Ink and Wash Illustration

[SidneyEileen]

I am developing work in a style where I draw with a dip pen nib and then shade using a wash of ink. I also plan to use watercolor. In the past I have created very little work which could be considered illustration, and even less with humans as a subject. I haven't drawn horses in more than 10 years. As a result, I am still learning a great deal from each piece I create, and I see a lot of things in this drawing which can be improved. I would greatly appreciate any feedback about things you see, as I am sure for every item I do see there is at least one that I do not yet see.

The drawing is an illustration created for the Airship Pirates RPG, a steampunk tabletop RPG set in a post-apocalyptic future. The woman is a tribal neo-bedouin warrior, scouting through the deserts of Southwest North America.

It is dark brown shellac-based ink, drawn with a dip pen and then shaded with a wash using a round brush.
It is on 8.5"x11" watercolor paper.
I used free stock images for reference.

click image for full size

On The Trail, 8.5"x11" dark brown ink on watercolor paper.

Thank you for any feedback.

[Singular]

If you are not going for realism, but a cartoonish/illustration, this is very good. Color would greatly enhance this work. The horse and woman are well done. The lines are clean. if anything could use some work, I would say the sky is a bit week. Other than that, nice work.

all the best,
Joe

[SidneyEileen]

Thank you for the feedback. I am planning to do some art with full color using watercolors, but in the work I have done so far I have sought a more sepia-toned appearance. I have other colors of ink and plan to do others monochromatic, in part to help develop a firm feeling of tonal differences and water/medium mixing since this is an entirely new medium for me.

[Haleyo]

I think the perception of depth could be heightened in the scenery. The brush strokes are the same size in foreground as they are in the background, and there is the same level of detail, and this is flattening the space. If you added a few subtle details towards the bottom edge of the illustration, it would really open up.
I'm guessing that this may be an intentional stylization, but her legs are very short.
Congratulations because this work is beautiful. I think you've stumbled upon something with this process and style. It definitely reflects the mood of an RPG, but at the same time I don't think I've ever seen artwork quite like this, so you've added something to it. Good choice having the horse lift one of his legs slightly. Without some indication of movement or balance in his stance he may have look too static or posed. Keep playing with little movements in his figure in future illustrations so he keeps looking alive, unlike a lot of drawings of horses I see where the artist treats them like still objects.

[SidneyEileen]

Thank you very much for the detailed response. I hadn't thought about brush stroke as affecting the depth, and it confirms that I need to buy a couple more brushes of different sizes. I think a larger brush would have helped with the sky.
Proportions are also an issue for me when drawing full figures, especially humans. Both the woman and the horse ended up with shorter legs than I would have liked. I've always loved drawing animals so I give them a lot more attention than static figures, but I had never consciously realized the way that comes across.

This style is mostly inspired by an exercise I did when learning to use a dip pen. I made a copy of one of Rembrandt's ink sketches, because I love the quality of his work at any stage. I hope that as I practice more, I will be able to achieve a sort of relaxed precision and realness in both the pen and brush strokes. The difference is subtle, but important to me.

click image for full size

A Bend in the River Amstel, after Rembrandt

[chrisand19]

I like this piece, I have been kind od addicted to inkwash yours has great definement try to have fun with it ink and water has the most awesome natural blends which can be manipulated...great work and like to see more