Smack - Inktober 2026 - October 5th 2026

 

"Smack" Ink Drawing for Inktober 2026 Challenge. Alex Ariza 2026.

Day FIVE of Inktober. Prompt: Smack. 

I'm still struggling to get these drawings done in time within a day. I've been adding too much research and difficult techniques to each of these damn pieces. Perspective was a real challenge for this one. I wanted to add more elements in the composition, but it's just too much work and I have to keep moving forward. I don't want to lose pace.

My wife and I like to give each other booty smacks. When I saw the prompt, smack, I knew what I had to do. 

Preliminary sketches below.

Preliminary sketch for the prompt, smack. Alex Ariza 2026

Once again, I am challenging myself to draw multiple figures in a piece. I've also decided to up the ante and create an environment for this piece. I knew I wanted it taking place in a mead hall. I had the image in my head, but executing is a whole different animal.

Each of these ambitious drawings is teaching me something new. I have to keep pressing myself to improve, this challenge is a great way to keep myself accountable.

Loose ink drawing getting the posing and gesture down for the piece. Alex Ariza 2026.

The hardest part of this piece was by far the perspective. I really struggled with finding where I wanted my eye line to be to show the action. Ultimately, I ended up go for bird's eye view looking down, but not too extreme. If I was better at perspective, I'd prefer to be more in the action, almost waist level to make it feel more immersive, but alas, I only have so much time for each piece, so bird's eye it is.

A few thumbnail sketches of how I wanted to place the "camera."

Thumbnails showcasing different perspectives for the piece.

Every time I see concept art of environments, and even more impressively, characters interacting and living in the environments I realize how little I know how to draw. I've never pushed myself enough when I was younger to get good at this stuff. Perspective is not intuitive. It's something that needs to be worked on to really get under your fingers. 

Maybe I'll actually get around to taking a class focused on perspective fundamentals. I've considered getting more training for my art. There's a few online classes that offer this kind of lessons and I will most likely take it during the winter when there's not much to do outside.

Until then, I will continue to do self-study and struggle.

The piece features a cartoonish jester smacking the buttocks of a tavern wench who was in the middle of picking up a handkerchief. In this mead hall, some onlookers laugh as they drink their beers.