the-pineapple-artist-offical

(my script is in the alt text if ever the font is hard to read)

I’ve been getting a lot of asks wondering how I go about picking my colors for character designs, pages, backgrounds, etc, pretty much anything about color in general, and I figured in some attempt to try to answer them all at once, here’s my attempt at a color-centric art tutorial! I’m far from an expert on the subject, and I haven’t received any formal training on the matter, so this is entirely constructed of ideas I’ve gleaned from a bunch of snippets of different people’s advice over the years, studying other people’s art, and experimenting on my own to create something that works for me. Nonetheless, I feel passionate about the subject, and I hope this is able to help make color “click!” like a key in a hole for anyone who reads it. I had to discover my key-click moment on my own through trial and error, but i don’t believe in gatekeeping advice, so hopefully I can help you skip the trouble I went through lmfao.

None of this is meant to be like… a shaming or judgmental authoritative truth of “this is how it must always be done! anything outside of my vision is wrong and morally bad! Harrumph!!!” Especially since this is random shit I’ve figured out on my own with no formal training. It’s more just “if you are looking for something to ease your strain, perhaps this might help you give you what you need to have an easier time!” But most of the time I don’t even color my illustrations the way I do in this tutorial. Usually I try to balance & combine these principles with the “standard colors” that a scene is “supposed to be,” like if the ground is a concrete gray and the trees are green, I’ll keep them looking gray and green (depending on the lighting), but with the knowledge of “I want this to be a sad scene, so I’ll make the grays and greens lean heavily closer to blue, so the audience knows that it’s time to be sad.” Stuff like that. They’re cheat codes for strategic intent, not strict rules.

Now hopefully when it comes to covering more specific things, like how I design my characters, you guys now know the baseline foundation I’m running off of so I don’t have to explain all of this first before I get into the nitty-gritty hairs of “why I made this character purple and green vs why this character is blue and yellow” lmao.

Color is a hard subject to explain! Most of the color theory explanations I’ve heard primarily cover stuff like the science of reflecting light, then name drops all the famous kinds of color palettes, tells me what a cool vs warm color is, explains nothing else, and dips. Which, personally, has literally never been helpful for me when it comes to understanding why the fuck my painting should include the color blue in the shadows. Heaven forbid applying any of that shit to character design. Ough. No I had to figure that out on my own lmfao. So therefore this tutorial is more skewed towards that kind of perspective, someone who doesn’t really benefit (at least at this skill level) from the scientific cerebral shit. I want to know the why behind your creative choices!!! Tell me why the curtains must be blue!! That’s what’s important to me on a practical level. Dont get me wrong, I’m sure one day I’ll learn the purpose behind the scientific stuff, I’m sure there’s a reason behind it, but you’ve gotta figure out how to take the first steps at all to begin with before I can get to the master level stuff of like………scientifically understanding how bounce light works. And if we don’t understand why the curtains are blue, I don’t think we’re gonna get why the bounce light should be blue, too. So I wanted to explain it!!! I wanted to cover it!! Because I’ve never seen it explained before!!! And it’s important to know the why!!!

It's easy to make a villain character nasty. Make the villain a silent killer, an abuser, a bully, a merciless tyrant.

But the how about making a villain who is an utterly malicious influence on people...like a demon from a horror movie

For these villains, corrupting people's minds is a skill. And here's how you can show it.

Decide what corruption means in your story Is it moral compromise, addiction, political radicalization, spiritual rot, greed, cruelty, or the slow loss of empathy. Pick one primary kind so the decline feels clear.

Give the villain a coherent philosophy A corruptor rarely thinks they are evil. They believe they are revealing the truth, freeing people, restoring order, or rewarding the brave. Write that belief as something they could defend in public without sounding insane.

Make their offer emotionally accurate Corruption starts with a relief valve. Safety. Belonging. Status. Revenge. Money. Permission to stop being “good.” The villain should offer what the target already aches for.

