Inspiration

Expand your personal library of references and get to know the work of creatives from various disciplines.

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  • James Chapman on Swapping Microscopes for Acrylic Paint Markers
    Illustration

    James Chapman on Swapping Microscopes for Acrylic Paint Markers

    Illustrator James Chapman on why he chose a career in art after completing a PhD in physics Over the last five years, illustrator designer James Chapman (@jameschapman) has written and illustrated his own books; worked on projects for Disney, Nickelodeon, and Universal as a 2D designer at the animation studio, Brown Bag Films; created viral content for Buzzfeed; and seen his POSCA pen sketchbook series evolve, attracting tens of thousands of followers to his Instagram account. James describes his specialty as “making art that’s cute and colorful and overall entertaining.” James grew up in an artistic household in the West Midlands in England. “My dad was an architect, and my brother was very good at drawing.” Inspired by the talents in the family, he set about practicing his drawing skills at a very young age, producing pictures of the things he liked most (namely Sonic the Hedgehog). Aged 16, he came to a crossroads when picking the subjects he would study at A-level–a decision that would determine what he could go on to study at university. Forced to decide between science and art, he eventually chose science and went on to study physics, right up to PhD level.

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  • 8 Great Concert Photographers You Must Know
    Photography

    8 Great Concert Photographers You Must Know

    Discover some legendary international photographers that immortalized unique musical events Without television and other media platforms, pop, rock, and rap music would hardly have survived. Music created since the second half of the 20th century is essentially visual: it relies on the artist’s exploited image to reach the rest of the world. For this reason, it is easy to understand the importance of the work of concert photographers. These professionals help turn artists into legends through their incredible photos and consecrate them in popular culture history books. Aside from dealing with their musician subjects’ various personalities, concert photographers must also consider many other variables. “ The act of photographing a show requires mastering different equipment, knowledge of photometry, etc. Generally, you’ll have to deal with a great variety of lighting situations and a lot of movement on stage. What you need to ensure good and consistent results in this type of photography is practice: trial and error are what makes us. Trust me: if you can handle this part of the job, you’ll have a great time,” says Bruna Prado, one of the most renowned concert photographers in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. We’ve put together a list of eight fantastic concert photographers—current and historical—, and some of their incredible work, a visual record of some of the best music produced over the last few decades. Jim Marshall Starting our list is Woodstock's official photographer. Born in the US in 1936 (he died in 2010), Jim Marshall’s lens immortalized the muddy apotheosis of peace, love, and excesses that was the most legendary (if not the first) of all big music festivals. A feature published by Rolling Stone magazine claims that his portraits of musical legends Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, Johnny Cash, The Beatles, and Bob Dylan, among many others, "helped define the protagonists of rock, and rock photography itself."

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  • 3 Steps to Become a Happy Full-Time Artist by Claudia Sahuquillo
    Art

    3 Steps to Become a Happy Full-Time Artist by Claudia Sahuquillo

    Visual artist and business mentor Clauda Sahuquillo shares the four steps We all have dreams we’re working towards, but without commitment and consistency it’s all too easy for our big ideas to simply fade away. Not for Claudia Sahuquillo, however. Claudia first caught public attention with her #SkinIsTheNewCanvas campaign where she painted patterns and shapes on naked women’s bodies. Now, an owner of three businesses, a mentor for young creatives, and a thriving full time artist herself, she is living her constantly evolving dream and is determined to show others how they can do the same.

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  • Ed Benguiat: Stranger Things, Esquire and the 600 Creations of a Unique Typographer
    Typography, Calligraphy and Lettering

    Ed Benguiat: Stranger Things, Esquire and the 600 Creations of a Unique Typographer

    A retrospective on the prolific typographer and logo designer, featuring some of his most emblematic creations Ed Benguiat (1924-2020) was an American typographer, designer, and lettering artist whose influence on the creative world is difficult to overstate. In addition to having served as associate director of Esquire magazine—whose logo he designed, he was a prestigious jazz percussionist under the name Eddie Benart, a pilot, a teacher with more than 50 years of experience, and, every now and then, he found the time to retouch some "scandalous" images in magazines.

