jean zone

digi_jean · Mar 05, 2026, 04:49 AM

welcome to my sketchbook!

i like to draw characters from TTRPGs and have been practicing oil painting, mostly portraits.

latest:

digi_jean · Mar 06, 2026, 06:28 AM

Oh oops, Discord doesn't seem to like me hyperlinking images there.

Here's a few other portraits I did from life last month. I had friends volunteer to sit for me, usually about 2 hours at a time. It's pretty challenging already to paint people from life, much more friends, who have a higher expectation for likeness. For some of these, I did an oil stain (imprimatura) with only using the pigment Raw Umber and thinning it with linseed oil, but I tried to push myself further to do a full color portrait in one sitting (alla prima). It was fun and I learned a lot!

kringle · Mar 06, 2026, 07:49 AM

Quote from: jean on Mar 06, 2026, 06:28 AMOh oops, Discord doesn't seem to like me hyperlinking images there.

yeah IIRC discord has it where it'll stop showing an image externally after a few days, so hosting somewhere else is deff wise

these all look so good jean!!!! i love all the different colors in the first one, and your oil stains have very nice values. (super love the last ala prima one!!!so cute ^u^ love the eyes)

honestly just jealous that you have friends willing to sit that long for you irl LMAOO, i can totes understand the pressure of having to paint someone you know but i feel like the trade off of having someone you already know and are comfortable working with makes the trade off even. need to develop a local witch enclave here in LA for my own traditional schemes, but prob with gouache instead.

the way u have one painting already framed is super sick!! do u get most of them framed or was that just a special occasion?

jayjaythejetplane · Mar 06, 2026, 03:16 PM

These paintings are so lovely!!

finlaypatrickduffill · Mar 06, 2026, 03:40 PM

Fantastic paintings
Alla prima seems like such a nerve-wracking conquest really with my sensibility it would end up as a botched mess to try and paint on one layer, having to make almost executive decisions right from the start it's very impressive I think

rolypolyphonic · Mar 07, 2026, 03:38 AM

These are really nice paintings, the Christmas-tree looking Kewpie doll (?) is so adorable

digi_jean · Mar 08, 2026, 02:29 PM

Quote from: kringle on Mar 06, 2026, 07:49 AM
yeah IIRC discord has it where it'll stop showing an image externally after a few days, so hosting somewhere else is deff wise

these all look so good jean!!!! i love all the different colors in the first one, and your oil stains have very nice values. (super love the last ala prima one!!!so cute ^u^ love the eyes)

honestly just jealous that you have friends willing to sit that long for you irl LMAOO, i can totes understand the pressure of having to paint someone you know but i feel like the trade off of having someone you already know and are comfortable working with makes the trade off even. need to develop a local witch enclave here in LA for my own traditional schemes, but prob with gouache instead.

the way u have one painting already framed is super sick!! do u get most of them framed or was that just a special occasion?

Thanks! Yes, it is quite nice that people are so willing to sit for me. *cry* I generally warn my friends to expect a whiter, more generic version of them while I try to unlearn Loomis proportions. And you should! :-) There's something deeply intimate about drawing someone in front of you. It's a nice way to pass the time.

I found a cheap frame at a art supply re-use store and it happened to fit the panel. That particular friend asked for the painting, so I plan to give it to him once we have our open studio event.

Quote from: jayjaythejetplane on Mar 06, 2026, 03:16 PMThese paintings are so lovely!!

Thank you!

Quote from: finlaypatrickduffill on Mar 06, 2026, 03:40 PMFantastic paintings
Alla prima seems like such a nerve-wracking conquest really with my sensibility it would end up as a botched mess to try and paint on one layer, having to make almost executive decisions right from the start it's very impressive I think

Thank you! It does seem scary... but oils are more forgiving than you might anticipate. I am trying to build up brushstroke confidence, and a lot of problems I'm trying to resolve right now have to do with palette mixing and not blending on the canvas.

Quote from: rolypolyphonic on Mar 07, 2026, 03:38 AMThese are really nice paintings, the Christmas-tree looking Kewpie doll (?) is so adorable

Thank you! It's a modified Sonny Angel doll that I added an armature and grass flocking to, to resemble the May Queen from Midsommar (see here)

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These are semi-old D&D portraits and full bodies. My party ended up imploding after the holidays so I never got to finish and present them to everyone..

