practice with all the technological progress in our time. However, this has caused a lot of people to see it as inferior to traditional, especially in our country. What is your view on the subject and why do you think that is? In addition, do you have a message or something to perhaps change their opinions? This is true, but at one point I have seen many people in our country, especially the younger generation, heading towards the point of mastering digital mediums, whether its digital painting, graphic design, photography retouching, or 3d art. They all use the same tools of trade. We are living the age of technology and speed, age of perfection where people refuse exceptions and slip-ups as technology is being embraced as the “all-in-one” sort of thing. Clients, companies, even fans and followers expect my work to be a refined final product that will take their breath away. Yes it can be done traditionally but not like the speed, efficiency, and intricacy of digital art. Don’t misunderstand me, I’m not underestimating traditional art. I am and always will be a traditional artist. It’s just that my traditional art content has become less because of the possibilities digital art and the means to do it have opened up for me in every aspect imaginable, which in turn makes me happier and content. I still carry my pencils and sketch books everywhere I go though. That is something you cannot live without as an artist.

As most of us know, there is quite a range of art styles and forms (i.e. manga, comics, abstract, sculpture, and so on) capturing the minds of young aspiring artists in Kuwait. Where has your talent and artwork placed you in the current art scene of Kuwait? Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

To be honest I havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t had enough exposure until the last couple of years, especially when I started conducting workshops. Yes, I have participated in many art events, but the one I consider the best was to be nominated as top 20 tips from professional digital artists of issue #108 of Advanced Photoshop magazine. And of course, my Joker painting was my major achievement as digital artist considering its size and resolution, 180 x 75 cm without the frame, it has become recognizable by many people and I amazed my self and others with such an achievement. Also, to answer the main point of your question, I consider myself belonging to the school of realistic art, specializing in illustrations. I love to reflect real life scenes or moments into my art pieces, sometimes mixing them with fantasy touches.

Do you have a message for aspiring digital artists or people considering moving their talents and passion to digital? Well I wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t call moving from the essence of art as in moving away from traditional tools of trades with all their variety. What I will say is give it a try and also keep sketching with a sketch book

or paint, but to master digital art you have to dedicate your time to learn the many aspects of it as there are so many possibilities and doors open to you in the digital realm, no one person could easily absorb it all in. And once you get the hang of it, I promise you will feel so attached to it just as an artist would to his or her favorite sketchbook. Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll produce art with speed and quality from anywhere because itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mobile and can be done everywhere. And that to me is the beauty.

Lastly, could you give us a small guide to starting off with digital art? As in what they might need to get started and how to prepare. Generally, the tools of the trade are a Wacom graphics tablet, more specifically an Intuos model that I highly recommend. Of course Adobe Photoshop, preferably CS5 or 6. There are so many other softwares like Autodesk Sketchbook and Corel Painter, but Photoshop definitely takes the lead. Expect any artist working on the other software to move his or her work to Photoshop for one last edit or touch up. So, why not just stick with it? As for a computer or laptop, hands down Macbook or iMac. And make sure the specs are good enough. Besides that, you just need your passion, patience and consistency and youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re all set to venture off on the adventure that is digital art! Keep practicing, keep trying new things. The possibilities are virtually endless.

Thank you for your time! Not at all. Thank you guys!

If you would like to know more about Salem Al-Langawi, keep up to date with his workshops, and check out more of his work @salemallangawiart on Instagram or visit (salemallangawiart.com). Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

BALLERINA A ballerina from the underground. Done using Photoshop.

HAMAD AL-KHALEEFI @hamad_arquitecto @Drawingkuw I studied at the University of Miami School of Architecture; Bachelors of Architecture (2010) and Masters in Urban Design (2011). Founder and organizer of Drawing Kuwait (Instagram @DrawingKuw). One of my main goals is to start urbanizing the existing cities and creating new urban cities in Kuwait since there are very few people doing anything about it and urban areas are almost non-existent except in few blocks and streets in Kuwait city, Salmiya, and Hawally. What are the main keywords to define an Arabic Urban City? Sidewalks, narrow streets, pedestrian streets, bike lanes, lively spaces, shade, plazas, gardens, mix-use buildings, courtyard buildings, passive greener buildings, mashrabiya, wind towers, cross ventilation, ease of access, privacy, uniqueness, local materials, and craftsmanship.

MONA LISA V2.0. How I would have drawn the Mona Lisa. Done using Adobe Illustrator.

MASJID AL-HARAM (LEFT) A quick sketch during Hajj. 12 x 13 cm. Pure white sketch paper. Pen and pencil.

CORAL GABLES CONGREGATIONAL UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST It was a relaxing sunny day in Miami. 24 x 29 cm. Cold pressed paper. Watercolors.

ARTIST FEATURES

HASHEM HAJYAH @hashimoto_q8 @Hhajyah I’m a cartoonist. I mostly draw about things and situations that we encounter during our daily lives, from minor situations such as a mosquito that can’t be hit, to some major ‘headlines’ like elections. I started drawing actively during college, drawing about daily student life and how a student feels regarding: studying, doctors (the bad ones), the Kuwait University course registration system, and many other student problems. What I try to put into my drawings is the exact feeling I get from the moment the ‘situation’ occurs. I mostly use a pencil for sketching and then either ink it, scan it, and color it in my computer, or I ink it and color it with the graphic tablet directly. I’m a member of Sami Art Group. I’ve participated in several art exhibitions at my College between 2008-2013. I was chosen by Sabah AlAhmad Center for the Gifted and Creativity (SACGC) to participate with their exhibition which was held in the Avenues mall.

GRGAI3AN

MOSQUITO

Done using Adobe Photoshop.

ARTIST FEATURES

CROWDED Done using Adobe Photoshop.

IN THE ELEVATOR Done using Adobe Photoshop.

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

HISHAM AL-QANAIE @hashoom17 I started drawing when I was 13 years old. After giving up trying to draw real life portrait drawings I steered towards geometrical shapes and 3d lettering. I took an interest in graffiti art while surfing the web one day and havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t stopped drawing ever since. With hopes for a creative career I chose to pursue Architecture as a major.

MINIMAL

FADED

11 x 9 inches. Canvas. Krink paint markers.

1ft x 10 inches. Sketchbook paper. Ink and coloring pencils.

ARTIST FEATURES

ARTSHOTBURNERSKETCH 12 x 9 inches. Sketchbook paper. Pen, marker and colored pencil.

PINKY & THE GREEN 1ft x 10 inches. Sketchbook paper. Ink and colored pencil.

