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steve-rogers-new-york · 4 years

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Dip Pens

So I wanted to know what sort of writing tools Steve and Bucky would have been familiar with, and was really surprised to discover that they would have almost certainly learnt penmanship primarily with dip pens!

Dip pens are a writing technology that came after quills and before fountain pens. They are a reasonably straight-forward tool, but they changed access to literacy in America.

Elements and Accessories of Dip Pens

At the basic level, a dip pen consists of three main elements:

The Pen — While most of us will know of the writing point as a “nib,” it is actually called the “pen.” These metal point, commonly made from steel, are easily slid into the shaft, making them easy to change and replace at will.

The Shaft — The shaft is the handle the user holds when writing, and can be made of a vast array of materials (ebony, mother of pearl, silver, gold, etc), but usually wood (or later plastic).

The Ink — Alongside these is ink, usually in an open-top bottle or another temporary container.

Other accessories that would often accompany dip pens:

Blotter Paper — This is paper used to absorb excess ink to prevent smudges. Commonly it would be attached to a holder so it could be rolled over the paper smoothly.

Inkwell and Inkstand — Inkwells are containers that hold ink for use when writing. They can vary in quality and expense as needed. A step up from this is the inkstand, a luxurious desk accessory that would consist of inkwells, containers for spare pen tips, spaces for shafts to rest, and a place for ink blotters.

Writing Pad — This is a leather writing pad that would allow for the smoother glide of the pen tip over the paper and protect the desktop. Again, this was a luxury item.

Cleaning Cloth — A cloth or scrap of rag used to clean pens after use.

Very Fine Sandpaper — Used to smooth the tip of new pens.

Using Dip Pens

To use a dip pen, the pen (”nib”) of choice is inserted into the shaft. The pen point is then dipped directly into the ink to a point above the “vent hole” (cut-out section). A certain amount of the ink will be retained by the pen to feed the strokes. Depending on the pen shape and ink type, a single dip can last anywhere from a couple of words to several lines of text.

Some maintenance and cleaning is required to get the pens into a useable state and to keep them in working order. New pens are often coated in a fine film of oil that will prevent it from collecting ink for use. To remove this, the pen can easily be cleaned with alcohol or the oil burnt off by passing it through a flame several times. Once cleaned, the tip will sometimes need to be smoothed with very fine sandpaper, as they can be razor-sharp and tear paper while writing otherwise. After use, pens will also need to be cleaned of residue ink, as letting it dry will affect its function. For this, some water and a cloth/rag will do the job to wipe it down before putting pens away. If not cleaned correctly, they can become corroded.

Pen Styles and Functions

As these pens were used in all areas of society, the diversity of shapes and designs is vast. Here are some of the key elements to a pen and what it brings to its user:

Tip shape — The width of the tip determines the thickness and shape of the line. The most common being “pointed” and “broad-edge” (also “stub” or “italic”). “Pointed” tips have two tines that come to a single sharp point, and with the application of pressure, can spread and give variation in the line thickness. A “broad-edge” tip has a wide, flat point and will produce a stroke that varies in width from thin to thick, depending on the direction it is moved.

Tip angle — Aside from the shape of the tip mentioned above, they can also come “pointed” or “ball-pointed” (or “turned-up”). As the name suggests, a “pointed” tipped pen comes to a point completely in line with the rest of the pen. Alternatively, a “ball-pointed” pen has an up-turned tip. The difference between the two is the ease at which they moved over the paper. A “pointed” pen moves best when pulled in the direction of the user but can snag on the paper stock when pushed away from them. The rounded tip of the “ball-pointed” pen moves more smoothly across the paper, has more flexibility of movement in any direction, and is less prone to snagging on the paper. It was the predecessor to the modern ballpoint pen. As for the uses, a “pointed” pen will produce a finer line than a “ball-pointed” shaped one. For reference, Image-1 shows them side-by-side, Image-3 shows a “ball-pointed” tip and Images-4 and -5 show “pointed” tips.

Flexibility — The flexibility of the two tines of the pen will affect how wide apart they spread. The further apart they spread, the broader the variation in line thickness when pressure is applied. A stiffer pen will offer less variation in line thickness; while more flexible tines will allow the user a greater variation between fine and broad lines with the application of pressure while writing. Additional slots and notches can also improve elasticity in the tines. Think along the lines of touch sensitivity when using a digital drawing tablet.

Pen Shape — This is the most visually obvious element of a pen. The overall shape of the pen can vary greatly, and this element is both practical (impacts the way the pen works) and decorative. This element includes the “shoulder” (the base of the tines that flares out to varying degrees) and the “vent hole” (the cut-out at the base of the slit between the tines). The full list of types is too much to post here, but Wikipedia has a great visual list of them, and The Steel Pen has great, detailed information about dip pens. For now, I will just focus on the types I think our boys would have been most acquainted with:

Straight — Very simple, straight body that angles smoothly into the point. Similar to the Straight are the Beaked and the Bank which have longer tines. (See Image-4 and the 1st, 4th, and 6th pens in Image-9)

Stub — A straight body that then angles sharply inward with short tines.

Leaf / Flat Leaf / Spoon / Crown — These all have similar rounded shapes. The “shank” is straight until about halfway, then the shoulders flair out in a rounded shape. The result is a pen that looks similar to a spade from a suit of cards. (See Image-3 and the 3rd and 5th pens in Image-9)

Tip Size — The size of the tip will, as you might expect, impact the base thickness of the line.

To get an idea is the sheer variety these pens can come in, have a gander through Wikipedia’s gallery of dip pens!

Identifying Pens

Manufacturers will identify their pens by including their brand name along with the style name and/or number on the pen's “shank” (the section that slides into the shaft). As such, it is very easy to identify pen styles and their makers. In addition, manufacturers would put different design flair into the shape of the pen, resulting in some pretty interesting looking pens from higher-end manufacturers.

Purchasing Pens

Pens could be purchased easily in boxes containing anywhere from 12-100 pens. These boxes could either contain multiples of just one type by that manufactures, or a selection of their styles for different uses (a Straight, a Falcon, a Leaf, etc). While some brands were sold in tins, most I have seen have been cardboard boxes, often with a draw design (similar to modern matchboxes) sealed before sale with adhesive labels over the ends.

