Comments on: The cutaway drawing and its artists

The cutaway drawing and its artists

clorox — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 08:32:57 -0800

The cutaway drawing and its artists. Enjoy.

178 pages long and counting, every single one of them has some amazing pictures -- many of them contributed by the original artists, almost all in high-res images, and occasionally with work-in-progress scans. Mostly dedicated to motorsports, there are a few other types of machines scattered throughout.

By: clorox

clorox — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 08:34:34 -0800

P.S. I've found the most rewarding way to sift through it is to just jump to a random page.

By: egypturnash

egypturnash — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 09:07:28 -0800

Looking at these incredibly intricate pieces, mostly rendered in technical pen with watercolor or airbrush, makes me feel a bit less intimidated by needing to draw ninety-nine missiles to finish off a project of mine. n.n

By: DU

DU — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 09:26:36 -0800

This is the kind of thing I wanted to learn how to do here. I see he mentions a "Technical Graphics school" but that term usually just finds AutoCad now. :(

By: Thorzdad

Thorzdad — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 09:41:36 -0800

The golden age of the airbrush. These are lovely. Thanks!

By: Kabanos

Kabanos — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 11:08:20 -0800

Big collection of car cutaways.

By: fatbird

fatbird — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 12:10:23 -0800

The working drawings of Tony Matthews are the best thing in that thread, partly because the finished drawings look so gaudy and mass-produced, while the working drawings look raw and unconcerned with polish. They almost seem to accomplish their illustrative goal better than the finished drawings because they feel more like an exploded interior view, where hidden lines are visible and the relationships between components are actually connected by axial lines.

By: Kabanos

Kabanos — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 12:11:02 -0800

Kevin Hulsey creates some great technical illustrations (automotive and otherwise). Along with his own portfolio, he's got a Masters Gallery dedicated to some legends in the fields (includes lots of large-size images). DU: You may be interested in his free tutorials. Also: Vintage cutaway illustrations previously on mefi.

By: Kabanos

Kabanos — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 12:17:53 -0800

My graduating class was one of the last ones at our college that had to create technical illustrations with t-squares, ellipse templates, tech pens, and airbrush. First assignment was always a black and white exploded drawing of your own tech pen. After that we worked our way up to create large technical cutaways. When things were going well, working for hours on a massive cutaway (similar to this) could become hypnotic, even meditative. But far too often that zen-like state was shattered by the sudden realization that all these component parts would JUST NOT LINE UP (like the last empty square of a screwed-up sudoku). So you would just take it out on your art, and have to beg for an extension. Now the kids get to use illustrator, photoshop, and 3D modeling software. And an undo button. Get off my lawn! I've just covered it with a nice piece of clear acetate!

By: digsrus

digsrus — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 12:33:57 -0800

I would love to have an original to frame and hang up in my house. Does anyone know if they are available and for how much $?

By: Kabanos

Kabanos — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 12:50:49 -0800

...partly because the finished drawings look so gaudy and mass-produced, while the working drawings look raw and unconcerned with polish. fatbird, you might like some of the work of Beau and Alan Daniels. In particular, their retro-style illustrations for a Toyota FJ Cruiser ad campaign.

By: plinth

plinth — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 13:01:19 -0800

Ahh! The Borg took apart the Enterprise!

By: fatbird

fatbird — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 13:06:53 -0800

fatbird, you might like some of the work of Beau and Alan Daniels. Those are pretty nice, though of course it begs the question of, if they wanted that Olde Timey pencil drawing feel, they didn't just pull out a pencil :)

By: foonly

foonly — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 15:56:37 -0800

My personal favorite cutter-away is Russell Porter, previously mentioned on mefi. And this, and this, which also has this Masters Gallery: Art of the Cutaway, which Kabanos already mentioned upthread.

By: Rat Spatula

Rat Spatula — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 23:48:25 -0800

A little love for the kids' fave, David Macaulay.

By: breath

breath — Sun, 05 Dec 2010 01:07:44 -0800

Reminds me of the Dinotopia books, which often featured cutaways of fantastical things. Example.