Art by Ben Hartnett

Yes, it’s that time again. Not having a computer of my own that wasn’t dead, and the other computer I could have used being occupied by someone else, I decided to use my trusty coloured pencils. The stripes were added at the last minute in simple photo-editing software.

I try to complete these Intense Titanium pictures in an hour. Usually it takes longer, sometimes by quite a while, but this time it was right on the button. A figurative button, of course, although it could be argued that several buttons were used (but not harmed) in the creation of this picture.

More for the mighty jewellery store! This pic simply introduces two new titanium rings in the range. I did this one in the free version of Twistedbrush, with a Wacom Graphire 3 tablet. I didn’t use a pencil sketch this time.

Another one drawn with oil pastels. The smell isn’t pleasant, though!

E-newsletter art for Intense Titanium, with an emphasis on the hypoallergenic properties of titanium earrings. This means that titanium doesn’t cause allergic reactions like other popular metals. How do you draw something that isn’t happening? I could have showed someone’s gold earrings causing a disturbing reaction but I didn’t think pus-filled infection was the way to go! I just went for a general feeling of health and vitality.

This picture shows another change in colouring method. I used oil pastels, since I couldn’t find my coloured pencils and I didn’t have access to a computer set up for painting! These pastels encourage boldness with colour and make it hard to get caught up in detail (I generally really like detail). I touched up a couple of things digitally, using a mouse.

The Skinz rings have various patterns which I managed to put into the background. The idea I was given was that the rings help to express something about the individual, so I tried to get across the idea visually with the tiger-stripe ring. I drew the picture in pencil and coloured it digitally.

This illustration has some slightly bolder colours than previous ones for Intense Titanium. The theme was seasonal change, and I attempted to come up with something which would be appropriate for both Spring and Autumn, since the company sells to both the northern and southern hemispheres. I happened to have a motorcyle-based movie dvd handy, which is partly why I sat the bride and groom on a big ol’ bike! The items above the couple are titanium cufflinks which were mentioned in the companion text (along with weddings, this being a popular time for them). The illustration was drawn on paper and coloured digitally. The bike was based loosely on a photo.

More art for Intense Titanium (see the previous post). In case you haven’t guessed, the theme for this one was Valentine’s Day. I used some photo reference for this  coloured pencil drawing, both for the rose and the ring (although I stylised the rose a bit). A look is still being developed for the art, and it will probably be a fairly organic process. Bolder colour work will be a probable next step. The picture is shown at the size it was used at.

This is an e-newsletter illustration for the Intense Titanium online jewellery store, announcing the arrival of several new ring types and a new pendant. The image above is shown at the size it was used in the newsletter. This one was all done in pencil, with the colours and contrast beefed up a bit digitally. I had some photo reference for the rings. I’ve done a couple of pics for the newsletter before (the schedule is about once a month), but did them digitally and in a less ‘intense’ style. I’d post them but the relevant hard drives are currently inaccessible…