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2023-11: Warosu is now out of extended maintenance.

/ic/ - Artwork/Critique


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File: 33 KB, 400x400, ruan-jia-vanishness.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4283558 No.4283558 [Reply] [Original]

There's something I find really off-putting about Ryan Jia's work. It's like it's technically skilled and so cleanly executed to the point where it comes off as soulless.

His use of complimentary colours makes his art stand out but apart from that, I find his work to be very bland and uninspired. Perhaps it's the repeating subject choice. Drawing pretty girls in fantasy clothing is tired at this point.

>> No.4283564

>soul
>soulless
can’t you zoomers come up with new words

>> No.4283566

People who use the word soulless, are just brainlets who don't know how to express their problem with a particular piece of art.

They deserve the bullet.

>>4283558

You deserve the bullet.

>> No.4283567

>>4283566

I just explained to you why it's soulless lmfao

>> No.4283569

>>4283566
>>4283564
/ic/ is filled with retards that use that word unironically. Sometimes I wonder why I come to this shithole still.

>> No.4283573

>>4283567
Just say it’s bland or boring then, dumbass.

>> No.4283574
File: 253 KB, 1654x1093, jana-schirmer-25.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4283574

That looks like a photo that was filtered with Corel Painter.

There are better artists that work in that style like Jana.
https://janaschirmer.artstation.com/

>> No.4283576
File: 313 KB, 1577x1118, jana-schirmer-10533296-10154794561725284-3551120012367125369-o.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4283576

>>4283574
It's the limitations of digital, at some point everything looks the same.

>> No.4283578

>>4283569
But I fucking did lol, aw man your reading comprehension is fucking shite

>> No.4283583
File: 387 KB, 938x1250, jana-schirmer-18.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4283583

Everyone uses the stupid color aberration effect, what a time for art...

>> No.4283627

>>4283578
Fucking did what? All I said that /ic/ used the word unironically. Funny that you’re telling me my reading comprehension off when it was clearly yours. This fucking proves you retards that say soul are actually autistic.

>> No.4283629

>>4283627

Luv... I think you need to leave the thread go outside and take some fresh air and maybe you'll calm down x

>> No.4283630

>>4283583
Be the change you wanna see cucklord

>> No.4283646

>>4283558
Realisric female face with an undefined expression and dull washed out colors that don't give off any kind of mood.

There. I just explained why it's soulless.

>> No.4283682

>>4283558
Boring composition

>> No.4283705

>>4283564
>>4283566
>>4283569
>fun fact 95% of the current art scene is soulless

begs usually get pretty assblasted when someone calls their work soulless thus they try to divert the meaning

>> No.4283729

>>4283705
That's because there is no real meaning to the word. It's thoroughly subjective and basically translates to "things I don't like".
It's not an educated way to critique anything, especially if you claim to have any sort of knowledge and competence in the field you want to comment on. I don't mind people who have no idea about art calling something soulless. For them, it's a genuine expression of things they can't explain any better. But if you are an artist yourself, your understanding of the subject shouldn't be this weak.

>> No.4283857

>>4283576
I would have stopped at #3 and started the next project.

>> No.4283873
File: 1.49 MB, 2450x1231, NoComparison.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4283873

>>4283574
>Jana better than Ruan Jia
No.

Ruan Jia has better brush strokes, better focus, better edges, better light, better color and better shape design.

Pic related, Ruan Jia's most boring work still far exceeds what most other artists can put out in a multitude of ways. Soulless or not, Ruan Jia is the better painter on so many actually tangible levels.

>> No.4283875

>>4283873
>asbestos hair

>> No.4283882
File: 43 KB, 1280x720, 1397847647642.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4283882

>loser artists talking shit about good artists way out of their league yet again so they feel less shit about themselves

That's like 80% of /ic/ now. So sad.

>> No.4283887

>>4283583
What is with that gross fat man face? It looks like fucking Justin Trudeau in a wig.

>> No.4283891
File: 131 KB, 728x591, gas spill.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4283891

>>4283873
Why doies it look like there was a gas/petrol spill on every ruan jia painting.

