CrashOctopus Blog

I transferred the drawing to Fredrix Watercolor Canvas just like I transfer things to paper. This is my first time using watercolor canvas, and I will have a thorough review of it later. *grumble*

I didn’t use fixative or masking because I didn’t know how the canvas would handle it. I did a few tests on the back to see how layering would work, but that’s about all I did in preparation. Despite the limited success with layering, I decided to do an underpainting. That would ensure that any “white” space would have some color.

stw4

I used this eerie green because I intend to use it as one of my light sources. Guess which!

Also: Part 1

Thu 20 Aug 2009

Hoppin’ Frog Oatmeal-Imperial Stout

Posted by Meg under Stout
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My sister and her fiancée just moved into town. Woohoo! He used to live near Akron, and brought along this local stout for me. :D From the interestingly-named Hoppin’ Frog Brewery, it was, specifically, the barrel-aged version of their Oatmeal-Imperial Stout.

It’s quite smooth. There’s not much head, but it bubbles some in your mouth. The taste is very sweet, such that I can’t drink it very fast… it’s definitely a sipper. There is a hint of fruit, and you can really taste the whiskey flavor of the barrels in which it was aged. There is a lingering, slightly bitter aftertaste, reminiscent of the aftertaste from a sugary drink (like soda).

Overall, very good and unique! I give it an 8.5.

Fri 14 Aug 2009

The Witch

Posted by Meg under WIP
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I have a list of intricate, storytelling-type paintings that I want to do. It is long. It is ambitious. I haven’t done a painting like that for myself for a year, and it’s long overdue. Fortunately, I’m never short of ideas. Unfortunately, it takes something like a big convention to kick me into gear.

I got the idea for this painting 2 years ago. That seems like a long time, but I’m so busy that these complex ideas never get put to paper right away (like some of the simple ones do). This is a Good Thing. It means that if I still like the idea a month (or 2 years) later, then I know it’s really worth doing. It also gives me a lot of time to think about how to execute it. I’ve found that I really need to know a complex idea inside and out for it to be a well-executed painting. I do a lot of mental planning at odd times – while driving, while walking up the stairs at work, in the shower. When I’m not using my brain for daily cognitive challenges, it tends to drift into the art realm.

When I do one of these paintings, I try to learn and apply a new skill. The first time I tried this, I focused on the skill of storytelling: using the image to answer the questions: who, what, when, where, why, how, and why should anyone care? This led to keeping a journal for each of these complex ideas; I answer all these questions, and describe in writing how I will use art tools to execute them. This is an extremely useful tool to have! The next one, I used compositional elements to draw the eye to the focal point. It worked like magic. Every person I asked told me their eye led them right to the desired focal point. AMAZING.

This time I’m going to focus on quality of edges, on top of those other things I’ve learned. So, here are the first steps – after journaling the “story,” I decided on a 12×12″ format and started doodling thumbnails. I played with focal point placement, perspective, and light/dark contrast. These are really rough but they help a bunch in the process.

witch1

See all the little notes I scribble to myself? They’re ALL OVER EVERYTHING in the planning stages. They help.

Another advantage to having an idea simmer for a long time is doodles. Every once in a while I’d doodle the main character or the scene. When the time comes to do the final drawing, I have several sketches to choose from as a starting point. This was my favorite doodle; the perspective, lighting, and anatomy are all going to be different in the final. But it was one small step along the way that ended up being very helpful in the end.

witch2