Keigo is an artist and illustrator from Japan who has attracted a large online following for his playful and quirky daily sketches.

One his most popular ongoing series is imagining the daily struggles of animals doing human activities like playing sports, getting ready for work and hanging out with friends. Another common struggle is trying to play music. In this post we look at the music problems of a crocodile, a recurring character in Keigo’s drawings.

For thousands of more pictures, you can check him out on Instagram!

[via Keigo on Instagram]

Somewhere in China, an artist with a Q-Tip and toothbrush is beautifying the city one dirty windshield at a time.
 
via reddit

Last year animator and illustrator Thomas Romain found himself marvelling at one of his son’s drawings. He admired his imagination and figured as an artist himself, maybe he could embellish and build upon his son’s originality.

Fast forward to today and Romain has illustrated hundreds of his two sons’ (now aged 9 and 11) fantastic drawings, and the family have amassed a huge online following for their ongoing series of works.

Thomas has even launched a YouTube channel and Patreon page that shows how each drawing comes to life. Below you will some of our personal favorites but be sure to follow the family at the links below for much more!

[h/t Bartmania on reddit]

TAIKO Studios presents One Small Step, a story of Luna, a Chinese American girl who dreams of becoming an astronaut. The award winning film directed by Andrew Chesworth and Bobby Pontillas has been nominated for ‘Best Animated Short’ at this year’s Academy Awards.

Produced by: Shaofu Zhang
CG Supervisor: Joy Johnson
Head of Pipeline: Andrew Jennings
Music: Steve Horner

Artwork by Giulio Romano | Photograph by Livioandronico2013 on Wikimedia Commons

Seen here is a breathtaking ceiling fresco by Italian painter and architect Giulio Romano. As a young assistant in Raphael’s studio, he worked on the frescos in the Vatican loggias to designs by Raphael and in Raphael’s Stanze in the Vatican painted a group of figures in the Fire in the Borgo fresco. He also collaborated on the decoration of the ceiling of the Villa Farnesina. Increasingly he became the master’s right-hand man, despite his relative youth. After the death of Raphael in 1520, he helped complete the Vatican frescoes of the life of Constantine as well as Raphael’s Coronation of the Virgin and the Transfiguration in the Vatican. [source]

This fresco can be seen in the ceiling of the Room of the Giants in Palazzo Te, a palace in the suburbs of Mantua, Italy.

A Chinese artist who goes by the moniker of @sketch_lines on the popular social media platform TikTok, has been sharing an ongoing series of jaw-dropping ‘timelapse drawings’ that show people aging right before your eyes.

Watching these drawings evolve is simply mesmerizing. Unfortunately I was unable to find much information on the artist himself or the process behind creating each piece. I would love to see longer timelapses and learn more about how he conceptualizes how each work is going to unfold.

If you have more info please let us know in the comments!

FULALEO is a graphic designer and illustrator originally from Colombia but currently based in Melbourne, Australia.

In a series entitled The 2080s “Past is the Future” the artist designed a series of 80s retro LP covers, using contemporary pop stars. He even made up album names for each one!

If you’re interested in prints, they are available here. For more from FULALEO, check out his work at the links below!

@mikyoui00 is a Japanese chef that has earned a passionate following on Instagram for his incredible sashimi art. Using the same basic plate to display all of his creations, mikyou creatively uses sashimi in his food art, incorporating the thinly sliced fish’s natural translucency for things like feathers on a bird or folds in a dress.

To see more be sure to check out his wonderful Instagram page. We’ve featured a gallery of some of our personal favourites below.

Eduardo ‘Duda’ Lozano is an amazing tattoo artist from São Paulo, Brazil who has become famous for his incredible embroidery-style tattoos that look like patches have been sewed directly onto people’s skin.

In an interview with Tattoo Life, Lozano says he started tattooing in 2002 under the mentorship of his friend, Claudio Botta. He also mentions that the secret to his embroidery-style patch tattoos is a growing knowledge of light and shadow.

While Lozano has gained popularity for his signature style, the artist hopes to eventually focus on hyperrealistic tattoos, which he is passionate about as well. For more, check out Duda’s work at the links below.

For those unfamiliar, XKCD is the Internet-famous webcomic created in 2005 by author and ex-NASA scientist, Randall Munroe. It’s witty, informative, and if you’ve spent any significant time on the Internet, you’ve probably come across one of his comics.

