Tag: Star Wars

Tusken Raiders

Tusken Raider

Star Wars is filled with a plethora of well-designed characters. It would be impossible to choose a favorite. In Star Wars Episode IV A New Hope, the Tusken Raiders stood out as something special. Tusken Raiders are considered bad news, but that has changed a bit in the Mandalorian series. I enjoyed drawing this piece, you can see my step-by-step process of how I breakdown the drawing.

  • Pencil: Lumograph Drawing Pencil HB
  • Pens: Sakura Gelly Roll Classic Gel Pen (White)
  • Markers: Prismacolor Premier Double-Ended Art Markers

It’s A Trap

Ackbar

Everyone once in a while, someone will request or suggest that I draw something specific. A good friend suggested that I draw Admiral Ackbar from Star Wars. I was reluctant since I don’t always do my best work when drawing for someone else. However, I thought it was worth taking on this small challenge in the spirit of practice. My first and second attempt (see below) was ok, but if I’m being honest with myself they weren’t as good as they could be. My final attempt (see above) was better. I don’t think practice makes perfect, but it does make you better.

Ackbar
  • Pencil: Lumograph Drawing Pencil HB
  • Pens: Sakura Gelly Roll Classic Gel Pen (White)
  • Markers: Prismacolor Premier Double-Ended Art Markers

People hate Ewoks

These days, it seems that many people hate the Ewoks. To quote Josh Baskin from the movie Big, “I don’t get it”. I’ve read plenty of articles on why people hate them but, I don’t get it. Whatever you think of them, they are fun to draw. This piece was part of the quick sketch series I did during January 2021.

  • Pencil: Lumograph Drawing Pencil HB
  • Pens: Sakura Gelly Roll Classic Gel Pen (White)
  • Markers: Prismacolor Premier Double-Ended Art Markers

Give to the world the best you have and the best will come back to you.

I love drawing, it’s one of my favorite things to do. Some drawings take longer than others and never feel finished. This drawing of Jabba The Hutt flew from my pen like a bird flying home. The pen strokes are scratchy and the markers were going dry. But I enjoyed every second of this piece.

  • Pencil: Lumograph Drawing Pencil HB
  • Pens: Sakura Gelly Roll Classic Gel Pen (White)
  • Markers: Prismacolor Premier Double-Ended Art Markers
  • Fortune cookie: Give to the world the best you have and the best will come back to you.

Drawing with markers and pens.

Star Wars

I’ve been drawing digitally now for almost eight years. In 2017 I was given a 12.9-inch iPad Pro as a birthday gift from my wife. The iPad Pro and the app ProCreate changed my whole approach to drawing. I love every minute of the process. However, over the past few weeks, I’ve reconnected drawing in notebooks and art pads using markers and pens. These drawings turned out to be the beginning of a series of sketches that reminded me of how much I missed drawing with markets and pens. Moving forward, I’m going to find a balance between drawing traditionally and digitally.

This one drawing starting me down an unexpected path.

Jawa

Six and half years ago, I attended the Future of Web Design conference in NYC. The conference provided a swag bag to the attendees that included a small notebook for taking notes. I never used it for taking notes and had it in a drawer all these years. I hadn’t drawn much in 2020 and didn’t want that to happen again in the new year. On January 1, 2021, I decided to use this notebook to sketch anything I wanted. I began drawing random faces, a standard warm-up of mine but ended up drawing a Jawa from Star Wars IV A New Hope. The goal was to draw quickly, 10-30 minutes, and not be too precious with these drawings. Using this random notebook and not a sharp-looking, high-end sketchpad allowed me to be free and avoided the roadblock of perfectionism. There’s something about a new art pad that can be intimidating. There’s a thought that I haven’t ruined it yet with a bunch of bad drawings. What I realized is that it’s better to have a pad fill with bad drawings than no drawings at all. Drawing brings joy into my life. It’s where I go to rest, meditate and recharge. I shared this thought on Instagram with a video of me flipping through the notebook. Regardless of good or bad, the practice of drawing regularly provides you the opportunity to improve your art. Using a notebook that I didn’t care about helped to eliminate the roadblock of perfectionism. It allowed me to be productive and created a series of drawings that brought me joy. 

Chewbacca

Artwork of Chewbacca by Michael Soto

On May 25th, 1977 a movie was released that would forever change my life, that movie was Star Wars. Now, I’m not trying to sound overly dramatic or anything, but trust me when I say that I am not the type of fan that cares who shot first; we all know who shot first. Star Wars as it was simply called back then, was filled with amazing characters that any 8-year old boy would call awesome; CP3O, R2-D2, Luke, Leia, Obi-Wan, Darth Vader, Han, and Chewbacca. Chewbacca was played by the actor Peter Mayhew who passed away on April 30, 2019. It’s bizarre how a fictional character could play such a huge part in a person’s life. Throughout the years I saw Peter Mayhew a few times at various comic conventions. I always wanted to go up to him and purchase an autograph. However, I was simply too timid to go up to him and ask. Silly I know, but it’s something I regret not doing. Hearing of his passing made me think that I need to stop being afraid and allowed myself to be vulnerable. On the day of his passing, I drew this picture as a tribute to the actor who portrayed one of my favorite Star Wars characters, R.I.P. Peter Mayhew.