#01 "Constant Vigilance!"

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I knew going in to this year's attempt that my first doodles for each Defense Against the Dark Arts professor was going to be their likeness and what embodies these characters better than their signature catchphrases (or at least those phrases that I personally most associate with the character). I associate 'constant vigilance' the most with Cassirin's Headmaster Tate, but Mad Eye Moody can get the glory for Seektober

It felt really nice busting out my Ohuhu markers again after so long. One thing that excites me about Moody is that his color story pushes me to use all the brown markers that I have (I have the most brown shades and yet I use them the least!). Of course I couldn't not use blue for his 'mad eye' and I kind of wish I had gone a little thinner with the line art around his scars. I ended up using my 0.3 brown Copic multiliner and dropping down to my 0.05 may have improved the overall look but I am still very pleased with it - especially the nose as I tried to go for a different style nose other than the little dainty greedy gator-like one or the half circle rounded style like I usually stick to. His hair was also quite fun to sketch and shade I merged the book depiction with the film version of the character with my sketch but certainly leaned more into the film aesthetic than not - I just really never liked the pirate patch look they went for in the film. I wish I had the confidence to draw something more like what is seen in the illustrated version of Goblet of Fire. Some day! Also a tiny shoutout to NOT drawing a nub for a hand but just a partial nub

Quote:

Originally Posted by BanaBatGirl

Looooooove the aesthetics of your prompts post can't wait to see what's next!!

Thank you, Ro!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Emzily

*pitches up a camp here* so very excited to see what you come up with this year, friend. A big fan of your work, as I hope you know. And that lovely colour pallete!!!

you are, as always, so kind to me! Looking forward to seeing YOUR creativity TOO!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Suziella

This sounds amazing! I can't wait to see what you come up with!

Thank you, Suzy

#02 "TROLL! IN THE DUNGEON!
Thought you ought to know."

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Ooooh Professor Quirinus Quirrell, the plot twist I should have seen coming and yet was completely floored as a youngling. While this character has plenty of moments, none stand out as much to me as him bursting into the Great Hall hollering about the troll Which is why Professor Quirrell's quadrant shall be represented by the image of him doing just that. This was was a lot of fun to doodle and he almost ended up with no nose because I made his mouth so big...but after a few attempts I found a style that suited the face and additional shading with my Ohuhu markers added to the effect. Unlike with Moody, I used a black Copic multiliner which gives a very different vibe than the brown multiliner - it's harsher, bolder, and more prominent, which also seems fitting for a man who decided to do whatever he could to get the world to notice him, stop laughing at him, and achieve importance...to his own misfortune as we all know.

Another huzzah for not stubs for hands!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lottiepot

Can you leave some talent for the rest of us please?! Is there anything you can’t do?! I LOVE your style and that little stray strand of hair is amusing me for no real reason.

You are far too generous, thank you and the answer is drawing hands.

#03 "Celebrity is as celebrity does. Remember that."

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Allow me to kick this off with ... HUZZAH FOR NO STUBBY HANDS!

For this piece, I took inspiration from the pose found in the illustrated version of Chamber of Secrets and combined that with the duelling outfit seen in the film. The whole Duelling Club scene just completely encapsulates what this man is all about from his showboating to gaslighting of his skillset which all comes together with the words offered to Harry during detention. For the one and only Gilderoy Lockhart I went with a grey Copic multiliner which really goes well with the pastel color story I will be using. The grey color, and pastels, also remind me of memories and that foggy or dreamlike vibe that they are often associated with which goes hand in hand with the character's skill with Memory Charms. I kind of wish I had made up my own design for his cape instead of trying to mimic the pattern seen in the film because I am not sure my white gel pen and I translated the vision properly but it is an overall nice effect. I'm particularly pleased with his hair

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chelliephone

Ooh I am so excited about your concept for this year's event and to see how it develops as you go! The color pallettes you chose are just beautiful and very on point for the characters. And what a magnificent start already!

The blending in Mad Eyes clothes with the different shades of brown give such beautiful dimension to him. And I LOVE how Quirrel's style looks a bit like a puppet! Very apt considering his role in the story.

I can't wait to see more!

Thank you, Chellie

Oh wow, I had not even considered the puppet-like pose of Quirrell so that is such a bonus interpretation

Quote:

Originally Posted by Emzily

oh my, I love these cute little guys. You’ve captured them perfectly and as always, I absolutely love your style and how well you use colours. The BLENDING. *claps*

thank yooooooooooooou these markers are little miracle workers with how they blend

#04 "I will have order."

