Lovely Bubbly

Azul Ink has again been experimenting in Photoshop this time using shapes - in particular ellipses. Have a look at the result and the original image:


The original image:

The design after:
Original image - Chelsea Henry. Lovely Bubbly - K. Charles @ Azul Ink. Copyright protected. Model - Chelsea Henry.

The Art of: Close-ups

Azul Ink brings you the second installation of our "The Art of" series. This one looks at normal everyday objects through a zoom lens. Please enjoy: (click to get an even closer close-up)






Azul Ink wishes to thank game designer and part-time amateur photographer Kevin Charles for his work.

Keep clicking back for more of Azul Ink's "The Art of" pieces.

Closeups & Textures - by Kevin Charles. Copyright protected.

The Joker

Azul Ink thought that this sketch of The Joker from the comic/movie Batman, was absolutely fantastic and therefore decided it merited a post. The sketch was done by DC Comic's artist Jim Lee. Have a look: (click to enlarge)

This portrait of the joker was done in pencil, inks, ink wash and Tippex.

The Joker - by Jim Lee. Copyright protected.

Thanks to Shortlist magazine.

Psychedelic Steve Jobs

Azul Ink found another great piece of work done by the artist Charis Tsevis. It is a collage of Apple founder Steve Jobs in his younger, hippy days.


The collage was made using old and kitsch Apple II advertisements from the late 70s and early 80s. Below is a close up of the image:


Psychedelic Steve Jobs - by Charis Tsevis. Copyright protected.

Sketchez Mini: Sally

Another sketch but in a mini format. It was quickly and roughly done on notepaper. Comments are welcomed. Behold:


Sally - by K.Charles @ Azul Ink. Copyright protected.

Sketchez: Pots and Pans

Another of Azul Ink's sketchez. Hopefully the quality is getting better bit by bit. Remember Azul Ink is not a born illustrator. Please enjoy (please click to enlarge):



Pots and Pans - by K.Charles @ Azul Ink. Copyright protected.

Early Logo Designs

Azul Ink has once again decided to open her dust covered, moth eaten, old sketch books in a throw back to the past and this time has decided to look at her earliest logo designs. Have a loo and let Azul Ink know what you think by leaving your comments below.














All images and logos are copyrighted and registered to Kim Charles @ Azul Ink.

Early Illustrator Works

Azul Ink loves meddling around on Adobe Illustrator and has opened her journal to allow you to take a peek at Azul Ink's early Illustrator Drawings and Designs. (Click to enlarge)












All images are copyrighted and registered to Kim Charles @ Azul Ink

Spotlight On: Sian Owen

Today Azul Ink is shining its oh-so-bright spotlight on Sian Owen a talented graphic designer and photographer. Sian has a lot of work and Azul Ink has a little space so today we focus on Sian's photography and tomorrow we check out her graphic design work. (You know the drill, click to enlarge):


Sian has a knack of taking beautiful landscape and scenery pictures and this one is no different. what makes Sian's pictures so much different is the interesting places she finds to take photos of.

Azul Ink Rating: 9/10



This photograph shows what Sian Owen is all about quirky, fun and thinking outside of the box. Making the seemingly uninteresting, interesting!

Azul Ink Rating: 8.5/10



Azul Ink just says wow when looking at this photograph. Once again Sian has picked a stunning location to shoot this photo that is pretty enough to be made into a desktop background or screen saver.

Azul Ink Rating: 10/10



Lovely typical example of great landscape photography by Miss Owen here. In Azul Ink's humble opinion it should be made into a postcard.

Azul Ink Rating: 9/10



Sian gathers her stunning images with her trusty high resolution digital SLR camera ensuring quality in every shot.

Azul Ink Rating: 9/10



Here we go the artist herself. A lovely photo turned into perfection itself by some enhancing photo manipulations. Stunning.

Azul Ink Rating: 9.5/10



Azul Ink Final Verdict: As a photographer Sian Owen is certainly on her way. Her photos are exceptionally creative without the need for any photo manipulations or Photoshop trickery. Azul Ink thinks Sian should expand into portraits to be complete as a great photographer.

Tomorrow Azul Ink will feature some of Sian's graphic designs, however if you can't wait 'til then head on over to her blog http://sianowencreative.blogspot.com/ for more of her great work.