KRINK SPLATTERS 1ft 3 inches x 1ft. Canvas. Krink markers.

paint

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

LIALI NIJEM @lialinijem Fresh architect who is enthusitiastic, active, and full of life. I have a great passion for cartoons and animation. My dreams and goals keeps me going and motivated. I believe that 24 hours are enough and our limit is only that we put in our imagination.

SAVE THE PLANET A4 size. Copic markers.

VICTORY

NERDâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S WORLD

A4 size. Copic markers.

CLEAN UP YOUR MESS A4 size. Copic markers.

ARTIST FEATURES

DARK LADY Done using Photoshop.

LUJAIN BEN HASSAN @jain91

Adobe

WOLF GIRL Done using Photoshop.

Adobe

@Lujain_Waleed I was born in 1991. I am a recently graduated Mechanical Engineer and a member as well as designer of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). Owner of “Jain’s Covers”. Art is everything to me. It’s a mood changer and always a way to get my mind cleared. I can be inspired by anything, a song, a picture, a situation or even words. I like to try different styles and techniques in my drawings but my favorite will always be reality. The detail it carries is endless and I’m trying my best to master it.

THE BATNASOR (LEFT) A mix of a bat , a vampire and a dinosaur Done using Adobe Photoshop.

THE RED HOOD Done using Photoshop.

Adobe

ARTIST FEATURES

MAITHAM ABDAL @Maitham_Abdal @lightnin85 I loved art since childhood. Growing up watching my father’s creative work and having good teachers has helped me develop my skills throughout my young age. Recently, I followed some great advice of a great art master, “follow your heart”. Since then I kept finding myself as an artist more and more.

LYNX

BIGBOSS

56 x 40 cm. Charcoal.

A fan art of the famous videogame character from Metal Gear. 40 x 30 cm. Chinese ink.

ABDUL-KHUDOUR ABDAL (RIGHT) A portrait of my grandfather, peace upon his soul. 56 x 40 cm. Charcoal and graphite.

GOUKEN A fan art of Gouken a fictional character from the video game Street Fighter. A3 size. Watercolor.

ARTIST FEATURES

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

MARIAM AL-MULLA @creepyta I started drawing since I was 8 years old. I used to draw manga or cartoons, but In 2010 I started drawing realism. I never had a chance to study art, so I started learning how to draw by reading and practicing. I portray not only the physical attributes, but more importantly the subjects inner presence of life, so in most of my pieces I capture and describe humans sorrow by facial expression, especially in the eyes. When I started to draw on paper or canvas I prefer the surface to be rough and toned, because rough surface hold charcoal better than smooth surface. I chose drawing over painting because it allowed me to create many layers over layers without waiting for the under layers to dry.

SORROW OF A WOMAN

JAMES HETFIELD (FIXXER)

DAUGHTER OF EVE

IRON LADY

120 x 100 cm. Canvas. Charcoal, acrylic and gold leaf.

40 x 50 cm. Canson Board. Charcoal and pastel.

80 x 80 cm. Canvas. Charcoal and pastel.

70 x 50 cm. Canvas. Charcoal.

ARTIST FEATURES

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

MELTED Inspired by Daniel Redcliff. A4 size. Watercolors.

MOHAMMED AL-DOURI @yoga_art @mohammeddouri Feeling and observing the figures is my current way of translating one type of art, by abstracting them and adding elements to create my inner reality into visual language. Anyone can relate and/or understand it the way they want to and feel it differently. I believe that abstract art is the optimum way to meditate. It takes you in an endless journey and brings you back to reality. We are abstract after all.

DROPS OF FEMINISM (OPPOSITE) A3 size. Ink.

EGOLESSNESS (RIGHT) 30 x 20 cm. Ink and watercolor.

BERSERK A4 size. Ink and watercolor.

ARTIST FEATURES

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

Get your very own customized smart phone cover with digital art by sending us a picture and request!

EMO-BOT by Mohammed Al-Mutairi

DIGITAL ART...

IN THIS SECTION, we would like to introduce all our readers and people interested in, or curious about, digital art to the possibilities and unique form of this art medium. This side of the ever growing and vast digital realm should be embraced as a form of fine art. Here we have a select group of digital artists whom will be discussing some of their experiences and thoughts regarding this contemporary art form.

Background Art Pieces by

ABDULWAHAB MARAFI GEOFFROY THOORENS JONAS DE RO MIKE AZAVEDO RASHED AL-OWAISHEER WOJTEK FUS

…Should be Embraced as ART! Text by

ABDULWAHAB “WAHABURGER” MARAFI

rt is both the method and the technique of creating something superior in beauty that transcends the limits of common skills and attests to the artist’s proficiency. That, of course, is my own definition of art. Different people will have different ideas and opinions about art, as we are entitled to have. However, there has to be some sort of a rule with which we can measure how ‘artistic’ a piece of art really is. Marketers call it the ‘wow’ effect, branding experts call it ‘the stickiness factor’, literary circles call it ‘coherence’; to me, the measure is really whether the technique used in creating the artwork challenges our perception of what our limits really are as human beings. Naturally, there are many forms of art. For the purpose of this article however, I will stick to the art of painting in general and to digital painting in particular. But before I jump further into the topic, let us first say that there are levels to art. To make our lives easier, I will say for the sake of argument that there are only two such levels: authentic and transformed. Authentic art is the art that sparked the great renaissance. Every other form of art i.e. modern art, digital painting, graffiti, and so on, is transformed art. Obviously, authentic art is superior to every other form. Two questions: 1. Why? 2. Why am I talking about this? Authentic art is superior because it was – and still is – the cornerstone of our understanding of all of art. It was the point in time that our artistic limits were challenged, and masters like da Vinci, Rembrandt, Caravaggio, Jan van Eyck, Bellini, Angelico, Raphael, and many others were able to conquer those limits and forever set us apart from

primitive art. That is why oil paintings are held with such high regard. Transformed art, on the other hand, is the point beyond authenticity. When artists began to ask: what next? Van Gogh, Picasso, Cézanne, and others had this idea that paintings are not exclusive to realism. They had the grand idea that capturing an image or a scene can be depicted in so many different ways, depending on the psychology and mentality of the artist himself. Suddenly, this ‘modern’ idea of art reversed the entire understanding and perception of authentic renaissance art. Back then, artists were the ones reaching out to people by creating magnificent realistic paintings. Now, it is the people who are so fascinated by how a modern artist ‘sees’ the world, and spend academic years discussing an idea behind a specific artwork.

