Plus advice on how to give art critiques in the new issue – out now.
Discover new ways to work with colour and light in your art with ImagineFX issue 156 – on sale now.
Inside the latest issue, our cover feature artist Maria Poliakova shares how she paints with vibrant colours to create decorative illustrations. Her tutorial explores how to stop your illustrations from looking flat, as well as taking a look at when to deploy shadows for maximum impact. It's sure to help give your illustrations a touch of vibrancy.
Elsewhere in issue 156, we look at how artists in the games industry have been aided by Autodesk's SketchBook tools. There's also an interview with Canadian fantasy artist Jason Rainville, and reviews of the latest art books and tools that you can't afford to miss.
To get a taste of what to expect, just take a look at our lead features below.
Learn the art of diplomacy with this art critique feature
Last issue we looked at how artists should take art criticism, but this issue we're turning the tables and looking how you should deliver feedback. We talk to industry experts to discover how they tackle this tricky topic without hurting anybody's feelings.
Sketchbook insights
Whimsical ideas get warped in this wonderfully surreal art
Few things are more tantalising for an artist than taking a peek into the sketchbooks of other creatives. This month we look inside the sketchbook of Lorena Lammer, who mixes fantasy themes with a dark undercurrent. The results are beautifully surreal artworks that are sure to excite your imagination.
Create art in Procreate
Look out for that poison apple!
Procreate has quickly become one of the most-loved painting apps for the iPad Pro – and it's not just due to its attractive price tag. Illustrator Chrissie Zullo is a huge fan of the app, and here she reveals how to create an iconic fairy tale moment with the popular tool.
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Dragon painting techniques
'Ere be dragons!
Dragons are a mainstay of fantasy illustration, so it's important that you know how to paint them. To show you how it's done, illustrator Alex Stone shares his dragon painting techniques. These include tips on how to communicate character, as well as advice on how to use observations of real animals as inspiration.
Line art workshop
Learn how this fiendish line work was created
Single colour line art has unique qualities that can capture an artist's imagination. Line art illustrator MRHASS reveals how he creates amazing line art in this workshop, and shares advice on how to keep your inking interesting and spontaneous.
ImagineFX is the world's best-selling magazine for digital artists – packed with workshops and interviews with fantasy and sci-fi artists, plus must-have kit reviews. Buy issue 156 here or subscribe to ImagineFX here.
Dom Carter is a freelance writer who specialises in art and design. Formerly a staff writer for Creative Bloq, his work has also appeared on Creative Boom and in the pages of ImagineFX, Computer Arts, 3D World, and .net. He has been a D&AD New Blood judge, and has a particular interest in picture books.
