This is my submission for the Rust Challenge on The Art Order blog. I kinda went for the concept that although ones body may rust and deteriorate, ones thoughts should still survive. Also you may notice that her rings are supposed to be in the shapes of a sword and a spade, and they are not rusted. I used some acrylic Light Modeling Paste mixed with matte medium to create the texture of the hands and used a great impasto technique that James Gurney highlights in his Imaginative Realism book.
Hey Owen! The textures you got here are pretty neat! How did you like working with the new materials? Easy? Challenging? It certainly adds to the rust texture. I like that you have the rust forming on the tops of her arms - there are some areas where I get a bit hung up, like on her lower left (our left) arm near the elbow, there is a bit of rust that comes down that I think should be in shadow. I also think that perhaps the rust overall could look even more rusty - rust can be all different colors, maybe get some greenish hues in there. The last thing that I'd suggest - when you get up to the woman's head, it gets really flat, and I think there could be more of a gradient of light - either her head is really light, or much more in shadow (eric fortune style). Right now, the color and tone of the head/neck is so similar to the hands, it distracts from the hands and flattens the image somewhat, and also keeps the rose (very nicely painted btw) from standing out as much as it could. These are all things that could surely be played with in photoshop. Overall, I like the concept, and man, you are getting really really good at drawing hands!
ReplyDeleteAs Becca mentioned, those are some nicely painted hands! The muted color palette is pretty nice too. There are a couple things that I think could be worked on or changed....or at least kept in mind for future. First being, the rust is not really reading as rust. To me it's looking a bit more like she has a weird skin condition rather than "look her hands are rusting." So i think if you try some other colors in there like Becca suggested and maybe some gnarly bits...i dunno I'm thinking like old ship hull rust or abandoned propane tank rust...just something a bit more obvious. A second thing that kind bugs me is the flower being shoved right up to her nose. Its a little awkward with her nostrils sitting right on the edge of the rose. Good job giving her head and arms a bit more room at the edges.
ReplyDelete