We’re sharing the fun and excitement of the Oregon Asian Celebration with you, wherever you happen to be right now.

So please, enjoy this FREE printable line art from Marianne Walker. We’re happy to say she’s been illustrating each year’s poster with Copics for the past 9 years!

This is the very same dragon featured in this year’s official poster design. Learn all about how she used Copics to create this illustration over on her blog.

If you’re in Eugene this weekend, join us! We’ll at the Fun & Messy tables in the Youth Room, South of the Exhibit Hall at the Lane County Fairgrounds.

Saturday 2/18
11am -12:30 & 2:00 – 4:00pm

Sunday 2/19
11am -12:30 & 2:00 – 4:00pm

We’d love to see your colored line art – share your results with our communities on Facebook and Twitter.

Where do you normally find line art or stamps to color? Let us know in the comments, below. Happy coloring!

Talented comic artist Todd Nauck will be hosting a special Q&A, signing and artist workshop event to celebrate his first art installation in an accredited museum, the Bakersfield Museum of Art. The exhibit opens February 4th. 

Todd Nauck has over 17 years experience in the comics industry. If you’re into comics, you’re probably familiar with his work for Image, DC and Marvel comics - Amazing Spider-Man, Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, Teen Titans Go, and Wild Guard, Young Justice and the Spidey and Obama teamup.

When he travels to comic shows and conventions each year, fans commission him to create artwork rendered in Copics.

Recently, we were lucky enough to chat with Todd on Twitter about his art making process, his Marvel Custom Solutions projects, and the artwork he created for Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Lance Briggs (and others) for the NFL Superbowl, and ESPN.

We asked him to explain his unique creative process. His approach – which involves first defining the form in color – deviates from the more conventional approach of starting with pencils, following up with inks, then finally adding color. Seems that @RAHeight also likes working this way:

Judging from the dozen or more images he started posting, this method works very well for him. He chose the subjects from recommendations from his army of loyal Facebook and Twitter fans.

A few images unveiled during the conversation (see all of them, here):

During the Q&A session, Todd was answering questions from our audience. @Darksparkle asked about skin tone colors:

Next, @WorkingClassGMR asked:

Fellow Copic-loving artists @AH_AdamHughes, @CatStaggs and @MahmudAsrar each got shout outs for being inspirational Copic artists.

If you love comics, follow these great artists and let Todd know you enjoy his Copic sketch cards! He’s super interactive, and who knows – perhaps your suggestion will get chosen the next time the request lines are open…

On that note, what are your favorite comic titles? If you commissioned an original Todd Nauck Copic sketch, who would want him to draw? Let us know in the comments, below.

Todd Nauck online:
Website: The art of Todd Nauck
Facebook: Todd Nauck
Twitter: Todd Nauck

More information about the special Q&A, signing and artist workshop event at the Bakersfield Museum of Art.

Recently, reading a collection of popular Japanese ghost stories called Kwaidan inspired me to create a comic based on the work. Since these stories were collected and translated over a century ago, I wanted to use traditional illustration techniques and media to honor its rich history.

With the help of Copic Multiliners, the lettering, background textures and shading tones have all been hand rendered using pointillism and hatching. By mixing simple techniques and rendering them using multiple pen sizes in the same element, I’ve added greater levels of depth and subtlety to these pages while keeping the style personal and unique.

COPICS Used: Multiliners of the following sizes: 0.05, 0.3, 0.5, 0.8, 1.0 and Brush-M

To begin my project, I create a storyboard on standard copy paper folded into a half-size booklet (4.25″ x 11″). This allows me to read it like a finished comic. I can see how things flow and make changes before spending too much time working on the details.

From there, I sketch rough pencils on Bristol board at 1.5x the finished printed size. I work them until they’re ready to be inked. For this step, I prefer hot press (sometimes called “plate finish”) Bristol board due to its smooth surface, heavy weight and durability when erasing and inking.