“...digital artists are not artists because they cheat by saving so much time and effort is like saying travelers should only stick to walking and horseriding in their travels... ” And the reason why I have to explain this is to understand the divisions in art, the difference between ‘creative’ and ‘artistic’, and where digital painting stands in the midst of all of this. To start off, we can establish that

THE DIGITAL SECTION

creative people are not necessarily artists, but all artists are – by nature – creative. So then, what is digital painting and what do artists have to do with it? Like all things in modern life, the digital medium has taken over. Our communication and commutation are depending on the digital and automated. All fields today greatly rely on the digital medium because it saves time and achieves very powerful results. Digital painting is no exception. It is simply a method to create and re-create artwork through pixels – and its main purpose is, always and forever, to save time. There are many digital artists that know their way with an actual canvas. So it isn’t true to think that digital artists are not ‘real’ artists. The entire idea behind digital painting is to create all forms of art, whether modern or traditional, without the hassle of having to wait for the paint to dry. It goes without saying, obviously, that editing, correcting, and erasing an artwork are miraculously simpler, which again contributes to saving time. Having said that, how hard is it to produce Rembrandt-quality artwork using Photoshop or Corel Painter? And I’m not talking about photo-editing here; I’m talking about starting from a white digital canvas. Can you, for example, come up with something as magnificent as Raphael’s ‘The School of Athens’ on a digital canvas? If you haven’t tried it yet, I advise you to do so. You will immediately be struck with how complicated and delicate it is to work with this medium. You will soon realize that it takes a capable artist to work on a digital painting and make it look convincing. The absurd idea that digital artists are not artists because they cheat by saving so much time and effort is like saying travelers should only stick to walking and horseriding in their travels rather than seize the opportunity that technological advancement provides them. Imagine if architects today are only considered engineers and artists in their fields if they used ancient methods in designing and

construction. That a certain group would say: ‘you are not architects because you are using Autocad and other 3D modeling software; therefore, you are cheating’, and that would without a doubt be absurd. Going by the definition I gave at the very beginning of this article, art is any beautiful creation that ‘transcends’ our limitations. By saying this we are also saying that if anyone, even without artistic talent, can imitate what is regarded as a ‘work of art’, then maybe we should really stand back and think about whether we are being very generous with what we consider as art. We need to ask ourselves what the difference is between Kieron Williamson, a 10 year-old kid, and say Mark Rothko, the abstract expressionist. One is seemingly just a child with no ‘real’ experience in art, and another is an acclaimed artist renowned for his abstract paintings. Whip out your smart phone and search for these two names in Google Images and you be the judge. When it comes to digital painting, it is really up to the artist to choose a direction. Whether you think a digital painter is a real artist or a cheating one is only relevant if you can re-produce their work with same or similar quality. Maybe the rule should be this then; if you can imitate an artwork easily, it may be creative but it’s definitely not art. And the opposite is correct. In short, digital painting is a transformed ‘method’ of art, whereby the canvas is simply not physical anymore. Yet it takes the same amount of genius and skill to create a beautiful artwork, albeit in much less time. At the end of the day, I bet you Da Vinci himself would have chosen Photoshop over a real canvas, knowing it would save him loads of time for other paintings!

Check out Abdulwahab Marafi‘s

DIGITAL PAINTING TUTORIAL on page 102

…The Business Opportunity! Text by

LUJAIN BEN HASSAN

started to draw since I was four years old. I used to draw cartoons and simple stuff, and then as I grew older I started to immerse myself in design and the use of Photoshop. This is the starting point where Photoshop and the love of drawing started to mix where I went with digital art and started developing the skill. They always say, “Do what you love and love what you do”. This phrase is the main reason for choosing digital art as my business that I spend hours on daily, because you just can’t spend that amount of time and be creative at something you›re not passionate about.

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Art gives more happiness and pleasure to the artist when it is shared, valued and appreciated by others. Starting an art related business will not only give you financial support and profit, but seeing your art published or displayed publicly will give you more confidence and the motivation to achieve better. For example, I really love realistic drawings, so I started to take on portrait commissions, add a custom concept to them and print it on mobile phone covers and that is how “Jain’s Covers” came to life. Seeing my work carried around by a lot of people in that

form and enjoying it was refreshing and gave me the desire to get better at realistic drawings. Here is some advice for starting a business in digital art if you’re thinking about it or would like to know if it’s right for you.

1. See what you’re best at. Whether it’s designing and manipulating pictures or drawing or any other form of digital art. 2. Understand what people want and how they will use your art in their daily life as well as their reaction. Testing it out on friends or smaller groups first is a good idea. 2. Be creative and strategically smart! As we all have noticed, there are many shops and artists in the market, so ask yourself why the consumers would choose your product? So you have to conduct some form of research on the market you’re about to venture into and check what is

being offered or not. Don’t hesitate to also come up with your own creative twist! 3. Be accurate and precise with your goals, production, and generally everything about your business. Nothing can be overlooked. 4. Get the right tools that serve you best in the long run. Make it an investment. In terms of digital, this includes tablets, software which includes texture patterns, brushes, and so on that might need to be purchased separately. 5. Expose a sample to the public by a method such as social media. This will give you a general overview on how the people will react. If you get a positive reaction that means you’re on the right track, if not, keep trying until you get it! 6. Always update your work, and deliver fresh new products!

…And the Busy Lifestyle! Text by

MOHAMMED “EyeFreeze” AL-MUTAIRI

raditional art tools are the basis of any artist; it is where we all start. In my early days, I learned drawing using the typical traditional tools that include papers, colored markers and pencils. I kept using these tools until I began to further myself with colored pencils, water colors and Oils in middle and high school. As you all know, they can tend to be costly, time consuming, and quite messy. As I grew up, I found myself becoming rather busy with college and getting a job. I didn’t have much time to use traditional tools like back in the day. They require preparation, a suitable space and a lot of time to finish a single art piece such as painting. Take oil painting as an example, on a huge canvas. It’s not that it won’t turn out amazing or beautiful, but think about all the time and effort needed in mixing colors, preparing brushes not to mention them being hard to transport around for a passionate artist constantly on the move. Hello digital art. All you need is a laptop, graphic tablet and a stylus. Easy to transport when on a trip, or just visitng a café or even going to work. Digital painting programs offer the artist all the tools he needs for painting, like brushes, colors and more, simulating reality in a

highly efficient, clean and time saving manner. Once you finish, you can take the file of your art piece and print it to any size, given the resolution is high enough. So not only a time saver, but it opens up new doors to replication and production. And that’s what makes a digital artist’s life easier and help the artists to accomplish his art much faster at a lower cost when you think about the investment in the long term. To this day, I still use some traditional tools just to jot down ideas and when I come back home I can simply scan the sketches and start painting them using the digital tools. I don’t find myself resorting to the hectic use of traditional tools like brushes and paints because painting programs offer the artist a whole painting studio with all of these tools through a single stylus. As a busy person, digital art kept my passion for art going when it might have faltered or halted along the journey that is my life. Today in our busy life, I would recommend digital art to anyone who never tried it before because of cost, ease of use, accessibility, time, and cleanliness.

