Art Quest Update 9-15-25!

Howdy, Fellow Creatures!

 

I come bearing tidings of an update on my Art Quest, an update that has been long in the making, mostly because I always feel like there’s not as much art to update on as I would like.

 

With life happenings and writing taking up a big portion of the day-to-day, I try to squeeze in my drawing hobby wherever I can in the cracks, which amounts to slow and steady progress.

 

Since we last spoke about it, I think I mentioned I was still working on the human head, and I am both happy and a little ashamed to say that I am still knee deep in the journey there.

 

I’ve been trying to work through Ahmed Aldoori’s 100-head challenge, in which you have 10 days to draw 10 heads and witness the progress made over each.

 

And while I haven’t been able to hit 100 heads in 10 days, I’ve been slowly adding to the pile in a sketchbook that has been really exciting to get through.

 

Take a look at some examples below.

 

 

 

And while they are by no means perfect, and if I were to show you the reference photos they were based upon, you would notice quite a discrepancy, I have noticed some progress between face to face.

 

Most importantly, I feel like I’m starting to understand the placement strategy of the loomis head and how to utilize this construction method to mostly get to a semi-accurate head/face.

 

I will say that references gathered by Ahmed Aldoori over on Pinterest is awesome, and if you want to take a pass at it yourself, that’s a good place to start with so many different types of references and expressions.

 

As I near the end of the challenge, I’m looking on to the next part of the online curriculum, which is Perspective II, primarily referencing Draw-A-Box.  

 

I am excited to dive into something new and refresh my knowledge of perspective, as it’s been a couple of months since I’ve practiced.

 

Thus is the main issue with my pace. As I go slow and have minimal time, I don’t have the opportunity to go back, retrace my steps, and regularly test to see if I remember what I learn. 

 

I like to think that someday in the future, I’ll be able to dedicate more time, if this writing stuff takes off, and I am able to go full-time, but for now, I’ll have to be happy with my current pace.

 

One thing that has been consistently driving me forward is inspiration. I must admit that I am a soccer for stumbling across new exciting, artists in which I spend hours going down rabbit holes on their art and world-building.

 

Queue Jakub Rozalski!

 

Polish concept artist who (I believe based on my research) is most known for his work on the board game Scythe, I have fallen in love with his oil painting and dark style, which provides an intense sense of foreboding and mystery. 

 

Plus, werewolves galore. And who doesn’t love werewolves?

 

Fun fact, I used to have a great fear of werewolves growing up. Mostly because of the Never Ending Story and Gmork, but also because whenever we would be driving as a family somewhere in the dark, my brother would tell me he saw werewolves in the trees, making me watch the darkness with angst…

 

Now, I kind of love werewolves, and think Rozalski’s paintings of them are the bees’ knees. Not sure if I’ll ever go down the road of writing my own stories about them as that seems to be a pretty saturated genre these days, but I am hopeful someday I’ll get to be able to draw/paint them as well as Rozalski does.

 

If you have a moment, take some time to explore. 

 

That’s all I got for now, Fellow Creatures! Thanks for coming along on the quest with me. I’m hopeful I’ll have more to share over time, but for now, I appreciate you listening to my musings and cheering me on along the way.

 

You are the luck dragon that gives me wings!

 

Stay stupendous!

 

-Jeff