How to Draw a Creature Design with Ballpoint Pen, Colored Pencils, & Watercolor

Prompt

Design an original creature illustration.

Core Ideas

Color, line, shape, illustration, narrative, character development

Supplies

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“I used my poodle Spin as a model for creature design project. The final product was a white eight legged poodle that grows lavender from its back. It was tough to get sketches of Spin standing up as he would move around too much, but I managed to get a good few of him laying down and I liked the way his body curved and his legs stuck out.

Because I liked those curves so much, I added even more legs. It was tough trying to invent the anatomy, but I looked at some dog skeletons online to assist me in that. Because poodles are domesticated dogs I decided to put the creature in a home setting instead of in the wild, and carried the idea of domestication even further with the lavender growing from its back. It can be harvested from the back of the dog.

I put some drying herbs hanging from the ceiling to suggest that perhaps there are other dogs in this  world that grow other plant life from their bodies. I used neutral tones for an earthy, peaceful atmosphere of a doggie just taking a nap in a sun patch. I am not very experienced in watercolor so this was a bit of a challenge for me, and ballpoint pens are not my favorite lining tool, but I made it work for this creature’s sake!”

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