THE DIGITAL SECTION

…Choosing the Right Tool! Text by

ABDULAZIZ AL-ENEZI

igital art has become a major design element nowadays in nearly every field of the industry, starting from illustrations to photo editing, logo design, vehicle designs, architecture, interior design, movies, animations, cartoons, and the list goes on. Digital art offers new dimensions and more control to the design and creative process. And of course, this goes without saying that one must utilize specific tools for such. So then, setting software aside, let us have a look at the hardware. Graphic tablets. Basically, for those unaware, graphic tablets are a computer input device that comes with a digital pen that offers levels of pressure sensitivity which simulates your hand writings and drawings just like using a pen or pencil. When it comes to brands, I would highly recommend that you invest in a Wacom product because of the large variety in options for all experts and beginners, as well as being the front and foremost experts in digital art hardware. Of course, there are also some other brands such as Genius which come in cheaper prices; just think of it like the windows of tablets while Wacom is apple, to put it in a simple analogy. I’ve personally had a ‘not so successful’ experience with these tablets but the reason I am mentioning Genius is because of its availability in Kuwait. It is good as a starting point, but in long run, you will NEED a Wacom. Let us go through some of Wacom’s many categories. First up, the Bamboo line up. They are generally the most basic and lowest series from Wacom in term of specs and price. It is a very good way to introduce yourself to the world of graphic tablets upon investing in one of these; however, you will notice some limitations such as the number of shortcuts possible and general flexibility as well as dynamic capabilities. What I do really like in bamboo is the touch feature which is very useful especially in rotating or zooming for photo editing, which is what it is encouraged for. The touch features could also be used in the regular use for your computer. These types of tablets are currently replaced by another product which is the Intuos Pen & Touch, which is our next topic. It has a more minimalistic and sleek design which is quite attractive. They’ve also reduced the whole size in dimensions while retaining the same dimension of the drawing area in comparison to the Bamboo. It’s also lighter and thinner, which seems to be a fad with tech these days.

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There are three types, Intuos Pen & Touch Small, Intuos Pen & Touch Medium, and, if you’re into the whole Japanese manga movement, you are going to love this third one, Intuos Pen & Touch MANGA. This special one comes with all the tools you need to illustrate and animate your manga: an integrated color palette, advanced shading options, an array of pattern brushes and over 2,300 professional-quality halftones. It has the capability to allow your drawings and sketches to easily be converted to vectors. Now, let me introduce you to the regular Intuos series. This is the standard Wacom tablet that is mostly used by professionals. It is highly efficient for any type of user or intent, and comes at somewhat of an affordable and reasonable price. The new line up, the Intuos Pro, is the best yet in the series which combines the best features of all Wacom’s other tablets in one base model that is just right. And

just for convenience, it comes in three sizes, small, medium and large. Moving on, we have the Cintiq. This bad boy is the hardcore luxurious tablet intent to spoil you and make you well satisfied for every fils you paid for its enormous price. I’m using this tablet and to say the least, I am completely in love with it. Having used different tablets, this one gives me the advantage of working directly to the surface of the tablet, as in the tablet itself is the computer screen, thus replicating reality even further. And of course, it would be an absolute insult if it wasn’t a full HD LCD screen. And that would be the one major thing the Intuos lacks, but it definitely gets the job done as the Cintiq does. My recommendation? Looking to spend some cash or planning large future projects with profit? Cintiq is a wise choice. It has 5 types and sizes,

Cintiq 13HD, Cintiq 22HD, Cintiq 22HD touch, Cintiq 24HD, Cintiq 24HD touch. Basically, the numbers being inches, and the choice of touch or not. Wacom is also experimenting with products that will take the experience of digital art to a whole new level. The INKLING is one of them, where drawing on paper can transform into vector drawings on your computer through a simple pen and clip like device. It isn’t really accurate yet, but that is understandable since it’s a brand new one of a kind product in its experimental phase. The Cintiq Companion is another one. This product is an actual tablet that you could take wherever you go without the need to plug it into a computer. This tablet is a dream-come-true for someone like me whom is constantly shifting from place to place while working. It comes in two types. The regular Cintiq Companion. A Windows 8 tablet with very high and efficient specs that could definitely replace almost any computer. I like to think of it as similar to the new Samsung Slate 7, which is another efficient tool to consider. Just remember, that Wacom are experienced in the field of digital art and current product leaders in terms of hardware. And then the Cintiq Companion Hybrid, basically an android operating graphics tablet. The main concern with this one is that the Android OS doesn’t have apps that can replace Photoshop and in general, all available apps aren’t exactly the ideal software for professionals. However, the

neat thing is that you still can plug it to your pc to work on it as you would with a regular Cintiq tablet, which the other can’t do. Both these models are still in their early testing phase where Wacom clearly feel confident to test out to the public and get feedback to create better hardware for the future. All in all, choosing the right model, or even brand, depends on your needs and budget. I hope my little guide sheds some light on those of you hoping to enter the realm of digital art, or just simply want to know more about graphic tablets for purchasing or upgrading. One last thing, trust me, go Wacom!