>> No.4283896

>>4283873
>>4283574
yikes and shame on you for even putting the two in the same sentence

>> No.4283914

>>4283887
Artists tend to unintentionally draw themselves in the figures they draw.

>> No.4283917

>>4283729
I don't think so, I'd say the word "Soul" is initially used by pretty high level artists who understand the difference between something empty and meaningless, and something that is quite sincerely unique and inspiring in various ways. Quite ironically, since most of the good ones are honest about their own lack of skill and "Soul" and are constantly looking for ways to grow closer to it.

And then you have begs on ic and social media, who post beg and semi beg doodles and then unironically make threads like "how do I obtain soul back". Thus a baseless word without any concept.

It's two different worlds entirely, Soul is reserved for the highest of the high, you get that good that you just can't be ignored, even turning haters secretly into fans.

>> No.4284024

>>4283558
The problem of Ruan Jia is that he doesn't know when to stop rendering.

>> No.4284032

>>4284024
>Ruan Jia doesn't know when to stop rendering
I can totally see why that wouldn't appeal to people. But on the other hand, regardless of how much he renders, there's still a lot of messiness in his brushwork. I think the main reason over rendered paintings look gross is because they're often too smooth.

It would be cool if Ruan Jia experimented with trying to emulate Jaime Jones' looseness while maintaining his own signature look.

>> No.4284056
File: 376 KB, 1000x731, Lions_of_Sun_Gate_final2.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4284056

>>4283873
algenpfleger completely trashes both.

>> No.4284068
File: 398 KB, 1280x940, algenpfleger_ap-2c717c1a-af58-4575-95ad-bb3aaefa78c3.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4284068

>> No.4284074
File: 158 KB, 1265x1800, 19780452_1871448603120812_1459070693745556249_o.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4284074

Marko Djurdjevic is another one.

>> No.4284079

>>4283887
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rkk02A00DIA

>> No.4284082
File: 168 KB, 800x600, chapter_5__panel_42_by_daniellieske-d61x4yk.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4284082

>>4283891
Digital is so lame they have to create these gimmicks to stand out and make the artwork more interesting visually.

>> No.4284106

>>4283873
This, it's lame when people claim random decent painters to be better than RJ.

>> No.4284299
File: 1.93 MB, 2360x900, Really.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4284299

>>4284056
Algen is a dork, and most of his work is really tacky and ugly regardless of what he knows about how to paint. He strikes me as somebody who learned to paint by looking at stock photos and then plateaued.

Marko and Algen are both mediocre. Next you'll be telling me John Silva is better than Ruan Jia. Absolutely ridiculous.

>> No.4284395

Can't usher in the New Year without a Ruan Jia shitposting bait thread.

>> No.4284449
File: 1.23 MB, 2550x3509, p101.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4284449

>>4284082
It takes a visionary

>> No.4284513

>>4283682
That's not the full picture.

>> No.4284545

>>4283558
>Drawing pretty girls in fantasy clothing is tired at this point.

This. No context or narrative. It's just pin up after pin up, that blur into a massive "same" cloud.

The difference with this, and the masters, is they were expressing an idea, or illustrating a myth, or story, or an aesthetic. This just exist in a "cute girl" bubble. Use them to do something with, not just endless make digital fantasy selfies.

>> No.4284549

>>4284082
That's just about how any piece of art works, anon.

>> No.4284552

>>4283583
Bog standard fantasy trope, shoehorning human female into an elf cosplay using fake bocah effects from photography as a cheap crutch. Rinse and repeat.
Lots of skill, shit execution.

>> No.4284554

>>4283873
His work has loads of skill...but where's the narrative.

Give me a reason to look at any of it. What's the story? Where's the story?

>> No.4284558

>>4284554
Not enough 19th century people walking down cobblestone streets. No soul!

>> No.4284567

>>4284554
There isn't one. It's for all intents and purposes, a pinup.

You people always act like RJ owes it to you to reel you in with some mundane narrative that you can relate to. But that's obviously not what he cares about doing, nor is it particularly what he's good at.

