• Simple Exercises for Drawing Perspective

    Simple Exercises for Drawing Perspective

    Puño shares three useful exercises that will help beginners to get better at drawing perspective When it comes to drawing, there are some universal rules based on how human beings perceive things and their cultural norms. Whether you choose to respect these rules, break them, or experiment with them, there’s no doubt that they are essential for every illustrator. One of these rules is perspective, a technique in figurative art to show the volume, location, and position of an object or person depicted in a drawing. It allows the viewer to see the subject in three dimensions and understand its shape.

  • How to Learn the Chiaroscuro Technique in 7 min (TUTORIAL)
    Teacher Illustration

    How to Learn the Chiaroscuro Technique in 7 min (TUTORIAL)

    Learn from Marco Mazzoni how to create perfect highlights and shadows on portraits In art, chiaroscuro is the use of strong contrasts between light and shadow, creating depth and drama. Adding a sense of volume, it not only fleshes out the artwork’s subject but also draws the viewer’s eye to it. Artists well-known for their use of this technique include Goya, Vermeer, Rembrandt, and Caravaggio, and it is still very much in use, not only in paintings but also in cinema and photography. In this tutorial, artist and illustrator Marco Mazzoni (@marcomazzoniart) demonstrates how you can transform a simple drawing of a face using the chiaroscuro technique to add shadows and depth. Using just a pencil and piece of paper, the result can either be an artwork in itself or serve as the base layer for a more detailed and colorful composition.

  • Botanical Illustration Tutorial: How To Draw A Tree
    Teacher Illustration

    Botanical Illustration Tutorial: How To Draw A Tree

    Learn step by step how to draw a tree from references and combine different techniques and processes with Paulina Maciel Botanical illustration, whether realistic or fantastical, is one of the most beautiful styles a creative can practice, thanks to the abundance of colors, the ability to enhance our powers of observation, and the multiplicity of applications, from editorial design to story illustration, packaging design and other graphic needs. In this tutorial, Paulina Maciel (@pau_maciel), the designer and illustrator behind Canela Estudio, explains how to draw and paint a tree from scratch, with a very simple method, using materials available to everyone. Discover it in the video below:

  • 3 Drawing Challenges That Will Unlock Your Creativity

    3 Drawing Challenges That Will Unlock Your Creativity

    Adolfo Serra shares exercises that will encourage you to imagine, play, and experiment, and unlock your creativity Chance, mistakes, games, limits, and freedom: all can serve to help you unleash your imagination, create a language, and find your voice. In this video, illustrator Adolfo Serra (@adolfoserra) shares three drawing challenges that will push you to experiment with manual techniques and unlock your creativity. Gather up all the art materials you have at home; it’s time to put your creativity to the test.

  • Free Download: Color Tips for Drawing with Pencils

    Free Download: Color Tips for Drawing with Pencils

    Learn tricks to improve your coloring process with Marco Mazzoni Marco Mazzoni (@marcomazzoniart) is and artist and illustrator. Experimenting with the boundaries of fine art using pencils has been a passion of Marco’s since he was a student. He tells a compelling story through his pencil portraits, drawing inspiration from Sardinian mysticism and the plants that he began sketching as a boy.

  • Free Theoretical Guide for Manga Characters Creation

    Free Theoretical Guide for Manga Characters Creation

    Get your Japanese comic book project going and learn how to design your characters Andrea Jen (@andrea_jen) is an Argentinian illustrator and author specialized in manga creation. Since 2010 she has made almost a dozen publications in this genre, and has won important recognizing such as the Silent Manga Audition Masterclass Certificate (2017). For her, the most important thing in a manga project is the creation of the characters that will star in the core idea or concept that you have in mind. "What do you want to tell?". It's the first question that according to this artist you should ask yourself, so that you can get down to work and define the universe of characters that will tell the story for you by answering questions such as "What are their ideals?", "What moves them?" or "What experiences have marked you?".

