Work In Progress: "The Dogs of War"
I started working on a manatee-themed piece earlier this week but I am not entirely sure if it's going in the direction I want it to, so I decided to leave off on it and either come back to it later or start another one. But before I do that, I was inspired to create the following artwork while driving down to Arlington National Cemetery this past Thursday to attend the military funeral of a friend of mine's 23-year-old son, killed on his first tour in Afghanistan last month. So I started sketching this yesterday and worked on it some more today.
"The Dogs of War"
In Progress Artwork
Ink on Fabriano watercolor paper
22 x 30 inches
"The Dogs of War"
In Progress Artwork
Ink on Fabriano watercolor paper
22 x 30 inches
Some video:
Comments
I draw myself but usually just for myself. I would like to draw more animals but end up drawing birds all the time. I love birds but i would like to start drawing other animals. How do you prepare yourself for a new drawing? Do you draw as you go or plan them ahead of time?
I normally don't color my drawings and it is a shame but i just have such a hard time choosing what colors. Any ideas on how i can go about this?
I don't think i am a good colorist and i don't want to mess up my drawings. I am just not confident or bold.
I am of Mayan descent and would like to draw an animal inspired drawing on that. I wish to paint it but i am also not too good with backgrounds. I see in yours their are shapes and it looks like a good idea so i might go with that.
You have a nice gallery.
1) how long stuff takes depends on the technique and how large the painting is. I have some works that are quite small, but employ a certain technique that takes a certain amount of time while another larger painting may take less time because it uses a different technique. "Dogs of War" took about six days to complete though. I am not sure how many hours because I didn't keep track of that.
2) As for preparing for a work: sometimes I do research, if I am going to create a piece based on a certain myth or I want to get ideas on the symbolism behind certain animals. I will usually also take a look at many photographs of the animal, and / or videos. Or if I am drawing a person I try and get someone to pose for me or else I may use parts of my body in a mirror to look at to see how the angle of the arm should go or something. But, yes, usually I do plan the drawing ahead of time. Not all of it, but the basic sketch / composition I do work out first. The details I work on as I go, and I usually make color choices as I go as well.
3) Colors: Research color theory (complimentary colors, cool colors, warm colors etc) and also check out color combinations in nature - you usualy can't go wrong with that.
4. Confidence comes with practice. Practice a lot and you will become more experienced and as you gain experience you will gain confidence.
5. You should definitely follow your heart. And be OK with not everything coming out exactly as you want it to. If you draw or paint every day, eventually, even your "lesser" works will be miles ahead of what your "best" works were from a few years ago. Just be patient and persistent. And have fun :)
Good luck and thanks again for writing.