Artspirational!

Maya Angelou

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 14:24:00 +0000

Caricature of the wonderful Maya Angelou. Loved capturing and painting her smile on this one.

Here's a screenshot of the sketching stage. You can see my workflow and reference pic.

After the Game with Russell Westbrook

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 14:08:00 +0000

Caricature of NBA point guard Russell Westbrook. Had to draw the shades.

"Wait patiently for the Lord.
Be brave and courageous.
Yes, wait patiently for the Lord."
~ Psalms 27:14

Sanaa Lathan Portraiture

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 17:00:00 +0000

Portraiture drawing of actor Sanaa Lathan. Was just playing around trying something new/different. Came out ok, but I feel like I could've done better with the likeness.

Kobe Bryant Caricature

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 17:00:00 +0000

Here's a caricature of NBA star Kobe Bryant. Not a big fan of his, but hands down one of the greatest players to ever play the game.

Below is a speed painting of this drawing...

Had a lot of fun painting this one. Came out just as I envisioned (which is rare).

William Edward Burghardt (W.E.B.) DuBois Portraiture

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 17:00:00 +0000

This painting is for the continuation of honor to the contributions of amazing African Americans to our history. I present a portraiture of William Edward Burghardt (W.E.B.) Dubois

Langston Hughes Portraiture

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 23:42:00 +0000

James Mercer Langston Hughes Portraiture painting. Langston Hughes is well known for his amazing writings. Heralded as one of the innovators of jazz poetry. Hughes was also a social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist. About this painting...I finished this painting in one day over a duration of about 3 hours. This is huge for me since it normally takes me at least 8 hours to complete most of my digital paintings. Further proof of the more you do something the better AND faster you get. This is enough motivation to keep me going strong until the next growing pain hurdle that tries to slow me down.

Here's the sketch I started with. I find doing these kind of "underpainting" sketches allows me to see what needs to be changed before I paint. No guarantees nothing in the final painting will change but sketching this way definitely helped me speed up my painting process. Look forward to seeing more of these type of sketches from me

“An artist must be free to choose what he does, certainly, but he must also never be afraid to do what he might choose” - Langston Hughes

Modern Family Caricatures

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 17:00:00 +0000

Cam

Phil Dunphy

Sarah (Haley) Hyland

Here are a few caricature sketches of some of the cast of hit tv show Modern Family. Below is a speed painting of me drawing Sarah Hyland's caricature.

Kevin James Caricature

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 18:47:00 +0000

I LIED!!!

A while back I told you all I would not be updating this blog anymore, well.....I guess it wasn't the whole truth. I had plans to move but it actually works best if I just stay put. More amazing work coming up, just keep on following ;)

*** UPDATE ***

Started a value study. A little ways to go but coming along

Marcus Garvey Portraiture

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 20:12:00 +0000

A different approach from my regular caricature...here's a portraiture of Black Star Line Orignator Marcus Garvey. Look out for more African American pioneers of history to show up on my blog this month...

Martin Luther King Jr. Caricature

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 02:55:00 +0000

Caricature painting sketch of the great Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

************** UPDATE ****************

I have added a speed painting video

"A gentle answer turns away wrath,
but a harsh word stirs up anger. " - Proverbs 15:1

Robert Downey Caricature

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 00:59:00 +0000

Here's a caricature drawing of actor Robert Downey Jr. A video showing the process (sprinkled with some inspiration) can be found below...

"As iron sharpens iron,
so one person sharpens another." -Proverbs 27:17

Eric (ET) Thomas Caricature

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 01:33:00 +0000

Just finished a caricature drawing of Eric Thomas. If you don't know who he is you are missing one dynamic, motivational speaker.

Check out the full tutorial and finished caricature at my new blog.

First Video!

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 04:46:00 +0000

First video shoot for you all. Comments encouraged!

I'm Growing In!

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Sat, 30 Apr 2011 21:46:00 +0000

Here's a quick post about the growth I've gone through in the past years. I've always loved caricatures and remember my first ever caricature drawn of myself. It was then I became infatuated with the art and wanted to give that same feeling to as many people as possible. While surfing through FB photos of friends I came across a picture I had drawn approximately 10 years ago. I don't remember drawing the picture, but I definitely recognize my "younger" style of drawing. So I decided to draw him again and compare. Below you will see my good friend Bobby Brown III.

