Tuesday, December 25, 2007

The Fourteenth Hand


Today I am proud to bring you guys the Fourteenth Hand by the brilliant Dacosta Bayley. You can check out more Dacosta-stuff at http://chocolatesoop.blogspot.com/ . I first came to notice his work when he designed the amazing DCTO vinyl Daruma ( http://www.dctoproject.com/ ). Talk about a sense of design.. yowza!

Hope you enjoy this entry. Happy Holidays!

HP

Sunday, December 23, 2007

The Thirteenth Hand


We have hit the thirteenth hand! This comes to us from Will Wurth http://deadxiii.deviantart.com . Will is a modeler who works on a lot of low poly/low res texture work. Here is what he had to say about his submission:

"Here's my submission. Severed zombie hand FTW. Lysol Jones beat me to the punch with the drawing so I decided to do a 3d version instead. I went with a very graphic style on this one and I really like the way it turned out. Got a couple color variations that I might throw up on my page eventually. 492 tris (double that for the cel-shade)/ 512*1024 diffuse."

I love the colors on this. Great work Will!

HP

Sunday, November 18, 2007

The Twelfth Hand


It's taken a bit of time for us to get another one up but I think I speak for most when I say it was worth the wait. The Twelfth Hand is from Matias Hannecke (http://mhannecke.deviantart.com) !

Most of you may recognize Matias from his recent Daily Deviation [LINK] or you are lucky enough to have watched him for a long time and see all the kick-ass work he has been producing.

I love this piece... now it's your turn!

HP

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

The Eleventh Hand



I was out of town all weekend and came home to this brilliant submission. Lightbomb Mike dropped this little piece of awesome in my inbox the other day. Check out all of Mike's super-cool work on his DA page (http://lightbombmike.deviantart.com/) as well as the uber-rockin' Sketch Tavern (http://www.sketchtavern.com)!!!

Thanks Mike! Great work!

HP

Saturday, October 13, 2007

Interview with HP artist Matt Synowicz

Hey everyone!

Today I have an interview with Hitote Project artist Matt Synowicz (http://spaghetti016.deviantart.com) . Matt was one of the early participants. His entry can be seen here:



Let's get on with the questions!

..::Introductions::..

Hitote Project: Thanks for letting us thoroughly grill you. Let’s start slow before the truly hard-hitting questions start. Tell us a bit about yourself.

Matt Synowicz: Hi! My name is Matt. I'm originally from Wisconsin, but I now reside outside of the Chicago land area. During the day I'm a fire protection engineer (I design fire sprinkler systems in AutoCAD), and at night...I draw. I'm kind of like a superhero in that manner.

HP: When fighting crime in the art world what is your superhero name?

MS: "The Col-Erase Kid". It's my primary tool for making art, so there's no reason I shouldn't be named after it.

..::Art::..

HP: When did you know you wanted to do art professionally?

MS: Ever since I was a kid drawing on my parent's walls with crayons. Throughout all of school you'd find doodles on my notebooks, on the back of tests, and everywhere else. Some people want to be Veterinarians, others want to be Chefs, but I wanted to do art.

HP: Are you self-taught or institution-educated in the ways of art?

MS: I went to the Illinois Institute of Art, Schaumburg for 4 years, and I graduated with a bachelor in fine arts. Before that I was like everyone else. I had my sketch books that I would draw in, and I'd try to emulate things that I saw in the world on to the pages.

HP: What are your major influences? In that same vein, what really inspires you to hit the drawing board?

MS: My major influences are rather cliché (I think they are anyways). I'm really into comics, games and movies, and thats what really gets me going. I see something cool, and I have to draw. The same goes for other artists. I attend Wizard World Chicago annually, and one of the highlights is the "Artist's Alley". I see the artists showcasing their art and immediately I'm inspired to do some art.



HP: Who do you look up to as an artist? Is there someone you are dying to work with?

MS: I really look up to Doug Tennapel. His art blows me away no matter what it is. Every comic he's put out has such a great story combined with fantastic art. They always leave you feeling good at the end. To meet him would be a phenomenal experience.

HP: What would you do if you weren’t an artist? What is #2 on the “what I wanna be when I grow up” list?

MS: Honestly, I never thought about it. Being an artist was always high on the list. I never wanted to be anything else.

HP: What is your dream job?

