You say, "This week we will be continuing the theme for October, which is 'horror' pictures."
You say, "Now like last week, the subjects are more 'adult' in nature. Please keep this in mind. This type of art is not something everyone will enjoy looking at - if you don't feel happy about being here right now feel free to leave, the normal types of teaching will begin in November."
You say, "The second point with this week's lesson is the picture itself. Usually I only show simplified pictures when I draw to illustrate my point. This week I'll be using a relatively finished full-blown picture of mine. It's edited to take the most 'adult' sections out of it, but is still a rather nasty picture."
You say, "Now don't feel depressed about how it looks either. I admit I'm a fairly decent artist, but you don't need to feel bad becuase you aren't at that level. With work and practice, I'm sure you'll all reach that level and more."
You say, "You are right Don, that is the name of the demon."
You say, "No you haven't Beata. As the class goes on, you'll see I'm posting this to illustrate some horror points."
Yasha-Myr subtitles... "Did you draw that when you were angry or such? usually somthing like that dosent come to you after watching the 3 stooges, or does it? I drew Seppaku, only aftre me and mate were having bad toimes, and trhat scared me... is it same for you?"
You say, "Sometimes Yasha. When I'm enotionally charged, I tend to draw pictures along the lines of that emotion. This didn't have any real type of emotion to it, it's just the type of stuff I like drawing at times."
DonQuixote just has a general question rather than one about this pic specifically. 's just curious, what size paper do you use for the pics you use as visual aids in these classes?
DonQuixote's just curious how large the originals usually are before being scanned :,
You say, "I usually use 11 by 14 inch paper Don. I like to work pretty large - as shrinking the pic down when scanning helps the detail."
Yasha-Myr subtitles... "I usually draw on a 5x8 inch pad... is there drawbacks to larger versus smaller?"
You say, "Yes, the smaller you draw the more difficult it is to get detail right. For anyone, especially a student, I suggest using large pads of cheap paper you aren't afraid to throw away."
You say, "Now the picture is horrible, but what we are studying today is what *makes* it horrible to a viewer. Let's start by going over elements of the picture one at a time."
You say, "First off the pose. Well, his pose isn't really scary. He's just standing there holding something isn't he?"
You say, "He could have been made more dynamic by doing something more active and dangerous, like swinging his scythe or standing hunched-over and threatening."
You say, "Now why do we feel he looks 'scary' if you do think he does. Raise your paw if you have an idea why."
Yasha-Myr subtitles... "The face for me.... its just... terrifying, like he sees you as his next job..."
DonQuixote says, "Having one's name stitched to one's chest is not generally a sign of a mentally balanced individual :,"
Piccillo nods to Don, "Good point, which I'll get into later. Dorian, you are next. Your take on this?"
Dorian purrs, "I think the tattered wings added a touch of what he's been through and what he will go through to get to the next job."
Sherri says quietly, "For me its the horrific condition he's in. Gaunt and drawn, shredded wing remains, and those little pins in his shoulder more than anything else. He's clearly seen a lot of fighting, or rather not seen it? His eyes, are they white or is he blind? Having said that, and seeing the bones in his wings, is he dead?"
Tech_Wolf growls softly, "For me its the snear, the fact that you can see his teeth and gums are exposed and the nose has that 'burned away' look similar to his lips...had it had any."
DonQuixote thinks tattered wings in and of themselves aren't scary, as they could represent injury or loss (would provide an example, but the webcomic is adult)....but the wings in conjunction with the rest of the figure, the wings enhance the feeling given by the rest of the image
Wallaroo_Blacke churr, "The creature is demonic... and his eyes must be a crystalline amber colour, and his skin is a grey-charcoal. The pins in hiws shoulder are minor trophies."
Dorian purrs, "Sort of subtle, but the notches in the WELL used blade."
You say, "Now that we've all had a chance to talk about what makes us unnerved by the picture, we will go into *why* it makes us feel that way."
Dorian purrs, "Is Xatha his name or the name of his soon to be victim?"
