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snackugaki · 1 year

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.... i have been so normal about wanting to draw tactical!Venus and tactical!Jennika.

hey. HEY. y’all need to go check out @donathan ‘s artwork, and if you are the proper age, go throw some money into their patreon for some... some real, real good art. 👀👀👀 ...but do not if you are a minor, that shit ain’t for you.

some IDW TMNT comic spoilers... and.... I guess... Next Mutation ssspoilers? I know some of you kids haven’t turtled up and watched my beloved childhood iteration yet.

alright, so, y’know, completely normal expenditure of my energy and skillset, amirite? big big thanks to @/donathan for allowing me to play around in their AU’s aesthetic because I have severe, terminal VenusAndJennikaDeserveEverythingoccocal SoIWillManifestItMyselfitis.

and tbh, all y’all’s fics have been, mwah, chef’s kiss. but SOME of you put LORE. delicious, tasty, appetite-inducing lore.

and i am nothing but the littlest hoebag for lore.

okay so, quick rundown for those who both A) are immune to spoilers B) also do not know Venus or Jennika’s origins-- bulletpoint time~!

So Venus de Milo, the “girl turtle”, the “fifth turtle” (not counting April’s extremely brief stint as a white-bandana’d turtle in the Archie comics run) was introduced in 1997′s Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation

An episode of “The Toys That Made Us” touched upon Venus’ creation so idk it’ll cover what I won’t deign to acknowledge.

her backtory is interesting (just her show was a trashfire /affectionate)

Master Splinter’s frolicking around in the dreamscape where all the cool enlightened old people hang out away from teenagers, right?

but oh no! dragon lord, a bad dude with a widow’s peak to rival Vegeta Dragonball’s widow’s peak; is there too! stomping around, ruining shit!

Splinter’s dreamscape buddy Chung I warns Splinter to stay out of the dreamscape ‘cuz Dragon Lord’s around

And like in true old people fashion, just ignores his friend’s admonition and tries to investigate himself

bad choice, womp womp

Splinter gets trussed up and rendered “stuck” in the dreamscape

cue the catalyst for Venus to make the 10+ flight from China to the U.S

don’t worry about what the boys were doing, just literal surfing in sewer grey water, breaking their little turtle skulls on cinderblocks, and picking fights in warehouses with Foot clan goons

tl;dr Venus still has Sixth Ranger mode on, so naturally she whoops all of their asses in the dark, ties them up (like how some of y’all enjoy writing Leo does huhu nudgenudge winkwink)

venusistheoriginalshibarienthusiastandteadrinkerfightme

and then, y’know, it’s still the 90s and children’s television so blah blah the usual “oH My gOd a GiRL tURTle???/?? AWoooOOogaaa ga ga ga”

it’s.... I mean, i’m 38 so it no longer strikes me as bad as just really fucking embarrassing... for them. to be written saying. fuck, at least they didn’t make her bandana color pink.

so fast forward to Venus teaching them to dreamwalk so they can go rescue Splinter from Dragon Lord’s clutches in the dreamscape.

unfortunately, Dragon Lord offscreen murders Chung I so Venus is narratively anchorless post-rescue, so she’s invited to stay with them. thus ensues wacky hijinks with their new pal, Venus Boom Boom de Milo.

I glossed over the urge to write a cumulative review of Next Mutation. Just, take my word as the target demographic of the show during the last gasps of 90s Turtlemania that TNM was a trashfire overall but... y’know... if you ever needed a palette cleanser after some grimdark or angsty TMNT content, give TNM a whirl. The slapstick was intentional and The Point in the show. Venus’ circumstances for coming was as serious as it would get.

... Also, yes, they made them not related in TNM, preteen snackugaki didn’t clock why because I watched a lot of wuxia as a kid so brotherhood is a term beyond blood ties to me (and if I’m being honest, martial brotherhood is fkkn metal) and later I heard tell that it was to lure more girls into the franchise with both a girl turtle and romance options. which idk whatevs man.

