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More from Kacey
Whoa, messy! ^.^
Yeah, my paintings always start out waaay messy, and then I slowly refine them. Its like cleaning a room. It always gets worse before it gets better.
With the coloring, I also had a plan. I decided to use a dark purplish blue, and cover the whole piece, and then work in lighter with the glowing markings and the lighter parts of the character that reflect the glow...
Using Golden Fluid acrylics, I mixed Ultramarine Blue, Ultramarine Violet, and Bone Black (bone black is a transparent black, you have to layer it a lot to get solid black.)
Using a #12 watercolor brush, I mixed a little water into the paint, and started painting in the lower left corner (where its the darkest). I noticed I was starting to lose my ink lines under all that darkness, and decided to ease up a bit, and water down the color a bit more, to get a more even tone over the piece, just to get rid of all the white space, which is distracting when trying to do complex lighting.
Once the white space was gone, I went in with a mixture of Cobalt Teal, Ultramarine Blue and Titanium white and started painting the markings. I improvised on them, not having a sketch with them drawn on it, but I wasn't going for markings that really exist on a species, so I let myself play and come up with something interesting.
On Lumina's right arm, I started to paint in a glow from the dragon - reflected light that would illuminate her arm, and part of her front. I didn't want her form to become completely lost in the darkness. I painted in the completely wrong color, but I decided I could paint over it as I went and end up with something I was happy with (which I did). Thats a lovely thing about painting with acrylics - its forgiving, so long as you recognize a mistake and paint over it.
One more WIP to go...
Yeah, my paintings always start out waaay messy, and then I slowly refine them. Its like cleaning a room. It always gets worse before it gets better.
With the coloring, I also had a plan. I decided to use a dark purplish blue, and cover the whole piece, and then work in lighter with the glowing markings and the lighter parts of the character that reflect the glow...
Using Golden Fluid acrylics, I mixed Ultramarine Blue, Ultramarine Violet, and Bone Black (bone black is a transparent black, you have to layer it a lot to get solid black.)
Using a #12 watercolor brush, I mixed a little water into the paint, and started painting in the lower left corner (where its the darkest). I noticed I was starting to lose my ink lines under all that darkness, and decided to ease up a bit, and water down the color a bit more, to get a more even tone over the piece, just to get rid of all the white space, which is distracting when trying to do complex lighting.
Once the white space was gone, I went in with a mixture of Cobalt Teal, Ultramarine Blue and Titanium white and started painting the markings. I improvised on them, not having a sketch with them drawn on it, but I wasn't going for markings that really exist on a species, so I let myself play and come up with something interesting.
On Lumina's right arm, I started to paint in a glow from the dragon - reflected light that would illuminate her arm, and part of her front. I didn't want her form to become completely lost in the darkness. I painted in the completely wrong color, but I decided I could paint over it as I went and end up with something I was happy with (which I did). Thats a lovely thing about painting with acrylics - its forgiving, so long as you recognize a mistake and paint over it.
One more WIP to go...
Category Artwork (Traditional) / All
Species Feline (Other)
Size 639 x 800px
File Size 118.8 kB
I use illustration board - which is basically a paper/cardboard. Specifically, I use cold press 300 lb. (or higher) Illustration board. It comes in 30"x40" sheets at art stores, and I have it cut down to various sizes for me to work with. It has more tooth than bristol board, so it doesnt work as well with colored pencils, but I rarely use colored pencils or markers with it anymore. It handles watercolors and acrylics like a dream.
If you tried this with Bristol board or anything lighter, it definitely would warp all to hell. I get mad at myself when I do good pics on bristol, because I cant use a lot of paint on bristol or it warps and buckles.
If you tried this with Bristol board or anything lighter, it definitely would warp all to hell. I get mad at myself when I do good pics on bristol, because I cant use a lot of paint on bristol or it warps and buckles.
Have you ever tried the tape-down method? Buy a sheet of high-quality watercolor paper, transfer the art on it, get it soaking wet, and use special tape to tape it to a heavy wooden board. It dries flat, and all subsequent work on it dries flat. I never cared for illustration board; don't really like how it handles the paint, and the paper can be cut to whatever size I need. All the watercolor pics I've posted recently were done using that method.
I haven't tried that, no - that sounds like a good idea, though... I have worked a bit with printmaking paper - which can get very wet and dry flat - though it goes through the printing press - but I suppose its the same principle. Would artist's tape and something like GatorBoard be appropriate for trying this method?
Exact method i used for this peice:
http://www.furaffinity.net/view/689718/
Arches Bright White cold press watercolor paper, 140 lb
I got a wood board from the local Do-It Center. Not sure exactly what kind, but something thick enough that it won't warp, but with a natural wood surface to soak up water. The board may bend a little after repeated wettings, but mine still owrks okay after a year.
The tape i use, specificly, is "Art Alternatives" 'gummed paper tape', 2 inches wide. A 75 foot roll is only 3 dollars at the local art store.
After I do my drawing, I take the paper into the bathroom and run it under the faucet until it's wet on both sides. Because this is thick paper, it takes a couple minutes to get it thoroughly wet.
I put it, wet, on the board. Then I tear off strips of the paper tape, run them under the water to wet down the gum, and tape the picture down on all four sides. Try to make sure the tape is completely flat. The paper will be warped at this point, but as it dries (I usually let it dry overnight)it should dry as flat and tight as a board. Even if when wet it again while painting,if the tape is intact it will dry flat.
I was shown this method by a professional painter I once worked with at an old job, and it's worked wonderfully.
I was introduced to the joys of masking fluid a little later, which I can also tell you about if you're interested.
http://www.furaffinity.net/view/689718/
Arches Bright White cold press watercolor paper, 140 lb
I got a wood board from the local Do-It Center. Not sure exactly what kind, but something thick enough that it won't warp, but with a natural wood surface to soak up water. The board may bend a little after repeated wettings, but mine still owrks okay after a year.
The tape i use, specificly, is "Art Alternatives" 'gummed paper tape', 2 inches wide. A 75 foot roll is only 3 dollars at the local art store.
After I do my drawing, I take the paper into the bathroom and run it under the faucet until it's wet on both sides. Because this is thick paper, it takes a couple minutes to get it thoroughly wet.
I put it, wet, on the board. Then I tear off strips of the paper tape, run them under the water to wet down the gum, and tape the picture down on all four sides. Try to make sure the tape is completely flat. The paper will be warped at this point, but as it dries (I usually let it dry overnight)it should dry as flat and tight as a board. Even if when wet it again while painting,if the tape is intact it will dry flat.
I was shown this method by a professional painter I once worked with at an old job, and it's worked wonderfully.
I was introduced to the joys of masking fluid a little later, which I can also tell you about if you're interested.
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