Cost Dip pens were relatively cost-effective, which is why they were used in schools over fountain pens and continued to be in use for decades after the invention for the ballpoint pen. Based on newspaper ads from the 1920s and 1930s, a fountain pen could put you back $1.00 - $10.00 (though I did see one ad with sale ones listed at 75c), while a box of 12 “steel pens point” would only cost you 5c. A dozen basic lead pencils look to have been around 10c, and a 2oz. bottle of ink around 10c as well. Similarly, a simple soft-cover 48 leaves book would be around 5c. Do note that these prices do come from ads for large department stores, so cheaper items could likely be found at smaller local stockists.

I personally have a decent collection of pen “nibs”. The ones photographed here are some I recently picked up for Patreon perks and a shaft I kept with my modern pens and markers (it’s too long to fit in the box with the rest of my nibs etc). But after spending an afternoon searching, I can’t seem to find the box I keep the rest of my collection in. When I do I’ll be sure to post some photos on more shapes they can come in!

If you want more in the topic, my full research notes on all topics are available for all $3+ Patreon patrons!

Image Sources

Close-Up of Pen Tips | D.’s Personal Collection Close-Up of Shaft End | D.’s Personal Collection Government of Canada No. 50 Close-Up (Flat Leaf) | D.’s Personal Collection Government of Canada No. 40 Close-Up (Beaked) | D.’s Personal Collection Eagle Pencil Co. E11 Close-Up (Falcon) | D.’s Personal Collection Wooden School Case w/ pens | Source Box of No. 2 School Pens, c. 1920s | Source Coca-Cola School Set, c1930s | Source Shaft w/ Pens | D.’s Personal Collection

This post comes to you thanks to Patreon supporters at the ‘Ephemera Club’ level. Those subscribed in July 2020 received their very own vintage dip pen nib, along with a sweet postcard showing an element of Brooklyn in the 1920-1940s! If you would also like to receive neat, period-appropriate items in the mail each month, you can join the ‘Ephemera Club’ for just $15!

If you join before the end of July 2020, you too will receive these items!

[ Support SRNY through Patreon and Ko-Fi ] And join us on Discord for fun conversation! I also have an Etsy with upcycled nerdy crafts

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notesbymari · 4 years

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studyblr 2020 quarantine challenge

So I totally forgot to keep posting everyday this challenge and I was too lazy to take the pictures, so I’m gonna post it only weekly, like I did for the first week.

I'm so so late for this challenge, things have been hectic here at home, my grandpa is really sick and his health really took a turn for the worse (not covid) so we're just trying to take care of him the best we can without having to admit him to the hospital (now with the covid pandemic, the hospitals cut down all of visitations, and they wouldn't let my grandma stay with him because of the risks of covid and her age.... so we're trying to keep him at home so my grandma can stay with him, staying away from her would only worsen his health)

Week 2

Monday, March 30th - Take a picture of your desk/study space

One of my favorite places to study! I like to study in my bed too, but here my back is more comfortable and I have more space to put my books and pens and stuff, even though it is not very big and I could use a lot more space.

Tuesday, March 31st - Take a picture of the book you are currently reading

Just finished re-reading Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas. I really wanted to read Heir of Fire now, but if I keep on reading all the books of this series one after another, after I finish all of them I wouldn’t be able to read another author’s book for a while.... So I thought I would give a try on Night Film, by Marisha Pessl, heard great things about it (my sister really liked it and gave it 5 stars, and she’s quite picky when ranking the books she read).

Wednesday, April 1st - Take a picture of your most colourful notes

Didn’t have time to take a picture as I’m spending most of my afternoons in my grandma’s house, but anyways my notes in this semester haven’t been as colorful as the ones from other years, and I didn’t have time to look for my older notes to get a really colorful one.

Thursday, April 2nd - Take a picture of the pens/highlighters that you could not live without

For colored pens, I keep switching the ones I use every semester between some brands I have at home (sometimes bismark, stabilo, glitter gel pens, ballpoint colored pens), so don’t really have a favorite one.

I think the only pen that is a complete must have in my pencil case is the BIC crystal fine 0.8mm blue pen (I have a lot of those, been using them since middle school)...I’ve tried a lot of other ballpoint 7mm tip pens from other models and brands, but they always end up having flaky ink, the tint fades out with use, or the writing stops being as smooth as before.... This is the only one that I almost have no problems with (there’s always one or two of these that do all of that as well, but usually is just a matter of bad luck, they’re most of the times flawless).

Friday, April 3rd - Take a picture of the view outside your window

Not very exciting, I know, but I can't complain, at least I get the sunlight throughout all of the afternoon shining down on my bed :)

Saturday, April 4th - Take a picture of a meal you’ve cooked or something you’ve baked

Carrot cake! Recipe by my grandma.

Sunday, April 5th - Take a picture of some of your art or doodles

Don’t have any recent art or doodles really, and I was too lazy to look up for my old art (also didn’t want to show art that was made ages ago)... I’ve been trying to catch up and go back to drawing during this quarantine, I’m planning to do some canvas paintings of my dogs, but haven’t gone much farther than drawing the drafts on paper.

#notesbymari #2020 quarantine challenge #studyblr #student life #medblr #med student #med school #productivity #procrastination #study inspiration #study motivation #langblr #bookblr #night film #reading #marishapessl

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justawriterwholikeslotsofshit · 4 years

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JAMES SIRIUS POTTER

(I’m tired of seeing headcanons about the next generation of Harry Potter that are inspired by their name sakes, it’s just unoriginal and more of the same. This might be a series idk.)

James is very smart and studious, his eye sight is impeccable, he’s quiet but not shy. He’ll talk to you if he wants to, he’ll speak if he wants to, he just rarely wants to. This coupled with the fact that he’s a Ravenclaw(just my headcanon, not looking for fights) means most of the student body thinks he’s an aloof, entitled a-hole. While he can definitely be aloof and has a fair amount of privilege he isn’t aware of, James doesn’t purposefully avoid anyone he just doesn’t talk to a lot of people, mainly just his family and his dormmates.

His first year he found a book in the library filled with 13th century renaissance paintings, he became obsessed, He checked the book out so many times that for his birthday his second year Madam Pince just bought him his own. Then his aunt Hermione took him to a muggle Gallery the summer between his 3rd and 4th year and he fell in love with art as a whole. He got instagram pretty much just to follow artists and see their work. It was only his 6th year that Lily finally convinced him to try his hand himself. Albus bought him a sketchbook and some nice pencils and pens, but at this point James had gotten so used to writing with quill and ink it was weird using anything else. His drawings were amazing. Inspired by everything from hogwarts architecture to the muggle comic books that Rose lends him. He started his own instagram account @jspsquilandinkart and started posting some of his work. He didn’t tell anyone but before he knew it he had over 30,000 followers. He eventually branched out, finding a love for sculpting as well, he could never quite get a handle on painting. He was always very modest and often refrained from calling himself an artist.

