About Me

[banah]

Hello!

My name is Banah (she/her). I'm an autistic lesbian in my mid-30s from the Gulf Coast. I like painting, video games, and roleplay. Most of my art is digital but this year I am exploring watercolor paint and would like to start messing around with oils if I ever work up the courage. I also collect enamel pins and charms.

My fandoms include: Young Avengers, Treasure Planet, Arcane, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Star Wars (primarily Rebels but also the OT and PT), Legend of Zelda: BOTW/TOTK, Chainsaw Man, Final Fantasy VII (all versions), and Final Fantasy XV.

I'm making an effort to get back into blogging, but I live primarily tumblr. My goal for 2024 is to read every appearance of Wiccan and Hulkling and document my thoughts about it.

(I'm very shy and sometimes struggle to respond to comments on things; I do appreciate them though!)

tumblr | bluesky | rp muselist

Comments

[dizzydrea]

I learned to paint when I was a kid. Started with acrylics and watercolors. Acrylics still appeal to me because they can be vivid, or you can water them down to mimic watercolor. I hope you get lots of time this year to experiment with your painting.

Thoughts

[ysabetwordsmith]

>> I'm an autistic lesbian in my mid-30s from the Gulf Coast. <<

I have lots of neurodiverse and/or queer people in my audience. Hence things like An Army of One: The Autistic Secession in Space. The things my fans ask me to write, I love them. This week's theme call has included gems like "Brands/products/services we wish existed" and "Screw this, I'm out of here!"

>> I like painting, video games, and roleplay. <<

Cool. Check out roleplaying games on Kickstarter. I shop there with my holiday money and it's frankly more entertaining than bookstores nowadays.

>> Most of my art is digital but this year I am exploring watercolor paint and would like to start messing around with oils if I ever work up the courage. <<

Some fun things to try that lower the threshold ...

Painting en plein air encourages you to pack light and use what you have. Watercolor is easier but it can be done with oil.

https://fearlessbrush.com/2020/10/01/get-started-with-watercolor-plein-air/

https://www.instructables.com/Movable-Pallet-Altoid-Tin-Watercolor-Set/

https://blog.ellenhutson.com/2019/03/24/creating-a-travel-watercolor-kit/


For oils, consider a limited palette ...

https://www.portraitsociety.org/single-post/painting-with-a-limited-palette-how-and-why

https://www.liveabout.com/limited-color-palettes-for-plein-air-painting-4078002

Of course the most famous is Bob Ross, who used about 14 colors give or take. Alla prima (wet on wet) is a great technique to try and MUCH faster than standard oil techniques. Plus Bob's style is so mellow. Turns out, I teach poetry the same way he teaches painting -- "This is not hard, anyone can learn to do it." -- and had no idea how much of his teaching style I had absorbed until someone prompted me to write about him. He favored nature paintings but the techniques can be used on other subjects just as well.

https://www.twoinchbrush.com/

https://www.twoinchbrush.com/tools

https://core-docs.s3.amazonaws.com/documents/asset/uploaded_file/3451/PCC/3113782/2023_Bob_Ross_SUPPLY_LIST.pdf


Advantages to these approaches include:

They are cheap. Paints are expensive and good ones are exorbitant. But if you only need to buy 3-6 tubes then it is much more manageable.

Painting outdoors gives you functionally infinite inspiration, plenty of variation in light and color ... and you don't want to be lugging 50 pounds of art supplies through the woods. Start with a palette you can tuck in your pocket.

You can get through the inevitable beginner mistakes with less expense and waste. If you decide to expand your exploration, you will then have a much better idea which tools or supplies to acquire next.


Still life is great practice, because your subject is not trying to escape, scratch its ear, or rain on you. Aside from the practice aspect, there are some super fun things to do with still life. One is gathering objects which represent an aspect of you -- say, 5 things for autism, or 7 for lesbianism, 3 things you found on the beach, or your favorite fannish collectibles. Put them in a pleasing arrangement and paint them. Another is when you pack a box of interesting nonperishable items that represent your locale, then swap boxes with someone who lives far away -- a desert, the mountains, a prairie, a different coast, etc.

Do you like antique shopping? Set a budget and hit the flea markets, thrift stores, antique shops, rummage sales, whatever you can find. Buy as many weird little trinkets as you can, then arrange them and paint them. Every time you go out antiquing, buy a new thing and replace one older item with it. You can also get together with art friends and trade items from each other's boxes. This way you never get bored. If you have an art hangout near where you live, you can even set up a permanent still life subject swap shelf. The still life stuff will work with digital art or photography as well as paint, pencil, or ink. It's just endlessly fun to fool around with.

https://visualartspassage.com/blog/fundamentals-of-still-life-drawing/

https://web.archive.org/web/20150822192024/https://www.studentartguide.com/articles/still-life-drawing-ideas


>>My fandoms include: Young Avengers, Treasure Planet, Arcane, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Star Wars (primarily Rebels but also the OT and PT), Legend of Zelda: BOTW/TOTK, Chainsaw Man, Final Fantasy VII (all versions), and Final Fantasy XV.<<

Treasure Planet and Avatar are favorites. :D


>>I'm making an effort to get back into blogging, but I live primarily tumblr. <<

One simple approach would be to post "best of Tumblr this week" links. I've seen people do that with various services including that one.


>> (I'm very shy and sometimes struggle to respond to comments on things; I do appreciate them though!)<<

You don't have to reply if you don't feel like it. Also my blog is a lurker-friendly place.