Tabletop RPG art advice
Game creator Deren Ozturk's advice for those embarking on creating their own game: “Playtest, and playtest early. Don’t delve too deep on an idea until you know it works. Get a partner. You can’t be good at everything and you’ll want someone to read what you’ve written to ensure it makes sense outside of your own mind. Once you have a cohesive idea that’s presentable, attend cons, in person or online, to show off your concept and grow a mailing list of people interested in your game.”
Stanley 'Artgerm' Lau interview
Stanley 'Artgerm' Lau explains how he achieved his unique comic art style, what software he uses and why, as well as what every new artist needs to hear to make it in comics. He says: “Learn to enjoy art first. Many young artists focus a lot on technique and software, but they don’t think about the craft itself. Art is not easy – it’s really challenging. You have to suffer in joy.” What do you think?
Daily sketching
Animator Jason Chan P.L. shares some insights into how he loves to sketch, including daily drawing. He says: "Drawing is a vital skill for me as an animator. However, I was so busy with my work that I neglected my daily drawing practice. It was in 2012 that I realised I needed to get out of this rut. I learned about the sketchbook routine from artist Yon Hui Lee. I started with one sketch a day." Do you sketch every day? Why not share them with us?
Greg Manchess art insight
"Painting is really just drawing with colour" – artist @gmanchess just simplified everything for me, and I'm grateful I read this interview. He says: "I would have told myself to be patient and let the hard-won process of training guide me, and to not get confused by what others might have thought or suggested. And I would have told myself to trust my instincts sooner, but as monitors to my learning, the way an Olympic athlete trains."
British myths and legends inspire beautiful and ferocious new stamp artwork
Do you know your selkies from your grindylows? A series of eight new stamps with illustrations by Adam Simpson celebrates the rich folklore of British myths and legends, including some regional tales you might not know. Which is your favourite piece?
Peek inside an artist's sketchbook
Peek inside the inspirational sketchbook of illustrator Valerya Milovanova – she mixes traditional and digital techniques. "I do carry a small sketchbook with me everywhere, but I still don't use it every time. It's nice to have it and draw on the way home after meeting with friends, or while waiting for a coffee and a bun, or at the busy London pub where people won't notice you are spying on them," she says.
15 tips to master retro board game art.
I’ve been creating illustrations in the good old, traditional way for more than 25 years; hand-drawn and painted using the best artists pencils, brushes and acrylic paint on grainy paper. It’s proudly upholding the history and heritage of documented, credible and lifelike conventional art, while at the same time developing modern sensitivities, contemporary perspectives and approaches to visual storytelling. Read my advice for creating vintage-style art for board games on Creative Bloq.
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Stanley 'Artgerm' Lau interviewed
We caught up with Marvel and DC Comics artist Stanley 'Artgerm' Lau ahead of his appearance at MCM Comic Con London this May, and he has something to say about AI. As gen AI takes hold, he says, "In the future, there will be fewer artists like me – real artists. That will make us rarer, more valuable. And that’s worth pursuing." But Stanley Lau remains optimistic. "We have to go through this, but I believe there will be a renaissance of human-created art."
Why Walmart's illustrations are my favourite part of its new brand
The recent refresh of US superstore Walmart's branding got people talking. The word 'refresh' is operative here. This wasn't a splashy new logo or big sweeping changes from agency JKR, it was more subtle logo tweaks and a new typeface. We called it the "definition of a glow up". One area that I think has been overlooked are the new illustrations that have been created by Ross Murray, Nash Weerasekera, Peter Greenwood, Jason Solo and Kelly Llanos.