Fine Art: Page 20

If you're looking for ideas for creepy decorations to make for your next Halloween party, or just want to have a little fun, you can use papier mache, cardbord paper, a little foil and some paint to create a surreal cartoon hand.

You can use this tutorial to decorate any plain or boring pair of shoes in your closet. The easiest way is to make a pair of cute bows from ribbon matching the color of your shoes, and attach them to the toes.

In these great videos you'll learn how to draw each shoe from a 3/4 view. This is a pretty tough style, and Koizu takes his time, showing you the exact steps you need to take to getting the right look, also his voice reminds me of that one "happy clouds" guy. You know the one!

Beautiful textile illusion by artist Timur Si-Qin!

When vanishing point perspective was first discovered in the early Renaissance, artists were astounded by how the draftsman tool was able to transform a flat, 2D space (that until then always looked like a flat, 2D space without perspective) into a believable 3D image. We've been using vanishing point perspective ever since, and architects would die without it.

If you need to refine your building draftsmanship for architecture school or simply because you enjoy the streamlined aesthetics of modern architecture, then this tutorial is a perfect way to practice and hone the art of architectural drawing.

Berlin based artist Nils Vöelker's plastic bag installation entitled "One Hundred and Eight" features 108 plastic bags that inflate and deflate by 216 individually controllable computer cooling fans. Völker originally intended the piece to be a giant display screen, but the end result became something much more compelling.

Inspired by Jules Verne sea demons, Bea Szenfeld's "Sur la Plage" collection includes 12 pieces handcrafted with cardboard. The idea of unconventional material constraints is a classic art school "test", as well as a typical (and somewhat tired) formula for competitive design reality shows. However, Szenfeld's garments do transcend the material and would surely win any Project Runway challenge.

Do you find that there's no better way to unwind from a long, hectic day than to put on Joni Mitchell, kick off your heels, and pour yourself a glass of Chardonnay? If so, then you more likely than not have an assortment of wine corks from wine bottles you've inhaled.

Waves are like clouds. Perpetually calming, they possess a serene beauty that never grows old. It's no wonder humans capture the planet's daily natural wonders over and over again. Armed with a camera, they just can't resist the classic postcard shot: Sunrise. Sunset. Clouds. Mountains. Beaches. Waves.

Maybe it's just us, but this city reminds us a lot of the dreamscape Parisian city from Cristopher Nolan's mind heist movie "Inception," aside from the whole city folding back over itself thing and whatnot.

Merrill offers up some of this best tips for making your works of art more realistic. There's three very important strategies for improving your the lifelike quality of your drawings and paintings, and in this video, he demonstrates them for you.

Paper Donut is a collaborative graffiti project between Justine Ricaud and Alexis Facca. The French duo paint geometrical illusions as urban art (with the exception of the gallery installation below). They've also posted some detail shots that give you some sense of how it was done.

Evocative of master Pop artist Claes Oldenburg, Japanese artist Yasuhiro Suzuki built a motorboat facsimile of a massively scaled zipper pull. From an aerial view, it's parting stream resembles a parting zipper. Absurdly fun.

Imitation is the best form of flattery, right? In the case of this picture of a roadside apartment complex, imitation will help you learn about perspective and vanishing points, and how architectural features align with these two drawing caveats to create a realistic picture.

Sometimes the most common, everyday subjects are also the best for practicing basic drawing methods like drafting and shading and contouring. Just take the truck, people, bridge, and garden in this drawing tutorial, for instance.

Think you still need to purchase all your games at the store? If you have two differently colored duct tapes, then you can actually craft your own chessboard or checkerboard easily.

Illustrator Frank Frazetta knew women. At least, he knew what men desired in the "perfect" woman physically: Sumptuous curves that made men weak in the knees with a single shake, deep-set eyes, and bombshell assets.

Now that the "Avengers" movie and the "Captain America" movie starring Chris Evans have been confirmed, fanboy hype about Marvel heroes has officially reached fever pitch. Though shooting for "Captain America" has just begun, pictures of Evans wearing his Captain American costume have surfaced, showing a very body contouring costume and a very fit Evans.

If you excel at drawing faces directly facing the front but can't seem to wrap your mind - and finger - around turning that face to the side and performing a profile sketch, then you're not alone. Adjusting a face to the side adds another dimension of facial contouring and structure.

In keeping with today's theme of dark and twisted sweets (edible blood slides), check out this German gun-sucking art project. For a piece entitled Freeze: Revisited, Florian Jenett and Valentin Beinroth made handgun replicas crafted from ice, in an array of flavors, including coke, black currant, licorice, and cherry.

Artist Jim Denevan works on a massive scale. He's "painted" the northern beaches of California, and etched away at the Nevada desert.

In this video, we learn how to write the letter "c" in calligraphy copperplate. First, dip your calligraphy pen into ink and start out making a large half circle on the paper. Dip the pen into ink again and make a loop with the top of the letter, then drag the pen down, making the "c" shape. End the letter with a loop on the bottom that isn't touching the inside of the letter. Make the lower case "c" by drawing the basic shape of the letter and adding a ball filled in with ink to the top of the...

In this video, we learn how to write the letter D in calligraphy copperplate. Start off by drawing a thin line down the paper, pressing on the pen harder to make a thicker line in the middle, then thinning out at the end. Drag the line to the left making a thin line, then loop it around to the front of the line and make the D shape. After you make the shape, bring the line to the back of the original line and loop it. Do make a lower case letter, make an oval shape with a thick line on the...