What does XKCD stand for? Munroe explains:

It’s not actually an acronym. It’s just a word with no phonetic pronunciation — a treasured and carefully-guarded point in the space of four-character strings.

In addition to the standard webcomic format, Munroe has also become well known for his always-entertaining infographics. Some are a quick chuckle while others are incredibly detailed and informative.

Below you will find our 10 favorites. Did we miss one? Let us know in the comments below!

Nine-year-old Joe Whale was doing great at school. According to his Dad, Greg, he was excelling in academics and even got placed into the gifted program at age 4. He also loved playing football and cricket but his biggest passion was by far, drawing. And it was this love of that was getting him into a bit of trouble.

Apparently Joe was frustrated at the little amount of art he could do at school, so he resorted to constantly doodling on the whiteboard in class, which in turn drew disapproval from his teachers.

So his parents decided to enroll him in an after-school art class where he flourished. His art teacher was so impressed with his work that she (with permission) shared some of his drawings on Instagram where it was spotted by a local restaurant (Number 4 in Shrewsbury, England) who reached out to hire Joe to decorate their interior.

The rest is as you say, history. Joe now has a blossoming online following where he calls himself ‘The Doodle Boy’, and looks forward to growing and nurturing his passion for art.

Sources

– Metro
– Bored Panda
– LinkedIn
– reddit

Disney’s 1940 film Pinocchio was entirely hand-drawn and the incredible animation still holds up today, some 80 years later.

One of the most innovative and groundbreaking achievements of early Disney films was their use of a multiplane camera. Check it out below, explained by Mr. Walt Disney himself:

One breakthrough made animation look natural. And it involved a clown dancing on a roof.

In this episode of Vox Almanac, Phil Edwards explores the beginning of rotoscoping, a technique animators can use to create realistic motion. Invented by Max Fleischer of Fleischer Studios (and echoed and practiced by many others), it involves taking filmed footage and using it as a traceable model for animation. The results are fluid and natural in a way animation had never been before.

As the above video shows, it started with Max’s brother Dave dancing on a roof in a clown costume. Footage of that was then used to model the classic Koko the Clown cartoons, which formed the basis for many Fleischer Studios films. Today, animators still use techniques like rotoscoping to turn real movement into animation.

Check out the original patent here.
 

The 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo are fast approaching and the official art posters for the games have just been unveiled and they’re awesome!

The organizing committee unveiled 20 official posters for both the Olympic and Paralympic Games. We have shared a selection of our personal favourites below and you can see all of the official art posters here.

“As animals, each human being grasps the world with totally different perceptions. We see the world through our own umwelts. None are the same. No words are identical. No light is identical. lf the Olympic Games prepare themselves for that and address it honestly, then in time, a new ecosystem, filled with the senses, for a small organism, will begin to function.” – Artist, Tomoko Konoike

“I imagined the gods of sports descending on Japan from a sky filled with clouds resembling turbulent waves. The compositional motif was taken from Katsushika Hokusai’s print, The Great Wave off the Coast of Kanagawa. Deciding on the color of Mt. Fuji was difficult, but I finally settled on a honey color.” – Artist, Hirohiko Araki

“Sports manga is a genre of manga almost unique to Japan. Sports manga played a significant role in the evolution and success of Japanese manga because the weekly serial comic was the perfect format for capturing the excitement of sporting events. Manga artists through the ages have committed their talent to conveying the thrill of heated matches and games. Concluding with the line, “To be continued!” each weekly episode has left readers on the edge of their seats, just like watching a real match. This is a new work created exclusively for the Olympic Games. It is my attempt at representations that transcend sporting events, race and gender. Everybody gets a turn. Now it’s your turn!” – Artist, Naoki Urasawa

“Calligraphy has a history of over 3,000 years, and is a major pillar of Japanese culture and arts. I have continued to explore the history of calligraphy, and sought to create and exhibit works of calligraphy that are of our time. For my motif for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games Art Project, I chose the character “開” (“open”) out of tens of thousands of Chinese characters, and an infinite number of words.
 
‘Your entire body and soul open completely toward the universe. That is what I call an explosion.’ Underlying my work are the words artist Taro Okamoto chose to express his creative approach and philosophy. I imagined Olympic and Paralympic athletes working toward new heights every day, and told myself, “Open, open, open!” as I applied brush to paper until I felt myself to be completely “open.” I hope athletes and support staff gathering in Japan from around the world for this enormous festive event, as well as each and every one of us who is supporting the Games, will open our minds wide to our own possibilities, so that this celebration of peace can be carried on by future generations.” – Artist, Koji Kakinuma

“Moving forward. Human aspiration for ceaseless progress removes physical limits, removes handicaps and leaps over the boundaries of nationalities and gender. Each life living in the present in 2020—I wanted to capture all of them, equally, in their beautiful and iconic shapes.
 