I use non-photo blue guidelines to mark the comic’s live area and trim guides. Turquoise colored Multiliners are perfect for creating guidelines when preparing your own custom boards. These blue lines will disappear when scanned, leaving only the black ink ready to be printed.

 

Figure: For basic line-work, I use the 0.05 Multiliner SP due to its precise nib that gives me really fine detail which stays razor-sharp at the reduced, final comic size. Before adding shading or texture, I complete all of the figures on the page. Once the outlines are finished, I move on to the shading and texturing of the figures.

Background Basics: At this stage, I only add basic texture and shading to the backgrounds. Leaving the backgrounds until after all of the figures have been finished lets you shade and texture them appropriately so they don’t overpower the characters.

Fabric: By combining pointillism and hatching, I create a smooth base shading with only 0.05 on areas like this kimono, followed by pointillism layers using 0.3 and 0.5 to create shadows and folds in the fabric. This is a great low-tech way to do your own shading screens (screen tones) directly on your artwork. By varying your lines and point density, you can simulate different materials, indicate the draping of fabric and create the illusion of volume through light and shadow.

Backgrounds, leaves: Once the figures are shaded, move to the backgrounds. I did the leaves using the Brush-M because its flexible tapered brush nib allows me to create that classic leaf shape with just a gentle press on the board. For each leaf, I held the pen at an angle and dabbed at the paper lightly, compressing the brush tip only hard enough to leave as large a mark as needed. To get a more realistic look to the leaves, I rotated the direction of the pen so the leaves weren’t all pointing in the same direction and varied the brush angle and pressure to vary the size or shape. The shallower the angle, the longer the leaves. I also created perspective by making the leaves smaller on trees that were farther in the background.

Grass: I rendered the grass with three sizes of pens, beginning with 0.05. By pressing the pen to the paper vertically and quickly flicking the pen upwards by rotating my hand backwards, I created random tapered lines. By flicking the pen, it caused the tip of the pen to lift in an arc from the paper, naturally tapering the tip of the line. For a more natural, grass-like look, I added in 0.3, 0.5 and 1.0, especially when creating the shadowy area and repeated the process a few (thousand) times! To get a smooth texture on this stone wall background, I used 0.05 for crosshatching.

Crosshatching: This is one technique that Multiliners excel at because of their consistent line thickness and ink density which is why I recommend them for anyone wanting to achieve this style of shading. By filling an area with an even layer of parallel hatches, the shading looks smooth. To create different shades or a gradient, I hatched in one direction and then again at a ninety degree angle. I repeated this in a third direction, or as many as I needed to achieve the darkness level I was looking for. For the textured surface of earth and rocks at the base of the wall, I used 0.05, 0.3 and 0.8 to create multiple layers of pointillism with a random placement of points. By intentionally building up 0.3 and 0.8 points in certain areas, I was able to simulate peaks and valleys which either caught the moonlight or were in shadow.

Lettering: Even though this page has no standard lettering on it, I wanted to show an example of lettering using Multiliners from a different page. Drawn at 1.5 times the finished comic size, I laid down parallel nonphoto blue lines 3mm apart for the lettering and 2mm apart for the leading (the vertical space between each line of lettering). Since I was going for a clean, mono-weight lettering style, I simply drew out the letters using a 0.3 for standard text and a 0.5 for bold. In this case, the Multiliners beat a traditional nibstyle pen and ink’s varied lines.

As you can see below in the finished page, basic illustration techniques can be taken to the next level simply by using a variety of Copic Multiliners. By switching between pens, you can add as much depth as you need to set the mood for your piece.

What Multiliner techniques do you use? Let us know in the comments, below.

For more from Alex, visit him online. Enjoyed this post? Feel free to let him know.

Website: http://AlexHeizer.com/
CopicColor: Alex Heizer
Twitter: @AlexHeizer
Facebook: Alex Heizer
Google+: Alex Heizer

Steampunk Donkey Horse Original Art
More steampunk.  More Copics.  Another progression photo post! As you can see, the colors are somewhat more subdued than they have been, which was a conscious choice in an effort to replicate a little bit of the flavor of older, maybe even colorized, photography.  This horse is not living in modern times, after all!

