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Ali Canary
@AliCanary (3249)
Joined myLot 8 years ago
I'm an artist, writer, and teacher, so communication is my thing! Some of you may know me from Yahoo, Bubblews and Persona Paper. Nice to be here!
All Activity
Discussions (146)
Responses (1352)
Comments (1751)
Mentions (1042)
Likes (4651)
Followers (130)
Following (94)
Ali Canary 's Discussions
Portrait of Taz - Entering the Final Phase
Ali Canary
@AliCanary
(3249)
17 Nov
Okay, now that we've seen the finish of Pirate Bear (last discussion), let's go back to Taz and start to wrap things up. When last we saw this portrait, I had started the final "modeling" (using lights and darks to portray the...
portrait
painting
taz
artwork
side hustle
7 responses
•
6 people
Pirate Bear Finished
Ali Canary
@AliCanary
(3249)
9 Nov
Hey All, I realized I hadn't wrapped this one up and that you might like to see it in its final form. I have added colored pencils to finish out the shading and details. I used a reference photo of a grizzly bear to make the color...
portrait
artwork
side hustle
5 responses
•
5 people
Portrait of Taz - Finalizing Colors, and Taz Gets Whiskers!
Ali Canary
@AliCanary
(3249)
13 Oct
As I painted from the darkest colors to the lightest, I also took the opportunity to do a color correction. As you can see in the reference photo to the left, the sunlight coming from the right side of the picture is casting a...
portrait
painting
taz
artwork
side hustle
4 responses
•
4 people
Pirate Bear Finish Art - Marker Phase
Ali Canary
@AliCanary
(3249)
1 Sep
The next step in the illustration process was to establish the base colors with marker. The client had chosen specific colors for the bear's fur, the captain's jacket, breeches, boots, and hat, so it was really just a matter of...
portrait
artwork
side hustle
7 responses
•
6 people
An Embarrassment of Riches
Ali Canary
@AliCanary
(3249)
12 Aug
There is a phrase, "an embarrassment of riches", that you occasionally hear. If you don't know what it means (and I thought I knew, but I looked it up to be sure), the dictionary definition from Oxford Languages for an...
5 responses
•
6 people
Pirate Bear Finish Art - Inking Phase
Ali Canary
@AliCanary
(3249)
9 Aug
Once the pencil lines were established on the bristol board, then cleaned up and fine-tuned a bit, It was time to ink the lines. My favorite pens for inking are the Pigma Micron pens by Sakura. They are available in different...
portrait
artwork
side hustle
6 responses
•
6 people
Portrait of Taz: Starting Dark, and The Eyes Have It
Ali Canary
@AliCanary
(3249)
9 Aug
Hey, I'm back , and the cat came back with me! (We'll get back to the bear in a minute). When last we saw Taz, I had lain in the basic colors and was starting to work on defining the shapes of his features and his markings. In...
portrait
painting
taz
artwork
side hustle
6 responses
•
6 people
Pirate Bear Finish Art - Pencil Phase
Ali Canary
@AliCanary
(3249)
4 Jul
I'm back! It's been while, and Pirate Bear is finished now, but I figured I'd share the progress pictures for those folks who like them. The last thing we saw was the digital comprehensive sketch. Since that was full color, you...
portrait
artwork
side hustle
2 responses
•
3 people
Digital Comp Sketch of Pirate Bear Completed
Ali Canary
@AliCanary
(3249)
8 Jun
The next step in this commission was to complete the comp (comprehensive) sketch for the client to approve before starting the final art. Since I can do a simple digital piece fairly quickly, I chose to do the comp sketch on my...
portrait
artwork
side hustle
4 responses
•
4 people
Pirate Bear Gets a Fresh Pose
Ali Canary
@AliCanary
(3249)
27 May
Upon submitting the rough sketch of Pirate Bear to the client, she decided that she wanted a more dynamic pose, with his head more thrown back, and she wanted to switch his sword to the other side. She sent me a rough sketch of...
portrait
artwork
side hustle
8 responses
•
8 people
New Commission - Pirate Bear
Ali Canary
@AliCanary
(3249)
19 May
Hi friends, I am currently working on an illustration commission. The client wants a somewhat cartoon bear (cartoon body, but with a more realistic head), dressed as a pirate, in a tricorne hat, frock coat, striped leggings and...
portrait
artwork
side hustle
6 responses
•
6 people
Finished the House Portrait
Ali Canary
@AliCanary
(3249)
12 May
When last we saw this picture, I was NOT working on it but doing everything else, instead, including writing about how I was not working on it. I thought you might like to see it finished! Don't worry, I finished it only a few...
portrait
artwork
side hustle
5 responses
•
4 people
I'm Procrastinating
Ali Canary
@AliCanary
(3249)
21 Apr
Nothing gets me doing things like needing to do something else! I have a house portrait I've been working on (that's the picture that you're seeing, above). It is very close to being done, and I figured I would be able to finish...
portrait
artwork
side hustle
procrastination
8 responses
•
9 people
Back to Taz! Defining Shapes
Ali Canary
@AliCanary
(3249)
17 Feb
Hey all, I am working on new commissions, but I wanted to touch base with another update on the portrait of Taz, because I am also working on him along and along, and I didn't want to leave you hanging! When last we saw the...
portrait
painting
taz
artwork
side hustle
8 responses
•
8 people
Christmas Commissions - Here's #3!
Ali Canary
@AliCanary
(3249)
7 Jan
Okay, here's the one that came down to the wire (I delivered it two days before Christmas)! This is the other house portrait for the client who ordered Commission #2. As you can see, it is a very different kind of house, made of...
6 responses
•
6 people
Christmas Commissions - Commission #2
Ali Canary
@AliCanary
(3249)
30 Dec
The second commission was one of a set of two pen and ink portraits of houses that I did for another client. It was my first work for that client, whom I never actually met, as the commission was brought to me by the lady I did...
portrait
artwork
side hustle
9 responses
•
9 people
Christmas Commissions - #1
Ali Canary
@AliCanary
(3249)
24 Dec
Hello friends! It's Christmas Eve here in the States (it's only 1:30 in the afternoon, so it doesn't feel very eve-ish, yet), and it's already Christmas Day in the Eastern hemisphere, so Merry Christmas to those who celebrate, and...
portrait
artwork
side hustle
commission
8 responses
•
8 people
Update on the Portrait of Taz
Ali Canary
@AliCanary
(3249)
12 Nov 23
It's time for another update about my portrait of Taz, the acrylic painting that I started ages and ages ago. In this update, there is a big change! If you might recall, in the last article I mentioned that I was starting the...
portrait
painting
taz
artwork
side hustle
6 responses
•
6 people
Which Way Do You Face When Riding on a Train?
Ali Canary
@AliCanary
(3249)
28 Oct 23
Do you have a preference, or a need, to face a certain when riding a train? I read that there are some people who need to face forward or they will be very uncomfortable. I thought about it, because I used to ride the train a lot...
5 responses
•
4 people
Arranging Books by Color
Ali Canary
@AliCanary
(3249)
10 Oct 23
I was reading an article the other day that made a reference to "people who sort their books by color". The author was writing about dating and getting to know people, and mentioned this as a habit that might annoy some people,...
12 responses
•
11 people