MS: Character design for cartoons, or video games. I think I would be really good at it. I can draw all day, and I enjoy drawing people and objects. For lack of a better word, I think it would be rather fun and a great challenge.



..::The Process::..

HP: What tools (materials, mediums, programs) are you most comfortable with? Which ones do you want to learn? Which ones do you hate?

MS: I'm very comfortable with Colerase Pencils (red), Micron inking pens, and Photoshop. I can honestly say that I despise Illustrator. I've made many attempts at using it, and for some reason I don't get along with it.

HP: Can you describe your process?

MS: It starts with a flicker in the 'ol noggin. I get an idea in my head and if I continue to think about it, it generally has to be put on paper. I start off very sketchy and loose with the Col-Erase choosing the page placement and the shapes that I want to use for the character. I keep putting more lines down, and as I get more comfortable with the subject at hand, I tighten up those lines. I'm never too concerned with mistakes because those can always be fixed up later with Photoshop. After a few minutes, or hours (depending on the complexity of the piece), I'll either call it quits, or throw it on the scanner so I can give it some nifty inks/colors. Or, if I want the extremely clean look, I'll just grab a light box and carefully trace over my sketchy lines.



HP: What was the idea behind your Hitote Project submission?

MS: I just wanted to convey the main tools that I use to create my art. I used my own red pencil as a model (imperfections and all). I also used Photoshop. It's what I usually use to finish a piece, and that's the same program I used to finish up my Hitote Project submission.

..::The Important Questions::..

HP: Now for the big three…

What is your favorite a) Movie? B) Videogame? C) Television Program?

MS: A) It's a cross between Transformers: The Movie (1986), and Bruce Campbell Vs. The Army of Darkness. I've been watching both of those movies for a long, long time, and they just hold a huge place in my heart as the greatest movies of all time.

B) Metal Gear Solid, hands down. I've been in love with it since 1987 with the first Metal Gear on NES. I'm extremely excited for MGS 4, but I have to get a PS3 first.

C) I really enjoy the Venture Bros. There's just something about it that just pulls me in. I was lucky enough last year to make it on Adult Swim with some of my Venture Bros fan art during one of the bumps. Best night of my life!



HP: If you were trapped in a city decimated by a Zombie attack and had to choose three people to help you get out alive (no friends or family), who would they be?

MS: Woo, this one is tough. I think I'll choose characters from zombie flicks/games.
-Ben (Tony Todd) from Night of the Living Dead (1990).
-Kenneth Rhodes (Ving Rhames) from Dawn of the Dead (2004)
-Leon S. Kennedy (Paul Haddad) from Resident Evil 2 (1998).
I really can't think of anyone in real life that would be able to help as successfully.



..::Closing Words::..

HP: What do you feel is the most important element in your art?

MS: The most important element is keeping it mine. I have influences in the art world, but I try very hard to stick to my style. It's something personal that I like to share with the world, but I still want people to look at it and say, "Hey, I recognize that style!".

HP: How do you feel your art is relevant in the current world?

MS: I can't really say it's relevant in the current world. I'm not a political person. I don't try to convey a message in my art. I'm not using my art to change how things are. I do it to make me happy. I do it to make others happy. I want people to feel familiar with the way I draw, and I want them to remember things from way back. I think that's why I do a lot of fan art. I remember characters from my childhood, and I attempt to draw them in my style. If anything I suppose it's relevant to keeping nostalgia alive.



HP: Any advice for up and coming artists trying to hone their craft?

MS: This is going to be very cliché, but PRACTICE! Draw something every day. It doesn't matter if it's a stick figure, or the Sistine chapel. Getting something down on paper will make you more comfortable with your craft. Eventually you'll increase in speed, and you'll have better, more confident lines.

We want to thank Matt for talking to us. It was a blast to hear the things he as to say about his work and the art world.

Thanks for reading. We hope you enjoyed the first of many interviews here at the Hitote Project.

I'd like everyone to post any additional questions you may have for Matt.
I will assemble some of them and post a small follow-up... if he is up to it, hehe.

Thanks again everyone!

Sunday, September 30, 2007

The Tenth Hand


We have made it to ten hands! Woot for benchmarks!

The tenth hand was illustrated by the amazing Christopher Copeland AKA Kweli (http://kweli.deviantart.com).