Why can't you just accept that his art isn't for you without degrading him for it?

>> No.4284580

>>4284545
A lot of the old masters mostly painted fanart for the Bible, let’s be honest. It was the same shlocky lack of originality as elf girl pinups, just for a different audience.

>> No.4284584

>>4284580
Should also be noted that masters also only had any incentive to pursue mastery because that's how they could get fatter paychecks on their Bible commissions.

>> No.4284595

>>4283558
This.
I'll never get why this guy is worshipped so much. His art isn't that great. The way he does hair especially looks hideous and unnatural.

And he's a digitalfag too, which doesn't help. His work is so "hyper-realistic" photobash-tier that you might as well take a picture of a cosplaying thot, put some filters over it, call it a day.

>> No.4284604
File: 622 KB, 1920x1380, ruan-jia-snow.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4284604

>>4284595
He's hit and miss, this one looks like a Corel Painter auto-painting feature.

>> No.4284610
File: 748 KB, 1415x2250, ruan-jia-2018-06-15-2-36-44.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4284610

This one looks like a Poser render

>> No.4284611
File: 247 KB, 1550x1054, ruan-jia-rondo-of-moon.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4284611

>> No.4284612

>>4284567
I'm not one of the anons who constantly post about him, though. I usually ignore threads about him or the artists like him.

>> No.4284614

>>4284595
>His work is so hyper-realistic photobash tier
You're factually wrong. Would it hurt to actually educate yourself in the field of art before you attempt to articulate why Ruan Jia is the biggest hack ever? It's a total eyesore when haughty beginners like you exclaim things without having a modicum of a clue about anything.

>> No.4284617

>>4284595
>"hyper-realistic"
read a book

>> No.4284625

>>4284614
Ok Ruan, cool down your autistic rage over people who don't like muh realism.

>>4284617
>he doesn't recognize the creepypasta meme reference
You need to be 18+ to post here.

>> No.4284857

>>4284625
>I'm factually wrong and embarassed about it so I'm going to call anons austitic and underage.
Holy fuck gank yourself you stupid fucking basic bitch shitpost nigger.

>> No.4284864

>>4284614
>>4284857
his drawings nice why you scream?

>> No.4284866

>>4284857
lol Ruan this is not a good look

>> No.4284873

>>4284857
Calm down Ruan.

>> No.4284899

I'm lucky to have been able to get to know some of the most devout collectors of his work and even acquired an original .psd on a flashdrive of his lesser known loli phase. It has a whopping 50k px wide canvas and you can see every pore in illustrious detail. The textures and rendering of the silky smooth skin is just deliciously exquisite. I'm a bit saddened knowing that most you will never get hands on with one of his originals and study every pixel the way it was meant to be instead of a shitty jpeg . It's just a feeling you can't beat.

>> No.4284900

>>4284899
Ok Ruan

>> No.4284902

>>4284899
Are you the same faggot who printed out that one Ruan piece and then hung it on his blank bedroom wall?

>> No.4284910

>>4284899
what copypasta is this

>> No.4284946

>>4284910
I'd love to go on an adventure with ruan jua, to make him experience life for once.
A roadtrip across the chinese country side, day to day with no schedule nor goals.
It might make him a better person, but it will surely make him a better artist.

I should for one feed Ruan Jia with my heavenly seed, as to infuse him with a divine sense of beauty and happiness, but it is certain that he's an asexual not-being.

I would have to force him down by my will and muscular strenght and make him chug on my celestial thruster, under the shades of an ancient chinese redwood. He would fight and resist me, but his atrophied muscles will fall short, and once his no-personality working robot shell cracks, he would beg for the warmth of my pure gift.

>> No.4284955

>>4283569
I come here to laugh at the retardation of this board. It's sole purpose is my entertainment when nothing else is available. Always funny to see /ic/ seethe.

>> No.4284964
File: 933 KB, 1790x2499, ruan-jia-sekiro-fan-art-workshop-demo.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4284964

>>4283558
That's how you get noticed, make your art look different from the others.