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  • Top 10: Fantastic Animated Short Films
    Film & Video

    Top 10: Fantastic Animated Short Films

    The most inspiring animated short stories selected by the Domestika community If you are an animation enthusiast, you will already know that the best examples of narrative and animation are not exclusive to feature-length films. Animated short films can tell beautiful stories and often look as spectacular as their full feature counterparts. We asked the Domestika community to tell us what their favorite shorts were, for their production and originality. The following are 10 of the best: Dechen, by Kaukab Basheer (USA, 2012) Using paper and traditional animation techniques, this talented artist tells a beautiful story about love and attachment through the experience of a young novice in a Tibetan monastery.

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  • 7 Writers to Inspire You and Keep You Writing
    Writing

    7 Writers to Inspire You and Keep You Writing

    A selection of authors recommended by writer and professor Shaun Levin South African professor Shaun Levin (@shaun_levin), the author of the short story collection A Year of Two Summers and the novel Seven Sweet Things, believes that inspiration is everywhere. With more than 20 years as a creative writing teacher, he is living proof: he has taught in schools, schools, art galleries, bookstores, cafes, parks, a cemetery, and even in a zoo. In addition to teaching and writing, Levin edits books and literary magazines and has created a series of writing maps to inspire other writers.

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  • Meet Award-winning Illustrator Owen Davey
    Illustration

    Meet Award-winning Illustrator Owen Davey

    Discover the wonderful world of this multi-talented British artist as he tells us about his creative process, influences, and inspiration Owen Davey (@owendaveydraws) is passionate about illustration. His award-winning children’s books have been published in every continent except Antarctica. Working from the English coastal town of Worthing, Owen is known for his geometric vector illustrations, limited color palettes, and his love of drawing animals. Among his clients, he counts Google, Facebook, Sony, The New York Times, National Geographic, Microsoft, Lego, the Two Dot app, and many, many more.

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  • 7 Sustainable Design Studios to Be Inspired By
    Design

    7 Sustainable Design Studios to Be Inspired By

    Discover the studios that put our planet first when it comes to developing a design project Spanish creative director and graphic designer Núria Vila Punzano (@nuriavilapunzano) fuses her passion for the visual arts with today’s most pressing issues: sustainability and protecting the environment. While at university, Núria was drawn to experimental books and learning about alternative production techniques. Worried that her work lacked purpose (after all, what was her objective, just to make money?), she decided to turn her attention to environmentally-conscious design. She was disappointed by the standard of what was being classed as "ecodesign" around the world and decided to become the Irma Boom of sustainable design. Her Domestika course, Introduction to Sustainable Graphic Design, seeks to train other designers and creatives to focus their work on these issues, encouraging people to develop an aesthetic that respects and defends the planet. Below, we present seven design studios that prioritize sustainability and which Núria considers important references: La page This Catalan design studio sets out to develop projects with a zero-carbon footprint and analyses how much damage each stage of the process causes to the environment, from production to distribution. La page has launched BlueTool, an eco graphic design tool for public use.

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  • Brief History of Lyric Videos in Music: Type in Motion
    Typography, Calligraphy and Lettering

    Brief History of Lyric Videos in Music: Type in Motion

    Learn about the origin of music videos where typography is the protagonist The lyric videos are the music videos in which instead of seeing stories or the musicians performing the song, the main element is the typography. Since the advent of music videos, they have been a creative resource used by bands of all genres. For about a decade now, bands have often released a song with a lyric video before releasing the official one. For independent musicians, this type of video is attractive as it can be made with fewer resources than traditional productions, while fans can learn the lyrics of the songs. They have become so popular that in 2014, MTV included a lyric video category in their annual Music Video Awards. Here are some exceptional examples that truly bring the use of typography to the spirit of each song.

