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##### Vol. 2, Issue 6
December 16, 1999

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Painting on Polygons:

Art Supplies

by Rick "Flatness" Grossenbacher

ast week I got a question sent in by a reader by the name of Scoll (scoll@hyperjump.de). He asked about what size of paper I use, so I decided that this week I would just do a little run-down on some of the art supplies I use and recommend. First, I’ll answer Scoll’s question about the paper size.

Typically, I use regular 8 1/2 x 11 paper. Not only does this go for me, but also for most of the concept artists who I’ve worked with. This is not to say that every concept artist does this (not by any means), but it just happens that is the case with most of the ones I’ve worked with. Here are the reasons why many of them choose that paper size:

1. It is easy to find and it is cheap to buy.

2. It is the perfect size for most flatbed scanners. If you need to scan in your drawing, it really sucks trying fit a 11 x 17 picture on a 8 1/2 x 11 scanner.

3. It is a good size paper for concept drawings. If you are presenting drawings to someone, it’s a pain to pull out a huge drawing and flatten it out.

4. It is easy to store in a folder. I recommend purchasing a binder of some sorts which has thin, flexible, plastic inserts to hold your individual drawings (if you are unsure about what I’m talking about, it is basically like a photo album, but for drawings). This way you don’t have to worry about them getting torn and you also won’t have to hassle with rolling them up.

5. 8 1/2 x 11 paper has a light tooth to it so your pencil strokes won’t be grainy. But, if that is the look or style you are going for, you might want a heavy tooth paper which is sold at most art stores.

If you tell college art professors what I just mentioned they will probably spaz-out. Art instructors want students to draw on huge, and I mean huge paper, most of the time. I understand why they want you to do this, but it has always struck me as funny since you generally don’t draw huge pictures in the professional world of art. Again, it really depends of what sort of job you are in, but for the most part it just doesn’t happen.

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Credits: Illustration © 1999 Dan Zalkus. Painting on Polygons is © 1999 Rick Grossenbacher. All other content is © 1999 loonyboi productions. Unauthorized reproduction is prohibited, you cartoonish villian, you.