You say, "His name, actually. Although stiching the name of his next victim on himself does sound nastily wicked. "
You say, "Now to best illustrate why some horror is 'horrible', it's best to consider another horrible creature."
Tech_Wolf nods. "I was curious how long this picture took to create. There was a lot of though put into it."
You say, "Hrmm...I'd say a few hours, although I'm not sure. I usually do the pencil ideas first, then set it aside a few days to ink later. I found working on the pics in 'stages' is best for me - let's me keep interest in the pics."
You say, " 'Grinding' something out makes me feel like I'm losing a bit of life in the pic for the sake of getting things done."
Dorian purrs, "I don't think it is just one feature that makes it horrible, it is all of them together that brings the overload of horror."
Piccillo nods to Dorian, "Quite right, which we will be going over as the class goes on. :)"
You say, "Now as I said, we need to look at another horrible creature to illustrate our first real point."
You say, "...and a photo of him, can be found....here. http://www.rabbit.org/fun/net-bunnies.html"
You say, "Now I know it is weird, but I am serious about it. Allow me to illustrate the point."
You say, "Let us suppose there is an island somewhere. On this island, some creatures don't exist to the natives. They have lizards and birds, but no rabbits. No mammals of any type. They've never seen anything with fur, or external ears, or anything else like that."
You say, "How do you suppose they'd see something along these lines?"
Yasha-Myr opens her mouth, but shuts it again.... good point....
You say, "That is the first point I'm illustrating with this - one thing that makes horror so horrible is the fact that the subject is *alien* to us in some way...either something we have not seen, or doing something we have no experience with."
Sslaxx was just going to point out what you have - fear of the unknown, which can be a very effective tool, as you've stated.
You say, "For another example, let's take the werewolf."
You say, "Now, for the average joe the werewolf is a scary concept...but not so for the furry. Why? Basicly, becuase we are used to the idea of half-men half-animals, to the thought of changing shapes, becoming a primal creature ect ect..."
You say, "The 'alien' feel for the were is gone for most furries, as is the fright value of that aspect."
DonQuixote notes there's actually one werewolf story from...think it was the 16th century in Italy. A guy claimed he was a werewolf and that he and the other werewolves were 'the hounds of God' who were sent nightly into Hell to battle Satan's minions. ...the Inquisition had him whipped a few times for being an idiot and 'believing in superstitions'
You say, "Now bringing an alien or unknown quantity to your pic doessn't have to be graphic. For example, the 'vorpal bunny'. It looked the same, but acted very different from a normal rabbit. In the right context, it could be seen as horrific."
You say, "Another point of horror, closely tied to the 'alien' feeling..."
You say, "This is like meat-eating bunnies, people who do odd things...let's take a look at the pic for an example or two."
You say, "Now first off, notice the peircings I gave him. They are raw and rather painful looking. If you notice, they are also only on one side of him...adding more to the already odd feel they invoke."
You say, "He is also built oddly. His arms are thin, but the chest and neck are massive. His knuckles are all knobby and not correct - sticking out at odd angles."
Yasha-Myr subtitles... "an odd comment, but i think the demon is a lefty? considering the ear chain, piercings and stiches atr on right side?"
You say, "...another example of the 'unnatural' could be the setting. Putting a normal creature in the middle of a run down house or some other area people associate with danger or suspense can help build the horror value of a pic."
You say, "Now that we've gone over this, think back to the original comments you that were here earlier gave. Do you now feel you have an idea as to why they give you a bit of a horrific feel now?"
BromBear says, "After looking at the picture, I can see the beginnings of a horror scene....abeit a gory scene, but doesn't art style as well as scene development play a lot into the development of the actual horror feeling...versus one of just plain gore?"
Piccillo nods to BromBear. "Yes indeed. I always felt gore was the 'easy way out' of showing horror myself. There are far more suspenseful and effective ways to build it ... but they take more effort so they are sometimes skipped or not used as much."
BromBear says, "I mean, you can throw this guy into any number of different scenes, and have different outcomes. Even giving the art a sepia tone, and shading it where it appears that the demon is coming out of the paper would build on the drawing"
*end of lesson*