…Versus Traditional Art! Text by

SULTAN AL-MUTAIRI

he digital art community has been rapidly growing for the past couple of years, and if you’re not familiar with the term “digital art” already, it’s basically art that is produced on a computer using a graphic tablet and software such as Photoshop or Paint Tool Sai. Artists today can produce original pieces entirely digital. They can also use software to illustrate their notebook sketches or enhance their traditional artworks to make them look more appealing, that includes Photography too, as showcased by most of today’s photographers using filters and color adjustments to enhance their photos. But is Digital art really art? And can we compare it to traditional art that has been around for thousands of years? If so, which is better and why? To help you come up with your answer, I’ll point out some of the most common opinions today amongst artists who are all for it and artists who are against it. On one hand, we have some traditional artists who don’t consider digital art to be a real authentic art form, simply because it’s made using a computer. Since art is all about expressing yourself, they believe that working on a screen takes away all the fun that goes into the process of drawing and the soul of the artwork itself, thus sometimes being labeled as cheating. It also arguably lacks originality since all of the digital artists are using the same tools, in essence, while when using a brush every stroke you make is your own, original and different to anyone else’s, just like a fingerprint. Since it takes a lot of effort and skill to get the correct mixture of colors, or the right way to apply paint on a canvas, it would generally seem unfair and

THE DIGITAL SECTION

“talentless” that digital artists can have shortcuts to do and achieve these things. And let’s not forget the undo button! So, would you call it cheating or not? On the other hand, we have artists who believe that traditional art forms today have essentially developed and transformed from previous forms of art; therefore, digital art is just another dynamic and revolutionary step in the transformation of art forms. Think about all the digital techniques involved in the production of films and music today and they are still generally accepted as forms of art in their own respect. In reality, even working on a software needs a lot of skill and effort to get the result you want. Since art comes from the soul, you need imagination and creativity to deliver your message successfully through your art. No software can give you that. Well, not yet. Being an artist who has worked with both traditional and digital, I have to say that both are very

different yet equally original, creative, and beautiful in their own respectful ways. It’s all a matter of personal preference. If you like and appreciate what technology is giving us in our daily lives, such as saving time, and if you feel comfortable with computers, digital art is the way to go. If you enjoy the feeling of traditional tools and mediums such as the canvas or paper textures, as well as paints, and actually don’t mind the beautiful mess it makes, then traditional is for you. However, you can always enjoy the best of what both have to offer and even combine them. And that is the real beauty in this whole topic. In the end, keep in mind whether a painting was made with a paintbrush or a brush software tool, if it can deliver the message with one’s heart, soul and effort put in, then it’s undeniably a piece of art.

FROM

TRADITIONAL to DIGITAL

After that thought-full discussion, allow me to demonstrate quickly in a few steps BASICS

with SULTAN AL-MUTAIRI

how to transform a traditional done sketch into a digital art piece. I‘ll be drawing two of my dear friends in this demonstration.

First, scan your sketch (or just take a picture of it) and import it to the software. (1)

Adjust the opacity and lower it to 50%, then make a new layer for the line art. (2)

Once you›re done, remove the first layer to end up with the new line art. (4,5) And add a new layer under your line art layer and start coloring with the brush tool. (6)

Using your digital tablet start drawing the line art on the new layer, just as you would inking a pencil sketch. (3)

Congratulations, you’re done! You can feel free to make any adjustments or changes as you please too, just make sure you save multiple times incase you wish to change or like a specific result and what comes after is just an experiment. (7)

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THE BLUE BUTTERFLY by Lujain Ben Hassan

A STEP BY STEP GUIDE

DIGITAL PAINT Phot with

USING

ABDULWAHAB "WAHABURGER" MARAFI A bdulwahab Marafi, also

known as Wahaburger, is a local talented freelance digital artist and graphic illustrator. Here, Abdulwahab is going to take us through a simple yet detailed digital painting tutorial using Photoshop. You can check out more of his work on his Artist Feature page as this issueâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;s Select Artist.

1. Background:

When starting a digital painting, it is a common mistake to be excited enough to go right in and color the main object in the painting, while forgetting to study the environment around it. Laying down the basic colors of the objectâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s background and surrounding is not only important but will save you lots of time at the end. Study your reference well, pay attention to where things are placed and what colors and values they have. This is basically like taking a moment to breathe before you start answering questions on a test!

Never be detailed at first. Use basic colors just to get things in place.

Notice how I used a soft airbrush for the background and shadow on table. Not a favorite brush of mine, but it is important because the reference photo has a blurry background and shadow.

1 DIGITAL WORKSHOP

TING toshop

The brush used here is the same custom brush as the last two steps. It all depends on how comfortable you feel with the brush while working.

4 4. Basic Colors:

2. Subject:

Place the ball where it should be. Remember that when you are painting, you are drawing what you see rather than drawing what you know. For those who studied art literature and history, this rule is the very foundation upon which foreshortening is built, which is a whole different topic that has to do more with sketching. Choosing a mid-tone color is essential here. You need to choose a color that has many shades darker and many shades lighter. If you choose a color that is too light as a basic color, good luck creating the light reflections towards the end. Brush used here is a customized square sponge brush. The roughness of the brush helps me ‘feel’ the object more. However you can use any other brush, by all means.

3. Shadow:

Shadow, which is basically a darker value of your mid-tones, is your very best friend in any drawing or painting of a person or object that you will ever make. Remember this, people are used to drawing what they ‘know’. This is where it gets messy. Forget what you know about shadow and treat it as an ‘object’ – this is drawing what you ‘see’. Shadows in a reference photo are guides that will keep proportions correct. Also remember that shadows are not necessarily black. It is probably only in a black and white photo that we get a black shadow area. So unless you are positively sure that your shadows are ‘black’ and your lights are ‘white’, never have 100% black and 100% white in your painting.

This is a tricky step. We all know that any object in the world will have the colors of its surrounding ‘reflected’ on it, to varying degrees, even when the object itself is not necessarily reflective. This happens due to casted light. In our reference here, and from what we ‘know’ of pool tables, there is at least one overhead spotlight hanging right above the table. Its light will hit the ball hard, and considering the proximity of the ball, will create very dark shadow and a much lighter shade of the mid-tone. Also, considering the reflective nature of a pool ball, the light that hits the green table will help transfer some of that green onto the ball as well. This isn’t only about the light overhead; this is also about the light coming from the surrounding environment. Notice the reddish glow coming from the back? This will have significant effect, as you will see in later steps.

5. Color Mixing:

Mixing colors and merging them is to ensure that the transition between colors is smooth and even. This is done by picking one color (using the eyedropper tool) and lightly applying it on the dividing area between the two colors. Then picking the other color and lightly applying it on the new color in between. This new color is what makes the transition take place. Do this until you get a smooth surface. But then again, it really depends on what surface you’re trying to mimic. Some reflections do not have a smooth transition of colors, like that reflected shadow area at the bottom of the ball.

5 I prefer to use the Hard Round brush in this step, just because I feel it gives me control over color mixing and keeping an even distribution of color.

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8. Table Details:

6. Color Details:

In this step, you really want to close in on the details aside from basic colors. This means careful study of reflected lights and reflected shadows. Notice that you can only do this after you’ve done your color mixing correctly. Take your time with this step. Sometimes, your eyes can see particular details in the reference photo, like a faint and weak light reflection. Be sure that when you add this tiny bit of detail in your painting that it also is faint and weak. Again, you are drawing what you’re seeing.