Eventually a muggleborn found his account, they didn’t tell anyone but they did ask if James gave tattoos and thus the underground hogwarts stick and poke business was born. Technically there weren’t any rules in the school handbook about giving fellow students tattoos, so James wasn’t technically breaking any rules but they figured it was best to keep the whole situation underwraps. Of course, everything became more elaborate when he figured out how to make magical tattoos, tattoos that moved or made noise. He didn’t want any tattoos himself, but that’s only because he could never settle on one design, he changed his mind too much, there were too many options. He did often draw on his arms, but nothing permanent.

His cousins and siblings were shocked when they found out he gave tattoos, well all except Dominique who had been his first customer(a maple leaf on her upper thigh, that’s another story for another day). The quiet, studious, put together, Jame Sirius Potter, a tattoo artist. Despite his amazing academic achievements James decided to open up a shop in london after graduation. Art was his passion. Harry and Ginny supported him through it all, they didn’t care that he could’ve been an auror or a healer or literally anything else. Harry’s only concerns for his children have always been that they be happy and healthy.

His shop was very popular, it catered to both muggles and wizards and quickly became the hotspot for tattoos in london. His instagram account was growing ever more popular as well as he posted new pictures of his art. His name was becoming familiar in galleries across Europe, his stuff was hot, especially his quill and ink drawings. Despite his growing fame and wealth James lived a modest live, most of his money went into the bank account and was never used. He liked his tattoo shop the way it was, he liked his apartment the way it was, he didn’t need anything else. After a couple months of this he remembered charities were a thing and became a budding philanthropist as well. He was probably the wealthiest of all his cousins and siblings, but you would never know it.

If you want to hear more about my versio. James let me know. I’ll probably do Albus or Rose next.

#books #james sirius potter #harry potter #headcanon #harry potter headcanon #harry potter next generation #hogwarts #ravenclaw

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mars-91 · 3 years

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Friday 13th

(1st artist). CharlesRonnie Macintosh is the artist I’ve chosen relating to my word BOTANY. Macintosh was a Scottish architecht in the 1900s, he was a designer, water colourist and artist. His style had much in common with European symbolism. I’ve chose this artist because I was drawn to the simplicity of the watercolour and the boldness off the stained glass, I wanted to incorporate this somehow with my work.

(2nd artist). Ed Org is the artist I’ve researched for REALM. Org is an illustrator known for his amazing pencil illustrations, when I look at his artwork, to me it is the epitome of a magical ildealic realm which is exactly what I picture when I think of the word realm, I think of a magical utopia so I thought his work reflected perfectly the type of work I want to create for my poster.

(3rd artist). Artist relating to my word “DARKNESS” pencil, pen me ink based artist called Psyca, an Instagram artist I have followed for about 2 years whose work has always inspired mine. I thought he’d work would be a perfect reference on the word I’ve chosen, and wanted to represent her in my final outcomes.

(4th artist). Stephan Lucas focuses his work on spirituality so I’ve chosen him to represent the word ARCHANGEL. He uses oil paints to create his canvases but he also makes tapestry’s as well which I thought was cool. He says his “challenge is to capture the “essence of life”, the unseen, without using words or identifiable objects.”

(5th artist). Now this is a piece of artwork I found in a Japanese magazine company called Juxtapoz “the romantic cannibal” the artist is called Kurosawa Inoku who is an illustrator I thought would represent MORTAL well, I also love this style of work Japanese art and anime has been a massive inspiration for me as an artist.

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domoreinkmore-blog · 3 years

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Abandon Normal Instruments

Sunday, 18 October 2020

Week 5

It’s hard to “Abandon Normal Instruments” when you’re so stuck in your ways.For this project I challenged myself to get out of my creative comfort zone - I’m most comfortable with pen and ink, I’ve never “liked” any other medium but have tried a bunch of different ones. I experimented with a lot of new mediums and techniques this week with my second attempt at image generation.

With the first drawing - I used fine liners and grabbed a highlighter to add some colour ! I’m quite happy with how it turned out and had fun with the highlighter. For my second drawing I used a good old fashion HB pencil - I rarely draw with pencil and I actually forgot how much fun it was, especially experimenting with some techniques (my drawing lecturer would be proud lol). I was very surprised with the results and achieved a great, more realistic drawing. I added some more highlighters and even tried out some water colours - I wasn’t too confident with the paint but got the hang of it pretty quick. I continued with the pencil and mixed a little pen in there with my 3rd drawing. After all this experimenting I didn’t even pick up the pen for my 4th drawing - I went a little crazy, and only worked with pencil, I also added some colour with a blue coloured pencil.

I realised that getting out of your creative comfort zone is so much fun you just have to be willing to sacrifice a little security to become the best artist you can be. Nothing is more humbling than starting from zero, but there are also few things more rewarding than mastering something completely new. Taking on an art challenge is a great way to break out of your comfort zone - Abandon those normal mediums (instruments)

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stickystarspectrumtroll-ocs · 4 years

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Hogwarts AU

Note: This is like 8 to 10 years after the events of Deathly Hallows.

Luna: 4th year. Half-blood, but both her birth parents are long gone and she was adopted as a baby by a muggle couple. Metamorphmagus. Sorting Hat cried out “SLYTHERIN” pretty much the moment it touched her head. She’s not well-liked by the other Slytherins, since so many are the type who look down their noses at muggleborns. Was already an expert when it came to pranking, vandalism, and general troublemaking (not to mention getting away with things) pre-Hogwarts, but every bit of magic she learned (not to mention everything she found at Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes) opened her to a whole WORLD of possibilities in that area which she quickly began experimenting with and putting to good use. She got bullied since the first day of her first year, but retaliated with ruthless pranks magical and nonmagical in nature until most learned to leave her alone. Plenty still haven’t, though, and she continues to deal with them in the way she does. She and Peeves have a kind of mutual respect for each other. She has an owl named Basil who she sends to and from her parents regularly. She also has a turtle named Rupert. Made friends with Jewel, Allets, and Eliote in her 1st or 2nd year. Wand is nine and a half inches long, made of pine, reasonably supple, with a unicorn tail core.