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  • 9 Essential Books for Digital Marketing Professionals
    Marketing

    9 Essential Books for Digital Marketing Professionals

    If you work in social media, branding, and creativity, or are simply interested in learning more, check out this reading list compiled by experts No longer is social media simply a marketing tool: for most companies, it has become the most important vehicle of communication. This is why making the most of social networks is essential, as they become increasingly more valuable. To generate effective strategies and ideas for brands, you need to learn how to use your best thinking tool. Staying up to date and getting to know this specialty in depth are the keys to success. Therefore, we are sharing a list of books recommended by Domestika teachers who are also experts in digital marketing and social media. Recommended by Juanmi Díez, Dot Lung, Núria Mañé, and Hana Kloner, the following titles touch on everything from creativity and branding, as well as the origins of digital marketing. Recommendations from Juanmi Díez (@juanmidiez), who teaches the course, Introduction to Instagram Business:

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  • Before Hollywood, There Was Fort Lee
    Film & Video

    Before Hollywood, There Was Fort Lee

    It might surprise you to learn that New Jersey was the birthplace of America’s film industry Once upon a time, before Hollywood, a borough of northern New Jersey was the film capital of the world. Located across the Hudson River from New York City, Fort Lee was the birthplace of the American film industry, home to the first film studios, including Universal, Solax (the first studio founded and directed by a woman: French writer, director, and producer, Alice Guy Blaché), and Fox. What brought filmmakers to Fort Lee? In 1888, Thomas Edison, who had already invented the phonograph, commissioned William Dickson to create the first motion-picture camera: the Kinetograph. In 1893, the Edison Company built what is thought to be America’s first film studio in West Orange, New Jersey. This studio was a single-room building called the “Black Maria,” which rotated on tracks to follow the sun.

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  • Mia Winston-Hart Creates Vibrant Resin Jewelry
    Craft

    Mia Winston-Hart Creates Vibrant Resin Jewelry

    Meet the British jewelry designer crafting one-of-a-kind pieces with epoxy resin A graduate of the University of the Arts in London, Mia Winston-Hart (@miawinstonhart) is an educator and the founder and owner of a small accessories business in the south of England. She creates brightly-colored one-of-a-kind pieces with epoxy resin–a material that has no limits, allowing Mia to explore her creativity and work with an infinite range of shapes and colors.

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  • What Are Scrapbooks and What Are The Different Types?
    Craft

    What Are Scrapbooks and What Are The Different Types?

    Learn about scrapbooking and how to use this creative tool to preserve memories and tell a story “Life is all memory, except for the present moment that goes by you so quick you hardly catch it going.” The words of American playwright Tennessee Williams perhaps explain why scrapbooking, the art of creating scrapbooks, has become so popular. But what exactly is a scrapbook? Discover below.

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  • Top 8 Illustrators Not to Miss in 2021
    Illustration

    Top 8 Illustrators Not to Miss in 2021

    Discover the upcoming talents who are inspiring our top illustrators When 2020 came to an end, we wanted to evaluate this most atypical year and compile a list of its most salient moments. We asked some of Domestika’s illustrators if they‘d made some discoveries in 2020 and to tell us who, in their view, were the illustration talents who had made a significant mark and that we should not lose sight of in the new year. Germán González, Paula Bossio, Carlos Rodríguez Casado, Ana Santos, Diego Catalán, Emma Hanquist, Adolfo Serra, and Ana Victoria Calderón tell us about their illustration favorites. 1. Germán González recommends Florian Schommer Digital illustrator Germán González (@germangonzalez) teaches the Domestika course 'Digital Techniques for Illustrated Portraits’ and admits it was not easy to choose only one person, as he discovered many talented illustrators last year. However, he was particularly impressed by German illustrator Florian Schommer's work.

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  • Top 5 Films and Documentaries on Design
    Design

    Top 5 Films and Documentaries on Design

    Two of the creative minds behind Ciszak Dalmas Ferrari Studio share the films and docs that have most influenced them Architect Matteo Ferrari and product designer Andrea Caruso are the creative minds behind Ciszak Dalmas Ferrari Studio, based in Madrid. Both Matteo and Andrea have drawn on a wide range of influences to expand their intellectual awareness and aesthetic understanding over the years, helping them to develop and evolve their practice. In this blog post, they share a selection of films and documentaries that have inspired them, and which can be seen reflected in their work.

