monstergram7 Hits 4,500+ Followers on Instagram

To mark the recent event of my Instagram feed surpassing 4,500 followers, I drew Tuff-Girl and her dog Wichita celebrating that same event. She just happened to be dressed in semi-western attire. The construction sketch and inking was caught in a time-lapse video (above).

Follow me on Instagram: @monstergram7

Hitting 4,000+ July 2018

Hitting 3,800+ January 2018

Hitting 3,000+ August 2017

Hitting 2,500+ April 2017

Hitting 2,000+ November 2016

Wonder Woman

Watercolor on watercolor paper.
12.70 cm x 17.78 cm (5.00 in. x 7.00 in.)

Here in this conceptual art for a poster for the 2017 movie, Wonder Woman, I attempted watercolor over graphite pencil draft, foregoing the black India Ink line work that I have been practiced on in most little drawings posted on my Instagram and comic stories.

I think Gal Gadot's likeness got away from me in the process.

The color palette is the result of initiating a brown underpainting to establish tone, then adding color. Knowing that the set of watercolor that I used doesn't result in very rich colors, I accepted an overall muted appearance.

[read my short review]

Logan

Black pencil and watercolor on watercolor paper. 

12.70 cm x 17.78 cm (5.00 in. x 7.00 in.).

Beauty and the Beast

Black India Ink and watercolor on watercolor paper.
12.7 cm x 17.8 cm (5.00 in. x 7.00 in.)

 Re: the 2017 live-action treatment of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast: I liked it.

Black India Ink watercolor paper.

In this concept for poster, I was inspired by the marketing piece painted by Drew Struzan for the 1991 animated feature. The style is inspired by Art Deco designers like Alphonse Mucha. Compositionally, I wanted to vignette away details the farther they were from the faces, which is why Belle’s arm just disappears. The likenesses aren’t 100% spot on, I’ll admit.

[my quick review]

What Shall I Draw April 23rd?

My next session of “What Shall I Draw Today?” is happening this coming Sunday, April 23rd. During a 8-hour block, I will draw selected suggestions posted on Instagram, Facebook and here on this blog.

To make may for fresh, new suggestions, the virtual suggestion box will be cleared out. Suggestions may be posted from now until the end of the WSIDT session at any of the following places where you see the image above (I may miss your suggestions if you post any place else):

• monotonae (this blog):  here in the comments.

• Instagram:  @monstergram7

• Facebook: @I’m a fan of Bryan Mon #BryanMon

“Joe” (Clint Eastwood from Fistful of Dollars)
Color pencil on collector card size Bristol Board. 

Check out the WSIDT tab above for answers to FAQ.

Disney Princess / Sex and the City mash-up.
Color pencil and black ink on “jumbo” card size Bristol Board. 

What Shall I Draw Today?

Sunday, April 23rd, 2017

Eastern Daylight Time:  12pm - 8 pm

Pacific Daylight Time:  9am - 5 pm

“Sophia Willow” mash-up
Color pencil and black ink on collector card size Bristol Board. 

All pieces drawn will be put up for sale at my next comic convention show.

collector card size: 6.35 cm x 8.89 cm (2.50 in. x 3.50 in.)

“Jumbo” card size: 12.7 cm x 17.8 cm (5.00 in. x 7.00 in.)

The LEGO Batman Movie

Black India Ink and watercolor on watercolor paper.
12.7 cm x 17.8 cm (5.00 in. x 7.00 in.)

Black India Ink and graphite on watercolor paper.

Graphite on watercolor paper.

Read my quick review on “That’s Good Spam”

[The LEGO Batman Movie]

What Shall I Draw March 26th?

Happening this Sunday, March 26th, is my next session of “What Shall I Draw Today?” during which I draw selected suggestions posted on Instagram, Facebook and here on the blog (specifically in the comments of this post). Because the 6 hours of the two previous sessions weren’t quite long enough, while “all day” still hinders significant progress on issue #3 of Unstoppable Tuff-Girl, I am try expanding it to 8 hours.

The virtual suggestion box will be cleared out of previous ideas to make room for fresh, new ones. Suggestions may be posted from now until the end of WSIDT at any of the following places where you see the image above:

• monotonae (this blog):  here in the comments.

• Instagram:  @monstergram7

• Facebook:  @ I'm a fan of Bryan Mon #BryanMon

Again make sure you post your suggestions where you see the image above for March 26th. I may not be catch them in the comments of other posts.