I still relied on the use of the Hard Round brush in this step, but with manipulating opacity and flow values for the brush.

7. Subject Details:

When you’re satisfied with the result of your color details, you now pay attention to other features of the object itself, which in this case, is any numbers, letters, cracks, wrinkles, freckles, and color intensity. You can immediately see how the top of the ball catches a 7 great deal of light, which gives it a much lighter hue of purple than in the previous step.

The closer you are to something, the more details you can see. This is true for everything in the world, whether the details are beautiful or ugly, you will see more details. And this is also very true in our painting here. The pool table is in fact closer to our eyes than the ball, so how is it then that we focus on details that we see on the ball but not on the table? For that reason, we create that hairy and uneven feel that pool tables usually have. I play pool (I’m a bad player!), and it greatly helps if you have observed and touched the surface yourself before you have it in your painting. Because then you will know the details by heart, even without a reference!

9. Reflections:

All the eight previous steps will amount to nothing if you don’t get your reflections right. Reflections, in terms of lighting effects, will give life to your otherwise dull painting. Have fun with this step but don’t underestimate its delicacy. If you crank up the notch on the color white, it’ll look plastic. If you dim it too much, you kill your painting. Experiment with your colors, instead. Try to get all points of reflections right, and trust your eyes, not your brain! Just to let you know, I used a soft airbrush for this step.

ils g deta placin ave h Start you once urs se colo rally a b e e th n e g d and place lended. b

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DIGITAL WORKSHOP

10. Sharpen:

Although created for photographers, I sometimes use the Smart Sharpen tool to remove some blurriness in my paintings. Albeit that I may have intentionally used a Gaussian Blur or just about any blur there is in Photoshop, the Sharpen tool – from the name – will make certain details in your painting pop out due to removal of some blurry effects.

I hope you guys enjoyed this simple tutorial! Of course, this is not the only way to create digital art or a digital painting. I am simply giving you a guide on starting up and the basics, while showing you some of my preferences and how I go about doing certain things in my digital work. The possibilities are endless. In the end, it is up to you to practice through observation and imitation, or tutorials like this, until you get a hang of it and find what you are most comfortable with. And never, ever, stop sketching and painting. Even if you’re on a break from painting, go ahead and sketch something for your next painting! Practice makes perfect!

“Remember that when you are painting, you are drawing what you see rather than drawing what you know.” 10

Here is a comparison of the reference image (ABOVE) and the final result of step 10.

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MOHAMMED AL-MUTAIRI @eye_freeze @eye_freeze Mohammad Al-Mutairi, also known as â&#x20AC;&#x153;Eye-freezeâ&#x20AC;&#x153;, is a Kuwaiti digital painter, designer, concept artist, art direction supervisor and lead artist of Q8Con Team. Drawing became a natural part of his life since childhood and it journeyed from traditional painting and developed into digital painting as it continues to flourish till this day.

ZOMBIE NINJA A Ninja summoned from the dead, made this concept because Ninjas and Zombies are the coolest things on Earth. Done using Adobe Photoshop.

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Q8CON HERO A concept design of the Q8con Team character for a comic. Done using Adobe Photoshop.

COOKIE MONSTER Every living thing in this world has something in common. Feelings like love and hate. Even monsters like things too, like cookies or falling in love. Done using Adobe Photoshop.

MALCOLM X One of my favorite historical figures, Islamic preacher and human rights activist. Done using Adobe Photoshop.

ARTIST FEATURES

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MOODHY AL-BANNAI @moodyalbannai @moodyalbannai Since kindergarten, my father used to collect my thrown away drawings, he loved the fact that I draw things in perspective. Growing up, I try to improve my skills in drawing using all kinds of media. I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t like to limit myself to a certain direction in art, because I love to explore, try out new techniques, and combine them in a single drawing. I prefer manual drawing over digital ones. Architecture is taking up most of my time, but without a doubt, it urged me see every object i pass by in depth with countless details, which I believe, made me a better artist.

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INFINITE BRAIDS

GHOST SHIP

WOLVES

30 x 21 cm. Black smooth paper. White pencil.

84 x 60 cm. Colored pencils and pastels.

ARTIST FEATURES

CITY ROOTS

SLENDER MAN

CURVES

42 x 30 cm. Watercolors, colored pencils and a ballpoint pen.

10 x 15 cm. Black ballpoint pen.

25 x 30 cm. Watercolors, colored pencils, and black ink pen.

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NASER AL-MUTAIRI @NaserQ8y @NaserQ8y

‫ تعلمت الرسم ذاتيا‬.‫رسام مبتدء‬ .‫ والزلت أتعلم‬, ‫ وبكثره املمارسة‬, .‫ أطمح للعاملية بإذن اهلل‬, ‫أكثر‬ ‫ والرسم‬, ‫أحب جميع الفنون عموما‬ .‫الواقعي خاص ًة‬

MOHAMMED ABDU The Arab legend in his youthful days painted with a pop art twist. 50 x 40 cm. Canvas. Acrylic paint.

DR. HANNIBAL LECTER One of my favourite characters in a scene from the movie Silence of the Lambs. 50 x 40 cm. Canvas. Acrylic paint.

HEISENBERG & PINKMAN The lead two characters from the amazing show Breaking Bad. 50 x 40 cm. Canvas. Acrylic paint.

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ARTIST FEATURES

NASER BAQER @daialshoja3 I always loved art but I didn’t realize I had any artistic skills until my high school years. My first drawing, as I remember, was Dennis the Menace. Nowadays, I try as much as a possible to improve my abilities on creating something better than the last project and every now and then I meet a person with new ideas and new tips, and I’m grateful for that. My inspiration for my work and what keeps me going is my family of course but above all my mother, I can always depend on her and know that if I look over my shoulder she’ll be right there giving me the words to go on. Another inspiration are my supporters, I appreciate anyone who supports me and I want to thank them from the heart, it means a lot and hopefully I will continue to do good.

NIGHTMARES (OPPOSITE) 100 x 80 cm. Canvas. Acrylic paint.

INNOCENCE DESTROYED 80 x 60 cm. Canvas. Acrylic paint.

SKULL (RIGHT) A4 size. Sharpie.

TWO-FACE (MIDDLE) A4 size. Sharpie.

HANNIBAL LECTER (LEFT) A4 size. Sharpie and Pilot Sign Pen.

