A while ago, I made this space drawing on Paper by FiftyThree, the iOS app.
It was hugely thanks to Michael Rose and edwinvdbogert's tutorials and tips!
Here are some work-in-progress snaps:
Inspiration
You can see a quick overview of the main inspiration here.
- Michael’s video (first part of a two-part series on drawing outer space in Paper):
As I was writing this, I realised that I actually had quite a few other space doodles before this too ☺️
The first thing I had tried after the tutorials — right before making the Dragon Nebula — was this:
These aren’t meant to be realistic representations of any galaxy, nebula or other heavenly body, by the way 🙂 (in case that wasn’t clear! If so, whoops! I don’t think a planet could be that big next to a galaxy anyway 🤔)
I should specifically mention that Dragon Nebula isn’t inspired by a real nebula or anything. It is rather the opposite — it is totally a fantasy drawing!
Progress
So this was what I started with. And also, this was just playing around! It was the opposite of having an end picture in mind — starting off and making it as I go.
It was very much just the same basic idea from the tutorials — laying down some white/light watercolour on a black background.
A quick rundown
- This was basically just a lot of ‘faux blending’ with the watercolour brush on Paper. That is, if you move your finger light and fast enough, the brush will have a softer edge. (If I could get a FiftyThree Pencil, I would 😍)
Robin’s tutorial on Paper describes it great:
- I used the Pencil tool, along with the color picker, to smoothen some of the sharper edges from the watercolour brush, and also to blend between colors. Compare the harsher edges in the drawing, between these two images:
I sneakily used the colour picker to extract the colours around the sharper edge, and then coloured over the sharper edge 😎
To shape the outline of the nebula/galaxy, I used black watercolour to ‘erase’ the shape out, since the watercolour brush will ‘erase’ with a softer edge than if you did with the eraser tool, and you have more control over how opaque you want it to be. This is a trick from other Paper users (I remember it most distinctly from Angela Kalokairinou, who’s inspired me a lot with her art by the way, and extended what I imagined to be possible to do in Paper!)
Most of it was playing around between sharper rougher edges of smoky dust — or hints of gas clouds — and faded, soft edges of light.
- For faint stars, I used white pencil (a tip from Michael Rose)
And I liked the idea of putting a planet, from both artists 🙂
I meant for this stage to be done initially:
But I think I was having a lot of fun, and I have pictures in mind of spiral galaxies with more than one arm, so that was why I added another one 😋
And as for the centre, I think I first meant it as like a black hole, or the darker spots of galaxies. But while covering up some of the edges that seemed a little rough to me, I ended up making it light, and went with making it glowing.
I like to duplicate very frequently while I’m working, so this is what it looks like in the grid.
I personally love and really value showing lots of progress as I go. Nothing that I make is ever too big to understand, nothing is ever beyond reach of learning. Everything is just built on little steps. And I am constantly learning 😊
I am reminded of this:
Because the most beautiful, complex concepts in the whole universe are built on basic ideas, that anyone can learn, anywhere can understand.
– Khan Academy, in You Can Learn Anything ❤️
But anyway, at least a nice part about recording your work often is that you get to see a process video!
Yup, each frame is a drawing I saved 😁 (By the way, if you’ve used Paper, this is how I made the video. I exported the Grid as images, then I used AirDrop to put it on my computer. Then I imported it as an image sequence in Photoshop — thanks to Adobe, and to my animation class teacher — and then exported as a video.)
Saving separate copies of your artwork/project often along as you go gives you more than just being able to make a video out of it though 🙂
Another bonus is being able to revert to an older version of the artwork and taking it in a different direction, trying something new with it. It frees you to experiment with several branches, and revert back to an older copy afterwards.
This is a big reason that I’ve cited while publishing often on Hopscotch. There’s also something about being able to look back on what you’ve done. Maybe that’s part of the excitement of the process video 🙂
The idea of the process video was inspired by Kelley McMorris making process GIFs for her artwork by the way. Actually, I would also like to thank her for inspiring me to document my drawing progress like this too! I hadn’t actually realised.
And, as always, thanks to the Paper community. Long before this, I had been awed by all the sketches and doodles on there. For this case of space drawings, it was particularly Edwin’s space drawings on Paper (you should definitely check them out! Edit: But wait… Mix has shut down now…)
I wouldn’t have ever gotten to make something like this without Paper’s wonderful community.
Even though I made it in September last year, I hadn’t gotten to actually thank either Michael or Edwin personally yet. That is, until recently, when I showed it to Edwin on PaperPals, and I was honoured that he named it! I’d never really thought about names for my artwork before. So that’s where Dragon Nebula comes from.
Speaking of Paper’s community, Mix, I’m still very sad that it is shutting down very soon 😢 This artwork was one example that was borne of the spirit of the community.
I guess… I guess this brings us back to the Creator’s Code on Paper:
They’re the open mic night where newbies take the stage right after practiced masters. We want to make a place where you feel safe standing where you are, but are also inspired and encouraged to go somewhere you’ve never been.
I very much feel like I have my place as a newer learner right by the practiced masters. And making an artwork like this is somewhere that I’d never thought I’d be.
Now I am more sad about Mix’s end again 😭 I meant to write about Mix another time, so I will leave room for my tribute. 😊