  • What Is Exploded View Drawing?

    What Is Exploded View Drawing?

    Learn all about this illustration style used in industrial design and architecture Exploded View is a technical drawing style that shows the individual parts or the assembly order of an object as a diagram. While it’s often used for patenting objects, it first appeared during the Renaissance, and today is also a popular illustration style that is used to create interesting images that don't necessarily guide the assembly of an object. What is it used for? In industrial design, this drawing style helps designers, engineers, manufacturers, and artisans get a three-dimensional, explanatory view of the different parts of an object. Usually, the diagram gives instructions on how to assemble the object, which you’ve probably seen examples of in manuals explaining how to put together a piece of furniture.

  • 5 Free Tutorials: Figure Drawing for Perfectionists
    Teacher Illustration

    5 Free Tutorials: Figure Drawing for Perfectionists

    Learn how to accurately draw the human figure with the help of these experts Figure drawing is the study of the structure, movement , anatomy and proportions of the human body. As an illustrator, it’s one of the disciplines that will give you the most satisfaction, both for its enormous creative possibilities and because you will be able to check your progress while practicing. Check out these 5 free tutorials in which drawing experts share their secrets to drawing faces, hands and bodies with realism like a professional.

  • How to Ignite an Idea for a Foldable Picture Book

    How to Ignite an Idea for a Foldable Picture Book

    How to kickstart a foldable book project and what you will need to bring it to life Roger Ycaza (@rogerycaza) is an award-winning illustrator, author, and musician from Ecuador, specializing in children’s books. One of his favorite formats is the foldable book, given that it allows illustration to take center stage and requires the author to explore unique ways to connect their visual language with the story being told through text. Here, Roger takes us through his process for coming up with an initial idea that ignites a new book, as well as showing us some different foldable formats and the materials he recommends using to bring them to life.

  • Illustration Tutorial: How to Illustrate a Character with Ink
    Teacher Illustration

    Illustration Tutorial: How to Illustrate a Character with Ink

    Learn with Alejandra Acosta how to take a character from a story and illustrate them with ink There are almost as many ways to illustrate as there are illustrators, but some illustration techniques have survived the passage of centuries thanks to their effectiveness, character, and results. Combining several of these techniques, such as ink printing, will allow us to obtain more original and unique illustrations. In the following video tutorial, the illustrator Alejandra Acosta (@alejandraacosta) teaches us how to create illustrated characters through the process of ink printing. A very organic and simple technique that can give us surprising results. Discover it below:

  • What is Sumi-e?

    What is Sumi-e?

    Illustator Flor Kaneshiro tells us about Sumi-e painting, a Japanese illustration technique of Chinese origin Sumi-e is a Japanese word formed by the terms "sumi" (ink) and "e" (painting). It is a centuries-old drawing technique that came to Japan with Buddhist monks from China, and has since been combined with other techniques and original interpretations In the video below, the Japanese illustrator Flor Kaneshiro (@florkaneshiro) talks about sumi-e, its characteristics and most common uses.

  • More than 270,000 Free Nature Illustrations from the Biodiversity Heritage Library

    More than 270,000 Free Nature Illustrations from the Biodiversity Heritage Library

    Discover this free catalog of nature illustrations dating back hundreds of years and boost your creativity The Biodiversity Heritage Library has been dubbed the world’s largest open-access digital library for resources on natural history and biodiversity. Right now, the world is experiencing a major extinction crisis and widespread climate change. Aware that many heads are better than one, the Biodiversity Heritage Library was launched to pull together resources from libraries all around the world, pushing to advance global research by digitizing their collections and provide free worldwide access to its catalog.