As you can see there is a world of difference (and growth) between the two drawings above. Though I have not drawn consistently through the last 10 years I have never given up on myself. No matter how long I left the pencil down, it seems like after a while it would start calling me to draw again. I am so glad I never gave up because the picture above alone is worth the process. The thing is the picture above doesn't fully represent my total growth. I have also acquired the skill of digital painting. Using a Wacom Tablet and Photoshop I have been taught how to paint digitally which gives my drawings a lot more life and dimension. This is illustrated below:

Above is just a quick value study to give the drawing depth. One day I look forward to finishing this painting in full color. Until then, I hope this post has been inspirational proof enough to show you what a continual, intentional effort at becoming better can yield. If I could sum this post up into a few encouraging words they would be "Do anything but stop". The day you stop trying is the day you stop growing. So keep going and keep growing!

"A worker's appetite works for him,
For his hunger urges him on. " -Proverbs 16:26

Artspiration - 3 Reasons You NEED To Start NOW

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 18:03:00 +0000

Have you ever had a great idea or a burning desire to do something that you knew in your heart would be successful? I bet the answer is Yes. Think about when the idea or desire became “real” and think about how long it took you to act on it. For regular folks, unfortunately, the timeline is infinity. Meaning they had good intentions but never followed through. They let the idea live a full life in their head but never gave it a dwelling place in the physical world. It seemed so real, so easy to do until it was necessary for the idea to breath the same air you do.

The truth is ACTION is the bridge between the mental and physical realm. Those who lack action are no better than those who remain ridden for the day. They are walking dreamers, or better yet walking zombies. They don’t look like it, but they are dying more and more everyday due to their inability to execute on their thoughts or desires. They start going through life in the same, boring patterns and habits without much thought or yearning for anything outside of their norm. To them I say “Get busy living, or get busy dying”!

Action is so simple but yet so hard for some. It requires us to test our thoughts and to face the reality of our ideas may not be as good as we thought. On the other hand action may prove our ideas where actually great ideas and catapult us into more action which maybe you weren’t prepared for. Nevertheless, action is still required if we have any intention on ever acquiring that in which we dream about. In my experience both personal and professional I have found 3 keys to help:

NOW is the only known time. Life can change so quickly and unexpectedly that NOW is the only time we know with certainty. Finances, jobs, schedules, and more all change with time. More importantly YOUR MIND CHANGES! It’s better to act while it’s fresh on your mind than relying on you to remember later.
Procrastination is a habit. Just as you can establish good habits over time, the same goes for bad habits. The worse part about bad habits is they effect every area of your life. So if you procrastinate on your ideas, you will definitely procrastinate in other areas of your life as well. Remember “how you do anything is how you do everything”.
Life is too short. This one cannot be anymore self explanatory. You simply don’t have time to waste just “thinking” about what you want to do, or wish you could do. It’s arrogant at best to walk through life as though you will always have time later. In addition, how dare you continue to put your hopes and dreams on hold with the intent to “do it later”. Dreams are meant to be lived NOW not placed on hold for the future.

I hope this list helps you to start acting on your ideas and desires NOW. One of my personal pet peeves are people who are so on fire with ideas, but bear absolutely no fruit from them. They have it all figured out mentally, but have nothing to show for it physically. I encourage you all to not just be mere sayers, but doers of what you believe and desire.

As always comments are welcome as well as any additional tips that can help us act on our ideas quickly and effectively.

New Posts Coming Today!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 20:30:00 +0000

My apologies for treating this blog like a step child. I have been extremely busy with some new ventures lately and have barely had any time to pick up a pencil (or pen). If you've been following my FB page you've seen some of my more recent work. If not I will post some of my more interesting caricatures here tonight. I would like to say THANK YOU for all the support I've received from everyone thus far. From emails, to business opportunities, to Google Reader subscribers, etd. I appreciate each and every one of you. I have something coming up in the near future to show this appreciation and as always guess the price....FREE! If you can wait I WILL deliver. Until tonight my friends..