The work’s main motif is an individual who moves forward. Arms swinging boldly, feet hitting the ground with full force. This primitive embodiment of movement represents the determination of all Paralympians trying to move forward toward a surer future. The work pays homage to what each and every athlete has achieved, and to the history of human endeavor and progress.” – Graphic designer, GOO CHOKI PAR

“Of the numerous sporting events, what should I choose as my subject matter? I decided on wheelchair basketball because I have watched various matches live, which resonated with me. The full-on engagement of players and their tremendous speed and strength makes the games extremely heated. I chose bright, uplifting colors. The crowd is totally enthralled by the passionate matches. Players are giving it their all. I tried to capture that energy using bright colors. I sincerely hope viewers, whether they are feeling cheerful or down, will be inspired and encouraged by the courage of the athletes, and by the appeal and compelling power of para sports.” – Artist, Tomoyuki Shinki

“Multicolored spherical celestial bodies hurtling through space at the speed of light. Never-to-be-repeated chance encounters of vivid, sparkling colors and heavenly beings—I was imagining an Olympic scene far removed from Earth. A pink figure appears out of nowhere. Without so much as a blink, the figure nonchalantly does kick-ups with a bright red ball. Is this the “god of games”? When Tokyo hosted the Olympic Games back in 1964, I was at elementary school, where we did papercutting in class. So I decided to create my imagined universe in papercutting. I cut out unfinished artwork and, along with scraps of printed matter and random bits of colored paper found in the studio, threw it in the air. And the “Space Kicker” spontaneously appeared where the multicolored fragments had landed.” – Artist, Shinro Ohtake

“It is unthinkable till now that skateboarding has become an Olympic sport as it seems contrary to its rebellious culture. Skateboarding has a language of its own and being a relatively new sport it is continually evolving and is a synthesis of art, design, fashion, music, and even having gestures of its own. There are three layers to this piece of work.
 
Firstly, Extreme Revelation conceived out of rebellious thinking. Skateboarding grind marks subverted to like brush strokes. Crisscrossing, working and reworking in the pursuit of articulation in perfection. Secondly, the cumulative layers of concrete, metallic, materials often associated with the sport represents the uncertainty, darkness and oppression. Yet, the extremely bright colours bursting forth from within celebrates youthfulness and brazen spirit which cannot be repress. Thirdly, the cryptic inversion of the numerals and figurative graphic which are almost invisible, question if there are merits in the established order.” – Artist, Theseus Chan

“Numerous lines intersect in this world: Lines of vision; parabola; boundaries; threads of narrative foreshadowing; and many more. At times becoming entangled with one another and at times coming loose, these countless lines form images in space, and in our minds and bodies. This work represents the anticipated line of movement of the Olympic flame from Greece to Tokyo for the 2020 Games, and the more than 800 municipalities on the course of the torch relay in Japan. What could possibly link an individual with an event in which world-class athletes compete? It is not easy to grasp what does connect a huge-scale event with an individual—such connections can be erratic, or elusive. Even in a diverse world full of confusing tangles of such difficult-to-define lines, I wish to maintain hope in the fact that the world has artworks that touch our hearts, and has places where our bodies can bask in excitement.” – Graphic designer, Daijiro Ohara

“The artwork I have produced for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games presents the image of a high jumper, arching in front of the red circle of the sun. The artist is performing a universal leap as signified in the achievements of the Olympic Games. The high jumper is employing the high jump technique popularized by the pioneering American athlete Dick Fosbury, the Fosbury Flop, showing the figure leaning into the jump, his body in rotation. A diaphanous female figure is visible, emerging from behind. In the vertical banner to the right of the image, the 33 sports that will feature in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games are listed, and the names of the sports are just discernible again in the colourful waterfall behind the leading outstretched arm of the jumper.” – Artist, Chris Ofili

“Beyond the Curve (Five Thousand Rings)
High rises that look like bar charts
Junctions that look like intestines
Streets that feel like gingivae underneath your feet
Behind the birth of a new “Ultra C”
I give the cerebellum a prod with a brain spatula
Colorful mud
Heated bones and gusts around tall buildings
Springs made of air
Transparent curves”
– Artist, Chihiro Mori

A self-described ‘photorealist’, Dylan Eakin is an incredible artist best known for his hyperrealistic charcoal portraits.