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  • 7 Live Art Sessions to Spark Your Creativity
    Illustration

    7 Live Art Sessions to Spark Your Creativity

    Watch illustrators create live different art pieces while you learn from their processes The Domestika Live Art series emerged as part of Domestika Live’s live stream series, where illustrators, designers and artists from different disciplines share with you their secrets and tips to create unique projects, and answer questions from the audience while creating a piece live. Here are 7 of the best broadcasts from this series. To watch each video, just click on its red title. Enjoy!

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  • Writing Maps: Writing Prompts That Will Inspire Your Next Story
    Writing

    Writing Maps: Writing Prompts That Will Inspire Your Next Story

    Prompts that will inspire you to transform people, places, objects, and memories into stories Shaun Levin (@shaun_levin) is a writer, artist, editor, bookbinder, and creative writing teacher. He is also the creator of Writing Maps: a platform sharing illustrated maps filled with creative writing prompts to inspire writers to transform people, places, objects, and memories into stories. Since the release of his first novel, Seven Sweet Things, in 2003, Shaun has published a number of books and creative writing resources including A Year of Two Summers, Isaac Rosenberg's Journey to Arras: A Meditation, and Snapshots of The Boy. He has taught creative writing for over twenty years in colleges, schools, and adult education centers, and run workshops in public spaces. He also founded and edits The A3 Review.

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  • Basic Settings for Editing Photographs
    Photography

    Basic Settings for Editing Photographs

    Photographer Nicanor García shares some fundamental editing settings to apply to all your photographs Adobe Photoshop was one of the first programs created for editing digital images; it became popular because it enabled the user to change and manipulate images for creative purposes and to fix mistakes. Editing, or post-production, allows photographers to go a little further than merely taking a photo. Besides lighting and framing, you can take advantage of other basic editing settings to achieve optimal results. You can refine a picture by correcting the perspective, geometry, exposure, contrast, or highlights. Expert photographer Nicanor García runs us through the basic editing settings that can help us achieve amazing photographs.

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  • Materials: Paper Flowers
    Craft

    Materials: Paper Flowers

    Discover the materials you need to create a wide range of flowers and incredible botanical art with artist and maker Eileen Ng

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  • Explore Escher's Engravings in High Resolution
    Art

    Explore Escher's Engravings in High Resolution

    The Boston Public Library has digitized several dozens of Escher prints Enigmatic and brilliant, the work of M. C. Escher is worthy of admiration. That's why institutions that keep some of his engravings safe often exhibit them publicly so that we all can enjoy them. One of these institutions is the Boston Public Library — the largest municipal library in the United States — who has digitized almost a hundred of his engravings. Anyone who accesses its archives can explore them in great detail and get to know all the nooks and crannies of the impossible constructions that Escher devised and drew throughout his career.

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  • 20 Craft Artists to Follow in 2021
    Craft

    20 Craft Artists to Follow in 2021

    Get inspired by the most successful craft artists of the Domestika community in 2020 Craft has acquired many followers, but the image it evokes can be old-fashioned and doesn’t reflect the many possibilities it offers. For this reason, crafts are often considered an unsung category of the creative world. The best way to learn about this art form is by exploring what contemporary craft artists are doing to innovate and rejuvenate old techniques like embroidery, ceramics, collage, and crocheting. The possibilities are endless, and we are here to prove it. Reset and change your Instagram feed, with images from creatives from around the world that will surprise and inspire you to take on a craft. Kathrin Marchenko (@kathrin_marchenko) Inspired by fashion and haute couture, Moscow textile artist, Kathrin Marchenko, uses tulle and colorful threads as a canvas and creates art pieces with 3D effects.

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  • 12 Basic Principles of Animation
    3D & Animation

    12 Basic Principles of Animation

    Whether done by hand, using software, in 2D or 3D, these rules apply to all types of animation There are several ways to bring a drawing to life, but one in particular has become a reference over the years. In 1981, Disney animators Ollie Johnston and Frank Thomas published a book compiling 12 basic principles of animation for making characters seem more realistic, with a focus on physics and emotions. Although these rules were applied to classic animations such as Snow White (1937), Pinocchio (1940), Fantasy (1940), Dumbo (1941), and Bambi (1942), they are still relevant today, despite technological advances and the advent of 3D. They are constantly being expanded and updated to include new styles and techniques.