Moomin
Color pencil and black ink on Bristol Board.
6.35 cm x 8.89 cm (2.50 in. x 3.50 in.).

Check out the “WSIDT” tab at top for answers to FQAs and the 2017 schedule.

Singing Harp (Mickey and the Beanstalk)
Color pencil and black ink on Bristol Board.
6.35 cm x 8.89 cm (2.50 in. x 3.50 in.).

Thanks and see you Sunday.

What Shall I Draw Today?

Sunday, March 26th, 2017

12:00 noon - 8:00 pm EDT

Baby Houseman (Jennifer Grey, Dirty Dancing)
Color pencil and black ink on Bristol Board.
6.35 cm x 8.89 cm (2.50 in. x 3.50 in.).

Pieces drawn will be put up for sale at WonderCon at my Small Press table “Monster Enterprises.”

Sketchin’ and the Rain

 Some rain themed sketches from my archives:

Kathy Selden
(Singin’ in the Rain)

Don Lockwood
(Singin’ in the Rain)

“Couple in the Rain”

Kathy Sleden and Don Lockwood were the Singing’ in the Rain (MGM 1959) characters played respectively by Debbie Reynolds and Gene Kelly. Ever willing as I am to reference classic Hollywood films, my caricature of Debbie Reynolds popped up last November as just another Instagram sketch post.

The Gene Kelly caricature was a suggestion from last month’s (January) What Shall I Draw Today? (WSIDT) session. It’s rather difficult to not depict the iconic “Gene hanging off a lamppost” image for anything recognizable from the film.

The third image was another WSIDT suggestion, although entirely generic and not intended to allude to the classic musical.

Please check out my Instagram feed: @monstergram7

Please Read more about WSIDT by clicking the tab at the top of the page.


All: Color pencil and black ink on Bristol Board. 6.35 cm x 8.89 cm (2.50 in. x 3.50 in.)

Hidden Figures

Conceptual drawing

Water color and black India Ink on watercolor paper. 

12.7 cm x 17.8 cm (5.00 in. x 7.00 in.)

2017

In making this poster for the illustration of my review of Hidden figures, I kept thing as simple as possible by focusing on portraits of the main characters. Circles are always powerful focusing elements and the NASA logo/ insignia is basically a blue circle. Of course, in it’s simplicity, I allow myself to more quickly move on to other things like house cleaning and working on the next art piece.

Link to my 5-point review of Hidden Figures @ That’s Good Spam

Rogue One

Conceptual poster design
Black India Ink and water color on watercolor paper.
12.7 cm x 17.8 cm (5.00 in. x 7.00 in.)
2017

Here’s my poster to illustrate my review of the movie, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story on That’s Good Spam, my “bookmark” blog.

Similar to the design conceit for many movie posters, this one features almost exclusively the film’s characters. I attempted to weight the character scales pretty equally, with the primary protagonist, Jyn Erso played by Felicity Jones, at the top and centered. All the rest are members of the resistance/rebels if not of the team of the film’s name. I didn’t go far for reference, as I did base all of the character images off of the same one poster used in actual marketing. The vertical, scratchy lines was initially inherent of the fine quill tip ink pen. Rather than going in with solid back areas, I kept the tight hatching liking the overall rough, unfinished appearance as if it contrasted with the sleek polished aesthetic of the film’s galactic empire.

I chose to only reference the galactic empire by the partial Death Star weapon at the top. No Darth Vader. No AT-AT’s. This by no mean signifies that I have planned a contrasting sister poster of Imperial characters. It was entirely a decision of economy.

[link to my review of Rogue One]

[link to That’s Good Spam]

Moana

conceptual poster design

Black India Ink and watercolor on watercolor paper. 

17.8 cm x 12.7 cm (7.00 in. x 5.00 in.)

2016

Here’s my poster to serve as the illustration for my review of the movie on my “bookmark” blog That’s Good Spam, as I’ve begun this summer. Despite the fact that monotonae is a nine year old blog and That’s Good Spam is a seven year old blog, it’s taken an Instagram feed with its hunger for daily postings for me to make real my idea to create original illustrations to pair with my ramblings and reviews.

In this image I use the cropping to help hide the weird fish-eye-lens perspective I’ve attempted to draw. Having drawn Moana character art for Disney’s licensed consumer products, I know too well the challenge of drawing Maui’s intricate tattoos. Moana’s sailing outrigger canoe offers its challenges as most vehicles do with their comparative sizes in compositions highlighting characters.