Jewel: 4th year. Pure-blood, but doesn’t know it since she’s been an orphan as long as she can remember and doesn’t know WHO the heck her parents are. Hufflepuff. Favorite classes are Charms, Herbology, and Care of Magical Creatures. She happens to be VERY good at those. Refuses to wear the black robes she’s supposed to, wears robes with vibrant colors and lots of embroidery instead. Plus flower crowns, and necklaces and bracelets full of crystals. Talks to the paintings and the ghosts more than she talks to most of her schoolmates. Spends a lot of time in the library. Likes exploring the castle and even the Forbidden Forest in her spare time. Makes good friends with Hagrid. Being introduced to the Wizarding World was a big thing that had her suuuuper nervous at first and was hard to adjust to, but she's making some progress with that. Made friends with Luna, Allets, and Eliote in her 1st or 2nd year. Wand is ten inches long, swishy, made of English oak or red oak with a unicorn hair core.

Allets: 5th year. Pure-blood. Hufflepuff. Parents are rich and a bit snobby, kind of elitist and anti-muggle but never QUITE managed to instill that in her, no matter how they tried. They tried to enroll her at Beauxbatons, but there were a LOT of applications that year and there ended up being no room for her, so they enrolled her at Hogwarts, reasoning that it was the next-best thing and some great witches and wizards in the family had gone there. They put a lot of pressure on her to excel in all her academics. She’s good at Charms and Defense Against The Dark Arts and flying, but the rest of her classes not so much. She tries really hard to please her parents anyway. Over time as she makes friends at Hogwarts (Luna, Jewel, and Eliote in her 2nd or 3rd year) she starts to break off more and more from being firmly tied to her parents’ command. They don’t like this one bit and continue trying to exert control over her, which is an ongoing struggle but she gets stronger every year. Joined her house’s quidditch team in her 4th year as a seeker and is really good at it. Wand is ten and three quarter inches long, made of hawthorn, supple, with a phoenix feather core.

Eliote: 5th year. Muggleborn. Hufflepuff (the Sorting Hat really took awhile to decide with her). Parents died when she was like seven, probably killed by Death Eaters during the time of Voldemort’s return, and she lived in an orphanage afterwards until the day her Hogwarts letter arrived. She probably was really confused and kinda annoyed at first with how she was the only one around her who could see the threstrals. Her parents’ death hit her pretty hard and she’s still recovering (probably she was right there to witness it and barely got out alive, so, yeah, PTSD from that, plus survivor’s guilt as it’s possible she might’ve led the Death Eaters to them by i dunno whining a little too loud about something childish while they were nearby or something). It’s been easier since she became friends with Allets, Luna, and Jewel in her 2nd or 3rd year. Wants to be an Auror. Favorite classes are Potions and Defense Against The Dark Arts. Good at all her classes but best at those. Wand is ten and one quarter inches long, made of fir, solid, with a unicorn hair core.

Maddie T: 4th year. Half-blood. Ravenclaw. Reads the Quibbler and genuinely believes the stuff in it. Is VERY VERY good at solving the riddles to get into the Common Room. Loves painting, spray-painting especially, and does a lot of art on the walls and ceiling of her side of the dorm she shares with Finley. Always has paint on her robes. Wears the classic big pointy witch hat, but it’s all crooked, and it’s purple, with different colored patches and feathers. Tries to do crazy stunts on her broom, like flying while hanging upside down from it. Has a lot of fun with all the stuff from Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes. Made friends with Finley on the Hogwarts Express 1st year. Gets picked on a lot but doesn’t let it get to her and has a million nonsensical retorts. Wand is thirteen and a half inches long, made of dogwood, quite whippy, with a dragon heartstring core.

Finley: 4th year. Pure-blood. Ravenclaw (sorting hat shouted it out practically the second it touched her head). She kinda acts like Hermione in a lot of ways, studying a ton and raising her hand a lot and acing every class basically being a huge overachiever and perfectionist. She develops a habit of sneaking into the restricted section of the library, not with any bad intentions, just out of pure curiosity to know what kinds of knowledge is there. Might figure out how to become an animagi and then do it just because she can, without letting anycreature besides Maddie T know about it. She’d be a cat or fox or butterfly, I’m not sure which. She’s also extremely fascinated with Muggle Studies and everything related to the muggle world, not unlike Mr. Weasley. If she ever got access to the internet...hoHOOO boy... Knows how to sew and makes adjustments to her robes all the time. Embroidering flowers on them, adding ribbons and bows and sequins, adds touches of pink and/or turquoise wherever she can. Made friends with Maddie T on the Hogwarts Express 1st year, and stands up for her when she gets picked on. Wand is ten inches long, made of walnut, quite flexible, with a phoenix feather core.

Penny: 5th year. Muggleborn. Hufflepuff. Was bitten by a werewolf as a second-year. She was introduced to wolfsbane potion fairly quickly, but not before a sleepover with her muggle friends from before her Hogwarts days went south. Like, nocreature got bitten, but ALLLLLMOST. It was kinda intense and a bunch of memories had to be erased. Penny was pretty much scarred for life. Gets more distant from her muggle friends every year, partially due to so much of her life having to be in the Wizarding World now and them not being allowed to know about it, and partially for other reasons related to Penny’s memories of THAT incident. Either way it breaks her heart. Refuses to wear black robes like she’s supposed to, wears robes of different super bright colors every day. Also the friendship bracelets from her old friends. And light-up sneakers. Has brightly colored hair extension clips that she clips over her hair to give herself colored streaks, changing up which colors she uses every day. Sends owls to her parents (and has them write back) every week. Wand is eleven and a half inches long, made of ebony (? maybe fir? or pear?), slightly springy, with a unicorn hair core.

Twig: 1st year. Half-blood. Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw. Like Finley, she gets super into all her classes and studies and everything. Only she’s way more excited by it all. The novelty of the fact that HOLY CUPCAKES SHE’S DOING ACTUAL FLIPPING MAGIC never wears off. She does get homesick at times, like, cry herself to sleep on a weekly basis homesick, so she sends owls to her parents (and has them write back) practically every day. And she does get picked on by a bunch of people. Is bummed when pure-bloods don’t get all the references she makes to stuff from the muggle world. Strong mixed feelings about the fact that they have to write with quills and ink--like, on one hand the aesthetic is SOOO cool but on the other hand pens and pencils and markers are WAY easier. Spends a lot of time reading in the library or exploring the castle and surrounding grounds. Has a pet toad named Herbie. Has always loved and been really good at flying, is great at quidditch in just about any position, and will join the team for her House as soon as she’s able. Wand is ten and one quarter inches long, made of willow, springy, with a unicorn hair core.

