I did Kakihara and Ichi from the movie Ichi the Killer. Looking back on it I think my first painting actually got worse as it went, I like the sketch way better than the final product. I'm not much of a painter so layering and mixing colors and such were a little tough for me. Also, I'd kind of either stick to one of the tools or use them arbitrarily, and I think that focusing my use and learning more about the specific uses and benefits of each tool would do me a lot of good. Painter is amazing though, I'll probably go back to it eventually.
These portraits have a nice balance between the thin linework and soft coloring. Sometimes it can be difficult to push away from linework in paintings, but I think the way they are colored, they add a touch of detail in places where they compliment the forms, so I love this gritty style. The texture in the blood is particularly awesome.
ReplyDeleteI can see what you mean in regards to how the painting covered up a lot of your personal style, but it still turned out pretty good. You did a good job with blending colors with the materials so most people wouldn't be the wiser. With both portraits you've got a good grasp on using the program itself- I think just a bit more time would help; in the case of the first portrait it's really just a matter of throwing some more shadows onto the portrait and maybe differentiating the background.
ReplyDeleteWith your second portrait you're really almost there. I'd just finish his upper body, push the 1 further into the background, define the hair and you're done. There's a lot of expression and personality in your portraits that isn't present in a lot of others, Calvin- it really goes a long way. Just get those other finishing details and you've gone the whole 9 yards.
I like how you can see elements of the linework in these. I think your style benefits from keeping a bit of that prominent line. I love the color schemes on both pieces and, like Trina said, the rendering on the blood is super well-done.
ReplyDeleteI like how you left some of the line work in, I think you're able to mix the two together really well to where it benefits the work. It's really interesting to see your progress gif and how you continuously changed the positioning and angles of the face. I think you do a really good job in being able to communicate a sense of emotion through these characters. The only thing I wish was that there was something in the background of the first one to match the "1" in the second portrait.
ReplyDeletei really like both of these but id say the second one is a little better. i dont know if maybe the sketch of the first one captures the likeness of the character better, i havnt seen it, but i still think it came out really nice! i love the idea of his face being cut in half. im glad you added the background to the second otherwise the space above would have been a bit too empty.
ReplyDeleteI really like how you kept up some of your more planar analysis sort of details in the structure of your figures, I know you said you were trying to work away from that but I think it gives your works here a really interesting style when comparing it to the subjects of your portraits. Theres some flat parts in the second portrait that might need some small details in them to make them work into the face better like his eyebrows and the left(?) side of his hair?
ReplyDeleteI definitely think your top piece is the most successful one. I'm glad you have the gif, because it was really interesting to watch the way your figure progressed and completely changed from the sketch. The color palette was also very nice, and contrasted really well with the dark source material.
ReplyDeleteThat second one! You obviously started hitting your stride with this program on it. I'd just watch those brushstrokes at the bottom which really pull attention to themselves from the rest of the piece.
ReplyDeleteI know you arent satisfied with how these turned out, but i really love them. I think its important to point out that you didn't use a direct reference photo for either of them, which I think actually worked to your advantage. Alot of your illustrative style came through in these. I think the fact that you are hesitant with the final product just shows that you are more appreciative of line work as a personal preference rather than painterly styles.
ReplyDeleteI think theyre both great, and you had a really good grasp on color palette as well. I think you did a really great job painting the facial features in your second portrait, which i know you said you struggled with in your first. The one critique I have is that the fade out at the bottom of your second one could maybe use some variation in texture or blending, or maybe some more subtlety? It just looks a little harsh to me. Both of these are really creative and well rendered though and i think you should be really proud of them
(I used a reference for the second one but I won't tell)
DeleteThere are a lot of really great things happening in these - first of all, I think in the top one your process really shows how the final was created, and it is helpful for me to see what happened throughout the process. I think there was something really nice about the middle stages of that one that you could bring back. My suggestion is, maybe always, to work while zoomed out pretty far at first, just to get all of your big, broad colors/ shapes/ planes and all that locked in, and THEN move in with the small brushes. It looks a little bit (in both) that you were really searching out to find the sketch that was buried under the pieces with small marks. So! I think that if you wanted to feel a bit more confident, here's what I'd do! I'd put your sketch layer on top -- actually turn it down to a very light opacity, that way you don't have to paint ON it, it'll just sort of show through as you're painting beneath it. That way you won't lose it, and you can still go back and accentuate any of the edges or shapes that you want to show back up. The next thing I'd do is keep flipping it -- like, flip the canvas so you can see it backward, and when you do that it'll really show you where to accentuate the planes. Finally, youre really great at detail - and you always have been - I'd just add the details on top and it'll feel a lot more organic. That way you can turn off the sketch and just play with it. It'll feel much more like the sketch that you did in the beginning (which was also really nice!) I think you should totally keep going with this medium! It'll be really cool to see how you use it next time :)
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