10 inspiring portraits created with Corel Painter

Do you use just one tool for your digital illustrator work? Then you're probably missing a trick. To be a truly great digital artist you need to keep your mind open to all possible techniques and tools - and that's exactly what the digital artists featured here have done.

These portraits have all been created using Corel Painter, currently on version X3, often in conjunction with other tools. Check them out for a burst of illustration inspiration...

01. Christine Garner

Self-employed for five years as a web designer, British artist Christine Garner is currently studying for a Foundation Art Diploma in Art, Media and Design at TCAT. She created this beautiful portrait study in Corel Painter X.

02. MaeTseThong

American artist MaeTseThong does a mean line in celebrity portraits with a difference. We especially like this deliciously dark take on rock star Jack White, created in Corel Painter 12.

03. Katarina Sokolova-Latanska

Ukranian digital artist Katarina Sokolova-Latanska's artwork has appeared in exhibitions across Europe as well as in countless book and magazines. A big advocate of Corel Painter, her illustrations have been used to advertise Corel Painter X since 2007.

04. Spx

We love this self-portrait by Australian digital artist Spx, which is reminiscent of the portraits of Lucian Freud. It was created using Corel Painter X, using a reference shot taken from a webcam.

05. Robert Chang

Robert Chang is an accomplished digital painter, photographer, comic artist and director, based in Fuzhou, China. His serene illustrations are created using Adobe Photoshop and Corel Painter with the use of a graphics tablet. This illustration was used for the cover of the book d'artiste: Digital Painting, which he co-authored.

06. Caroline Font

French artist Caroline Font's portrait of Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock Holmes was based on a still from the first episode of the BBC drama. It was illustrated using Corel Painter 11 on a Wacom Cintiq 12.

07. Christie Evenson

Christie Evans owns Digital Revision Photo, a photo retouching and digital art business. This intense and enchanting portrait of a little girl was painted on a Wacom tablet using various mediums and brushes within Corel Painter 9.

08. Garmend

Spanish artist Garmend created this evocative portrait of Harry Potter actress Emma Watson using Photoshop and Corel Painter.

09. Emi Sandu

Here's a self-portrait with a difference from Romanian artist Emi Sandu. Representing what he calls his "dual personality", it was created on a Wacom Bamboo using Corel Painter and Photoshop.

10. Paulo Duque Frade

You might not immediately recognise this as Star Wars character Padmé Amidala. But that subtle, subdued approach is exactly what we love about this portrait, created by Portuguese graphic designer and illustrator Paulo Duque Frade in Corel Painter.

Learn more about Painter

Thank you for reading 5 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access

Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription

Join now for unlimited access

Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

The Creative Bloq team is made up of a group of design fans, and has changed and evolved since Creative Bloq began back in 2012. The current website team consists of eight full-time members of staff: Editor Georgia Coggan, Deputy Editor Rosie Hilder, Ecommerce Editor Beren Neale, Senior News Editor Daniel Piper, Editor, Digital Art and 3D Ian Dean, Tech Reviews Editor Erlingur Einarsson and Ecommerce Writer Beth Nicholls and Staff Writer Natalie Fear, as well as a roster of freelancers from around the world. The 3D World and ImagineFX magazine teams also pitch in, ensuring that content from 3D World and ImagineFX is represented on Creative Bloq.