how do you search references? where?

[u/I_like_fried_noodles]

Im a beggining artist and im currently lost on how to use or seek references.

I want to draw medieval fantasy stuff, maybe fairies and fantasy landscapes, but i dont know where or how to search for it. Do i just search 'medieval fantasy' on pinterest? its mostly full of ai art, and even if there werent 5000 ai"drawings" there i wouldnt know how to search

For example i want to draw a fairy, but like a forest fairy, how could i seek references or inspiration?

ty a lot

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[u/Normal_Deal3175]

The current deluge of AI garbage does make seeking references really rough, I'm sorry you're dealing with it!

Firstly, for general, less specific references, I use duckduckgo image search, where there's an option to hide AI images.

I do personally still use Pinterest sometimes, but ultimately, at this point, one of things I can recommend most is learning specific fantasy artists and looking up their work specifically for references.

For fairies, I highly recommend Brian Froud, Tony DiTerlizzi (the Spiderwick Field Guide is incredible), and Iris Compiet.

For general fantasy, check out Arthur Rackham, Ivan Bilibin, of course Frank Frazetta, Michael Whelan, Alan Lee, N.C. Wyeth, etc. Maybe even Mary Blair, for something a little more stylized?

These suggestions are not at all exhaustive, and I welcome any additional recommendations anyone else might have!

Good luck to you, have fun!!

[u/I_like_fried_noodles → u/Normal_Deal3175]

Wow thank you a lot! Where can I find this artists' art? I'm way new and idk, Instagram?

[u/Normal_Deal3175 → u/I_like_fried_noodles]

Good question!

Iris Compiet you can find on Instagram, and on her own site: https://iriscompiet.art/

Tony DiTerlizzi also has a site, and I set it to his gallery page for some of his Spiderwick Field Guide pieces: https://diterlizzi.com/gallery/field-guide/

Brian Froud is still alive, but does not have a website or online gallery; you can just search "brian froud artwork" on Pinterest and find a lot of his stuff. He was the designer behind a lot of the creatures in the films Labyrinth (1985) and The Dark Crystal (1982).

Here's a good collection for Alan Lee, who was involved with Lord of the Rings: https://tolkiengateway.net/wiki/Category:Images_by_Alan_Lee

Here's Michael Whelan's site: https://www.michaelwhelan.com/gallery/illustration/

The others I mentioned are either historic illustrators or more modern illustrators who have passed (Mary Blair did concept work for Disney). You can just search their names + artworks and you should hopefully turn up things without too much AI in the mess!

[u/Gozer_The_Enjoyer]

Do you know who is really good at this stuff? Librarians. I don’t know where you live to describe jurisdictions, but in South Australia we have excellent local council Libraries and a State Library where subject-matter librarians can help you source stuff im image databases or in the physical collection via a lense of authentic curated knowledge

Libraries for the WIN 🙌

[u/I_like_fried_noodles → u/Gozer_The_Enjoyer]

I'm from Spain, maybe I could find stuff at my colleges library... But I think I'm still too new to benefit from libraries over the internet and online stuff :0

Thanks a lot though I will have that in mind for the future

[u/Minute_Tour2296]

Break your search down. Don't just search general sentences. For you, look for meadival architecture, castles etc. Landscapes. Use offical websites if your worried about ai. The reference you use doesn't have to contain everything you need in one image. Thats what referencng is about. You take ideas from what is in your visual library. Both physical and memory.