I also have to clear that, actually no, Donatello and Venus did not fight EVERY episode. Donatello, despite sprinkling a little too much barely disguised snobbery, did defer to Venus’ expertise in “the supernatural” when the situation called for it, and Venus would commend Donnie on his scientific ingenuity. They even teamed up skillsets to create surveillance drones! She essentially casted Calm Emotions on him while he tried to hack the controls of the Astro Megaship back for the In Space Rangers. They breached the divide between STEM and Humanities! They only had one “real fight" near the end of the season-- because Donnie was playing his containment breach elevator mid trash copyright strike immune proto-EDM too loud while she was trying to meditate. and that’s just being bad roommates tbh.

...christ I know it’s gonna come up too, but also NO, there was not constant advances made toward Venus during the show. At most was Mikey pulling his ol’ “I work out every day~!” schtick for like 2 episodes of the 5 spent to introduce Venus. And then after? A shipper’s desert, you’d have to dig and peer behind like 8 curtains for any viable fodder.

...OKAY NOW FOR JENNIKA’S ORIGINS: Jennika is an IDW character specifically so, naturally why she isn’t in (or would’ve been, AHEM) a lot of iterations yet (or at all, COUGH) (but to continue in honesty there’s a lot of legal tape to cut through since Jennika is IDW’s while TMNT overall is Nick’s) Introduced as a Foot Assassin, her place in the Foot Clan shifts when Splinter takes over from Shredder (Saki), eventually she forms actual bonds with both the turtles and Splinter to where it’s implied she also saw him as an important figure to her if not an outright surrogate father figure. And because TMNT is mess and drama the other 50% of the time, Karai takes over the Foot from Splinter and shenanigans compounded by Karai’s then-current machinations for the Foot-- results in Jennika getting shanked in the stomach by Karai during a clandestine meeting to resolve clan rivalry. She’s losing blood fast, Donnie works to save her and it’s Leo who volunteers for blood transfusion to keep her stable mid-transit.

SURPRISE!

Leo’s blood mutates Jennika into a mutant turtle. And then Casey ghosts/dumps her. My poor daughter. She has a real rough time of it before fully integrating with the boys. Raph falls in with Old Hob, gets hoodwinked, and now they live in Mutant Town. Jennika slowly finds herself again, as a mutant turtle, a Splinter clan ninja, a girlfriend, a guitarist in a band she started, a sister in a found family, and a constable to a very little town.

okay! we’re all marginally informed about my two wonderfull daughters, Venus and Jennika~!

so if I can indulge further, I’m going to use my cognizance and make it everyone’s problem because I have beem quietly foaming with ideas for bg lore for tactical!J&V, more bullet points!

ok so, donathan mentioned a bit about their tac! Leo and Donnie being the snipers, Mikey and Raph spotting for them while also being demolitions and heavy ordinance specialists respectively

I would think, then for Vee and Jen, they’d be classified as close quarters combat specialists, complicated extraction? compromised area? call them to clean up and clear out~

give or take “magic” being a thing used in donathan’s AU, or anyone’s AU of this AU, Vee would probably be a close combat specialist along with Jen.

Vee, I feel, would, barring a ...”tactical fan”, (even though in TNM it was just her fists and her little wizard components but her toy came with a fan so.) probably use batons, Jen in lieu of her tekagi-shuko would... most likely use tactical karambit. not that large of a leap really.

for my personal lulz, Vee and Jen are... accurate, height-wise. Raph gets to be the biggest brother since alligator snapping turtles are, in fact, the largest motherfucking freshwater turtles on the north american continent. no getting around it.

my Vee in all Rise AUs is a softshell since the messy hanzi used to write her first given name, Mei Pieh Chi (美鱉气) has the hanzi that’s most commonly translated as softshell turtle (鱉). eh ‘di wow talaga

snacku what do you mean ‘accurate’???? tl;dr female turtles are usually the larger ones in most species.