Figure One: Steampunk Donkey Horse Ink

I was referencing a photo of a donkey, the narrowing of the face seems to have made a horse instead. I added a pipe but I was not sold on it yet, so it isn’t actually inked in Figure One.

Initial ink with a 0.1 multiliner SP. I actually had to replace the nib in my 0.1 after using it for about a day, but I learned my lesson! It seems I’m rather hard on all my pens and markers, which seems to be part of my style, but I don’t recommend it.

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Figure two.  Initial application of Copic color.  I don’t own as many greys as I would like (are you a “gray” or a “grey” person?). This will be N1 and N4, and the browns and blues are Y26 (Mustard, love it!), Yr24, E35, B04 and BG000. The peachy color is E93 (Tea Rose, another favorite).

More of the same colors, with a couple more greys, C-3 and C-5. I started using the Colorless Blender.

Added some YR12 and YR23 to the E93 try to capture that strange reddish, yellowish tinge to a donkey’s face.  Yes, I’m still working with a photo of a donkey for my horse.

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One of my favorite parts is the initial outline with a 0.8 multiliner when the drawing begins to come more to life. Also 0.3 and 0.1 for some details – and inked the pipe so now I’m stuck with it! It’s a little too low in the frame and I wish I had more space for more of the barrel of the pipe.

Additional browns added: E08 and E53. Although I always do the swirl pattern, I often add some flowers.  I decided to forego the flowers this time and see about doing only swirl patterns – the idea being that the eye piece, the goggles, the pipe and the tubing would be enough in the way of finer detail. Started adding even finer detail with the 0.05 multiliner SP.  You can see the 0.05 in the horizontal lines on the goggle lenses and on the eyepiece.

Went a little swirl-nutty.  One effect I particularly like is a colored multiliner over marker from the same color family, like on the bird’s body of the eyepiece.  Also used some sepia multiliner on the goggles. I added a little B02 (Robin’s Egg Blue) to add a little depth to the blue. Tightened up some more details, then did the swirl thing with the 0.3, 0.1 and 0.05. Sometimes in the same place, if the color effect wasn’t as dark as I wanted. And though I usually leave some light spots with no swirls, the swirl-nutty fever was on me and I swirled the whole thing up (with the minor exceptions of the goggle band and metal tubing.)

I like the effect of the subdued colors. As usual I am not sure about whether I want a background. At one point toward the end, I had actually sketched out a stripey design for the background, intending to use only black multiliner detail for the entire background, but then I decided against it. Holy cow, long post. Thank you for sticking around! What do you think, compared to my others (if you’ve seen them)?

Find Cindy on the web:
Web Site: http://www.theslumberingherd.com
Copic Color: http://www.copiccolor.com/cindyd

Share your illustrations with us on Facebook and Twitter!

Have you seen the new 4pc Multiliner Pen sets yet? Now available in assortments of Sepia, Gray, Fine Black, and Broad Black, these sets just arrived and are already flying off the shelves.

The Copic Multiliner Pens are seriously the best inking tools you’ll ever pick up. The pigment-based ink flows smoothly, for a clean and precise application.  The ink is also archival, acid free, and even waterproof (test this — I didn’t believe it until I tried and failed to smear the ink with water).

To see examples of what artists are doing with these pens, check out the 2011 Copic Catalog, where we featured a number of artists’ work. Check out our Multiliner page for more information on other available colors and nib sizes.

Tip: if you’re thinking long term, check out the refillable Multiliner SP. The SP contains the same superior quality ink, but in an aluminum body style with refillable ink cartridges and replaceable nibs.

 Once a month, in the Detroit area Motor City Sketch invites local artists and non-artists to a different cafe, pub, bar, saloon, what have you, to build community, create, test out new products, network  and maybe even make some new friends. Everyone is welcome, and at the January meeting (location yet to be determined), you can score some Copic samples and enter a raffle to win a Black Ink Pro. How do we know this? We donated the items and sent them out this week!