***UPDATE***

As promised here are a couple more recent caricatures I drew on facebook. Those of you who are fans of my fb page know that I recently hit the 50 mark with faces drawn. So I decided to start adding a little more to the drawings for my next 50. Below you will see this addition. Enjoy...

" ⁶ Surely the righteous will never be shaken;
they will be remembered forever.
⁷ They will have no fear of bad news;
their hearts are steadfast, trusting in the LORD. " -Psalms 112:6-7

Michael Vick

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Sat, 05 Feb 2011 22:58:00 +0000

Caricature drawing of one the greatest football players of all time. Not just cause of his God-given talent but for the way he has overcome what would have taken the average athlete out. Not only did he overcome but exceeded ALL expectations and had an incredible year! I wish Mike Vick nothing but the best in the future and hope he eventually wins that good Super Bowl ring. My prayer is that he continue to stay humble and focused on God as he rebuilds his character, image, and faith.

On a personal note, it is amazing at the backlash he received for his acts towards animals. Not that he wasn't wrong, but I can name numerous HUMAN injustices that have not got half the negative publicity these animals got. I guess depending on who the offender is a animal's life can be viewed higher than a human. Wow. Also, it bothers me when people make the comment "I don't know if he's changed yet", or "I haven't forgiven him fully for what he's done". Quick answer....WHO CARES?!! Forgiveness is not yours to withhold. For all the secret mess people have stored in their closets no one is in any place to not forgive anybody. Only difference is his was exposed to the world while yours remains hidden. But guess what, God will still forgive you just as he has forgiven Vick. At the end of the day, that's all that matters. Keep ya head up Vick!

"Don’t say, “I will get even for this wrong.”
Wait for the Lord to handle the matter." -Proverbs 20:22

Baron Davis

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 04:29:00 +0000

My boy's back!!! Here is a caricature drawing of one of the best point guards in the game (when healthy). He's been playing amazing lately and I hope he can remain healthy for the remainder of this season and career. With Blake Griffin and Eric Gordon by his side I'm actually pulling for the Clippers to make the playoffs. Maybe they can do what Oklahoma did last year.

"The blessing of the Lord makes a person rich,
and he adds no sorrow with it." -Proverbs 10:22

Denzel Washington How-to

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Sun, 02 Jan 2011 01:46:00 +0000

Figured I'd show a bit of insight on how I achieve my finished drawings. My process has changed over time but I think I've finally set in on something that works for me. So here we go....

First is a pencil sketch of the subject (in this case Denzel Washington of course). I use a 2H lead pencil for this stage. My paper of preference is regular 8.5x11 printer paper. Sketching with most of my shoulder and NOT my wrist. This helps me identify the shapes of his face. Also I move all over the place. I don't focus on one portion of his face until I have established an overall likeness. After a likeness is established I do a bit of shading with the pencil to give it some form.

This is the final pencils stage. As you can see I have added shading (and cross hatching) to establish different planes of the face and give it some volume. In the past I have been guilty of just cross hatching for the sake of it. Just for the "sketch" look. As I've grown as an artist I've realized the futility of such efforts. For this stage I use two different mechanical pencils. A .9mm HB lead for the overall line work and shading, and a .5mm HB lead for the details and tight areas.
This stage is usually where I stop if I'm posting to my FB page. What I have done here is scanned the final pencils drawing, isolated the line work in Photoshop, and gave a color tone to the pencil work. This is a bit more appealing to look at than regular grayscale sketches. Although sometimes I do prefer the original white and gray look.

This final stage is a quick addition of highlights is helpful to set up the drawing for painting. I'm not sure when, but I do plan on doing a digital painting of this one. These highlights are added in Photoshop on a separate layer using the default round brush with the flow and opacity dropped down a bit. Also I'm using a graphics tablet for all my digital painting work. Would be nearly impossible to do this kind of work without one.

Well that's all for now. Hope this was helpful to. Happy New Year!

