Today I worked on all the details – the face, hands in oil pastels, then the headdress and sari trim details in gouache. It’s completed, and now available here.
New Art finished – ‘Lakshmi’
work progress – roughing in the skin
Today went quite smoothly. I masked out all the skin areas to keep everything clean, then blocked in all the skin areas, first with colored pencils, then oil pastels to blend.
Once everything was covered, I began working on details in the face using colored pencils. It still needs more, but it’s a start. I should finish tomorrow…
work progress – paintwork
Yesterday morning I masked and airbrushed the background using a mix of yellow, orange and burnt sienna acrylics…
Once dry, I re-masked to cover all but the sari, which I then airbrushed with a mix of crimson red, vermilion, and white. Then I removed all masking and began painting. I added fold details to the sari with gray and red gouache. I painted the trim with a variety of ochre and yellow gouaches, followed by yellow acrylic for the design. Next, I painted the face and hair with gouache, followed by the rough in of the head piece. I then began painting the lotus flowers, first the small ones in the hands, then the big one below.
All of this went quite smoothly, but then I started to use some white acrylic for highlights in the eyes and to paint in the earrings, and trouble began. I needed it opaque, so I had to keep it somewhat thick, and consequently it was difficult to control. This strikes me strange, since I’ve been painting longer than I have been working with oil pastels, so I would think something so simple would be second nature to me. Maybe the brushes need replacing, or my mind is losing the techniques I once knew…I don’t know. In any case, it proved frustrating, so I gave up a bit early last night (thus why the blog is today, not then). Luckily nothing was harmed, so when I came back to it today, I could continue without trouble. I added a bit more to the big lotus, and then applied the textured gesso to the skin areas, making it ready for the next step – pencils and pastels…
New concept designed and drawn
Still uncertain what direction to go for the next painting, yesterday morning I decided to research and the Hindu Goddess. It came together surprisingly fast, but I wasn’t positive I wanted to go with it yet. So, I bounced back and forth between it and the vampire nurse idea the rest of the day and part of today.
I feel both are about ready now, and still undecided, I went ahead and drew them both on boards. Now that I could see them at full scale, I feel the goddess is what I will do now. So, here it is, drawn…
model – Kneely
Based on Lakshmi, Goddess of wealth and prosperity.
stuck on designing mode
I’m back to looking through photos, trying to find something to inspire a new painting idea. I’ve been looking through Kneely’s sets, and am leaning toward one of two designs. One is loosely based on Hindu Goddesses (multi-arms) and will take some time to design completely. The other (and more likely at the moment), is a vampire theme I worked on 6-8 months ago. I’m still uncertain of its overall design, so it’s not ready yet.
Tomorrow I’ll look again with fresh eyes and see where it takes me.
New art finished today – The Devil’s Angel
Today I worked on all the details, going back and forth between colored pencils and oil pastels. A few highlights is all the face needed, so spent most of the day on the hands. I added the tattoo ’666′ to her abdomen, and called it complete. It’s ready and available here.
Work progress – colored pencils w/oil pastels
Today I worked on blocking in the skin areas. First I masked them out to keep the background clean, then worked in the colored pencils, followed by oil pastels to blend.
Once everything was covered, I still had some time today, so I began working on the details. The face is nearly done now, and I’ve started the hands and torso. I should have no problem finishing this tomorrow…
Side note – I noticed the flash for these photos reflects a bit on the sheen of the acrylic wings. They’re a bit darker than they look here (nearly the same red as the panties), which will be fixed when I scan the final image.
work progress – airbrush and paint
I masked out the image this morning, then airbrushed dark blue-purple acrylic over most of the background, leaving an oval near the center. I added more blue and black and sprayed the top and bottom areas, then a final black-red for the top and bottom edges. I finished the background with cerulean blue acrylic in that oval center. I really like how purple and this blue go together.
Before removing the masking, I hit around her shoes with a burnt umber wash for a shadow, and go around the ‘halo-horns’ with white to give them a glow…
As you may have noticed (if you compare to the drawing in yesterday’s blog) that I didn’t mask out the wings. I didn’t want any hard edge to show, as I wanted the feathers to flow into the background naturally. So, While everything’s still masked out, I paint the wings in with solid red and magenta acrylics. I build them up from a medium to light tint, giving them depth and texture. To finish them, I airbrushed a bit of burnt umber for the shadow around the body.
Next, I remove the masking and begin painting the ‘halo-horns’. I used a pearl iridescent acrylic, followed by a yellow wash of gouache. This should keep them bright and ‘shiny’. I then paint the face and hair with gouache, followed by the panties, and finally the shoes.
Tonight I should get to covering the skin areas with the textured gesso, so tomorrow I can start on blocking all that in…
New concept designed and drawn
Today I started in a different way than my usual for designing. Typically I look at the photos from shoots and let the pose and/or look inspire an idea for me. This time, I had an idea first. I thought of the title “Devil’s Angel”, perhaps with a tag line “So Good she’s Bad”. With that in mind, I looked through photos searching for a pose that fit the concept. I wasn’t sure what exactly I wanted it to look like, except it had to be sexy, with a hint of innocence mixed with devilish.
I finally found something I thought might work, so I worked the photo, designing the look I wanted. I think the pose, mixed with the vibrant colors I plan to use, will give this a good look.
Here it is, drawn on the 22×30″ illustration board…
model – Chelsea
looking for creative inspiration
It’s been a slow couple days. I expected to hit on an idea right away when I opened the photo shoot images, but nothing hit me enough to pull out an idea for me. So, I keep looking and hoping something strikes.
I welcome suggestions – if they don’t work with what I have now, I can keep them in mind for future shoots.