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ARTIST FEATURES

NAWAF ABDULKAREEM @nawaf13 My debut in art was during a competition in 2000. I’ve participated in many exhibitions of 2009 and enjoy working as a freelance photographer. I absolutely love the relationship art has to reality, philosophy and psychology, yet simplifying it. My hope is that with all this work and all these experinces, I will learn more about life.

‫احلكيم‬

160 x 130 cm. Canvas. Oil paint and acrylic paint.

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UNTITLED

THE TIME SPLIT

60 x 35 cm. Canvas. Acrylic paint.

100 x 100 cm. Canvas. Oil paint.

ARTIST FEATURES

RUIN Done using Adobe Photoshop.

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NOURA AL-HALLAQ @nalhallaq @nalhallaq From the moment I held pencils as a kid I started to express myself and thoughts through drawing, before I learned writing. Fast forward 26 years and i still do that through drawing. I love to observe human facial expressions especially when it tells stories and emotions, which is the only language that we all share, understand and feel. It is the main reason why i specialized in portrait art. Pencil is my favorite medium as it gives me precision for details, which is one of favorite features. I also enjoy learning to work with other colors such as oil and colored pencils. Currently I am in the stage of developing myself in classical portraits and studying this great world of realistic art before I create my own style. In other words, I still consider myself a self-taught beginner and my art journey has not started yet.

SOMETHING IN THE WIND

SEAN PAUL

LANA DEL REY

A4 size. Graphite.

ORIGINS A4 size. Graphite.

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ARTIST FEATURES

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RASHED AL-OWAISHEER @linkuu @lynku Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m a 23 old artist from Kuwait who enjoys playing videogames and watching anime and TV shows most of the time. I get my inspirations from titles like Metal Gear Solid, The Legend of Zelda and any anime made by studio Gainax/ Trigger. My favorite artists are Yoji Shinkawa (Concept artist of the Metal Gear Series), Miwa Shiro (Artist of the Manga Dogs: Bullets & Carnage) and Redjuice (Artist of the anime Guilty Crown). I usually work on digital mediums if I want to paint; I use my Wacom Intuos 4 tablet and Photoshop CS6. On the other hand if I just want to draft and brainstorm I prefer using my sketchbook and a 0.3mm mechanical pencil.

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BIG BOSS Done using Photoshop.

Adobe

CONTEST DRAWING Done using Photoshop.

Adobe

2012

MONOCHROMATIC

Done using Adobe Photoshop.

(OPPOSITE) Done using Adobe Photoshop.

ARTIST FEATURES

SULTAN AL-MUTAIRI @chosovii @chosovii I’m Sultan, 20 years old guy from Kuwait, studying Art Education at the College of Basic Education. I started taking art seriously in the 9th grade, I was 14 back then. I usually get inspired by movies, music and some books. My favorite Artists would be Amano Yoshitaka & Patrick Brown, weird combination I know! I aspire to be a professional comic artist.

TSUNADE One of my favorite characters from the Naruto series. Done using Adobe Photoshop.

NOIR My friend Rashed Al-Owaisheer’s original character. Done using Adobe Photoshop.

NO SMOKING (OPPOSITE) My favorite super heroes, Catwoman and Batgirl. Done using Adobe Photoshop.

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ARTIST FEATURES

‫‪WESAM ASHKANANI‬‬ ‫‪@sozalina‬‬ ‫‪@Sozalina‬‬

‫‪SOFT ‘N PINK‬‬

‫‪FAIRY‬‬

‫‪ARCHIE’S HEART‬‬

‫‪MOSH‬‬

‫‪20.8 x 21 cm. Colored‬‬ ‫‪pencils and white‬‬ ‫‪gouache.‬‬

‫‪A4 size. Colored‬‬ ‫‪pencils.‬‬

‫‪24.8 x 21.3 cm.‬‬ ‫‪Copic markers, colored‬‬ ‫‪pencils, white acrylic‬‬ ‫‪and white gel pen.‬‬

‫‪A4 size Copic markers,‬‬ ‫‪colored pencils, and‬‬ ‫‪white gel pen.‬‬

‫‪ARTIST FEATURES‬‬

‫منذ صغري كان الرسم هو أهم ما‬ ‫أمارسه من بني جميع هواياتي‪ ،‬و‬ ‫عندما حان وقت دخولي للجامعة‬ ‫لم أتردد حلظة في اختيار تخصص‬ ‫التربية الفنية بسبب رغبتي‬ ‫مبمارسة الفن ليس فقط كهواية‬ ‫و إمنا كوظيفة‪ .‬و على الرغم من‬ ‫حبي جلميع أن��واع الفن إال أنني‬ ‫أجد نفسي منجذبة بشكل كبير‬ ‫للرسوم الكارتونية (األنيمي) حيث‬ ‫أنها تسحرني بخيالها ال��ذي ال‬ ‫يخضع للواقع‪ ،‬فأنا أحب أن أرسم‬ ‫من خيالي‪ ،‬و تشدني كثيرا القصص‬ ‫والشخصيات‪ .‬و قد مارست التلوين‬ ‫بعدد كبير من اخلامات الفنية سواء‬ ‫أثناء دراستي أو من باب التجربة‪ .‬و‬ ‫لكن لم أتوقف يوما عن استخدام‬ ‫األلوان اخلشبية التي أتقنها أكثر‬ ‫من غيرها‪ .‬أعمل اآلن كمد ّرسة‬ ‫ملادة الرسم لكن هذا ال مينعني من‬ ‫االستمرار بالتعلم فهناك الكثير مما‬ ‫أرغب بتعلمه و جتربته‪.‬‬