and listen, I love and I mean LOVE, how some of y’all have written the tac!boys, mwah; but god I’m a professional turtle bully. I need to see them get dunked on. for nutritional value. and if it comes to it, I will provide that food for myself. brb laughing at eventually drawing Venus just offhandedly tossing Donnie into the air to skeet shoot his ass for fun brings me the greatest joy.

they absolutely dote on Mikey, as is the natural order of things.

and even tho I stated TNM Donnie and Venus got along in the show, and depending on the existence of magic in this AU; I just really love dichotomous rivalries (in as much “science” and “magic” exist as a dichotomy, much less as “diametrically oppose” fields-- just, opposites man. i’m a simple girl with simple trope needs)

Vee’s arms (and legs) are absolutely covered in burns, scars, and missing flesh divots, just as close to swiss cheese limbs as you can be

Jen and Donnie debate tracks that go into their joint “On Our Way To Commit Murder” playlist

if Vee’s tactical look seem very familiar, and you’re wondering if-- yes, you’re correct. and you can “call her ms. de milo if ya nasty”

Vee was actually pretty calm and rational in TNM... but for this AU, she can be a little unhinged, as a well-deserved treat. (and ‘cuz that specific anime unhinged facial expression is fun as fuck to draw, which is my treat)

#giving me cognizance was a mistake #letting me learn to draw was another #I love Venus and Jennika #a HEALTHY amount I'd say #totally healthy & normal #:)#fuckin' turtles man #3 months into this new year #and it's turtles all the way back #this is why I trained for visdev #just chewing on things absently #and wondering how things would work In This World #figuring out how to fit something into an environment #a context #a situation #is my enrichment activity #not unlike #giving tigers huge slabs of meat in 3 feet of ice on a hot day #just sitting there gnawing away #until I get to the meat of it #both literally and figuratively #it's like a puzzle #that you can design the pieces themselves #but have I updated my visdev portfolio?#HAHAHA NO #TOO BUSY DRAWING FKKN TURTLES MAN #h elp #i listened to so many baddie playlists drawing this #i needa start a fight #get this extra energy out of my system

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critterbitter · 3 months

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HELLO HI ID LIKE TO ASK WHAT PROGRAM AND BRUSHES YOU USE CUZ IM LITTERALY EXPLODING EVERYTIME I SEE YOUR ART

actually actually... *pulls out whole stack of paper*...I have. a FEW,, a good few,, questions to ask. they are not many I swear 😇

OK SO FIRST OF ALL HOW DO YOU DRAW SO FAST???? everyday I log onto Tumblr I always see something new from you and I get very very happy. But then I start to question my own existence because not even I CAN SPEED RUN ART LIKE THAT. AND SO SPECTACULARLY TOO

Last question! how do you color and make it look so well?? just. How. I need to know. This is a CRY FOR HE-

anyway thank you for being one of my favorite artists that always feed my brain rot, pls keep making amazing art because like a little yamper I will follow behind and stay updated.

(Stands there)

Response and thoughts under cut!

First question! What art program I use!

Mostly procreate, along with a handful of brushes! (Specifically the Jing Set and some custom stuff, which is really just a circle brush with the shape changed to a square.)

Second question! How do i draw so much!

Okay so. I am. Ahhah. Unemployed,,,,? No, I do freelance illustration, but hmm. A studio job would be nice.

i graduated college last year and I’m very used to eight hour art shifts. The body sort of remembers to keep working, even though I no longer have storyboards or visdev homework to do.

Also. The hyperfixation is a deep vast tunnel I STILL have not seen the end of the light to, good golly. (I have dreams now about the kids committing shenanigan crimes. I wake up in cold sweat and write them down in a journal. It’s like being the mouthpiece to an angry god.)

So the overall gist is: I was trained to be a storyboard artist with a visdev background, and I’m using that higher education to draw funny muppets because my brain’s funny.

I also DO have a queue, and I’ve been treating this as a sort of inktober project. I am definitely going to slow down soon though! Maybe. Hopefully. Ah… (sheepishly drops my kofi here)

Third question! How do i color!

