The transition from canvas to computer is an intimidating thought, but the payoffs are incredible.
Happy Little Trees
If we were to rewind the clock 20-30 years, the stereotypical artist may resemble a soft-toned man with a permed afro painting happy little trees with a brush and a palette. Though the word “artist” may still associate with this particular image today, most artists are now spending days on end sitting in front of a computer screen instead of a canvas. Over the past couple decades, it has steadily become more and more common for all sorts of art to be created directly on a computer. Computers are making many aspects of life easier; more streamlined. And as technology advances, it also changes the way we work. For traditional artists, this can feel like learning a new medium and new skills to keep up with the times. To some, this is an intimidating idea. Some may feel (and I know I’ve felt this way at times) it is not true art if it is not tangible. It can feel as though it makes the creation less impressive, even less ‘real’.
The Digital Exodus
The reality is most digitally created works of art are not put up in museums or discussed at fancy-pants wine tasting parties the same way traditional artworks are. Most famous art pieces were created centuries ago by people that are now very dead. In the past couple decades, perfect works of art have migrated out of lofty museums and been incorporated into the world of the common man and woman. Over the past 15 years or so, almost every movie, video game, or (ironically) billboard or poster we’ve seen has been produced using some form of digital technology. This goes beyond altering a picture in Photoshop. It is starting with a blank canvas and literally drawing a finished masterpiece, all on a computer screen. The stellar examples shown in this article were created by my favorite artist, Adhemas Batista, who is a master with a stylus and a poet with his themes (images used with permission.)
The Upsides to Change
Breaking away from pencil and paper was hard for me to even think about. I struggled to imagine how to draw with a mouse or on a tablet. This foreign concept seemed like a giant gap I somehow had to cross in order to stay current. Of course, there are tools that help bridge that gap, such as the drawing displays sold by Wacom. These displays allow you to draw on a screen rather than an oversized touch pad. The unfortunate catch is these drawing displays are quite expensive. At the time of this writing, the cheapest display they offer is the 13 inch display starting at $799.95. Considering I could produce equally stunning illustrations with my sketchpad and colored pencils totaling $80, I wondered what doors it could open (if any) for my work.
Stress Reliever
The intimate feeling from setting pencil to paper or brush to canvas can be almost indescribable. On the other hand, making a “happy little mistake” can deliver a crushing blow forcing the artist to either work through it or chuck the whole piece out the window and start all over. In digital illustration, a brushstroke you don’t like can be undone with a couple key presses. Using programs like Photoshop or Corel Draw allow you to correct a mistake or try something different at any point throughout the process. When this is compared to making an irreversible mistake on paper after investing 6 hours into a piece, it can prevent a lot of stress.
The New Normal
Transitioning from pencil and paper to the computer was uncomfortable, at first. When drawing with a pencil, I could look down at my hand and watch the point produce each stroke on the page. When I illustrate on my computer, I use a stylus to draw on a tablet that looks like a black oversized mousepad. This means my hand has to draw on this tablet as my eyes are looking at a screen watching what I produce. This disconnect from your drawing is extremely hard to get used to. As foreign as this process seemed at first, it eventually became comfortable with practice. There are drawing displays that allow you to draw directly on the screen, removing this disconnect, but these tools can be rather expensive.
Endless Possibilities
Learning how to draw in Photoshop is also an intimidating task. Gone are the days of having a hundred different brushes or pencils of varied sizes and shapes. Now, I need only my stylus and a drawing program in order to create using an endless combination of brush sizes, filters, shades, colors, the list goes on. Photoshop can do so much that the thought of taking it all in was overwhelming. The more I practice drawing in Photoshop, the more and more amazed I am at the capabilities.
Speedy Remidiation
As a graphic artist creating work for clients, digital illustration has changed the game entirely. Just like most artists, I thoroughly enjoy creating a piece from start to finish on a physical canvas of some sort. The difficulty in relation to a client comes when he or she is not fond of the final product or perhaps just wants a tweak somewhere in the piece. Whereas a physical piece would have to be restarted and redone in the hopes of recreating the same masterpiece with a slight (or major) alteration, a digital medium allows me to select the precise area and alter it as many times as I like until we get it right. This saves a lot of headaches for both myself and the client. A digital file is also much easier to translate into various formats a client may need. For instance, if someone wanted a billboard, a book cover, and a website image all along the same lines, a digital file can be translated much more efficiently into these formats.
Conclusion
Though the art created today may not be the same as in the days of old, it is no less awe-inspiring. As we go forward, I see drawing displays only getting better and more reasonably priced. I see more and more budding artists accessing and growing with this digital form. One day, we may even see artists sculpting and painting using a virtual reality headset. I’ve grown to love this new medium of art and though I may never grow to be like Bob Ross painting perfect landscapes on a canvas, maybe one day my art will be displayed in a museum filled with screens instead of canvasses.
