Experiments and Improvement

A few weeks ago I got my grades back for this semester's painting and illustration modules. I was happy with my grade for illustration but less so for painting, especially since that's what I'm planning on taking next year. Whether or not I continue with imaginary landscapes next semester it is important for me to build my knowledge of real landscapes by working from life and reference images.

It's also important that I try new techniques or I'll end up getting stuck in a routine. I've been really enjoying finger painting recently, you can get some really interesting layers and soft blending. It's also just fun to smear paint around with your hands!

I will be continuing to practice and experiment for the rest of the summer and will hopefully manage to get a better grade next semester!

Update 10/5/20

I have been very busy lately with the submission date for my semester two work coming up. I have painted several more miniatures, including some that deviate a bit from my usual style. I'm not really sure which I like best, I feel like I could take any one of them and develop a whole new project from it, and perhaps I will!

I have also finished my illustrations for The Fox and The Woodcutter. I decided to go with flat colours so as not to distract from the silhouettes of the figure and I'm pleased with how they turned out. Unfortunately my scanner isn't large enough for the A3 illustrations so these images do not to the originals justice.

I'm relieved that I managed to finish all my work before the deadline and now I'm excited to see what I'll create in my third year!

Process(es)

At university I am currently studying two disciplines, painting and illustration. I enjoy bringing my own style to both disciplines and letting them feed off each other, but they require vastly different processes. When painting I can just sit down with a piece of board and my paints and start painting, occasionally trying out a couple of ideas as thumbnails first. In illustration however, it takes weeks of preparation for me to be ready to start on the final piece. I need to read through the source material and decide what is important, to find what is not said and imagine it myself, and then to put an interesting spin on it. And then of course there are characters and settings to design, compositional studies to draw and a colour palette to decide on. I find that when I eventually get to the final piece I put a lot of pressure on myself for it to be perfect because of the amount of time I've already spent working on it. Both the painting and illustration processes can be difficult, one requires spontaneity, the other patience. Trying to do both at the same time has been an interesting balancing act for me, and I admit that I am looking forward to specialising in a single discipline in my third year. I'm excited to throw myself fully into one thing!

A recent painting Some thumbnails for The Fox and The Woodcutter