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And here she is, the woman who inspired the entire concept herself, Dolores Umbridge At first I didn't give her any hands at all and she was just holding one of her little pink purses 'off screen' but that felt really off since the rest of the group had their hands in some capacity and doing something reflective of their character. So I made some adjustments and at first she was only holding her tea cup and a saucer...but then I hated how the saucer and its accompanying hand looked so then she just had one hand BUT THEN I felt ambitious and with the power of DrawingwiffWaffles on my side...I added her holding her quill I think the eyebrows are what really make the sinister vibe of her look. I left my pink Copic multiliner for Umbridge, naturally, and while it kind of hides among all the pink of her clothes it has a really eerie effect overall Placing her little eye shinnies was a tad stressful because I did not want to make her look cheery and peppy like I had with Lockhart and was literally holding my breath as I went in with my thinnest tip white gel pen to draw the lines. Quite pleased with out she came out...especially the non-stubby hands

It is really fun to look at them all together (click on the full size option under Umbridge to see that) and see how the poses and how they hold their hands and WHAT is or isn't in their hands really encapsulates how I see and have immortalized the characters. Quirrell with literally nothing in his hands because he is nothing but a servant and puppet to Voldemort, Umbridge with tea and a quill because her manipulation and control tactics did not come from use of her wand but corrupt legislation and false hospitality, Moody clutching his wand close to his chest and always on high alert, and...Lockhart being flamboyant and showy with his wand to "look" the part.

Text Cut: all you lovely supportive people ♥

Quote:

Originally Posted by Emzily

I would die for your Gilderoy. One of my favourite HP characters and zomg, he’s so cute. I love his wide eye, I’ve been practising those kind of coloured eyes recently and ugh, yours is just perfect. *puts your teeny Gilderoy into my pocket and keeps him locked in my heart*

I have watched many a person draw these kinds of eyes and I think the one I took the most inspiration from is a really sweet gal on youtube called Minori. She has multiple channels but I LOVE how she does eyes. So that's my suggestion Her and DrawingwiffWaffles. They both have super pleasant voices too and are comforting.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PhoenixRising

Your blending abilities never cease to amaze me it has me researching ohuhu markers and debating on investing in some

I love how there's a certain element of cartoon but also you can definitely tell it's the characters. It gives me potter puppet pal vibes

HIGHLY recommend them and you can get one of their smaller sized started packs. They are way cheaper than Copic (which is the go-to for a lot of artists) but Jazza (a Youtuber) ranked all alcohol markers and these were top tier and comparable to Copic.

I don't do...realistic well at ALL and since I grew up admiring manga and anime that style is what always stuck with me Potter Puppet Pals though, ugh, nostalgia.

Quote:

Originally Posted by FearlessLeader19

These creations remind me of Chibi art, which I adore, because they are SO cute!!!

Troll in the Dungeons is my fave because Quirrell's expression is exactly what I've always pictured in my head

That's my style mostly grew up emulating the work of CLAMP who added chibi versions of their characters often in their storytelling and I always loved it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chelliephone

If that isn't the cutest little Lockhart ever!! I love how the colors you used for him interact together - that gray and the purple next to it are particularly beautiful together! The cape and the detail you used there are definitely my favorite part! Its stunning!

Thank you, Chellie! The cape, upon sleeping and reflecting on it, does not bother me as much as it did in the immediate aftermath. It's the expectation versus reality but not considering the perspective of how it fits with your actual piece.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Felixir

yeeeeeees. I am, as always, very excited to see your prompts this year

Moody is SO good, the expression!!! genuinely I have no idea how you manage to convey so much of a character without going wild with the line art. big fan of the nose and the glint in the non-magical eye. enthralled by the sorcery you do with those markers as always

and speaking of expressive lmfdjghs. the shading on the turban is AND THEN GILDEROY (first of all, the progression of the hands in these three pieces, love that) so good. the smile, the eyes, the hair. also - and this goes for the other two pieces - the colour palette is wonderful. it's such a cool idea to identify those colour stories and run with them for your prompts

looking forward to seeing more of your art and marker mastery

I should show a progression of these because Moody especially was a mess and a half in the sketch stage and it is by the grace of my eraser that it does not look so now

The turban was probably the most fun with shading I had because the two purples just blended together SO nicely and it was just Don't tell the others...but Lockhart MIGHT be my favorite...or maybe it's Moody...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lottiepot

Quirrell’s mitten hands are EVERYTHING! As is Lockhart’s hair. Obsessed I tell you!

they really are mitten hands I've graduated from nubs to mitten hands

#05 cats

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Here comes the fun part: fitting in the rest of the prompts and meshing them with the existing bits Initially I had intended on sticking very strictly with the pinks and reds for Umbridge, but when I set down a very light layer of my red-gray color and felt like it was just going to be too much pink and everything would blend together entirely too much. While I am sure no one would be to terribly surprised for this woman to have a shocking pink patronus, I went with the more traditional colors but did add another layer of the red-gray to pull the color story together. I had considered doodling a couple of her signature cat plates but that did not feel right and I instead went with her feline patronus perched upon her shoulders for this prompt. There was no line art at first and I almost left it that way but the shape and especially face of the cat was not all that well defined so I took my thinnest 0.03 pink Copic multiliner and outlined things a bit before layering another few layers of the light blues to mute the lineart just a tad to help maintain the glow effect.