  • Tips for illustrating your own lettering

    Tips for illustrating your own lettering

    Sindy Ethel shows you techniques to illustrate letters by hand Combining lettering and illustration will help you create unique and eye-catching designs. Bringing these disciplines together will also allow you to experiment with different analog and digital techniques to obtain results that will surprise you. Below, designer Sindy Ethel shows you some simple tricks to familiarize yourself with letter shapes and get you started drawing your own:

  • What is Chalk Lettering and Why is it So Effective?

    What is Chalk Lettering and Why is it So Effective?

    Find out what chalk lettering is and why this vintage style is blowing up once again While it might bring up memories of bad math classes or, for members of Generation Z, movies about bad math classes, chalk lettering is a world away from stuffy classrooms and equations. The intricate discipline has experienced a renaissance in recent years as brands and businesses look to the visual appeal it offers to present their work. Chalk lettering is a discipline of the people. It’s cheap, accessible, and we’ve all done it: everyone remembers scrawling something in chalk as a kid, onto a pavement or in a classroom, getting chalk dust under their nails as they blend their masterpiece or erase a mistake.

  • 8 Free Websites to Draw Poses

    8 Free Websites to Draw Poses

    Discover original resources to practice your anatomical drawing Gabriel Suchowolski (@microbians) asked the Domestika community to share some of their favorite resources to practice drawing poses. Below you will find a collection of sites that were shared to help people practice anatomical drawing, develop characters, and discover new ways to approach their art. Pose Space This site allows you to search for all kinds of poses by professional artistic models. Its search engine filters photos by position, genre, lighting, nude photos, and more. There are images to view, download and buy. If you want to save poses, you will need to create an account.

  • Download These Exercises and Learn How to Draw the Female Body

    Download These Exercises and Learn How to Draw the Female Body

    7 drawing exercises by Violeta Hernández for practicing the female figure The best way to learn to draw and improve your technique is to practice with different exercises. Violeta Hernández (@soyvioleta) is an illustrator and designer that frequently draws inspiration from the feminine and the organic, fascinated by the perfection of nature. Here she'll share a series of exercises that will help you improve your technique when drawing the female anatomy.

  • BCN Rise & Fall: The Street Art of Barcelona
    Art

    BCN Rise & Fall: The Street Art of Barcelona

    Watch this documentary on the golden age of Barcelona street art In the nineties, Barcelona became an unmissable destination for urban artists. Suddenly, the city walls were flooded with the art of internationally renowned creators such as Banksy, Space Invaders, London Police, and Os Gemeos, among many others. The documentary BCN Rise & Fall reviews the golden age of street art in Barcelona and reflects on its current state. It is an important analysis of how the peculiar graffiti and urban art scene was created in the city.

  • Architectural Drawing Tutorial: How to Make a Good Composition
    Teacher Illustration

    Architectural Drawing Tutorial: How to Make a Good Composition

    Alex Hillkurtz shares how to create a composition with depth using architectural illustration Composition is the foundation of all illustration, especially architectural sketches. That's why we should pay attention to how we place our elements in space before drawing them. In this tutorial, storyboard artist Alex Hillkurtz (@alexhillkurtzart) explains how to use two techniques give compositions dynamism and lift sketches to another level. Get your pencil and paper, and let's go!

  • Illustration Tutorial: Basic Proportions of a Face
    Teacher Illustration

    Illustration Tutorial: Basic Proportions of a Face

    Learn how to make a guide for the basic proportions of a face with Carlos Rodríguez Casado Making a portrait is no easy task. A person's face can determine their age, background, and personality so we need to pay special attention when drawing them. All good work needs a solid foundation, that's why it's vital to learn these techniques to draw a balanced face. Editorial illustrator Carlos Rodríguez Casado (@carlosrodriguezcasado) explains how to make a basic guide for composing a face in this tutorial. With these tips, we'll learn a series of traits and proportions common to almost all faces that will help us in our illustrations. You can watch the tutorial below:

  • What Is a Sketchbook?

    What Is a Sketchbook?

