Tag Archives: character design

The Ifrit

The Ifrit Digital, 2013
The Ifrit
Digital, 2013

This started off as a loose sketch of an idea, and turned into a painting.

Over the last few weeks, I’ve been busy painting and preparing for shows and exhibitions. I recently went to the Liedekijn exhibition launch, and there was something very exciting about receiving the catalogue and seeing my work on display (and in such fine company!)

Next week, I’ll be in The Young Ones exhibition in Canberra, showing off Miasma and another piece. While Liedekijn is (soon to be was 🙁 ) a fantastic sequential exhibition that pulled together many different pieces into a collaborative comic, The Young Ones promotes Canberra artists under age 25…a club I’m soon to graduate from, but it’s nice to get a piece in while I’m still eligible. 😉

Make-up test

Those of you following me on tumblr will have seen this image come up again…and again…and again…at various stages in the process. This was a test on two things: to create a mostly realistic portrait of one of my characters, and to finally get around to doing an improved version of the previous make-up test, this time by giving myself a base face, and then painting on top of that, with the final goal of getting something looking like a fashion shoot.

Here’s a quick summary of the things I learned/did:

  • I like to refine a picture.
  • It’s hard to see in the web-friendly versions, but for the top two faces I textured the skin by running a dry-brush over it, following the main muscles. This had the side effect of lightening the skin and unifying the colour – and I also used it to exaggerate the saturation in some parts. Next time I’ll try using a sponge instead.
  • I’m a bit less apprehensive of soft-edge, glazy brushes now. This picture made much more use of soft gradations and gentler edges than what I’m normally used to.

June is for concepts and livestreaming

This month will be full of writing, planning and concept work!

Here’s a quick environment painting from imagination. Restricted myself to four tones for use throughout the image. Don’t think I quite got it, so I’ve set up a palette for my next black and white environment sketch that allows for three tones within three separate planes (nine tones total. Nine! I’ll be thoroughly spoilt.)

Also, here’s what that concept work looks like. I’m leaving this character’s weapon mutable, and I’ve left out some of the studies I did to get her to that broad silhouette. Readers of The Thing That Should Not Be might recognise this character…

And here’s a not terribly quick speedpaint. I referenced a shot of BigBang’s Daesung from the Monster music video.

I used to be a reluctant k-pop fan, and then I saw how awesome YG music videos were :B

Technical painting talk: Restricted myself to four tones for the initial value painting, then allowed to play a little bit more once I started laying down the colours. Also the first time I’ve worked from a gamut, which was very exciting! Overall painting took maybe two hours. I need to get back into painting more quickly and more often! I’ve livestreamed most of this painting, which you can find at my livestream channel here. Warning for length, this one clocks in at an hour and a half. I hope to do another livestream soon! 🙂