Paul Balchin

Dr. Sketchy: Tricks & Treats

2011-10-31T23:24:00.000-04:00

This marks Dr. Sketchy Ottawa's 2nd Anniversary!

All the drawings below were created using my new Asus Transformer, using Autodesk SketchBook Mobile, and my index finger for all the drawings in the post. All the models were wearing pasties, in case you were wondering...

1-2 minutes each

5 minutes each

20 minutes

Dr. Sketchy: Bringing Back The Hootenanny

2011-10-01T16:59:00.000-04:00

I purchased a new toy a few weeks ago, the Asus Transformer. I used "Autodesk SketchBook Mobile" and my index finger for all the drawings below. I didn't get a lot of practice in before this session, so consider this my "trial by fire" :)

Each drawing was created on it's own page. Where possible, they were grouped together for posting here. All the drawings are posted in their original sizes.

1 minute

2 minutes

5 minutes

10 minutes

20 minutes

Dr. Sketchy: Mirror of Love

2011-06-28T19:56:00.001-04:00

And so marks the first time I've completed a sketchbook, from first to last page. Don't get me wrong; I've marked up a whole lot of sketch books, but I've never actually pushed to fill a sketchbook to the very end. Moleskine, 8x5 inches.

1 minute

2 minutes

5 minutes

10 minutes

20 minutes each

The Collected Works of Conan

2011-06-15T06:01:00.002-04:00

Conan was among some of the first comics I ever read. In fact, I'm a couple of issues short of having the complete set of Savage Sword of Conan. The first book I ever read was definitely a Conan book. (Was it just called "Conan" by L Sprague de Camp?)

Conan definitely set the tone for my reading preferences for the rest of my life :)

So, I just got a Kindle and found that Robert E Howard's stories were now in the public domain. What else could I do but learn how to create ebooks and compile all the ones I could find into a single volume and publish it?

If you want to download the book, you can go to my deviantart page and download the zip file using the "Download File" link on the upper right.

You can find out more about the mobi format at http://wiki.mobileread.com/wiki/MOBI.

Dr. Sketchy: The Final Frontier

2011-05-31T19:48:00.002-04:00

1 minute

2 minutes

5 minutes - "Mmmm, Gagh!"

10 minutes - "Q"

20 minutes - "Seven of Nine"

"Lady Agnew", by John Singer Sargent

2011-04-21T14:04:00.000-04:00

Detail of "Lady Agnew", by John Singer Sargent.

It took me about 12 hours over three days, maybe 3-4 hours were used to fix things like symmetry and proportions. My fault for not laying down a well defined sketch first. This is my first all-out "painting" that's actually succeeded: background and foreground, full colour instead of a grey scale test or just my typical sketch, hard contrast for details with the eyes and mouth, lost edges for hair on the right and neck on the left, warm light and cool shadows. There are still some minor issues, but in the end I'm super happy with this!

Photoshop CS3 and mouse. Simple round brush only. No textures other than the final gaussian noise layer.

Dr. Sketchy: Bond Girls

2011-03-01T20:23:00.000-05:00

2 minutes each

5 minutes

10 minutes. I gave Mark Stephenson a hard time at the previous session for telling me he had an iPad and not bringing it in. He not only brought it in this time, but let me have a go at it as well. The software ("idea-something-or-other") is vector-based, hence all the hard lines. The interface was simple to use and very responsive. A lot of fun. Thanks again, Mark :)

20 minutes each

A gold star for you if you guessed that the above drawing is of our hostess, Sharon. Sharon is always in sync with the theme of the evening and tonight is was no exception. Here's a secret to drawing Sharon without her noticing*: wait for an evening when there's a million-watt spotlight shining in her eyes :)

* Well, not a secret anymore.

Dr. Sketchy: Tarts & Vicars

2011-01-31T23:36:00.000-05:00

10 minutes each

Hey, that's all I could get done in 10 minutes!

Oops, angel's missing her halo.