Check the Motor City Sketch website for the January location and to see what some of the regulars are working on. Then meet up with them to work on your projects, sketch, chat, get inspired, or just have a drink while observing.

0.03, 0.05, 0.1, 0.2, 0.25, 0.3, 0.35, 0.5, 0.7, 0.8, 1.0, Brush Small*, and Brush Medium, F01, and F02

*the BS tip is slightly different between the two pen styles

With the wide variety of Multiliner sizes, you are bound to find the perfect pens for your illustration work. A good range of sizes, at least 3 pens, allows for great illustrating flexibility.

1. Varying Line widths give the illusion of dimension. A simple circle becomes a ball by making one side of the line thicker.

2.    Varied line widths give the illusion of weight. An object becomes grounded or heavier when you have a thicker line on the bottom.

3.    Thick and thin lines give the illusion of lighting. When you see thick heavy lines, you can feel the shadow and where the light is hitting something.

4.    Line variation is dynamic and attracts the eye. If you write a word with a regular pen, it is not nearly as interesting as if you write the same word with a calligraphy pen. The eye is attracted to a line that changes widths.

When you are working in inking pen, you have only black and white to share the ideas of weight, dimension, and light. How do you share the feeling of “gray” or in-between black and white without using color or a gray pen?

A traditional technique for shading with inking pens is Hatching.

What is Hatching/Cross Hatching? Hatching is a way of drawing lots of lines close together to show volume or shading. Older illustrations used this technique commonly before technology changed the way people illustrate. Cross hatching is when you draw more thin lines in the opposite direction to darken up an area.

Depending on how fine your pen is and your technique, you can deepen your cross hatching from very light to almost black. The trick comes in learning to keep a steady hand and making your lines consistent and even. Illustrators a few hundred years ago created beautiful, detailed, and meticulously drawn work.

When used in conjunction with thick and thin lines, outlines show the full range of grays using simple black lines. This is the same concept computer illustrations are based on with pixels.

Below is a cube shaded using the cross hatching technique. The skill and effort good hatching takes, makes an exquisite illustration!

Start by coloring the mountains with B41, stroking from the top of each peak, down to the base, flowing in the direction of the mountain. Lift up at the end of each stroke so that less ink is at the base and more is at the peak. At the closest peak, apply lots of light layers in slightly criss-crossing strokes for a proper feather, being consistent with the base looking feathered, and the top of the peak looking dark.

Feather with W3 from the bottom with exactly the same technique, this time making the base dark and the feathering going back up into the mountain. Add lots of very light layers to achieve a proper blend.

On the closest peak you can see the colors blending more and more, as the streaks disappear. Sometimes, adding the original color again after blending, smoothes out the streaks.

After feathering the blue and gray, add a faint layer of BV31 to achieve the effect you would like. You can see from these mountains that the more you layer the pale purple over the whole area, the more it shows through. The third mountain is colored as if it is in front, but it looks like it has more shadow than the others, so it could have been colored as if it were in back simply by adding more BV31. The purple is strongest in the middle because there is the least amount of dye on that spot on the page. This gives the purple a place to fill in.

To make the texture at the base of the mountains, dampen a rag with colorless blender, and blot the browns and grays on the mountain. It adds a hint of texture on the front of the rocks.

Featuring Copic, Sketch, and Wide Markers along with four Multiliner SP Pen sizes, this awesome set contains all the essentials for black line illustration. Packaged in a book-style zipper pouch, the Black Ink Pro is ideal for travel sketching. Grab your favorite journal, and you’re good to go. This set also contains a Various Ink refill (for the markers), and two refill cartridges (for the SP pens).

Illustrator Jordan Kotzebue inking a comic piece with the Black Ink Pro kit

By the way, a Black Ink Pro wallet makes a fabulous holiday gift! Sepia & Gray wallets are also available, or pick up an empty wallet and build your own custom set.