"I was gonna take it further, but i honestly LOVED the way that it was here, and the graffiti feeling that it emotes, i was definitely feeling it.

If you cant read it the writing on the bottom says "MOVEMENT", and i always have had a HUGE appreciation for that word, it means so much, but it rarely means something negative.

movement is essential in any difference made in any context, WHY NOT MOVE UP?"

I love the upward flow in this image. Definitely sports the "Kweli style". Fantastic work, sir!

M!

The Ninth Hand


The Ninth hand is by the talented Shaun Healey... Better known on DeviantArt as Endling (http://endling.deviantart.com).

"I thought I'd add color but then I got to thinking I believe I'm better represented by my lines."

You can get lost in all the layers within this image. Check out this guy's gallery. It will blow you away!

HP

Wednesday, September 26, 2007

The Eighth Hand


Lysol Jones is amazing. Check out his gallery at (http://lysol-jones.deviantart.com)!!!

"This ended looking like a horror movie poster..."

This is a great summation of his work. Well done, sir.

M!

The Seventh Circle of Hand


"Sarah" by David Patch.

Dave is the quintessential proud father. She motivates him to do the work he does. What work is that? Why Art Director at a game company of course. He was the art director on a little game called Sims 2.

When you really look at the details of the hand you get lost in all the cracks.

M!

The Sixth Hand


Here is the Sixth Hand, brought to us by Isaac Epp (http://simian-cephalopod.deviantart.com). He has the distinction of being our first photography entry.

"Since I can't really draw, I had to shift my project a little closer to my skill set. For my image, I wanted to pull in a hint of shadow puppetry without getting too close to any specific shape. I let some water fleck the vellum to help reinforce that it is a physically composed image and not a post production blur, and since it is photography and I am right handed, I had to capture my left hand."

Fantastic first entry for the photo gang! Check out his gallery for more amazing work.

M!

Thursday, September 20, 2007

The Fifth Ele... errr Hand


"A symbolic representation of the process of conceptualizing art by Chamba."

The fifth hand comes from the uber-talented Jeffrey "Chamba" Cruz (Blog)

I have watched Chamba on Deviant Art for a long time now and get blown away by his masterpieces, like this one, every time.

Glad to have you on the Project, sir!

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Hand... 4.0



The fourth hand is brought to you by Matt Synowicz (http://spaghetti016.deviantart.com/)!

Matt was a guy I met in college and we became fast friends through Deviant Art. This guy's clean art style is always set to impress. He had this to say:

'"Without this, I cannot make this.'

Does that make sense?"


More on the way!

M!

The Third Hand



Here is the third hand to hit the Hitote Project. This hand comes to us from Claudia Sutton (http://claudiasutton.blogspot.com/). Claudia used traditional pencil and Photoshop to generate this piece.

MY EX·PRES·SION
"Capture a part of me…"

Thanks for the awesome submission Claudia! The variety is already evident in this project.

Thanks for viewing! Stay Tuned!

M!

Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Hand #2



Here is the second hand, Ladies and Germs...

It is from Laura Henry (http://sureaboutthat.blogspot.com/). Being a photo-collage with minor Photoshop editing in the background, Laura had this to say:

"Since I have no drawing ability I have to stick with textile art."

You can almost taste the confidence exuding from her words.

It is exciting to get the first hand up that is not something I drew. Keep them coming!

I have some more artists coming down the pipeline.

Stay tuned!

M!

Monday, August 6, 2007

The First Hand


Hey there!

I'm going to kick this off by posting my entry. I tried to use many of my techniques for this pic. I also wanted to draw a hand that gives a general impression of me while not drawing my actual hand. I hope this is enjoyed and I hope it gets more people fired up to participate. I envision an amazing display of talents, styles, character, and techniques when enough people join in.

I'm really excited about where this can go!

So here is the first entry.

M!

The Hitote Project

Welcome to the Hitote Project. This is an art project cooked up to unite artists under one common element: Hands.

I feel that the hand is one of the most defining characteristics of an artist's style. My aim on this site is to gather entries from as many artists as possible depicting one single hand, however they want, in whatever medium they want, in their style.

We get our name from the Japanese word "hitote" meaning "one hand" or "one's own effort" implying a multitude of things but specifically the hand we draw with, the hand in the image, and how an artist relies on their own efforts to achieve their goals.

I see much excitement down the road for us. Stay Tuned!

M!