
Phew... How the hell do i explain this now?..
Here goes...
For short: I'm an egocentric idiot attempting a spam project (read: lots of low-quality, low-effort, lazy pieces) full of blather about me, myself and I (read: boring, nobody cares anyways). In case of failure i'll come off as a nincompoop who speaks loud alot but can't do crap (again :). In case of success you'll get bored of my spam and un-watch me (I suggest you do so right now to save yourself some possible irritation).
1. I admit - the silly characters called fursonas is what attracted me to the furry thing. It seemed fun reimagining oneself as 'different', part 'something else', at the same time aquiring attributes of that 'something else' and designing a style, image, persona, whatever based on the mix. I like the pseudo-totemic groove about it and the possibilities it offers, esp. when it comes to animals as symbols and the various cultural associations with those symbols.
2. I can't design a character that could represent me, because:
a) there's no single fixed Favorite animal species... it shifts, sometimes over the course of a few months, sometimes merely hours.
b) a day's events change the way i view myself.
c) every day I wake up a different person, with different attitude, likes/dislikes and interests. (It has become quite a problem really - i can't pursue any speciffic goals because of it - i loose interest and re-gain it in things quickly and at random) So designing a fursona character is meaningless - I'd be sacrificing it everytime i went to bed (hence the name).
3. So, yes, call it a "daily introspective zoomorphic/anthropomorphic character illustration thing" and "...visual diary thing", and "...metaphoric self-funeral/sacrifice thing for better things to come". Obvious inspiration comes from Andrew Jones' self-portraits of the day.
Sounds ok on paper... I wonder how many i'll manage... 2? 3 perhaps?
Concerning crits - I can't ask you to put the effort into critiquing something i haven't put enought effort into making, but in case something stands out and you feel like pointing it out, please do so - I'd be very grateful for any crits/suggestions. :]
Here goes...
For short: I'm an egocentric idiot attempting a spam project (read: lots of low-quality, low-effort, lazy pieces) full of blather about me, myself and I (read: boring, nobody cares anyways). In case of failure i'll come off as a nincompoop who speaks loud alot but can't do crap (again :). In case of success you'll get bored of my spam and un-watch me (I suggest you do so right now to save yourself some possible irritation).
1. I admit - the silly characters called fursonas is what attracted me to the furry thing. It seemed fun reimagining oneself as 'different', part 'something else', at the same time aquiring attributes of that 'something else' and designing a style, image, persona, whatever based on the mix. I like the pseudo-totemic groove about it and the possibilities it offers, esp. when it comes to animals as symbols and the various cultural associations with those symbols.
2. I can't design a character that could represent me, because:
a) there's no single fixed Favorite animal species... it shifts, sometimes over the course of a few months, sometimes merely hours.
b) a day's events change the way i view myself.
c) every day I wake up a different person, with different attitude, likes/dislikes and interests. (It has become quite a problem really - i can't pursue any speciffic goals because of it - i loose interest and re-gain it in things quickly and at random) So designing a fursona character is meaningless - I'd be sacrificing it everytime i went to bed (hence the name).
3. So, yes, call it a "daily introspective zoomorphic/anthropomorphic character illustration thing" and "...visual diary thing", and "...metaphoric self-funeral/sacrifice thing for better things to come". Obvious inspiration comes from Andrew Jones' self-portraits of the day.
Sounds ok on paper... I wonder how many i'll manage... 2? 3 perhaps?
Concerning crits - I can't ask you to put the effort into critiquing something i haven't put enought effort into making, but in case something stands out and you feel like pointing it out, please do so - I'd be very grateful for any crits/suggestions. :]
Category All / All
Species Unspecified / Any
Gender Male
Size 1100 x 780px
File Size 106 kB
I love the painterly quality of this. It's very free and rough, feeling like you sculpted a form from the digital paint. I'm envious of that. I like the juxtaposition, too of the 'real' head and the paper-torn body, especially as it kind of suggests an avatar that is no avatar at all. You're too hard on yourself, something I know all too well from doing it to me, too. I find your images more than worth looking at. If I didn't, I wouldn't come back.
Please don't give up on this! I'm sure it's going to be fascinating!
Criticism:Desperately trying to think of something about this that I don't like... Well...I guess you could have invested a little more in the back half of the avatar's body - The shapes on the calves look a little random and don't create as much of a three-dimensional impression as they could. I'm sure it'd take no more than one or two brush strokes.
Criticism:Desperately trying to think of something about this that I don't like... Well...I guess you could have invested a little more in the back half of the avatar's body - The shapes on the calves look a little random and don't create as much of a three-dimensional impression as they could. I'm sure it'd take no more than one or two brush strokes.