Then there’s Pua the pig. His inclusion in this marketing-aligned mix of characters is not accurate to the film’s final story.

Regarding my Consumer Products work, I’ve yet to see any of it used on actual product. As with the launches of nearly all CGI family films and modern digital printing, most non sculpted products try to make use of the CGI images. The accompanying cel-animation style “drawn” character art may be used for things like “color me” place mats and the basis for enamel cloisonné pins and embroidery. The stylized Mona paintings sported by Disney Store items was created by Disney artist Ricky de Los Angeles.

[link to That’s Good Spam]

[link to my review of Moana]

[link to Ricky de Los Angeles’ Instagram]

monstergram7 - September & October 2016

Postings on my my Instagram feed, monstergram7, in the months of September and October were bolstered respectively by the year’s last “What Shall I Draw Today?” session and then by Inktober themed posts doubled by final color versions.

November and December ought to normalize to my 6 post per week pace, hopefully featuring more peeks of the in-production issue #3 of Unstoppable Tuff-Girl.

You can check out monstergram7 here:
https://www.instagram.com/monstergram7/

Doctor Strange

Conceptual poster design.

Black ink and water color on watercolor paper. 

12.7 cm x 17.8 cm (5.00 in. x 7.00 in.)

The Magnificent Seven

conceptual poster.
Black India Ink and water color on water color paper.
17.8 cm x 12.7 cm (7.00 in. x 5.00 in.)
2016

[What I thought about the film]

Storks

conceptual poster design

Black India Ink and water color on watercolor paper. 

17.8 cm x 12.7 cm (7.00 in. x 5.00 in.)

monstergram7 - July & August 2016

Well, I’ve maintained posting pretty regularly at a rate of no fewer than six times a week on Instagram during the summer months of July and August. The end-of-the-month “What Shall I Draw Today?” sessions are definitely helping me build up an original art stock to sell at my few comic book convention showings.

If it’s true that there’s an audience for everything, then the random WSIDT suggestions may meet those demands.

You can check out my Instagram feed, a.k.a. monstergram7, here:
https://www.instagram.com/monstergram7/

What Shall I Draw on September 25th?

This coming Sunday, September 25th, I’ll be conducting another “What Shall I Draw Today?” session. The virtual suggestion box has been emptied  of all previous suggestions to make way for new ones accepted from now until the end of that Sunday. As always, you may submit your suggestions through any of these social media feeds where you see the information card above:

Instagram @ monstergram7
Facebook @ bryan.l.mon
Facebook @ I'm a Fan of Bryan Mon #bryanmon
Here on monotonae in this post’s comments.

Be sure to check out the WSIDT page tab above for guidelines and FAQ’s.

This will be the last WSIDT session of the 2016, so let’s see how crazy things get.

Calvin and Hobbes
collector card

Snow White/ Rapunzel mash-up
collector card

Glinda the Good Witch
(The Wizard of Oz) collector card

Collector cards: color pencil and black ink on Bristol Board. 6.35 cm x 8.89 cm (2.50 inn. x 3.50 in.).

Kubo and the Two Strings

conceptual poster design

Black ink and watercolor on watercolor paper. 

17.8 cm x 12.7 cm (7.00 in. x 5.00 in.)

What I Drew Sunday - August 28th

Here are the top 3 “liked” drawings from last Sunday’s session of “What Shall I Draw Today?”

#1 - Spider-Gwen: suggested by merrillonia

#2 - Doc Brown & Marty McFly (Back to the Future): suggested by meghan.art

#3 - Beast Boy & Raven (Teen Titans Go!): suggested by colaspice

And here is the whole Sunday set of sketches:

If you were wondering, all of these will be folded into my stock of little original drawings to be sold at Long Beach Comic Con in September. It’s first-come-first-served.

THANKS to everybody who submitted drawing suggestions. If I didn’t get to your suggestion this time, please toss ’em in again the next time.
THANKS to everybody who voted with their “likes” on Instagram and Facebook and for following me at those feeds.

To view all 22 drawings and more, please check out my feed on Instagram @monstergram7.


There’s just 1 more WSIDT session left this year, September 25.

Suicide Squad

Suicide Squad (2016)
conceptual poster image

Black ink and watercolor on watercolor paper. 

12.7 cm x 17.8 cm (5.00 in. x 7.00 in.)

2016