Artist Interview – Dan Smith

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Who are you and what do you do?

My name is Dan Smith (aka Smithy) and I am a pencil artist. I specialize in sensible drawing which commenced off utilizing graphite and charcoal pencils but I have now observed my own design and style with coloured pencils.

 

Why do you do what you do?

I want to inspire people and present them that by way of regularity and daily practice of your craft you can accomplish what ever you want to do. Drawing and making art is the only factor that absolutely calms and relaxes me. I appreciate the method of producing a drawing from a blank piece of paper to showing persons the development, to the finished drawing. I really feel like it is my calling in everyday living and it genuinely drives me to produce myself and my techniques. Also, I have noticed the happiness that my do the job can provide to people today when I have drawn a family member or place two or a few pictures alongside one another from family who have handed and it tends to make me pretty grateful to be capable to do what I do.

 

What inspires your artwork?

There is no just one particular factor that conjures up me. My accurate inspiration will come from seeking to challenge myself. I generate a portrait or drawing and on my subsequent drawing, I normally want to attract anything that will be more difficult to create or a distinctive system so that I am regularly building my capabilities. Looking at other artists make these attractive and realistic do the job is also a huge driver for me as properly as realising how handy and wonderful the art local community is.

 

How and when did you get into art?

I started out drawing in December 2019. I began drawing when my spouse asked me to attract her grandparents and was purely just to give myself a new passion. I pretty much started practicing for an hour or two when I was in bed watching the Television just before I went to slumber. I posted it on social media and people started loving my drawings so it drove me to retain going and continue to keep improving.

 

How has your observe improved about time?

I began off with graphite pencils and then went on to begin together with charcoal in my drawings. I started pursuing some terrific coloured pencil artists and liked how fascinating the system was with the various levels to create the finished product. Considering that then I have focussed on colored pencil drawings and making an attempt to enhance my expertise.

 

What’s your most loved piece of artwork that you have created? Why?

My favourite piece of artwork I have designed is the drawing of my daughter’s eye. I’d hardly ever performed an eye drawing right before but I just loved the problem and the depth that went into building the do the job. I feel like even when an eye drawing is partly finished it however appears amazing.

 

What’s the finest piece of artwork assistance you’ve been presented?

Be affected individual with by yourself and preserve working towards each one day. Consistency is a massive point in improving your capabilities. There is nothing that compares to observe and there is no shortcut or system that will make you into a fantastic artist overnight. Just retain patient and reliable and you will get to the place you want to be. That’s the case in most things, not just art.

 

What is one particular artwork suggestion/strategy you can share with us that you come across seriously valuable?

Constantly start with the darkest values of the drawing very first. After you have carried out the darkest values you will then be able to uncover your mid-tones a large amount easier, producing realism easier to obtain.

 

Do you have any top secret suggestions or approaches you use to salvage a piece when you make a error?

Hold your pencil levels seriously light as it is a lot easier to rectify. Normally find out from your blunders and to be sincere I just go with my issues and use them as element of the function. If you preserve your pencil layers light-weight you shouldn’t be able to see your oversight.

 

What is your preferred Strathmore paper? Why?

I like the Strathmore Bristol Clean Area paper as the pencils go down onto the paper so normally and effortlessly. An awesome high-quality paper like Strathmore actually makes a difference to your drawing. I have applied other makes but located that the colors go down pretty chalky on to the paper and I could not get the sought after clean blending effect that I needed.

 

 

What sorts of colors are you drawn to for your artwork and why?

I adore sensible skin tones but then, on the other hand, I have done a number of rainbow design portraits which have been just as pleasurable so I’m a bit all above the position with my color alternatives.

 

Do you favor operating in color or black & white?

Color, as I really feel it’s a ton extra free-flowing and you can be a lot far more experimental.

 

Who are your most loved topics to draw?

I love drawing practical human portraits but I have just started off drawing animals which have been a excellent new challenge. It was entirely various from drawing persons and demanded a whole lot far more patience and time but was really pleasurable.

 

Who are your most important influences (or who were when you begun performing art)?

My largest affect is CJ Hendry (@cj_hendry). Her work is just unbelievable and her creative imagination is on a totally new degree. Artists who have really inspired me along my journey so much and who are remarkable artists to look at out are Chris Fitzpatrick (@chrisfitzart), Samantha Messias (@samantha_messias_artwork), and Rachel Dickison (@rd.artistry). They are all so approachable and practical and have supplied me a large amount of wonderful advice together the way.

 

Whats the most widespread art-associated dilemma you get from your followers?

The primary kinds are, “How do I blend so smooth?” and also, “How do I get my proportions?” To mix, I throw down all of the colours that I can see in the segment I am drawing and I burnish with a light-weight color in the opposite route to the pencil strokes which blends every thing collectively easily. For my proportions, I use the grid process or freehand. A excellent tip with the grid system is to use a gentle pencil (5h or 6h) and do the grid so light you can barely see it. Once you have sketched your outlines, use a mono eraser to go together the lines to erase them. You will not be able to see the grid at all soon after this.

 

Website/social media links:

Instagram: @smithy.theartist

Facebook: @smithyyyart

TikTok: @smithy.theartist



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