Ali Canary &#39;s Discussions

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...

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Portrait of Taz - Finalizing Colors, and Taz Gets Whiskers!

Ali Canary @AliCanary (3232) 13 Oct

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Pirate Bear Finish Art - Marker Phase

Ali Canary @AliCanary (3232) 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...

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...

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An Embarrassment of Riches

Ali Canary @AliCanary (3232) 12 Aug

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Pirate Bear Finish Art - Inking Phase

Ali Canary @AliCanary (3232) 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...

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...

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Portrait of Taz: Starting Dark, and The Eyes Have It

Ali Canary @AliCanary (3232) 9 Aug

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Pirate Bear Finish Art - Pencil Phase

Ali Canary @AliCanary (3232) 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...

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...

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Digital Comp Sketch of Pirate Bear Completed

Ali Canary @AliCanary (3232) 8 Jun

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...

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Pirate Bear Gets a Fresh Pose

Ali Canary @AliCanary (3232) 27 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...

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New Commission - Pirate Bear

Ali Canary @AliCanary (3232) 19 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...

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Finished the House Portrait

Ali Canary @AliCanary (3232) 12 May

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...

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I'm Procrastinating

Ali Canary @AliCanary (3232) 21 Apr

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Back to Taz! Defining Shapes

Ali Canary @AliCanary (3232) 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...

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Christmas Commissions - Here's #3!

Ali Canary @AliCanary (3232) 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...

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Christmas Commissions - Commission #2

Ali Canary @AliCanary (3232) 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...

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...

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Christmas Commissions - #1

Ali Canary @AliCanary (3232) 24 Dec

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Update on the Portrait of Taz

Ali Canary @AliCanary (3232) 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...

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Which Way Do You Face When Riding on a Train?

Ali Canary @AliCanary (3232) 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...

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4 people

Arranging Books by Color

Ali Canary @AliCanary (3232) 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,...

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Portrait of Aunt Myrtha

Ali Canary @AliCanary (3232) 25 Sep 23

My Aunt Myrtha was an army nurse in World War Two. Unfortunately, she died somewhat young, in here thirties (from cancer, not from the war), so I don't remember her, but she had two daughters, my cousins Carleen and Barbara, whom...