Written by Angie

Throughout the ages, art has gone through several changes, evolving and developing with society and the technology of the day. In each age, the artists of the day used tools to create art that defined both their feelings and way of life. From brushes to woodblocks to stone lithographs, each era has had its tools grow.

A hundred years later, we are well into the 21st century and technology has been advancing even more.

Computers that once took entire rooms now are packed into cell phones. Instead of drawing a line by entering x,y coordinates and algebraic slopes or drawing curves with calculus equations, we can now use our fingers to move items on the screen.

As we progress, the woodblocks and stone lithographs have been replaced with the touch screens and printers of today.

Digital Roots in the Studios

So many artists have embraced the digital technology for creating art. Programs like Corel’s Painter to Adobe’s Photoshop, Flash, and Illustrator have enabled artists to not only mimic natural media, but also create entirely new styles.

I have been blown away by what artists have created and am excited to see what has yet to be created in studios across the world.

Drawing in the Trenches

Alongside this evolution of art, there has been another form of art that has blended with entertainment. These artists have drawn “in the trenches” for amusement parks, private parties, company parties, and many more types of events, for years.

I’ve always loved this type of entertainment because you are right there with the person you are drawing.

You can feed off the energy of those around watching, being entertained, as you turn the person into a two dimensional character. Those around the artist laugh at what is being created, knowing that the subject has yet to see their cartoon self on the paper.

The Digital Art Revolution

Many years ago, I made the transition to digital for my studio work. Back in the day, I somehow managed to design caricatures using only a mouse. A company called Wacom was known for their highly precise tablets that used an electronic pen (called a stylus) allowing artists to draw more naturally.

After struggling for way too long with a mouse to draw in the computer, I purchased an Intuos tablet from Wacom. However, I had a large issue with the disconnect of looking at the computer monitor while my hand held the digital pen two feet away on the table. I stuck with the mouse. I was used to it, after all.

Then Wacom announced a new device. A highly sophisticated flat panel monitor with a built in touch tablet. This device had professional level features, like extreme sensitivity, and designed specifically for daily production use in the top animation studios and graphics studios.

This would allow artists to hold the digital pen right up to the screen and draw just like they would on paper. The disconnect feeling would be no more.

I pre-ordered this right away, even though it would be another few months until the first models arrived in the United States.

Once my 21-inch Cintiq display arrived, I fell in love with this new tool. For months I became more and more familiar with the Cintiq and used it for all of my orders.

During the time, I also began to use different programs. Each program had different strengths and each had its quirks. The top two programs I found myself using were Adobe’s Photoshop and Corel’s Painter.

At caricature conventions like the National Caricature Network’s annual NCN Convention (now renamed the ISCA), those who created digital art with their laptops and digital tablets grew in number. It was an amazing sight to see. Numerous artists in a hotel banquet room with laptops, printers, and tablets, sitting next to artists with markers or chalk, all drawing each other.

Its exciting that there are now more digital artists than every before. And the numbers continue to grow!

Flat Panel, Cintiq, and Laptop Setup

This is one of the more common setups that we use and can be accomplished in two ways, depending on whether you are using DVI or VGA hookup.

We’re going to attach both the Cintiq and HD flat panel to the laptop as a second monitor, both showing the same image.

The easiest way to do this is just to split off the DVI signal right out of the computer. The first way to do this is with a DVI splitter. This device will act just like any other audio or video splitter and will send the signal to both screens.

However, there is a major downside to this simplicity. It almost never works. When you run a DVI cable to the Cintiq and the HD screen in this way, you will only be able send the signal a few feet. Literally.

When you split off a signal, it degrades the power of the signal and you’ll be lucky if you can send it more than 6 feet, and you’ve got to be careful of resolutions and screen refresh rates. In the end I would stay away from this option, as it is not the best solution.

This is one example of why it is so important to use every cable, screen and power adapter in your own studio before taking it out onto the road. This detail was one we found out after purchasing the adapter and experimenting with various setups. We keep it for times when it will be useful, but its an example of a simple solution sounding a bit too good to be true.

So we switched over to another device, which we’ll cover in more detail later, that overcame this problem very well.

It is still DVI, and by using a standard adapter, you’ll know that your setup will take an instant and you won’t have to waste an hour trying to hook into someone else’s system.

That’s just a lot of stress we don’t want before a gig. And not being able to hook up your own setup looks very unprofessional in front of the client.

Setting Up the Equipment

We’re getting a bit long in this article, so I’ll conclude that you should rehearse setting up your equipment ahead of time, in your own studio. This will allow you to find things that don’t work or other problems, like cable lengths.

There is much more information and as it is organized, I’ll post it here. In the meantime, good luck with your own setups and I look forward to seeing the explosion of other artists that will begin performing in the trenches, like we have with our Live Digital Caricatures.

The Digital Equipment We Use

As a little bonus, we’ve included a link to several devices we fully recommend. While I use the Cintiq, Scott uses the Intuos4 for his digital art. Also, these links are through our Amazon Affiliate link, so by purchasing through the links below, you help keep these reviews going. Thanks for your support!

Purchase the Wacom Intuos4 Medium Pen Tablet on Amazon

Wacom Cintiq 12WX 12-Inch Pen Display

Wacom Techno Cintiq 21UX 21-Inch Interactive Digital Tablet

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