This week in the art dungeon
Some weeks the work pulls you in two completely different directions, and that's when things get interesting. This week I split time between a personal piece for an art show and a commission that kept surprising me as it developed. Different moods, different challenges, but both reminded me why I love making things by hand.
The Route 66 Centennial show piece started without a clear plan. I fell back on my usual: just draw a skull. After blocking in the shadows and adding a simple blue wash, the flaws became obvious. I'd added "918" on a whim (trying to tie in local Tulsa flavor) but it felt meaningless and looked worse.
Did it fit the theme? Sort of. Did it look good? Not really.
I almost covered the whole thing with white and started over. One day from deadline, I grabbed some wall plaster instead and smeared it over the top half, keeping only the teeth (spent too much time on those to lose them).
The plaster changed everything. It gave the painting a rough, crumbling quality that pushed the horror tone exactly where it needed to go. Working on a surface with personality means the paint settles into valleys, catches light on peaks, you begin to collaborate with the texture instead of directing it. My favorite moment is where the highlight catches that raised surface. Subtle, but it gives the whole thing an uneasy, almost theatrical feeling.
Whether it fit the show became irrelevant. I was happy with what I'd made.
The D&D commission was a different challenge (character work always is.) When someone hands you their character, there's real weight to that. You're not just making an illustration; you're translating someone's imagination back to them. I worked through concept, sketch, linework, and shading this week. Somewhere in the shading phase, the piece started to breathe. Capturing the character's attitude was my primary goal, and the client was thrilled.
Two very different pieces, same core satisfaction: the moment when a technique does exactly what you hoped. That's what keeps me at the desk.
If you are interested in a commissioned piece for yourself or a loved one,
reach out on my socials, or send me an email: skothu23@gmail.com
If you dont quite have the funds for art right now, maybe consider a donation to through our kofi: Support Skoth ❤️
Starting the Week Strong
After a rejuvenating weekend with my kids and quality time tending to my bonsais outdoors, I'm diving back into the studio with fresh energy.
A friend recently reached out asking me to illustrate his DnD character. The backstory is incredibly rich and detailed, so we've been working closely through the sketch phases to bring those elements to life. There's such joy in interpreting characters this way: taking someone's vision and translating it into visual form. It's storytelling work, just like the book.
Speaking of which, I made solid progress on our picture book this week! The current spread features a pair of nesting South African Cliff Swallows. I started with a rough undersketch in purple, as usual. For most of the other animals in the book, I've used bright, contrasting colors to differentiate the mother and father. But these swallows are already quite colorful on their own. The female has slightly more pastel plumage, so I'm leaning into that natural distinction. I'm keeping her tones softer while giving the father more vibrant, saturated colors. He's perched on the outside of their cliffside nest while she nestles inside, keeping their eggs warm.
The creative momentum is strong right now, and I'm grateful for it. Between the DnD commission, the book illustration, two other paintings, and finding time to work on a comic book project, I'm staying wonderfully busy.
If you'd like to support this creative journey and get an inside look at the process, consider becoming a supporter on Ko-fi for as little as $2. Every bit helps keep this momentum going.
https://ko-fi.com/skothandskye
Here we go again…
I could go deep into why I am once again, starting a new project. I could go long into about they woes and heretofore about living with ADHD. but that is NOT what this is about.
WE ARE MAKING A BOOK!!
“Time for Bed is What the Lion Said”
This one line, uttered in a sing-song melody nearly 12 years ago, by a mom who’d just worked a long day, is at the core of this book. A seed planted more than a decade ago, has not only sprouted, but has brought forth luscious greenery that is on the verge of flowering! (did i lose you with the plant metaphor?)
Time for Bed, is What the Lion Said is the title, and premise, of the children’s book that my wife and I have written together. We aren’t ready to share the full poem just yet (need to dangle that carrot, you see). But we will be releasing teasers over time as I work on the illustrations.
We will be seeking traditional publication route for this, which may be a bit risky, but we fully believe in this project as it is in the bedrock of our family.
Work in Progress : three sleepy elephants
I have setup a kofi for those that would like to offer their support, you can find here
Supporters will get sneak previews of art a week earlier than the public, the full poem, and more behind the scenes on not just the book, but various other projects happening in the meantime!
So stay tuned!
With Love,
Scott (Skoth)
A Reflection
An artist friend of mine sent me a reel showing the work of her professor from SCAD, a professional comic artist Robert Atkins
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DN6zGnLDuLq/?igsh=MXMwanN5NW9mejdmNQ==
I had told her that was my original inspiration for getting into art, the dynamic figures and superhuman anatomy drew me in. Comics as a kid was a good 1/4th of my childhood. It's fair to say it shaped my artistic path 🙃
Fast forward, 30 years, and I am where I am now. It would have been incredible to attend an accredited art school and learn from working professionals. But if I had the chance to go back and do it differently, I wouldn't.
I met my wife in college.
That little sentence doesn't mean much to anyone else. But to me, it's everything.
Even though my degree in Graphic Design didn't bring me much. The life I have built with her far out weighs the value of a career that could have been.
The Journey Beginues..
Hello everyone!
I thought I would like to document my day - day / week - week happenings.
And this week has been pretty wild!
On Monday I resigned from a position of an upstart company. There was some not great things I found out about, and decided it was best to leave.
The first couple days were really hard. I had been apart of that company since nearly the beginning.
But since then, I decided to renew focus on the shop! You will start seeing some new things products pop-up and keep an eye out for items on sale 👀
Had a nice break from the summer heat as we’ve been drowning in blissful rain. The cucumber plants we've been growing are all but dead, but amongst the browning vines I discovered new life! A nest of baby bunnies 🐰! (I carefully covered them back after a quick picture, double careful not to touch them)
Life is beautiful y'all
On the art side, I finally began a painting I had the idea for, like, 3 months ago? I'm imagining a cooly-lit skull with its jaws agape and an eerie green glow emitting from within. I've lost a bit of the skull to the background, but I'll continue layering until it comes back out, and I’ll add in some darker colors to increase the contrast.We’ll see how it goes; I am still relatively new with traditional painting, I've only done a handful in my life. But I take a lot from what I've learned doing things digitally.
I suppose it's all cumulative experience, a life of experimenting with so many different mediums.
I cannot imagine a life without art
Work in progress…