Choose targets with specific pressure points People do not fall evenly. Pick characters with bruises. Shame they hide. A hungry ambition. A private fear. A resentment they have kept polite. Corruption grabs what is already loose.

Build a relationship, not a transaction The best corruptors earn trust first. They listen well. They remember details. They make the target feel seen in a way no one else bothers to do. That intimacy becomes the hook.

Start with a small, justifiable step One lie that “protects” someone. One stolen file for a “good reason.” One cruel joke that feels like finally speaking truth. The first step must be easy to excuse.

Let the villain teach a new language Corruption is often vocabulary. “Necessary.” “Realistic.” “Weak.” “Deserved.” “Collateral.” When the target starts using the villain’s words, you can show the shift without speeches.

Use reward, then cost, then relief The target does something wrong and gets a payoff. Then guilt or consequences hit. Then the villain provides relief, reassurance, or a new rationalization. That rhythm creates dependence.

Make the villain control the frame They decide what events mean. A rejection becomes proof the world is rigged. A mistake becomes proof mercy is foolish. If the villain can narrate reality, they can steer choices.

Escalate by narrowing options Each step should reduce the target’s ability to go back. Burn a bridge. Hide evidence. Betray a friend. Once return is expensive, forward motion starts to feel like the only path.

Give the target moments of resistance If the fall is smooth, it feels fake. Add hesitation, self disgust, small attempts to be decent. The villain should respond by tightening the bond or sharpening the threat.

Show the social fallout, not just inner change Corruption is visible in who they avoid, who they mock, what they stop caring about, how they treat weaker people, what they do when no one is watching.

Make the villain’s own stake personal A corruptor wants more than victory. They want to be proven right. They want to replicate themselves. They want company in their darkness. They want a witness who cannot judge them.

It’s not about darkness. It’s about a precise use of habits and small things, their behaviour both when acting the villain and not.

1. Give them a contradiction.

Villains are scariest when they’re almost human. It's alot harder to harm, or even kill, when you can the part of them that is kind.

“He always apologised before hurting someone.”

2. Let them think they’re right.

No moustache twirling ('mustache twirling villain' is often used as a pejorative to describe poor antagonists/bad guys, usually they in comedy) — just conviction. Their ideals and values should stem from something important to them. Doesn't have to be important or make to others, just them.

“I’m not saving the world. I’m correcting it.”

3. Give them a normal habit that becomes unsettling.

• humming off-key

• straightening objects mid-argument

• collecting people’s abandoned pens (this was something I got from primary school where I watched someone collect them and i thought it was evil they were stealing pens😭)

4. Make their kindness selective.

Kind to dogs. Cruel to friends.

Kind to children. Absent to their own.

This really adds to their character and backstory, even if you don't elaborate or tell it.

5. Make their presence change a room.

Not with theatrics — with tone.

“The laughter thinned when he stepped inside.”

Making antagonists who aren’t evil (but still hurt you emotionally)

Some of the best antagonists are just… people.

1. Give them the same goal as the hero — different methods.

Hero wants peace.

Antagonist wants peace.

Hero uses unity; antagonist uses control.

2. Let the antagonist be right sometimes.

That stings.

3. Make the hero almost agree with them.

“You’re not wrong,” she admitted. “But you’re not right either.”

4. Show glimpses of softness.

“He tucked the child’s drawing into his coat.”

5. Let them break their own rules.

Instant complexity, villains change the rules to fit their momentary desires and whims.

(Edit: ive written this up from a book that ive been filling with writing tips and tricks from classes, im putting here a few pages from it

So I get it, I need to change how I format things 😭)

I was in a bad mood and decided I just needed to leave

So I drew some bread

It’s fine!! I understand! Hope you’re feeling better now!

I’d like to see your bread drawings if you want to share!

📻 Radio PNGs

free 2 use

-Gleep glorp 2

/silly

lmaoo ok :3

The art of mindless embroidery.

Zombies based on different forms of decay/breakage. I really wanted to explore how zombification would play out with different creatures or settings.