Portfolios to Unstick Your Artist’s Block
The internet is a realm of boundless inspiration. I often find myself drifting from one webpage to the next, constantly being amazed at how much talent is out there. In my younger days, I would often find myself incapacitated by my own feelings of inadequency..how does one compete with all of them?
With age and experience comes wisdom – or at least an understanding that it takes being awestruck to bring an urgency to creating and a need to improve. So this is a round-up of portfolios that I keep coming back to as of late (in no particular order):
1. Beatriz Martin Vidal
I love the colors and the style of her work. The tone is one filled of emotions and a simplicity that shows off more than it appears to. In Little Red Riding Hood, her innocence can be felt as though it were waving you down with a red flag; especially in First Encounter when she looks the wolf in the eye. You can’t help but scream, “Run Little Red, Run!” The muted colours are very different from my own work, but it is a profile that I admire..especially with the black sketchmarks showing through.
2. Oliver Hurst
He has a light-hearted style that makes me smile to myself. The colours he uses gives a feather-like take on common situations. My favourite, so far, is The Day Machine- in the park. I like its flow in composition and its unusual perspective with colours in just the right spots to keep you looking in. My only gripe would be the black and white badger that take focus away from the boy but that’s my personal taste and without any context. It’d be different if this was the badger’s perspective and he’s stalking the boy…that would make it perfectly logical.
3. Daniela Volpari
This portfolio is very tongue-in-cheek and makes me chuckle to myself. I really like the pieces with animals in them such as the diner piece and the little girl standing on the panda. You can just imagine scenes as such happening in everyday life! I also adore the idea behind the reflections piece, be it the reflections of their pasts or the passing nostalgia of dreams gone by.
4. Elena Prette
What I like about her work is the strong style of her characters. Whether it’s Cleopatra or Napolean, she mixes recognisable elements with her own distinct style to create original takes of popular personalities. Even in a static medium, she makes them come alive with clear expressions such as arrogance and spunk.
5. Erica Glover
She has a fantastical imagination whether its Alice’s catepillar smoking shisha or two girls eating rainbows of ice-cream. Her work leaves you with a feeling of innocence and warmth; reminding you of a childhood spent in the company of clouds and mashmellows. I like no.4 in her illustration work, it’s a very whimsical take on the classic story of love…and only told in 3 colours!
Leave a Reply
Blog at WordPress.com.
Theme: Monotone by Automattic.
