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SmallWorlds Blog
Creating Great (virtual) Canvas Art
November 7th, 2008 - Hilary Jackson

Well, you have to see it to believe it. What some people can create with a few swishes of the mouse on a virtual canvas is nothing short of incredible!

We featured the art of Robin Banks in a previous blog.  ( http://blog.smallworlds.com/2008/10/23/incredibly-interesting-spaces/ )Seeing her work spurred an exploration into who else we might find creating cool stuff on the graffiti boards.  As you might expect, there are some truly talented people out there and we’d like to take you on a short ‘art tour’. Think of it as the Louvre of the virtual space… the Guggenheim of the www.



As we were getting said art tour organised, we wandered through the world, admiring the collected works of the artists… we noted a slight discomfort emerging. Just exactly ‘what’ were we planning on saying about these works?  Some of us are not particularly talented with the real - or in fact virtual - paintbrush (as ably demonstrated above), and a sense of creative panic began to descend.  With the double handicap of little painting skill and perhaps smaller art criticism aptitude we quickly embarked upon a  very (very) short google-facilitated crash course in art critiquing.  And so, with a sense of relief and a little newfound knowledge, we stepped into the virtual space ready to do some serious art analysis.

Phew.

There we were, ready to dissect and deconstruct.  Our avatars promptly broke out into varying degrees of  pixilated sweat. We were literally saved by a quote we had come across during our crash art critics course:

“I don’t know anything about art, but I know what I like.” - Gelett Burgess, Art Critic (1866-1951)



It was with a sense of relief that we dispensed with all vestiges of art-snobbery and linked arms with Gelett. Thanks G-man!  When you get right down to it, he’s onto it. Beauty really is in the eye of the beholder, and we even allowed ourselves to think that someone might think the picture up top might have some merit. Hmmmm.

So – back to the virtual art gallery tour.   All the featured artists have such unique styles and we’re grateful to have their works here, making SmallWorlds a visually richer place to be in.  Yep, we know what we like, and we think what these folks are creating is great!
 
Greg Dot
Greg loves Disney characters and has created some amazing renditions. We asked Greg if he had any tips for budding SmallWorlds artists:

“Have fun; play with the size and transparency of the brush stroke, and use the undo button as frequently as needed! Work from the background forward”



I asked Greg a little about his creative process.  “I do both planned and spontaneous, it depends on what it is for, my fun, or someone’s request. I have done several commissions so far. I am more of a “realist”, at least as close as we can do.”

To see more of his work, Visit Greg’s Space. http://www.smallworlds.com/home/gregdot1/

Peggo Beta
“My advice for in-world artists is to try all the controls. You can get some surprising results with transparency and layering colours. I like to have something in front of me when I “paint” to serve as a reference. But I have had fun just creating out of my head.”



“I don’t actually take commissions but I check for ideas in my Guestbook and usually make the painting if I can find a reference photo or object. My style? I try to go for realism, but it tends to be impressionism“

To see more of her work (you can even purchase them - they are for sale in Peggo’s Gallery), Visit Peggo’s Space.
http://www.smallworlds.com/home/peggobeta1/

Lynn Candy
Lynn is a Helper here on SmallWorlds, and is appreciated for the creativity she brings to her Helper role, as well as that she unfolds for us on the virtual canvas. Just check out the expressiveness of those eyes, the lusciousness of those lips!



Lynn says: “Drawing on canvas take time and patience. Try looking at a picture or object, and try to draw it. It helps to have something to look at as a reference. Drawing things that you like will make canvas art even more fun! I find that the biggest  challenge virtually / with pixels is that I have a hard time drawing smooth straight lines or circular shapes.”

To see more of her work, Visit Lynn’s Space http://www.smallworlds.com/home/lynncandy1/

 

 

Thanks to the three profiled artists - we appreciate your creative expressions.  And to you dear reader, our hope is that you are now inspired by them (and by our humble effort) to jump on in and have a play around with canvas art.  Step one is easy: purchase your very own blank graffiti board from the Modern Living store, it even comes complete with all the paint you’ll ever need, with the compliments of all of us here at SmallWorlds!