life is art

I’ve been on this website for …what feels like eons now with barely a name for myself but… an art blog in of itself had never been a focus of mine on here. At least until more recently.

With my deadline, I am unfortunately asking for upfront payments as well which I know gets very iffy…

But to safely make it through for the season, I will need a minimum of 8 clients (about 4 if im lucky and folks want flats which. makin my own lines for “my own colouring book” is my Fave….)

That’s to make deadline by Oct 5th.

I will be open and transparent as I go.

Many WIP pictures for clients as I reach their canvases.

If client amount becomes overwhelming, I will be limiting any more incoming asks for commissions and begin announcing slot numbers with each corresponding number’s WIP status.

For now, everythin’s gucci.

More Examples below the cut; Please, Please share if you dont have the change. Times are fuckin’ tough right now…

(my partner being out of work for 3 months due to quitting last job. couldn’t stand the constant ableist and transphobic rhetoric from multiple coworkers.)

If folks would enjoy some handmade human art to help keep a couple trans men bumble an extra month along to float back up, do get in contact with either @teophan / @teoceearts or I. I can get you a quote and time estimation and we can chitter about composition.

I’ll be willing to do backgrounds too, but getting hyper detailed with it may be a hit or miss if I am having trouble with the perspectives or objects themselves. Been practicing on the smaller stuff like props the subject would interact with again though. Been in a massive art slump so the variation might help a lot and i’ll probably figure out new ways to tackle stuff!

If you’re also short on cash, I understand completely. Economy is in The Toilet. Hope the message reaches you safely and if you could like/share the post around once more it’d mean the world. More eyes.

Thank you for your time, good luck out there yall-

newer-ish personal art project examples under cut. and a doodle lol

I'm an artist and medical student, and I use art to help me pay some bills.

I built a free, helpful tool because to help prevent other talented creatives from undercharging, as I really see this a lot online.

It's a calculator with a built in reality check

Input your survival costs and expenses

True billable hours

Get the rate you actually need to charge to hit a 20% (or whatever you choose) profit margin.

It generates the rate, a template negotiation email + final invoice.

Plan to keep this tool free, ad-free, and open to everyone.

🔗 Check your math: fairpaycalc.artres.xyz

If the "Thriving Rate" calculation empowers you to double your quote on your next job, please consider hitting the "Buy me a coffee"button. It keeps the server running and the code flowing <3

There are two kinds of crustaceans that are called "shrimp" that use concussive force via cavitation bubbles as a weapon.

These are Pistol Shrimp, a group of actual shrimp, and Mantis Shrimp, which are not actually shrimp but they are the ones you probably think of when you hear "murder shrimp" and "shrimp colors" (specifically the Peacock Mantis, bc there's a lot of species for both.)

I'm not annoying enough to grumble about the mantis being called a murder shrimp, because "murder stomatopod" is objectively a less fun combination of words.

HOWEVER!! People keep drawing mantis murder shrimp with pistol shrimp claws. They are not the same claws!! They are not used the same way!!! I will explain!!!!

Pistol shrimp: A number of shrimp species which have one big megachad claw and one dinky normal one.

The dactyl, or movable part of the large claw, is snapped shut with so much force that it shoots a cavitation bubble out with a very loud snap that can stun prey or scare off predators. It's very fucking cool.

As cool as that is, there is a reason that the mantis shrimp is what most people think of when they read "murder shrimp."

This is the Peacock Mantis Shrimp. Which is not a shrimp, but a stomatopod.

(In a lot of pictures it appears like they're staring intently at the camera. They probably are, because they are alarmingly intelligent.)

Note that it doesn't seem to have the big classic claws, and that's becaus it doesnt. Please stop drawing a shrimp claw on them. Their "claw" appendages are kept tucked up, praying mantis style.

These are a raptorial appendage that do have a sharp bit, but that sharp point has adapted to add support to the club end. They use the club to punch the shit out of things. They do punch so hard that they create a cavitation bubble, but the punch is the main deal.

If you look up a mantis shrimp puncher you may find this image, but they rarely if ever fold out fully past the punching part.

The second common mistake on mantis drawings is from mixing up two types of mantis shrimp. There are punchers, which includes the peacock mantis, and stabbers. You can guess what they do.

Fun fact! The peacock mantis is the largest puncher species, maxing out at 6-7 inches. Some of the stabber species, such as a zebra mantis can get 11 inches. This is because the peacock mantis is as big as it can get before it would shatter itself with the force of its punch!

This has been the marine biologist PSA.

I also have a severely underrated lesson for this too:

Like, if it's maybe a tad bit lighter? Okay. I usually let that slide. God knows my mobile and my monitor look completely different, solutions ineffective so far. Maybe you're still learning skin tone vs background. Okay. I don't get upset at that.

Visible difference, but, I can let slide with exceptions. ✅

so i wanted to throw in some suggestions that, whenever I’m trying to find a character reference or otherwise draw very interesting-looking yet regular-looking people, which i usually have to do for bit characters in @ikroah​ or something, I tend to look for references in the following places. these are far from the only reliable way to get inspiration, this is just a non-exhaustive list of places i’ve looked before for visual inspiration when needing to create a character, whether starring characters or background ones:

pre-2000s television (The Sopranos and Twin Peaks especially having incredible character design)

extras in comedy sketch shows

esports players

real photos (not staged stock photos) of line cooks

70s baseball players

athletes from more obscure olympic sports like the javelin toss or greco-roman wrestling, especially if you’re looking for a specific body type

ska, jazz, and blues musicians

firefighters

improv troupes

for teenagers, searching “high school english class project” on youtube and sorting by Upload Date

state senators, small-town mayors, and generally obscure local government positions like comptroller or treasurer (yes i know politicians can be bad sometimes but smaller elections especially don’t really depend on looks)

people who walk by your window (if you live in a city like I do)

I made a Room Building tutorial! Lemme know if it helps! 🧡

I'm an artist and medical student, and I use art to help me pay some bills.

I built a free, helpful tool because to help prevent other talented creatives from undercharging, as I really see this a lot online.

It's a calculator with a built in reality check

Input your survival costs and expenses

True billable hours

Get the rate you actually need to charge to hit a 20% (or whatever you choose) profit margin.

It generates the rate, a template negotiation email + final invoice.

Plan to keep this tool free, ad-free, and open to everyone.

🔗 Check your math: fairpaycalc.artres.xyz

If the "Thriving Rate" calculation empowers you to double your quote on your next job, please consider hitting the "Buy me a coffee"button. It keeps the server running and the code flowing <3

If I told you to walk outside (or get online, I guess), and point out a Black man, who would you spot first? Left or right?

And if the answer is the left (and it IS, in fact, the left) why do so many artists and fans believe that the right is appropriately and acceptably representative of Blackness in art? Let's talk about it! Check my pinned for when the next lesson, "The Ambiguously Brown™ Character", drops!

Part 1 of big "how to chibi-fy this flower????" guide is here!!! 🥰