~BONUS~

C.C.: 5th year. Half-blood. Metamorphmagus. Gryffindor (got sorted there very quickly). Prefect. She has a heck ton of magical energy in her that's always come out quite a lot and been a bit hard for her to control at times. Probably nearly wrecked Ollivander’s shop trying out wands, without even trying to. She uses her shapeshifting ability quite like Tonks, making animal faces for entertainment and all. It may also be why her hair is pink, orange, and blue. Loves drawing and painting and is very good at them. Favorite class is Defense Against The Dark Arts. Wants to be an auror. Plays on the Gryffindor team (i’m not sure what position, but in any case she is very good at it, maybe becomes captain in her 5th or 6th year). Wand is eleven and a three quarter inches long, pleasantly springy, made of either chestnut with a unicorn hair core, or rowan with a phoenix feather core.

Jasper: 5th year. Half-blood. Ravenclaw. Likes to hex people for fun. Goes all-out finding creative uses for spells and Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes products, like Luna, but he’s more likely to think of things that’ll affect a roomful of people rather than just one person, like setting off fireworks indoors, or putting something in the food served in the Great Hall that’ll make everycreature who eats it erupt in contagious boils. Is also willing to use some kind of dark magic for that sort of thing. He gets detention a LOT but honestly doesn’t even mind because he still had a good time doing what he did. Has a mutual respect with Peeves and they’re pretty chummy with each other actually. Also good friends with C.C., though she does get a bit exasperated with his shenanigans and how often he gets in trouble. Really good at Charms and Potions. Actually all his classes, but especially those. Wand is thirteen and one quarter inches long, made of spruce, whippy, with a dragon heartstring core.

#hogwarts au for my oc squad #this took a LOT of thought #but i like it very much #especially proud of my decisions with the wands!#i had to look several times through the Pottermore pages on wand woods and cores and all that stuff and what it means about wand's owner #the results were just so INCREDIBLY satisfying #personal favorite #all ocs + c.c. and jasper #SERIOUSLY Y'ALL HAVE NO IDEA HOW LONG THIS WAS IN MY DRAFTS INCOMPLETE #i may still make edits to this #maybe give Eliote a different wand wood #or finally settle on Jewel and Penny's wands #or just add another detail or two somewhere #au for my oc squad

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whoop-whoop-grocket-blog · 6 years

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Okay, so the number 3 is the key to victory so if it's three days then the trailer will be posted on the 30th of November, right?

*scattered papers everywhere on my desk*

But if it means December 3rd because they said that the trailer was supposed to be released on the 4th of December, which means next Sunday?

*papers are now on the floor, the trash bin is filled with crumpled paper, ten pencils are broken, my pen lost ink*

But what if they mean three weeks, that means the week of December 11th, which is the week Star Wars: The Last Jedi comes out, they might release it then and there.

*it’s a freaking mess rn the room is buried with paper, my hair looks like the aftermath of a failed science experiment*

BUT THE NUMBER 3 WHAT DOES IT MEAN????????

#avengers infinity war #avengers #marvel #mcu #marvel cinematic universe #rain talks about stuff

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apandastory · 4 years

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Stationery Collection 3: Daily pens I have not shown my daily pens which are the pens I use for note taking and writing. From the left, Pentel Energel. This is my new found gem and I love it so much that I have bought a few more and boxes of refills!! The ink formula dries quickly that the side of my hand will not have any ink "residue" after writing.. 2nd left, Pilot Acroball. Quite a good pen with a very fine nib.. I am pretty unlucky when it comes to fine nibs, not sure if it's the way I write or something.. the ink will always break or stop flowing when there's still at least half left in the cartridge. So far this is still working but i have a "broken" cartridge waiting for a "nib replacement". That's a hack when pens keep letting you down. 3rd left, Pilot Super Grip. This is my favourite ballpen. I prefer gel pens over ballpens but gelpens are usually more expensive and ballpens are the affordable choices available when I'm at school and there's a lot to write.. but I have tough luck with pens and this is one of the only pens that I could finish the ink. Too bad it's now discontinued, I have been slowly using this pen for many years because i could never buy another again. 4th left, Pilot G2. This was the the most luxurious pen during my secondary school days. Pilot pens are my dream pens since then so here's a G2. But I now have too many that it seems "normal" now. 5th left, Pilot Progrex mechanical pencil. I will have a post all about mechanical pencils later. https://www.instagram.com/p/CA-k9uGAOwo/?igshid=1df7zq6jf2mlk

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bulbaqueen · 7 years

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Can you tell us about your inspiration for drawing these little cheebs we love so much? How did you come up with the idea to cut them out and photograph them interacting in the world? What kind of paper/pencils do you use? Are you enjoying drawing them? 8D

First off I'd like to say, I love this fandom!😣❤ Everyone I've interacted with here seems to be made of sugar and spice💖 1st question answer: I think I started making chibi cards during the "Inch High Samurai battle event". I started getting requests 👍 woot woot!2nd: I passed by the bakery on my way out of work and had the sudden urge to put Yukkins in a donut.❤ everyone loved him and that made me want to make more.3rd: I use plain old computer paper, it cuts nice and easy with my x-acto knives. Cra-z-art, and Rose art colored pencils. I only like Bic extra smoothe ink pens, yup yup yup!😉And 4th: I LOVE making these little guys. My bedroom is filled with little lords 😍 I only wish I wasn't always at work so I could take my sweet time when making them instead of rushing it. 😥Thank you so much for your interest by the way, stuff like this makes me so dorky-happy! ❤❤❤❤❤

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ladyjuxtaposition · 7 years

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WIPs from the TRG fanart yesterday (final pic at bottom). Details on each when clicking on pic.

I'm not sure about you guys, but it feels great getting back to colored pencils after so long! 😄

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punkwithpaints · 7 years

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A weeb story, one of many.

Key:

T and M= Weebs

Okay, so, I don’t even know where to start, considering this went on for years, and even recently, so, I don’t even know if I’m out of the woods?

So, I’m an art major, and I’ve been really devoted to art since like, 7th-8th grade. I got serious about art around my sophomore year in high school though. Now, the high school I went to had an art show every year, at the end. Basically, all art made would be hung up based on categories, and judged by a guest judges. Each level art class did different things, so none of the categories normally lapped over. Everyone had an equal chanced. The categories would have a 1st-3rd place, and sometimes a 4th depending on the size.

