Making Progess with Magic Box

Here's the next step forward!

Chris gave us some tips via video paint over - very helpful since he used my last piece as an example!! So I went back and reworked it - as seen here - and am feeling even better about it.

I sat in my living room all day and painted my fireplace at different points - morning, mid afternoon, late afternoon and night time. Since my windows/doors face north the lighting didn't change as much as I had hoped. < / But it was still interesting to see the tiny changes in shadows and highlights - especially when that stupid cloud passed over my skylight. ><
Still more work to do!

I think the nighttime one is my favorite. Which one is your favorite? 

Magic Boxer WIP Post

                

I am a pair of mystical men's underwear. ^^

...So I joined Chris Oatley's Magic Box - probably one of the best things I've done since the first time I decided to go to CTNX back in 2011: )

I feel like I've already learned a lot and I've barely started. Evidence to the left...yeah it's digital! Didn't think I could do that, huh? And it's an Interior Study no less!! That is my fireplace! (With Raul's katana and Fu dogs and massive fan...all the pretty Asian things...no wonder I love this guy) There are no people! The lines are disappearing! It's almost dimensional! I didn't even get tired of it half an hour in! I just wanted to keep going! I want to do more of these. o.o WOW.

Chris is an AMAZING teacher. He is well paced for beginners and intermediates, super supportive and inspiring. Everyone else participating has been really great too. I am truly in awe of the fact that I am maybe one week in and I have hope again. Hope that I am not stuck after all. And I understand that I still have a long way to go...that progress may not always come this quick the whole 18 months or be as noticeable...but with hope I am hurdling forwards, not dragging my feet. It feels really good!!

Anyways, I'll have more to post in a little while since I'm focusing on practicing these techniques for the class. Probably more studies - but I'll try to squeeze in a few characters here and there, I need to scan my last Four Beauties piece and finish some Tudor Roses before I launch into research mode for the next set that I dreamed up during the boring commute to ze day job. AND WHO CAN FORGET DENVER COMIC CON COMING UP?? Super psyched for that since Chris will be there!! 8D

Yang Guifei

Still feeling bad about the lapse in posts, so here's another quick one before I call it a night!
The last of the Four Beauties - Yang Guifei - so beautiful that flowers would wither in jealousy.
So yeah, that's it for these guys...or not. I may decide to do one last piece with them. For kicks and giggles. Generally pleased with how they all came out this round. Has been very interesting pushing things here and there, trying out a mix of different references.

For the other three Beauties: Diaochan, Wang Zhaojun, and Xi Shi.

And another shout out to she who inspired this redesign with her own artistic awesomeness: Liana Hee. She is so sweet and so talented. Please check out her blog!!

May...May??

 So I don't know what happened to March and April...the snow storms kind of mushed them together somehow. I moved apartments and started a new job (Still not the dream, but significantly more art involved already and utilizes my IT experience) To make up for lack of posts, here are:
1. Diaochan - Another Ancient Beauty of China, so beautiful that the moon would hide behind the clouds in shame.

2. Lady Jane Seymour - 3/6 of a new set of watercolors I started entitled Tudor Roses. and 3. Lady Catherine of Aragon - 1/6 of the aforementioned set. What can I say...I was re-watching the Tudors as I wait for the next season of Borgias. Both are great shows. Not without their faults, but very entertaining.

So I have one Ancient Beauty left and four more Roses. I may well soon have other projects to post (Now that I have a designated, well-equipped art creation space and a rhythm going I feel I will be very productive in the next few months) and if things go well with the work proposal tomorrow I may also have a whole new set to start posting from that too. YAY!!