On the Verge of Lunacy

I've been trying to improve my watercolor skills by looking at various guides. Here are some sample pieces I've finished (the images are not my ideas, I had guides):

I used ballpens and oslo paper then scanned the drawing. I didn't bother editing the photo as you can see.

Kratos Zeus

Ezio Auditore from Assassin's Creed Morrigan from Dragon Age Sgt. Foley from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 War from Darksiders Zhao Yun from Dynasty Warriors

I've been practicing in the past several months. Here are some pencil sketches of portrait exercises my younger sister provided me. She's in a special program for the arts in high school, an opportunity I was never given when I was younger. Ever the opportunist, I thought this might be a good time to start with the basics. Note: I copied the portraits from my sister's portfolio. We both aren't the original artists. Unfortunately we do not have the name of the author of the workbook.

There have been several publications of studies of Egypt but none as organized as The Egyptians by Cyril Aldred. The third edition also has several helpful additions and revisions such as a list of kings of Egypt. The book includes a survey of Egypt's geography and natural resources, the archaeological and anthropological sites, and an introduction of its art, architecture, science, literature and religion. The chapters on prehistory and history are in chronological order and there are plenty of illustrations and photos as well. Students and enthusiasts of Egyptian history will find the book informative and detailed but still reader-friendly. Those who are looking for an in-depth study of Egyptian religion or mythology however might find this book lacking. Most of the details are on architecture and art, and some explanation on how the excavations and studies have pieced together Egypt's history. I recommend the book to those already familiar with some studie...

Greek history enthusiasts will find this beautiful volume an invaluable addition to their collection. Filled with vivid illustrations and photos, the book is a general outline of history of ancient Greece from its prehistory until Alexander's death.  It contains mostly descriptions of major architectural and archaeological finds and a narration of events at the time they were built or made. The book is informative but not detailed enough for the scholarly purposes. It however provides a good overview of architectural styles, art and a condensed history of the area. I recommend this both for casual and scholarly reading. If you are interested in mythology, the book also mentions a few things. The text is easy to understand and reader friendly (however, the reader might want to check some updates on the progress of the study of finds). Rating: 9 out of 10

Me and my boyfriend. I used violet, blue and red ballpens. My deviantArt Link:  http://fav.me/d8067r6

Ezio Auditore in one of his outfits in AC Brotherhood I used graphite and colored pencils on oslo paper My deviantArt link is here  

Note:  My review will not include the multiplayer modes for AC Brotherhood and Revelations and most of the DLCs. I will provide a list however of DLCs included in this edition (refer to cover above). Assassin's Creed II is the direct sequel of Assassin's Creed, while Brotherhood and Revelations follow up on the story of the trilogy's lead character Ezio Auditore. The gameplay is similar to the first game. Memories are accessed through the Animus. These memories form sequences and must be completed by performing the necessary objectives of each mission. Ezio's abilities are pretty much the same as Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad's in Assassin's Creed  but with several improvements. The wall climb and roof run, Leap of Faith, and tracking targets by stealth or gathering information are basically the same.  At the start of Assassin's Creed II, Desmond Miles is rescued by Lucy Stillman out of Abstergo Industries, the Templars, and brought to a secret, t...

Based on the cardinal points of painting, Randall Davies attempted to classify, explain the origins and influences, and present the development of painting in the western hemisphere. The cardinal points he used are the following: basis of religion, development peculiar to the soil, imitation of nature, and approbation of the public. This volume is quite helpful to art students and even to general readers because of the organization of the information. However, it is more like a list than a study of the distinct features of the schools. Some portions did give useful information about the styles and their differences but it is very rare. Only the well-known artists are given special attention as well. Moreover, the author injects biased comments about the specific artists' styles, putting aside what could have been a more useful general comparison of styles. Nonetheless, the book has plenty of useful information and is easy to read. The ff. are the chapters included in the vo...

From left: Connor, Ezio, Desmond, and Altair Link to my deviantArt:  http://fav.me/d6lhppq

Kratos holding the goblet dropped by Hera in God of War III. Link to my deviantart:  http://fav.me/d5zbkaj

Dante Alighieri of Dante's Inferno video game. Link to my deviantart:  http://fav.me/d5zbjye

As the title of the book says, it discusses the evolution of art over the centuries. The author divided the book into five major sections, namely; Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Ancient Greece and Italy, and Medieval Painting. There is some useful information on the styles or "schools of art" that flourished in particular places or periods. The types of art and architecture were discussed briefly but the author left out so many things and focused on the lives of the artists instead. There is also very little information in the first three chapters and the author has a tendency to insert her own observations and opinions of the works of the artists that it can hardly be called a history book. The lives of the artists, particularly those from the medieval period are interesting, but the author uses the same pattern in recounting their lives and works. Her accounts of the location of the artworks also take up too much space and defeat the purpose of the book. Besides Egypt, Assy...

This is how I visualize Froth Wolf, Tavore's flagship. I was going for Silanda but I forgot it didn't have sails.

Jubei Yagyu of the Onimusha 2 game. I'm not happy with this drawing. His eyes look weird.

I'm having art lessons with my youngest sister as my instructor. This is the first still life  lesson we had.