Anyway, I had this person (T) who I actually considered a friend my freshman year. We’d known each other since around 7th-8th grade, so, obviously it continued into high school. Now, I’ll 100% admit, I had a weeb phase during the period of 7th-Freshman year. Now, I wasn’t running around like NYA NYA PASTAAAAAAAAA (like this person did, no joke.) So, with those years of drawing, I had taken time to look over tutorials, check out other peoples art work, ask for help and criticism, took suggestions, read books, everything I could to learn how to improve, even if it was (shitty) anime. I tried super hard to improve. T didn’t. At all. In fact, they would get upset at any form of criticism and ignore it completely.

I’d like to say, I learn very quickly if shown how to do something. Due to this, my art teacher noticed me and would talk to me a lot, and would take me over to the other art teacher to let me talk to her and show her my stuff. (not the anime, the actual assignments, like still life drawings). This other teacher taught art 2-4, also any independent studies, so I was kinda nervous to be around them at first. However, I warmed up and would typically get both of their opinions on things and ask them questions. T had started to get jealous at how quickly I was learning and improving, seeing that I was starting to go outside the anime range and want to do new things. I use references VERY heavily. I really want to make sure I have the details right. She notices this one day and goes:

T: What is that?

Me: My references….

Her:..Well, real artists don’t use references. You shouldn’t be doing that!

Um, what? What are we looking at when we draw our still life drawings???? (We typically would look at a black and white print off photo, actual sight drawing started in art 2) That made me worry that I was cheating as an artist. I wasn’t sure if she was right or not, and was very shy and quiet at this time. I asked the teachers later that day, which they assured me artists did in fact, use references and that it was very good that I invested so much in multiple references and sources. So, I continued doing that despite her telling me it was wrong.

Fast forward to the end of the year, after the art show had been judged. T runs up to me and asks:

T: How many ribbons did you win?

Me: Oh, uh, 9. (I didn’t really wanna talk about it too much, given that she was jealous all the time)

T:…..You don’t deserve that many, it’s only because you had a category to yourself!!

This isn’t against the rules. Any art can be submitted, and if it doesn’t fit in a predetermined category, they make one. Even none art students can enter. I had, not hate me, a category called, “Realistic anime”. I still have the drawings and want to burn them so badly. Literally, what the hell me? But honestly, to tell someone they don’t deserve to win something solely because you’re jealous is insane. I had even double checked with my teachers to see if they were okay with it, and if it was something show worthy. I didn’t know, at the time, they made new categories. I just thought they would put it under pencil drawings, since it was pencil.

Anyway, I get over it, and next year rolls around. Now I’m in the other art teachers class (gonna call her mama, cause that’s basically what she was to me) taking 2 art classes, Art 2 and 3. I took them because my previous art teacher had said she believed I could do it. So I did. Now, all that summer between freshman and sophomore year, I continued to draw and draw and draw. I stepped away from anime completely and had started to get on the road of semi-realistic and began to develop an illustrative style. T was only taking art 2, along with another weeb, M. During this year, everyone in my classes worked kinda slow, so while it took them 2 weeks to complete a project, I could make 2-3, or work on one of my own drawings. Basically, I had a metric shit ton of art by the end of the year that I had completed. Also, in the art show, it doesn’t have to be art made while in school. I had mentioned to mama that I made a bunch of art that summer, and she encouraged me to put it in. So I did. I had probably 60+ things in the show. IN NO MEANS, WAS I SHOWING OFF, I WAS TAKING 2 CLASSES AND WORKED FAST. And besides, if a teacher asks you to enter your stuff, are you gonna turn that down? It normally takes us a week or 2 to get everything together with matting the art work and tagging it and all that good stuff. I was also in drama, and was next in line to be the paint mistress. So, I ‘m hanging out in the paint bin with the current paint mistress when a friend comes to me and asks, “Do you know what T and M are saying about you?” No?

Apparently, they had been messaging each other and talking about how I was showing off, hogging the spot light, arrogant, that I wanted the show to be all about me, all sorts of stuff. Now, still, I was still shy and always felt bad if someone was upset at me. The next day in art, when I was helping with the art show displays, I was talking to my teachers and casually told them I might take some stuff out. They asked why and I explained. They were upset someone had suggested that and told me not to, that it was perfectly fine considering I had 2 classes and worked fast. My first teacher (most chill one ever) was like, “Add more, screw them.” So, with her encouragement I added a few more pieces. I ended up winning like, 40+ ribbons, the Art 2 award (I was told they wanted to give me the art 3 award too, but students were only allowed 1 award per area.) I won best in show (or 1st, I can’t remember, it all mixes up after a while.) Well, T is still acting like my friend, but is obviously trying to put me down for winning. M never liked me in the first place so she just kept complaining to T.

3rd year rolls around, and I had been told by my drama teacher that not only would I be Paint Mistress, but Makeup because of my special effects I could do. T runs up to me on the first day and asks me what position I’m taking in drama. I tell her and she goes off, telling me that I was wrong and that he told her she was getting it. No???? I have the messages to prove it??? So, drama rolls around, he goes over who’s taking what positions and such, and T and takes the moment to tell him that “They don’t need 2 positions! that’s too much work for one person.” Even though paint was pre-show and make up was during???? Her and another girl basically harassed me out of the position and made me give it to them. Now, this year, I’m just taking art 4, which was full of seniors that I really enjoyed talking to. (Remember, I’m a junior) during this year, I had made a pen and ink drawing of Sam and Dean from Supernatural. My teachers LOVED it and would bicker over who got it. T took this moment to try and do the same thing, drawing Dean with a ink pen. Long story short, no one noticed. She was pissed. Art show starts to roll around, and I’m minding my own business when T comes up to me (Her and M had been complaining, because, again, I had a lot of stuff.) and says:

T: How many things do you have in the show?

Me: Uh, I’m not sure…..

T: Well, you should probably take stuff out. Seriously, like, you always have so much stuff in the show, give other artists a chance….

I didn’t really know what to say to that, so I just answered with a small and confused, “Um…no?” she continued to tell me I needed to stop adding stuff where they had to make categories (other people did this, and nothing was stopping them?). She still hadn’t moved from her anime stage, hadn’t improved at all, still didn’t even grasp basic shading, like???? It’s not my fault you can’t win, honestly. It’s your own.

Another thing about this year, it was around the time I had started to collect my markers and use them in my work. When T and M found out, they tried so hard to make me feel bad for having them. “Wow, must be nice being rich.” I’m not rich, I saved up money from commissions and other things to get them. But to have them always say, very loudly, that I was rich and fancy because I had some copic markers was very embarrassing and made me uncomfortable. Basically, they were hoping to make me stop using them. Funny enough, while M was saying stuff like this, they were holding like, an Ipad, headphones, bunch of anime merch, same with T. Excuse me, but if you didn’t buy 40 plushies and key chains, you could get these too??