We were running the module Tomb of Annihilation, and I had the pleasure of playing as Hiếu, a lovable Peace Domain cleric who went full Lord of the Flies and changed into a War Priest after some horrific encounters in the jungles of Chult.

And another portrait of a friend from life. oils on panel, alla prima

krzchn「c」 · Mar 11, 2026, 05:44 PM

it's always a joy to see your work jean!!

i didn't know you never got to give those graphite pieces to your D&D group... i rly love them, especially Hiếu; something about the contrast between the white page and the dark tones just stratches my brain just right! do you guys not even have some sort of group chat so you could show them? ... though i get it's not as nice as giving them in person and seeing everyone's reactions.

i've never had someone i know sit for me (i've drawn friends, but always in a kind of casual way, without asking them to pose) but it sounds like a great experience!

digi_jean · Mar 12, 2026, 02:07 PM

Quote from: krzchn「c」 on Mar 11, 2026, 05:44 PMit's always a joy to see your work jean!!

i didn't know you never got to give those graphite pieces to your D&D group... i rly love them, especially Hiếu; something about the contrast between the white page and the dark tones just stratches my brain just right! do you guys not even have some sort of group chat so you could show them? ... though i get it's not as nice as giving them in person and seeing everyone's reactions.

i've never had someone i know sit for me (i've drawn friends, but always in a kind of casual way, without asking them to pose) but it sounds like a great experience!

aw thanks c!!

we do have a group chat, but i wanted to give them in-person :-( and it seemed like bad timing bc the group chat was imploding of people sharing they couldn't commit to the game anymore. my bad for taking so long!!!

and ya i highly recommend getting your friends to sit for you :-) some of my friends and i have dozens of drawings of each other because we understand the pain of getting a live model.

sketch of a young francis bacon. i did this on clip studio and will plan to draw it traditionally so i can gift it to my friend, who gifted me bacon's memoir. i only had a cursory knowledge of his artwork but he's truly such a wild and freaky guy. his art studio was a fucking MESS and he constantly got into bar fights. he contemplates about the advent of photography and insists that as visual artists, we have a task to do more than what photography can. paraphrasing, but was interesting to read! also, he funded most of his art by beguiling older men as a young gay. much to learn here.

gaara and haku from naruto pt.1

a friend's dog who passed away, berry. i spontaneously applied for a local art show that happens ever year, one that features all dog art, and got accepted. berry was a deeply beloved chihuahua, and lived a long and sweet life. she was always bundled up and had a blind eye, both things i wanted to feature here. it took me about just one studio session, but i'm excited to be in the show. :-) oil on panel, 20x30 inches

columbo

kringle · Mar 19, 2026, 06:15 PM

Quote from: digi_jean on Mar 12, 2026, 02:07 PMa friend's dog who passed away, berry. i spontaneously applied for a local art show that happens ever year, one that features all dog art, and got accepted. berry was a deeply beloved chihuahua, and lived a long and sweet life. she was always bundled up and had a blind eye, both things i wanted to feature here. it took me about just one studio session, but i'm excited to be in the show. :-) oil on panel, 20x30 inches

congratz on getting into the show jean! i'm glad you were able to immortalize such a beloved pet and that your depiction of berry will be able to be appreciated by many more. let us know how the show goes.

also sick ass columbo i love columbo, he looks nice and crumpled here

digi_jean · Apr 03, 2026, 07:40 AM

Quote from: kringle on Mar 19, 2026, 06:15 PM
congratz on getting into the show jean! i'm glad you were able to immortalize such a beloved pet and that your depiction of berry will be able to be appreciated by many more. let us know how the show goes.

also sick ass columbo i love columbo, he looks nice and crumpled here

Aw thanks! The show is this weekend. I'll take pics :-)

Some recent sketches and paintings, digitals and in oils. I'm thinking about making more of these cute quicky figurine paintings, turning them into prints and putting up for sale or something. Paints are expensive!!

artistic nudity