I. I, uh. I dont know man the coloring demons have a grip on my soul and i just go along for the ride. But also, if it helps, i prefer to limit my pallets to only a few colors at a time. Lighting is king, so if you can figure out if you want to focus on either on your lights or shadows, you’ll have a much easier time composing. That, and symbolic colors— idk, something hits different about art drenched in gold with a tiny hint of a man staring into the blinding horizon, or a green leafy environment with a single dot of artificial red. I also like using blue and purple for shadows, and I’m a big fan of muting colors with only one or two that pop— one of the reasons why I was so attracted to submas in the first place is because from a design aesthetic, they’re both super funny muppet men AND really cool train guys that have a limited pallet and thematic apparel.

Overall response! THANK YOU SO MUCH. This goes out to a BUNCH of people who sent me inbox queries— sorry for not responding, it’s a tad overwhelming because some of them are story questions even I don’t really know will go yet, and others are words of praise and I’m selfish and like scrolling through the inbox to look at them when I feel down. I am more of an artist who sits in the corner and sprouts like a potato rather then a branching vine who socializes, but I really do see people’s responses and they make me go :)))))

Okay ramble over. Thanks for coming to the soapbox, and good luck on creating!

#critterbitter #ask #mailbox

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elekilokal · 2 months

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if the art is being scraped for AI training either way, why does it matter that Tumblr starts taking money for it? it changes literally nothing except that the site might survive a bit longer with the additional funding to combat how much money it's still loosing.

Because it’s not a logistical question it’s an ethical one. Partnering with a generative AI company which openly steals art and uses it to put the same people it steals from out of jobs is an ethical issue. “Scraping is going to happen anyways so let tumblr make money off of it!” And tell me why I should stick around for it? Why support a website that does not fight for us, but shakes hands with those who exploit us? Does tumblr, a corporation, need this money more than my mom who hasn’t had illustration work in months? Do they need it more than all of my visdev friends struggling to find jobs? I’m amazed that you’ll shill for tumblr as a company yet come into the ask box of one of many people that actually creates things you like and tell me to roll over and get exploited for their profit. Tell me why you like tumblr. Just for staff posts? Or for the artists and writers who provide endless entertainment for you everyday? I’m sorry for having the barest amount of conviction in taking down/ not posting art here anymore, but mine and my friend’s livelihoods are more important to me than tumblr’s profit margins.

#TLDR: tumblr is not an underdog compared to the artists they’re exploiting #I can’t believe you made me type out this long ass response this morning bro it’s just a website 🙄#Tumblr anon when they see someone making a statement through personal action <- I must fight them with facts and logic!#ask

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circuscountdowns · 2 months

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Hi! Wanted to start off by saying that I LOVE your cotl art its such a huge inspiration to me :D! I recently picked up drawing again and I've unfortunately been upset? envious?! of others' skills and just wanted to ask if you ever experienced this as a fellow artist and if so how do you not do that lol. Sorry for the weird question. I just thought some insight and advice from a fellow artist could helo. BUT I hope you still have a nice day and look forward to any more cotl art or anything you draw really :D!!! (also is okay if you don't answer it is a loaded question I just be in a silly goofy mood lately okay bye!)

oh wow being on the receiving end of a question like this is surreal, I’m honored my work inspires you! Thank u, you’re sweet, it’s not a loaded question at all! Here’s my long reply sorry

so unfortunately that comparing yourself to others thing doesn’t go away ever asdfgjkl. I suffer it every day, it sucks, feels bad. I’ve had industry people tell me they feel this way and they’ll have some of the most gorgeous visdev/boards/animation I’ve ever seen. Disheartening to hear, But! I’m a big believer that comparing your artworks with others is best used as a tool and not a punishment to yourself!