    Discover the 5 ways a sketchbook can boost your creative potential Behind every masterpiece, there is always a sketch. The history of creativity is full of references that prove that sketchbooks are an indispensable tool across artistic disciplines. Capture your inspiration The sketchbook is the tool that every creative needs to give ideas a physical form. It doesn’t matter if these ideas come from a specific project you are working on, or if they are flashes of inspiration that you didn't see coming and that you simply need to jot down somewhere. The sketchbook can go anywhere with you, and it will be at your side in any situation and at any given time, ready to capture your ideas.

  • Draw Yourself: Illustrator Emma Hanquist Draws Her Career

    Draw Yourself: Illustrator Emma Hanquist Draws Her Career

    How did Emma Hanquist start drawing? Did you know she lives on an island with her family? Discover more about her in this edition of Draw Yourself Emma Hanquist has been working as a freelance illustrator for over ten years, during which time she has worked with clients such as Airbnb and Spotify and filled magazines, like Modern Psykologi, Scandinavian Traveler, and Natur & Kultur, with her illustrations. The Swedish illustrator, armed with a pencil, opens a window to a few of the key moments of her life and the way she understands her profession. From the day she began to illustrate to how she'll look when she's old, Hanquist shows her ability to create wonderful imagery in this Draw Yourself.

  • Useful Tips for Drawing Comics

    Useful Tips for Drawing Comics

    Salva Espín shares some tips to deal with particular aspects when drawing comics Starting a few decades ago, comics have started to gain more strength and relevance in the creative world. This special language mixes the art of storytelling with graphics, allowing spectacular and exciting narratives. If you like drawing and are a lover of stories, you will discover an exciting outlet for expression in comics. Salva Espín (@salvaespin) is a prolific illustrator who has worked for Marvel Comics since 2007 and is one of the few Spanish-speaking cartoonists who has given life to more than twenty comic books of characters such as Deadpool, Wolverine, or Hulk. Below, Salva reveals some of his secrets to dealing with certain aspects in your comics like a professional:

  • Share Your Sketchbook with the Community
    Teacher Domestika

    Share Your Sketchbook with the Community

    Stimulate your creativity and share your work Creativity does not belong to a select few. We all have the potential to create and it is very important to foster that power since in doing so we are developing our imagination, intellectual curiosity, self-esteem, ability to solve problems, and many other things. Many people use a sketchbook to dump the ideas that spring into their minds, and it becomes their little treasure. We invite you to show us your creativity in this initiative: share your favorite page from your sketchbook, regardless of the technique used: it can be doodles, sketches, collage, photographs, lettering, illustrations, as long as it’s important for you and you want to share it.

  • The art from the Everything but the Kitschen Sync Exhibition
    Teacher Art

    The art from the Everything but the Kitschen Sync Exhibition

    Meet the participating artists from this annual exhibition in Los Angeles Established in 1986 La Luz de Jesus Gallery is the brainchild of entrepreneur and art collector Billy Shire, considered primarily responsible for fostering a new school of California art and prompting JUXTAPOZ Magazine to dub him “the Peggy Guggenheim of Lowbrow.” La Luz De Jesus Gallery presents its annual juried group exhibition, Everything but the Kitschen Sync. This gigantic, no-theme show features works from some of the freshest and most relevant artists working today.

  • Challenge: Draw Marina Abramović in 10 Minutes

    Challenge: Draw Marina Abramović in 10 Minutes

    Artist José Rosero accepts Domestika’s challenge to draw an express portrait of the famous conceptual artist José Rosero (@rosero) has faced many challenges over the course of his career. He is a renowned illustrator who has had work published in various magazines, newspapers and other publications. He is also the director of CasaTinta (Bogotá), a space dedicated to illustration and visual arts. The task we challenged him to was just another excuse to pull out all the stops. Will he manage to draw the famous conceptual artist Marina Abramović in 10 minutes? In 5 minutes? In 1 minute? Find out by clicking on the following video!