Ask Artie Anything! - Answers! March Edition

For those joining my Patreon this month(thank you!!) I have a monthly AMA for the $5 Patreon tier! I usually open a post for questions in the first week of the month, and then post the answers for all patrons to see in the middle of the month! Here's this month's questions and answers! x)

Maybe due to the current world situation going on influencing my answer, I would love to have the power to heal wounds! Not terribly action-y, more side-kick-y, but still something I’d love to be able to do.

 Let’s dispense with the ones we all say; trust, kindness, etc - those are a given. But I think I value distance in a relationship. Which is weird to say! What I mean is, I value when a friend is comfortable not talking with me for a long time, and then we can pick things back up just like yesterday. But also, it’s great when a friend is there, we can go as intimate as mutually needed for that moment! 

 I have so many artists to thank for that - Syc, Triggz, ZeroKitsune spring to mind. It was back in 2015/16 I was actually focused on drawing bigger bulkier fatter bodies. It took a lot of loosening up! In a way it feels like I ‘wing it’ every time, but it generally falls under considering the weight of a mass, how saggy it might be, and how it may fold, squish, or press on or against something, or itself! (Also lots of experimentation). 

Bleo also asked a similar question, so I'd say it all comes down to taste in terms of what shapes I use - I like these softer 'apron' style bellies that have two curves at the bottom, as opposed to the butterball/beer gut. As for clothes/accessories, honestly I don't dress characters up too much, but i go by what I wear irl as far as Artie's concerned! 

Aha! For me, it’s like a puzzle; consider calling it just “lighting” rather than 2 separate things(light + shadow)- because you cannot have shadow without light! And the amount of light in a picture, whether its super bright or very dim, is what’s called a ‘Light Environment” - shadows are a mere consequence of where the light does not reach. 

I keep it simple at the start- or, try to anyway. I’m still working on this step, but it’s plotting out shadow shapes after I’ve determined where the lightsource is. I use this mapping technique to help guide me.