When looking at art you like, try to turn thoughts of, “Man I wish my stuff looked like that, my shit sucks,” to, “What is it that I like about this piece? The line art? The perspective?” Sometimes I’ll see work with thin line art and I’ll get an itch, and I’ll draw something with thin line art. It’s a conscious effort of keepin emotion out of that itch, keeping it as, “I saw art with thin lines, I want to do that. Yay I did that!” Compartmentalize it, the itch was simply to do thin line work, not to remake the piece you were inspired by. And you got a piece of art out of it, and a single piece is progress no matter how small!

If you want to compare, do it methodically! Why does my work look different (never use the words better or worse)! Oh, I see my piece doesn’t follow the rule of thirds, so the framing is different, I’ll be aware of that next time if it bothers me. Or, Oh I see they shade by hatching along with the form, I’ve just been going horizontally, I’ll try that other way!

it’s a learning curve of training yourself, like all corrective behavior.

like, I kinda have the warning feeling of dread when I’m about to compare my work with something, so before the self-deprecating thought can even start I have to think What do I Like about this?

I’m no expert at it, though. Actually getting myself to think this way is a struggle, but I find when I make Thoughtful Observations I level up. Not by a lot most times, but yknow.

and this part is just my personal experience:

Fanart and the internet can be the biggest Art skill killer sometimes. Get offline and cater to the audience that Really matters to your passion: You! I improved the most by spending 2-3 years doing doodles/comics/models for my dnd campaign ocs because I was that obsessed and I simply wanted to have it for me!

and after all that, then there’s the hardest skill of just accepting your work as is.

like, to me, my work is just scribbles. I see other artists’ stuff and go “Man they’re so good at comics and colors, man, why can’t I color?” But do I need to??? I don’t like coloring, do I need to be good at it? This isn’t a career, this is supposed to be fun! I scribble because I like it! I’m glad this persons good at coloring, I don’t need to be! Yay!

if I Want to be good at it, I’ll take the steps to get there! But if not, my scribbles are just fine :) I love black and white and values

I’ve been having that one on repeat for a while. It helps

(acceptance and denial go hand in hand btw lol they sound the same)

I wish there was a little off button for envy, but ah well! I hope that you take comfort in knowing we are all feeling it, and find joy in even the smallest little doodle you make! Have fun stay goofy!

#I wrote this in part so it might be a rambly mess.#I have a difficult relationship with art after 5 years of college for it. Cotl has been helping me find ways to love art again.#ty for liking my work!

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jayrockin · 2 years

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Booting more old visdev for the Runaway to the Stars book off Patreon.

I’ve mentioned before that Shyam is tall for a tailed spacer at 145cm; so for some perspective here’s Killian, a tailer on the short side, standing at 108cm. Him and Tod are heads of the indoor mechanics crew for Ixion recycling plant, a job that mostly involves figuring out where and why the “automation” isn’t working. Robotic automation for factory-line processes saves Ixion a lot of manpower, it’s only automatic if you can keep it from breaking down. These two also have a revolving crew of temp workers under their management, Killian used to be one of them but he stuck around for some reason. Tod’s training him for management now.

Also pictured is a very wobbly first pass at the recycling plant layout (I need to do more research before I’ll feel confident finalizing anything) and a less wobbly diagram of the tiny habitat dome on Dirtball.

Shikaviil Port is a co-species FIFO (fly-in-fly-out) work town located in a crater on a planet with a minimal atmosphere. The planet is technically called Shikaviil in Tiiliitian and Ixion-3 in English, but the English speaking residents usually call it Dirtball. It used to be a bustling Tiiliitian avian outpost, but after enough of the rare metal and heavy water was stripped out to make mining unprofitable, Jovian humans bought it and established the recycling plant. The habitat has since been modified to accommodate human residents. A major result of this is separate housing and agriculture blocks; avians have to be on a different water treatment loop than humans because they are full of cobalt. Talita is the only centaur living on Dirtball and she has her own tiny corner carved out of the dry storage area. The other apartments are not big enough to fit her. :’) Electrical power is supplied by solar arrays on the light side of the planet, comms are on top of the central spire. Shikaviil has more housing capacity than its current resident population, so most of the time it’s super empty. There is no community center or real gathering place other than the trade center… it’s kind of like living in an airport lobby.