So, I again talked to my teachers, (We’re really close at this point) and explain to them I feel guilty and worry that what they’re saying is true. They again, gave me a great pep talk telling me it was because they were jealous and that I was doing just fine. They pointed out that everyone else in the classes loved seeing my art and encouraged me as well. (I actually kinda had a fan base) With that, I found my backbone suddenly and realized, Yo, this is dumb as shit. You think I’m being an asshole? I’m gonna show you being an asshole. I entered all the things I had picked out, and noticed that we now had a digital category full of T and M’s edgy monstrosities. I waited until the day of the art show (it’s after school) to bring in my final few pieces.

5 digital drawings.

T and M weren’t in the room and I got the go ahead to mat them, tag them, and hang them up. Later that day, T and M came in and I’m telling you, their faces dropped, and they had realized they fucked up.

Lmao guess who took 1st, 2nd, and 3rd in that category? Me. I would like to make a disclaimer that I will ALWAYS try and support an artist, regardless of skill level, but if you’re an asshole, nope. You gonna be an asshole, I’m gonna be a bigger one. Watch me. (Also my friends/fan base was pumping me up cause I told them what was going on, and had actually talked to a lot of them to ask if I had too much in the show, since a lot of them was in art too)

I won so much, that for the last week or so of school, I wore all my ribbons over the last 3 years on a wire, and attached them to my satchel, just to remind them I was done with their weeb shit and negative attitude. (I’d like to quickly mention that the art teachers have NO SAY in judging. The art Teachers don’t judge the show at all) It was even better, since we had a lot of classes together, because a lot of people, including teachers would ask me if all of the ribbons were mind and I got to talk to the class about it, and mention the fact I had won Best in show and First in show that year too, and Best last year. They were triggered. Majorly. Was I an asshole? Yes, Yes I was. Do I regret it? Nah, they had it coming.

BUT WE’RE ONLY ON THE 3RD YEAR!

Senior year rolls up, I honestly have no fucks to give and I’m a passive aggressive angry bean. I was just so fed up with T and M trying to walk over me and trying to make me feel bad. Now, at this point T is still acting like their my friend, although I know they talk shit behind my back constantly. I tried to just avoid her. We had a class in the library called RTI, basically a free period to be honest. I’d draw of course (I was taking two independent studies in art, meaning I could work on whatever I wanted. I took that year to help render my style and such) and she would constantly be breathing over my shoulder. (Still drawing cringe anime that was horribly incorrect. I never had said anything to her about her art, because frankly, I didn’t care.) She would constantly think it was SO FUNNY to try and hit my arm while I was trying to ink a drawing. She would even laugh when she did it, like it was some funny joke, and not like I’ve taken 3 hours to sketch something out only to have her try and fuck it up on purpose. She’d also always find the need to shove her input in while I was working.

“Their head is too big.”

“Omg they look so funny!!!”

“That body is messed up!!!! Hahaha!!!”

“Can’t you draw that right??”

Bitch you can’t even shade as a senior. Sit down. I know I said I’m always open for critism, but you probably understand why I didn’t take theirs. Also, you’re suppose to point out what you think is good, then explain what you think is off. It’s a magical thing called CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM. I never really replied, just kept working. One day, I’m talking to my friend who is watching me work on a sketch of a merman. I’m fine with this friend watching me draw because they would offer to take photos of me working so I could post them on my art page, or help hand me my tools.

Well, T suddenly leans over, breathing over my shoulder before pointing to the mermans hand that I’m CLEARLY erasing to fix and goes, “That hands messed up!!! hahaha!” Literally ridiculing me, mid fix, like it’s the funniest thing.

It’s Monday, I had had no coffee, I’ve dealt with this for years. Nope. I’m done.I’m not dealing with this. Now, t had some crooked teeth. Disclaimer: I don’t care what you look like, I find things like that (’imperfections’) likable, and like to try and including little things like that in my drawings. However, if you act like an asshole, nothing is off limits, and I will destroy you.)

She goes, “That hands messed up! Hahaha!!!!”

I don’t even pause drawing and just reply as calmly as possible, “Yeah? Well so are your teeth, but no one mentions it because you didn’t ask.” she shut up real damn quick after that. I never had any more problems from her after that involving my art and the art show. Was it rude? Yes. Again, do I regret it? No. You give me unwanted comments, I give them to you. My savagery has only grown since entering college.

Now, A lot of shit had hit the fan between me and T during the summer because I helped her boyfriend at the time leave her. She was being mentally and emotionally abusive/manipulative. I.e: I’ll kill myself if you leave!!

She messaged me telling me I was a horrible person and I had so much coming my way and blah blah blah. But I was at work, making $1000 a month (which was great for gather college supplies) So, again, I didn’t care. I just didn’t message her back.

Well, I may be an asshole, but I’m sophisticated, I can be civil alright? I don’t just get on Facebook like: *Tags in post* FUCK THIS PERSON Y U A BITCH??

No,I take these experiences and use them as a way to give art lessons on my page. (I had a lot of the lower grades, including freshman, come to me for help and enjoy my art. So, I post little art lessons for them to read over. Usually about how to improve their art) Recently, one of my post was more of a motivational kinda thing. I explained that as they grow, they may run into jealous artists. I encouraged them to keep going and gave them 2 lists. One that had a list of things that they need to look out for that may indicate a jealous artist. (I’ve run into more since this story, and deal with it a lot honestly) The other list was things that’s been said to me, and served as an example of some of the things they may have to deal with. NO NAMES WERE MENTIONED AT ALL, VERY VAGUE. T had told one of my friends that she had my page ‘unfollowed’, but not unfriended. So, she didn’t see my stuff. However, today, she posted a long status about how ‘you need to stop acting like you’re in high school. Don’t be mad I’m happy!!” Basically all that jazz, not tagging me of course. Unfriended me, all that. Funny thing was I literally haven’t looked at her page in years…so….I’ll post my status and her status below.

That basically concludes my first story, but there will be more.

#personal #weeb cringe #weeaboo #art #art student #art class #art classes #story #stories #weeb story #weeb stories #weeaboo stories #weeaboo story

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vsionvry · 4 years

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400 Hours Later: A Conversation with Hyperealist Artist Oscar Ukonu

Hyperealist artist Oscar Ukonu describes his craft as “a practice in time and patience”. This seems accurate considering that his blue ballpoint portraits average 200 - 400 hours of work to create. His intricate and unbelievably realistic portraits are detailed tributes to Africa and African identity. His work is centered on the concept of Afrorealism and unpack some of the big issues of our time like disinformation, fake news and honest representation.I managed to chat with him over the phone from his home base in Lagos Nigeria, scroll down to check out our conversation below.