20 minutes each

The "Half Lounge Chair / Beach Crucifix". Or something.

Dr. Sketchy: Belly Up to the Bar

2010-09-28T21:14:00.001-04:00

Dr. Sketchy: Belly Up to the Bar, brought to you by Isaden, Mars and Zamira.

2 minutes

10 minutes + pen

Dr. Sketchy's Pin-up Girls

2010-08-30T23:23:00.001-04:00

Dr. Sketchy's Pin-up Girls, brought to you by the Sin Sisters.

5 minutes

20 minutes

Make like a tattoo

Dr. Sketchy at the Hintonburg Arts Festival

2010-08-15T09:35:00.002-04:00

Dr. Sketchy was at the Hintonburg Arts Festival featuring local artists, musicians and dancers. Dr. Sketchy organizers Sharon and Remco, along with the Sin Sisters models did a couple of one-hour sessions and people of all ages and skill levels joined in :)

This session's theme: Steampunk!

5 minutes

10 minutes

Somehow, I always manage to screw up the proportions. That just means practice, practice, practice!

20 minutes

Dr. Sketchy's Wild Wild West!

2010-07-31T10:52:00.005-04:00

Yeeha for Dr. Sketchy in July!

2 minutes

I don't remember scenes like this in a Western!

5 minutes

10 minutes

Dr. Sketchy's "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof"

2010-06-30T19:55:00.000-04:00

Dr. Sketchy's June theme was based on the movie "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" (IMDb)

5 minutes

10 minutes

20 minutes

Sketches

2010-05-11T22:00:00.002-04:00

Based on a Glenn Bartley » photo.

Dr. Sketchy's, April 2010

2010-04-27T21:06:00.005-04:00

Theme: Art for Art's Sake

Some of the ladies from the previous art session "Malice in Wonderland" returned for more posing goodness. This time they posed as some of the world's most famous paintings. I missed some of the references. My high school art teacher would be so disappointed.

1 minute each with a twist: no lifting the pencil. I have to admit, this technique really helped me loosen up.

2 minutes each

The Scream by Edvard Munch

5 minutes each (Sunflowers by Vincent van Gogh)

10 minutes (The Kiss by Gustav Klimt. There wasn't enough time to finish the costumes' details. That and the colours the models used made it a dead giveaway.)

20 minutes each

Olympia by Édouard Manet

The Birth of Venus by Sandro Botticelli

Dr. Sketchy's, March 2010

2010-03-31T19:50:00.002-04:00

Theme: Carnal Equinox

Didn't stay until the end this time; just wasn't feeling well all day.

1 minute warm ups

10 minutes each

Airport Sketches

2010-03-15T22:30:00.001-04:00

La Guardia Airport, NY, on the way back from a business trip.

Dr. Sketchy's, February 2010

2010-02-22T23:42:00.012-05:00

Theme: Malice in Wonderland

Note to self: the new 11"x14" sketch pad is great, but it's kind of hard to use on a 8.5"x11" scanner...

1 minute warm ups

5 minutes each

10 minutes

20 minutes

Dr. Sketchy's Anti-Art School, Ottawa, January 2010

2010-02-09T22:05:00.003-05:00

I missed the first two sessions of this out-of-the-ordinary life drawing class. Dr. Sketchy's Anti-Art School started in New York in 2005 and only just showed up here in Ottawa. This time, some of the rough and ready ladies from the Rideau Valley Roller Girls Roller Derby league posed for us. The classes are currently held on the last Monday of every month at the Mercury Lounge club.

Apparently I can't spell "dastardly". Or "dolls". I blame the beer.

Weekend sketches

2010-02-09T21:40:00.001-05:00

Full page sketch

2010-02-09T21:37:00.000-05:00

8.5" x 5" Moleskine

First sketch of 2010

2010-02-09T21:33:00.001-05:00

20 minutes.

Last chance to start drawing in 2009!

2010-02-09T21:30:00.004-05:00

(Done in 2009, posted in 2010. C'mon, you knew what I meant :)