PATREON | STORE | Runaway to the Stars

#runaway to the stars #jayart #tailed spacers #dirtball #scifi #posting backlog bc im currently doing a bunch of NDA and web design stuffffff

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coolbloggerthings · 5 years

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What is Visual Development in Animation?

One of my side interests outside of art is cooking. I don’t claim to be a fancy chef, but at least I can prepare more than one meal that doesn’t consist of top ramen. Sometimes when I’m cooking, I can’t help but think about how making a beef stew can feel a lot like visual development.

So, what is Visual Development?

It can go by many names: concept art, design, illustration, etc. I like to think of it as visual organization with a purpose. A VisDev artist can design anything from backgrounds to characters to props to vegetation and even furniture. But a great VisDev artist also understands how all of those elements fit together to serve the whole much like how there is a reason behind the number and types of dishes that come out in a multi-course menu.

VisDev can also apply to all levels big and small from the entire menu to a specific dish. Like a well-made salad, all of the ingredients within a well-designed painting can produce a pleasing and memorable experience.

Origamisaur by Nolen Lee

How does VisDev relate to an animator?

After all, animation is constantly moving, and most of the time a keyframe image is seen for only 1/24th of a second, right? Actually, VisDev has a direct impact on animation. There’s a reason why animation in The Simpsons looks and feels much different than the animation in a Pixar feature, and the converse would feel strange and out of place.

In video games and films, certain poses and gestures are assigned to specific characters in a feature film to not only differentiate them from each other, but they should also be broad or restrained enough to fit in with the tone of the overall project. Doing otherwise would be like adding truffle oil to a drive-thru burger or serving a Twinkie in a Michelin star restaurant. You could do it, but it would probably feel out of place.

The truth is anything visual can benefit from VisDev which can include graphic design, print, illustration, comics, architecture, animation, videogames, VR, sculptures, toys, storyboarding, and board games.

An example of breaking down an image into shapes. Image by Nolen Lee.

Finally, why is VisDev important?

I’m going to push the cooking analogy as far as I can. Let’s say there’s a spaghetti recipe that you really like, so you buy all the ingredients, follow every step, and the result is a tasty spaghetti. But you only know how to follow the recipe step by step, and it’s the only thing that you know how to make. What would happen if you forgot a part of the recipe? Or what if you forgot to grab the pasta and only have a squash in the fridge? Or what if you try out another spaghetti at a restaurant and want to replicate the recipe? Many of us would have trouble figuring out what to do, but a competent chef would have the knowledge and fundamentals to make a tasty dish with the ingredients available.

A competent VisDev artist is like a chef who can make a tasty dish even if they don’t have the recipe. Understanding VisDev is like using all of the Friday night leftovers in the fridge and making a Michelin-star-worthy dish.

Incredible Concept Art by Eyvind Earle for Disney’s Sleeping Beauty

Back when I was looking to switch from engineering to art, I thought I had a better shot at being an animator than a designer because I didn’t believe I had the skills to be a VisDev artist. While I was practicing my drawing, I would read and hear about design principles and concepts, but wouldn’t actively think about them as I was making my art.

Monsters and Dames by Nolen Lee

It wasn’t until much later that I decided to focus on internalizing those principles that my work began to show a marked improvement. It took many years of trial and error to reach the level that I am at now, but the times that I made the quickest improvement came through the instruction and feedback of others who have traveled the road ahead of me. Because of that improvement in my design skills, I actually became more adept as an illustrator than as an animator.

War Pandas by Nolen Lee

I will be teaching a six-week workshop starting this Fall on the principles of design where I will share with you the basics of design, how to train your eye to see design, and how to implement those basics into your art. If you’re craving for improvement in your art, consider making a reservation for the workshop at Animation Mentor. Bon appetit!

Be sure to check out our other new workshops, Intro to Digital Painting and Previsualization Basics for Animators.

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