"1 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." - Jeremiah 29:11

Carmelo Anthony

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Thu, 30 Dec 2010 05:08:00 +0000

Elite NBA player Carmelo Anthony. He has one of the smoothest jumpers in the game right now. A lot of trade talk evolving around him so we will see. More importantly he just lost his sister. The grieving process is a difficult one for us all and I pray that God comforts him as he goes through his. I can't imagine what I'd do if I lost my sister. Deepest thoughts and prayers go out to him and his family.

***UPDATE***

Well I didn't like my first sketch of Melo at all. So I decided to tweak things a bit to give me a stronger likeness. As an artist there are gonna be times where you just don't get it right. This was one of them. Below you'll see a stronger sketch of Melo. Here's a list of improvements I made:

Headband wasn't big enough (too much of his forehead was showing)
Are under his chin and to his neck was too thin. Made it look like he was in highschool. I added more "fat" to this area
I tilted his smile up more towards the right side of his face
I also enlarged his nose and tilted it upwards to the right

"a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,"-Ecclesiastes 3:4

Don Cheadle

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 19:58:00 +0000

Caricature of a one of my favorite movie actors. Very rarely does he appear in a film that is not worth watching.

Below is my first attempt at a vector style caricature. Something I've always wanted to experiment with. From the looks of it I will be exploring this style a bit more in the near future.

"Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. " - Philippians 4:8

Martin (Marty Mar) Lawrence

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Fri, 24 Dec 2010 19:07:00 +0000

Caricature of my favorite actor/comedian Martin Lawrence. I'm wondering what took me so long to draw him. I can't count how many times I've watched his movies and DVDs of his shows. It never gets old or dull! Of course my preference is the young, skinny Martin instead of the heavier, older Martin. Only because he was more animated and care free with his comedy back then. Whereas now he's been through some life circumstances that have matured him and his style a bit. It's all good, I understand the process and respect it. One day maybe I'll actually get to meet this brotha! To catch this expression I had to pause the DVD I was watching. I must admit even I laugh every time I look at this picture...LOL.

"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. " -Philippians 2:3-4

Gilbert Arenas to Orlando Magic!

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Sun, 19 Dec 2010 03:02:00 +0000

Well it's been all over sports news today. Shooting guard Gilbert Arenas gets traded to the Orlando Magic (as well as some other pieces). Orlando looks like they understand how loaded the Celtics, Heat, Spurs and Lakers are. VERRRRY interesting to see how Arenas fits into Orlando's system. I'm hoping he can bounce back like Michael Vick did. New team, new focus, new attitude, new Agent right? Well lets hope so for all parties involved.

"For the LORD God is a sun and shield;
the LORD bestows favor and honor;
no good thing does he withhold
from those whose walk is blameless. LORD Almighty,
blessed is the one who trusts in you." -Psalms 84: 11-12

Derrick "DRose" Rose

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Sun, 12 Dec 2010 01:28:00 +0000

Sketch of NBA Chicago Bulls PG Derrick Rose. I've always been a fan of Derrick Rose all the way back to his Memphis days. However, it isn't until recently that I have become a believer that he is definitely one of the best PG in the game right now. Ever since he added a jumper to his arsenal his game took a quantum leap. I watched him last night make big plays and make the biggest shot of the game against the LA Lakers. The Bulls are definitely gonna be an East Coast problem this year. Not to mention this cat is as humble as they come. How could you not be a fan?!

"A good name is more desirable than great riches;
to be esteemed is better than silver or gold." - Proverbs 22:1

Deron "DWill" Williams

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Davis) — Sun, 05 Dec 2010 01:05:00 +0000

Drawing of arguably the NBA's best PG in the game right now. I have been on the fence for a couple years now between him and Chris "CP3" Paul, but I think this year I have made the decision that this guy is just too good. I enjoy watching the Utah Jazz this year like never before. Hopefully they can give the Lakers more of a Westcoast run for their money than they did last year in the playoffs.

"¹ Do not fret because of those who are evil
or be envious of those who do wrong;
² for like the grass they will soon wither,
like green plants they will soon die away." - Psalms 37:1-2