Best Of The...

Cobalt Blue's 'Best Of The Month' December 2025.

These are creations that deserved a full analysis but ran up against time restrictions.

= "Your typical steampunk geishas" by Neil Leder @shrink57

= "Home Sweet Home " by PrivateLady @PrivateLady

= "17th-century Transylvanian cobbler woman" by Gawnjah @gawnja

Cobalt Blue's 'Best Of The Day' for Dec 31, 2024.

"Nut Sledding" by Rosie @RosietbD

I know some will say; Cute is not real art. I humbly disagree. Cute has a great appeal to kids. It might be built right into the genetic code. And even kid's great art has to follow the same rules as adults. So if it's great it doesn't matter to which age it appeals. Besides some of us never stopped being kids. What a way to end the year!

GENRE Cute anthropomorphic

TECHNIQUE Photography of trained animals

STYLE Realism

COLOR SCHEME Subdued Split complementary - Violet-Orange Red-Green. Causes slight tension

VALUE SCHEME Mid-range leaning to high contrast. Again causing slight tension but still in the fun zone.

THE SUBJECT IS Obvious

Cobalt Blue's 'Best Of The Day' for Dec 30, 2024.

"Water Color" by Mitaliartz @mitalinightcafe

GENRE Romanticism, Everyday life. A reaffirmation that life is good.

STYLE Representational realism. This is not fantasy.

TECHNIQUE The alcohol ink watercolor washes are soul saturating. The texture in this image is the ink/dye itself not the building, water or leaves.

COLOR SCHEME The neutral monochromatic color scheme has an autumn flavor.

VALUE SCHEME The mood created by the high contrast values is sharp and definite. It grounds the viewer in reality.

PRIMARY DIVISIONS The image is well balanced and divided in two, from upper right, to the center, to bottom right.

THE SUBJECT is the house far to the right. It is balanced by the other subject, the environment on left. The boat is third and connects the people in the house to their waterways.

Cobalt Blue's 'Best Of The Day' for Dec 29, 2024.

"Shanty Town Harbor" by Sharonjoy @Sharonjoy

The colors, texture and composition made a powerful impact on me. Smooth, clean, solid, airbrushed paintings have a special place in my heart.

But something else is going on. The scene is calm, even peaceful, but the composition is very dynamic.

The mood created by the color/value is both calm but intriguing.

The image is split in two. The subject taking up most of the right side and the setting taking up a thin slice on the left. The eye flows round the focal points without ever leaving image. And there is something going on in the center of interest.

Let's dig in...

Cobalt Blue's 'Best Of The Week' ending Dec 28, 2024.

These are creations that deserve a full analysis but ran up against time restrictions. They are listed here with only an intro but no details.

"Dreamtown" by Need Credits Mjauu @Mjauu

This creation is one of many in a series of Unbelievable Urban settings. They're all intriguing - this is a favorite. The depth and detail are staggering. The colors compelling and the story line calling for for more...

"Cute Bunny" by Magic School Bus Dropout @Smurph

Cute has a genetic artist appeal. It can get sucky pretty quick so really good ones are a treat. If I had more time I would've loved to analysis this one...

Cobalt Blue's 'Best Of The Day' for Dec 28, 2024.

"Office Storker" by Mormookiee @Mormookiee

Mormookiee is one of the best artists on Night Cafe. One of the best animators and one of the funniest people. And this creation is one of the best and most fun! The intense realism of the environment makes the out of place stork super funny. But jokes aside it wouldn't work if the composition didn't - which it does, or it wouldn't be in this collection.

The animation is notable for two effects. The camera pan leaves the office background on the left and reveals more of the city as it moves right. Our hero turns his head to match the pan and gives the feeling he is the master overlooking his city. That movement of the head is surpassed only by the little jiggle of the neck at the end. A touch of arbitrary realism that ends the joke perfectly. Looking forward to another year of Mormookiee's best.

Cobalt Blue's 'Best Of The Day' for Dec 27, 2024.

"portrait enchantress timeless" by Xerraire @Xerraire

I love airbrushed pen and ink illustrations. And this portrait is so well done. The technique is what drew me to it immediately. The soft airbrushed realism of the face is so different from the sharp lines in the background. But they work great together and don't fight with each other. One outstanding aspect of the image is how one corner is pure black and the other three are pure white. Very risky but in this case it works.

What city is she in and why? Why is there only one light on in the building? Who's in there? She knows...

It sure would be fun to see our hero exploring the city behind her.

(Analysis below)..

Cobalt Blue's 'Best Of The Day' for Dec 26, 2024.

"untitled - stone hobbit interior" by Amygdala @brain_parts

How can a simple Hobbit house interior be so appealing? Of course the smooth animation helps immensely, but it would not be as inviting if the initial image wasn't compositionally correct. In fact to be great animation every frame has to be great composition from start to finish. Although made of stone and confined, this room feels open and bright because of the window and yet there is no desire to look outside - all the interest is in the room itself. The fact that the animation shows it is empty only adds to the intrigue. Have they already left on their adventure?

Cobalt Blue's 'Best Of The Day' for Dec 25, 2024.

"Manger in Bethlehem" by Kathy A Lindsey @kathyalindsey

I'm not going to say anything about this creation. The season's best to all. And to those that like analyzing art, enjoy and reflect on what makes this image great art. Merry Christmas...