Sketch to get posture :

Pencilling in the sketch :

Base without background :

Completed showcase :

Avatar – Airbender Showcase :

Thanks for the allowing me to showcase an amazing piece. Was art always what you wanted to get into?

Most of my life, I was thinking I was going to be an engineer, so I had focused on math until my mom talked me into going to art school. For the last four years I have been living in San Francisco and attending Academy of Art University and I love it here. I have only been drawing for a short time compared to most professional artists, and a lot of people say I would have been great if I would have started younger. I think, though, that starting to learn to draw in art school was more beneficial for me, because I didn’t have a style or any ‘”bad habits” to break. I just soaked up everything like a sponge from all the awesome professionals I met.

What type of art do you like?

I like art that shows a good understanding of mood, composition and anatomy. I dislike modernism, and the popularity of anime for giving a lot of people bad habits with eyes and anatomy. For fun, I like to work out, do martial arts. A lot of people like the start of drawing the best, but I really like the last 20 percent of the drawing.

This usually stumps most people but how would you describe your artwork?

My artwork? Well, a lot of people describe my work as ‘epic’ — I don’t know about that, but I think it shows power, force and emotion combined with dynamic poses/angles.

Who would you rate as your biggest influence?

I have a lot of influences, but I guess my biggest influence is Hayao Miyazaki.

Where can we see more of your work? Any final words for aspiring artist?

I have several published works in art books and calendars, and I was an intern at Cartoon Network for a while. Also, you might see me working with some bigger companies soon. I do think anyone can be a great artist it really is just drawing everyday. Just keep at it!

Would you take me through the process to create the showcase Avatar piece?

When I draw, I start off by drawing a thumbnail. In the thumbnail, I place all the figures and objects, working out the composition until I like it. Compositions don’t usually turn out as well if you go straight into a full-sized drawing.

Finally, I color it. I use Photoshop to color my drawings. When I’m choosing my colors, I think about complementary colors and analogous colors to make things pop out, like hiding a little blue in the shadows when red light is hitting them. I prefer to choose highly saturated colors in my artwork. I always work in at least 300 dpi, which is important for print quality, and I work with anywhere from 70 to 150 layers – that is a lot of layers, but I use a lot of layer effects in my coloring style.

Thanks for your time!
Wish you all the best in your future projects.

For more of his work check out his website :
http://darkkenjie.deviantart.com/

Or email him at Dark_kenjie [at] yahoo.com

DJ will be appearing in the following conventions :

• Comic Con July 21 – 25 in SAN DIEGO at San Diego Convention Center
• Sac Anime Sept 3-5 in Sacramento at Radisson Hotel
• Long beach Comic Con Oct 29-31 in LA at Long Beach Convention Center

Make sure you check out :
Dean’s eBay Auctions

Dean’s puts up original artwork every once in a while.
You could pick up an amazing piece!

Skateasaurus Rex :

Dellec – Cover

Interior Sample 1 :

Interior Sample 2 :

Original Sketch :

Coloured Sketch :

Murphy the Beagle (from “I Could be a Superhero”) :

Thanks for your time to talk to me.
Could you describe the process in creating your work?

My current work is half way between animation and drawing. I think it’s important to always create a sense of movement in the work, usually starting with a scribbly drawing and then building on it. In term of illustrating children’s books I like to create a flow from page to page. I picked this up from my background in animation.

I see what you mean from your below showcase. There’s a definite sense of movement in the girl piloting the rocket ship. The amount of detail you have in the picture is fantastic! I noticed the dog driving one of the cars!

Preliminary Work :

Final work : (Click for larger image)

So how did you get into the industry?

My first job was working in Melbourne for Myer. In 1960’s I got into animation by winning a cartoon contest which leading to animation in Sydney at Hanna Barbara. Branching out 1970’s, I started my own studio even winning an award for best TV animation commercial.

That’s amazing! How did you move from animation to illustration?

Well . . I moved to Scotland island in Northern Beaches (north of Sydney CBD) and work became spasmodic. My dog got lost in a local national park. I drew an illustration of the dog and put up in the nearby Youth Hostel. The Youth Hostel liked the work and I did some illustrations for them which lead to providing images for a website. A publisher contacted me about the work and I now have 5 books published.

I came across your books in a book store and thought they were great. I bought one for my nephew and one for myself “I Could be a Superhero”. Was the beagle in that book based on your dog?

He was based on Ozzie who was fat and ate garbage. Somehow he always found way to get into trash, once coming home with leg of lamb!

Thanks so much for your time and wish you all the best in your future endeavors. I appreciate your time and allowing me to showcase some of your work.

or visit his site :
http://gwyn.com.au/

One of Gwyn’s work in his studio :

Gwyn working in his studio :

Gwyn with his lovely daughter, Georgia :

Also in keeping with the iPhone wallpaper for the home and lock screen, I thought it’d be fun to use the showcase on my iPhone. It does suit it very well! I think I might just use this image for a little while.

Lock Screen :

Home Screen :

Witchblade by Cedric Poulat :
I like the position of Sara’s eyes in this one.

Red Sonja by Sean Harrington :
Very different colour scheme, much bolder with the reds.

Spider-Man by Dion Hamill :
Much darker colours compared with the previous three.