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  • 15 Reasons to Use a Sketchbook by Sergio Bleda, Miguel Gallardo and Puño
    Illustration

    15 Reasons to Use a Sketchbook by Sergio Bleda, Miguel Gallardo and Puño

    We ask three illustrators why they use a sketchbook and why you should too Sergio Bleda (@sergibleda) is a professional cartoonist and illustrator from Valencia (Spain). In his Domestika course Inking Techniques for Comics and Illustration, he explores the technical and creative possibilities of inking. He is also passionate about sketchbooks and always carries one around. He sees his job as quickly translating ideas into images so that they go from being an abstract concept to something readable. Sketchbooks, therefore, are handy tools. Here are his five reasons why you should use one as well: #1 Every drawing that starts in a sketchbook can be defined as a clumsy "graphic babbling": a small step that makes you lose your fear of the unknown. The first word of a new language. #2 It allows you to work without pressure. Sometimes you draw without knowing precisely what you are looking for, and a sketchbook is perfect for that.

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  • Naming a Brand in 5 Easy Steps
    Marketing

    Naming a Brand in 5 Easy Steps

    The right name transmits what a company does and has communicative value for the user The process of choosing a name for your brand can be summarised in five key points. Xavier Grau (@xgrau) has over 20 years of experience in this field. Today, he presents the questions you need to be asking yourself when you undertake this task.

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  • Top 10 Creative Projects of 2020 on Domestika
    Domestika

    Top 10 Creative Projects of 2020 on Domestika

    We have compiled a list of the most-liked projects to be shared by the Domestika community in 2020 There are only a few days left of the year, so we want to present the projects that have received the best feedback from the community out of all of those published in 2020 on Domestika. As was the case in 2019, the projects of the year are dominated by the medium of illustration. Final projects for different courses have also made the list, while fantasy and poetry have been celebrated as much as hyperrealism. Illustrator Adolfo Serra also gets a special mention for having authored two of the ten final projects to make the list. These are the top ten creative projects of 2020 to be published on Domestika: My project for the course: Watercolor Illustration with Japanese Influence, by Jessica Alvarez (@vanila_ryder) This final project, which was created for Flor Kaneshiro’s course, is titled Mandado. In this artwork, Jessica–the author–draws on Japanese influences, yet takes it a step further: she combines oriental techniques with a Latin American aesthetic inspired by Mexican markets.

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  • Copywriting vs. Content Writing
    Writing

    Copywriting vs. Content Writing

    Learn some of the key differences between these often confused terms The roles of a copywriter and that of a content writer are often confused. Both figures are equally important in building a brand or product. We have gathered information from Domestika experts to define these two marketing processes and understand their main differences. They may be different, but both aim to connect with customers by using important messages about a particular brand. The common part of these two disciplines is the word writing, and indeed they both exist to tell a story about a brand or a service. However, their style, purpose, and strategy deployment are quite far apart. Let’s see in detail what their differences are.

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  • Improve the Quality of Photos and Videos With Artificial Intelligence
    Web & App Design

    Improve the Quality of Photos and Videos With Artificial Intelligence

    Discover how artificial intelligence has learned to interact with information contained in an image so it can improve it Artificial intelligence, a term that not long ago brought to mind scenes straight out of science fiction films, is today a reality. The good news is that it has lots of practical uses, such as medical diagnosis, remote control of devices, finance, transport. Interestingly, it is also being applied to creativity. These artificial intelligence apps make it possible for filmmakers, animators, and researchers to get high-definition results from images and videos in low-resolution or that have been recorded using old equipment. A.I. Gigapixel This app for both Windows and Mac claims to enlarge photos by up to 600%, while perfectly preserving the quality and detail of each image. It also includes features such as automatic face refinement. Artificial intelligence "recreates" the pixels that would get lost using an automatic enlargement process, such as those you can perform in Photoshop. Artificial intelligence has learned this process by analyzing thousands of sample images. A.I. Gigapixel offers a trial version. The app usually costs $99.99. This video explains how their technology works:

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