Many thanks for the crit!
Well, that part has something to do with illusion of an illusion of an illusion. But now that i look at it, I should've made the front part of that body flatter/simpler to communicate better, perhaps it looks a bit too 3d now... But then it'd be goodbye ambiguosity, hello boring realism. :]
Well, that part has something to do with illusion of an illusion of an illusion. But now that i look at it, I should've made the front part of that body flatter/simpler to communicate better, perhaps it looks a bit too 3d now... But then it'd be goodbye ambiguosity, hello boring realism. :]
Introspection is a virtue, despite the value it may lack to others.
I struggled with the fursona thing for almost precisely the same reasons; they're a reflection of an inner self, and that is the sort of thing that can change dramatically in the space of a car crash or over a string of years spent in monotony. Even physically, our bodies are regenerating and replacing on a cellular level, and approximately every seven years, we are biologically reincarnated.
I like your approach here, choosing to reflect yourself in the space of a moment as opposed to trying to summarize the person you are completely and hoping that it fits into this animal-person and remains timeless. Even the icons of culture have to change with the times.
As for the piece itself, I'm no artist or expert on it, but I do like the way you managed the tufty fur on the ears, the beard, and the side of the face, despite the painted look of the rest of it. =]
I struggled with the fursona thing for almost precisely the same reasons; they're a reflection of an inner self, and that is the sort of thing that can change dramatically in the space of a car crash or over a string of years spent in monotony. Even physically, our bodies are regenerating and replacing on a cellular level, and approximately every seven years, we are biologically reincarnated.
I like your approach here, choosing to reflect yourself in the space of a moment as opposed to trying to summarize the person you are completely and hoping that it fits into this animal-person and remains timeless. Even the icons of culture have to change with the times.
As for the piece itself, I'm no artist or expert on it, but I do like the way you managed the tufty fur on the ears, the beard, and the side of the face, despite the painted look of the rest of it. =]
Fully agreed. Valueable thoughts, thank you.
And about the 7 year thing... That's something I heard of a few times (mostly as random rumours), yet can't seem to find any precise info about it (don't know what to look for). Perhaps you know what the process is called or can steer me towards where I could find more info about it? It's no secret that cells die (via programmed cell death) and regenerate, it's a constant process, but I wonder where the "7 years" come from. First time I heard of it, it was in the context of psychology - someone said that a person's personality changes roughtly every 7 years.
And about the 7 year thing... That's something I heard of a few times (mostly as random rumours), yet can't seem to find any precise info about it (don't know what to look for). Perhaps you know what the process is called or can steer me towards where I could find more info about it? It's no secret that cells die (via programmed cell death) and regenerate, it's a constant process, but I wonder where the "7 years" come from. First time I heard of it, it was in the context of psychology - someone said that a person's personality changes roughtly every 7 years.
Dude!
The thing I really dig about this piece is the suggestion of depth. The goat-character's behind the surface with the blue graffiti on it, putting his/her head through that plane so the graffiti body becomes his. I love that idea and the painterly way you've worked it. Were I to ask for anything, it'd be to push that concept further. Put a shadow underneath the head so we better understand the relationship. Maybe pop out some edgelines along that surface, places where it's catching the light, so we clearly see it's a wall or tree or whatever.
Keep chasing this concept, I like what you're doing with it.
The thing I really dig about this piece is the suggestion of depth. The goat-character's behind the surface with the blue graffiti on it, putting his/her head through that plane so the graffiti body becomes his. I love that idea and the painterly way you've worked it. Were I to ask for anything, it'd be to push that concept further. Put a shadow underneath the head so we better understand the relationship. Maybe pop out some edgelines along that surface, places where it's catching the light, so we clearly see it's a wall or tree or whatever.
Keep chasing this concept, I like what you're doing with it.
This idea is intriguing.....it may even have some therapeutic value.
A friend, suffering from a similar clusterfuck of psychological disorders as myself, suggested that I attempt to let my sickness out on canvas (or paper, whatever), get it out of my head where I can sit back and see it for what it is.....
I have so far completely failed in this endeavor and given it up. I think, though, that you may have rekindled the interest in doing so with this series, this "self portrait of the day" idea....
I might have to give it a go.....*steeples his fingers thoughtfully*
A friend, suffering from a similar clusterfuck of psychological disorders as myself, suggested that I attempt to let my sickness out on canvas (or paper, whatever), get it out of my head where I can sit back and see it for what it is.....
I have so far completely failed in this endeavor and given it up. I think, though, that you may have rekindled the interest in doing so with this series, this "self portrait of the day" idea....
I might have to give it a go.....*steeples his fingers thoughtfully*
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