Spotlight On: Kevin Charles

Today Azul Ink shines its spotlight on a young, aspiring games design artist; a Mr Kevin Charles. Below Azul Ink takes a close look at some of his work: (Click to enlarge)



This is the first of Kevin Charles' five pieces of work Azul Ink is featuring today. This piece called Star Man is one of Kevin's first character designs. This design has the strong influences of the BAPE style of design, bold outlines and block colours.

Azul Ink Rating: 8.5/10



This Kevin's second piece of art work is a painting of a character from the game Grand Theft Auto. The attention to detail in this particular piece of work is astounding with much attention being paid to getting the shading right. The shading makes this painting and Kevin did a wonderful job in getting it right with a limited colour palette.

Azul Ink Rating: 9.5/10



Another of Kevin's early character designs it follows a similar style as his Star Man character design. Although a slightly softer block colour was used here the bold outline of the distinctive style is still clearly visible.

Azul Ink Rating: 7/10




A motley of character and object designs this piece clearly reflects Kevin's preferred BAPE-esque, cartoonistic style of drawing. All characters are first hand drawn by Kevin before being either painted or digitally manipulated. The bold, block colours add a sense of fun.

Azul Ink Rating: 8/10


The last of Kevin's featured designs the playful design of an elephant man done in the same style as some of the previous work featured. Simple shapes are often used in these designs as can be seen in this piece. Circles, half circles, ovals and a rectangle are a few of the shapes used to flesh out the character's design in this piece.

Azul Ink Rating: 8/10



Azul Ink Final Verdict: With the right guidance and direction this young aspiring artist can go on to great things. Azul Ink feels he is following the right path in games character design as his superior drawing skills, as well as his painting and design skills, will hold him in good stead. He simply needs to broaden his style and add a splash more of thinking-out-of-the-box creativity and he'll be there.

Azul Ink will keep you posted on this young artists career and designs so watch this space!

Featured Artist: Ronny Lufwa

Today Azul Ink talks to print designer and future web designer Ronny Lufwa. See his painting of Azul Ink's owner and his witty interview below:

Azul Ink: Hey Ronny. How are you today?

Ronny Lufwa: I'm doing good. How 'bout you?

AI: Azul Ink is fine. Well today you're our featured artist. So tell us, which artist inspires you?

RL: Myself *laughs depreciatively* No in all seriousness I like Patrick Boyer.

AI: Any particular reasons why?

RL: I like his style of design and I like the way he uses different images to create his montages.

AI: So what area of design are you in?

RL: Originally I started out in printing and print design. Recently I've been contemplating on moving into web design and animation.

AI: Azul Ink is wondering.. what triggered this change?

RL: I wouldn't say its a change, I just wanna be more flexible you know? I want to be able to create my own websites and design web content. Plus I believe that the print industry is on the way down and you know, the Internet is the way forward.

AI: How many websites have you designed so far then Mr. L?

RL: I'd say three websites.

AI: What programmes do you use to create your sites? Are you a Flash man or more of a Dreamweaver?

RL: I use Adobe Photoshop to design interfaces and Dreamweaver to build and complete the website. However, I've recently learned to design websites using Flash and I think I'm in love. I mean, it's soo much easier.

AI: Well Azul Ink is impressed, she too is a Flash girl. So Mr Lufwa talk us through the work you have done for the owner of Azul Ink...a painting I believe?

RL: Yes I took a picture of the owner and after looking at it, it inspired me to do a painting of it using Photoshop. It was my first attempt as well. It wasn't hard but required alot of patience. I had to match the skin tone and use the correct brush tool to paint. It was a good experience you know and I think it came out all right. I'm definitely gonna do it again.

AI: Azul Ink's owner thought it was more than all right as it is now her display pic on blogger! So well done Mr Lufwa! And thanks for your time.

RL: Cheers mate!

See Ronny Lufwa's painting below( click to enlarge) and look out for more featured artist interviews by Azul Ink.

Welcome!

Just a quick post to tell what Azul Ink is all about. It is the name for a creative magazine that I will be working on in the near future, but I thought I'd start it out as a blog first as I decide what direction it should take on. In the meanwhile this blog is dedicated to all things creative: my work as well as others that inspire me whether it be new media, contemporary arts, sculpture, fashion or interior design. If it looks good and has a great creative edge it'll be featured here. I'll also be featuring and interviewing up-and-coming young, fresh artists every week.

Thats all for now. Keep checking back for updates and why not become a follower to keep up to date with all Azul Ink news and postings.