Dirty Jobs

It’s a dirty job, but someone’s got to do it—and the ones in power, living the life of luxury in the city center, are going to make sure it gets shunted off onto someone else. In an urban dystopia, work conditions are poor, and there’s next to no consideration for the comfort or safety of the workers. Filthy uniforms and unfortunate industrial accidents are the standard, not the exception.

STAINS

Create stains by inking with a simple hatching technique. If you want darker, dirtier stains, layer some crosshatching on top of your original lines.

CAKED-ON MUD

Thick mud, dirt or clay can change how you draw the outlines of things. For example, the front of this boot doesn’t look like smooth rubber anymore; the ink lines follow the shape of the mud instead.

ROUGH ON THE HANDS

What does your character do for a living? If they’re a laborer from the working class, their hands ought to show it. Be sure to include rough knuckles, callouses and dirt ground into the nails.

SHOWCASE DIRT WITH COLOR

Try showing dirty patches with color. Dark smears of grime stand out when they’re in contrast to a lighter hue behind them.

CROSSHATCHED DIRT

Show darker stains by going over them repeatedly with crosshatching.

INKED DIRT

Blacking out entire portions of the drawing works if you want a completely filthy look.

COLORED DIRT

If you find it easier, skip inking your stains completely, then add them later when you color.

BRUISING

Use the same crosshatching technique for bruising that you would for stains. It’s all about the context. If the eye underneath that crosshatching is swelling, the viewer perceives it as a black eye instead of dirt.

EVEN SCARS

To make an even scar, like a character might receive from a blade, draw the cut and the dots where the stitches went. As it heals, the scar pulls at the normal skin on the edges, so it looks a little jagged.

UNEVEN SCARS

Determine what caused the scar before you start drawing; that will affect the shape. Keep in mind that scar tissue is lighter and looks shinier than the usual skin tone, and address the differences while coloring.

LARGE-SCALE ACCIDENTS

Even if your character has no visible scars, there are other ways to show a past injury. Major accidents might result in missing fingers or limbs.

FROM A DISTANCE

For smaller cuts or scars, you don’t have to use quite as much detail when the character is farther away. It’s OK to leave out the jagged edges as long as the shape remains the same.