In this video, we learn how to write the letter J in calligraphy copperplate. For the uppercase letter, start by grabbing your calligraphy pen and drag it down so you have a thick black line with a thin line at the top. End the letter with a loop around it, then bring the top line to the left and loop it around, making a semi-thick line with it. To make the lower case letter, make a thin line going diagonally to the right, then dip the pen in ink and bring the pen down in a thick line down....

In this tutorial, we learn how to write the letter Y in calligraphy copperplate. First, make a thin line with the pen, going thicker as you go down, make a loop and then come back down. Make a "u" shape, then connect a curved line to the other side finished with a dot on the bottom to complete the letter. To make the lower case letter, make a small thin hump, then drag the pen down to a thicker line. Make a new line on the other side, making a thicker line and connect it with the other shape...

To spray paint graffiti, you will need the following: 2 cans of spray paint and a mask. You will need to have an idea of the design you want to paint, before you begin this project, because you will need to work quickly. Put on your safety/protective gear. Paint an outline of your design, first, with one can of spray paint. Then, you will want to strategically fill in the design. One can is primarily for filling it in and achieving light and shadow. Therefore, you will need a dark shade...

In this tutorial, we learn how to draw steps in perspective. Start off by drawing a dot in the middle of the paper. From here, draw lines using a ruler coming from the middle diagonally on the top middle and sides. Now, you will be able to draw your pictures using these as a reference point. The lines at the top will show the steps that are at the top and farthest away the closer they get to the dot in the middle. After this, fill in the details of the picture making different items around the...

In this video, we learn how to write the letter T in calligraphy copperplate. Start by drawing a thick line that follows out a loop that curves to the left hand side. After this, create a loop at the top of the line, on the left hand side. Draw this out and cross the line over the top to make the T shape, ending with a slight curve at the end. To make the lower cased letter, draw a thin line, then draw a thick line over it, then cross a thin line across the top middle of the letter. Now you...

In this video, we learn how to make an easy $20 DIY art easel with Patrick Lawrence. Each side should be about 6' tall, and make sure you screw it into the wall when you are finished. First, you will hold these together with a carriage bolt that slides up and down the two pieces of wood. At the top, screw the screws into the wall and at the bottom, bolt it up the same way as in the middle using a wing nut and a big washer. That's all there is to making an easel yourself, saving you tons of...

In this tutorial, we learn how to draw an apple. Start by drawing the outline shape of the apple. It looks like a slight heart shape in the middle of the apple where the stem is. After this, start to fill in the apple with lines to make it look more realistic, then draw the stem and a leaf coming out of the top middle of it. Color in the leaf with browns, blacks, and green. Then, draw lines on the bottom of the paper to make it look like the surface. Finish by coloring the apple red, making...

In this video, we learn how to write the letter K in calligraphy copperplate. Start by running your calligraphy pen on the paper going from a thin line to a thick, making a line curved to the left ending with a dot at the end of a small loop. Next, make a loop to drag out across the top on the right hand side and curve it down to make the K letter. Do the same to make the lower case letter, except making a loop for the top of the letter instead. When finished, let the ink dry and you've got...

In this video, we learn how to write the letter O in calligraphy copperplate. Take your calligraphy pen and make a medium thick half loop at the top, dragging it down into a thicker line on the left side of the word. Then, continue onto the other side of the O with a lighter touch of the pen making a very thin line, finishing with a loop in the middle. Make the smaller O just like normal, making the thick line on the side and finishing with a small loop bending out to the right at the end. When...

In this video, we learn how to draw a horse. First, draw the outline of the horse's body. Start with a circle for the head and wispy lines for the rest of the body. Make large shapes that connect to see where the mass of the body will be. Next, draw in the head, tail, back, and legs of the horse. After you have the outline finished, erased the lines inside of the picture. Now, draw in details on the horse. Add in lines to show where the hair is, then draw in the nose and eyes to the face. Also...

In this tutorial, we learn how to draw a fist. Start off by drawing for circles linked to each other, then draw lines coming down from the middle of each circle. Then, draw a line across the bottom of each vertical line, going horizontally. After this, use a dark line to outline around the circles and the bottom of the lines. Make sure to draw a line in between each of the individual lines. Next, add a couple of curved lines to make a thumb appear on the side. To finish, erase the original...

Would you glue fly legs to your eyelids? More or less stomach churning than gluing your eyelids to your...eyelids? (Shudder.)

Too often in the hustle and bustle of life we forget to take a deep breath, calm down, and embrace the quiet. Many of us are so wired to the point that the quiet scares us, leading to a state of constant overstimulation in which we develop stress, hypertension, and cardiovascular problems. Doesn't sound so fun, does it?

Not all of us have an entire photo studio in our houses. In fact, unless you're a professional photographer, you probably don't have much space at all in which to create solid looking shots.

Duct tape can be used for just a lot more than taping your eBay packages shut. In fact, duct tape has a whole lotta urban crafting potential. Don't believe us? Just check out this duct tape tutorial.

We're not going to lie to you: Creating pottery is a long, arduous, and intense process. But After you throw your charger, come back to reshape offset parts, fire the charger, and then glaze it, you have yourself a homemade work of art you will treasure for a lifetime. In other words, all the hard work you put into pottery is worth it!