>> No.4284970

>>4284964
woah this is new levels of soulless

>> No.4285017

>>4283558
I think your real problem with it is a lack of intent / intention with the piece. Same with many others using the words "soul and soulless", which I like mind you.
But that's the way to put it into better words. There wasn't a real intent with that face, he just felt like drawing a girl and it's pretty much advanced practice. With other drawings you can sorta tell they tried to be epic, creepy, heroic, funny, etc.. But some of these are just there so you look at them and clap at his technique, but won't elicit some actual emotion.

And that would be why even bad art gets told "SOUL" by some people. Even elementary school drawings can have soul because the kids had a pretty clear intent with the art (mostly trying to be cool).
Of course... Chinese including him are full of "epic" art pieces about elves and warriors fighting dragons and they're just as soulless. Could it be that even though the subject matter is good, we somehow can tell Ruan or whoever didn't particularly care for it? How could we tell?
But it's an undeniable truth that the market is over saturated with overrendered "fantasy" pieces that are soulless, same with CG artists and their space marines that are supposed to be cool. What makes this "overrendered" art seen so soulless if the subject is good, and what makes us pick apart the Soulful ones? Who knows...

>> No.4285097

>>4283576
I like how the chin is good at the start but keeps getting worse.

>> No.4285139

>>4283574
Fuck off with that Jana hack. Post Justin Sweet Craig Mullins or Brad Rigney they're better than Ryan Jia

>> No.4285143

>>4285139
>brad rigney

>> No.4285152
File: 94 KB, 774x1032, demonic_queen_by_cryptcrawler_d7e34ch-pre.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4285152

>>4285143
Stay retarded kid

>> No.4285155

>>4283857
And everything you ever make will remain unfinished. I hate to say it but you have to polish a turd or two to eventually make anything decent. Its not like you pull perfection out of your ass. You have to learn it.

>> No.4285174

>>4285152
Yeah wow what a skilled Painter

>> No.4285194
File: 1.02 MB, 936x1436, art decadence.png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4285194

because realism is soulless garbage.

>> No.4285321
File: 341 KB, 749x650, 1542240364705.png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4285321

>>4285194
>realism is soulless garbage.
It's either anime or realism nowadays. Or a mix of the two.
Art is a scam.

>> No.4285367
File: 108 KB, 740x1053, zeus-abducts-ganymede-christian-wilhelm-allers.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4285367

>>4284964
need the edit where hes jacking him off. that is true soul.

>> No.4286679

>>4285194
Give me a break dude, you're basically saying anything overrendered its trash which is not the case. Plenty of old and new masters have great realistic pieces without succumbing to an overrated trope and being unimaginative. And normies love that shit

>> No.4286729
File: 461 KB, 1280x1635, AC0135C0-155B-4088-ACF2-38765C59A39C.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4286729

How does one learn how to make SOULfull digital art?

>> No.4286742

>>4283558
Why does Chinese artists always paint like a badly compressed jpg?

>> No.4286743

>>4286742
Because they have insect brains.

>> No.4286745

>>4283873
Ryan Jia’s work is beautiful except for the way he renders hair. It objectively looks like shit every tIme and he just keeps doing it. I refuse to believe he or anyone else actually thinks it looks good.

>> No.4286781
File: 764 KB, 1300x509, remi_salmon.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4286781

>>4284056
Hardly a good competitor, nothing about his vision is unique or inspired.

>>4285152
I couldn't believe Ruan painted a picture with good composition and storytelling, then I read the tag... yea.

>>4283558
Don't think for a second that being extremely skilled robs your work of soul; It's being a basement dweller with little human contact and no interests outside of painting like Ruan that does that to you.

>>4283564
>>4283566
Soulless = drawn without inspiration and passion for the craft; uninspired.
One word is better than ten. Is that bad?

>> No.4287123

>>4286729
>>4283558
>>4283566
>>4283574

Everyone here is putting in some great comments, I had fun reading them and thinking about them.

Here is my contribution that I hope you find equally stimulating: soulless is what happens when the artist has nothing to say.