‫‪122‬‬

‫‪YOUSEF AL-BAQSHI‬‬ ‫‪@userseef_albaqshi‬‬

‫إشاعة‬

‫‪A4 size Ballpoint pen.‬‬

‫‪Adobe‬‬

‫مخامط‬

‫‪Done using‬‬ ‫‪Photoshop.‬‬

‫مخوخ اليهال‬

‫‪A4 size. Ballpoint pen.‬‬

‫منذ الصغر بدأ إجنذابي إلى الرسم‬ ‫و خصوصا الرسم الكارتوني و‬ ‫الرسوم املتحركه‪ .‬كان يغلب على‬ ‫شخصيتي الطابع الفردي لذا عوضا‬ ‫عن محاولة كسب االصدقاء كنت‬ ‫أقضي معظم وقتي في الرسم‪ .‬لم‬ ‫أدرس الفن و لم أتعلمه من جهه‬ ‫معينه و إمنا كنت أرسم بكثره إذ‬ ‫كان الرسم هو النشاط األساسي‬ ‫في حياتي اليومية‪ .‬جربت الكثير‬ ‫من أنواع الرسم خالل حياتي و في‬ ‫مرحلة ما حتتم علي حتديد ميولي‬ ‫الفني بشكل واضح و محدد كيال‬ ‫أتشتت و كان إختياري هو الرسم‬ ‫الكارتوني‪ .‬درست في املعهد العالي‬ ‫للفنون املسرحيه تخصص ديكور‬ ‫مسرحي كونه‪ .‬أقرب تخصص فني‬ ‫متوفر في الكويت ملا أريد تعلمه‪ .‬و‬ ‫في أثناء دراستي في املعهد عملت‬ ‫في بعض شركات األنتاج الفني‬ ‫بعقد مؤقت لعمل مقاطع إعالميه‬ ‫و حلقات كرتونية و إعالنات جتارية‪...‬‬ ‫الخ‪ .‬مما زاد خبرتي في عمل الرسوم‬ ‫املتحركة‪ .‬و في فترة ما حاولت‬ ‫تكوين مجموعة من بعض اإلصدقاء‬ ‫و بعض الهواة في األنتاج الفني ‪ ,‬إال‬ ‫أن اجملموعة لم تستمر لعدم توفر‬ ‫املوارد املطلوبه و راس املال الكافي‪.‬‬ ‫و بعد ذلك قررت العمل بصفه‬ ‫مستقلة لفتره كفنان مأجور‬ ‫حسب الطلب‪ .‬إلى أن إستقررت‬ ‫بوظيفه حكوميه حينها ابتدأت‬ ‫مشروعي الشخصي بصناعة‬ ‫األفالم الكرتوينة القصيرة كهاوي ‪,‬‬ ‫على أمل أن يتحول هذا املشروع إلى‬ ‫عمل إحترافي يوم من األيام ‪.‬‬

‫سوء تربية‬

‫‪A3 size Ballpoint pen.‬‬

‫‪ARTIST FEATURES‬‬

‫‪124‬‬

‫راس براس‬

Done using Photoshop.

Adobe

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

125

THE

SKETCHBOOK

Welcome to the SKETCH ARCHIVE! Digital, or traditional, and any subject, we welcome them all!

EHSAN ABDULRASOUL

YAQUOB AL-SANEI

If you would like to get a chance to have your sketches displayed in this section of upcoming issues, just send us an email with the sketch, your name and a photo of yourself at

artshot.mag@gmail.com 126

THE SKETCHBOOK: Sketches Archive

AHMED AL-HOULI

YOUSEF ABDULAAL

EZI

L-EN A Z I Z A L DU

AB Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

127

GRAPHIC Local Projects

ALI AL- SHOBBAR‘S

A li

NOVEL

Al-Shobbar is a talented local artist with the goal of acheiving international recognition of his comic artwork. Besides his usual artwork, Ali is currently working on a Graphic Novel titled “Shadow of Death”. Here, we get a first hand look at the current cover art and a few pages of this project as well as some inside info from an interview with Ali himself! How and when did this idea come to you?

First of all, I am a huge fan of history, especially wars and strategies. However, I always held special fascination for both world wars, especially the second one. Reading the memoirs of those who lived through such a hell and came back to tell, it was a totally different perspective than the one I know or heard about. So I wanted to experience the past through my imagination, and feel what those who lived it felt, and see what they had through my lines. Knowing that regular historical events might actually prove to be boring after a while, so I threw in a good handful of fantasy to weave the fabric of this story. With help of some brilliant friends the backbone of the story was molded.

Have you tried different methods of storytelling before, or is this your first attempt a narrative like this?

I’ve had attempts at several comics other than this one, some I stopped dead in at third page, others I went as far as twenty pages. However, all I gave up on at a certain point due to the lack of planning, technical skill, or story telling skills. And I learn a very valuable lesson, never to team up with a fellow artist to do work that requires consistency.

What are you using to construct this graphic novel and bring it to life? (Medium used, software, etc.)

Tell us a little about “ Shadow of Death ” and what to expect.

The key to dropping a reader’s jaw is to be discrete at this stage. But lets say that; the story is about a few characters that lived in WW2, and it includes lots of blood, guilt, dark humor and crazy story twists.

What are your future plans and prospects for this graphic novel? I plan to take it to international level, go to comic-cons, distribute it in the Middle East, and seek publishers in Japan and the U.S. I hope it’ll really hit best seller shelves and be made into a T.V series or ever an animation of a high caliber. I am giving it my all in this one, and hope to get the support of fans to let this one soar the skies.

Check out a teaser from Ali Al-Shobbar‘s Graphic Novel in the next three pages! If you would like to keep up to date with Ali‘s work follow him on instagram @ali_alshobbar

Pencils, paper, Manga Studio 5, and Adobe Photoshop CS5. Not to leave out the gallons of coffee and movie music scores.

128

LOCAL PROJECTS

GRAPHIC NOVEL by ALI AL-SHOBBAR

SHADOW OF DEATH,

PAGE 1

129

130

GRAPHIC NOVEL by ALI AL-SHOBBAR

SHADOW OF DEATH,

PAGE 2

GRAPHIC NOVEL by ALI AL-SHOBBAR

SHADOW OF DEATH,

PAGE 3

131

Artshot Magazine #02 SPRING 2014

DAWN by Rashed Al-Owaisheer

Artshot is a unique art magazine project, and the first of its kind here in Kuwait, aiming to bring together the local art community under one umbrella. We welcome and appreciate all styles of visual fine art and encourage all artists to be exposed to these various styles. Our main goal is to create this magazine as a platform for the talented individuals to share their art and expose it to all of Kuwait. Show your support by sharing your artwork with us! Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;t forget to send us an email with samples of your ARTWORK to get a chance to be featured in the upcoming issue of

ARTSHOT MAGAZINE We also welcome FEEDBACK, CRITICISM, SUGGESTIONS or even CONTRIBUTIONS and anything else you would like to share. Simply send an email to

artshot.mag@gmail.com Follow our instagram account

@artshot_ku for UPDATES, NEWS, FEATURES and more! Stay tuned for our future announcements and upcoming issue themes. We love hearing about and finding new talented artists, so remember to tag us or mention us on the instagram posts you would like us to see! DISCLAIMER: Artshot Magazine does not claim ownership over any artowork published within this magazine. All the artwork is owned by, and was submitted by, the participants themselves.

134

C-3PO by Diana Ashkanani