a while ago CGTalk had this workshop where they copied this painting of Bouguereau and just made me want to do it too, and I found out about it way too late to enter.

Dante And Virgil In Hell

I actually started this once before, some time last year. I even took the time to make a grid and everything...because I also wanted to learn how to use grids/see why so many people swear by this method. Blah! By the time I get to the fourth square I just gave up :/ and deleted the whole thing. So now I'm starting again - freehand. I guess what works best for some doesn't work for others.

The reason I'm posting this in speedpaint/doodles forum, as opposed to WIP forum, is because I feel that this is just an exercise, not my 'real' artwork. I hope I am going to learn and so far I'm enjoying it Smile

The first hour






an hour afterwards:


to be continued!

Photobucket hates me...enjoy this while it lasts. They'll definitely remove it because it's 'obscene' or something like that. It's not like I posted a tubgirl or goatse pic...sheesh!
EDIT: changed host, thank goodness!

Taking a break from the master copy, I decided to do a speedpainting. However, a speedpainting for me means 3-4 hours. I know, terrible! I don't know when to stop; I just have to go on, and on, and on...until I realize that I spend way too much time than I should on a speedpainting.

I would like to bring to your attention the issue of perception of my characters' gender, though it's more like people are mistaking my men for women, rather than vice versa. I love painting androgynous men, and even though the characteristic features of their gender is always obvious to me, I realise that it may not be so apparent for others. I can't quite blame them, because I often like painting my men with eyeliner, long hair, smooth skin and more delicate features. I am not too bothered, though, because I am loathe to repeat myself and correct every other commentors; 'that's a guy, actually!', and plus nobody wants to hear that thumped into their ears on a regular basis, right? However, the reception of the characters in their context IS going to be influenced by the viewer's perception of the characters' gender, so I'm publishing a little 'guide' on how to differentiate my (I don't claim to speak for others) androgynous men and my (non-androgynous) women. (yes, notice my coherence drop, it's almost four a.m. right now).

There are quite a few distinguishing features:
eyebrows - the men I paint tend to have thicker eyebrows, they are set lower, and the arch, if existent, is not quite as prominent as the female brow.
eyes - men's eyes are a bit narrower than women's, although this may not always be obvious because I tend to paint much more 'ethnic' women than I do 'ethnic' men. They are also set deeper in the sockets.
nose - men's noses are generally bigger and longer in proportions to their faces, and the bridges are much less 'recessed' than women's.
lips - men's lips are usually quite a fair bit thinner than women's, with less prominent 'pout'.
jawline and face shape - men have generally longer faces, stronger and quite a bit heavier-set jawlines, while the women tend to have smaller chins, more rounded faces and softer contours along the jaws.

and here's a compilation of the faces I 've painted, to illustrate my points. click for a bigger picture

first of all, HAPPY happy new year, everyone!

a quickie that is not at all as quick as I'd like:

yes, a part of the picture.. Yep that's a guy, and yep that's the same people from My Dearest, except that I changed the guy's eye colour from autumny green to steely blue. Plus I added eyeliners, because I feel like it and I like boys in eyeliner. ha ha!

it is super vaintastic, but I used myself as reference for the girl. But then again, I also used my own photo as the reference for the girl in My Dearest ..may as well keep it consistent