TODAY'S FEATURED POST

The Power of Preliminary Studies

Julie Beck

Preliminary studies are crucial to my process. Each artist approaches prep work different but as someone who teaches both technical skills as well as the importance of design and composition, I emphasize the importance of massaging the design before you get into the nitty gritty. Preliminary thumbnails help in a multitude of ways: Planning: Sketches help you organize ideas and create a clear roadmap, saving time and reducing frustration. Problem Solving: They allow you to…

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EVERYDAY ORIGINAL

Baxter, The Porcupine

YESTERDAY’S POST

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Guided By Marks And Pareidolia

Vanessa Lemen

April 24, 2025 - My paintings "Transmutation" and "Spirit Guide Of Inner Realms" are going to be showing in the Character in Context exhibition at the A. R. Mitchell Museum coming up soon. This group exhibition features process work from each artist in the show, from preliminary drawings to color studies, accompanying final artworks. This will be a large collection of original illustrations from living illustrators in the Western United States, and is the most comprehensive presentation of processes from living and working illustrators ever collected in one space. It’s a wonderful opportunity to get the chance to see so many different artists and wide range of processes, with insights about how our work develops from start to finish. In my case, these two pieces are an example of how I might work when starting a piece and how…

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