Currently based in Seattle, Washington, Eakin says his amazing portraits take around 100 hours (give or take) each. In an interview with Artzine he adds:

As far as the reasons behind working in photorealism, it can get a bit tricky. With this genre, the art is so much more than the final product. For me, it’s an exploration of medium, an exercise in precision and self-discipline, and an attempt to engineer myself and my tools to produce the work of a machine.
 
The absolute hardest thing to draw are light textures on light surfaces, it takes a super subtle hand, and way more restraint than I have the patience for. But I’m also going to take this as a chance to vent some frustrations about highlights. Highlights are impossible. Not difficult, impossible. Because there’s no way to make a 2-dimensional charcoal drawing emit light. It took me a couple of years to come to terms with that. [source]

Below you will find some of Dylan’s remarkable work. I also embedded some timelapse videos so you can see how his portraits take shape from beginning to end. If you’re interested in purchasing his original works click here. To see more, check him out at the links below!

Artwork by Pedro Demetriou

In this awesome poster we see the iconic JOKER character through the ages, from 1940-2019. All 20 Jokers were illustrated by artist Pedro Demetriou and they are available as prints through Etsy.

While this is an admirable collection, the poster is missing some Joker characters from various series including: The Man Who Laughs; Telltale Joker; The Joker in the Harley Quinn series; Batman Beyond: Return of Joker etc.

Now, pick your top 3!

Artwork by Pedro Demetriou

Artwork by Pedro Demetriou

Artwork by Pedro Demetriou

Artwork by Pedro Demetriou

In an ongoing series of works, American abstract artist Tyler Foust uses a single, continuous line to create amazing illustrations like the one above.

It’s fun to start at one end of the line and just trace along with your eyes or finger through the artwork. Below you will see some of our personal favourites, but you can find many more at the links below along with links to prints, patterns, and more.

Also be sure to check out the timelapse video embedded below to get a sense of how the pieces comes together.

[via Tyler Foust on reddit]

Artwork by Banksy

Feels like an appropriate time to once again send our love, gratitude, and respect to all of the healthcare professionals around the world battling this pandemic. Thank you.

Philippines-based illustrator Kerby Rosanes (featured previously) works mainly with ink, fineliners and markers to illustrate his “doodle” world.

At 28, Kerby has already published ten books including The New York Times best-seller, Animorphia in 2015, which is now available in 30 language editions in over 40 countries.

In an ongoing series entitled Sketchbook Illustrations, Kerby fills moleskines with not just quick concepts, doodles, and ideas; but fully fleshed out works of art—transforming the concept of a sketchbook into a beautiful work of art unto itself.

The featured doodles and illustrations below are from Kerby’s 2016-2017 sketchbooks, all done using markers and multiliners on Moleskine pocket sketchbooks. For more incredible work from Rosanes, check him out at the links below.

“Stolen” is a powerful series by artist Adrian Brandon that is dedicated to Black people that were robbed of their lives at the hands of police.

The 11 x 14″ portraits were first drawn with graphite. Brandon then used time as a medium to define how long each portrait was colored in for. 1 year of life = 1 minute of color.

The gripping results are unfinished portraits of people whose lives were cut short. Brandon explains:

Tamir Rice was 12 when he was murdered, so I colored his portrait for 12 minutes. As a person of color, I know that my future can be stolen from me if I’m driving with a broken taillight, or playing my music too loud, or reaching for my phone at the wrong time. So for each of these portraits I played with the harsh relationship between time and death. I want the viewer to see how much empty space is left in these lives, stories that will never be told, space that can never be filled. This emptiness represents holes in their families and our community, who will be forever stuck with the question, “who were they becoming?” This series touches on grief and the unknown.

The original series of portraits were exhibited at Brandon’s first solo show in November 2019. He has since updated the series to include more recent portraits including George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. To see more of Adrian’s powerful work, please visit the links below.

[via Kottke]

“I feel rushed as I create these pieces. I want to complete their portraits so badly. To be able to see all the layers of colors in their face come to life. I feel a strong sense of panic during the process, which is a feeling Black people experience far too often when engaging with police. The timer (which I cannot see) is always in the back of my mind. How much time is left? When will this be over? I need more time… They deserve more time.”