Let me repeat: things are soulless when you have nothing to say.

A lot of these images are technically correct but they aren't expressing anything. It's just a "cool picture"—that's what makes you soulless.

It's like a good book: a good book has a question it's trying to answer.

Bad books are just the author jerking off, it might even be technically well written but be fanfiction or have mary sues in it.

Images are just like that, they can just be the artist playing around with a new photoshop brush or trying out some new filters. It produces interesting cool looking images but they have no soul: they have nothing to say.

>> No.4287300

>>4285152

photobashed BS

>>4286781
"muh stroke economy"

what's so wrong about putting actual time into your craft

>> No.4288059

>>4284545
Can you think of any ‘cute girl’ artists whose work still manages to convey a narrative?

>> No.4288064

>>4284610
I think his art for pay looks significantly worse than the art he’s drawn for fun and pleasure. He’d really excel best if involved in a project he was personally interested and invested in.

>> No.4288147

>>4285367
kek same

>> No.4289373

>>4285017
Underrated post

>> No.4291766

I think he's gotten so skilled that his art is some kind of exercise in technicality above what we can even conceive. Like it accomplishes exactly what he wants it to but that happens to have no overlap with the sphere of characteristics which give something soul

>> No.4291773

>>4291766
Being technically perfect leads to that, just look at Carls Dobzky art, the guy literally lays perfect perspective on each of his drawings and his skills are high as fuck, but that very same perfection leads to boring uncanny stuff, thats why old masters idealized things, they where able to copy perfectly but what's the point when is gonna look artificial.

>> No.4291777

>>4285017
This.

>> No.4293929

>>4284299
What the fuck is the composition and anatomy on the right? What the fuck is going on in that and why does it look like everyone in the crowd is floating? Why is there a blob of people running together up there? Is that man's spine broken? Holy fuck.

>> No.4293989

>>4283573
why

>> No.4293990

>>4293989
Because he is autistic

>> No.4293991
File: 599 KB, 1280x1822, peter-polach-eb2-w-small.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4293991

>>4283891
Idk but I find it common in pieces created in corel painter, i think it has something to do with the software.

>> No.4294197
File: 547 KB, 900x658, Cuombajj Witches Seb.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4294197

>>4285017
Do you think that abstraction for the purpose of intent is necessary for soul?
I was thinking about my favorite soul boy Seb McKinnon and I realized he draws things wrong just to suit the composition.

>> No.4294220

>>4293991
That happened with the old versions, the program ran very fast on old machines because the code was full of hacks to make it fast, this is 2000 technology. He uses Photoshop anyway.

>> No.4295710

>>4284580
>fanart of the most important book in the last 2000 years that was fanatically followed by societies all across the world and touches on all parts of the human condition vs fanart of inuyasha

>> No.4295713

>>4293991
That pic isn't corel painter tho

>> No.4295779

>>4283558
Chinese people for the most part lack a creative spark, especially so since their schooling actively tries to stamp it out - that doesn't mean they can't perform well in creative pursuits, but they'll generally have more of a focus on absolutely mastering the technical aspects of stuff over improvising or innovating.
Think of the average /ic/ autist who is super anal about brush strokes, colour palette and grading etc etc - all the technical shit that for sure helps your picture to look photorealistic, but isn't what makes for a price that "grabs" you.

That's what other fags say is "soulless" vs some less technically adept, but otherwise dynamic and engaging artwork having "soul".
There is a cynical and a little racist part of me who believes that Chinese people are just not wired for empathy, creativity or compassion, but rather dogma, diligence and group think.
I guess a history of persecution, oppression and purging will do that to a population!

>> No.4295782

>>4295779
*piece not price.

>> No.4295800

>>4295779
Very insightful, king. So insightful that I think we can finally put an end to these threads. On behalf of /ic/ I thank you, anon.

>> No.4296099

>>4285139
based early digital era anon

can't imagine how it must've been when jsweet posted on conceptart forums and taught newbies, same with mullins on the sijun forums

imagine if that type of an environment would still exist