RC: Hi Oscar, thank you so much for agreeing to speak with me! Are you in Nigeria right now?

OU: Yes I'm in Lagos.

RC: That’s cool, I've only been to the airport [laughs].

OU: How was it?

RC: It was an interesting experience, next time I hope to make it outside…

OU: [laughs]

RC: So, I had a few questions I wanted to ask about your artwork, they are stunning and look like they take a lot of time.

OU: Thank you so much.

RC: I was wondering how your artistic journey led you into hyperealism because it looks like a very skillful craft.

OU: I've been drawing all my life so design and art have been with me for a very long time, but most of my hyper realistic skills were developed when I was in architecture school. During my time at school, I did a lot of pencil based drawings but began to experiment with ink to develop my own art style.

RC: I was also wondering why you choose ballpoint pens as your medium?

OU: From my experience at architecture school, I thought I could find something that writes better than the ink pens I used. So I spent a lot of time looking at different mediums and drawing tools. But the first time I tried the ballpoint pen that was in 2014, and it just clicked...

RC: Like love at first sight?

OU: Yea, working with the ballpoint pen gave me more confidence and helped me express myself better.

RC: I noticed you work almost exclusively in the color blue, does that color hold a special significance for you?

OU: It is mostly about the mood that I want my works to exude. Most of the moods I like to set up in my works are associated with this cool color, plus it's one of the original ballpoint colors. In the current series of works I'm working on, that’s the kind of mood I'm trying to express.

RC: Do you see yourself moving into a different color scheme or different tones in the future or do you like what blue is doing for you now?

OU: Yes yes definitely! I have a series of works that explore other colors and other mediums like oil paint. My next series might need a different kind of expression that may not use the ballpoint pen or the color blue.

RC: That’s interesting, especially because sometimes what you want to achieve with your artwork determines what color, style and medium you choose.

OU: Exactly, exactly!

RC: Most of your works feature people, so I was wondering who are those people to you? Are they friends or family?

OU: My work is mainly influenced by my personal and cultural experiences of living here in Africa. So most of the subjects in my work are friends or family and sometimes strangers. I have them come to the studio for a photoshoot where I interact with them and find out what type of person they are to decide what the best way to express it is. Other times when I meet certain people, I leave the studio and meet them in their own environment where they are more comfortable.

RC: My next question was actually about your drawing process. I saw that some of your works take 200-400 hours to create, where you take reference photos and get a feel of the person by having a conversation with them.

OU: Yea, the photoshoot is an important part of my process. When I have an idea for a series or artwork I pen them down and sometimes flesh out a few sketches. Then what follows is photography where I take maybe 100 pictures and select about 10. When it's time to put pen to paper I let these pictures inform me. What I mean by ‘inform’ is that I don't just use one picture: I use the whole photoshoot. That way I'm able to take down all the different individual pieces and maintain the fidelity of the initial idea I had.

RC: From that whole process, what do you enjoy the most about making art?

OU: I think it's the moment when I start bringing my subject to life since my work takes a lot of time. Sometimes it takes up to 6 weeks to create a piece, and in the 3rd week I haven't really brought the subject to life but in the 4th or 5th week it will start taking shape. And in that moment I’m like ‘oh okay its coming to life’.

RC: I understand that, I was also looking at some of your artwork and there was one I really liked it was…

OU: Which one!?

RC: It had two people looking away from each other and they had newspaper wrapped around their heads -

OU: Ah yeah, that’s ‘Disinformation of a Republic II”

RC: Yes! So what were your thoughts behind that artwork?

OU: I made that in the beginning of the year, as part of my current series called ‘Disinformation of a Republic’. What I try to do is look at the news and social media and explore how we poison information. You see I tried to cover the eyes with the newspaper to show some of the blindness that can come from that. People are constantly being positioned to see things from a particular angle, so I covered the subject's faces to show that most times what we see is what the media allows us to see. A friend of mine is a journalist and mentioned that what journalism is, is printing what people don't want printed, that really stuck with me, so that series of artworks has a lot to do with journalism and the way information has shaped identities.

RC: That's quite powerful especially in a time when there’s a lot of fake news about big things like Covid-19 and elections. So it's definitely very relevant...Besides this, what else inspires you to create in general? You’ve mentioned personal and cultural references, so I was curious if you try and include Nigeria in what you do.

OU: My practice in general is a kind of act of gratitude for the life I’m given and the privilege of work. I’m aware that there are lots of people here in Nigeria who have dreams and dont have the means to go about achieving them.

RC: That's very true.

OU: Yeah, the privilege of having an idea and having the chance to express it in my works is what inspires me. It's like a language that I speak and a form of expression that I use to flesh out my ideas. Now talking about my cultural influences, I try to center my work on the concept of Afrorealism as a visual aesthetic of ways to be black and to know black. Most of the time I think the black body and its different identities are not well represented, even in the art industry. In Nigeria right now the idea and identity of who the Nigerian living in Nigeria is without Western influences is found wanting. So quite a few Nigerian artists are working with hyperealism right now to try to portray that identity.

RC: It feels very fresh and honest because you’re just drawing or painting what you see. Its also different to the few limited ideas of Africa that often get repeated in images. So its nice that there’s new more truthful images being shared now.

OU: Hmm, true.

RC: I was also wondering when did you start drawing or how long did it take for you to develop your skill to where it is now? You talked about drawing a lot when you were studying architecture. Do you feel like you could develop your skill more or are you happy with where it is?

OU: Well I always say that my best work is my next one [laughs]. I started drawing with ballpoint in 2014 and since then I’ve always tried to develop my skills and talents so I can make them come alive on paper. Ever since then, I’ve tried to improve on my skills with every piece I make.

RC: I guess this is a ‘practice makes perfect’ kind of situation!

OU: Yea [laughs].

RC: A big question I had for you was what kind of message do you want to convey through your art? You’ve spoken about wanting to represent true Nigerian identities, are there other societal issues you want to talk about through your work?

OU: Most of the ideas I like to work with are related to African identities, socio-political and gender issues and the way they all come together to shape our identities of the African experience.

RC: Do you ever see yourself drawing people who aren’t from Africa?

OU: Well I would say that most of the concerns I have right now are related to identity, so for now the people that require most of my attention are Africans living in Africa...

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