I blame the tools

[spqrblues]

A minor rant on packaging of supplies for comics artists, with boobs.

This is the old packaging for the illustration board I usually use to draw the comic.

Simple, professional, and you don't have to feel goofy when you buy it, because you are totally a serious artist, and stuff.


And this is the boobified new packaging.

While I understand the marketing reasoning for going with the gigantic eyes and the water-balloon boobs, I'd never pick this up in a comic store, an art-supplies store, or from a convention table. But, of course, I'm not the demographic they're marketing to.

It's not a cheap product (though it looks cheap, now—ooh, see how I used the two connotations of the word—burn). I'd think if you need the more expensive stuff (it holds up pretty well to eraser abuse), you wouldn't need boobages to attract you to the product, you'd simply buy what you need. But maybe they'd like to get artists who don't consider themselves professional level to upgrade to the heavier stuff; one-ply Bristol Board being a gateway drug, and all. In fact, I don't know why they don't just indicate the ply of the paper by the size of the cup.

Good thing there's mail order. I guess.

Comments

[barbaricyawp.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the book info! I'll be on the lookout for them. And you're so right about the differences in how figures are posed -- it's pretty biased, and there aren't nearly enough women in action. I think I'll look at sports photos for good models to copy.

[meritahut.livejournal.com]

I forgot one: If it turns out you like Civardi's approach, also look for his Drawing the Human Body. It uses mostly the same models and some of the same drawings as Drawing Human Anatomy, but Anatomy is censored to blank out the boy parts. I think Body may be meant as a combination and condensation of the other three books, but I'm not sure since I haven't seen the Male Body book and didn't pick up Female Body since there are (as noted) a plethora of female figure models everywhere else. There aren't a wide variety of complete full body poses in Body, but it's useful for combining distinct elements (a turn of the head, a stretch of the arm, the rotation of a torso) into one pose. And one of the models could almost be Felix. If you give him a stronger chin. And more of a pout. And a different forehead. And different hair. And...

(Okay, I am now officially too sleepy to make much sense. New pencils (http://www.spqrblues.com/images/pencils.png) are posted, and maybe I can wake myself up sufficiently to ink :P )