Colorless blenders are miracle workers, truly.

Text Cut: all you lovely supportive people ♥

Quote:

Originally Posted by kayquilz

ok idk how to say this to make sense BUUUUUT I feel like each professor has his own drawn style, but they also flow together cohesively? I think because they're all curly-wavy style??? I don't know art terms clearly; regardless, I am always at a loss for words at your drawing skills, Kath. JEEEZE. Mad-Eye especially...he's so UWU ugh

Kaaaaaaate. Thank you so much I don't know the terminology either but I get what you mean

Quote:

Originally Posted by Emzily

I feel like I’m totes spamming you here, but UGH - how have you captured every professor so perfectly?! Their personalities are just obviously displayed in your drawings. Good job

And thank you for the YouTuber suggestions, I am 100000% checking those out.

Thank you. After having not picked up my pencils and markers for so long, it really feels good to just dive right back into things and with such rich characters to play around with.

You are most welcome! I have a whole bunch of content creators I keep up with if you ever want some more but I find them the most relaxing and encouraging particularly because they will share their mistakes during the process and especially DrawingwiffWaffles will explain her choices and it is SO helpful.

Quote:

Originally Posted by FearlessLeader19

Oh. WOW.

This is a wonderful depiction of Umbridge! I particularly love her expression It captures her evilness in all its spectacular glory! They eyebrow is my fave xD

Thank you, Alicia I keep flip flopping on which is my favorite but it MIGHT be here? Ironic considering she is the character in HP I love to hate the MOST - or maybe that isn't ironic at all and is rather on brand

#06 cornish pixies

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If it isn't dissolving all of the bones out of Harry's arm, it is the complete mayhem that ensued because of cornish pixies (why IS it always you, Neville?!). This little dude is TINY and I had to sharpen my pencil a few times to keep my sketch lines precise. Unlike with Lockhart, I actually put the color down first (minus the wings) and then did the multiliner - it just felt like less pressure that way and I would have been entirely too bothered by any ink that bled out of the lines due to the saturation that came from blending three blues together to shade and color the little pixie. It is a little hard to see in the picture, but the wings also have some white gel pen detailing on them that was stressful putting down because you really only get one shot to get that right I actually had a lot of fun doodling this little fellow and believe I did cackle once I had the pose the way I liked it, amusing myself at the man showboating while this tiny little blue creature is about to snatch his wand right out of his hand

Text Cut: all you lovely supportive people ♥

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lottiepot

I’d accept cats over absolutely everything! I’m pretty sure I was a cat in a past life..



ANYWAY! The way that you’ve made kitty look so ethereal and translucent is *chefs kiss*. He looks like a Persian with that gorgeous grumpy face and that magnificent floofy tail. As you know, my art knowledge is severely limited so my comments are going to be incredibly uninsightful but I am truly in awe of the ease in which you make these.

P.S. Who WOULDN’T want a pink Patronus?!

the signature kitty booty

I did take some inspiration from Persians and also...the one and only Grumpy Cat (rest in peace, little fur baby). I think in the film her patronus is more of a short hair but I happened upon a lot of fan art where the look is more Persian and that just felt more right - poor Persians getting the bad name of being snooty kitties when they are super affectionate babies!

Quote:

Originally Posted by BanaBatGirl

okay I just want to reiterate my love for these babies... the sparkle in Lockhart's eye... the mitten hands on Quirrell...Umbridge's EYEBROW!!?! they're PERFECT!!! I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE WHAT YOU COME UP WITH NEXT.

The Umbridge eyebrow that I imagine is the same kind of eyebrow Bunz was infamous for

Quote:

Originally Posted by Emzily

I would be prepared to see every character in the Hp universe drawn by you, pls. I LOVE the little background kitty, such a gorgeous detail that I almost didn’t notice at first glance - you have a very keen eye for colour use!!!
Again - you have captured Umbridge perfectly - SHES SO CUTE!! I love her hands (lol random) holding objects is something I struggle with drawing but you've done that so well

hands are the bane of my drawing existence and I really do not know what magic found me with these (maybe it was just a really good cuppa) but the relief I do use a ton of reference images to help me along (I am really not great at taking an image from my head and committing it to paper) so thank you Pinterest